WeeWillie

I read this morning in the Sierra Vista (AZ) Herald that AZ Governor Doucy will reopen AZ State Trust Land to Geocaching. The article did not report when but it will be back to caching.

Many Tucson visitors take a side trip to Tombstone. If that is your case then I suggest that you stay either Tombstone or Sierra Vista. Sierra Vista is larger and has more hotels and restaurants. I tried to include your wish list. I recommend that you visit Karchner Caverns. There is a cache at the Visitors Desk. Give yourself 2.5-3 hours to visit the center and take a cave tour. Fairbank, AZ is located in the San Pedro National Riparian Region. It is an old railroad town that serviced the local mines. https://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.aspx?wp=GCHBHJ&title=fairbank-memories. You can travel North or South along the river and see old stamping mills and a historic ranch. Your choice. Give yourself 3-4 hours. Both Karchner and Fairbank will get you to Tombstone or Sierra Vista. Charlestown, AZ is another ghost town with a cluster of caches. There is a nice interpretive trail that leads to Stamp of Approval. There is a petroglyph site nearby. https://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.aspx?wp=GC5FQKD&title=stamp-of-approval If you get tired of Tombstone, try Bisbee. South about 25 miles. Old mining town now eclectic hippie. There is a Queen Mine tour that takes you underground. Courtland, AZ. Another old mining town East of Tombstone. The hour or so drive from Tombstone is scenic and a jeep is or high clearance vehicle is a good idea. There is a cluster of caches here. The CO put together a very interesting history for each of the caches. This is a day trip for sure. https://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.aspx?wp=GC1G4NK&title=jailhouse-rock Here are some searches that you can do for other adventures. Hereford, Sonoita, Patagonia, Benson

It really depends on the severity of the fire as to what actions a CO should take. At the minimium the CO should disable the cache listing until the cache is checked out. For really severe fires the land owner may close off all or part of the effected area for days, weeks, months and years. There are issues such as erosion run-off, floods, standing trees, blocked road, and impassable trails that make the damaged area unsafe. It may be a long time before a CO can visit a cache to verify its existance and replace its damage. Also, that once beautify vista that attracked the CO to the site may no longer exist. In that case, why replace the cache.

Under Pres Obama the LifeLine program has nearly tripled in size from $800 million in 2009 to $2.2 billion per year in 2012. There are claims of waste, fraud and abuse. I don't think the LifeLine program was intended to allow low income users to cache.

South of Tucson.

I live in AZ which has its share of snakes. In 25 years of camping, hiking and caching I rarely encounter snakes. They really don't like humans and try their best to avoid us. The overwhelming majority of snake bites result from humans becoming too curious about then. If you encounter one, step back slowly and let him or her have the right of way. If you want to see them up front, bring binoculars. Rattlesnakes usually will warn you with a rattle but that is no guarantee. Never stick your hand in a hole or anyplace you can’t see. Bring a walking stick as a probe. NEVER use a walking stick to remove a snake. Besides annoying the snake, you are close enough to be struck. When the sun is up snakes hide in rocks and brushy area to avoid overheating. Besides that it is fun watching humans run around in the blazing sun, with all sorts of electronic gizmos, looking for cheap trinkets. Google/Bing… Utah snakes for snake info. Visit the park gift shop for snake pocket guides. Learn to walk away. No cache is worth a snake bite. Bring a hat, sun screen and water. You are more likely to get heat stroke, sun burn or dehydrated than bit by a snake. Enjoy Utah

When so many caches become so obvious that you don't need a GPS to find them you have lost something.

Cache O'Plenty You are sort of correct. Here is a complete history of AZ state trust lands. https://land.az.gov/about/history

The objective of state trust land is to raise revenue for schools and other social services. They haved a legal requirement to charge a fee. I suspect that the reasons for closure were too many geocachers were visiting caches on state trust land without obtaining an annual pass. The problem was not just geocachers, but we are a recognized group. Another concern was probably geo-art. Geo-art was popping up everywhere and most of it was lame. The problem was that it attracted large numbers of cachers interested in increasing their cache count. The volume often creates very defined trails that you did not need a GPS to follow. Besides the imapact on the terrain, it violates the intent of geocaching. Finally, I encountered two cachers on one geo-art (007 near Houghton Rd) and neither had state trust land permits. Here is the state land trust address if you are interested. Arizona State Land Department 1616 W. Adams St Phoenix, AZ 85007

If the RR did not sell or transfer the their right of way then they are still the property owner. They have all the rights of any other property owner. If the cache owner wants to place a cache on a RR right of way they have an absolute legal and geocache rules responsibility to contact the property owner before placing the cache. Cache reviewers should know the legal status of public and private land in their area of responsibility and should not allow caches that have do not have public access approval. Cachers should also be familar with the restrictions in their area. Assume nothing! RR rights of way criss-cross Cochise County, AZ from the 19th Century. These road beds have been closed for 50+ years but the RR still owns the land and does not allow public access. Their reason is simple. Many sections of the right of way are in disrepair. If you get hurt on their property they can be sued.

My experience camping and hiking on NFS land in Arizona is yes BUT the local manager has descretion. Call the local NFS office or visit their web site. Right now the fire danger in many NFS lands is Extreme. Several are closed to all camping.

I hope you enjoyed the pizza.

Chris Geersten I did not mention power trails in my post so I don't know why you included them in your reply. I queried Rachel NV. All of the power trails I saw are along roads (including ET with 2800 caches) or dirt roads. You mentioned that state authorities in NV ordered them archived and they were until their terms were met. There is nothing to say that won't happen in AZ. Geo-art is another issue. I noticed only two with my Rachel query, UFO and Alien Head. I can't speak to the volume of cachers who have found these series, nor can I speak to the environmental impact. I can only speak to what I have observed in South-East AZ and there are tell tail geo-paths caused by geocachers following geo-art. I found a picnic site that I found at one geo-art geocache. Yes, there are cow paths. Ranchers pay grazing fees to the AZ land trust. The trust also limits the number of cattle based on grazing usage. In SE AZ there are also illegal immigrant paths and their trash. You can't justify geo-art based on other instances. There are cachers who thing every cache should be a park and grab even with non-vehicle signs posted. We all cache for different reasons. Some for nature, others for history and some for cache counts. There are still plenty of opportunities for cache count without geo-art. When any one reason causes the land owner (public or private) problems it should be a cause for concern. We all lose when caching privileges are denied.

Here are four sites on four different NPS land. “Searching for Coronado” is actually at the park headquarters. If you select any of the sites you will find plenty of other caches on NPS land. Fort Bowie only has one cache because it is an archeological site. Coronado National Memorial http://www.geocaching.com/geocache/GC19DEP_searching-for-coronado# Chiricahua National Monument http://www.geocaching.com/geocache/GC2G047_the-hands-of-the-pass# Saguaro National Park - West http://www.geocaching.com/geocache/GC2BWP0_the-saguaro-cache# Ft Bowie National Historic Site http://www.geocaching.com/geocache/GCH04B_fort-bowie# The National Forest Service and BLM also have many caches on their land. National Forest Service Huachuca Mnts http://www.geocaching.com/geocache/GC4GGXP_reef-camp# Dragoon Mnts http://www.geocaching.com/geocache/GCHKTE_china-camp-cache# Mt Graham http://www.geocaching.com/geocache/GC3613_v1nd4l0000-alpine-1# Santa Catalinas http://www.geocaching.com/geocache/GC241GC_what-a-view# BLM http://www.geocaching.com/geocache/GC113AX_eager-beaver# The NPS and other Federal lands are open for caching and will remain so as long as we follow the rules that Groundspeak advises.

There are still plenty of great caches in AZ. Like mine GC113AX Groundspeak has rules for placing caches and I suspect that if cache owners follow them there would be fewer public land managers closing their lands to geocaching. Between Sierra Vista and Tucson there were half a dozen geo-art series. I have done some myself. In retrospect geo-art probably doesn't fit well with AZ. One I can think of had 182 caches. There was no way to go from cache to cache without bushwhacking. There were telltale signs of geo-trails caused by the bushwhacking. Geo-art is a great concept until you see the impact. Perhaps in our letter campaign to restore geocaching we could eliminate geo-art. That means reviewers should deny approval. Groundspeak could also add no geo-art to the rules. How many cache owners contacted the public land owner before placing their cache as the rules state. Would you want geocaches popping up out of nowhere on land that you are responsible? We really need to follow the rules that Groundspeak established to avoid these situations. P.S. I don't think I am the only cacher in AZ with a State Trust Land tag on my rear view mirror

I am an Arizonian, living in Sierra Vista. I have one active cache on BLM land (San Perdro National Riparian Region). If you follow the published rules for geocaching you should not have problems placing caches. There may be specific places that public land managers do not want caches. Th reasons are generally environmentally sensitive or archeological. If you call the land manager you will be surprised how cooperative they are. Recently the Arizona Land Trust ordered all caches on their lands be archived. I suspect cache placement abuse to be the problem. Between Sierra Vista and Tucson there are several geo-art cache collection. One has 182 caches. In another area there are 5 geo-arts in a small area. If the geo-artists did not contact the AZ Land Trust I can understand why they ordered the archiving. Geo-art is an interesting concept but I can understand why they are not appreciated. (I have found geo-art caches.) If we in the caching community want to keep public land available we need to follow the rules Groundspeak established. As for the AZ Land Trust situation. Perhaps we can request reconsideration. Geocache reviewers need to ruthlessly apply the rules. Groundspeak should add "No Geo-art" to the rules.

I live in Sierra Vista. Where did you drop off your TB?

Geocaching in National Parks and Forests, and the BLM (out West) is at the descretion of the local manager. I have not had any problems with the BLM. Find the park that you want to leave your cache and contact the park manager. The park manager will probably give you some do's and don't that are pretty common sense. (Don't bury a cache in an archeological site.) Follow the rules. Confirm your location. Say thanks. Monitor your site. Visit every now and then. Promptly remove if it is causing problems. In other words, don't make the manager hate geocachers.

GC12H9D Hope and Happiness. Near the USS Midway Museum.

I dare say that the average cacher is middle class or better. In order to particpate in this activity you must: Be able to afford a GPS or smart phone (and app) neither of which is inexpensive! Own a computer to download caches or a smart phone. Be able to afford to drive to and from caching. Premium membership is a small cost compared to the above.

My son recently graduated from NAU at Flagstaff, a.k.a Flag, so I am partial to the area. Flag is cache friendly. You mentioned visiting the Grand Canyon and Sedona. Flag is a great jump off point for both. All the major chains have hotels in Flag and being a college town there are a lot of places to eat and drink (Lumberyard Brewery). Sedona is pricey. I have listed a few samples. There is a Flg Rt66 series and a Historic Flagstaff series. I have listed one from each. GC1BD8n – Flg Rt66-4 GC1A2KV HistoricAZ66: Flagstaff Sawmill Other Flag GC2KD0F – Chief! My son is the cache owner. GCZBVO - A Flagstaff View Sunset Crater and Wupatki Very scenic NPS area. Nature, volcano and Pre-Columbian Indians. Here are two that will lead you to many others. This is a day trip if you have the time. GC2ZGWG - Backcountry Biway--Sunset Crater to Wupatki GCZ5W1 - Wupatki Pueblo Blowhole Enjoy!

Never hiked Wasson Peak. Too many opportunities in Cochise County.

I check this section once a week for visit info requests. There is a web site Hike Arizona that you can register for info. Here it is. http://hikearizona.com. later on I have some specific hikes that may interest you. I live in Sierra Vista which is 90 miles SE of Tucson. Here are some of my favorite hikes with the Hike AZ URL. Huachuca Mountains Miller Peak via Miller Canyon http://hikearizona.com/decoder.php?ZTN=508 Carr Peak - Comfort Springs Loop, AZ http://hikearizona.com/decoder.php?ZTN=16718 Brown Canyon Trail #115, AZ – Lots of caches and side trails http://hikearizona.com/decoder.php?ZTN=1636 Here are a few caches to get you oriented: http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.aspx?wp=GCMBPH http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.aspx?wp=GC1AY64 http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.aspx?wp=GC3RVH6 Dragoon Mountains Slavin Gulch Trail #332, AZ http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.aspx?wp=GC3GJZ8 Here is some info on the San Pedro Riparian National Conservation Area in case the mountains are too snowy San Pedro River http://www.blm.gov/az/st/en/prog/blm_special_areas/ncarea/sprnca.html Charleston Section – Mines, mill sites, Indian petro glyphs, town ruins & caches http://www.blm.gov/az/st/en/prog/recreation/hiking/sptrail.html Here are some caches http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.aspx?wp=GC428RE http://hikearizona.com/decoder.php?ZTN=1955 http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.aspx?wp=GC20THF http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.aspx?wp=GCHBHJ General Info: There may be snow in the mountains. Start early and give yourself plenty of time. You don’t want to be stuck in the mountains overnight. Cell phone coverage is spotty in the mountains. Suggest a paper map or trail guide. Stay on the trails. If you encounter illegals just avoid contact. Yield the trail. Enjoy

What no body caches in AZ ......Any info would be nice Thanks

What no body caches in AZ ......Any info would be nice Thanks