The Devils Gauntlet C - Freycinet Frolick Coles Bay, Tasmania, Australia
By sirius Tas on 29-Aug-08. Waypoint GA1202

We were doing a leisurely three day walk doing the circuit anti clockwise, with our first day along Hazards beach before encamping at the Cooks Beach campsite for our first night. Lovely sunset here thanks to the great weather we had for our trip. The second day required an early start and we were away before the sun arose. Got to the turn off to Mt Freycinet in good time, dropped packs and headed up the hill. Reached the top and spent a little time up here as the weather was perfect and the views were great. There are a lot of potential hiding places up here but thankfully once the clues were carefully perused the cache was in fact quite a quick find, and happily we can report that it is in excellent condition. Fabulous spot for a cache as we've come to expect from Sirius Tas.

Well done Alby....great perseverance. Sounds like you had a great couple of days caching.
So glad you found the cache...cheers mate.

AlbyDangles

Hello sirius Tas Thanks for the cache.

This was half way through day 3 on our 4 day Freycinet Frolick.

We left our packs at the saddle and dragged out weary bodies up to the top of Mount Freycinet.
At the top I concentrated on trying to find the cache while the other two enjoyed the views.
After a lot of searching and trying to workout the hint I asked for some help from the others.
They arrived from their lookout and started to help me look for the cache.
We kept on looking around the same spot with no luck after an hour of looking which involved a lot of questions been asked re the hint, I had given it up as a lost cause especially as it hadn't been found for over 5 years and the last log was a DNF.
I eventual read the hint in a different order and started to search in another spot and it wasn't too long before I had the cache in hand.
This is a great spot to visit with terrific views and the cache is still in great shape.
Thanks for the cache and the reason for us to walk up to the top of Mount Freycinet.

Tb gb gur gbc bs gur abegurea cbvag.
Gura ybbx sbe gur gerr gb gur jrfg.

Found at 1112
TFTC

Rated: for Overall Experience

Unfortunately after an hour searching did not find the cache. GPS said we were at a spot which fitted with the clue. Alas not to be. Never the less a top spot to visit.

Rated: for Overall Experience

OMG!! Just doing a look around for the next expedition and found I had forgotten to log this find. A mate and I did the circuit (30k) in a day back on the 11th January in perfect weather. Although I have done the loop numerous times it was the first time up Freycinet. We sat for ages on top just soaking in the vista before I located the cache and headed back down.

Rated: for Overall Experience

After kayaking into Cooks Beach for 3 nights camping @ Easter, we decided to make this one a day walk as we have never climbed Freycinet
before, though we have done the full circuit walk.
A great day rewarded with excellent views of the peninsular in all directions.
The cache was a fairly quick find, with the GPS about 3 metres out. It is dry & in good condition.
Thanks Sirius, we enjoy these as they are a bit out of the way & more of a challenge to get to.

Rated: for Overall Experience

Logging on top of Freycinet. So glad to find second time around! Bonus was Sharon got to see the view this time

Rated: for Overall Experience

Woohoo....great stuff deadolga.....glad you found it all ok....thought it must still be there.....but in any event you've saved me one helluva walk. Sounds like it's pretty muggle proof ...Cheers.

Climbed the Mountain as a day walk from Cooks Beach Camp. Searched for 1/2 hr before lunch and couldn't find it. Had lunch. Searched for another 1/2 hr with the help of other NWWC members. Finally found it. The co-ords and clue are so spot on I nearly kicked it!! I enjoy these out of the way caches which gives a different purpose of going to these remote places.

Rated: for Overall Experience

The whole purpose of this trip was to get this cache so we could finish the first half of the series this walking season. Well after 1.5 hours of searching by both of us we came up empty handed and at some point had to admit defeat so we would get to camp at Cooks before dark.

I am devastated after all the effort to come up empty handed. We looked everywhere. Both our GPS's gave similar results but about 5M difference but we searched and searched and searched. Wanted to 'phone a friend' but we did not have any geocacher numbers to call so that did not help. We even did a sort of grid search ignoring the GPS for a while.

I would love to know if we where looking in the right place as it seemed pretty obvious where it would be based on the hint. Can some one send me a photo with the right place marked on it, it might make me feel better (or worse)? It has been a long time since it was found so maybe it needs checking or our eyes do?

It just all means I have to walk up or down that Mt Graham saddle again at some stage! Views are pretty awesome on a fine day so all was not lost.

EDIT:
Talking to Sirius post trip has convinced me we concentrated on the wrong area for far to long and only had a quick look in the spot the cache was actually in. I have serious doubts about where we looked now and that the cache is still there. Looks like I'm off again soon to prove it or replace it!

Rated: for Overall Experience

Well, that was harder than I expected!
I've been wanting to a) do an epic run and b)explore Freycinet NP a little more than the walk to Wineglass Bay so when I realised I'd have the time to do this one after spending a few days at Bicheno I jumped at the chance.
Loaded up with electrolytes and snakes and headed off over the saddle at a little after 12. Although I was expecting a climb, I wasn't expecting such a constant grade and such bad humidity all the way up Mt. Graham.
But once you cross the creek and hit the plateau it's all worth it - views all round and a very cool rock city amongst the the marshy button grass. It actually reminded me a lot of Scandinavian countryside up there. Then Mt. Freycinet looms, after than depressing drop down to the saddle, I can understand how Dippy felt as the rock climbing portion of the walk begins.
Then the summit - ultimate exhilaration, it was blowing up there and some cloud was coming in and obscuring my view of the Hazards. I quickly got to finding the cache (thanks for the hint, my GPS was about 10m out at the cache site) and by the time I'd logged and replaced the 360 degree view was there to see.
I didn't linger long as I cooled off pretty quickly in the wind and went back the way I'd come (better the devil you know!). Hit the Hazards end of Wineglass Bay in a little over 4 hours to find the beach almost tourist free! The waves were beckoning and I pretty much fell it, the refreshing waves were exactly what I needed!
The climb back over the saddle was less enjoyable, but I made it and headed back down quickly to the car as I was getting fairly peckish!
Thanks aplenty to Sirius tas, what a great series - this is the type of cache I want to do more of now (kinda sick of the urban hide I have to admit), and what a great cache to make 4 digits on.
People, plan your trips to Freycinet now while the weather is good!

What a fantastic walk this was! Definitely the most taxing of the series so far. I had already decided I wanted to do this as an overnighter, and Hooklines 'Blue Champagne' sealed the deal. My family spent 3 Nights on Freycinet on the way back from 10 nights on Bruny in the caravan, specifically to cache and this one was the main target. I did the walk on my own and the rest of the family had thier own Freycinet Frolic on the beaches. I walked clockwise and camped at Cooks Hut and then down to Bryans Beach in the morning without the tent and then back to camp to pack up and completed the circuit along Hazards Beach, with the family meeting me half way around the Hazards with a cold beer. I really enjoyed not having to race the clock knowing I had all day to get to Cooks Hut. I started walking at 7.30am Sat and got to Cooks at 5pm, and started walking at 5.50am Sun. to Bryans and was back at Carpark by 12.30pm. Saw 4 dolphins swimming quite close to shore in wineglass bay. Really enjoyed the Plateau walking up to Mt. Graham and the awesome views all around. Dropped the pack before heading up Mt Freycinet where the real fun began - looked for ages for the cache before a mild panic attack set in about not finding the cache - this was not an option! After trusting the GPS and dropping my previous assumptions, thigs were all up after that and then the cache was found easily! Phew! A real sense of acheivement. I rang the family from the top to let them know where I was, and my 9 yr old son said he was standing next to the green gate at the caravan, and could I see him waving - of course I said yes! On to Cooks and some 'Blue Champagne'
Thanks Sirius, Just brilliant.

Rated: for Overall Experience

Set off this morning with this cache as the primary target, a couple of others were done on the way and another afterwards. I found this peak fairly easy to walk so was soon at the top where I spent quite a long time looking. As it was it turned out to be one of the first spots I looked. Well done Sirius a cache at the top. Very rewarding find as to come this far and not find would be a disaster. In all I walked 42km and took 14.75 hours in total to do it.
Thanks heaps Sirius for a great cache location.

Rated: for Overall Experience

This was my first find in the Gauntlet series and it was a terrific walk.
Its been far too long since I was last on Freycinet and its only 2.5 hour drive from home so I have no excuse for leaving it so long.
It really is a beautiful place and it was great fun walking it today with Neribil (or Puffing Billy as I like to call him now)
The mozzies ate us alive and the rain fair dumped on us in the last half hour before getting back to the car but the views from Freycinet Summit and Mt Graham were spectacular and there is something about the aqua colour of the water and the white pristine sand that almost hypnotises you.
It was pretty even as far as the sand and water fights went with Neribil but he sure beat me when it came to finding the cache(s) today. I was fairly confident I was about to score my first badge but I missed out again by only a few days. Congrats Hookline on STF
Huge thanks Sirius for this cache. Coords were spot on and the hint guaranteed a find which is important when its a bit of an effort to get there.
I am looking forward to coming back in the near future!

Rated: for Overall Experience

In the company of Redtag this was a top walk even if it took us all day. The conditions were overcast with little breeze so it was a bit humid walking. Found the cache without to much searching using the hint but noted it had its second find about a week ago but has not been logged to date. Good views from the top with threatening storm clouds on the way. Limited water in the area but Graham creek had a small flow. Went on to log Freycinet Circuit and Waterfall Lounge. The scenery, wild flowers and the experience is always worth the effort and Wineglass bay is always a top spot. The clouds broke about half an hour from the car park so its was raincoats on to complete the day. Done the circuit a number of times and I will be back. Thanks Sirius, these walks may not be suited to all but for those who are able and interested they are much appreciated.

Rated: for Overall Experience

Well, this was some walk. The hardest one I've ever done, to be sure. Me and Indy did a complete anti-clockwise circuit of the peninsula, including side trips to the end of Bryan's beach (where we left our own cache) and of course Mt. Freycinet. The beaches were beautiful, the water gem-like and the sands crystal white. Thought we were going to get caught in a rainstorm on Hazard's beach-- some ominous grey clouds to the west while walking to our first campsite-- but thankfully it blew a different way. The clouds made for a dramatic backdrop against the sea and mountains.

By the time we got up to where the track branches off to the Devil's Gauntlet cache, I was already pretty darned tired. Not sure what compelled me to go on. Madness? The prospect of a shiny badge? A zealous boyfriend who likes climbing mountains? Perhaps all of the above. In any case, Indy went ahead, doing well as usual, while I struggled along behind. I'm short and big, bouldery steps don't agree with me. Admittedly, the views at the top and logging a STF in the cache were worth it.

Then of course we had to climb back down, and there was still a long, long walk ahead over yet another mountain to reach the Wineglass Bay campsite. Seemed to take forever to get there, and our feet were murdered in the end.

Thanks Red Tag, and sorry you missed out on a badge. Everyone who does this climb deserves one.

Thanks Sirius for an incredible cache and an experience of a lifetime.

Rated: for Overall Experience

Woohoo...Big Congrats to Dippy on FTF and a magnificent effort...well done.

Wow - what a monster day! I was a bit nervous about tackling such a big walk - especially given that I don't consider myself very fit at the moment, so I set off at 6am to give myself plenty of time.
Wineglass was gorgeous at that time of day, and the wallaby and joey were very unafraid and cute at the Wineglass Campsite (photos on Snuva's "Freycinet Circuit"). The walk up to Mt Graham was great but by the time I got to the saddle where the track to Mt Freycinet heads off(and up), I was feeling it and could easily have walked right on past. Had a rest and just thought of it as one step after another and soon enough was at the top.
Fantastic views of course and energy surged to find the cache...which was in the perfectly logical spot...but as my GPS was pointing about 5m away and I wasn't overly keen on the height factor, I looked over, around and under everything for so long that eventually I didn't care where I was clambering and wound up at the top with a cache!!! (Had of course gone right by it many times prior).
Weather was fine and cool, perfect for walking, except for a downfall of hail while I was searching for the cache, which was kind of odd and sort of like mockery from above.
Many really lovely wildflowers along the way too.
I completed the circuit in 11 and 1/2 hours, by which time everything was hurting and I think I may have been doing a Cliff Young shuffle. But a huge sense of accomplishment and a magnificent walk... and it's amazing how restorative a 14 hour sleep can be!!!
Took Devil Badge, pen (and the FTF), left purse.
Thank you Sirius - a most memorable day.

The Devils await.