The Secret Sand Sausage Slasher of St Clair Otago Multi-cache
U.N.C.L.E.: Unfortunately will have to archive this. Conditions have changed on the beach to the point that the waypoint can't be reached. Have removed the cache and will remove the waypoint if/when beach conditions change and it can be reached again.
The Secret Sand Sausage Slasher of St Clair Otago
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Difficulty:
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Terrain:
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Size: 
(regular)
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An offset cache. Waypoint is at published co-ords. It will supply the co-ords for the final cache. If you visit the waypoint at high tide you WILL get wet.
The waypoint is in a hostile environment so is wedged in tightly. You may want to take a tool with you to help with extraction. A long bladed screwdriver or similar would be ideal. Please wedge back tightly into its hiding place. The final is a black 1.7 litre snaplock.
Beneath the sand on the nearby bank is a terrace constructed of "Sand Sausages". These are large geotextile tubes filled with sand. They were installed in 2004 in a bid to halt the erosion of the sand dunes along this stretch of beach.
In 2006 they were uncovered by the sand scouring effect of storms. In July 2007 someone slashed a significant length of the sausages, thereby rendering them almost useless. It was a mindless act of vandalism that will cost the city of Dunedin hundreds of thousands (if not millions) of dollars to repair. So significant was this act that, in an unprecedented move, the city council offered a reward for information leading to the conviction of the offender. At the time of placing the cache no arrest has been made.
A 24/7 operation had to be mounted to truck in sand so that the sausages could be covered and secured before a storm hit. There was a very real fear that a severe storm could cause so much damage to the sandhills that the houses on the other side would be in danger.
I moved to St Clair in 1983. Back then, the beach was actually not visible from the walking track because of the substantial dunes that separated them. Where have the dunes gone? Why have they gone?
Many theories exist. Some say it is climate change linked to global warming and that the coast here is experiencing increasingly severe storms on a regular basis. Others say that the new seawall at the Esplanade has altered the behaviour of the waves as they come ashore. Yet others believe that hydro-electric dams on the Clutha River have stopped the flow of sand from the mountains to the sea, where it would replenish the beaches along the Otago coast. Whatever the explanation, it seems that human activity is the ultimate reason.
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
[Waypoint] Gur boivbhf
[Final] N cynag pnpuref ungr