Welcome to one of the best views in Melbourne, and some geocaching history.
This spot is the unofficial Skyhigh - in that it's got a view just as good, without the parking fees or the restaurant or crowds. People do congregate here for the view though, which is expansive across all of Melbourne, and only a little lower than the summit. There is a launch pad for hang gliders which people tend to sit on (but I've never seen hang gliders here). You can walk in from several free parking spots around Mt Cohranwarrabul and Burkes Lookout, along the Kyeema track.
Just 200m north of this point is the upper end of what is now marked in the Geocaching trail map as "Scar Track". This name is appropriate as it's the most direct and brutal way straight up the side of Mt Dandenong, extremely steep, with no deviations, just straight up! And it's visible from most of Melbourne with a view of the mountain, as a scar on the mountainside. It's still there, still used, but not signposted any more. It was closed for regeneration for years and not really reopened in any official sense, but can still be walked (though I didn't try - I'm not as young as I used to be..).
It's also the track on which June 22nd, 2001, I placed my first cache hide Scottish Hillside: Fine and Dandy. - long since gone, it was a scramble from the top or the bottom, probably a terrain 4 now, but this was before terrain ratings. At the time I placed it there were only about 10 hides in the whole of Victoria. Now there are dozens of geocaches within walking distance along all the official tracks in the area - but no more have been placed on the somewhat defunct track straight up the mountainside. So in part, this Virtual is placed in memory of that first hide, as well as being an excellent viewpoint.
My second cache, Adelaide Mountain - placed only a month later and still active not too far away.
To log this virtual reward, please send the answers to the following questions (via send answers or message the owner link):
1. What is the original (and sometimes still in use) name of "Scar Track" as marked on the geocaching.com trail map which inspired the original cache name of Scottish Hillside?
2. At GZ, approximately how far in metres of elevation are you below the highest point on Mt Dandenong? (nearest 10m).
3. The unofficial lookout has unfortunately been subject to some graffiti over time. There's a fine line between decoration and vandalism sometimes. What colour have the rocks been painted to cover the graffiti?
Send your answers but you can log in advance of confirmation. If you'd like to take a selfie or just a picture of the view on the day you're there and post it with your log that would be great! The view might not always be there if it's clouded out, but it's good to see the different moods of the mountain.
Virtual Rewards 3.0 - 2022-2023
This Virtual Cache is part of a limited release of Virtuals created between March 1, 2022 and March 1, 2023. Only 4,000 cache owners were given the opportunity to hide a Virtual Cache. Learn more about Virtual Rewards 3.0 on the Geocaching Blog.