THE CACHE
The original Big Cache was cleaned up by a beach clean team when the sign was removed and the area cleaned up. There was a photo in the local paper of the trailer full of rubbish they collected. Its now a stealthy cache that may stump a lot of people expecting an easy find. Its in exactly the same spot as before. PLease replace the cache fully to maintain its camo.
Te Henga or Bethells Beach is a beautiful balck sand beach in the Waitakere Ranges well worth a visit. Here you will also find, behind the sand dunes, Lake Wainamu - a popular swimming alternative to the rough west coast beaches.
The name “Te Henga” was originally used for the beach area. It refers to what the fore dunes look like when you are out at sea. When paddling up the coast Te Henga looks quite different from the other beaches. The shape of the dunes were said to resemble an upturned waka. The word “Henga” refers to the top side boards or gunwale of a waka.
The sand dunes have accumulated in several phases over the last 4,500 years. This accumulation has occurred since sea levels returned to about their present levels following the last glaciation 6,500 years ago. These sands contain quantities of black titanomagnetite derived from the volcanic rocks of Taranaki and carried north by coastal currents. The dunes continually move in a dynamic coastal process. There are three dune-impounded lakes: Lake Wainamu, Lake Kawaupaka and Lake Waiataru.
