january14

Never mind folks.. I figured it out, finally. Naturally, 10 minutes after I post this, I figure it out. Joe

I have a need/want to wrap text on a picture that is aligned on the left side of the screen. I know that I can put the Align="Left" on the IMG tag, but it's just not working. I know that Align was deprecated for HTML 5, but there are other caches and listings that it seems to work on. Does anyone else have this problem and how do you get around it? Joe

I think we can now say that the Alabama State Parks GeoChallenge is up and running. First and Second to Find are now history and in the past. I think I can also share this new URL with you to replace the link to the KickOff event Cache Page. http://www.alapark.com/geochallenge/ This is part of the Alabama State Parks web site. Thanks for maintaining this list for us. Joe

So, there was two hours of my life I'll never get back. As someone who is interested in what is happening with the E.T. series of caches I want to thank everyone for their opinions on the following subjects: 1. The "pros and cons" of power trail caching in general and how it is, or isn't, ruining the game. Frankly, the one thing that we all have in common is the ability to search for geocaches that interest us. They don't have to be interesting to everyone, just the ones that interest the individual. If you (the colloquial 'you') aren't interested in power trail caches like E.T.... DON'T SEARCH FOR THEM! Very simple. They are not Ruining the game any more than a 4x4 cache is ruining the game or a LPC is ruining the game or a Mountain Top cache is ruining the game. There are caches that everyone can enjoy and whether you enjoy them or not doesn't matter to those of us that do. 2. The "pros and cons" of driving in the desert and how it hurts the fragile eco-system of the desert, or not or whatever. From the way this portion of the discussion went, it's a wonder there are roads in Nevada. 3. The "pros and cons" of leaving Geo-Trails with vehicles in the desert that could, should, may, or may not be visible from outer space. In all honesty, even if the Geo-Trails are visible from space, does it really matter? After all... do we really believe that a geo-trail is going to shine like a beacon in a million square miles of desert? Give us break. (And to those wondering... I will not drive in the desert to find geocaches. They are labeled as Hiking, and I plan to Hike.) 4. The one or two cachers that actually posted information about the E.T. Series of caches. Those of us planning trips to the area in the near or distant future that were able to wade through the drivel appreciate it, I'm sure. I look forward to updates about the E.T. series. I sure wouldn't want to have to throwdown on 740 caches, cause it's hard to carry that many film cannisters in the luggage. LOL!

It's not about the numbers.... it's about the challenge. I don't know that I will ever live long enough to go to Nevada, or if they will still be there if I ever do. But, I know it's possible to be done. The real question is do I have the mental toughness and strength and stamina to get it done. I know people that will (and have) hiked for miles on end to find a single cache. I wish I had the strength and stamina and mental toughness to do that. I probably do as I have hiked several miles for a cache or two and probably will again in the future. But, I'm talking about the people that do hike on a routine basis for the adventure of getting to the cache. For them, the cache is secondary and just a destination. I applaud their efforts and want to do that too. But, I also want to run The ET. Same mental toughness, same stamina, same strength of soul... just redirected to different aspects of the body and mind. While the numbers will be nice to have... it's more about the doing and it's not about the numbers. I am more proud of my hiking caches than I am of my power trail caches, but not by a lot. There is something in geocaching that is for everyone that loves the outdoors, even if it's just for a few minutes, or for a full weekend. Not all caches are for all geocachers.

Just wanted you to know that this cache is getting some press time in Alabama. So much so, that a trip may be in the offing just to look for this cache. Yeah, we are crazy down here (or at least some of us). As of right now... planning on being there at 8:00 AM CT on January 1, but plans change dramatically from moment to moment. Joe

And, I see now, I wasted my time... Oh Well..

1. How did you first hear about geocaching? One of the motorcycle forums I visit got a new member and he mentioned that he enjoyed riding and liked to go geocaching. 2. Tell me about your first cache? Train Cache in Leeds, Al. My partner Searching4Fun and I stopped by and looked for it. Once we found it, we were hooked. Still are. 3. Have you had any bad/scary experiences caching? Bad or Scary? Not really, or at least not looking back on it. I've picked up ticks on some caches. We've seen a few deer. I guess the closest we've came is an urban cache, nameless, in Birmingham that is next to a park frequented by the homeless. That wasn't scary though, but the drug paraphenalia laying around was. 4. What is the #1 reason you geocache? Damned if I know... If I ever come up with a reason I'll be sure to write. Seriously, it's a hobby, and you do hobbies sometimes without really knowing why you are doing them. 5. Do you prefer to hunt or hide? Depends on the mood I'm in... I don't like hunting alone, so when I have my Lady with me, we hunt. I don't like hiding in a group, so when I'm alone I hide or plan a hide or think about a hide. Two different aspects of the game, hunting and hiding. Related, but not related. 6. What was your favorite cache place? Why? Actually, my favorite was when we took an Alaskan Cruise and on returning to Seattle we spent the day caching and having fun. Enjoyed every cache I found in Seattle. Great place to cache. They seem to hide things in a manner that I can appreciate there. Nothing horribly unusual or hard to find, but challenging all the same. We had a blast caching there but only found 10 before having to scoot to the airport. 7. What was your worst cache? Why? I'm guessing you are talking about worst Hunt. Very hard to discern since I haven't established a caching mood yet. Some days I like Micros under the lamp skirts and some days I can't be bothered with anything but a challenging hide. I guess those that I can't find, either because I just don't see it or never even got the site are the ones that bother me the most. 8. Have you ever attened a cache event? Yes, I have attended several events now. Enjoy meeting people who's caches I have found. Gives me a face I can put with the cache whenever I run into a really hard one... I have a person I can curse under my breath instead of just a name. 9. Tell me your best caching story? Hillside Hop. I will let my logs tell the story for you. This is a series of 10 caches in Pelham Alabama that requires a pretty good hike to get to them all. The proper way of running this is to start at Number 3 (III) and then go to 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 1, 2... they are all numbered in Roman Numerals. The owner has changed jobs and he put together a Cache run for some locals in October and we were unable to attend. The reason he did this was to give everyone a final run at this series before he goes about Archiving it. So, 1 month later, Searching4Fun and I went to do the Hillside Hop. Meanwhile, we had found III about a week earlier, so we were able to skip it (Walked right by it a second time, though). My Logs for each are below. Hillside Hop IV Hillside Hop V Hillside Hop - VI Hillside Hop - VII Hillside Hop - VIII Hillside Hop - IX Hillside Hop - X Hillside Hop - The Original Hillside Hop - II On this particular day, we only did the 9 caches, having previously did the III cache. Always take PLENTY of water with you when you go caching in a wilderness setting, even if it is less than a half mile from you Car.

I think I have finds in 5 Counties so far. Just a little further to go and I'll be there.

Somehow, I find this to be quite presumptuous! If january14 cannot find it on the second try, the owner had better run right out there! (See 'abuse of Needs Maintenance' button.) I'm quite capable of DNFing easy caches, even when I trip over them. Needs Maintenance is for known problems (wet logs, cracked containers). I did travel a fair distance to check on a cahce with four DNFs. It was right where I hid it. I'm glad that no one thought it Needed Maintenance because they couldn't find itt! Good Point... I've only did one Needs Maintenance and that was for a cache container full of Black Widow Spiders. Typically, around here, if you log a DNF, the owners are quite responsive to you, and sometimes will even provide a hint or two. Every once in a while, you get no response from them and that's okay. I've visited several caches several times to try to find it and will probably continue doing so. As far as a broke container or a wet log, I carry a cache kit with me everywhere I go caching. If I find a wet log, I replace it. If I find a broken container, I try to fix it or replace it, if doing so will not compromise the cache. If a container seems like it is not going to keep the log dry, I will make sure that the owner is notified via E-Mail. Once I've done due diligience on a cache, I move along.

I don't live in a Rural Area, but it's not a metropolis either. You can put out 10, 15, or even 20 when you are a significant distance from a major city and you will find that people will mostly ignore them. Strange, but true. Come springtime (which will hopefully start in January, this year), I expect our caches will suddenly make the big time. We have around 25 caches in our area and I'm expecting them to get lots of visitors. Well, someday anyway. Best advise... Place them, keep an eye on them, watch for logs, then forget about them until someone logs a DNF and then decide what to do about it. Meanwhile, work on placing your next 10 caches. I get a hoot out of placing caches. Joe

Hi... For the Vista HCX, Have you found anyway to get Geocaches loaded to the Memory Card? I would like to get more than 500 onto the Vista but so far, I seem to be having problems doing that. I use GSAK and just export directly to the Vista, bypassing MapSource entirely. Joe

What he wants is a GPS unit that will hold the signal pretty well and works decently with the Software, like GSAK. So, Garmin would be a good choice for that. I guess Magellan is okay too, but most prefer the Garmins. Because of Miragee, I recently bought us a Vista HCX. But, the unit of choice seems to be the 60Csx. Depends on what you want to spend. Also depends on what else he wants to use it for. Excellent battery life, good signal, nice unit. With anything mentioned above here, you really won't go wrong.

Typically, If I made a concerted effort to find the cache and spent a reasonable amount of time searching for it, I will log a DNF. Most of the time, I don't go back until I know it's been found (I put a watch on a cache that I DNF). If I don't believe I spent a reasonable amount of time or if I feel like the cache is there, I just did a poor job of finding it, then I may or may not write a note on it. Depends on what I want the owner to notice about the cache. For instance, after a long caching run in a local park, I come across a cache site, but I'm tired and don't really do a good job of searching for it, I will write a note and explain to the cache owner that the cache is on my radar, but I didn't do a proper search for it. This way he knows someone is going to look for it instead of finding that I bypassed his cache in preference for other caches. I would not log a DNF for it since I didn't do a proper search. If I DNF a cache and decide to search for it again without a find in between, then I will go do the search, and if I am still not finding it, not only will I log a Second DNF, but I'll log a Needs Maintenance on it. It may be there, it may be fine... but the owner has to check it to clear the Needs Maintenance. Naturally, if this is a Diff 4 cache, I tend to let the Needs Maintenance slide, but if I DNF it twice, it will be a long time before I go back to the cache. Particularly if the owner is not responsive to my DNF's. But, this is what I do. If this is a new cache with no finds, I tend to not log a DNF at all regardless. DNF's on new caches are the kiss of death on them... I know.

My Girlfriend sat out a TB Hotel about 5 weeks ago. We check on it every week. It is open to the public. On the last check of the hotel, it was in disarray, and every TB/Coin that was supposed to be in it was missing. Maybe somebody took them and just hasn't logged them yet.... maybe somebody that's not supposed to find the Hotel took them... and they'll never be logged. One of the recent cachers that visited the hotel had like 4 finds to their credit. Not saying they pulled all of the travelers, not saying anyone pulled them all. But, she is considering a new location for the hotel. If she does that, she is going to make it Members only at that time. I absolutely do not like members only caches.... except with a TB Hotel, it just makes sense to make sure it is hidden well, but still relatively easy to get to. That's a hard combination. However, she owes it to her guests to have a fair chance at staying alive and in the game. We're going to be checking it pretty much daily until she decides where to put it and when to move it, if ever. I wouldn't be surprised to see it converted to a members only cache very soon.

Sounds like you are looking at your GPS too much when you get close. It is actually worthless when you get close. It is only designed to get you within 10-25 feet depending on conditions. Like ReadyOrNot said you should put it down. When I get close I look in spots that I would hide a cache. The cache you refer too stumped two cachers with a cumulative 14,000 finds. Then someone else found it that has 8 finds. I would say your chances of finding it are pretty good. Magnetic, Size of a deck of cards, hidden in a safer spot. Probably not a 1 in my book since it could be anywhere within 20 feet of the center point, but still worth the time investment of 20 minutes, I'd say.

Rattlesnakes, Copperheads and Water Mocassins (Cottonmouth) are all members of the Pit Viper group and all of them are poisonous. Rattlesnakes are the easiest to spot since they will warn you if you are too close. Copperheads and Rattlesnakes are generally scared of people and will move away if you let them. Cottonmouth are notoriously aggresive snakes and will come to you instead of running away. Therefore, do not go alone to an area in the woods with lots of water around. Always carry a walking stick (6 foot tall) when in the woods hiking. If an area looks snakey (pine straw, rocks, etc) use the stick to probe ahead. For the most part that is the snakes category. Don't recall if Virginia has Coral Snakes are not. If they do, then avoid them as their venom is worse than the other 3. Spiders... I think Viriginia is home to both Black Widow and Brown Recluse spiders, both of which are venomous. Rarely deadly however, unless you do not get treatment. More serious is the urban critters. I would not cache alone in a downtown setting at night. Generally speaking, the criminals fit a profile that I will not bother to state here. You can find it out for yourself. Homeless people generally are not criminals, but they do panhandle quite a bit... ("Got a dollar?") which can be quite irritating. Just turn on your radar and if an area looks unsafe, it probably isn't but why take chances?

I have trouble with Puzzle Caches too. But, I have an IT job, I am college educated, I know how to use the web for searching for information. Lot's of people tend to ignore Multi-caches... Why do 3, 4 or 5 finds for a single smiley? Lot's of people tend to ignore Terrain 5 caches... I don't want to fall off a cliff! Lot's of people tend to ignore Puzzle caches... Makes my brain hurt. Lot's of people migrate to easy caches... Hey, in the end, it's still a smiley. Lot's of people abhor easy caches... But those lampskirt caches do have a purpose. If all of the caches were diff 5, nobody would ever start caching. As everyone else said... do easy puzzle first, then move up to the harder ones. Just like: do the easy terrain ones first and then move up the harder ones. Just like: do the lampskirts first, then move on to the more difficult ones. Every cache has a purpose. Just because your particular skills don't match the cache you want to do today doesn't mean that you will never have the skills. It just means that you haven't refined them yet. Joe

The Force is quite fickle... it comes when you least expect it, and then leaves just as quickly. One minute champion, next minute (and for a bunch of them afterwards) it's gone. When I have it, even nano's can't hide. I can look at the gps and from hundred feet away and still in the car, point and say, "It's there." And, sure enough it is. That can last anywhere from 1 to 5 cache attempts. Then the force deserts me and I am left to scrounge in the dirt with the rest of humanity to only discover the Ammo Can behind the log, much later than I anticipated and having invested too much time. I've had particular caches that have stumped me for several visits even, as if the area that I am is immune to the force. I can have the force and think... today's the day, only to leave the area an hour later, empty handed and cursing the owner. LOL Yep, you have good days where you can find Diff 4's and bad days where Diff 1's will defeat you. The objective is to not let it continually defeat you. Find a caching buddy and let it defeat you both. Or better yet, join the local group, and try to cache with one of them. You will notice one thing about an experienced cacher. They put the GPS down once they get to the area and start looking. If you are searching for a micro and the GPS points you into a wooded area... forget it. That's a Force Free Zone. Unless you are good at this, you most likely will not find it, even after a dozen tries. I have been very fortunate in our 4 months of caching... my girlfriend is very good at finding caches. I am only just barely adequate at it.

I have a magellan Maestro 3140. If the 3100 comes with a CD install the CD. If the CD comes with Magellan PIO File Editor, then yes... You can enter Waypoints into the Maestro via the computer. GC.com shows the waypoints as Degrees, Decimal Minutes. POI File Editor requires this to be in Degrees Decimal. So, you have to some manual conversion. Additionally, POI File Editor can accept a download file of GPX format and create everything needed to export to the Magellan. So, basically the answer is yes. Whether the 3100 is suited to geocaching I can say this. I have a Garmin Etrex Legend and the 3140. I will use the 3140 for geocaching LONG before I will even power up the Garmin. Garmin makes some other fine units, however. This is not one of them. LOL

Yes, it can be done. It works. But, you cannot enter a waypoint in the conventional sense. With your unit should have come a CD. On the CD is the Installation files for Magellan POI File Editor. Install this software on every computer you are likely to use to input waypoints. If you have not already done so, buy a Memory Card (SD) for the slot, you will prefer to use the memory card to store the POI's. Here are the steps you will use to create POI's. 1. Pick a cache you want to find from GC.Com 2. Using the coordinates you see for the cache, open Calculator on your computer. 3. The coordinates supplied for Geocaching.com are Degrees, minutes decimal. You will have to manually convert this to Degrees Decimal, for both the Lat and Lon. For instance, the listing will say 33 degrees 10.123 minutes. Take 10.123 on the calculator and divide it by 60. Round to the nearest 5 decimal places and add that to the degrees. You will end up with a number like... 33.01646. This is the number for POI editor. 4. Move to Magellan poi file editor, create a poi. Click the Plus Sign. 5. Enter the name of the cache, the Lat and Lon you found with calculator. 6. Pull the category to Drop down <New>. This will open another dialog box for Adding a Category. 7. Name the category whatever you want... I used Geocache. 8. Keep the image as the Purple Dot. 9. Leave the Display this category check box on. 10. I set Distance 1 to 100 feet. 11. I set distance 2 to 20 feet. 12. AND, Be sure you activate ALERTS for this category. 13. Click OK. 14. Be sure the Longitude is set for WEST as it defaults to East. 15. Click on OK. 16. You will notice you have created a Category on the left, and one POI in the middle part of the screen. You do not need to create a new category for every cache. So, all subsequent adds can be to this one category. If you have the Magellan plugged into the USB port and turned on, when you SAVE, it will attempt to save it to the Card if you have one and the unit if you don't. I recommend the card. When you are finished, unplug the USB without powering off the unit. Let it recycle, and then... Click on POI, selected a POI file, Select your file... This will "Activate" the file in the unit. Search for nearest POI with the unit, select it and calculate the route. Go for it. Once you discover the quirks of the unit (it will sometimes direct you to the closest place to a cache, but not necessarily to the best way to get the cache.) you will grow to enjoy using it. We kinda like it anyway. Plus we never accidentally miss caches if we are within 100 feet of it. It gongs at us. You can circumvent a lot of this with GSAK, by the way, and a premium membership. The time I used to invest in loading one cache I can now load 100's at a time. Eventually, you will want a Palm (or pocket PC) and cachemate to go with it. We are nearly 100% paperless and don't miss but the hardest of finds. As Searching4fun pointed out, if the cache is a distance from any roads, lakes, or identifying landmarks on the Unit, it can get you lost in a heartbeat. We always take a compass (or almost always), and the Garmin if we are going to be in serious isolation. Always carry a cell phone too, and never cache alone in the wilderness areas. Don't trust your life to any electronic gizmo and you'll be fine.

I thought the copy was available so that you would have something to bury in the backyard. LOL

I would think the number of Trackables is quite large, and they probably do not have any links by dates for anything in the system. So, the amount of time and cpu required to list Trackables that haven't moved in x number of days is probably pretty much impossible. The site is slow enough now. You are the search engine, so... if you really care, make it a long term project. Something to do on a rainy Saturday. I've tried to envision how the database is laid out for this system. It probably doesn't care whether a trackable is a geo-coin or a travel bug. They are one in the same. Trackables are addressed by the Tracking Number or the Tracking Code. They appear in caches or they appear with people. They don't appear as a date. Besides, you are just as likely to get a list of trackables that have not moved in months because they no longer exist and the owners have not done anything with them.

Recently, I placed a cache and submitted a review only to find out that a cache I didn't know was there was too close, when the reviewer rejected the cache. In the original rejection note, he stated that there are exceptions to the 528 foot rule, one of them being in the case where a cache was being placed on top of a cliff when there was a cache located at the bottom of the cliff. I know this is not helpful since I did not have that situation, and I got no exception as a result, so you should ask your reviewer before doing a lot of leg work to place the cache to only have it rejected. If you don't know who your reviewer is, I suggest asking your local cache club, or posting a question here as someone probably already knows. Joe

There is a product you can get at the office supply stores that will allow for a serial cable to connect to it and it can then connect to a USB port on your laptop. I think it's made by Belkin and it's called... er... Serial to USB port. Joe