1st Overlanders Traditional Cache
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Difficulty:
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Terrain:
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Size: 
(small)
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Joseph Hawdon and Charles Bonney undertook the 2nd Great Overland
droving trip in Australian history in 1838 aiming to drove stock
from Country NSW (just west of Albury) to the new SA capital
Adelaide. The 1st such droving trip occurred in 1836 when Hawdan
drove stock from country NSW to Melbourne. As such these men where
pioneers, aiming to provide the new settlement of Adelaide, which
consisted of "tents and rough huts", with stock for sustenance and
trade.
It was at this site (or just around a short distance) that near
sunset on the 12th March 1838 after droving West all day "through
thick bush of Eucalyptus bushes about 10 feet high" Hawdon and
Bonney stumbled upon a vast body of water on which they encamped.
They estimated the Lake circumference at about 15 miles on which
were numerous Native camps with fires burning. Later Hawdon had the
chance to count up the natives residing close to their camp as they
approached his camp and arrived at 163 of which most where women
and children with a mere 30 (at most) able bodied men as the rest
were away fighting to the North.
Hawdon described the Lake as having "rather sweet water, though not
unpleasently so" with plenty of bird life including ducks "which
were seen on the water in their thousands". The Native name for the
Lake is Nookamka however Hawdon states in his diary that "in virtue
of my privilege as its first European discoverer, I named it Lake
Bonney, after my friend and fellow traveller Mr. M.C. Bonney, whose
company contributed so much to the pleasure of my expedition".
Today there are no Native camps, very few ducks, swans and other
bird and wildlife that the early pioneers experienced but what a
welcome and magnificent sight the Lake must have been on that 12th
day of March in 1838. Perhaps on approaching this cache on foot you
can imagine (as the early explorer seen) the fires burning, smell
the smoke, hear the native chatter, the bird life on the Lake and
image what it would have been like some 170 years
ago.........
The cache is a small, black, plastic screw top container...
recommended access is via a small park about 80m south of GZ or
alternatively by pulling of the sealed road about 30m adjacent to
GZ.
info source:- Kain, K.K 1991 'The First Overlanders, Hawdon and
Bonney', Gould Books, Ridgehaven, SA.
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
nobir jnvfg yriry