This is one of a small series placed for you to imagine times before this area was mapped and the ‘Cattle Track’ was a stock route through the bush as early as the 1850’s. This cache can be done by walking or riding a circuit. There is room to park off the Big Hill Road close to the cache, but watch out for mountain bikers! You may imagine a different landscape prior to the relatively recent development of the hydro electricty scheme and the area was not criss crossed with power lines, towers, access roads and mountain bike trails! Please replace the cache as you found it for others to enjoy.
SOME BACKGROUND
BY the 1850’s, Tawonga Station was established with records showing an initial 20,000 acres. As squatters monopolized tenure of the land, pressure from selectors led to the 1869 Land Act which allowed squatters a pre-emptive right of 640 acres of their run and selectors freehold of 340 acres subject to certain conditions. Young workers later wanted to run their own cattle and as selectors, soon found that 320 acres was insufficient to run cattle economically.
While no official records are held it’s likely unofficial grazing occurred and from the 1870’s there was more pressure to open up the land and find grazing in the High Country. Under the 1884 Land Act, the High Country was classified into small pastoral allotments and grazing blocks and those familiar names of Holland, Ryder, Cooper and Hicks, would take cattle up the Fainter Spur along this cattle track cattle until grazing in the Alpine National Park was finally phased out after 2003 bushfires.