Burke & Wills Project

[pwags]

From the morning of the 20-Aug-2010, that page was there and loaded with all the caches.
We worked extensively with the developers of the SLV site to provide them a real time feed of caches and logs.

First time I've seen it, too!

Interesting format for the coordinates on the Dig site. Was this intentional?

[caughtatwork]

Well, yes and no.
We provide the co-ords in decimal degrees.
The SLV developers simply converted this back to degrees and decimal minutes.
While we know to cut them off at 3 digits, they didn't.
Not that it's going to be a problem down to 3mm accuracy.

[pwags]

Well, yes and no.
We provide the co-ords in decimal degrees.
The SLV developers simply converted this back to degrees and decimal minutes.
While we know to cut them off at 3 digits, they didn't.
Not that it's going to be a problem down to 3mm accuracy.

It looks more like distorted decimal degrees, rather than degrees and decimal minutes.

[caughtatwork]

Ahh, whoops, ick
I'll shoot them an email, but I'm pretty sure they aren't that worried about it.

[pwags]

Ahh, whoops, ick
I'll shoot them an email, but I'm pretty sure they aren't that worried about it.

The SLV may not be worried about it, but potential new geocachers attracted to the game via SLV may be confused or put off if they rely on the Dig page to find the caches. Let's hope that they click through to the GCA listing.

[Sunshine Toledo]

After traveling over 5000km we returned home today. Our trip was from Brisbane through Broken Hill and up to the Flinders Ranges and then to Lake Eyre where we flew over the lake. We drove as far as Marree but couldn't get the 4X4 to the edge of the lake because of the condition of the road: flooding that was too deep and mud to get through. The flight was fantastic and we saw the enormous amount of water and many birds.
We then travelled up the Strzeleckie Track from Lyndhurst to Innaminka on 18 September with the idea that we would find lots of Burke and Wills caches in the area but all roads were closed. See the pix.

When we visited the Trading Post we were told that it was going to rain over-night and that we should leave town ASAP or we might not be able to get out for a couple of weeks. So we drove to the Noccundra Pub and set the caravan up there. We then drove back to The Dig Tree the next day just with the car and managed to do many of the Virtual Caches from the area. The road in to The Dig Tree was wet, slippery and very muddy. We couldn't go anywhere else as all the roads were closed.

[Cached]

Just got off the phone from a new cacher (old friend) who works up whoop-whoop. He'd only been looking for GC caches, but have now introduced him to GCA.

He's only about 20km (as the crow flies) from some of the very remote B&W caches and will now be heading out to try to get to them!

[belken]

Just a query. I haven't read all I can find.

With regards to the B+W caches. I picked up http://geocaching.com.au/cache/ga2380 on a recent trip and assumed by the write up the co-ordinates wanted you to go to the camp 119. This camp is about 2 k south of the co-ordinates listed. Also there is another one in Cloncurry where the write up says to visit the Mary K park to see Burkes water bottle which is near the co-ordinates listed. However the park is 2k away from those co-ordinates. People are taking the photo in the street as opposed to where the write up talks about.

The question. I have attached the co-ordinates to my log is there a way to update the cache co-ords if we track down more recent info? The history does tell us that there is a little conjecture to the actual route after Camp 78.

[caughtatwork]

If you have better co-ords, please list them and let us know. As you note, post camp 78, everything is a little wonky.
We can then update the co-ords to your better ones.
I'll go check them now.

I've update the cache co-ords and left a note as to why.
Thanks for this.

Which other ones did you have?

[belken]

The other one so far is this one. http://geocaching.com.au/cache/ga2375
From the write up on the page "Mary Kathleen Memorial Park and Museum, located approximately here on McIlwraith Street" . The co-ordinates listed put you on daintree st in Cloncurry not Mcillwraith st which is the main highway.

S20 42 448 e140 31.036 puts you in the actual park.

There is another Gc cachehttp://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_de ... wp=gc26b1x where there is a B+W memorial. I don't know why yet. Its well off the supposed path of B+W. Have to find out more on this one.

[caughtatwork]

Thanks for the update on this one too.

[belken]

Actually after looking at a couple of the B+W listings the route on GCA seems a little screwy. Others may have to help me here.

But this one http://geocaching.com.au/cache/ga2374 I believe should be hereS 20° 47.019 E 140° 05.930. A GC cache is at this location. This is where the monument is. Its on Corella Creek. In the description it says "their visit on January 22 marked by a monument at the side of the Flinders Highway between Cloncurry and Duchess". Whilst this is the Barkly Highway its an easy mistake to make as the Flinders Highway stops where the Landsborough Hwy enters just before Cloncurry and they both turn into the Barkly or Mcillwraith St as it goes through Cloncurry.

[caughtatwork]

Not sure about that one.

This is what the cache page says:
About This Location
Burke's stop on January 22 may well have been in the vicinity of the Cloncurry Mine, shown here.

I think the co-ords set you at the mine site.

The location you give does appear to be the monument site, but I'm not sure that's where they went.

[belken]

I was working on a couple of descriptions that seem to me points that they were further west. I understand that the co-ordinates is the mine. But I think that whilst Dorsey was pointing to Cloncurry the better location would have been where they went.

I haven't got all the info and haven't read all the descriptions but as far as I know they were out towards Boulia on the Burke River. They were just east of Phospate Hill which is due south of Duchess. A liitle further west than what the northern route shows.

There were two other mentions in the descriptions that support this in that they followed Corella Creek and ??Green Creek which is all west of the Curry. I have stopped at the monument but never read the info so hopefully someone that has picked up the GC cache could tell us what was written.

[walw]

Not sure if I'm posting in the right area, but I've just gotten back from a road trip out Innamincka way. Picked up several Burke and Wills virtuals, as well as some of the traditionals out that way.
I went with my youngest son Jeremy, who I'd gotten to read the Burke and Wills books by Sarah Murgatroyd. He thoroughly enjoyed the history of the place, having the caches along the way made it even better (plus the cache notes at each point meant not referring to a book each time)!
I'd just like to say thank you very much to the folks who created the series. I'm already thinking about the next trip out this way to collect a few more. nice work!!!
cheers,
Wal