But then there were another set of Lab caches in the airport itself so even when we got there we still had things to do…

1st March 2020 – Emmas vierter Geocache GC862DY – cache #5216
The first cache of the day was another cache by our train station – we had done Emma’s second cache on Friday evening and this was Emma’s fourth… not sure what happened to her first and third, but if they still existed they weren’t near the station. The cache was up the embankment, so we let Matthew fight the vegetation and get it

1st March 2020 – Goodbye Little Louis GC8D2A0 – cache #5217
The Mega farewell event, held at a coffee bar, and well attended – I don’t think the staff were really expecting that many people all at once !

1st March 2020 – Hofgarten / Χόφγκαρτεν GC7B6ER – cache #5218
A virtual cache with a puzzle and a webcam element – There was a trick to the cache – and that was being told the secret beforehand so you didn’t waste your time going round in circles !

1st March 2020 – Augensausen II GC12B7W – cache #5219
A magic Eye puzzle gives you bearing and distance for the offset to find the cache – my eyesight is such that I have no trouble defocusing them to see the magic eye pictures.
However my abilities weren’t needed as matthew had already worked out the location so we went straight there.

1st March 2020 – Verwitterung am Beispiel antiker Gebäudereste GC5JZ18 – cache #5220
An earthcache based around the Roman remains found in a church crypt

1st March 2020 – Paläographie Mittelalter GC7GEAD – cache #5221
A weird one this, we didn’t solve this puzzle at all, never even looked at it, Sam & Zoe had randomly seen some cachers finding this cache the day before and so they ahd signed the log book, and later told us where it was – So an easy find for us !

1st March 2020 – BTHVN Story Lab Cache – Rheinufer – cache #5222
The last of the BTHVN story Lab caches… took us three days to do all 10 !

1st March 2020 – Save the world GC7E49C – cache #5223
The last event of the weekend was the CITO held in the Freizheitpark just outside Bonn, we got the tram down to the park, then saw a Chinese Restaurant opposite so decided lunch was in order… the Chinese wasn’t very busy – obviously they are usually busier than this or there would be no point opening – maybe the corona virus fear putting people off anything Chinese ? Well it was good food anyway !

The cache was on the signpost at the park entrance, no problem finding it as we saw the previous finders putting it back

1st March 2020 – Little Louis räumt auf GC8JRQQ – cache #5224
The CITO – by the time we got across from the Chinese Restaurant there
were dozens of cachers about and a big pile of orange rubbish bags – so we just signed in and called it done !

And we got another Souvenir for attending the CITO

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1st March 2020 – Rheinaue Bonn Lab cache – Spoonforest/Löffelwald – cache #5225
There were a set of Lab Caches in the park, this was the first one

1st March 2020 – ?? – Der Ponyfish- Rheinauencache – von (2011) GC37NV3 – cache #5226
And some normal caches in the park as well – curiously enough the finders before us were English and the finders after us who we handed the box over to were also over from England…

1st March 2020 – Rheinaue Bonn Lab cache – Sundial/Sonnenuhr – cache #5227
Another lab cache which Sam and I went to get the answer for while the rest of the party headed for the next cache

1st March 2020 – Bismarckturm Gronau GCTYSD – cache #5228
The next cache – not very obvious where it is hidden is it ?

1st March 2020 – Rheinaue Bonn Lab cache – Redwood Tree/Mammutbaum – cache #5229
A slice from a 750 year old tree presented by Barbara Bush

1st March 2020 – Rheinaue Bonn Lab cache – Garden of the Blind/Blindengarten – cache #5230
The well fondled statue in the sensory garden

1st March 2020 – Rheinaue Bonn Lab cache – Japanese garden/Japanischer Garten – cache #5231
The last of the lab caches

1st March 2020 – Drachenfels GC8EX8W – cache #5232
Then we got the tram along to a little town on the far side of the river, where there is a steep hill which has a very old rack railway up to the top, and so we went on the train up the hill and then walked down the steeper footpath on the other side of the hill until we got to this cache

1st March 2020 – The Eye of the Dragon GC5932 – cache #5233
The hill is called Drachenfels – the hill of the dragon… so after we had found the previous cache we climbed back up the steep path and went right up to the top of the hill where there is the ruins of Drachenfels castle, and a Virtual cache – we think the eye must be the only remaining window aperture

1st March 2020 – Drachenfels (Earthcache) GC29B69 – cache #5234
There is also an earth cache at the top of the hill

1st March 2020 – . GC2HPXC – cache #5235
It was now time to head to the airport, which conveniently is on the train route to Cologne, so we went back to the central station, retrieved our bags from the left luggage lockers and headed off to find a train going the right way.
Just by the station was this cache… the last ‘proper’ cache of our German trip

1st March 2020 – Koln Bonn Airport Lab Cache #1 – cache #5236
Airbus A300 Zero G
At the airport were a set of Lab caches, the airport is an absolute warren 5 floors tall and many corridors and passageways… it also wasn’t very open late on a Sunday evening.
The first labcache was outside the terminal at this retired plane, which was used as a Zero G laboratory

1st March 2020 – Koln Bonn Airport Lab Cache #2 – cache #5237
Gebetsraum / Prayer room

1st March 2020 – Koln Bonn Airport Lab Cache #3 – cache #5238
Berühmte Persönlichkeit / VIP

1st March 2020 – Koln Bonn Airport Lab Cache #4 – cache #5239
Besucherterrasse / Visitor’s Terrace
The actual visitors terrace that is referred to in the cache description was closed and locked off – however there were 3 floors of visitors terracing so we did get onto 2 of tehm – and as Sam and Zoe had done the caches when they arrived the previous day we had the answers….

1st March 2020 – Koln Bonn Airport Lab Cache #5 Banhof / Railway Station – cache #5240
Last of the caches – we walked just a mile around the airport doing these lab caches…

And that was it for our trip to the Bonn Mega.