Baxter's Mill (Wellington) Reikorangi, North Island, New Zealand
By Vaudevillain on 04-Jan-04. Waypoint GCHEP5

We really enjoyed our walk along the walkway. The sign on the noticeboard at the start (South end) still says the walkway is closed from the gate in the middle. And the gate in the middle has a sign saying "No unauthorized persons allowed". So we turned around at that point. The cache was a fairly quick find, thanks to the hint. tftc

Woke up to a cracking day, so decided we should go for a bush walk. What an awesome track! No problem locating the waypoint or the cache. Was quite a bit of water in the main container, logbook nice and dry however. Junior was a bit disappointed that there was nothing to trade in a sizeable container - ah well. Thanks Mermaid.Man!

I was lazing in bed this Sunday morning, when matagouri messaged to ask if I fancied joining him on this walk. I had planned on having a quiet day, but decided I really did need the exercise, so happily tagged along. I’m very pleased I did, as it’s a lovely walk.

Matagouri had found this cache a couple of months ago, so I was expecting it would be a quick find for me. Not so, as it turned out. Matagouri took compass bearings from the waypoint and we spent about half an hour searching in the bush, with no luck. It was very surprising, as he’d been there only a few weeks earlier. I eventually asked whether he was sure he’d taken the bearing from the right point, as it wasn’t really matching up with the waypoint I had. The penny then droppped that it wasn’t the right waypoint after all. It was in fact a little further down the track. All good, and a fun story for me to tell

After finding the correct waypoint, it was a very quick find!

A fine afternoon to get out and explore the Mangaone Track. I'd had my eye on this multi for some time, and today seemed right to go and find the final. Left the car at the southern carpark. A gorgeous walk along the old tram track, climbing steadily above the river. Slight confusion at WP1: I expected something more land-marky. GPS struggled under the canopy, so I relied on the basic method of getting my compass out to check the bearing, then paced the distance. Pretty close! Found everything in order in the cache. Thanks, MM, for maintaining. As I'd not arranged transport at the north end of the track, I retraced my steps back down the valley to the road end.

I called around to check up on the cache this afternoon. All was well with it but I decided to change things up a little. The ammo can was really too large to hide here well, and so I have replaced it with a plastic box which is still pretty big (maybe 10 litres).

I called around this morning to check up on the cache. Unfortunately everything here was soaked through and unusable.
I have placed a new ammo box here and a new log book. The ammo box is a large one which requires unlatching at both ends to open it.
The cache is well hidden. The projection from the waypoint seems very accurate to me, and a very specific hint is provided.

I'm really pleased to take responsibility for this great old cache. I'll call around in the near future and fix up the current issues with it.

Baxter's Mill (Wellington) was transferred from Vaudevillain to user Mermaid.Man

This looked like an interesting target for an outing of a few hours on a stunner of a Spring day. Thanks to Transmission Gully there are no issues getting to Waikanae from more southern towns on a holiday weekend any more (the problem is just further north now) and after a fun drive up the valley I arrived at the car park with a handful of cars. I was surprised to hear forestry machinery in action on a Saturday although thankfully no logging trucks were encountered. A relatively short walk to the waypoint which was easily identified then a projection which did not go all that well for me. Why the magnetic bearing? That made things awkward and is likely the reason searched for a while in the wrong place based on a true bearing which I figured would get me close enough. Eventually when exploring other places with a 20m distance the cache was found just lying in the open as per previous finders. Clearly someone has nicked the ammo can and emptied the contents onto the ground. Surprisingly the log is completely dry despite being only protected by a clip-lock plastic container now. A cache like this should have been adopted out to agcnz before leaving the scene who I imagine has a cupboard full of spare ammo cans for maintaining caches like this.

An awesome and pleasant forest walk. TFTC.

Hopped out of work early to claim this for another multi dot day. The rain held off, not spitting until I returned to the carpark some 40 minutes later. Nice forest walk. Cache was an easy projection and quick find, though instead of an ammo can there was just a small plastic container surrounded by a debris field of trinkets I signed the log and tidied things up best I could. TFTC Vaudevillain!

An enjoyable walk today inspired by this geocache. It was blowing a gale on the coast, it's amazing how sheltered this valley is, no wind at all.

Visited over Matariki weekend. Good walk. The path was busy. Cache was quite damp but the logbook was inside a second container so nice and dry. Koalabär enjoyed the walk too but too damp to leave the trackable.

Two of us were close to giving up so we sent in the expert. Our projection was slightly off. Thanks MSP!

Out for a walk with Sarahjane20 and had to check for a cache! We were about 10m out on our projection but the MSP half just walked in a different route and found it. Yay! Love big caches TFTC

Very cool cache. Thanks for the great hide. We were skeptical we would find it but once we had the compass sorted the co-ordinates were bang on. We were so excited!

Out with some friends today walking this track. I don't why I've never been here before, even knowing this cache has been lurking out here since 2004! Had a very pleasant walk and great to finally nab this cache. All in good order.
TFTC Vaudevillain +FP

Nearly didn’t find this as we were using a cell phone for navigation and the compass wasn’t the best. Practically stumbled over the cache on our way back to the trail. Found with Sproggles and ConkyCon. TNLNSL, TFTC!

Silly me, I copied the waypoint, and found it easily. Completely forgot about the second half of the instructions, so did not locate the cache. I'll have to come back soon to complete the job. A lesson learnt for the year.

Found with elihyn and suepate during a Sunday walk. Nice to see other folk out on the Mangaone Track as well. Cache is in order. TFTC.

Nice find while walking the Mangaone Track today. Tftc

Walked the Mangaone walkway on a lovely winters day. Straightforward find together with suepate and livingk. Thanks for placing the cache

now that I'm a premium member I am able to award favourite points, so I'm awarding some to the more memorable and enjoyable caches that I've found, added a favourite point for this one for the location

Sveppi and I are up for an easy walk and an explore. Sveppi just bought herself a fishing rod and wanted to try it out... read somewhere that the Waikanae river was easy fishing, but this far up it's more like a stream... nevermind it's a lovely walk. The sign at the start has changed because there is no purple track, but it's not a problem with the coordinates. Once at the waypoint we didn't need the compass, just count the steps in the most likely direction and sveppi spotted the prize straight away. Cache contents damp and a bit yuk but the logbook was tidy in its inner container. Nice to see an old cache in play, thanks for keeping it alive.

Public holiday here in wellington so we are on a mission for a walk and a spot to try a new rod. Great track but not so much water. We enjoyed the walk anyway and finding the cache. Nice to see an old one still in play, thanks for keeping it alive.

Very happy to find this today, son actually found it without using a compass, just the string method which previous cachers suggested, it was fun searching for it, so many good hiding places around, the inner container was nice and dry, and we are the first in the new log book, added some trinkets, very pretty walk, thanks

This was one of my main targets for today - a nice old cache out of the way. I parked up and headed along the track. Despite the hot run of weather there's still some bits that are a bit soggy, but nothing onerous. I found the relevant waypoint and headed off into the bush. A bit of hunting around and I soon found the classic container. A bit wet inside and the logbook a bit damp, but still serviceable. Took the trackable and headed back to the car. TFTC

#9381. A nice drive to Reikorangi today, and then a good walk on the historical Reikorangi Track (now called Mangaone Walkway). The weather was mostly clear en route, but it became partly cloudy by the time we arrived at the road end car park. There were even some small drops of rain near GZ, but not an issue today. The track and final GZ were all quiet when we visited.

It was interesting to see the abandoned sawmilling machinery at the site of Baxter’s Mill that operated at the end of Mangaone South Road until 1935. We tried to imagine what it was like when the track was the old bush tramway following the Waikanae River through what is now Kaitawa Scenic Reserve. The river was flowing strong today with all the recent rain, and with quite a number of mini waterfalls from all the side streams contributing to it.

At the first waypoint, we had already gone over to Hautere. Made our projection from there and proceeded to the final location. Found after a short search and widening the area a little. GPS reception was a bit challenging under the tree cover. Eventually after the GPSr had settled, it was reading just 6 metres away from where we had projected (and 24 metres from the first waypoint). The cache was in good condition, only slightly damp inside.

Dropped off Royal Beaver
Took nothing, signed log.

Thanks for the 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.

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Really awesome cache! Didn't take very long to find. The can is still in great condition although a bit of water has found is way in. I'm pretty sure this is the oldest cache we've found

Superb cache. Run through here regularly but never made the time to find this one. Did it with kids today. GPS accuracy was a bit tricky under canopy but got there with a few approaches. TFTC

Great spot to visit, thanks for bringing me here, TFTC

While I was on the job of nailing some long overdue caches in the Waikanae area this one had to be visited. A blarghster original, and hidden in early 2004. Great that it is still up and running. Greater still is the area in which it is hidden. We really enjoyed the Mangaone walkway and experienced a part of the ranges that we hadn't previously visited. Nice one.
Once at GZ I rejoiced in the discovery of one of those oh so sturdy ammo cans and gave thanks to the god of geocaching for providing us with 'real geocaches'. When all about us geocaching has been reduced to eclipse mint tins hidden on every other street corner, here is the real deal folks. If you haven't found this geocache, then, in my oh so humble opinion, you have yet to experience geocaching the way it is intended to be.
TFTC, and thanks for continuing to maintain an oldie and a goodie. Found with team cacher Sweet P too
Cache in order; log signed, all re-hidden, safe and sound, just as found. Gets a fave point from me.
The Turtle strikes again!

Cache # 2,749 - and day #900 in a row! I knew I wanted a special cache for this day, and I happened to be up Kapiti way with two hours to spare this afternoon. This cache had been on my to do list for years, and it did not disappoint. Unlike others, it took me a while to locate, having to return to the WP several times and re-orient myself for another plunge into the canopy. Happy when I finally found it, and all is well with the cache - a minor amount of dampness inside, but not enough to affect anything in there. Fortunately it was only an occasional spatter of precipitation today - not the full on rain that had been forecast. A great old cache, from the year when I first started caching - and a momentous day for me - all worth a favourite point. TNLNSL. TFTC!!!

An ammo can hidden in the bush along a spectacular track - it doesn't get much better than this as far as I'm concerned. I really enjoyed my visit here today and located the cache without too much trouble.
Thanks very much for the cache - a favourite for sure.

I run this track quite often and enjoy the bush here. Originally this cache was cause me problems because reception in the car park was poor so I couldn't down load the other parts of the listing. Today I was prepared and had it all sorted before my run. Found the cache quickly which was good because it didn't interupt my run. Tftc

What better thing can you do on a rainy Saturday afternoon than go for a walk in some beautiful native bush? It must be 15 years since I last walked down this track which used to start with a cold river crossing but thanks to a shiny new suspension bridge, I didn't even get wet feet. A nice easy stroll to GZ followed by and even easier find of this 11 year old cache, the second to last one we need to complete the "Year by Year" challenge. Thanks for bringing us out here and thanks for keeping this old cache alive for so long. SLTFTC

FYI the map at the beginning of the track has been replaced and the track is no longer "dotted purple"

found this on our walk today. TFTC

Great to finally have found this one, it's been a target cache of mine for a few years now. Was enjoying a lazy morning collecting a few caches up here on the coast and had the time to finally get this one completed.

Found on a warm balmy morning while enjoying the lazy walk here. TFTC, #7309

A 'gentle stroll' was in order after lunch, so off we went. Feet remained dry! In fairness I must say that it was 'Simonster the muggle' who found it first....nice swag & in excellent condition. Dropped a TB off that wanted to be in quiet places. TFTC

Found when out with Mr and Mrs fortyoner. The GPS was spot on at the way point and the 4 of us shot off into the bush in roughly the right direction. Mrs fortyoner was first to located the container. All is dry inside. We left a duck and bubble bath for the said duck to enjoy. NOTE you don't get your feet wet getting to this cache as there are bridges over all the streams. A good walk before lunch and the rain setting in.

Out with CaligulaNz shadowing Taupo Patrol doing part of their intrepid journey. Beautiful walkway.

TFTC!

Quickly found, while on scout day-trip along the Mangaone walkway. Adults shadowing at a discrete distance. Picked up a couple of TBs to move along. Really enjoyed the walk (one way with full packs, and then a quick return hike with nothing to pick the cars up. Even the forestry block/roads was interesting. My favourite native tree is the Rewarewa, so it was fantastic to see so many through these valleys.

TFTC!
with one member of the Orsom4some

Great to find such an old cache and on an interesting walk. Might be time to change the attributes and description which may be putting people off attempting this as there are now bridges over the streams and our feet (which were already wet from Letterbox Tourist) did not get any wetter.
A nice big cache, but still managed to miss it , StreetWalker turned it up in the area I had just searched.
A busy walkway, on our return we passed at least three groups of people walking in the opposite direction. TFTC.

#6059. We hadn't come up this side road last time in the area. We had more time today, and wet feet already (though there are now bridges which mean feet stay dry) so we decided to find this one. We enjoyed our walk through the bush, and found the cache without too much trouble. Left three trackables I've had for a while. TFTC.

Had thought we'd do this after doing the "pukeatua" cache on the near-by track if we had time, but hadn't realised both started in the same place until we got there.
Mrs Rattll went to the new cache half way up & then came back down & did this one, while Mr Rattll went for the top cache.
I was a little worried as I have no sense of direction, but a general search of the area, the right distance from the clue item soon did the job. Nice to find a large cache, with lots of swaps in it.
Then back to the car. Didn't have to wait long for hubby to return, so it worked out nicely.
Left a pet rock - a squirrel. TFTC

This cache made it to the top of my "Oldest Unfound Cache in Wellington" list. I decided today would be a good one to attempt it. What an enjoyable walk it is. I am astonished that so few cachers have been here over the years.

Find #1375. Did this one the long way! After a trip into Otaki Forks, detoured down Mangaone North Road to the northern end of the Mangaone Walkway. With the gps saying the cache was some 5km as the crow flies, we knew we were in for a long walk. Have done the south end of this track many times but never this one. Enjoyed the easy pine forest road, and the descent into the valley. Was very surprised to come across a really old truck & trailer being actively lived in by a "gentleman", complete with beat up old car and a flurry of hens. Plus a cacophony of dogs in kennels at a nearby shed. You just never know what you'll find in the remotest of locations! Continued along the walk through the corridor of trees before entering the valley floor. Then into Kaitawa Scenic Reserve with still some kms to go. This is a great piece of bush and easy walking so we chewed up the distance and soon got to the spot in the wheki patch. Headed bush to ground zero then proceeded to fan out looking for the hiding spot. Quickly located by the eagle eyed teenager. Great to see a decent size box. Signed and returned then headed back to the start point. All up, walked just on 12km, all completed in about 3 hours! A very enjoyable walk. TFTC.

Have never done this walk before but im so glad that I did today.
Lovely morning out with a heap of frost on the ground.
Nice easy find once at given coords.

Walked this pleasant track with the Wednesday group from the Manawatu Tramping and Skiing club, 32 of us! We walked right through from north to south and returned, about 2 hours each way with stops. The others went on to explore the start of the Pukeatua track so I took the chance to return and hunt for the cache by myself. Enjoyed the challenge of checking the bearing and distance. Overshot somewhat but didn't take too long to find this generous sized container. Although it hasn't been found for a while the contents were dry and in excellent condition. Thanks for setting this one up Vaudevillain.

What a nice walk. The new bridges meant nice dry feet. Pup wasn't to fond of the swing ridge at the start. Thanks for this one

Passed by the final on my walk today. Really nice are here and good hike. Had to search a little bit though. TFTC. Sherlock Hood.

This is a great walk, with a great cache, well stocked and dry as a bone. Deserves a lot more traffic. Came in from the north, having read that the southern end was more interesting. Wouldn't bother with the north end again, but I'll be back to do the southern section to the big clearing again. -card game + a selection of small toys. TFTC.

Have waited to do this until got hiking boots as from previous caches doing any bush work with unsuitable shoes has not been fun. Great walk on a very pleasant track which has improved from when I was a kid on a camping trip that we hiked this walk to camping site in Otaki forks. TFTC - sudoku game + torch and batteries.

It was a nice quite walk today, somebody listened to me and got hiking boots and didn't moan once. Nice size cache and very dry. What gave it away was the fresh possum pooh right on top. No wet feet with the new bridges. Very pleasant trek. T4TC. #117

Went for a walk this afternoon to find this one while on a caching foray in the area. No need to get wet feet any more, DOC have been busy and there are nice new footbridges over all the rivers, one of them a suspension bridge. No problems finding the cache, took only a few minutes. Great to see the really big solid container, everything is clean and dry inside despite all the recent wet weather. Signed log, TFTC and for bringing me back here - I haven't walked along this track for at least 25 years!

Nice spot on the Mangaone Walkway. Easy find. Decided to try keep dry shoes but fell in second river!
TNLNSL
TFTC

Walked in with the parents and nephew, and replaced with an ammo can with an assortment of goodies. Still in the same location.

2nd find on a Blarghster cache this afternoon. Came to do this one after completeing GC10GMV. A very pleasant walk through some lovely bush. Got to the waypoint. took a sighting with my trusty old Silva. Paced out the required distance and found the cache after a short search. As I have had the details for this one in my backpack for some time, I didnt catch up with the info regarding the wet logbook. Managed to write (scatch) my name on a page in the book and left a calling card. And yes I did get my feet wet - several times, walked the plank on the way back to avoid one crossing. Fun cache I enjoyed doing it. TNLN SL (just) TFTC

A nice walk despite the wet feet and discovering a steel beam/bridge after wading through the stream at the first crossing.. Mrs W.E.K.A. wore gumboots but went too deep! The new log book is still safe and dry despite the rest of the cache being somewhat damp.

TFTC

Finally got out here to go for a walk on a wet afternoon. Very muddy and damp today but a great walk. Cache is bang on where you say it is. It is also very wet and log book is soaked. We have added a new logbook and double bagged it so hope it stays dry.

I was nearby doing another cache, so I took the opportunity to visit this cache as well.
Last time I went caching at night, my headlight broke and I had just fixed it tonight. So I needed to test my repair job.
A nice walk in the dark.
I didn't have much luck searching for the cache at first. But once I replaced the really old batteries in my headlight with some brand new ones, I had a much better light and I soon found the cache.
I didn't bring a compass, so I just adjusted the degree value slightly and did a projection on my GPSr.
Coords were very accurate and I found the cache at 2 minutes to midnight.
As tmann421 noted, the log book is quite wet.
I signed the back of the piece of paper that tmann421 had left as a log.
Thanks.

Found with tmann421 and Hugo the dog. Really enjoyed the walk although Hugo was not too fussed with the water crossing and we had to carry him, big sook! Took a little while to find the cache and we were just thinking about heading back before dark when we found it. TFTC.

Lovely bush walk, took Barri-Ster, Hugo the dog & I a bit more than 20min each way. Found after a quite long search. Nearly gave up as was getting dark. Log book was too wet to write on, so we wrote on a bit of paper and added to cache. Tried to dry book out a little. +balloons -toy puzzle TFTC

This cache needs a new log book - the current one is too wet to write on. Sorry we hadn't read the other comments or we would have taken one with us. If you are planning to do this cache, please consider taking a book to replace the one there now. Thanks

baz bee, a lovely walk on a wonderful day. Log was too damp to record my visit, took police car, left snake. TFTC.

Murrayroma & Soggyboots.And you do get them on this one unless you can walk on water.This is a lovely bush walk One of our favourites.Pity there arent more visits.Coords and clue spot on.Took comb ,added yellow bug

Lovely area, wonderful walk, quick find. thanks for bring us here.
TFTH

An very pleasant walk. Found easily using bearing and distance from waypoint. Took geocoin. Signed log and noted the Blarghster code, (think it's the last clue I need)
Thanks for the cache.

Poor GPS signal slowed the find.

-tape measure
+playing cards

Great walk through the bush. Stream up due to overnight rain. Finally located cache and left TB CR5H9X

Well, it took a lot of scrabbling, but finally it appeared -very well hidden!-wire rope clips, +tape measure. TFTC!

Great walk to this cache, lovely bit of bush. Never knew this track was here and must walk the whole thing one day, would be a good one for the little 'uns.
Used the GPSr compass and paced it out which got me the correct distance but about 3m away due to angular error. However, guessed correctly where to look and found OK.

TNLNSL, TFTC

We strolled our way there, taking pix along the way.

When I started out with my string, Skytracker said I was zigzagging all over the show & was going to fall several metres short of target. Well, it didn't fall short. It landed right beside the cache... Ha!

FTF 2007

Second cache of the day (and last as it started raining and i didn't have a change of clothing)

am familiar with the track so that part was easy - as roamingkiwi stated there are two possibles for the landmark - but one is better for the final clue

nifty hiding place

-corkscrew
+car

TFTC

[This entry was edited by dragonsinger on Monday, January 08, 2007 at 11:16:43 PM.]

Loved this spot. probably my favourite cache so far. It was raining lightly, so the bush was lush and green. Found the marker no problem, but stupidly left my compass in the car. Managed to work it out easily using the GPSr though.
Must come back and walk the whole track.
- Cufflinks
+ wire rope dogs and Xmas cracker jigsaw.

This cache is all set for 'The Blarghster Code'!

If you are planning to seek this cache, you may want to wait a while for something big that I am working on. Unless you are only in the Kapiti region for a short time (i.e. you don't live in the Greater Wellington Region).

I really liked this cache:)
took a little while cos the GPS put me at another object near by,but it came right after a while and i found the right un-natural landmark,got my old compass out of storage for this one and used my camping clothes line for the measuring line(amazing what you find in th e boot of the car).
+Key ring & pencil sharpener
-radio

Cache is in good condition
shame it hasnt been visited in a while

TFTC from andy

Please note that the track is closed until 31st August 2004 for logging. We went there and thought we would ignore the closed track sign, but then the loggers started again with the chain saws and the sounds of pine trees tumbling down the hill towards the track dissuaded us!

Will try again next time we are in Wgtn, looks like a great walk.

Willbuild
Best walk I have done on this trip. cache number 29 this trip. Walked up with out my crutches( with walking stick). No one around. great buch and birds. saw tofska string. Will come back. no swop.

Raining heavily this morning. Descriptions are accurate. I left my yellow measured string by the first tree on the bearing, in case someone comes unprepared.
Swapped mini radio for another slightly bigger one. Took photo #7, I think.
Thanks, M@

Failed to find this one after a rushed trip as I had a borrowed vehicle which the owner needed back.

I had a lot of difficulty with finding satellites but believe I found the reference object and used the tape that was happily left in the rear of my borrowed vechile. That was lucky but after that the luck ran out.

I beat about the bush at some length. I even had a medium size dead tree crash down alongside when I grabbed it for support but no cache find.

Nice walk though, even though my lower extremities were a bit soggy and chilled.

Our second cache for the day. What an awesome place.
This was our first multi-cache and our most challenging to date. Had to brush up on my compass skills again, which was fun!
Shame the 4x4 track is private, that would have been heaps of fun.

took nothing
left bagatelle game + 2004 pocket calender

Thanks for the stroll.

Our third for the day. The stream looked a bit much for Mum so she stayed with the car. This was a lovely walk in through the bush that we both really enjoyed. Had come all prepared so we followed our string and there was the cache! Great clues making a very interesting find.
+ radio - floppy disk
Thanks for a super cache hunt
Iris & Rodney

What a great place. Took the dog as well as the father-in-law for an afternoon walk.

Reached the second site and broke out the compass. Instead of using the tape measure in my pocket decided to challenge ourselves and try and find the cache without it.

Found the cache and after filling out the log, Bob snapped a picture of me and Radar (my German Shepherd) using the camera inside.

- golf ball
+ waiters corkscrew

Thanks The Blarghster for a great walk and area
Cheers and good hunting
Darryn, Bob and Radar

Very pleasent morning - perfect weather.
Parked & walked the track to cache site - quite a busy spot & a great place for a picnic.

Didn't have any problems finding the cache (a bit of preparation helped).

Took a photo of fellow cachers with disposable camera & left it in the cache (with a note on it for others to do the same)

- padlock
+ set of cufflinks in a presentation case.

Will return to the track to walk the full distance in the near future.

Thanks to The Blarghster - waiting for your next cache !