My first cache placement was in this spot in 2016. It was archived while the track was closed due to Kauri Dieback. Now that the track has been upgraded and re-opened I have decided to republish it.
Many years ago I worked on the TV series "The Zoo" and we did a story about a Siamang Gibbon called Iwani which is how this cache got it's name.
Iwani and his sister, Iberani were born at Auckland Zoo in the summer of 2003. Siamang gibbon twins are rare and initially the mother did very well but when they were six weeks old she turned on her babies, rejecting both of them. The decision was made by zoo staff to remove them from their parents and hand raise them. Sadly Iberani died but zookeeper Christine Tintinger spent a year as a surrogate mother to Iwani before he was integrated back with his family. Unfortunately the abandonment seriously impacted his long-term wellbeing and Iwani struggled to find his place at the zoo and failed to identify himself as a siamang. He was provided with a siamang mate but failed to bond with her and despite all the love and care given to him by his keepers they knew Iwani was depressed and agitated and the decision was made to euthanise him in January 2015.
The awesome photo of Iwani taken at Auckland Zoo in 2005 is courtesy of Gorby.
The Gibbons track was once an old logging road running along the top of the Whatipu coastal cliffs and is now a walking track with great views over the Whatipu wetland. The track can be rough and slow and after rain can be quite muddy so care needs to be taken or you could be doing what my caching friends call a ‘Merlot Slide’ a few times.
The cache is a small camo'd pill bottle so no room for swaps and you'll need to byo pen.