Kiwi Nomad

Hi everyone I really would like an Avatar, don't really care what it looks like as long as it has something to do with kiwis or New Zealand. Thanks very much to anyone who can help me.

Only had 2 ftfs so far (so averaging 1 per 100 finds ) My problem is finding it! Have been first to hunt a number of times but first to find seems to be harder to achieve! Got to log a earthcache recently before it was published, wasn't going to be anyone log it probably until September if those of us on the trip didn't log it. No we weren't told all the questions at the location, just the photo and elevation. I like going for ftf but even when a cache is available doesn't mean I have a car or babysitter so I can go out and get it. Also I don't like hunting for them at night by myself. Them the breaks, just wish people would write longer logs online, but thats a different thread!

One mission 1. Participating - (email sent) 2. Nick/destination received - (date) 3. Outgoin coin mission details attached - (date) 4. Outgoing coin released in cache GC (Date) 5. Incoming coin picked up - cache GC (&date) This is my first mission, looking forward to it. Thanks for putting it together.

What items I REALLY want to see are the log book, something to write with and that it is clean and dry on the inside. My sons on the other hand (3 and 5) love marbles and cars and cheap plastic things that just make me roll my eyes because why would you ever want those. What you put in depends on who you think is going to find it, I wouldn't expect the above at a 5/5 cache but would be ok in a 1/1 cache. Yes it is acceptable to clear out your own cache and place better quality things in it. In fact I do it with our peoples caches too. If something is really rusty/mouldy/broken/unrecogniseable then I change it out for something better. No idea why people leave batteries the only ones I find seem to always be corroded. How ofter you check your caches is up to you and will also depend on how often they get visited. Good idea with the placing them to see if they last before publishing. I would do up the page with the coordinates any way as then your local reviewer can contact you if they are blocking someone else placing one to find out if it is going to be published or not.

When you first bring up your account it only shows last 30 days, but once you click on any of the options it will show all the caches for that option right back to when you started.

I have one coin that I got to trade and would be happy to do it this way. Would be fun.

Only reason to add a coordinate checker is if it is reasonable to expect people to get the wrong coordinates when they do your puzzle. What you have suggested has been done a number of times in NZ, as all they need to do is find the coordinates and write them down no need to add a checker. Have also seen this done with travel bugs. An extreme example it this cache where you need to find caches, travel bugs and numbers on signs and house numbers.

Welcome to geocaching, I go out with a 5 and 3 year old oh and my husband too. Make sure you have fun. Don't rely on the gps too much it will get you to the general area then you need to use your eyes and look for something that doesn't look quite right. If you are not having fun there is no shame in walking away, either come back another day or find another one to hunt.

Last week I got an e-mail from rchdlyn inviting us to go geocaching with them to Quail Island. Well before geocaching I didn't know it even existed, but by the time I got that e-mail it was already high on my list of places I wanted to visit at some stage before goodness knows when. So you can imagine my disappointment when they were going on the one Saturday Mr KN could not get off soccer as three other p_layer_s had already made them selves unavailable. No matter how I looked at it I knew deep down we were not going, that is until Thursday night I got another e-mail the day had been changed to Monday! Yipee we could make it!! Weather forecast was not on our side I'm not sure if the e-mail Saturday night was reassuring or not, they would be going no matter what unless there was torrential downpours! We headed out Monday morning, me wanting to get a couple more geocaches before the island but knowing we didn't have the time as we had two items won on TradeMe to pick up. All done with out a hitch. Drove through the tunnel which may not sound like much but last time it brought on a high level of anguish for 3 year old KN so was pleasing to see no reaction this time. Drove along main road to find ferry and spotted fellow geocachers instead, u-turned and parked behind them. Was last ones on board. Nice trip across with travel bugs and geocoins. Was not until we all got off that I realised not everyone on board had a gpsr, oh never mind. Off we went 5 year old KN racing off at the front and 3 year old KN lagging at the back (had to stop and put gloves on) with Mr KN and other than that I didn't see much off any of them for the rest of the trip. Showers ever now and then but never heavy enough to cause any problems. Just made the track (what track) down to some of the caches more interesting. Found three different types of mushrooms/fungi as we travelled, meet some very friendly fantails and of course found and signed all the caches. One of which I had the wrong coordinates for but with two other gpsr near by that was not an issue. Although I was not the slowest in the group I was also far from being the fastest. Having waited behind at the first point the track split to make sure Mr KN and 3KN went the correct way around the island. I then filled my pockets with food as 5KN had not eaten since breakfast (now way after noon) headed off to try and catch up with him, which I never did achieve. Two caches latter and the next thing I know he has found Mr KN and is now behind me on the track having cut across the island and circled in behind again. Everyone was happy and the packet of biscuits that had fallen out of my pocket even got found and eaten. Walking up from a "King Bill's Vie" I muttered to Team Chelmo next to me something about what we to sign a log book and how you wouldn't have got me off the main trail going down a hill otherwise. The reply came back that I probably wouldn't have even gone on to the island at all if it wasn't for geocaching what with the rain that was forecast. That brought a smile to my face as he was sooo correct and yet it had turned out to be a great day. Visiting the top of the island really was pushing me outside my comfort zone and my leg was sore afterwards on any down ward section. Everyone made it back to the wharf with about 10minutes to spare where we all sat in the building provided and watched the smaller boys kick a soccer ball and rugby ball around, still full off energy. There is not much vegetation to shelter under for most of the island is still just grass, much is being done to replant it. It is sad to read that the native Quail the island was named after died out at the end of the 18th century. We did not have the option for staying longer as there was only one ferry there and back, even more time could have been spent reading up in one of the huts about the formation of Banks Peninsula, the plants, birds and people that have effected the island and work to being done to restore it to some of its former beauty. Thanks to rchdlyn for getting the ball rolling for this trip. We were so pleased by the end of it that neither boy had been carried at all and were both still in good spirits. Mr KN and 3KN were together the whole trip so also a big thank you to each of the other geocachers for including JK in your trip around the island. One thing I wanted to achieve was my 200th cache find on the island, I knew this was not going to happen as I was four short of what I needed when I got on the ferry. Never mind I thought I would make that milestone on the way home instead. Once the boys were in bed I started logging the finds and travel bugs copying with a couple of disconnections it was with disappointment that I went to bed thinking I had missed the mark by one. By morning I was feeling more upbeat who cares I thought my event would be my 200th, feeling satisfied with that idea. So on I logged this morning I wanted to see which of the d/t ratings I had knocked off because of the trip. Went to read some of the other cachers logs and noticed someone had logged one that didn't have a tick next to it to show I had found it, I must have been logging that one when the internet connection dropped, so logged it again and made 200 caches yipeee! The high lights of the day, being with friends, seeing the shipwreck, learning more about our history, achieving more that I thought possible (the boys too) and now I am looking forward to the next adventure that the Kiwi Nomad family takes to find some more caches. Anyone for Mount Somers trip or maybe Helm's Deep or Stewart Island there's some places I have never been before. If you ever get the chance to visit Quail Island, I would have to say don't miss it, oh and the next ferry there is in September so you have plenty of time to plan your trip. Oh and as we ate our breakfast this morning 5KN turned around and said "Can we go back to same place we went to yesterday today please Mum?"

Yesterday on the way to the first wp for a multi Margaret Mahy walked past walking her dog. I wanted to rush up and tell her about my favourite story of hers (shes an author) and how I remember listening to her read at the local library as a child, but I thought that would be too embrassing so didn't. Margaret Mahy has won lots of prizes for her writing including Hans Christian Andersen Award which is sometimes known as the "Little Nobel Prize".

of the cache? Stalking is fellowing someone around being aware of eveything they do. Putting a cache near a camera doesn't fit this. Question to op are you intending to let them know the camera is there?

I know of one where the hider posted some stills from a camera (very fuzzy black and white) after the cache was published on Friday night and not claimed over the weekend. A number of people had looked for it but from memory only one logged a dnf. Other than the fact there was a person in the photo nothing else could be determined. There are so many secrurity cameras around these days that if you live in a major city walking along you will be unlikely to find a spot that is not covered by a security camera.

Have to agree with this, sorry I know its not what you were looking for. The thing is when my first cache got muggled all I wanted back was my logbook. It was a letterbox hybrid cache so in my opinion it is irreplaceable. When I visit a cache the first thing I look for is the logbook. I love reading what other people have written and where they are from. So most important to me is a good logbook, one that won't fall apart, spirl or staple bound. Once you place your cache you don't have much control on what is in there other than the logbook.

Find a topographical map of the area that you want to visit, mark on it where the caches are and then head out with the map and probably a compass too. Before you head out to the hills grab a couple of urban ones in parks first so that you get a couple under the belt before you go for a long walk and have no idea of what you are looking for. It is possible to do with out a gps, we found our first 7 with out one and our first hunt ended up in a dnf even thouugh we hunted in the correct place because we didn't seach well enough.

Hey looks like a cool contest, sorry I missed it, never mind keewee lives nearby I'll just have to have a look at his I guess

There is a series of cache in Dunedin NZ that anyone who has been in caching for a while would know about. All the titles are about nuts as in you would have to be nuts/crazy to hunt for them. No one has ever complained about them, they get hardly any visits and those who go for them know what they are getting themselves into. It just happens that Dunedin happens to have a lot of caches to keep everyone happy with a smiley face.

Yep it certainly happens, doesn't bother me as much as a geocoin/tb revisiting the same cache more than once. Gets picked up from Cache A and taken to Cache B, not long latter gets picked up from Cache B and taken back to Cache A. Yes I have seen this happen at least twice.

It just means that there is a bit of rubbish around where they found the cache and future hunters could come prepared with plastic bags to take some away with them, that way leaving the area better for others to enjoy. CITO = Cache In Trash Out

Only if you know you have found the cache, sometimes I just add extra paper not a whole log book depends on why it needs replacing and where I am.

I have actually seen a cache which said as the hint 'No hint needed', so what you may say, the difference was it was decrypted already for me (that those brackets around it) so you already knew with out any hassle working it out.

Hi I would like to request Avatar. I'm thinking of 4 kiwis, our group is made of a Mum and Dad and two small boys. We also all like soccer. Warning stupid question, can I use it on other sites as well? I have never had an avatar and have no idea how they work.

Just as an extra to question one I would let them log the ones they were involved in. Sitting in the car doesn't count. Did they come along and show interest then I would say yes. I haven't done it for my boys yet and if I did would only log a handfull for my older son that we have found so far and even less for the younger one. They come along with me but don't really get involved in it. They play games near by me while I hunt.

Well you can't make a rule that fits all. Is it a cache that gets regular dnfs? How often is it found? Did the other people give reason for not finding eg raining so didn't look long or didn't have clue or was it they hunted for ages. How many caches has the person hid if they have lots they could be getting lots of logs and may only notice if a maintance needed is logged. On the other hand if they have not many they should notice the cache needs checking from just the dnfs. So it depends on lots of things. If I can do the maintance I do same as Annie mentioned but thats just how I do it and I know the other locals would do the same for me.

Well considering I started of with no gpsr I'm sure it can't help. First question would be does it have an arrow pointing to the coordinates you have loaded, if so then go for it. Find a few then upgrade if you want or stick with what you've got. Welcome on board I really love taking the family geocaching, you'll find places you never knew about. Happy hunting.

1) Hadn't thought about this, just so happy to have more than a grey blob and two roads showing, how about the top one showing a larger area and the bottom one staying as it is. 2) I get around this by shrinking to fit page, get it down to about 80% (from memory) and you get to see all of the map and still have the names down the right hand side. If I am going to a new town I tended to do this as the map at the bottom of the cache page was of little use to me. Still would be nice to have the more detailed maps on the printer friendly page. Over all still think the new is better than the old.