Ficus Macronumera Mount Saint Thomas, New South Wales, Australia
By Gribbly on 13-Jun-06. Waypoint GCWJXQ

No response from the owner within the time requested and as per the original note this cache has been archived. If you wish to replace it please submit a new cache via [this link](https://www.geocaching.com/play/hide).

Ministro - Matt

Hi Gribbly,

This cache appears to be in need of owner intervention. I'm temporarily disabling it, to give you an opportunity to check on the cache, and take whatever action is necessary. Please respond to this situation in a timely manner (i.e., within 45 days) to prevent the cache from being archived for non-responsiveness.

If you require more time please be sure to **post a note** (not an email) explaining the situation and how much more time you require. For ongoing issues please ensure you visit the listing and post a new note every 28 days to keep everyone up to date, if you do not then you cache may be archived without further note from a reviewer. Caches archived due to lack of maintenance are no longer unarchived and you will need to submit a replacement as a new cache.

Ministro - Matt

WP1 missing and needs owner attention.

Could not find coordinates at WP1.... searched twice now

Dan enjoyed solving these puzzles, especially the Block puzzle, as it was different. Unfortunately, we couldn't find the coords at WP1. However, it was a great location. Thanks for the puzzles and for leading us to this great old tree.

Solved the sudoku at home, set off to next way point, gave up after 30 minutes of not finding anything useful. Very disappointed. Thanks to gribbly for bringing us here, hope 1 day to see something to help with the next stage.

Have had the puzzles solved for a while but never visited GZ. With 8 caches to claim in the current souvenir challenge i decided today would be the day i'd claim the turtle. A quick look around and i soon spotted the cache.

inside cache is damp as is log book, did not sign log book as was damp, have photo if needed

This geocacher reported that there is a problem with this cache.

Found.

Thanks for this thoroughly enjoyable hunt! was lucky i had the right tool in my car

Finalf29 and I were down in the Gong, helping eldest son with car troubles... while car was being looked at, we dropped him off at a friend and did a bit of caching... as you do. We found ten from ten, bumped into and ended up visiting an old friend, but car is still not fixed. Ohh well... down to the Gong tomorrow and of course some more caching!

This was our eighth for the day. I started this puzzle ages ago. I could not find any container or secret coords at waypoint one... so using my knowledge of the area (I used to live down here a good twenty five years ago) I thought I knew where the next waypoint might be and... last week I was spot on. Here I found the next set of coords and all the info to answer the questions (the internet was no help). But had to leave due to family commitments before I could go for the final coords. Checked the geochecker at home and got the green light. Today at GZ Finalf29 and I looked everywhere, but this is a very sneaky hide... we both kicked it and tried to move it, then wasted time around the gum tree. Finalf29 finally had another go at it... Woohoo! Afterwards we noticed the handy geotool nearby. Favourite point from me... started off shaky but I loved how it pushed my detective skills. Thanks for the adventure.

WOO-HOO I found it !!
I had been slowly working on this puzzle on each visit within the area,after a few miss hits I found wp2 but unable to read a vital number.
Later down the track I received a friendly msg from the CO letting me know it had been fixed and was good to go again...you bewty !!
The number I had guessed actually had me quiet close to the actual final GZ.
I had spent abit of time working on this puzzle playing around with numbers and bumping into some strange characters along the way so to sign the logbook was a rewarding feeling,great final too.
Really enjoyed working my way through this mystery, well worth a fav point,
Thanks Gribbly for the cache

Nice puzzle and good find. TFTC

WP2 Cache Maintenance completed

The cache appears to be in need of owner intervention.

I am temporarily disabling it, to give the owner an opportunity to check on the cache, and take whatever action is necessary.

Please respond to this situation in a timely manner (i.e., within 28 days) to prevent the cache from being archived for non-responsiveness.

If you require more time please be sure to post a note (not an email) explaining the situation and how much more time you require.

For ongoing issues please ensure you visit the listing and post a new note every 28 days to keep everyone up to date or the cache will be treated as an abandoned cache and archived without further notice.

{#9e0a7cc15e8cf0e83607a953add252f4}

I have messaged CO, no response, cache is totally engulfed by tree, and no lid means the logbook and contents are a manky mess, actually they have disintegrated... time for this one to go..

I have been working on this recently to find numbers at WP2 have started to eroded away.
I msg the CO a few weeks back with no reply.
Unless someone out there can revive this cache, I think this ones a goner.

While waiting for my son today, I thought I'd check on this Cache. Unfortunately it is totally engulfed by the tree, and no longer has a lid. The cache is full of leaves and dirt & sticks. No log book left.

Signed back in to the gc website. Backlogging a majority of finds over the last year. Started my own account and it's time to sync it out. To avoid confusion I wont change the date logged. Send me an email (via profile link) or a message in the message centre (also via profile link) if you have any concerns.

TFTCs

Yay..... took some solving and a strong hand but got it!! TFTC Great find

Soul Crusher and Muppet95

This one was on the 'to-do' list for some time now.

I've been getting this idea that "Gribbly Mysteries" are more complex then they actually are.


I've been to WP2 twice now and the maths just wasn't filling out properly.
Best advice is to run 3 different numbers at once, then do all the maths accordingly.
At the end all the numbers should be the same anyway, so it'll confirm results.


Container was amazing! What a great idea and cool!


Thanks for this mystery Gribbly, I plan to knock over your other mysteries in the near future

I finally brought the right tool for the cache, on the past faching day of the month.
The contents of the cache are a bit moisture damaged and smelly, that I wasn't willing to see what booty was there.
thanks for the cache.

Great find by the GeoBoy... He has a great eye for Cache. .

Great Puzzle and Cache. Had fun solving this one. Went to solve last part of puzzle at home after visiting the earlier way points and realized had missed some important info at WP1. Thankfully the wonders of google saved me a trip back. Worked out final GZ and headed off to make the find. Saw what looked to be the cache and then read the hints, (should of done this beforehand) and thankfully still had tool bag in the car to help open up and sign the log. This was the favourite of our 144 caches so far. Thanks Gribbly for the thought and effort creating this one.

So we made a long trip over Easter from Melbourne to this cache to rescue our travel bug that had been stranded there for over a year. We suspected it was probably missing but maintained hope it wasn't.
We found WP1 easily enough and found the co-ords soon after. The amount of needles and syringes in the area was worrying and we will re-state there is no need to search through any leaf litter.
WP2 was a surprising place to find just off the road, very nice. Saw a blue tongue lizard while searching in the wrong place. Found co-ords and proceeded to work out the final stage.
We still don't know where we went wrong but we never got the correct co-ords for the final. Checked and rechecked but still no luck. We did work out there general area easily enough so set to it hoping our caching nouse would get us through.
After a loooong time, several awesome ficusses and a few likely looking areas with no result we were about to give up and admit defeat.
On our final drive by before leaving, a clue left in one of the logs jumped out at us so we checked it out. Thank goodness, it was the spot. After travelling 900km to find this cache the relief was palpable. To top it off, our travel bug 'Rockin in the Free World' was there, hidden near the bottom.
This was easily the most frustrating cache we have ever done, it was great to finally find it though. Thanks Gribbly we really enjoyed the ficusses.
Took TB.

Had placed a cache at waypoint one and was advised could not be published as there was a section of this cache somewhere nearby. So started puzzle and checked. It was nearby to a waypoint for this one... Within about 10 metres!
Had a small look after retrieving our cache, but not being appropriately dressed for an area with needles decided to attempt properly another time. Was still a little puZzled as to what we were looking for did not help either. Next Time!

Thanks Gribbly! We loved this one, particularly WP2! There's also another lovely fig tree if you drive down the hill on the side road from the final GZ. A favourite point from us. TFTC!!

After weeks of trying to solve this one with paulyman we decided to go back to WP2 today and recheck our calculations. Turns out we had written down the wrong coords, so soon we had the correct ones in hand and were off to find the cache. Clever hide, and a very interesting multi, TFTC Gribbly!

This was our second attempt on this one. We solved the puzzles a while ago, followed all the steps but geochecker told us we were wrong. Spent a few hours trying alternatives, but couldn't work out where we had gone wrong. Went back to waypoint 2 today and realised we may have misinterpreted the hidden coordinates. Geochecker confirmed so off we went to make the find. At the final GZ we found the cache with a bit of searching. I really enjoyed this one, the theme was central to the whole hunt. Well thought out, thanks for the adventure. Found with snorris.

Confess to being the driver today accompanied J+J who did the puzzling in advance made for a quick search and find. SLTN..TFTC

We Finally got around to this one, been on the list for some time, puzzled away and came prepared, didnt take too long before cache duties were done took travellers. TFTC

Geoson worked out most of the puzzle but we did have a bit of help from another source! Once at GZ we knew what we had to do. Was really thankful for the barrier between us and the road!! Left TB, took nothing. SL TFTC

This took a long time. Did all the puzzles.
Found WP 1 easy. Grabbed the house number. Got all the clues at WP 2 but struggled with the tag. Then when found added all up and went to final GZ opened containers, poooo what a stink. Wrong containers.
Did math again with variation and met a friendly man at vacant block. Wrong again. Finally after some help, sometimes I accept pity. There it was exactly between my first 2 wrongly calculated GZ's. The funny thing is I was going to look there just for the hell of it, should have!!!
Anyway cache was exactly what I thought it was and quite exposed. Opened and found an ants nest. Sprayed and removed offending occupants, cache had about 30 mm of water in the bottom and eveything was wet.
Removed log and dried in sun on dash, removed cache and contents and dried all to at best (contents slightly moist), container (completly dry). Remodeled resting place and reinserted cache, replaced contents, signed log, 19th my wife is right I don't know what day it is. Container is now fairly well hidden.

T-N
L-Coin, travel bug and diamond.

TFTC

Ironbark.

Arrived WP1 - love the old tree so beauty. But couldn't find due to no idea what I am look for container or tag??? but there plenty needles behind the tree...
Thanks.

Thanks for this thoroughly enjoyable hunt! The puzzles were solved fairly easily, and the waypoints took us to places we had never been before. The cache itself is quite wet, and the logbook too damp to write in. May need a new log. TFTC!

Well layed out and planned mate - didnt even know WP2 was there! Finally had the chance to finish this one off today. All the solutions and co-ords were spot on. The cache was very damp - so fixed that up as best can be. It didnt look like anyone was about to drop off the cache - but hey its not a long way


Thanks for the puzzles, the history and the hide SNLN SL

blue_mars

On the trail Gribbly - the smiley will soon be in hand...

738 - 2 for today. Found on 15/08/10 10:28 AM
Had all the puzzles worked out and got stumped at the end with the "pick a number" calculation. Returned back to WP2 and eventually worked out the location of GZ. With the "phillips head srewdriver" clue it didn't take long to locate the cache. Contents are damp, I put the log book in another snaplock bag. Thanks for the history lesson. TNSLLN

Found this one with Toadmiester7 and Geosister. She said is that it and I said you don't know how to cache. It will be hidden in a gap of the wall or something. Toadmiester checked the description again and guess what it was the one my Geosister pointed at. I will never here the end of it. TFTC

Thoroughly enjoyed solving the puzzles and then visiting the waypoint sites with my sidekick Ace7.
We were a little stumped at GZ until we reread the clue. Luckily Ace7 carries a suitable device for opening the cache. Thanks for a fun adventure Gribbly

Second drive-by and unplanned cache of the day. Thanks to a little pre-knowledge from Ozvixen, bypassed waypoints and went straight to GZ... well close enough for Ozvixen to leave me to my own observations. However without reading initial clues, had to take a quick trip home for tools and another cache I drive past often was crossed off the list.

[This entry was edited by mizmaz on Tuesday, May 04, 2010 at 10:12:20 PM.]

Well it took several visits to finally get the last coords. and even then I was lucky that Mr & Mrs Gribbly were kind enough to nudge me a bit closer, Thanks for the challenge, it is appreciated that you have put in some effort to make geocaching interesting.

After much debarkle i finaly found this one.
TFTC

After succesfully finding WP1 and WP2 on a previous cache tour I made a miscalculation.
Today I was able to correct that and had no trouble finding GZ and the cache as well.
TFTC Wilbert67

Found one dark and not so stormy night with Ding at my side.

Thanks for the adventure.
We took a walk down the new suburbs of Figtree... Pleasant late night walk.

TFTC

Cheers.

Well I thought I wasn't to bad at my maths until I came accross the second puzzle in this one and I still feel that this one is not able to be done. We had to call in some help on this one.
Well finaly at gz and cache very quickly located unfortunatly it had about an inch of water in it, so gave it a good wipe out.
Log book is no longer usable and a replacement has been added in a new zip lock bag. A couple of things had to be thrown out including the pen but I did not have a replacement. The answer sheets within the cache may also need to be replaced.

SLTNLN
TFTC and the headache

Liked the puzzles, information and stories on the Figtree. Found a park I never new existed and had a great time completing all waypoints and GZ on the pushbike. Thanks for the experience Gribbly. TNLNSL.

After having got some help solving the Sudoku puzzle from geodaughter (located in Sweden) we decided to give this a try. WP1 was spot on, went to WP2 and found the necessary clues to continue. GZ and the cache was an easy find. The cache is wet inside and some of the contents needs to be removed. Left a plastic bracelet and took a "Whoopee Cushion".

Cache Maintenance Completed. Waypoints now operational.

The cache is temporarily offline as some maintenance on the waypoints is completed. Shouldn't be unavailable for too long!

Rats! (or should I say Gribbly!)
WP1 was missing, so we got some extra info from the cache owner and wrongly assumed we could carry on from there. (Tip - never assume!)
Surprisingly, even though we had the wrong coords, we ended up in a very likely spot - how bizarre is that? Of course the WP2 coords were not to be found. It was at that point that we almost ended up in a circular argument, until I finally spotted the obvious error.
Maybe next time...

What Tealby said

OK - I'm on a mission to find all of Gribbly's hides before he gets to my one. This one I had done a long time ago and never logged. So long ago I can only remember the WPs but not the puzzle. Anyway, stopped in for a quick swap and log tonight. Temporarily lost one of the securing devices - whew, found it. Took a funny yellow ball thing and left a mini sized bat and ball game. Signed the log but it is quite soggy and needs some drying out. Thanks Gribblies. 2.5/5 to go.

Thanks for a great hunt Gribbly. Despite the sturdy cache, the log is a little damp

Finally completed this one. It was to be our first when we started but got forgot about it till today. Came along with Woodyson who kept watch whilst I retrieved.
Found the contents a bit damp and will need to be dried out.
LN T Kookaburra TB as it has been there long enough.
Thanks for the great hunt.

finaly finished of this cache it was the first one i ever started we had found all waypoints but ran out of time to find the last one.tftc

Gribblies, found the location of the first clue, but could not read it, even whilst lying upside down. I though I had, but I end up following what i though was the right trail and end up on Murray Park road, which can't be right. I did decode your Math puzzle for No. 2 and add it on, by the way.I presume you add it to the minutes of each coordinate.

This one has been on the 'to finish' for some time so thought I'd drop by on a quiet Wednesday arvo. My attempts to avoid detection were thwarted, those Gribbly's are just too observant! Had a chat with Mrs Gribbly after crossing this cache off my list.
No swaps, but left the Kookaburra TB. Thanks for the cache Gribblys!
best wishes,
Wal

Really liked this one- did over a few days and maybe the closest cache to our house! Checked with Gribbly after WP1 and this helped in the end- maths should be my strong point but I stuffed up some of the calculations. Liked the cache itself as well (originally logged as stepheneva).

[This entry was edited by steeba on Wednesday, February 07, 2007 at 10:17:56 PM.]

Really liked this one- did over a few days and maybe the closest cache to our house! Checked with Gribbly after WP1 and this helped in the end- maths should be my strong point but I stuffed up some of the calculations. Liked the cache itself as well.

Grabbed the Prime Meridian.

After a helpful hint from Gribbly for WP2 I can finally cross this one off my list
T whistle, L athletics spike tool, SL
Thanks for the cache!

Dropped off Prime Meridian TB for next finder. Apologies to Albida33 for keeping it for so long!!

tricky multi stepped challenge

WPs 1 and 2 kept us busy for quite some time (read days). we persisted and eventually finished this off this afternoon. Loved the puzzles Gribbly,
thanks Travells

WOO HOO, found it, what a great cache, enjoyed it from first to last despite the travel involved. Thanks a lot Gribbly for a very clever cache.

Took: TB & Golf Ball
Left: Keyring

Rated: for Overall Experience

WP1 is now secured in it's correct position!

This was our second try today. Last time we came, the coords at WP1 were no where to be seen, This time they were pretty much out in the open so we dont really have any idea about what happened there??!?

Once at Wp2, we searched for ages, with a strong smell of urine around the nearby bushes We deceided to call W-L who gave us a quick clue as to where the 2nd coords were located. When we were trying to do the maths, we realised that we had to go back to WP1 for the house number but from then on, it was easy going to GZ.
Excellent hide! The log book was a little wet however.

Cheers,

Daaave.

found the first way point alright, the second one took a while and we needed a clue. forgot to take a screw driver but luckily i found one in the boot.
CHOKO1

Found WP1 with a clue as to its appearance, got really lucky because its been muggled! (I literally tripped over it on the way back to the car!) Found WP2, but then got lost with the maths, will need to check on the computer before returning another day!

Update: Have the correct coords for GZ, now just need to find time to find the cache!

Rated: for Overall Experience

Dropped Off TB -- most likely for Lucy!!

Those syringes are just freaky!

Will be back.

Stuck at WP1, searched for a while but no luck.

Rated: for Overall Experience

Knocked this one off during a whistle stop tour of the Gong. Managed WP1 by myself, and had YoungGregB with me who had a good laugh at me as I attempted WP2. Managed to make it to the final stash after sorting out some missing numbers with the aid of the YGB helpline.

After retrieving the logbook at the final WP, I realised I wasn't too far from Gribbly HQ, so I took the opertunity to show Mr Gribbly the condition of the logbook as I filed it out in his kitchen over a cuppa. Thanks Gribbly, this cache is pure evil! You've set a high standard! TNLN but took the Travel Bug.

Checked on the cache after all the rain and had a look at the TB while I was there. Decided not to move it and left it for the next cacher.

I started the cache on the monday in my lunch break from a training course but only got as far as WP2 and ran out of time. I came back on the tuesday after work and found my way to WP3 pretty easily and then spent the best part of 1/2 an hour looking under over around etc but came out empty handed. Determined not to give in I came back today and managed a find after looking a bit further away from where the GPS was taking me and found it pretty quickly. Must have made a mistake on the last lot of co ords, but still got them close enough to get me there. Top hide. Look forward to more of the same.
Greg

PS It actually took 5 operators on my crew and a manager to crack the second puzzle. I used it as an ice breaker at the start of our monday training day.

Also took compas and left a small fan.

Performed a quick maintenance check and dropped a TB for good measure.

I succesfully completed this cache this time. I required a little help from a phone a friend to locate the first WP, but from there it was al plain sailing.

Cheers!
W-L
1ARC

Loved working out the numbers for this one...took a little extra time because we didn't read all the requirements before we got started... visited Gribbly and little Gribbly at the end of the find...
L Xmas Sheep
T Tyre Gauge...the cache is very full of goodies

I won't really call this one a DNF. I was snooping around WP1 (or what I believe is WP1) and managed to almost stab myself with a needle whilst digging through some leaves. Closer investigation revealled about 5 needles in the near vacinity.

It totally spooked me, and I was out of there quicker than a rat up a drain pipe.

I'll be back though!

Cheers,
W-L
1ARC

In the interest of safety - There is no need to go digging through leaves or dirt to find the hidden coordinates at WP1

[I couldn't leave this one while being in Sydney and Wollongong this week for work. Thankfully the weather cleared today to make the tour of town pleasant.

WP1 was very muddy, while at WP2 we could not help but ask the two blokes there if they were geocaching. Nice to meet you Cache Track.

I think CecilJ enjoyed her first caching expedition - where we tallied 6 in all for the day before flying back to Melbourne.

Some tips are encrypted for those that seem to be having trouble...
]
WP1 Don't look so close to Ficus
WP2 Look thoroughly
The macronumera sections I found nice and easy to Gribbly's chagrin

[Thanks Gribbly - I look forward to less complex ones from you soon ]

Had to put the thinking cap on for this one, do some research work, crack the puzzles then set out on the search.
Came up with GZ ok, but decided to return later on in the day to sign log.
Many thanks Gribbly for a great cache
Found out lots of interesting local history doing this one, even though i lived 100 or so meters away from WP2 for many years i was unaware of the history of this road to Sydney.
Great work
Cheers

Uploaded pictures show the grand old landmark's demise.
I think it was around 21-01-1987 they were taken

[This entry was edited by cache track on Sunday, June 25, 2006 at 11:59:04 PM.]

[This entry was edited by cache track on Monday, June 26, 2006 at 12:02:40 AM.]

Good clues but tricky in some spots

Have perfect solutions to both puzzles, however went searching for coords at waypoint one with no luck. Will try again another time when there's not so many muggles around. Tails and I looked a bit out of place!

Til next time, Kez

[This entry was edited by 4GRKez on Tuesday, June 20, 2006 at 5:58:11 AM.]

Went with Kez and couldn't find it.
Watch out for rubbish at the 1st coords.
I found some needles (probably used) around the Ficus macrophyla so be careful

- Tails

Would not have found this one without a helpful hint from a resident at GZ. Either our calcs were out or the sky gods were angry but we were 20mtrs too far west What a beaut puzzle. Thanks for sharing this hide with us Gribbly

Nice hide.

Only did this one for the coin that the Rats left but we were beaten to it. Our coords and calculations were spot on, however we ignored the fact that one of the lines in the second puzzle didn't seem to add up. TNLN.

Checked and double checked. There is definately a solution for the number block puzzle where all the required lines add up. All the calculations are also correct. It is just a bit tricky I should emphasize that in the Number Block you are allowed to use a number more than once!
Gribbly

A FTF for the Rats, yee-ha!!! I'm not a huge fan of puzzle caches but how could I refuse one so close to home.
I made quick work of the Suduka puzzle and then it was off to WP1 where I found the coords and the next step in this teaser. A bit of internet homework help with this WP and after confirming my coords for GZ I finally had this virgin find.
Did my swaps, leaving my own coin for the next finder, thanks Gribbly for a very good 1st cache.

Note: page 2 of the clue sheet has been updated. Sorry for any inconvenience.

Sudoku to you, too.

Dropped off two TB's for FTF