Cache series overview:
This cache forms part of The Mill Stream series (7 caches in total). The golden thread in the series is the fact that you will have to get wet to retrieve the caches - to a lesser or greater degree. It should therefore be more fun to retrieve in Summer. In order to aid in planning your cache trip, use the Mill Stream Wetness (MSW) scale below.
The Mill Stream (MS) runs through the town of Stellenbosch and covers a distance of approximately 4.4 km (from first to last cache; as the water flows).
These are the 7 caches in the series:
In addition, you may be interested to also do these two caches along the MS which do not form part of this series (while you're at it):
MSW rating: 2/5 (hands and feet only)
GZ marks where the Mill Stream (MS) gets its water from: a sump in the Eerste Rivier just above the weir and the famous "hangbrug" (suspension bridge). The sump is placed such to ensure that the MS will have a constant flow of water during all seasons. The volume of water in the MS is slightly larger during Winter when the river swells and hence adds more water pressure on the sump. From here the water is gravity fed (underground pipeline of about 600m) to the place where the stream actually starts and which marks GZ for the second cache in the series.
Stealth is required when retrieving the cache since the spot is popular with runners, swimmers, cyclists, students, picnickers etc.
Container: waterproof micro inside lock-n-lock. Please bring own pen.
History (cache specific):
"The Sump" is at the opposite end of the Mill Stream compared to "The Dump" (last cache in series). This is the modern-day start of the MS - the historical origin is marked by the position of the second cache in the series. The gravity feed system is a low-cost, self-sustaining mechanism that ensures the MS retains its attraction all year round, albeit not serving any practical purpose anymore.
The installation of the sump and pipeline dates back to the 1960's (TBC). Water from the same sump is pumped slightly uphill (see small white building next to river) so that it can flow down to the watering furrows in the nearby Mostertsdrift neighborhood for their "leibeurte".
History (MS general):
(If you have expert knowledge on the subject, please send me a PM and I will happily expand the text below. In stead of brooding any longer on historic research I decided to rather get the caches out and refine the text over time)
The Mill Stream (MS) or “Het Molenwater” dates back about 320 years to the time when commander Simon van der Stel (first governor of the Cape Colony) first arrived in this area and coupled to his name the bush ("Wild Bosch") that dotted the banks of the now famous village river – hence Stellenbosch (or “Het bosje Van der Stel” as commissioner Van Rheede referred to it during his visit to the little town in 1685)!
In 1687 permission is for the first time granted to erect a “Water Koringmolen” (wheat mill), to be leased to the highest bidder each harvest season. The first mill was probably established on the farm Oude Molen and survived in dilapidated form until about 1916 (the
sixth cache in the series is located at this spot).
The second mill was built not long after the first, at the top of “De Wagen weg naar de Kaap” – today called Dorp Street. Given its close proximity to the river it did not get its water from the MS.
The third mill came into being in 1749 (the
fifth cache in the series is located at this spot) and Jan Willem Palm became the first private owner in 1804. He spent a lot of effort to reconstruct large parts of the MS with river rocks and cement, to improve the flow of water; and so the MS became the first water scheme for the town. Pipes were first introduced in 1852 to relay the water to different parts of the town. Only the fourth water scheme (1910) sourced water directly from the river (iso the MS) to address the water needs of the population of 5,000.
The mill(s) were powered by the MS water over the centuries; later with oil during the summer months when water was in short supply; and from 1956 with electricity only.