Pigs CAN flyover land and over water! LIES & LIES Paku, North Island, New Zealand
By G-2 on 14-Jan-20. Waypoint GC8J5HG

nothing in the hole -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --French version below-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --Short late log but more complete now that we are back home.Our vacation will take us to the other side of the world to the land of the Maoris. After many, many hours of flying, a passage through China on the way there and through the United States of America on the way back, we will finally arrive in Christchurch which will be the starting point of our journey.We will enjoy the beaches of the Pacific Ocean and we will go back towards the North Island via State Highway 1. To combine business with pleasure, we will take regular breaks and small detours according to the caches that seem the most accessible to us.With a little more than 3500 km in 20 days, we will have discovered many facets of this island which is soothing. We will have to come back because there are so many places that we have not done . In broad strokes, the path will go from Christchurch to the Kaikoura Peninsula then towards Picton for the crossing to Wellington.New island, new road, and by State Highway 2 we go towards Hastings and Napier. We will leave the seaside for several days to go to Tongariro and Taupo. We will continue north towards Rotorua and Hamilton (without forgetting a detour via Hobbiton ) A detour to the Coromandel Peninsula and finally the almost north of the island with Whangarei and Waitangi to learn the history of this country.There will only be a few days left to spend towards Auckland and its suburbs before taking the plane back to the grayness of our European autumn.The majority of the boxes will be found, we have abandoned those where our English was lacking and where we could not understand the clue. Thanks to all the owners who brightened up our path, who took us to incredible places (that's also geocaching)In short, we had a great vacation, saw beautiful places that simply ask us to come back. We learned a lot about the history of this country and its traditions, it's a great motivation for our destinations.-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --Petit log en retard mais un peu plus complet maintenant que nous sommes rentrs la maison. Nos vacances vont nous emmener lautre bout du monde au pays des Maoris. Aprs beaucoup, beaucoup dheures davion, un passage par la Chine laller et par les Etats-Unis dAmrique au retour, nous arriverons enfin Christchurch qui sera le point de dpart de notre priple.Nous profiterons des plages du de locan Pacifique et nous remonterons en direction de lile du nord via la State highway 1. Pour joindre lutile et lagrable, nous ferons des pauses rgulires et de petits dtours au gr des caches qui nous semble les plus accessibles. Avec un peu plus de 3500 km en 20 jours, nous aurons dcouverts pleins de facettes de cette ile qui est apaisante. Il nous faudra revenir car il y a tellement dendroit que nous navons pas fait . Dans les grand traits, le chemin ira de Christchurch la pninsule Kaikoura puis direction Picton pour la traverse vers Wellington.Nouvelle ile, nouvelle route, et par la State Highway 2 nous remontrons en direction de Hastings et Napier. Nous laisserons le bord de mer plusieurs jours pour aller au Tongariro et Taupo. Nous continuerons vers le nord en direction de Rotorua et Hamilton (sans oublier un dtour par Hobbiton ). Un crochet pour la pninsule de Coromandel et pour finir le presque nord de lile avec Whangarei et Waitangi pour apprendre lhistoire de ce pays. Il ne restera que quelques jours passer vers Auckland et sa banlieue avant de ne reprendre lavion pour retourner dans la grisaille de notre automne europen.La majorit des boites seront trouves, nous avons dlaisser celles o notre anglais faisait dfaut et ou que nous narrivions pas comprendre lindice. Merci tous les poseurs qui ont gay notre chemin, qui nous ont emmen dans des endroits incroyables (cest aussi cela le geocaching)Bref, nous avons pass de superbes vacances, vu des endroits magnifiques qui demandent simplement que lon revienne. Nous avons appris beaucoup de chose sur lhistoire de ce pays et de ces traditions, cest une grande motivation pour nos destinations.

Too subtle for us.. looked everywhere!

All I can say is that this cache was an adventure and a half. I had my geobag packed up, water in my backpack, emergency contacts alerted, and my newspaper subscription renewed. On arrival to GZ, I wasn't sure what direction to even look. There were just SO many potential places to look and I had no idea where to go. I ended up zigging when I should have zagged and must have looked super sketchy because before I knew it, I had gotten the attention of our local law enforcement. The panic consumed me as the officer approached. I wasn't doing anything wrong, but I worried that might not matter. Could I be going to jail as a result of caching? "Not again" I thought to myself. Not again. I steeled myself for a confrontation. But in the end, the officer turned out to be super helpful. Apparently, I was not the first cacher they'd stopped and as a result, they had a hint for me. I thanked the officer profusely because now I had a plan. The field puzzle was something I'd never encountered before. I won't spoil it for future cachers, but just make sure you don't have a phobia to clowns or crustaceans. After a full day spent working this cache, I was so thankful to finally put pen to paper and log this cache. I need a nap now.

Think we found it

Tftc... the looks on our faces while reading the description would have been prize enough hahah

Flying pigs, flying pigs - always so hard to find !Greetings Fellow Adventurers,Todays caching expedition was like a plot straight out of an Indiana Jones movie. I battled dense foliage, treacherous terrain, and what I can only describe as a swarm of mosquitoes with a personal vendetta against me. And to top it all off, Im pretty sure I saw a pig fly by. Yes, you read that righta flying pig. Clearly, this cache is in a magical realm.Upon reaching the coordinates, I thought, 'This must be where the real adventure begins.' And boy, was I right. I must have walked around the spot five times, circling it like a vulture waiting for a lightbulb moment. When I finally found the cache, hidden in a genius spot, I nearly did a victory danceok, I did do a victory dance.Inside, I found an assortment of treasures: a tiny plastic frog, a rubber band ball, and a single playing card from an incomplete deck (the Queen of Hearts, if anyones missing her). I added a glow-in-the-dark bouncy ball because everyone could use a little more bounce in their life.TFTC! This one will be remembered as the day I conquered the jungle, dodged angry insects, witnessed a flying pig, and emerged victorious with my geocaching prowess intact.Happy hunting, brave souls!

I was the one from the Litter that stayed behind from the first convey today up to this cache as I was upset about not being allowed to go to the market and I was also today years old when I learnt little piggies dont go to the market to go shopping!after my fellow swine didnt come home by lunchtime and after I cried and squealed for her I decided to get off my porker and come investigate this for myself! As this was a solo trip with no distractions I was able to put much more effort in and pose like the CO wanted to (Luckily Im a trained ballerina ) while cheerfully humming out the favourite song that my Mum used to sing to me as a wee piglet. Thanks for the challenge G_2

Oh look Ive found another special Piggie in the seriesday 349 of my streak and am needing a trad cache to finish off my calendar aswellSo I called up the rest of my buddies in my Drift and asked if they were keen for a mish up North to come sign this cache off!? All but one of the Drove was keen as he was still upset as her buddy was sent to the market and she had to stay home! To be honest I really wish I had done a solo trip and left the rest behind as when we arrived at GZ #3 & #4 of our team started squabbling because one got roast beef and the other got none and then just as we were balancing on one trotter ready for the photo a brawl broke out as someone forgot the tune to Pigs in Space! So with that we we went alllllll the way back home! Sigh..never again! But I suppose thats what you get when you are filling in a tough D/T spot on the grid.

#15,053. We had quite an adventure exploring Pauanui in Waikato - a charming town on the east coast of the Coromandel Peninsula. Privileged to come to this spot known as a holiday destination for the elite and wealthy, attracting visitors seeking relaxation and outdoor activities, we enjoyed the scenic hikes here. We were also up for a challenge, so we tried this field puzzle (geocache) recommended for tourists. Looking out for picnic tables where we could relax and enjoy the surroundings, we could only find this couple of seats. But they would do. Here we kept an eye out for livestock and other wildlife in the area. While waiting for the river creature to appear, all we could recall was Evelyns tale of the enigma of Pauanuis hidden code.---Once upon a sun-kissed morning in the coastal town of Pauanui, nestled between azure waves and lush green hills, a curious traveler named Evelyn set foot on its sandy shores. Evelyn was no ordinary wanderer; she had an insatiable appetite for puzzles, cryptic clues, and hidden secrets. Her backpack bulged with notebooks, a magnifying glass, and a worn-out copy of *The Enigma Chronicles*.As Evelyn strolled along the beach, having now left her scuba gear behind, the salty breeze whispered secrets to her. She noticed a peculiar arrangement of seashells near a weathered picnic table. The shells formed a pattern a code, perhaps? Evelyn's eyes sparkled with anticipation. She sat down, notebook in hand, ready to decipher the enigma.The first clue lay in the picnic table's wood grain. It resembled a map, with knots and whorls hinting at hidden treasures. Evelyn traced her finger along the grooves, muttering, "Park and grab, my dear."She followed the trail, winding through coastal dunes and past grazing sheep. The sun danced on her skin, urging her forward. But what was the ultimate prize? Evelyn's heart raced. She recalled the words etched into the picnic table: "More than 10 km hike." Ah, a challenge!The trail led her uphill, where Mount Pauanui loomed like a guardian. Evelyn climbed, her boots sinking into soft earth. At the summit, she gasped the panoramic view stole her breath. Below, the town sprawled, a patchwork of rooftops and winding roads. But there, near the old airstrip, something caught her eye: a vintage plane, its tail adorned with cryptic symbols."Snowmobiles allowed," Evelyn muttered, scanning her notes. She remembered a legend the tale of Algie, a reclusive aviator who vanished during a snowstorm. Some said he had hidden his fortune in these hills, guarded by spectral sheepdogs. Others whispered of coded messages left in the wind.Evelyn approached the plane, her magnifying glass revealing faint inscriptions. Symbols danced across the fuselage: an apple, a quill, and a crescent moon. "Field puzzle," she murmured. The geocache must be nearby.She followed the crescent moon's arc, winding through the Tairua River Trail. The air hummed with magic the kind that only exists in forgotten tales. Evelyn reached a gnarled tree, its roots forming a cryptic circle. She pressed her hand against the bark, whispering the words she had pieced together: "Pigs can fly."The ground trembled. Roots uncoiled, revealing a hidden chamber. Inside, a large dusty chest awaited a treasure trove of ancient coins, maps, and a yellowed journal. Evelyn's heart raced as she opened the journal. The pages crackled, revealing the story of Pixies, the mischievous sprites who had once danced with moonbeams.Pixies' riddles guided Evelyn deeper into the mystery. She deciphered star charts, cracked codes, and danced with spectral sheepdogs under Waikato's moon. And there, in the heart of Pauanui, she found it the lost fortune of Algie.But Evelyn did not take the gold. Instead, she left a note: "To the next enigma seeker." For she knew that some treasures were meant to be shared the thrill of discovery, the joy of unraveling secrets, and the magic woven into every word.And so, as the sun dipped below the horizon, Evelyn returned to the picnic table. She rearranged the seashells, leaving a new code for the next wanderer. Pauanui whispered its gratitude, and the wind carried her laughter across the waves.---And that, our friend, is the tale of Evelyn, the geocaching adventurer who unlocked Pauanui's hidden code. May your own journeys be filled with wonder and mystery!---*Thanks for the geocache placement, and for bringing us to this site, and **.T h a n k s. .f o r. .t h e. .c a c h e.**.M a u r u u r u. .k o e. .n u i. .a t u. .h o k i. .t e. .k e t e r o k i.*---### LET US HAVE A BLOCK PARTY!!! ###The first ever **Block Party** event in NZ is being planned for **2025-05-03** in Rotorua. Check out the ["25 Years of Geocaching NZ! (GCAKR25)" listing]( https://coord.info/GCAKR25) for details. If you intend coming, please log your ["Will Attend"]( https://www.geocaching.com/live/geocache/GCAKR25/log) as soon as you can to assist with planning.

WOW... What can I say.. So Pigs can fly huh. Have I got news for you G-2.......Not only can pigs fly but I got the opportunity to have a wee jaunt in one of the American F-16s that have been cruising the NZ skies in the past few days. They are here for the Warbirds over Wanaka this Easter weekend and I have had the privilege of meeting Dave and his crew. Dave is well versed in all things Geocaching and he offered to help me find this delinquint cache. In no time at all I was equipped with a jump suite and all the necessary gear and we were off. It seemed like only a few minutes and we reduced speed from mach 2 to almost like standing still. Dave seemed to know exactly where he was going to and gave me instructions of where to stand and prepare to JUMP.... Just how he managed to get the port wheels onto the walkway was beyond belief. That's where you need to JUMP on the next time around. It's only 2 metres to the walkway so try not to go too far left or you could eat some mangroves. Only seconds later I heard the command JUMP... so I did. Just where Piggy come from defies comprehension but Piggy certainly stopped me from too much Mangrove munching. I did get some Mangrove attached to me but at least I found the no longer delinquint cache. Thanks G-2 and Piggy for your efforts in making me a Liar Liar Pants on Fire.

No luck today

Missed this one

Arrived in Puanui today. Very nice settlement with the beach, walkways, waterways and plenty of open spaces. Very impressed with it all! And we picked up a few caches during the day too!We grabbed a ride in a gyrocopter from Puanui International Airport to the site of this cache. Very fitting that the craft was named Miss Piggy. I lowered myself on the guy rope to pick up the cache. Job done, the requisite photo taken (attached - whose bikes were those?), and we were on our way again. Another successful mission! #7060. TFTC.

Whats that its a plane no its an alien invasion wait no its a flying pig zoom the pig flew overhead and took a dump on my head. I dug through the crap and there I found it the geocache.

Didnt find it sadly

Whilst wandering in the night, my eye fell on this cache. After returning my eye to its socket, I checked out the area and waiting for the muggle to leave. Of course the muggle had plenty of time too, insomniacs unite!ZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz, huh? What happened? Have I slept through the whole adventure? Luckily my fellow cacher signed the log while I was off with the piggies, uh, pixies. Tftc

Dnf Had a good look but nothing.

Found with Pprime` ... i was less drunk, but the story of how we got here is largely accurate otherwise.

Accio 14:00:20The journey of a thousand steps starts with a dream. Nah, a vision. Being recently made aware of the beauty and rarity of these creatures only viewable here, a bucket list trip was planned, concocted and after a year of preparations and savings T4mmmy and I were on our way by seaplane from the distant west to get here.But alas our journey was thwarted with a massive sea storm (and I swear I saw a dragon although T4mmmy says it might have been the free inflight whiskeys) that swept up from the north and sent the plane into a tail spin that only the mighty efforts of our hero pilot managed to avert severe disaster. As it was we barely managed to limp in to Auckland harbour and there our flight ended. But not a total disaster as we are now in the long white cloud, and I am ever the optimist.From Auckland we hitchhiked to Hamilton, and headed off by foot east. There was a short bit by train, but I won't mention that, and finally we were picked up by a trucker who took us along the SH25a until he was stopped by guards. Thinking they were going to arrest us (we didn't exactly go through immigration customs border control on arrival in Auckland) - we hid in another lorry sitting nearby. It was getting dark now, and well we did fall asleep and woke up in Rotorua which wasn't too helpful.Jumping from a moving lorry is never a wise idea - so we did that, but luck was on our side as we landed in a bird nest, a rather large one actually - and it was pretty soft. I might have banged my head but apparently a mighty bird picked us up and ran really fast until it dropped us on the ground at Pauinui. Phew - the one place we wanted to get to. Lucky!From there it was a short walk down here to the boardwalk area and out to see these wondrous Sus domesticus avial. Nothing. We waited hours, and saw nothing - not even a normal bird, not a fish nor whale. Very disappointed. We waited all day, and just before sunset I re-read the description and decided we needed to do the dance, and whistle the song. Photo attached. Well that worked a treat. Before we knew it there they were all around us, whooping, calling to each other, and maybe me, such joyous creatures. I was entranced, utterly spellbound. They never landed near me, but I could feel the wind beneath their wings and smell the fresh odour of swine. And then suddenly they were gone. I blinked and there was nothing but the sun dropping behind the distant hills, my memories (I forgot to take photos but I'll never forget). So blessed to have witnessed this phenomenon - I can die now a happy man!Thanks G-2 for entertaining me at this location. *{Overall find #11673}*

Busy place, waited for muggles to go & then found the cache.

This little piggy cant fly but she can cycle, and what a wonderful day to be out doing this trail. Did the whole trail first, then came back and got this one, as when I went out I think the whole of Pauanui and then some was here. Tftc

Pigs be trolling this cache

Rattling along, we came across the piggy. Great place for ham sandwiches viewing the native flying pigs.

Piggy exploring further along the trail

Well I searched high and low and couldn’t find a cache to sign the log in, but on reading the description thoroughly I understood that that wasn’t important as a photo would do. I have one of what was under the seat
I so enjoyed the logs of previous finders of the cache unfortunately my imagination isn’t that good. Tftc

After the aliens dropped me off in the middle of the desert near Roswell, I wasn't quite sure how to get home. Luckily a time-travelling Delorean appeared before me, and Michael J Fox asked if I wanted a lift. After an initial wrong turn, arriving in prehistoric times, and almost getting eaten by a tyrannosaurus rex, we eventually made it here. Who knew that Michael J Fox liked geocaching?!

I hate to admit defeat, but at this point I must. I flew out from Chicago in record speed. Literally a world record, actually. I've been taking flying lessons and borrowed my instructor's fastest plane.

As I was preparing for landing nearby, I knew I was in the right place. Just outside my window I spotted a flash of pink and some feathery wings. I really didn't think this cache was serious, but my gosh... it was a real flying pig! And what's more, the pig was beating me! I was in one of the world's fastest planes going full speed and this pig was not just keeping up but beginning to outpace me. This place is certainly strange...

I was so entranced by the sight, I nearly fell out of the sky myself. Not a good start. But I got ahold of myself and prepared for a grueling search. And grueling it was.

I lugged my gear out and began the journey. I was overconfident, thinking that scuba gear, radiation protection, climbing gear, underwater UV light, and a map to Atlantis II (the little known even-more-lost city of Atlantis that I heard rumors that this geocache was modeled off of) would be enough. I was sorely mistaken.

Things started off okay. It took a few throws, but I eventually got my climbing rope looped where it needed to be. But something was strange about the ascent... the cliff face kept winking in and out of existence. I kept finding that the rocky holds resembled pig snouts. But the moment I had that thought, the snouts would disappear, leaving me fumbling for footing. It was slow going. It seemed almost as though the piggy spirits deep in the earth didn't want me to make this find. Maybe I'll have to make peace with them before my next attempt.

But despite the pitfalls, I did manage to make my way up to the necessary path. From there, I double checked my map, and donned my scuba gear. I lowered myself into the underwater cave, and that's when things started to go really wrong.

The underwater UV light was much too heavy for me, so I needed two hands to carry it as I swam. Unfortunately, this meant that I couldn't consult my map easily. The light wasn't cheap, so I think next time I'll affix the map to the top of the UV light so that this isn't an issue. But for this time, it meant that I was swimming nearly blind. I tried to follow the UV markers, but I felt I was going in endless circles. Big circles, little circles, spiraling circles. Circles within circles and circles within ellipses. It wasn't until I had gone back and forth a dozen times and finished my third spiral that I realized what the trail had been drawing. A massive glowing pig. I had a hunch that I should follow the trail's tail. I followed my instincts. I looped in spiral after spiral after spiral mimicking the curly piggy tail.

I started to grow dizzy. And got the alert that my oxygen was low. I needed to return to the surface. I held out until the last moment where I could make it back alive, but I hadn't even reached GZ yet. I was nearly out of oxygen by the time I neared the surface again. I found myself gasping for breath and chugging water the moment I got myself safely back to dry land.

It might have just been my imagination, or perhaps the oxygen deprivation, but I could've sworn I saw a swarm of the elusive flying pigs descend to help me back to my feet. Once I was stable, the biggest pig stepped forward. While the rest of the herd had pure white wings, her feathers were tinged with gold. She spoke. It took a moment for me to register the words because the ethereal songlike quality of her voice struck awe to my very core. She was both terrifying and strangely comforting. She told me that the treasure I was seeking was ready for me, but I was not yet ready for it. She told me to prepare myself and hone my mind before attempting this search again.

I heeded her advice and I began the long flight back home to Chicago, determined to prepare myself anew. I vow to avenge this DNF one day.

After the great debacle of yesterday, as chronicled in my extensive dnf, i slept so poorly, up all night thinking, planning, that i simply had to come back again today and make things right.

This time i brought my rope, which made a big difference, it turned out.
I wouldn't say it was necessary, it's certainly been found enough times freeclimbing already, but with the added measure of safety involved, i could relax somewhat and take in more of my surroundings, utterly unlike the first time round.

It was that second branch, quite a reach and in failing light. Excuses, excuses.. this time round the rope worked a treat.

I enjoyed the walk in, the path only slightly overgrown in a few places.
The large gum on the high corner as you're passing the smaller lake on the left was full of loud and excited birds, which added a nice soundtrack for the hike.

The larger lake had several swans with their signets, which also helped to distract. All up i think it was a good few hours spent on this cache alone.

I made sure to take note of the code word for the bonus puzzle, and calculated the planks near gz for A.
I don't think this one's getting muggled anytime soon.

As i'm a fan of code, i found the sauce info very descriptive.
Thanks g-2 for upping the cache game in every which way. Epic. Worth the favourite point.

...

So let’s just start by saying that I’m not so good at navigation. I drove until I hit water, and grabbed my canoe. Figuring I must me close, I started paddling. 245 degrees and 6200 miles later, I arrived. Yes my arms are tired. This place is weird. What’s up with all the flying pigs? Definitely going to be borrowing a few of them to make it back home after I find every cache around here. With my canoe full of TOTT, I managed to make the find on this near impossible cache. I’m just happy to have survived. I left $100 cash in the cache for the next cacher. Thanks for the cache and the adventure.

The pig was flying.

It was a strange sight, to be sure. A pig, flying through the air like a bird. But it was happening, and there was no denying it.

The pig was not sure how it had happened. It had been walking, as pigs do, and then suddenly it was in the air. It had not jumped, or been pushed, or anything like that. It had just started flying.

The pig was not sure what to do. It was flying, and that was new and exciting, but it was also high up in the air, and that was scary. The pig decided to just enjoy the experience, for now. It could worry about landing later.

Time passed, and the pig began to hunger. Passing over a field, it saw some kumara, and it began to salivate. Drops of saliva fell onto the field, a magical pig-scented drizzle.

The pig circled the field, unsure how to land. It looked down at the kumara, which was now growing upward at a surprising rate. The saliva-rain was making it grow faster than kumara had any right to.

Eventually one kumara reached the pig's altitude, and the pig snatched and gobbled it down.

The pig is still flying today.

The CO had challenged ( or was that invited) me to look into this cache while on my NZ North Island Tour. Well I may or may not have forgotten about this challenge until reviewing further communications about what in Australia is sometimes labelled as MCBC behaviour. Alternatively given Australian heritage worn as a badge of honour.

Now while out pig hunting nearby i did find a cache also belonging to the CO . It was then that the pig took off down the path an I decided to take chase on vehicles capable of herding these pigs over land and water, snow, ice and sand. Pursuit over Lava has been ruled out of the question until tyre technology advancements are made. That said could it be I would be looking for crackling instead of a pig.

TaurusSix and I are in New Zealand for a three weeks holiday. We love New Zealand and have had lots of wonderful experiences here previously. This time we have decided to focus our attention on three destinations for one week each, all in the North Island. The Coromandel Peninsula, Waiheke Island and The Bay of Isles. We are very mindful of not focusing all our attention of the holiday on geocaching, however it will still play an important part. We are deliberately focusing on caches that involve some walking, great views, interesting attractions , history and general points of interest. And this will all happen in between exploring, swimming , walking, doing touristy things and relaxing .
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Day 4 - We are now based for the next little while at Pauanui on the Coromandel Peninsula and this morning we took it easy before setting off on a mini circuit around the Coromandel Peninsula taking in Taurua, Whenuakite, Coroglen. Then down the very scenic and meandering Tapu to Coroglen road through the middle of the Peninsula coming out at Tapu then onto Thames before circling back to Pauanui. The scenery was spectacular and highlights included the amazing Silver Ferns which just seem to be on steroids around here. Also saw a couple of birds of prey up close, was hoping to see a kiwi but alas no such look . We also climbed the look out to the unusual square Kauri tree and the views from there were amazing . We paced ourselves with geocaches and ended up with 14 in all.

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This was our first cache of the day and was extra special because it was a dnf avenged. Nothing better than turning a blue frown into a happy yellow smiley. Now that we are a bit more cluey we went back to gz and what we discovered was truly amazing. We heard rustling in the mangroves and as we turned to look around sure enough there lying in wait was an eight foot croc - who said there are no crocs in NZ!! When we say lying in wait we were not kidding, it was then it lunged forward and caught one of the flying pigs clean in its jaws before snapping them shut. In unison we had cache in hand and quickly signed and replaced. What an adventure…..Thanks for the cache G-2. And it is so unique it gets a favourite point from us

TaurusSix and I are in New Zealand for a three weeks holiday. We love New Zealand and have had lots of wonderful experiences here previously. This time we have decided to focus our attention on three destinations for one week each, all in the North Island. The Coromandel Peninsula, Waiheke Island and The Bay of Isles. We are very mindful of not focusing all our attention of the holiday on geocaching, however it will still play an important part. We are deliberately focusing on caches that involve some walking, great views, interesting attractions , history and general points of interest. And this will all happen in between exploring, swimming , walking, doing touristy things and relaxing .
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Day 2 - We are now based for the next little while at Pauanui on the Coromandel Peninsula and we woke up to a glorious sun rise. We are ready for the day ahead and exploring this lovely little town. After a very leisurely breakfast we headed to the beach and river mouth area where we undertook a local Adventure Lab, followed by an interesting multi before taking a beautiful scenic river walk with a trail of caches along the way . Part of the walk was a boardwalk through the mangroves which was quite impressive. We are actually very relieved that there are no snakes in New Zealand , we would not be attempting some of these spots at this time of year in Australia

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We searched and searched for this one in every nook and cranny but alas we could not find it.

I woke up, stretched my arms over my head and shook my tail from side to side. Today was the day that I had been waiting for – I had been training for months for this day and now I was ready. We were about to swim from our underwater city of Aquarius in the Hikurangi Trench to the Tangitarori Wetlands on the Tairua Harbour. With the many obstacles and difficulties that I was likely to encounter along the way, four of my fellow merfolk were going to accompany me for my protection.
After a healthy breakfast of seaweed and kelp, we set off on our expedition. Winding through the undersea wilderness of plants and deep sea creatures, we swam on in a northwesterly direction. We had estimated that travelling at the usual merfolk speed, we should reach the Tangitarori Wetlands by early morning tomorrow, and if our goal was achieved, we would be able to return to Aquarius by the early hours of the following morning.
On we swam, encountering many coloured fish and other sealife along the way. By mid-afternoon we were making great progress and feeling confident that all was going well. But then we spotted it – a huge, intimidating great white shark heading in our direction! It had been known that the waters were warming and that great whites were coming in closer and becoming more aggressive to the merfolk and to humans in these waters, but we had been hoping to avoid any encounter with these apex predators. Quickly the lead merman signalled us to go down a diversionary channel and he headed off in the opposite direction to distract the great white. He had brought some rather rancid fishmeat with him for this purpose, and left it behind him to trail loosely in order to attract the great white. The ploy worked, and we met up with him again a short time later.
Apart from a pleasant meeting with some bottlenose dolphins in a pod that were known to us – these coastal nomads are very outgoing and friendly mammals – the rest of our trip was uneventful. We reached the Tangitarori Wetlands in the early hours of the following morning, and swam around under the boardwalk. We had calculated where we thought this cache would be, and sure enough, after a ‘heave-ho’ from some of the other merfolk, I was able to wriggle up onto the boardwalk. My tail wasn’t so good for movement on land, so I was happy that our research proved correct and it was only a few metres along to where the cache was cleverly hidden. Breathing out of the water for up to five-six hours is achievable for me, but this was not going to be necessary today fortunately! Because it was the early hours of the morning, I was able to search without being seen by humans, and I didn’t have a problem with searching in the dark as my vision is flexible for dark or light. Sure enough, the cache was quickly in hand, my signature left on the log and the cache was replaced carefully into its little hidey hole.
We were able to rest up for a few hours in an underwater cave that we found nearby, and then we swam home directly to Aquarius . Our Geocaching merfriends were delighted that we had found this cache and that night we partied as we celebrated having conquered LIES & LIES 

This little piggy flew from Australia
Heading to Kiwi Land
Flapping his little arms as hard as he could
Before landing flat in the sand.

“Alas” said the little piggy
As he wiped the sand off his snuff
I just went off course
As my gps ran out of puff

So he went to the corner store
And purchased a packet of AAs
Replaced the dead ones with new ones
And was off on his ways

He spent many a day geocaching
Grabbed all types of finds
Traditionals, multis, virtuals
Earth cache all sorts and kinds

It was soon time to head home
To Australia he was to fly
So he flapped his wings and off he went
And headed to the sky

Some may say that pigs can’t fly
But tell that to the pigs
So cast your eyes up to the sky
And wave to the thingamijigs

TFTC. Saw real piggies on the way home.

Found with goldielover today. Had spotted this gem before we left aust. Made sure we had everything we could possibly need at gz. Should have seen the customs officers when we landed. Really gave us the third degree. What are you doing with all this equipment??? We had the scuba gear, climbing abseiling gear. Fishing poles, and some hammers and screw drivers. We explained a geocaching holiday. Luckily they believed us. Anyway we really had know idea what to expect at gz. We had hired a decent sized geomobile and made our way to gz. Soon had it all figured out and with some degree of difficulty we soon had the log for signing.
That was some exercise and great log the cache.
TFTC

This little piggy flew from Australia
Heading to Kiwi Land
Flapping his little arms as hard as he could
Before landing flat in the sand.

“Alas said the little piggy
As he wiped the sand off his snuff
I just went off course
As my gps ran out of puff

So he went to the corner store
And purchased a packet of AAs
Replaced the dead ones with new ones
And was off on his way

He spent many a day geocaching
Grabbed all types of finds
Traditionals, multis, virtuals
Earth cache all sorts and kinds

It was soon time to head home
To Australia he was to fly
So he flapped his wings and off he went
And headed to the sky

Some may say that pigs can’t fly
But tell that to the pigs
So cast your eyes up to the sky
And wave to the thingamijig.

TFTC. Saw real piggies on the way home.

We flew in on my ship, the Rocinante, parked nearby, while I did the needful. Needed to be back in the belt for lunch so this was a flying visit. Thanks for the cache.

I was quite shocked to hear that the CO had actually seen free roaming wild pigs further up the trail, but forgot to ask if they were also of the flying variety. That would certainly be an interesting spectacle, couldn't help but wonder as I carefully made my way out, do they bounce when landing on water, how much CO2 would they emit while in flight, can they still fly at night, and ohh of course, how good would they taste when spit roasted on a large outdoor fire, hmmm so many questions I almost overshot the GZ. Made quick work of the cache, before hastily retreating, certainly wouldn't want to encounter any one of those beasts while distracted signing the log out here, TFTC

No sooner had i sat down, then a muggle arrived and sat down for a chat. I thought i could see what was possibly the cache but couldn't say for sure as I couldn't get it to move while discreetly trying to get it.
It was no good, more drastic measures were going to have to be undertaken!
I texted mr rattll who was parked up only a couple of hundred meters away and told him we needed to utilize operation distraction. He dutifully doned his 'borat' outfit and was soon strutting down the boardwalk, past where we were sitting. He turned just as he past, winked at the guy on the seat and blew him a flirty kiss.
Well, the man was clearly flustered, yelling something about his burning eyes, and clearly forgetting all about his recent hip operation, as he cleared that walkway faster than Usian Bolt could have.
Feeling pretty smug about the success of 'operation distraction ', the cache was soon ours.
The sound of distant sirens soon became evident, so we made a dash back to the campervan.
If anyone asks - we were never there!!!!

A wet day but it is winter. Tftc

Fired up the DeLorean here in Wellington in order to attempt FTF on this cache. Unfortunately the flux capacitor failed and instead of going back to 2020 we found ourselves in the 19th Century in the presence of Queen Victoria who was not amused. Fortunately we were able to find the problem quickly before she could punish us but were forced to return to 2022 in Wellington and will have to content ourselves with a trip by more conventional means some time in the future and won't be able to attempt FTF.

But wait. There's a disturbance in the force.

The day has come. May the Fourth be with you.

The wibbly wobbliness of space time works to our advantage sometimes.

Call in Jabba's pigs!

(Sorry. Gamorreans. Not nice to call them pigs. Not piglitically correct!)

What do you do for Swine Flu? Apply some Oinkment!

That'll fix 'em. Make it so. Beam me up to the death star. Watch for angry birds.

Darth Kitty is watching you. He'll find your cache.

Join the dark side. We have milk and cookies and kitties too.

Live long and prosper. TFTC.

Staring hopelessly where no one has gone before...

Resistance is futile, and so is the cache!

Was in the area doing some geocaching at Whangamata....
Decided I should Pop over to Pauanui....as I don't get down this way often!
Googled the Local Parachuting Club...soon found a very helpful Instructor who soon hooked me up with some equipment!
There was a Grab One Deal on offer...so at a very good price I was soon airborne!
With my Supernannny Powers I soon zeroed in on this particular cache I had my eye on...☆
Wow....what an experience!
Even faster than an Electric Car!
Many thanks for the fun! ♡

Once upon a time in a land far away and over the water, two little piggies were hoeing into an Indian dinner (as luck would have it - chicken) when strangely the conversation turned to the unlikely topic of geocaching and the exploration of far off places and maybe seeing some exotic sights. Flying pigs - I've heard of them but figured it was all a bit of a have. However, it appeared they have been seen in this very spot and the thought of seeing something so unusual was a bit too much for both of us. Paddle Chick was going to fly but I don't have that ability so I dusted off the old broomstick from the garage and hopped aboard. So over land and water we flew but it is so far away and it was so uncomfortable on that old broom that I could hardly walk when I arrived. Paddle Chick was there before me and we cautiously approached GZ at sunrise hoping for that element of surprise. No sooner had we arrived than I spotted a thing coming out of the sky - at a distance I wondered if it was a Purple People Eater - they fascinate me too, or could it be a bird, or a plane ,,,,Superman even? Then my eyes were as big as saucers when I realised it was a real live flying pig - wow I was a bit gobsmacked and completely speechless - so its all true then. The pig flashed us a big grin, handed us a SAN Fran Special that was tucked away somewhere and no sooner had we signed it than it ran off down the boardwalk and took off into the sunrise. We watched until it was just a speck in the sky. Was it a figment of our imagination? Photos are worth a thousand words so I am told. I won't be forgetting this cache in a hurry thanks G-2. TFTC # 18,370

Tell me about it, it is a real problem when this little paddle chick is trying to fly and having to dodge all of the unruly pigs in the air, they think they own the skys. That boardwalk made a nice little runway for Isis58 and I to land and take off on, the tide was out so it would have been unpleasant landing in the mangroves. This was the easiest cache I've ever found in a ugly location at sunrise. Thanks for the fun G-2

#

**15,288**
Out here for a nice relaxing walk with the geomutts, all was going swimmingly well - pleasant day, not too hot, nice breeze and then .... the mutts spot some thing, vaguely resembling a tiny dog and then they are off, there is NO stopping them and as I have my hands laced through the leads, I'm going too... Water-skiing with no boat, no skis, no wet suit, no dry clothes!!! So much for the gentle stroll - did I forget to mention... I can't swim TFTC

Out this morning for a ride on our bikes.
Somehow this cache had been seen on my radar from back home in Nelson. There have been some hilarious logs. Not today. The pig has flown. A quick find but not an easy extraction. Took a photo of an OAP trying to fly. TFTC

I was supposed to be caching in Orewa today, it was Mum and Dad's 42nd wedding anniversary yesterday and I decided to head up there after a very long drive from the Coromandel overnight. They are staying at the camp ground for several days, so I bought a cake and decorated it then it got quite warm in the van. Never mind, so we had lunch together, some wine and an icecream across the road from the camp ground, then it was time for me to head back to Coromandel, seeing as I forgot to log the cache while I was there. Cache all good as far as I could tell, but who knows for sure. Nothing sure in this world, least of all famous geocachers.

This cache was the main reason we came to Pauanui, well, that and to collect our Lotto Powerball winnings in person, and in 20 cent coins. The thing about the Coromandel is . . . . . the ocean. And what makes me sick? Drinking warm salty water. Tell you what really gets my goat? My goat handler. And one thing that really ticks me off? Sure deodorant. Anyhow, we actually did do the walk to GZ and did sign the log. No pants on fire, no (poorly over-acted) Jim Carrey films, no porkies and no virtual travel from other countries for the find. Just a good old-fashioned healthy pork and grub.

Off out for the day to Pauanui and other nearby areas as the weather forecast for tomorrow doesn't look too flash. We found a 'few' caches by a certain North Island CO, which was to be expected due to the prolific regional placements. Guess we can see where he likes to vacation in Jan each year?
I have got a busy few days coming up, and am heading north to the Coromandel peninsula for the weekend with a work holiday home booked for this upcoming long weekend, including stat day on Monday. Then I'm heading home with mrs c for a couple of days leave followed by a couple of days WFH before heading back to Manawatu and my new work area at the weekend. Not massive numbers of cache finds but a few to keep things ticking over and a surprising amount by Auckland based COs too! Thanks to all cache owners for their contributions.

‘Found’ on Jan 15th with team SEAC. Who flew!

Saturday - 22/01/2022 #3,865

On a week long trip up and down the middle part of the North Island. Same weekend as the Mega event in Auckland (but that's not where I will end up). Targeting a few specific caches, and a few others. This is one of them.


Not entirely sure I understand what's going on, but I came all the way up from Wellington just to have a look at this. Saw no pigs, found no cache, didn't sign a log book. Not even sure if I was really here. Hello? Is there any cake left?
TFTC.

*Found with [Geooh GO](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.mobiltal.geoohGO)*

Owl is finally released from covid jail and decided she needed to make a special effort to get the cache back to where it belongs. After a several-hours-long struggle to catch the shag in her backyard she decided to use sympathetic magic. A luxurious carpet was laid out, with a fake shag lounging provocatively on it. The real shag was lulled into a false sense of security and Owl was able to pounce, retrieve the cache, sign it (never let an opportune moment pass) and prepare for departure.

Unfortunately, she then discovered her passport is out of date. Fortunately, the shag had been too tired to escape yet, so she tied the cache to a leg, fed it kiwifruit, Whittakers chocolate and Hokey Pokey icecream and sent it back home.

Just hoping the flying pig formation didn't put it off and the cache was safely returned to its original location.

We were so fascinated by the flying pigs here on our first visit, we returned for another encounter, and they did not disappoint. We enjoyed the aerobatic show they put on, and could not believe it when they dived at the water and caught an apple tree. They dipped their wings and flew off into the sunset, obviously heading to San Fran (wherever that has gone).

Don't know what the finders have been finding because there is a shag in Owl's backyard with a cache stuck in its mouth. Wretched thing is proving most elusive, but as soon as she can trap it and remove the obstruction everyone will be much happier. In the meantime she is in quarantine so this cache should be disabled to avoid confusion and a pandemic.

We are the flying seac piggy flying!!!! Weeeeee weeee!!!

Owl spent all day yesterday looking for this cache. Under her bed, in the cupboards, down the back of her couch, and her backyard is now full of holes. No cache. Is it a lie? Or is it just that she's in swine fu quarantine and can't leave her house to look for it?

No cache here, but I do believe I saw a shag flying off with it!!

It was 5:18pm on a Friday and as I started to lose interest in my Zoom meeting and dream about my Saturday caching trip I realised that my manager was starting to fade out of focus as I began to get sucked into the Zoom void! Passing through the VPN dimension and oozing left at the firewall , I finally emerged at GZ. A time travel, if you will, to my amazement the jumbo sized cache started to speak “enter, all who dare…” So I did, and can you believe that this cache was even bigger on the inside (Copyright Doctor Who 1963) I finally found the log behind the tricorder (copy right Star Trek 1966) and signed it quickly before the cache disappeared into the waters of the river. RIP Han Solo and Thanks for this trippy cache!

We had heard Pauanui had various helipads so we decided to take our private jet and head on over to visit Piggy for the day. Upon approach we noticed that Piggy was out (probably gone to the beach to enjoy this great day) so the pilot flew low enough for us to hang off the edge for a stretch and grab of the log.

We then continued to fly through the clouds for a soft landing at the beach with Piggy....what a great day this is turning out to be!

This was the interesting find for the day....the group missed it on the first pass, as they must have all flown off, but upon our return I was walking with the 2 members of the group, which made our approach much quieter...In fact I believe we surprised the pigs, because as we rounded the bend, they took off ...leaving nothing behind...not even the log book...hehehe.

TFTS.

Pigs DO fly - we rode in under the cover of darkness on a team of pigs to escape our Auckland lockdown cabin fever. Headed over to another Piggy stop before returning home. Hopefully no speed cameras caught us!!

Itchy feet due to a Covid imposed lockdown which meant geocaching was out of the question. I pondered how I could get to this cache quickly without alerting the authorities. DM's were sent to Messrs Bezos, Musk and Branson but unfortunately their high speed rockets were getting serviced. In the end I borrowed Steppenwolf's magic carpet and was home before breakfast.Thanks for this wonderful cache!

I was having withdraws not geocaching and also having a some what of a spying eye on my cache logging. I decided to log this cache with the help of my Tardis to escape lockdown boundary and a pair of water wings incase of a crash landing in a cold watery location. I Needed this log for my sanity and geocaching addiction, Found with the help of a radiation probe for detection of said flying Pig. Tftc.

In Lockdown and recently been alerted to this cache...mmmm...after a bit of contemplation I enquired with Siri...she said she doesnt answer hyperthetical questions....answer two was...pigs may fly but they are very unlikely birds...so I still dont really know except this pig left me a nice BIG smiley...many thanks

Inspired by the title and believing that Pigs can fly, we decided that our maps could be challenged and we could either walk on water or at least ride on water. The tide was in and the wind was a blowin, stirring up a chop on the water. We decided to take it easy and not be rash(er) as there were others on the path and riding could prove detrimental to our health, selves and bikes on the narrow walkway. So we started boaringly by walking our bikes. Got to GZ and searched for the elusive cache, not being successful. Like others we were going to have to log the snouter as a random case of Bacon DNF. We rode on and did the rest of the trail. A little while later on reviewing our piggy notes and site detail we had the ahaaaah moment. We returned and standing precariously reached out to snuffle the swine and claim this hard case hog.

We came, we searched - the pig has flown!? Think we know where it should have been but slot is empty...sad day for the searchers, however not disheartened and onwards

Well, if pigs really could fly, people wouldn't be able to afford bacon because the price would skyrocket! As I headed to gz I saw a line of kingfishers standing guard and they informed me that piggy had flown off to save his bacon buttie from the storm. That's ok I said, I like bacon butties too but not with mustard so I won't be cutting that. I rummaged around in my pack and found an apple and left it at knee height for piggy should he decide to return and headed off myself for a tasty bit of bacon for my lunch.

As we approached GZ we made a pact not to mention the bacon we had just had for breakfast but sadly Piggy must have smelled it on our breath as when we called him in the hope he would help fly us up to the cache he ignored our pleas.
So it was Bac-on to the drawing board as we planned our treacherous climb to the cache.
Initial thoughts of using a More-pork to fly us were soon dismissed and Mr Coblet was deemed a Silly Sausage for even suggesting it.
We didn't want to make a pigs ear of the whole thing and have to ham up our story so made careful plans to avoid any curly problems.
Just as we were about to climb some local muggles passed by, which felt like a bit of a hambush, but we didn't give them anything to be suspicious of and they left disgruntled.
Up we went, our arms quickly getting so weak it felt like we were hog tied. But our determination (and a few stress relieving grunts) kept us going.
At one stage Mrs Coblet slipped and had to hold on to Mr Coblet's legs making him momentarily feel like pulled pork. But she soon managed to get snout of the predicament.
Many hours later when the summit was reached it felt like we were in hog heaven.
We realised we didn't have a pig pen so decided to improvise with a pig pencil, however our efforts were soon ham-pered when we found the San Fran was nowhere in sight. Although we were so high at this point we were sure we could see San Fran in the distance.
The disappointment this caused led Mr Coblet to take out his frustrations with karate and he delivered a pork-chop to a nearby tree.
This action was immediately regretted as he nursed his injured hand but fortunately Mrs Coblet had some oinkment to make it all better.
With Piggy still nowhere in sight a message was sent to his mentor G-2 who saved our bacon and allowed us to log the find.
So a happy ending and a narrow escape from what could have been likened to the tragedy of Ham-let.
As we climbed back to safety we were sure we heard a voice in the distance say "That'll do pig, that'll do"

Anniversary weekend for Vamber and we decided to stay in a Yurt in Pauanui with the geopup. Lovely early morning walk. TFTC.

Found with CODEHill

What a great way to end the trail, stunning views, photo sent to log. With PhilBirdBoys. Tftc

Oh this one is a mystery!!

Maybe back

So after clambering through mud, losing my jandals to the mega suction of this pig's delight I found the cache after a gentle nudge from a local who took flight calling out to me "Pigs don't fly...birds do!"

After a long Wade through the mud and swim across a quickly rising river, GZ was in sight. Searching high and low, under and over and a the point where we couldn’t be shagged looking anymore. A nice shag appeared to point out the location.

Auckland anniversary long weekend in Coromandel! It is great to be allowed to travel.... Anyway! I had DNF here before... No wonder why... Visited this new (old) spot again. Answers sent to Piggy herself. Picture uploaded along with my log entry... Such a fun!
TFTC

I read the headlines in the newspapers when we were in Auckland and it said that flying pigs were invading Pauanui, and as gk is known around the world for his pig taming antics we knew we had to come to catch us a flying pig, we think flying pigs would go well in the Nelson area.

As we approached we crept in as quietly as possible. The two young want to be pig tamers who had followed us to gz were sent to sit on the next seat along as it was just too dangerous to let a couple of young girls be close to what we were going to experience. Once they were at a safe distance we began the call of the flying pig (as you can see in the photo).

Turned out to be an old sow rather than a flying pig that gk got to tame today.

Thanks for the fun

Looks like its been picked up

1 January 2021 15:37.

Remind me, exactly why the hell did I decide to go for this one again? I'm supposed to be focussing on the TMGT geocaches to the exclusion of all else... oh yes, Ethness virtually ordered me to. I will enjoy it, she said... But refused to provide further details as she didn't want to spoil my fun!

Well, I drove down here and immediately felt like my vehicle was lowering the tone of the locale with its very presence, but un deterred, I unpacked all the equipment I had with me and set off on this epic trek, using my machete to hack my way through the mangrove forests which threatened to overwhelm the trail, and fending off the venemous snakes whish lunged at me.

I reached the resting place and began the search, but my hopes of remaining unobserved were soon dashed as I realised that a stage of the Tour de France must have been scheduled to pass here today, based on the hordes of cyclists passing... But in the gaps between packs I continued my search to no avail.

Then I read previous logs, what, there? Surely not. So I donned my climbing harness and shimmied ninja like underneath.... All was going to plan, until some rats I disturbed decided to gnaw through the ropes, and I plummeted into the morass below!

Eventually I managed to extract myself from the mire, and, somehow managed to clamber back onto the walkway looking like a cross between the swamp monster and a mud wrestling contestant. The paparazzi watching the cycle race recoiled in fright! But in the glare of the camera flashes I spotted something, and, once they had run off screaming , I swooped in and there it was, the fabled golden ammo can of el dorado!

It was at this point that I discovered that my pen was somewhere in the ooze... So I left a fingerprint as a signature. However, the series of unfortunate events wasn't over, and as I was about to replace the log a heron swooped down and grabbed the log in its beak, and as it was about to fly away it was seized by an alligator and dragged to its doom.#mayneedmaintenance.

Somehow, I managed to avoid its baleful glare, and managed to crawl back to the car, a pitiful wreck of my former self, and made my escape. TFTC. Number 8957.

Ok we had tried this one last night but got rained out. Yes rain with loud sky clapping and lights flashing and water pouring out of the sky and it turned very chilly.. And I gave up before getting fully drenched. The Seagnoid rereads it a few times back at Zara. Zara was at the start of the track and we stayed there overnight. Good as place as any. TS comes up with a viable solution so we are back here . Still very chilly at 8 deg this morning. Still took some effort to get his one tagged requiring us to stand on 1 leg and each out!!. Cheers something totally different. Would never have got it. Probably still dont. But fav from me anyway.

Day 11 - Monday 28 December - Pauanui - Puketui Valley - Whangamata. Another full on day and hills to conquor!

The Seagnoid, Zara, Toby and I are off on another geocaching escape over Xmas, this time to the mighty Coromandel, then over to Opotiki and stop off at Rotorua to return home on 5 January. Had an fabulous time exploring many wonders of our country. Rounding up over 400 caches along the way, with a few LABS, 20 odd TMGTs, virtuals and lots of interesting earth caches to keep the mind busy. Watching the sun come up on New Years Day at Mt Maunganui was spectacular. Lots of walking and even more driving. But had an awesome time. Thanks to all COs who made this adventure so special.

After walking the cycle trail yesterday and failing to find this cache we retreated to the Zara at the end of the day and pulled this cache out, to have a close study of the description and hint and recent logs, to look for another hint as to where this large cache was. I got a bright idea, and this morning we headed out here first thing, to find that elusive bugger before the crowds storm ed in to find what we were up to. And find it we did, although reaching for it required some careful one legged balancing (photo)

Taybeedragon and I went on a tour of the Coromandel - one of the few places of New Zealand, especially of Te ika a Maui, that I have yet to explore throughly, and from there along the coast to Opotiki to see one of my many, many sisters. From 18 December to 5 January we found over 400 caches, including 12 adventure labs (60 caches), 20 or so TMGTs and a host of virtuals and earthcaches. And I hosted an event to see the sun come up on New Year's day - surprisingly popular given that it was at 5am. We climbed a lot of hills, saw some amazing beaches that were quite popular despite (or because of) the insane access to them, walk a lot of bush, entered and explored 8 gold mines and generally had an awesome time. However I am glad to be back, but now is the hard part, and I fear it will take just as long - logging!

Not only had the temperature dropped from 20 to about 10 degrees in the last half hour, so we are in t-shirts and shorts, but it stated raining too. And thundering and lightninging as well. We spent quite some time we hunting for this cache, getting nowhere. Reread the desription hint and logs while standing out there in the rain. The dragon gave up and set of for Toby and shelter just over there, while I mulled this a bit more and then gave up.

Overnight I had another look at this cache and worked out where I had gone wrong, so was back out here this morning to find it. Once we found the cache I loved it. Nice to see a large way out in this environment. And neat desin, too. Gave it a favourite.

Taybeedragon and I went on a tour of the Coromandel - one of the few places of New Zealand, especially of Te ika a Maui, that I have yet to explore throughly, and from there along the coast to Opotiki to see one of my many, many sisters. From 18 December to 5 January we found over 400 caches, including 12 adventure labs (60 caches), 20 or so TMGTs and a host of virtuals and earthcaches. And I hosted an event to see the sun come up on New Year's day - surprisingly popular given that it was at 5am. We climbed a lot of hills, saw some amazing beaches that were quite popular despite (or because of) the insane access to them, walk a lot of bush, entered and explored 8 gold mines and generally had an awesome time. However I am glad to be back, but now is the hard part, and I fear it will take just as long - logging!

Our stars aligned and six of us set out on an epic TMGT adventure. Our waka was not our waka of choice. Our Aqua met a bumpy end and in a flash white vehicle we set out instead.

Kupe's navigational skills we did not use. Instead Uncle Bill flicked a big blue switch aiding our modern navigational tools. But alas upon the journey three we did loose. Their later journals told tales of geocaches far and wide and posing photos prove they made it here in the end.

For a now familiar San Fran we searched. Passersby thought we were praying but in the end to yoga we did not resort. Although I'm dressed in black, our spirits were as high as this old girls legs could go. This cache we do claim as found.

No flying pigs were seen or heard but Cook dinner of shags we did read about. I think I'd rather pay a visit to "The Lone Star" for our kai tonight. A final thankyou I must say to G-2 for this most interesting idea

A team of six we set out to find,
a cache over water that was in a bind,
a short stroll along the walk,
a cyclist went by and wanted to talk,
he thought we had stopped by to pray,
little did he know what we wanted that day,
we tried to look up and down,
went for a swim but didn't drown,
the cache was so itty we had to bend over
a pose that is so very like yoga,
the San Fran special was eventually seen,
in the pic attached that's me in the green.

Goodness this cache was huge! We needed two of our team to lift it. It really was wedged in tight. We needed a special tool to get it out and then open it. Luckily there was no one about as we looked odder than usual trying to retrieve this cache.

This is supposed to be a Mega trip. Jude_E and I flew up from Christchurch. Ethness flew up from Wellington. The DBees and Gracie's GPS fun drove down from Northland.
Thanks G-2 for creating this hide. It was find 9204 for me.

======== NZ Mega 2021 ========
Planning for the NZ Mega 2021 event is well underway. It will be held in Auckland over Labour Weekend, October 2021

I can walk on water! At least according to google. This cache was on the radar so we simply had to find it. We looked low, we looked high, we enlisted volunteer teenage boys and a cyclist. The dog was no help, although a talking point and distractor to muggles. At last it was found! But how to extract? That shall remain a secret but it was one of the most difficult I have encountered after caching all over the world. My photo might show the lengths we went to! Thank you, CO. A cache in a million.
#6359

Well, dear Piggy
I came to sign your cache.
Look hard I did
high and low.
Was even asked,
by a passing cyclist,
if I was praying.
I phoned a friend
who found the cache a wee while ago.
He told me where to look.
Nope, the cache wasn’t there.
I even looked around the railings,
after leaving my phone on the seat
(a phone in water is no good).
Nor did I lean on the railings
just in case they weren’t that stable.
-me in the water,
well, for this time,
is no good either.

I do need to log your cache, as
another D/T rating square
will be filled in.
I read your cache description again.
Ahh, a photo you do require
with the log -oh dear!!!
And standing on one leg too!!
Balance on two I can do,
On one, well that could mean
I’d get soaked -not a good idea
-a change of clothes is far, far away.

But let me try something different
and a bit mad.
What have I got to lose?!!
Nothing much
as long as I kept my skirt
under control in the wind!!!
So here I am,
without an electric fence in sight
(ask some of the Wellington geocachers,
they will tell you the story of that escapade!!),
to prove that I was GZ
And not trying to do an armchair log.

Many thanks for the cache
Dear Piggy.
It’s much appreciated
So much so
a favourite is given.

Jude_E, NosyNel, Thedbees, GraciesGPSFun, Lis’s Crew and I are on the ‘Mega that wasn’t’ trip in Auckland the weekend. We’re collecting the ‘Tour’ caches, plus others, plus seeing the scenery, plus having a good old time -as usual . TFTC.

Nice spot for a walk with the tide coming in. Busy area. Had the right tools with me.

Found this when we were away from our bubble for a day out what a great hide thanks for the cache

What a great day for a walk with Abcdf4
Nice easy find no muggles around

What a Lovely walk
One of our favorite for the day
Nice easy find No muggles

Lovely day for a trip over water. Hope our pic qualifies.

I couldn't get the cache out, so I high-tailed it back to the Geo-van to get some ToTTs, which did the trick. I'm not sure if GZ will ever be the same. TFTC.

Found it

Was the first cache of my biking trip. Saw the D/T rating and got worried, but cache soon found. Gets a fav point from me.

Definitely the strangest cache we have ever done! There were a lot of pigs flying about but fortunately, no muggles. Just as well as they would have been laughing at our attempts to take a photo. Hope we qualify! Photo to CO when I can work out how to do it! Neat Gide. SL. TFTC. Definitely deserves a Fav point of the tall tales!

Accidentally missed this one when biking the trail a few days ago. Back on my bike to collect it today. Neat hide - haven't seen this sort very often. My GPS shows that I biked over water to this one so it is not only pigs that can fly. Thanks G-2!