I went for an overnighter to Totara Flats Hut with a couple of other local cachers, including a four legged cacher. It is a DOC hut which has 26 mattresses in two rooms in a bunks set up. Our night there were 48 folk staying there! Bring a mat - you may end up sleeping on the floor.
On the way to the hut we passed a really intersting arrangement of trees where it looks like there are five trees growing out of one root system. I think it may be Beech Trees, however will be corrected by other cachers that know more than me. One of the group said they reminded her of the Ents in Lord of the Rings, so it seemed a logical spot for a cache.
Cache is a 250ml bottle with a pill container and a few pages of rite-in-the-rain paper. Please bring your own pen.
Cache is in an above ground cavern among the Ents, furthest tree from the track.
Update 20 Jan 2018. Rerouted track
The track has been moved in order to avoid a potentially dangerous bluff south of the cache (Waiohine carpark end with the long swingbridge). The new stretch of track is about 400m long, so this cache is no longer on the main track. It is still accessible safely from the junction of the northern end of the new track and old track, nearby the cache "GC4YHEZ - Onward or Upward?". About 30-40m south of the sign at the junction to Cone Hut (upward) and Totara Flats Hut (onward) you will be at the (closed) junction of the old track. I have posted two photos on the cache page below to help you identify the location of the junction, opposite an orange track marker. Thanks to CartertoniC for showing the way in the photo.
The diversion will add about 15-20 minutes to your trip as you head 200m to the cache and then double back. I STRONGLY recommend you do NOT use the old track south of the cache back to where it meets the new track - this is potentially dangerous and therefore why the track was re-routed. I have increased the Terrain rating by half a point to recognise this is a diversion and will add to your time.
