Note: This multi requires climbing, walking on uneven and sometimes slippery ground, fording the creek or walking approximately 1.4 kilometers, several kilometers of driving and is in an area that contains cliff faces and sometimes swift flowing water. After heavy rainfall this cache may be impossible to begin.
THE WATER RACE
In the early 1930's Cock's ElDorado Gold Dredge needed clean water for its sluicing, and so a dam was built at Kangaroo Crossing. The purpose was to raise the creek level, and run the water all the way back to ElDorado via a water race cut into the hillside.
Upstream from Kangaroo crossing workers constructed a concrete dam wall with several sluice gates built in that by adding or removing wooden planks the water level could be controlled. The wall was constructed in a zig zag shape to take advantage of the granite footing across the creek.
Once the water level behind the dam had raised significantly it was let through a sluice gate on the northern end of the wall directly into a hand dug water race.This was a monumental feat as hand tools were the standard and the ground was not the easiest to work.
The race meanders for 7 km alongside the northern side of Reedy Creek following the contour lines of the hills with less than 20 meters fall from beginning to end. At times mother nature played fickle and placed large holes, valleys, or granite along the path the race had to follow leading to some challenges for the builders.
Flumes (open, declined gravity chutes whose walls are raised above the surrounding terrain) were constructed across the holes and the valleys. Some remnants of the concrete flumes can be seen along the water race not far from the dam wall. Midway along the water race workers were met by a need to link the water race over approx 60 meters across a valley. No records remain of how this was accomplished and no relics remain to give it away, which in itself suggests a wooden flume that has since been destroyed by fire. Concrete walls were built on the granite rather than the massive effort that cutting a trench would have meant.
With all this work in building the dam and water race it is believed it was never actually used by the dredge. Many other large and small mining operations along the path did make use of it though to operate their sluices, separating the gold from the dirt, including Wombat mine.
Some of the water race is visible on Google Earth, other parts are either hidden by tree cover or simply eroded away after nearly a century.
The Multi
The aim of this multi is to show the extent of this water race (there are many others) and just how much work man is willing to go to when there is gold to be found.
NOTE: At all of the waypoints there is ample parking nearby. Google (Aerial) Maps is your friend.
The starting coordinates will put you at the south side of the dam wall. You will need to access both sides of Reedy Creek, crossing either through the creek if low enough or via Kangaroo Crossing.
Count the number of sluice gates in the wall? = A.
Count the total number of slots in all of the sluice gates that the boards slide into? = B.
Count the total number of metal rods ‘protruding’ from the dam wall? = CD.
Checknumber A+B+C = 37
As this will involve walking on the wall or through the creek be warned that it may be either impossible or at the least - very dangerous - to attempt this if the creek is in flood.
Next you will need to locate the water race. It originally exited the dam wall from the northernmost sluice gate but the first 30 or so meters has been washed away. You now need to travel downstream along the water race for approx 700 meters until you reach a concrete wall along a granite slope that the builders used to retain the water rather than cutting a trench in the granite (let's call this stage 2). You can either walk the race or drive back Woolshed rd then ford the creek.
Coordinates for ‘The Wall’ are S36 19 . 641 E146 33 . 540
At the wall count the number of metal rods that ‘protrude’ out the top of the wall? = E.
Stage 3 can be found at S36 18 . (E-1) (C-1) (B-1) E146 32 . (A-C-D) A C
At stage 3 you will find the continuation of the water race. At this point the builders used metal pipes to move the water across a small gully. These pipes had flanges on each end that allowed them to be bolted together. Several of these pipes remain however not all are in one piece.
How many metal pipes are there that still have flanges on both ends? = F.
GZ can be found at S36 18 . (D-C) C (F+1) E146 31 . C (F+D) (F-C-C)
Nearby is one end of the water race. It just ends, nothing interesting here at all; apart from the massive changes to the environment that the dredge caused. Hopefully you had all the fun on the journey and saw all the interesting sights along the way. All you will find here is a container that has a small clip lock within it. You may need a TOTT to get the clip lock out. It has a log book only so please bring your own writing stick..
Congratulations Jamin Appleford on FTF.
You can use the geochecker to ensure your GZ calculation is correct.
