The Tapanui Branch (Railway) Series
Inspired by Onslow Fisherman's The Roxburgh Branch (Railway) Series
The cache you are looking for is a small sistema container with a black lid, contains a log book and pencil but you are welcome to bring your own pen.
Railway stations throughout New Zealand are well known for their white wooden signs with bold black letters indicating the name of the station, or in this case, the railway siding. But for many towns their stations and sidings were closed long ago and these boards had either vanished or destroyed with the railway closures. However, in recent years the local Tapanui Mens Shed club have been building replicas of these signs, placing them along the former branch line marking old sidings, stations, and towns. Thus as you go along the former branch line you are very likely to see their replica signs reminding travellers of the district's railway past.
The Conical Hill siding was primarily to serve the former Conical Hill Sawmill opposite the cache location, operating for many years and providing a vital profit to the small branch line. Initially a State-owned sawmill, trains would be loaded with trees to deliver for milling and left with wagons of processed lumber sent off for export or construction. The mill would continue in operation throughout the railway's existence and even for a while after its closure, until it was sold off to overseas investors who subsequently closed the mill. While briefly reopened to film scenes for Disney's 2016 movie Petes Dragon, it still leaves West Otago with only one operational sawmill left.
Surprisingly even past the removal of the railway in 1978, the government retained the former rail corridor to the mill and even investigated reopening the line in the 90s. However, local opinion was against such plans as it was viewed that if they reopened the line funding needed for roads in the district would be cut to build and maintain the line, dashing any hopes for a return of rail to West Otago.
Diesel DJ 1214 loaded with sawn timber from the State Forest sawmill crossing the road back onto the branch line, 1972.
For more info on the Tapanui Branch feel free to read the Wikipedia Page