Makarau Bridge (Auckland) Makarau, North Island, New Zealand
By Gr8dad on 22-Jul-07. Waypoint GC14NZA

08h00
Time to put this one to bed - it has been picked up and is no longer there.
Thanks

cute but wet

Well-placed cache, bit difficult to find, got cut up by the bushes! Shame it's no longer there... TFTC

Nicely placed cache, but the description lies: Container isn't camo or a bottle! TFTC

Easy find under a small tree TFTC

Well, this one had us guessing, Took us quite sometime to locate this fella, But eventually had cache in hand. TFTC.

Out on a day trip up SH16. 3rd stop. Nice secret spot. Quick find along with the Furbies and co. SL. TFTC.

Nice little spot. TFTC

This one had us puzzled for a wee bit as the cache seems to have outgrown its hint, but we managed to find it eventually.

Second attempt at this one. Muggles turned up first time. Who would of thought!

Good wee find thanks. Lovely spot to visit.

Found it under a small bush. TFTC

Could have reached out the window. Tftc

Good spot for a cache. The hint should not be relied on. It is by a small bush.

Finally located the cache after a very through search! Could see evidence of other searches had been undertaken recently too. Cache is actually under a bush as no trees in the immediate vicinity any more. TFTC

Trees cut out. Obvious spot was empty

A nice area with the dock and bridge. Was just about to give up when I located the cache container thrown on the other side of the track. Found a pencil and sharpener nearby. Added a tempory logsheet and returned to where it seemed likely to have been. SL TFTC

GPS had us in the middle of the entrance road. Checked all hint items in the vicinity, and, after reading previous logs, all hint item remnants. No cache to be found. Trashed out some aluminium cans though.

This entry was edited by Jacksonz on Friday, 16 December 2011 at 10:09:41 UTC.

Called by in the middle of the night (about 1am) and after a good 15 minute search called it quits, a DNF.

this took a very long time checking and rechecking several hint items in the general area. The hint item is now a tiny portion of its former self. Co being notified. TFTc #2639

A quick drive down to park & grab.

On a mission today to collect lonely caches. While this cache isn't lonely, it was on the way home. Initially drove past the nice little reserve, but made a quick find after making a U-turn. Cheers for the cache!

TFTC Greetings from Germany!

Found it after a little bit of hunting around. The contents of the geocache are wet as the container has a hole in the side of it. Looks little it has taken a few strikes from a weedwacker when the area was cleared a while ago. Dropped off Cacheapillar TB.

didnt have any idea this place was here
left TB tag
TFTF

A bit of a hunt around as area recently cleared but found cache safe and sound. t4tc

Quick find. TFTC

frequently drive over this bridge but never knew the small reserve was there.

cache needs a new container, it is cracked and is letting water and slugs in. sorry had nothing with us to fix it.

After a busy day going Helensville to see the steam engine, we called in on the back road to find this cache. As it turns out Great Great Grandpa was born very near by so that was interesting addition to this find. It was a shame to see a lot of rubbish dumped near by. TNLNSL

Drove right past this one (by accident) on our way north, so stopped on our way back. Stopped on the left hand side and crossed the bridge on foot - not recommended! Operation was close to suicidal, no room for pedestrians and cars come flying down the hill... zooooom... zooooooooooooooooommmmmm..... . We'd advise future visitors to stop on the northern end of the bridge instead, there is a road just past it on the left that takes you down to the jetty as per the cache description. Much safer down there .

Anyway, once we made it safely it was a nice easy find, TFTC!

Almost missed the turning nice hidden spot thanks...

Quick stop on scenic route South. Reserve very well hidden but had a couple of Muggles to dodge. TFTC

Interesting bridge & sneaky hidden reserve. Obviously someone doesn't want too many people knowing about it. TFTC

On a trip down from the north on the better route. Interesting bridge and side road. Glad you chose one of the trees not decapitated. Left all the goodies undisturbed.

nice stop on bicycle ride south to Bluff from Cape Reinga TFTC

We have been over the bridge scores of times and didn't know there was a reserve. Thanks for the info.

a good spot to launch a boat hard to spot as a drive by the turn off sneaks up on you

Classic example of going places you would never normally go! TFTC

A nice drive by on the way home after a bit of peakbagging.

No worries here, a nice little bridge and a place to stretch our legs. TFTC

Nice drive-by. Parked down the access-way and a quick find. I am a fan of bridges, so it was a good excuse to stop and have a look. Thanks.

Nice place. And no other people around.

TFTC #573 (my 31st cache with lemonCurd in New Zealand ).
Many greetings from Hamburg, Germany.

We were in New Zealand for a month, to get to know this wonderful country and its nice people, and of course to do some caching. Since we couldn't connect to the internet very often or very long, we didn't log our finds. Being back in Germany, I have to admit that I can't remember all the caches we found. So some of them will just get a "we found it" log entry - this is one of them. But I will at least write a few general words about our caching experience in NZ.

As we searched only for traditionals (and sometimes earth caches) with a reasonable terrain rating, we found most of them quite easily. Especially because a lot of larger containers were used. 'Larger' in this context means small or regular - as we are usually more the urban kind of cacher, we're more used to micros. What we're not so much used to is caches being hidden in or under bushes or trees. Being a little bit what I would call 'botanically challenged' we would find this quite difficult even back here, were we could know the plants. In NZ with its plants we've never heard about, we were really lost in the beginning. But after some time we were able to distinguish between flax and cabbage tree, and we even finally managed to find out what a punga is (seriously).

As always, caching brought us to a lot of interesting and beautiful caches we wouldn't have found otherwise. So many thanks to all you cache-hiding kiwis!

lemonCurd

A revisit to find the relocated cache. Last time we were here the whole bank had been slashed clear of vegetation. This time a simple find. Thanks.

# 820

Hint has been updated - Rosmar have moved cache ever so slightly due to some changes around these parts - thanks.

Quaint bridge that we had not seen before. Similar to a much bigger one in Balclutha. Found the cache after a brief search T4TC.

My first Geocache. I think i'm hooked

This was almost a drive-by! Indiana Jill is out to get her 400th cache today so BookwormMum, Kayaknkiwi and I are helping her reach her goal. Glad we could get so close to this cache because it was raining buckets! TNLN. TFTC!

Love the bridge! Easy find on a dampish Saturday out with the team.

Our first of the day, heading south from here.
Great to be out of the 'burbs and into the open.
Lovely views and a terrific drive-by cache.
SB spotted & snagged it for the team.
Hardly had to get our boots muddy. TFTC.

Quick find on the way north. TNLN TFTC

Off caching today with Indiana Jill, Seattle's Best and Bookwormmum. Decided to head west and enjoy the caches out here! Fantastic bridge......Seattle's Best came up with the goods on this one... it's funny how we call drive by caches, well yip this one was one of those! We all had a laugh on that one. I wonder what it would be like down here when it's full tide. Could bring the kayaks! Thanks for the adventure. TFTC!!

The sun had set, and we were getting close to needing torches to find this one. Cheers Gav [3639]

A great spot for a cache. TFTC

Nice easy find.

On Tour with Jumbo, secluded boat ramp! TNLN Cheers Muzy Man!

Found with Imgettingannoyed during our 3 n half week NZ mega cache mission!!

quick and easy find

11.20am. Stopped by again and no muggles this time.
Cache was damp inside so cleaned it out.
Also added silica gel to the log bag.
+ Domino
- nil
TFTC
Cheers M+S [:O)] (1247)

We had to wait a while because muggles enjoyed the jetty. But found it after they left. TFTC

That must have been our quickest cache ever, and still not TOO obvious!
TFTC

spot on co-ords went straight to the spot Tks for bringing me here TFTC

This intended to be cache #3 of 6, on a lil caching tiki tour from Aucks.
Alas upon arrival there was a family a picnickin, so decided to take a look upon return journey.
Thus ended up being cache #6 of 6, no probs finding when the way was clear.
Interesting spot! Having spent the day wallking in the glorious sun, the temptation to take a running jump into the river (nearly!!) proved irresistable!
TNLNSL.
TFTC.

An easy find at 10.30pm with the light from the cars headlights.

TFTC

A nice place, despite the rain. Thanks!

LOG: 14:06
OUT: -
IN: -

Took the alternative route back to Auckland.
Quick found. Nice little reserve.
TFTC #427

Peaceful spot. Returned the wave from a boat puttering on past the jetty, A bit sloshy further down the track towards the bridge, so didn't get far. TNLN, cheers!

Found the first bridge (the one we drove over) and then realised the cache was 50m away and then found the second bridge.. So not sure which is the Makarau Bridge Lovely setting and views.. Thanks for the cache..

Visited by Scouts doing Cossgrove Navigation skills camp.
Cool location, however a lot of dangerous rubbish around (glass & metal) - not really suitable for younger kids. Did find a back-pack also containing someones wallet & personal goods which we handed in to the Helensville Police Station.

Found with a group of scouts we added our own entry.

On this drive I always look forward to the glimpse of the red barn-house framed by the bridge, and one day will have to snap a decent pic of it. Didn't know the boat ramp was there!
TFTC

Never noticed the turn off before. Nice easy fing TFTC NINO

What a beautiful peaceful area, even in the rain! We set off with Rumo to find this one and located pretty quickly. It had slipped a little from its hole, probably due to the recent wet weather, but we replaced it and tucked it in a little better to wait for the next person.

Found when a member of LEDGIN'S.

In the book of LEDGIN'S Found at 1245hrs. Greetings from Brisbane, Australia.

Sneaky little area to set a cache. Found it only because we saw a car come out.

Cache container was water logged - Surprise, Surprise!! Log book dry and in good order.

TNLN TFTC

5.30pm. Last for the day on our way north. Quick find but track was a bit boggy after all the rain. Thank you David and Noeline

This was a quick found on our tour south.
TFTC and Greetings from Germany
Basti + Jule

Had to wait out one of the local boaties, but a nice spot and a quick find. TFTC

3rd quick find for the day. Have kiyaked past here many time but never been on land in the reserve. Know the owners of land either side of road between bridge and Makarau rd. Junior fant #2 swapped MKA pin badge for LED light key ring. Today was her 1st time geocaching. TFTC

Travelling south, so parked up on side of road and ran down to cache. Hopefully lady in nearby car wasn't that interested in what we were up to... Interesting area, thanks for bringing us here
TFTC

On the alternative route. Stopped here quickly. T4TC.

Missed the pulloff spot on the way south but quickly spotted after a u-turn. Another hidden gem.
+ clamp
- lanyard
T4TC

A nice peaceful hiding place. Good parking.Found the cache real easy. Thanks Gr8dad for the cache.

Easy find, had to crack the clue as I didnt want to spend to much time wading thru all the rubbish in the bank.Nice place when the tides in, nice historical bridge, most unexpected, Thanks!! TNSLLNTFTCACHE!

Out on the hunt with the inimitable XenaCommander. XC aboard Xena, TK riding Splat the SV650.
XC in charge of GPS barrels off down a manky gravel side track... Rowrrrrrrrr TK is not so confident on a BIG bike. Hesitated then putted off down the track... whew made it but had to get XC to turn Splat around at the parking spot.
XC made the grab TNLNSL
Great spot and have marked this one to return with a kayak or two

XC is on his favourite ride.. Xena (BMW R1150RT) in company with TechnoKitten riding her SV650 "Splat"..! We decided to head west and pick up a few out this way before visiting XC relly.
XC is familiar with this area as he has done many meditation retreats around Burnside road Vipassana centre... (Past Life).
Have never stopped here though. Pleased to have an excuse.
TK wasn't happy about gravel on road but managed very well.
Parked bikes and walked around to GZ and soon had goods in hand.
I uplifted Stoffgelb TB to move on.. Other trackables I had wouldn't fit so couldn't replace.
Signed log and left cards.
TFTC #605

Headed down highway 16 to avoid traffic and pleased to say that we made the right choice for a change! Nice little hidden reserve with a view of the bridge. Many thanks.

The second cache on my trip t the Kaipara area.
In: Stffgelb TB
Out: 2 Geocoins
Cheers for the cache.

Drove down and some guy was talking to an old couple about vandilism, and looking at the logs I would think it was regarding stolen cars being brought down here.

No stolen cars today, but there was a cache! Mrs Wonder found this one! Passed the Red Jeep through for its photo shoot.

Thanks for the cache Rudi!

- TB + 2x GC's

Spent a long time looking and no finding, untold rubbish in there, however no suprise, I lost my innocence about "clean green NZ" many caches ago.
Had to go for the clue on this one, and drat! there it was, right under my nose all the time.
No swaps, signed log. Thanks for the cache and the look at the bridge.

Found this one on our 1 week trip throughout Northern Island, The weather was not so nice so time for some geocaching.
Thanks for showing us this spot.

#719
Quick find. Nice bridge. Drove out the way we drove in.
TNLNSL, TFTC

#709. Yup. That's another outlier down. TFTC.

Drove down and felt sorry for the stolen Mazda van that had been absolutely trashed. Found the cache quickly and drove out the same way!! What a cool bridge. TFTC. Collected Geocoin.

Nice little spot by the river. just a couple of Pukekos for company.

TFTC, +geocoin, -TB

17:10 Quick find once we worked out where to park. How did you find this spot? Said hello to Ronald our travel bug. TNLN. Thanks for the cache.

View pieceful place - discrete access from the road.
+ Ronald the Rolex TB
- Turkey Lurkey TB
T4TC Gr8dad - M@

What a crazy morning. So seeing that there were no logs yet for this cache I rocked up not long after FTFing the new cache in Orewa expecting another FTF if no one else had been this morning (unlikely as it was "persissting down" if you know what I mean).

Found the cache in seconds, but disappointed to see a visit the previous day had not been logged (and still hasn't). Got over that a second or two later and completed the formalities. Left a TB for the next finder and replaced the cache.

Then since my car was pointed down the track past the cache I thought that might be the way out so drove a bit down only to find it wasn't. Didn't drive down and turn around because I didn't want to get stuck so I reversed up and, well, part of the track slopes off a bit and the car just slid off the track and almost into the Kaipara harbour. After considerable walking in the rain to find a farmer, eventually solicited the help of a kind gentleman and his brother in law from over the ridge with the promise of a tray or two of beer, and he brought his massive tractor down and lifted (literally, it was the only way to get it out) my car out.

So for future visitors... DRIVE OUT THE WAY YOU CAME IN!!!

I'm ok btw, and so is the car, thankfully, but anyone soon to visit will be able to see where I "parked".

Thanks,
Chris


[This entry was edited by funkymunkyzone on Saturday, July 28, 2007 at 10:08:57 PM.]

We parked at the top of the exit and walked down to find the cache next to really heavily devastated plants and soil. We thought: Wow, somebody must have had a BIG problem here. Now we know who and why. We can only support FMZ with his plea concerning the parking aspect.
The river was swollen and muddy and not a pretty sight. Also we were shocked by all the flooded fields we saw on our tour. On our way back we even had a roadblock due to flooding. This is a different thing from just reading about the situation in the Northland.

No problem with the cache. TTF. We also did not begrudge evofreak for the FTF, but not having logged that for such a long time would have annoyed us, too.

Took: TB Yertle The Turtle
Left: TB Turkey Lurky

TFTC

Yeha my first to find cache - spotted on net, was heading to Alk same day, couldn't drive past without stopping! An excellent location, have driven past it many times and thought it was only a driveway! Quick easy find. Easy to acess if heading north, take care entering driveway if going south.
+ performance car lanyard thing
- geocoin
T4TC
Apologies for late log - didn't have access to computer same day as find, logged soon as I got home

[This entry was edited by evofreak? on Tuesday, August 28, 2007 at 12:54:32 AM.]