The town of Springton is a sleepy hamlet in the hills, east of the Barossa Ranges and north west of Adelaide; Springton is renowned for two very different beverages – milk and wine. The high rainfall produces lush green pastures and dairy farming has been the backbone of the region’s economy since the 1850s. Herds of Holstein-Fresian cows are still run on the land today. The rich soil and elevated position, is also excellent for viticulture; with white varieties, in particular, gaining an outstanding reputation. Modern vignerons in the region are among the Barossa’s most adventurous and are keenly experimenting with Viognier and other lesser-known varietals.
Intersperse your exploration of local wines with visits to the Herbig Family Tree. It is a huge, old hollow gum tree, which was the first home of the Herbig family. Visit the historic Friedensberg Church, with its fascinating pioneer cemetery.
The cache is one of what is to be a series of Springton caches, designed to celebrate the town’s 150th centenary in 2014.
The geozone is at an outcrop of rocks on Cookes Hill Road. The outcrop is a granite mass which marks the site where Springton residents picnicked nearby many years ago. There are many such granite formations dotted across the hills around Springton and no doubt made life difficult for farmers. Also, the Lavender Federation Trail goes past this site. The Trail is from the banks of the Murray River at Murray Bridge through the wine growing region of the Barossa and beyond to Truro in South Australia.
The cache is located on the road side of the fence and it is not necessary to trespass onto private property to access the find. You are looking for a black container which has a few swappable items for children, and a pencil. It is probably wise to bring your own scribble stick for the log book, pencils being what they are.
The road is good all weather gravel and should be accessible to two wheel drive vehicles in all seasons.