This section of Gardiners Creek Trail runs beside the Box Hill Golf Course. The best parking for Damselflies is on Hay St.
According to the Sacramento Splash, “The larvae of Dragonflies and Damselflies are one of the signs of a healthy aquatic ecosystem. They show that the food web is intact and functioning. The presence of adults near water is also a good indication of a healthy ecosystem. When the adults or larvae are absent, it usually means that the habitat is polluted.” (https://www.sacsplash.org/critter/dragonflies-and-damselflies)
So I was very glad to spot at least three of these fluttering about where I was standing on the bridge on my first visit. Then on another day one even landed right on my mobile phone as I was trying to take its photo.
According to the Australian Museum, there are over 6,000 species worldwide and that Australia is known to have 320 of these species. 100 of these occur around Sydney incidentally. (https://australianmuseum.net.au/dragonflies-and-damselflies-order-odonata)
There is a recently revamped skate park near the corner of Canterbury and Middleborough Rd. It has a public toilet and drinking water fountain.
If you enjoy nature, take time to enjoy your surroundings – I saw a family of ducks on the golf course and heard numerous kinds of bird calls as I leisurely walked to each waypoint on this beautiful summer’s day.
For this cache you don’t need to flutter like a damselfly and you can be assured of staying dry. You just need to do a bit of maths, a keen geo-sense, patience and great stealth to avoid muggles and time your retrieval and replacement of the cache.
Please replace the cache carefully and out of sight in the same place you find it so that others can have fun looking for it too. (Please observe geocaching etiquette not to give away any obvious clues when logging your activity but do share about your adventure.) BYO pen.
1st waypoint – a bridge
S 37 49.985 E 145 07.957
A = number of metal posts associated with the bridge (count both sides of the bridge)
B = number of vertical posts in each section between each large metal posts (do not add up all of them, just each section)
C = number of sections in total (count both sides of the bridge)
2nd waypoint – a sign post
S 37 49.982 E 145 07.969
D = load limit for the bridge
3rd waypoint – large sign post in the shrubbery
S37 49.936 E 145 08.019
A word of caution: do not venture into the shrubbery, I got bitten by two gigantic bull ants round about here. Just look at the sign from the safety of the footpath.
E = number of times the EPA is mentioned on this sign
F = number of letters in the pollutant whose name starts with ‘f’
G = the three digits you are to quote after the letters WH in the sign if you want to report pollutants in this area
4th waypoint – large sign about Tom Roberts and Australian Impressionism
S 37 50.120 E 145 07.814
H = year of the painting ‘The artists’ camp’
J = year the camp was established on David Houston’s farm
K = number of items mentioned in the first sentence of the paragraph that tells of what is featured in the paintings of these Australian Impressionist artists
FINAL COORDINATES
S 37 50.LMN E 145 07.PQR
L = H – J
M = C – F – K
N = C + D
P = G – 115
Q = B – A – F
R = K + D