Damn, that Creek is Rocky! Dunoon, New South Wales, Australia
By
MattyRx on 10-Feb-20. Waypoint GA14465
Cache Details
| Difficulty: | |
| Terrain: | |
| Type: | Traditional |
| Container: | Small |
| Coordinates: | S28° 38.209' E153° 20.647' (WGS 84) |
| 56J 533633E 6832202N (UTM) | |
| Elevation: | 191 m |
| Local Government Area: | Lismore City |
/153.344117,-28.636817,14/400x200?access_token=pk.eyJ1IjoiY2F1Z2h0YXR3b3JrIiwiYSI6ImNqa2l4ZzNzMDE5bjgzdm1sZGpuODF1Mm0ifQ.q8YMzVyzDJJlJHHV8EMjwQ)
Description
Rocky Creek Dam
Rocky Creek Dam is located within the Whian Whian State Forest approximately 20km north of Lismore. Water stored in the dam is used to supply drinking water to the Northern Rivers area stretching from Woodburn in the south, north to Ocean Shores and west to Lismore. Construction of the dam began in 1949 and was completed in April 1953. The village of Bangalow was the first town to receive water from the dam in November 1953.
Rocky Creek Dam has a capacity of 14,000 mega litres at full supply level which is 187 metres above sea level. This high elevation allows high pressure gravity supply to most areas within the distribution system. The dam wall is 28 metres high and 220 metres long and is made of about 80,000 tonnes of rock, soil, clay and concrete. Water is released via the spillway which is designed to discharge more than 1000 cubic meters of water per second under probable maximum flood conditions.
The dam has a de-stratification (aeration) system. This system mixes the water in the dam, preventing layers of different temperatures or oxygen levels from developing within the water column. De-stratification reduces conditions favoured by blue green algae and prevents the bottom of the dam becoming anaerobic. Dissolved Oxygen and Temperature are measured at various locations in the dam each week to ensure the water is properly aerated and mixed. Algae samples are also tested weekly however there has never been a significant blue green algae bloom in Rocky Creek Dam.
Rocky Creek Dam has a picnic area and signposted walks ranging from easy 1.2km walks to a 6km walk of medium difficulty.
Facilities at the dam include:
- Large grassed area suitable for weddings and functions.
- Car Parking
- Picnic tables
- Free Gas BBQs
- Playground Equipment
- Toilets
- Bushwalking and Boardwalk
The cache is located part way along the boardwalk. Shouldn’t take too long to find. You’re looking for a small container with a logbook and swaps.
Hints
Whzc bs Obneqjnyx. 7 zrgref. Arne byq fghzc. Snyyra cbfg jvgu guerr ynetr tebbirf. Tebbir ahzore 1. |
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Decode |
Logs
The shower intensified into a summer storm with thunder, lightning and heavy rain. Umbrella in hand we started to walk down the board walk. The GPS was jumping around due to the tree cover. We stopped in the GZ to check our bearings and spotted the notched log. TFTC.
But my treasure today was 4 caches in this area and an awesome walk in the bush finding ingesting things along the way. Future log readers will have to find the 3 nearby GC caches logs if they want to read of my adventure.
I was running low on time because I was planning to be at Lennox for moonrise, so I read the hint. I'm glad I did because I was already down on my knees looking under the boardwalk when I checked it. I would have wasted a lot of time looking there before trying to figure out GZ on my phone again. Yep, phone. Guess who left their GPS batteries in the other bag at home, and it was already dead before I reached the first cache for the day. Duh!
Thanks for a great day out here and great caches too. You're a legend.
Oh, and no GazaC has not been here yet. I was expecting to see his name in the log book. haha. FTF for moi.
