Friday, April 10, 2015

Stanthorpe QLD 2015

As Queensland prepared to host their first mega event it was a good chance for the Gangsters to get together for another road trip. As with previous mega events the Gangsters head away a few weeks beforehand to find all the local caches so we could enjoy a relaxing mega event with our families. 

Heading to Stanthorpe a few weeks before the event we were blessed with clear skies and a warming country lifestyle. The Gangsters had 4 days in the Granite Belt finding over 400 caches which littered the area. A number of powertrails dotted the countryside in anticipation of the hordes of geocachers that would ascend on the area over Easter. For us, we flew into Brisbane where we collecting a hire and started heading west. Our first night was at the noisy Cunningham Gap. Our next day had us in the thick of the powertrails finding over 240 caches along various road tracks and over some beautiful rural areas. We had another under stars while enjoying a campfire and a few drinks. Sunday saw us doing much of the same however we’d ventured closer to civilisation with us stopping the night in the local caravan park of Stanthorpe where we enjoyed a nice warm shower and the relaxed atmosphere of a nice pub meal. Our 4 days was quickly coming to an end but not before we found a few more caches as we headed for Brisbane…. Our again the Gangsters had shared a memorable road trip. 

As Easter approached we were disappointed to learn that steeba wouldn’t be joining us at the mega due to the pending birth of the 4th child. For the rest of us the weather prediction didn’t sound great but that wouldn’t deter us, we were keen for some time away with our families. Arriving in Stanthorpe on Easter Friday we were barely setup when the heavens opened up setting the tone for the rest of the weekend. I’d packed a huge tarp which allowed us to have a good amount of dry covered area for the kids to run around. Over the course of the weekend we intentionally didn’t do much caching, choosing to focus more on the fun activities organised as well as visiting some of the local attractions, one of which being the guard dog training facility where dogs are trained in the finer points of security and attack work. Throughout the weekend we attended the 3 other events organised around town and found some of the more unique types of hides available at a mega. The mini-rats did exceptionally well in this department finding a credible 10 cache types in the one day. Another highlight for us was the night-time entertainment and the very social atmosphere (despite the weather) of a great mega-event and to see many of our caching friends from around Australia was an added bonus. 

Unfortunately by Monday it was time to pack up and start the long trek home. Except for Leonie, who had to be back at work by Tuesday the rest of us took a leisurely 3-day road trip down the coast to get home.