The Great Fish River Traditional Cache
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Difficulty:
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Terrain:
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Size: 
(micro)
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This is a fairly easy 'road-side' cache just off the N2. Please note how the cache is placed and return it in exactly the same way.
BEWARE THIS IS A HIGH MUGGLE AREA AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE TAKE CARE.
The Great Fish River (called great to distinguish from the Namibian Fish River) is a river running 644 kilometres through the province of the Eastern Cape, it originates east of Graaff-Reinet and runs through Cradock, just south of this the Tarka River joins it. It then makes a zig-zag turn to Cookhouse, from where it meanders before its final near-straight run to its estuary just west of the Fish River Sun Hotel. The river naturally runs all year round, although its headwaters rise in an arid region, and the natural flow could well be sluggish in the dry season beyond the ebb and flow of the tidal reaches. The river is tidal for approximately 20 km.
In the 1970s, a major water project brought Orange River water, via the Fish River, for agricultural and industrial use. The tunnel for this was a major engineering undertaking, with the intake at Oviston (an acronym, in Afrikaans, for Orange-Fish Tunnel). Oviston is on the shores of the Gariep Dam. Hence, water from the Orange River system can be used to keep up its flow in dry periods. Mixing of waters from two watersheds has been environmentally disastrous - much of the Fish River ecosystem is now taken over by Orange River flora and fauna.
A hydro-electric generating plant is placed at the Fish River egress, but is uneconomic and is not in use. There are two dams on the river, the Egerton Dam and the Elandsdrift Dam.
At the cache site is also a popular fishing spot along the riverbanks, with some huge Congo eels having been landed.
Source:
Wikipedia
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
Haqre gur ynetrfg ebpx arne gur gbc.
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