The cache location overlooks the Expedition Pass Reservoir and remembers passage of Major Thomas Michell through the location during his Australia Felix Expedition of 1836. The cache contains three photos showing the place in 1878, 1895 and 1945 plus a sketch of Mitchell with a short bio.
The old log is in a zip lock plastic bag in the bottom of the container. The cache is located not far from where the 1878 photo was taken. These photos present a fascinating reminder of the impact that gold mining had on the area and the power that the bush has for regeneration.
You will be looking for a 1 litre sistema container. Please take care in replacing the container, and that it is well covered in its hidey hole.
After you have found the cache take some time to enjoy the lovely surroundings of the res. If the weather hot, you might refresh yourself with a swim.
The following text is included on Parks Victoria's information sign at Expedition Pass Reservoir:
Forest Creek flows from the granite slopes of Mount Alexander, Leanganock, through Expedition Pass Reservoir, towards Chewton then west to Castlemaine. The creek joins with Barkers Creek to form Campbells Creek which flows into the Loddon River at Guildord.
Expedition Pass Reservoir sits below the 'ravine' named by Major Mitchell on his Australia Felix expedition in 1836. In 1851, Forest Creek became the site of a major gold strike and many thousands of prospectors would have accessed the valley through this pass.
The reservoir was completed in 1868. It was filled from the surrounding hills but also fed from the newly constructed Malmsbury-Bendigo water race.
It supplied water locally for only four years (1870 - 1874) when silting reduced capacity so severely that an alternate supply to Chewton and Castlemaine was secured with connection from the Coliban Main Channel.
The reservoir remained intact, a picturesque oasis increasingly used for recreational pursuits, including angling and boating.
In 1994, Coliban Water considered that the water held in Expedition Pass Reservoir was superfluous to requirements and intended to decommission the reservoir, with one option being to breach the wall and release the water. Eventually management was taken over by Mount Alexander Shire. Works undertaken by Coliban Water prior to the handover included the spillway being lowered to reduce capacity to accommodate 1 in 100 year floods, and the widening and strengthening of the dam wall.
In 2002 the Reservoir was included in the Castlemaine Diggings National Heritage Park and is now managed by Parks Victoria.