Crouching Cacher, Hidden Cache (Franklin) Pukekohe, North Island, New Zealand
By stretch.kerr on 08-Jan-11. Waypoint GC2M5P3

It is time this cache was archived, it has been disabled too long

Been missing for ages. Local muggle getting annoyed. I don't cache much any more. Thanks to all the finders.

All we found was a letter from a man saying we were ruining his bamboo grove shoots!

Needs checking. Probably going to be archived soon.

Hard because some kids had found it and were riping up pages dont know how long this one has left.

Bit of a mish but we got there in the end!

Find No. 8 - Once on the right track and with an inkling to where we should head it was easier than we thought, although it was very hidden with the vegetation being very overgrown and a fear of spiders we got there in the end, cool cache too!

After taking the wrong approach we finally got on right track. Interesting cache container. Windy day makes bamboo creak. Left pathtag. Tftc. Mike and Patsy

#1847, cool spot, TFTC

We were in Pukekohe today catching up with old friends (Haven't been to Puke in years but this was our 2nd visit in as many weeks!) and decided to check out some of the more popular caches in the area with limited time here. Walked to GZ and were suitably impressed with the size and height of the bamboo stand, the co-ordinates were spot on and Mr NZT soon had the cool cache container in hand. Thanks for the cache!

Quick find. Great stream and awesome cache placement.

Found it with my friend Daisy, beautiful place and nice cache!
TFTC

What an adventure to get this one. Think we may have parked in wrong spot but nothing like a quick walk over some rocks to cross the stream. Once at GZ nice quick find. Tftc

second time lucky with this one,and after finding the right hints.and on a nice sunny day

Tried again to find it, with no luck. We were having problems with app, would get within 19 metres, then it would go to 52 metres, then back to 30 metres etc etc. spent ages looking but once again left without success.

Thanks for the great cache.
Very cool container!!

DNF - only our third time geocaching. Will try again another time.

This entry was edited by pricefamilyNZ on Monday, 14 July 2014 at 08:51:38 UTC.

Out and about with mitsimadman caching in the rain today. We decided we were up for one more challenge and quickly determined on this one. We attacked from the south and enjoyed a different sort of terrain experience. We made our way through and managed to arrive safely at GZ. The nicely themed hide was soon detected. Unfortunately the cache container is covered in a mold of some sort--you might have to add the skull attribute . I went to drop some TBs but MMM collected them up. Very good caching experience here. Cheers for the cache placement!

Out with Lostcorse today in the rain, I very much enjoyed the terain, theme, and cammo, although it is very mouldy, Fav point from me, TFTC.

Found while in the area, a good challange to get to GZ

Ta

Very clever almost discarded it. Great work done, deserves a fav.

This entry was edited by 2B2D on Monday, 10 March 2014 at 08:04:24 UTC.

Wonderful to have a smilie here today . Yes was back in the area visiting and this was a "must do" retry after a fortnight ago. So followed my footsteps and cooled off the feet in the little stream crossing. Wondered back into the huge bamboo and again the GPS was bamboozled at first. So with all the strange windy noises , it was rethink, read clue and think like a panda. Really great camo jobby which a lot of time and effort has gone into. A fav point and did enjoy the adventure even for the second time thanks.

I've come to the conclusion that this cache experience varies with the seasons. Judging by the various DNF's, and my own experiences, You're likely to have a hard time at GZ in the height of summer, or the lows of winter. In Jan/Feb, GZ is overgrown with a ground covering plant that obscures everything. In July, the approach to GZ is swampy. Outside of those times, people seem to have decent luck finding the cache.

I DNF'd my own cache January 2012, then found the original the following April, once the summer weeds had died back. I imagine finding the original cache will be easy again in a few months, but for now it has eluded me AGAIN. I have replaced the cache with an improved version, within the same area. This one should be a bit easier to spot throughout the year. Clue updated accordingly. Coords effectively the same given the GPS accuracy at GZ.

Nothing further to add to the previous logs, cache owner needs to check cache.

made way to gz but searched and searched with no luck ,gps didnot like it so could not nail
it down.

had an interesting venture into this one, but sadly a DNF as got bambooozled and many shoots have been cut down and packed in 2 piles. maybe for a raft or bridge at some time. spent an age but still no smilie for me here. so retraced my track out of there.will be back but in the mean time maybe CO could check the area please.

This one led us a merry dance. No sure if the cache is hidden how it is meant to. Kids found it and returned as found. TFTC

Well, this was no picnic. We followed the pathway around and saw some stepping stone rocks that I suggested we use to cross the water. Geohubby thought we should continue along the path, which we did. Eventually we realized we had passed the area being level with the GZ and thought maybe we should go back to the stones. However, just a little further on someone had made a bridge with bamboo placed under an overhanging branch which was at a good height to hang on to to cross the water. This is pretty rough going through the bamboo and very long grass towards GZ. Also we had to climb over a wire fence which made the second tear in geohubby's caching pants on this trip. Another repair job coming up! We battled through the thick bamboo and finally came to an area to begin looking for the cache location. Fortunately we spotted it fairly quickly as by then we really wanted to get out of there. We signed the log, replaced the container and it's camo and continued on, instead of retracing our steps. Over the grassy hill and across the rock stepping stones and we were back on the path to the car. A nice walk except for the fight over the fence and through the bamboo. [^][^]

Tricky find yet in plan sight! Defiantly wear suitable shoes

early morning on a mission to tick of cache number 999 so could move to that i had choosen for number 1000 near by... worked my way through the "terrain" glad i had my hiking boots on .. on account of the light water coating on the grass and the heavy water coating in the little stream and undergrowth on approach to the likely spot... on arriving at GZ the "hide in plain un camo;ed side foxed me at first but .. eventually i got it... and off to log the big down the road...

After the correct route was taken to GZ Mrs 5wheels picked this one straight away. T4TC

Parked on Seddon but took a direct route which earned the terrain as someone was dumping garden rubbish. Then the going required some tight squeezes. Found cache horizontal but have wedged it so it is vertical. Unfortunately harvesting is in progress and almost all cache guardians have been colour coded. They may not have long. A more circuitous way out afforded a view of the spring and while much easier was nowhere near as fun. A fav for the container and adventure NINO TFTC

Out this way today with LunieJar and today we found this elusive little cache. Very very clever. So many centuries to choose from tho. TFTC

Came back for a second look with SethRaven and Jess made short work of the find. Approached from different side of the bamboo which made life easier. Placed back upright to keep cache out of view. Clever hide. TFTC

Dog was keen for a runaround, so thought I'd hunt out the nearest trad while he was exploring, not realising that this one was going to be a needle in a haystack .... have to admit, I started laughing when I got to GZ. Looked around GZ - nadda, tried further afield - nadda, came back to GZ & there it was ... how did I miss that 1st time?! Great hide, worth a fav, TFTC.

Second visit to this one for me and with different sets of eyes this time - no water care workers around today. Still came away empty handed tho

This one really frustrated us!

A lot of effort to get to the cache site - including some very wet feet - but came up empty handed!

Am sure we were in the right place but maybe just didn't see what others seem to have found easily!

This one was another frustrating one for us today! Im pretty sure I had this one in my hand and discarded it without realising what it was! After a good hunt around in what seemed like trying to find a needle in a haystack, we nearly gave up, but with one last look evilno9 grabbed what I had had in my hand and pulled the cache out of it! We were pretty sure it wasn't were it was suppose to be, and tried to put it back where we thought it should have been. Glad to have found it in the end though. Interesting spot thats for sure. TFTC!

Was in the area so decided to try our luck with this one. Made our way to GZ without the need for wet feet, though it was a little damp underfoot with all the recent rain. Entered the den and went about looking for the cache. Initially was interested in one feature that stood out around GZ but that proved fruitless so we kept on looking. Then saw something lying on the ground that didn't seem quite right and the cache was in hand not long after that. Replaced so it was vertical again but not sure if should have perhaps been inserted in something or not. Great hide - TFTC

Came in from the North Side but didn't want to get get wet boots.

Will return from a new direction.

Finally after several unsuccessful trips to find this cache I found it! Fantastic hide. Thank you!

Was not to be for us today, mosquitoes galore here, and so many yellow defenders to choose from, and then the water care men arrived and advised us that the bamboo is shooting now please be careful not to trample the new shoots. We will return another day when we have more time . . . . . .

I used up all my luck on this one. Found the right way in and cache was in the first spot I checked . I can see why people need to come back multiple times normally. You don't get many logs like this, but
... A quick find on a grey yet fantastic geoday.
Thank you for placing this cache.

Finally, we can claim victory with this cache! Back again on our 3rd attempt and this time found it within minutes of arriving at GZ. The cache definately wasnt where we found it the last time we were here. Glad to have this one off the list! Very nice hide and camo! Thanks stretch for another well crafted hide!

Awesome hide. Kids picked up a couple of injuries and very muddy feet! Great fun.

Well... what a cache!
Were looking for something special for our #100th find!
And I guess we got lucky!

As we wandered around GZ... we lost GPS reception under the coverage!! We were certainly... "bamboozled"
Then we realised where the cache actually was! And what a great way to reach 100!

Thanks for the awesome cache... you really "stretched" our imagination!
#100 finds! Woohoo

TFTC... Cospah

Nice find....TFTC

Excellent find/ hide. Definitely worth a favorite for the effort put into the hide. Tftc the terrain could be a little higher difficulty.

Forgot to add the favorie?

Started on the wrong side of the river.

Really enjoyed winding my way through this park, learning about it's history.

Well done with the hide We have had two goes at trying to find this one now and both times come up empty handed

Revisited GZ today with new cache to place. While looking for a new spot, I found the old cache safe and sound exactly where I left it. Contents still good, so re-enabling it with an updated clue.

It's a bit of a worry when you DNF your own cache. It's probably still in there, But GZ wasn't at all overgrown when I originally placed it. I will make another container along the same lines and place it in a better location.

We've tried twice over the Xmas holidays to track this one down, an hour both times. Very overgrown, beware the bugs & mozzies.

Back here again hoping to find it this time but again no luck with tracking it down. This time, we knew what we were looking for but still couldn't locate it. GZ is very overgrown since last time we were here nearly a year ago. We will be back again to have another go at some point.

This week I've been in Auckland for work stuff based at St John's College. We've got friends in Pukekohe, so we are cathcing up with them too. I decided to have a crack at finding this geocache today while Mrs and Master TEF met with some of Mrs pals in Auckland.

This was a real challenge! I spent 40 minutes at GZ. I was fairly confident I knew what I was looking for... but I couldn't see the wood for the trees! I was about to leave, and made one final sweep of one of the areas I had already searched, and I was stoked to come up with hands full. I really didn't want to go away with a sad face for this, thanks for the hide.

Signed logbook on 11 November 2011 at 11:05:00

great hide, had me scratching the ole head for a bit, but logic finally made a break through, TFTC

Time to come back down into the Franklin area to pick up some more caches.

This was the last one for the day and the one that took the longest to find. Loved the camo job.

Cheers for the cache.

Parked as instructed and found a easy path to GZ. I quickly worked out what to look for however this is where the ease of the find ceased. I hunted high and low for almost half and hour and was about to sulk away with my proverbial tail between my legs when I checked one last place and out popped the cache. What an awesome hide! TFTC.

Very wet, decided to give this one a miss today and will try another time.

This had me going for far too long so had to give up

This entry was edited by psychrn on Tuesday, 28 June 2011 at 03:11:24 UTC.

Took a round-about route to the cache, and it worked well - dry feet, no barriers. Figured out what to look for and were pleased to spot it fairly quicky. A nicely crafted cache thanks.

# 3426

Long search here before I located the good hide. Nice area. SL TFTC

Where to begin the search? Loved the thought gone into to this one. Thanks

This was a fun cache. The first approach I took ended up at a high fence, then the second one made me a magnet for mozzies. The location certainly lives up to it's name as I realised how I might be looking for a needle in a haystack. However on stopping to think and use my eyes I found the cache before I'd been eaten alive by the mossies who thought I was dinner. A well made cache that certainly can blend in.

Very glad to find this as the mossies had well and truely found us. Thankfully carry bug spray in the caching bag, but still a few hits.

TFTC

Logbook replaced. Please ensure it is placed in the snaplock bag, then in the bottle, then the outer container. Ta.

Waterlogged. Will sort out this week.

Logbook sodden and needs replacing... see log.

6575 Our cache of the day... unfortunately the outer container was full of water and the logbook sodden, as it had not been put back into the inner container. Took 15 long minutes to find the cache, the local mossies were right on target. Many thanks for a cool cache. Highly recommended.

Was starting to rain when approaching the general area. Was pissing down when near GZ.
Great adventure with only one wet foot.
Cool container.
TFTC

Quick find before group arrive near me.

Hmmmm it's not the water which was a surprise but.....the mosquito's where killing us. In only one minute my full legs where a complet battlefield.
Find the cache after a bit of looking. It took more time because of chasing all the midges.
Great camo.....like more of those in this area.......go for it.

Aptly named cache to find for our 3,000th traditional find as we have done a fair bit of crouching over the last couple of years to find hidden caches. This one was was quite elusive until something didn't look quite right . Excellent hide, thanks for the fun T4TC.

Wow, what a mission, spent best part of 1 hours making my way though the terrain, GPS getting closer and closer then suddenly 20 meters off DOH!, abandoned all trust in the GPS and started looking for something out of place, eventually found it, GPS told me it was 30 mtrs out, but I didn't beleive it. Anyway, great camo!! Damm awkard spot to get to

GPS took me to the "path" which looked correct. Walked towards GZ but 40m away from GZ there was a small stream. Well I guess it is normally a small stream but after 2 weekends of heavy rain it had turned into a rather "deep" looking little river. Spent a few minutes looking for a "narrow" section or a crossing with no luck. There were some rocks further up stream but the water was pumping through those so decided not to attempt a crossing there. Decided to use my long jump skills (having been a long jump champion many years ago) and cleared the "river". Headed around to GZ and found the well disguised cache rather quickly. Decided to head back to the car the same way I came which meant another river jump. Glad to report that I cleared it the second time too. TFTC

Took the easy way to the cache. Out on a super roasting day with Bjarni1:) Thanks for the cool cache!

Cool cache geocoin drop

I took the long way to the cache and made it a terrain 6 or 7. Easy find once I arrived at GZ. Thanks.

This entry was edited by Trout-fly on Friday, 21 January 2011 at 23:47:46.

Had to laugh after reading Trout Fly's log as I did exactly the same thing and what was worse managed to step into a deep hole while crossing the stream and ended up wet to the waist. Wallet, phone and keys all took a dunking
Excellent cache container once finally got to GZ. Walked out the easy way.
Many thanks

quick easy find TFTC

Good find 1st one for the day.
Wife spotted it almost as soon as we got to GZ
T4TC

http://www.t4tc.co.nz/

Published

Half way through my evening meal and ding dong this cache was published and only 2.5km from my home. Abandoned the meal wizzed to Hickeys Dam fell in a huge hole, tripped over a rather large log but got to GZ and looked for a suitable hidey place. No tigers to be seen so very safe. Now where was it...............I am not going to tell you.

Our second ever FTF so we are so pleased. Thanks Stretch for your cache. Took the TBs for a trip.

Back home for the rest of the meal.

TB drop.