In 1854 gold was discovered at Mount Tarrengower which lead to the birth of the township of Maldon. After the residents petitioned for a railway line to the town, the railway line from Castlemaine to Maldon was constructed and opened in 1884. Several years later the railway was extended from Maldon to Shelbourne, with this section opening in 1891. Due to the proximity of Maldon station to Mount Tarrengower, the railway could not be extended from the station and a junction was created approximately 1km on the Castlemaine side of Maldon. The junction was originally named Laanecoorie Junction but was renamed to Shelbourne Junction at a later date (the final two caches in the series reveal the reason for this). This junction arrangement made Maldon one of the only stations in Victoria where trains had to change directions before continuing to their destination. The junction at Castlemaine for the railway to Maldon was of a similar arrangement. In order for a train to travel from Melbourne to Shelbourne, the locomotive had to run around the train at both Castlemaine and Maldon, adding a significant amount of extra time to the journey!
Both the Maldon and Shelbourne lines were built to 'light line' standards - 1 in 40 grades, sharp curves and 60 lb./yard rail. The Shelbourne line only had one intermediate station. Originally named Bradford, the name was changed to Pollard in the early 20th century. Pollard station had no sidings, so any wagons that needed unloading at the station had to be left on the mainline. This resulted in some very unusual workings between Pollard and Shelbourne. Wagons to be left at Pollard were attached behind the guards van at Shelbourne and dropped at Pollard; the next train to Shelbourne would attach the wagons to the front of the locomotive and propel them to Shelbourne (with the locomotive sandwiched between the wagon/s and the rest of the train!). The wagons would then be incorporated into the return train's consist and eventually reach Melbourne or wherever they were destined.
Originally, one mixed train (goods train with passenger carriages included) per day served the Shelbourne line. Around 1924 this was reduced to a thrice-weekly mixed. All passenger services were withdrawn during the Second World War and the goods service was cut back to once per week.
During the later years of steam hauled trains, J class locomotives dominated the line. Once diesels took over, T and Y class locomotives provided motive power.
In 1969 bushfires destroyed several trestle bridges on the Shelbourne line which lead to the line's official closure on the 1st of January 1970. Wagons which were stranded at Shelbourne were taken to Bendigo by road transport. The Castlemaine to Maldon line was not damaged by the bushfires, however by this stage the majority of the traffic on the line was grain from the silos at Shelbourne, and the closure of the Shelbourne line ultimately lead to the closure of the line from Castlemaine to Maldon in 1976. The section from Castlemaine - Maldon has been restored by the Victorian Goldfields Railway and heritage trains operate on most Wednesdays and Sundays. I'd highly recommend a trip if you have time (trains depart Maldon at 10:30am and 2:30pm).
The track between Shelbourne Junction and Shelbourne station was dismantled sometime after the line's closure with most of the railway land sold. This makes investigating the line difficult as it can only be viewed from nearby roads. The first few kilometres of formation from Shelbourne Junction has not been sold off, nor has the site of Pollard station.
I have found some excellent photos of Shelbourne station online. The black and white photos were from the following website, which I highly recommend (It contains many photos of long closed branch lines - http://www.brownfam.com.au/trainpics.htm). The colour ones were taken by Weston Langford with the modern colour photos taken by yours truly. There are also some excellent colour photographs of Shelbourne station in the Train Hobby Publications book 'Country Branch Lines Victoria - Part 7'.
I have included a selection of timetables from the Shelbourne line; the first in 1892, one year after the line's opening, and the second in 1962, seven years before the line closed. The third photo is a gradient profile of the line from Castlemaine.
This photo shows an enthusiast special to Shelbourne at the junction.
The photos below show the former junction, both looking towards Shelbourne. The track curving to the right is the Victorian Goldfields Railway line to Castlemaine.
Just after the junction the line crossed a small timber bridge. Very little remains of this bridge amongst the weeds today. The photo below shows an enthusiast special to Shelbourne on the bridge.
The site of the bridge.
This cache begins at a somewhat unusual location, given that it is some distance from the actual railway! Just across the road is a fence made up of old rails, which I noticed whilst driving past one day. Given the proximity of the property to the railway line, and the fact that the Maldon to Castlemaine railway was never dismantled, I'd say these were original rails from the Shelbourne line itself.
At waypoint one you are looking for an eclipse mint tin with the coordinates for the final container. The final container (a micro) is located a short walk away at the site of Shelbourne Junction. As you retrieve the cache you will be standing where the tracks of the old railway were.
The Victorian Goldfields Railway has provided a short, isolated section of track to mark the site of the Shelbourne line. Please keep well clear of the other railway as it is the tourist railway from Maldon to Castlemaine which is still used. Steam trains run on Sundays and Wednesdays most of the year, however chartered trains and works trains can run at any time. If you're lucky you'll get to see one while you're here!
I hope you enjoy this cache and the series!
Please note waypoint one is missing. Until I can provide a replacement, you can head straight to the the final coordinates for this cache which are S 36° 59.444 E 144° 04.993