TONGATABU MT ST268 Raminea, Tasmania, Australia
By
AlbyDangles on 20-May-17. Waypoint TP7637
Cache Details
| Difficulty: | |
| Terrain: | |
| Type: | TrigPoint |
| Container: | Other |
| Coordinates: | S43° 13.756' E146° 57.489' (WGS 84) |
| 55G 496601E 5213724N (UTM) | |
| Elevation: | 556 m |
| Local Government Area: | Huon Valley |
/146.95815,-43.229267,14/400x200?access_token=pk.eyJ1IjoiY2F1Z2h0YXR3b3JrIiwiYSI6ImNqa2l4ZzNzMDE5bjgzdm1sZGpuODF1Mm0ifQ.q8YMzVyzDJJlJHHV8EMjwQ)
Description
A trig point (also known as a Trigonometric Station) typically consists of a black disc on top of four metal legs or concrete pillar, resembling a navigation beacon. It is also accompanied by a metal disc, which is located directly below the centre point of the tripod or on top of the pillar itself.
Trig points are generally located at the top of hills or points of prominence in the landscape. Many provide unique views and challenges, with some being difficult to get to.
These points were regarded as valuable to surveyors, providing reference points for measuring distance and direction, and assisting in the creation of maps.
To log a find on the Geocaching Australia website, you will need to include a picture of the trig point, along with your GPS receiver and (preferably) yourself. Long distance / telephoto type pictures are against the spirit of this cache. You are encouraged to leave a description of your journey in your log to help others in finding the trig point.
The original collection of trig points has been sourced from Geoscience Australia and may contain inaccuracies.
Please respect local laws and regulations when searching for trig points. If you believe that a trig point is located on private property or in a dangerous location, you may archive the cache, by clicking on Log this Cache and place an "Archived" log on the Geocaching Australia website.
If you feel that you can add to the description of this trig point or adjust the difficulty / terrain ratings, please feel free to edit this cache and amend the information suitably. Vandalism of the cache description or other information will result in your account being terminated.
Additional Information:
Drive on by 4WD vehicle. Turn west off Huon Highway at Hopetoun Road, approx 5km to Boney Road then 1.0km to old gate and marked tree on road. From Boney Road to trig is approx 1km 60min climb on marked track.
The old gate has gone and could'nt find a track don't need 4WD.
Logs
I had looked at walking to Mt Tongatabu a couple of years ago and the only information I could find about it was an internet blog by Denis in Hiking South East Tasmania and what was on the SURCOM site
This is an extract from Denis’s blog from 2014.
“The walking was easy and I soon reached the intersection of Boney road and a forestry road which I walked up for about 400 metres to where I figured I would walk up to the summit of Tongatabu. This is where the fun started or not. It was very scrubby with cutting grass and lots of trees and assorted scrub which made progress very slow. Finally I came to a slightly more open section and I thought I was right for a more easier walk to the summit. How wrong I was!! The scrub became thicker and did not relent until I decided to turn back some 350 metres from the summit. It had taken me 2'15" to walk 700 metres and I had had enough. Even though I was wearing a long shirt and pants, the sleeves of my shirt were just so bloody from all the scratches. I had intended to walk to the summit and along the ridge and back down via a different route but the only way back down was really down the way I had come up as it was at least a slightly cleared path.”
The access details from the SURCOM 1978
“Drive on by 4WD vehicle. Turn west off Huon Highway at Hopetoun Road, approx 5km to Boney Road then 1.0km to old gate and marked tree on road. From Boney Road to trig is approx 1km 60min climb on marked track.”
This is my story.
I looked at the weather and the forecast was for rain in the afternoon so I headed off early hopping to find the track and following a marked track to the top. Unfortunately the Old gate has long gone and I couldn’t see a track at the marked tree so I continued driving until I found a 4WD track on the edge of an old forest coupe.
As I knew it wasn’t going to be an easy walk I put on trousers and a long sleeve top and started walking up the track at 9:00, after 200m of pushing my way through cutting grass I headed off into the bush. I was lucky to be walking diagonally up the ridge so the climb up wasn’t that steep but the bush was thick and hard to pick my way through. Once I got a bit higher I broke into some small clearings that made the going easier and had some nice views over Swearing Bobs Plain. The only problem with finding a clearing was knowing that I then had to bash my way back into the bush on the other side. Near the top the bush was a bit dryer and easier to navigate my way through until I got onto the ridge where it became really thick again so I worked my way down off the ridge a little for the last 100m.
At the top I was pleased to find the traditional trig beacon where I had a bit of a rest and took some photos it had taken 1hour 36min. After a little search for the marked track hoping for an easy way back down unfortunately I couldn’t find that end either.
As the way up wasn’t that easy I thought it wouldn’t be any harder going straight down to the road and been 300m shorter, how wrong was I. It started off really easily before getting into the really thick bush, it was steep and the scrub was so thick I couldn’t see very far at all stumbling over logs and falling into holes. On the way down there were no clearings I had no views apart from the scrub that towered above me. The walk down was so bad it took longer than going up taking 2hours to back to the car.
The 2.3 km walk took 3 hours 40 min.
