Difference between revisions of "2011-10-16 -37 145"

From Geohashing
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[[Image:2011-10-16 -37 145 2.jpg|thumb|left]]
<!-- If you did not specify these parameters in the template, please substitute appropriate values for IMAGE, LAT, LON, and DATE (YYYY-MM-DD format)
 
 
 
[[Image:{{{image|IMAGE}}}|thumb|left]]
 
 
 
Remove this section if you don't want an image at the top (left) of your report.  You should remove the "Image:" or "File:"
 
tag from your image file name, and replace the all upper-case word IMAGE in the above line.
 
 
 
And DON'T FORGET to add your expedition and the best photo you took to the gallery on the Main Page! We'd love to read your report, but that means we first have to discover it!
 
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{{meetup graticule  
 
{{meetup graticule  
 
| lat=-37
 
| lat=-37
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__NOTOC__
 
__NOTOC__
 
== Location ==
 
== Location ==
<!-- where you've surveyed the hash to be -->
+
In thick scrub 200m south of a walking track in Kinglake National Park, which was completely obliterated in the 2009 bushfires.
  
 
== Participants ==
 
== Participants ==
<!-- who attended -->
+
[[User:Stevage|Steve Bennett]]
 +
 
 +
==Video==
 +
http://vimeo.com/30666614
 +
== Expedition ==
 +
I was planning a 100km fitness ride this weekend, and checked out a possible geohash. 50km from my house? Game on! I followed the standard preparation, going to bed at 3am the night before, and forcing myself out of bed at 8:30am. tAlex was a possible companion, but preferred sleeping.
 +
 
 +
My plan was pretty simple: ride from home, up through the hills (Warrandyte, Kangaroo Ground, Panton Hill, Smiths Creek) to Kinglake National Park, then through the park on fire trail. A walking track would get me closer to the geohash - but might not be passable on bike. Then I'd continue the loop down through Yarra Glen, Lilydale, and back home by 5 for a family dinner.
 +
 
 +
All went swimmingly, except for a slowish start - didn't leave the house till 9:45. I performed an excellent high-speed bakery stop in Warrandyte, then couldn't resist another in Kangaroo Ground. Soon my minimal carrying capacity was exploding with bakery goods. The traffic was light, the roads high quality, and I was making good time. The weather spasmodically fluctuated between sunny, threatening, drizzly and rainy. The jacket came off, the jacket went on, the cycle repeated.
 +
 
 +
Once I arrived at the national park, a sudden moment of truth hit me - I had no idea if bikes were allowed in. On the sign, I could make out the word "bicycles" and my heart stopped - but needlessly. Bikes, pedestrians and horses were all a-ok with park management. I powered up Mt Everard Track, feeling strong. A couple of downhills were a lot of fun - little erosion barriers turned into excellent jumps. On I climbed, cheered on by a resting group of geriatric bushwalkers. Soon I was looking for the elusive Bundy Track - my OpenStreetMap map on the GPS was slightly out of sync with reality.
 +
 
 +
But eventually there it was - the sign had been burnt out, and the track was quite overgrown. It seems it hasn't been maintained since the bushfires. Riding along it was quite challenging - the surface was solid, but many shrubs were growing along the path, and there were plenty of fallen branches to negotiate. Somehow I managed to keep pushing through, getting progressively wetter as I pushed through the undergrowth.
  
== Plans ==
+
The track took a sudden left turn down a steep ridge, and I belatedly realised what I'd signed up for. This was STEEP. Steep, slippery, overgrown, covered with fallen branches and loose rocks. Seriously challenging stuff on my cyclocross bike. But I had a deadline, so no time for pussy footing around. Down I went, treading a fine line between speed and recklessness.
<!-- what were the original plans -->
 
  
== Expedition ==
+
Before long I arrived at the apogee. I ditched the bike, remembering to GPS mark its location (very important!!), but forgetting to bring my phone - a potentially costly mistake. 200m off the track doesn't sound far until you look down into a steep gully, covered with thick, wet, scratchy bushes. Yuck. I was tempted to abandon immediately and get back to the fun stuff, but memories of another failed geohash a couple of years ago haunted me. I hardened the Felix up and plunged down through the bush.
<!-- how it all turned out. your narrative goes here. -->
+
 
 +
So engrossed in my psychological battles was I that I didn't notice that I was going off track. I'd just assumed I'd be going straight downhill, but it wasn't quite like that. I meandered around, slipped, sloshed, got completely soaked and scratched, as the GPS slowly counted down from 210m, to 205, to 200, to 195...it felt like a long time. Eventually the bush thinned out a bit, and I made quicker progress. Then suddenly I was at the site - a somewhat incongruous clearing. "Bip" said the GPS. "You've made it, son, well done." I took a couple of photos and started scrambling back up the slope.
 +
 
 +
It turns out that I was a bit careless and the photos are a bit off the exact geohash point. Me, I consider the geohash to be a place defined by coordinates (rather than the coordinates themselves), so I don't get too fussed. I was in the right place - I just don't get a lot of joy out of stumbling around aimlessly trying to get the GPS to sign off on my paperwork. Anyway.
 +
 
 +
Reaching the bike again (and relieved to have found it), I pushed on down the hill, and was soon out of the national park. A miserable headwind battered me through the Yarra Valley (on a hideous, narrow, busy road). My original plan was to ride all the way home, but with family commitments pressing, I took the train option.
  
 
== Tracklog ==
 
== Tracklog ==
<!-- if your GPS device keeps a log, you may post a link here -->
+
http://app.strava.com/activities/1990165
 +
 
 +
[[File:Screenshot 2024-05-14 at 12.24.18 am.png|400px]]
  
 
== Photos ==  
 
== Photos ==  
<!-- Insert pictures between the gallery tags using the following format:
+
 
Image:2010-##-## ## ## Alpha.jpg | Witty Comment
 
-->
 
 
<gallery perrow="5">
 
<gallery perrow="5">
 +
Image:2011-10-16 -37 145 1.jpg| Heading up Mt Everard Track.
 +
Image:2011-10-16 -37 145 2.jpg| Hi-vis helps other potential geohashers to find you at the site.
 +
Image:2011-10-16 -37 145 3.jpg|Rediscovering your transport in the bush brings great peace of mind.
 +
Image:2011-10-16 -37 145 4.JPG|Eerie vistas two and a half years on from the tragic bushfires.
 +
Image:2011-10-16 -37 145 5.jpg|I'm not sure what this burnt out relic at the start of Bundy Track used to be.
 +
Image:2011-10-16 -37 145 6.jpg|This delightful scratchy shrub makes bush bashing so much fun.
 +
Image:2011-10-16 -37 145 7.jpg|A bluetongue lizard.
 
</gallery>
 
</gallery>
  
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{{#vardefine:ribbonwidth|800px}}
 
{{#vardefine:ribbonwidth|800px}}
 
<!-- Add any achievement ribbons you earned below, or remove this section -->
 
<!-- Add any achievement ribbons you earned below, or remove this section -->
 +
{{Bicycle_geohash|longitude=145|latitude=-37|date=2011-10-16}}
 +
{{Consecutive_geohash|count=2|date=2011-10-15|latitude=-37|longitude=145}}
 +
{{Climb
  
 +
    | latitude = -37
 +
    | longitude = 145
 +
    | date = 2011-10-16
 +
    | elevation = 1290
 +
    | mode = bike
  
<!-- =============== USEFUL CATEGORIES FOLLOW ================
+
}}
Delete the next line ONLY if you have chosen the appropriate categories below. If you are unsure, don't worry. People will read your report and help you with the classification. -->
 
[[Category:New report]]
 
 
 
<!-- Potential categories. Please include all the ones appropriate to your expedition -->
 
<!-- If this is a planning page:
 
[[Category:Expedition planning]]
 
-->
 
  
<!-- An actual expedition:
 
 
[[Category:Expeditions]]
 
[[Category:Expeditions]]
-- and one or more of --
 
 
[[Category:Expeditions with photos]]
 
[[Category:Expeditions with photos]]
 
[[Category:Expeditions with videos]]
 
[[Category:Expeditions with videos]]
[[Category:Expedition without GPS]]
 
-->
 
 
   
 
   
<!-- if you reached your coords:
 
 
[[Category:Coordinates reached]]
 
[[Category:Coordinates reached]]
-->
+
{{location|AU|VIC|NI}}
 
 
<!-- or if you failed :(
 
[[Category:Coordinates not reached]]
 
-- and a reason --
 
[[Category:Not reached - Mother Nature]]    when there is a natural obstacle between you and the target
 
[[Category:Not reached - No public access]]  when there is a man-made obstacle between you and the target
 
[[Category:Not reached - Technology]]        when you failed get your GPS, car, bike or such to work
 
[[Category:Not reached - Did not attempt]]  when you went to an alternate location, or decided early on to abort the expedition.
 
-->
 

Latest revision as of 22:26, 13 May 2024

2011-10-16 -37 145 2.jpg
Sun 16 Oct 2011 in -37,145:
-37.5873205, 145.3561470
geohashing.info google osm bing/os kml crox


Location

In thick scrub 200m south of a walking track in Kinglake National Park, which was completely obliterated in the 2009 bushfires.

Participants

Steve Bennett

Video

http://vimeo.com/30666614

Expedition

I was planning a 100km fitness ride this weekend, and checked out a possible geohash. 50km from my house? Game on! I followed the standard preparation, going to bed at 3am the night before, and forcing myself out of bed at 8:30am. tAlex was a possible companion, but preferred sleeping.

My plan was pretty simple: ride from home, up through the hills (Warrandyte, Kangaroo Ground, Panton Hill, Smiths Creek) to Kinglake National Park, then through the park on fire trail. A walking track would get me closer to the geohash - but might not be passable on bike. Then I'd continue the loop down through Yarra Glen, Lilydale, and back home by 5 for a family dinner.

All went swimmingly, except for a slowish start - didn't leave the house till 9:45. I performed an excellent high-speed bakery stop in Warrandyte, then couldn't resist another in Kangaroo Ground. Soon my minimal carrying capacity was exploding with bakery goods. The traffic was light, the roads high quality, and I was making good time. The weather spasmodically fluctuated between sunny, threatening, drizzly and rainy. The jacket came off, the jacket went on, the cycle repeated.

Once I arrived at the national park, a sudden moment of truth hit me - I had no idea if bikes were allowed in. On the sign, I could make out the word "bicycles" and my heart stopped - but needlessly. Bikes, pedestrians and horses were all a-ok with park management. I powered up Mt Everard Track, feeling strong. A couple of downhills were a lot of fun - little erosion barriers turned into excellent jumps. On I climbed, cheered on by a resting group of geriatric bushwalkers. Soon I was looking for the elusive Bundy Track - my OpenStreetMap map on the GPS was slightly out of sync with reality.

But eventually there it was - the sign had been burnt out, and the track was quite overgrown. It seems it hasn't been maintained since the bushfires. Riding along it was quite challenging - the surface was solid, but many shrubs were growing along the path, and there were plenty of fallen branches to negotiate. Somehow I managed to keep pushing through, getting progressively wetter as I pushed through the undergrowth.

The track took a sudden left turn down a steep ridge, and I belatedly realised what I'd signed up for. This was STEEP. Steep, slippery, overgrown, covered with fallen branches and loose rocks. Seriously challenging stuff on my cyclocross bike. But I had a deadline, so no time for pussy footing around. Down I went, treading a fine line between speed and recklessness.

Before long I arrived at the apogee. I ditched the bike, remembering to GPS mark its location (very important!!), but forgetting to bring my phone - a potentially costly mistake. 200m off the track doesn't sound far until you look down into a steep gully, covered with thick, wet, scratchy bushes. Yuck. I was tempted to abandon immediately and get back to the fun stuff, but memories of another failed geohash a couple of years ago haunted me. I hardened the Felix up and plunged down through the bush.

So engrossed in my psychological battles was I that I didn't notice that I was going off track. I'd just assumed I'd be going straight downhill, but it wasn't quite like that. I meandered around, slipped, sloshed, got completely soaked and scratched, as the GPS slowly counted down from 210m, to 205, to 200, to 195...it felt like a long time. Eventually the bush thinned out a bit, and I made quicker progress. Then suddenly I was at the site - a somewhat incongruous clearing. "Bip" said the GPS. "You've made it, son, well done." I took a couple of photos and started scrambling back up the slope.

It turns out that I was a bit careless and the photos are a bit off the exact geohash point. Me, I consider the geohash to be a place defined by coordinates (rather than the coordinates themselves), so I don't get too fussed. I was in the right place - I just don't get a lot of joy out of stumbling around aimlessly trying to get the GPS to sign off on my paperwork. Anyway.

Reaching the bike again (and relieved to have found it), I pushed on down the hill, and was soon out of the national park. A miserable headwind battered me through the Yarra Valley (on a hideous, narrow, busy road). My original plan was to ride all the way home, but with family commitments pressing, I took the train option.

Tracklog

http://app.strava.com/activities/1990165

Screenshot 2024-05-14 at 12.24.18 am.png

Photos

Achievements

Bikegeohash.png
This user earned the Bicycle geohash achievement
by cycling to the (-37, 145) geohash on 2011-10-16.
Consecutivegeohash.jpg
This user earned the Consecutive geohash achievement
by reaching 2 consecutive hash points starting on 2011-10-15.
OWN Ribbon.jpg
This user earned the Massive Climb achievement
by climbing 1290m primarily by bike during their (-37, 145) geohash expedition on 2011-10-16.