Mt George (West Coast) Grey District, South Island, New Zealand
By andy.gail on 26-Oct-19. Waypoint GC8FBEK

As per the forecast the day was perfect for some outdoor activity. Just an occasional cloud and not a breeze. Daughter and friend over for some West Coast R@R agreed. It didn't take long to realise that Mt George had been waiting for me to finish what I set out to do in July 2021 but aborted 50m before reaching GZ out of safety concerns. Since my last visit the track seems to have gotten some weather induced punishment on the lower reaches but not serious. We enjoyed the climb and took advantage of the seats to soak up the sun and enjoy the views. This time the last 50m were no problem and the log was soon signed. On the way down again we met two single trampers and a family group so it was a busy day on Mt George. We were most happy with the time it took to summit that together with the breaks we took was 2 hours car park to car park and meant mission accomplished. A fav was already awarded. Thank you andy.gail.

Spending the winter woofing, tramping and exploring the west coast caching along the way ..of course..

Spending the next wee while based in punakaiki as I landed a bit of work..

Continuing the climb on an awesome track..could have asked for a better day..I was expecting the climb to be a bit gnarlier but happy it wasnt (still have to get back down)..cache was soon in hand , approx 40min to the top from the road looked alot further away from the lower seat .
Was going to stay for a while but the sand flies started to invade..
Great hike deserves a fav tftc
My kind of cache!!!
Ps..made it back down in one peice...slower on the return..

Checked up on this today and all ok with this one. Track has had a ladder installed at one section but it hasn't made it much easier.

During a chance meeting with the CO we were made aware of two new caches in our back yard that were going to be published soon. We obviously intended to grace these caches with our signatures. It took till today to make this a reality. After finding the Mt George Seat cache I continued and although it seemed that GZ was way up I was initially ascending at a moderate rate. It couldn't last and didn't. Moderate increases in elevation only were a prelude for the steep bits. I had heard kids squealing for a while already and as the track made a turn I found myself face to face with two children of about seven and eight years old. They had a whale of a time. Only if I was that age again with the energy and agility that goes with it! Mum wasn't far behind with a toddler in a pack followed by grandma. They said there were no other people further up so I was on my own from then. Following a narrow path under a vertical cliff had me wonder how to get up top. Then suddenly I stood under Hillary's Steps. It looked daunting but doable. I did feel vulnerable being just by myself but after carefully working myself up arrived on a small flat rocky plateau and had a bench seat in view nearby. After taking a seat and enjoying the views I consulted the GPS which said 58m. A carved out path seemed to head that way so off I went. Then the path made a right turn and started to follow a razor back track and I had 40 odd meters to go. I considered that one small wind gust could be enough to lose my balance, there was only one other way and that was down and I was alone with no feasible backup. As much as I wanted to make the find I didn't think it was responsible to proceed. Maybe another day. It looks like a fav can still be awarded so here you go. Many thanks for the adventure of getting me here along a track I didn't know existed.

Great view, well worth the climb. tftc

Omgoodness this track nearly killed ne lol but I was determined to get it down and find the two geocaches up here , amazing views , will treasure this memory forever

A beautiful day for a stroll up the track. Such an amazing view from the top today. No one else on the top when we found the cache. TFTC

enabling after lockdown

Disabling temporarily due to Level 4 Shutdown Rules and Geocaching HQ guidelines:

"COVID 19 situation from Groundspeak HQ:
We are advising all geocachers to follow the guidance of their local government leaders"

Stay Home, stay safe - no geocaching
Do Not Touch Anything - no geocaching
Stay Local

Will reactivate for you to find after this is over.

Once we got up the next section we saw the bluffs at the top... ooh-er? We're going up there? The track did know the way around the bottom of the bluffs, but that route up the cleft is not one for the vertically challenged... or for those with a low power-to-weight ratio. Mrs D did it with muddy knees and much puffing, Mr D's climbing was rather more elegant. Nice spot at the next seat, but GZ is right up the top, wouldn't you know. Not a place you would go if it's windy. Alas, another dreaded micro. But an absolutely superb view from the top! We could see the 2001 open cast mine inland... maybe that counts as interesting rather than scenic. Drinks, photos, admire view, repeat.. then trot back down, Mrs D getting a very muddy backside on the way. Took us an hour and twenty minutes all up . At the track entry we found a note that the third member of the group was down the road towards Greymouth. Out to the road, no car and road workers arranging road cones ready for the tarsealing sprayers to move in. Phew, thank goodness someone was with the car! So an extra walk south on the main road to the next pull over point several bends away. It was a real thrill to be shown this local track- it certainly goes on the "if it weren't for geocaching..." list!

Published