Johanna's adventure (Canterbury) Traditional Cache
status quo: No response from owner. If you wish to repair/replace the cache sometime in the future, just contact us (by email), and assuming it meets the current guidelines, we'll be happy to unarchive it.
Johanna's adventure (Canterbury)
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Difficulty:
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Terrain:
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Size: 
(regular)
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Challenging hike on the Top of Mt Dumblen with two way's of return in alpine terrain.
This Cache is on the top of Mt Dumblen, who is supposed to be dad of Mt Isobell, the famous one behind Hanmer Springs village and he is slightly higher than his daughter. There is another daughter around called Mt Karen. Not sure what happened to mom. Anyway it's quite a walk to get there und you start early in the morning and prepare really good for it. there is no D.O.C. maintained track at all, so be aware that you proceed on your own navigation and risk. For most people it’s not suitable to do in winter!
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I recommend as essentials to take.
-GPS (of course) with
-full batteries and spare Batteries
-a topo 50 Map of the area
-rain gear
-tramping boots to wear
-plenty of food and water
-sunscreen
-cellphone
-waterproof bags for your electronics
-no medical conditons and a decent level of fitness and mountain expierence
- maybe tramping poles
- long lasting torch
I also recommend to tell somebody about your intensions and to walk in company.
Therefore you will get a
challenging hillclimb
cache success on the Top
stunning views of Hanmer springs, the Hanmer plains, Molesworth, and far away the Lewispass mountains
A challenging way down
I also recommend to get on top of jacks pass by car and start walking there.
If you are on Jackspass you had West, that's to your left the way you drove up from Hanmer- Have an eye for some yellow markings. They were made by
some tramping keen locals from Hanmer. but they will mark only the first hundreds meters to show the direction. When they stopp you should basically make your way
on the ridge, heading quite directly towards the cache location. The cache container it's self is regular size and not hard to find. On the way back
you've got possibilities.
1. You can go the way you came, which should be easy, and which will lead you back to car as well.
2. You go down through bushland, heading for Logging tracks. For this one you need to go a bit back and follow the clear ridge. Heading for Mount Benvoirlich. and than head for the logging track
which would came out approx here: S 42.51204° E 172.77721°
Than you walk east on the track to get back to hanmer Springs and to sort your car out. Attention, Between Mt Benvoirlich and the track is really thick bushland with quite nasty plants and going is really slow and hard.
I only recommend to go way no.2 if you know what your doing and a NZ-Topo map with the logging trackings in is a good thing to have. If you go that way start early, is it might take a while and only go down when you the weather is good and you can see the ridge leading down from the Top.
BECAUSE:
The day I put the cache on the top of that Mountain, me and my friend Johanna, who I met by couchsurfing the day before got kind of lost, as we decided to go down way No.2, althrough it was raining and we were in the clouds on top. As we didn't see the ridge, we decided to go the grow fly as we needed to go down anyway. That led us into some really step sections were we had to return because of steepness and it still included some rock climbing. Good luck that there was Mt Benvoirlich on the GPS map and the logging tracks. Anyway it took too long to get there and the thick bushland didn't help to get back in daylight as well with was on until 10pm. So not being 100% serious I told my workmates, if I am not back till ten to call for somebody. So they did. And search and rescue went out looking for us. As I txted where we were, they got an idea where we might come out, as the cell phone died later by the solid rain we had from 1pm. and we have been happy to get a lift back till town at 1.30am in the morning. They told us, if we hadn't been there, they would have gone to bed and send out the helicopter the next day. We were lucky that we brought a little torch and that the GPS survived all that long time (we started walking at 10am!)The french girl was totally exhausted for the day, but expierenced it as a big adventure the other day. We didn’t get lost, but very late. Please be very careful!
This all happened in Feb 2010. Since than the treasure is sitting there. I wasn’t sure to activate it or not, but it is an awesome place to go!
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
1 - Abg ba gur uvtugrfg cbvag
2 - orgjrra fgbarf va n zvav pnir
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