Mount Royal Run Traditional Geocache
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Difficulty:
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Terrain:
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Size: 
(regular)
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Cache situated on Mount Royal, in the National Park. The park is adjacent to the south-western edge of Barrington Tops National Park and contains part of the Barrington Tops Wilderness Area. It was declared over former state forest in 1996 and includes rainforest areas that provide habitat for threatened species such as the Hastings River mouse and Booroolong Frog. Altitude of cache is around 1185m ASL. This hunt takes some preparation, and is well over an hour return.
Cache container is a camouflaged 90mm x 220mm PVC pipe. It is not in plain view as the area is frequented by quite a few people from time-to-time, located fairly close to the trig / geodetic station but it's hiding location should be fairly easy to spot (lack of places to hide something of this size in the area).
Due to extremes of temperature experienced here, please BYO pen or pencil to log find just in case.
For those that enjoy some challenging terrain and a few hours in the bush, with some level of fitness, this cache location is well worth a visit, if not only for the fantastic views. The location is not suitable for the elderly, infirm or young children. There are sections where you will need to use your hands to assist in climbing, there is no well marked track. Allow around 90 to 120 minutes each way, but you will find experienced walkers can get to the cache area in as little as 45 minutes. The way down is quicker of course.
There are a number of directions from which to approach this cache location. Arriving from the South West is what we recommend, although from the North and West are also options. Please note that there are tall, steep cliffs on the South to Eastern sides of the mountain. We recommend parking in a small clearing (S32 10.922 E151 18.941) near a road intersection located a fraction over 2km by road from the Youngville Camping Area. Often we have travelled back in a different direction from our approach to avoid the same views. :)
Other Notes: Depending on which approach you choose, there are long sections where the grade averages between 1:3 and 5:2.
Cache altitude is approximately 1185m.
Be aware that in Winter snow is a possibility, and at any time of the year the area is subject to sudden weather changes.
There is also a Log Book not related to the cache that we placed up here in 2000. You can see how popular this area actually is. Please feel free to sign it as well but don't give away the fact there is a cache in the area (hanging from Trig station).
For those who want them, I have included a number of waypoints following the ridge-line that we normally use below.
At the time we placed the cache 2WD vehicles would have had no trouble getting to the area. The road can become very pot-holed and rutted, and good clearance is recommended.
GPSr accuracy is poor or non-existant in a few short sections of terrain, but quite good in the cache area considering the vegetation / canopy.
The following information is collected from:
(visit link)
Topo map: Carrabolla 9133-I-S (1:25000)
Park area: 6,920 hectares
Year the park was created: 1997
Getting there:
Mount Royal National Park is 50km north of Singleton. Turn right into Bridgman Road off the New England Highway North of Singleton and follow the signs to Lake St Clair. The last 7km is along Mount Royal Road, which is unpaved and can have some deep ruts. While the park is accessible by 2WD vehicles with good clearance, a 4WD vehicle is recommended.
Road quality: unpaved sections, some ruts, may be inaccessible during or directly after wet weather.
Camping in this park:
Youngville camping area
Getting there: This camping ground is on Mount Royal Road, which is inaccessible in wet weather. The route includes unpaved roads; 4WD vehicle recommended.
Campsites are suitable for: people who are happy to walk a short distance from car to tent.
Facilities: Pit/composting toilets, picnic tables, electric/gas barbecues
Things to do: This campground offers walking tracks, including the walk to Pieries Peak.
Fees: No fees apply
Natural environment
Native plants:
Mount Royal National Park has a variety of forest types and vegetation communities, ranging from shrubland to tall open forest and wet eucalypt forest. The most dominant form of vegetation is mid-altitude grassy forest with plentiful stands of New England blackbutt, Sydney blue gum and grey gum. Approximately 20 per cent of the park is rainforest.
Native animals:
The park is home to some 20 species of birds, mammals and reptiles listed as rare and threatened, including rufous scrub birds, paradise riflebirds, parma wallabies and rough-scaled snakes and Hastings River mice—first trapped along the Hastings River in 1921. This little known animal is listed as threatened and until it was rediscovered in 1981 was thought to have disappeared.
The rainforest areas are particularly rich in smaller mammals such as brush-tailed possums, greater gliders, koalas and red-necked pademelons. List of animals recorded in the park: (visit link)
Facilities & things to do
Walking tracks:
A number of walking tracks are accessible from Mount Royal Road, which runs through the park. Alternatively, follow the trail from Youngville down to Carrow Brook, a 5km return walk. Consult either the Barrington Tops and Gloucester District map or the Carrabolla map before you go.
Driving in the park:
Mount Royal Road is often suitable for 4WD vehicles only. It offers a scenic 40km return drive, linking up with Cassels Road. Visitors are advised not to access the private section of Cassels Road beyond the park boundary.
Lookouts:
Climb Mount Royal (cache site) and Pieries Peak (immediately South of Youngville Camping Area) for stunning views of the areas.
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
Nebhaq 12z Abegu bs gur Trbqrgvp Fgngvba / gevt cbvag ng fhzzvg. Haqre gerr jvgu n ynetr ebpx ba vg.