Walkways of Otago: Leishman Falls Ridge Traditional Geocache
Walkways of Otago: Leishman Falls Ridge
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Difficulty:
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Terrain:
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Size: 
(large)
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This 5L cache is located at the top of the ridge above the relatively unknown Leishman Falls in the Silverstream/Whare Flat area.
Access to this cache is to park 100m past the end of the tar seal on Whare Flat Road, see the additional waypoint below for the start of the track. The track starts next to the Department of Conservation sign for Powder Keg Trig track on the side of the road.
You need to cross onto the western side of the old fence about 20 metres up from the road towards the creek - you follow the creek for a bit before climbing up the hill. Along the way you can do the Leishman Falls cache before going up the steep ridge.
Walking times to this cache can vary between an hour if your fit and 2 hours if your not. The track up the ridge to the cache follows a very narrow ridge (it is a razorback ridge in places with steep drops on either side) and you have to use a rope handhold to get up the first steep bit of the ridge from the falls. You climb about 400m from the road to the cache as can be seen in the elevation graph
The cache is a 5L jam bucket, camo painted and hidden in the brush. Watch out for Bush Lawyer when searching for the cache.
When placed the cache contained along with a logbook and pencils; a small camo cache container, a glass globe, various other trades and a couple of travel bugs.
More details about this track can be found in the book "Dunedin Tracks and Trails" by Anthony Hamel available from the library.
**** CAUTION ****
This track is more of a route, while well formed in places it does occasionally disappear under the brush. There are bits of fabric tied to the trees along the route - I suggest taking your own brightly colored fabric or plastic ties to mark your route. Ensuring your GPS is marking the track is also a good idea.
The Flagstaff - Swampy area futher around the ridge is known for its extreme weather conditions. Heavy fog can roll in on a sunny day with no clouds in the sky in as little as 15 minutes.
Appropriate precautions need to be taken when entering this reserve.
* Take adequate warm clothing (even on hot days), food and water (sunny days can dehydrate you incredibly fast and the tops have no palatable water sources at all).
* Always tell someone where you are going and estimated time of arrival home.
* There are some very steep drop offs on either side of the cache so be careful of where you place your foot.
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
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