Cachers Know Cachers V2 Mystery Cache

NOTE:- 1-10-10 Over the years things have changed and this puzzle would be becoming very hard for newer teams to work out. We have updated the puzzle and re hid the cache in an ammo tin to hopefully make it a bit easier and drier.

Because of the possibility of high muggle traffic at times please use care and ensure the cache is well hidden before you leave.

The Cache Location

The location you are going to has had a rich history. It was popular with local Aborigines because of the good hunting and the natural clear spring in the sand dunes near where the reservoir is today. A Military Reserve was established in 1885. In 1901, at Federation, the land was passed to the commonwealth. Nearly 100 years after becoming a military reserve the area was declared the fauna and Flora reserve it is today.

From it’s inception in 1885 this military base was used for various activities by the the Victorian Colonial Defence Forces.
In April 1889, 2195 men were engaged in manoeuvres for four days, using 669 horses and 29 wagons.

In late 1914, a detention centre for German prisoners-of-war was established and, in 1915, part of the camp was redesigned as a military hospital for venereal disease patients. During the war period improved facilities included a better water supply, additional roads and drains, a butcher's shop and post office, and a steam pumping station at the reservoir which included a boiler and pump, coke filter beds and underground tanks. (The cache is hidden near the site of the old hospital.)

After the war, all military structures were removed, the prisoners were transferred for repatriation, and the use of the hospital for military venereal disease treatment ceased in 1920.

The Military Reserve was used for defence purposes during the Second World War and up until the late 1970s. From early 1974 it was managed by the former Balcombe Military Camp and used for part-time military training and various non-military activities. It was a valuable area for training metropolitan Reserve units, and was used by the Army Reserve and school cadets.

In January 1980 the Commonwealth Minister for Administrative Services leased the Reserve to the Victorian Minister for Conservation, for the purpose of protecting conservation values, as a flora and fauna reserve to be managed by the National Parks Service. The State Government purchased the Reserve from the Commonwealth Government on 28 June 1982 for the sum of $330,000.

Today the reserve is a very important habitat for native fauna, particularly small mammals. You may see koalas, Brown Bandicoots and Swamp Wallabies but smaller species such as the rare New Holland Mouse are much harder to find. A total of 94 bird species, including the rare Southern Emu-wren have been recorded.
This reserve is one of the few areas on the southern fringe of the Melbourne metropolitan area still supporting indigenous plant and animal communities in a reasonable natural condition.
Stringybarks are the main trees in the forest, which covers more than half of the reserve, but Swamp Gum, Narrow-leaf Peppermint and Manna Gum also occur. In the lower layers of the forest you will find Prickly Tea-tree, Sallow Wattle, Swamp Paperbark and Pithy Sword-sedge.
About 45 percent of the plant species indigenous to the Mornington Peninsula are present including many rare species for which the reserve offers the last chance of survival. Some of the more interesting are Tufted Blue-lily, Rabbit-ears Orchid, Wedding Bush and Short Purple-flag.

Careful management is required to protect native vegetation from the threats posed by weeds, rabbits and unplanned fires. Many weeds including Radiata Pine (an exotic species) and Sallow Wattle (a non-indigenous Australian species) are present, particularly in areas that were once cleared. Weed control has benefited from a high level of support from Friends Groups and volunteers.

The Cache Puzzle.

To print the puzzle and questions only click HERE

The Cache is located at .