RBT #4 - Ruakaka River Bay (Northland) Traditional Cache
RBT #4 - Ruakaka River Bay (Northland)
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Difficulty:
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Terrain:
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Size: 
(small)
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Lets go EXPLORING!!
The Ruakaka Beach Trail will take about 2 hours of sand dune, low scrub and beach walking. I suggest starting with RBT #1 (near the Race course) and follow your gps, visiting the other caches along the way, then returning via the beach for an easy finish. The cache trail does follow an overgrown trail which we found when placing this series of caches. The caches # 3-5 are within the Ruakaka Wildlife refuge so no dogs or vehicles past the signs please.
The Ruakaka River Estuary is a remarkable place. Many plants and animals are specially designed to live in estuaries, making them unique wildlife areas. For thousands of years the estuary at Ruakaka has supported a diversity of wildlife including many shorebirds that have made the area their home.
The Ruakaka estuary is a favoured spot for Bar-tailed godwits and Lesser knots at peak spring tides because it offers a safe, dry roosting (resting) area when other sites in the Whangarei Harbour are flooded. Lesser knots, Australasian gannets and the elegant white-fronted tern can also fly great distances to feed and rest at the Ruakaka estuary while other birds found here are unique to New Zealand. Some, such as the New Zealand dotterel, are now threatened and likely to become extinct without our care. The significance of the Ruakaka estuary to birdlife was recognised some 50 years ago when it was made into a Wildlife Refuge.
Please take care not to disturb any birds and no dogs or vehicles are allowed at any time. You will need to approach the estuary briefly for easier access to this cache only so please use common sense and don't disturb any birds. Otherwise you'll be in for a bit of gorse bashing if you decide to take the direct (GPS) route! You have been warned!!!
Park by the Ruakaka racecourse and walk in.
Cache, when placed contained a log, pencil and treasure (for the junior cachers). Please make sure this cache is returned securely to its hiding place.
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
Gval Gv Gerr
Treasures
You'll collect a digital Treasure from one of these collections when you find and log this geocache:
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