Wednesday, October 15, 2008

Brisbane Blitz

After the success of our other caching expeditions the extended Gong Gangsters wanted to broaden our horizons. An interstate blitz was suggested and after alot of planning a date and itinerary was set.

Late on the 9th Oct, Steeba and myself flew to Brisbane for what was to be 3 days of solid caching. Big Matt was already in Brisbane and it was his hospitality that provided us with transport and a place to crash while we were all in Brisbane.

As soon as we were off the plane the thought of new caches was overwhelming and we quickly had 2 finds. Self-control prevailed and we grabbed some necessary food before making it an early night.

Friday started with all guns blazing, which included the rain which at times was relentless, but that didn’t us. Our plan was to stick around the northern suburbs of Brisbane and while there were pockets of caches our day seemed to drag along at a slow pace with us slowly but surely picked up our finds, but not at the cracking pace we’d dreamt of. As the day unfolded we met a few local cachers at various points and found some clever hides. Not long after dinner on our first day we called it quits with a disappointing 69 finds.

Saturday was a very early start, as we had to drop Shell off at the Roma St rail station by 6.00am. Soon after we were bagging our 1st inner city cache. Early morning caching means no muggles and quick finds and our numbers grew quickly with a promising day ahead. The persistent rain was still there but it didn’t slow us. By lunchtime we had already found 50 caches and with plenty more zigging and zagged across town to do we were sure to amass big numbers. The area known as ‘The Gap’ proved very fruitful for us. It seemed as though there was a cache on every corner. By the time we’d finished our days caching we had found a whopping 92 finds with 11 DNF’s. This was a new one-day record for me.

Our last of this caching blitz and with weiry bodies we started a little slower than the previous days, but we were soon back into it. The southeastern part of Brissy was to be today’s hotspot. The area offered finds similar to Friday with each cache being a little spread out. As we made our way towards the coast we were rewarded with some excellent views and a glimpse at how the other half live. By mid afternoon it was time to slowly start heading back towards the airport, but not before another 1 or 2 finds.

Eventually our caching blitz on Brisbane had o come to an end. It had been thoroughly enjoyable, good company and plenty of finds. Our weekend had resulted in a massive 205 finds.

Thanks to fellow cachers Steeba and Big Matt for a great adventure, but now the logging starts.