Torry

These things aren't precise, and the little yellow eTrex is the Volkswagen of the GPSr's. (I'm not being a snob, that's what I use.) Canopy (leaves, branches), clouds, your head, etc. all will block part or all of the signal. BE PATIENT. Move slowly in one direction in a square pattern to "zero in" on the location. Often when I am having problems I will set the unit down on a prominent location near my best guess and leave it alone for a moment. Light a smoke, take a drink, call back to the raccoon. Try not to hover over the unit. Let it get a good grip on a signal and see where and how far away it shows. ALSO, keep good, fresh batteries in there. It is probably pscychological but I seem to get my best signal when the batteries are good and new. Don't bother with the cheapie dollar store batteries, they poop out too soon. To summarize; Don't lean over the unit. Don't keep marching around following the arrow. Don't expect it to guide you right in at a trot.

There seems to be one significant item of contention. Matches and lighters. I was leaving cheapie lighters behind thnking that the campers would appreciate it or might need it. A few people were upset and removed them so I switched to the water=proof camping matches. same story. I'll still drop them in the woodsie caches but NEVER in urban and city park caches. The yard apes might use them for ill.

"Took golf ball. Left ex-wife."

I've come across a few booklets and the like. It's not a big deal. I did get a kick out of finding a Gideon's Bible left behind in a cache. Someone took a freebie they snagged from a hotel room and traded it. I wonder what level of Hell that guy goes to?

( a comment for Hoosier regulars ) Great, something to make cache commando look brilliant.

Amen to this one. I've used it a lot in urban caches. Also, avoid looking like an aborigine on a walk-about in the cities and try not to look like a poindexter in the middle of the woods. People in the real woods are often pleasantly curious and positive so I don't panic. My trick for city parks is to NOT look like I'm hiding something. The yard apes will investigate if they see someone acting suspicious. I think some folks are TOO paranoid insome instances. I don't worry about hiding from the soccer mom with her dog or the mall walkers out to check the gladioli. The tweeners and teeners are the biggest problem and if it gets too difficult I'll start paying attention to power lines or acting like a surveyor. I also use the opportunity of getting caught as a chance to explain the hobby. It's a good recruitment tool.

I grab the sig items from the caches I put out but usually only take the ones from others' caches when it's obvious they've sat around. I grab calling cards from my caches regularly for a project I'm working on.

You might try contacting Latimer Longfellow or Indy Diver. They've got an underwater cache and should have some usable ideas.

Nothing like the avatar. I have a beard.

I'll pipe in ona pet peeve. Please don't feel obligated to bury the cache so thoroughly that it won;t be found until the next forest fire. I've come across caches that had been so covered in leaves and sticks that only the obviousness of the hiding made it possible to find. This is especially annoying when creeping through a sticker bush factory in the middle of nowhere under heavy canopy on a cloudy day.

This seemed to help another newbie: The little yellow eTrex is the Volkswagen of GPSr's but it'll get the job done Turn it on, hit the "Page" button to the "Menu" page then the "Down" button to highlight the "Mark" category. Hit "Enter" on the "Mark" category to bring up the picture of the little dweeb holding up the flag. Use the "Down" button to highlight the co-ordinates (which show your current location) and then hit "Enter" this brings you to the "Edit Location" screen" You won't need to change the "N" at the front of the first row that's highlighted, so use the "Down" button to move to the next number until you get to one you need to change. Since you are probably going to do a site near-by you may not need to change the first few numbers on the "N" row. Just use the down or up button to get to the number you need to change, hit "Enter" and scroll to the number you want and hit "Enter" again. Do this across the "N" row then scroll on down to the "W" row and do the same. When you've changed to your new co-ordinates then scroll to highlight the "OK" at the bottom of your screen. Hit "Enter" on the "OK" and you go back to the dweeb with the flag. Scroll to highlight the numbers on the dweeb's flag and enter the waypoint numbers in. I usually enter the four digits(e.g., J31Y) and sometimes add an extra "M" or "*" to the end to let me know if it's a micro cache or an extra-tough cache. You can also highlight the little symbol above the numbers on the flag to put up a different icon. I used to mark the caches I had found with a different marker than the unfound, now I delete them. (I filled up my memory, the eTrex holds about 500 waypoints.) Once you're satissfied with your co-ordinates, waypoint name and symbol highlight the "OK" in the dweeb's speech balloon and you are done. Try it with a few easy ones and soon you'll be zipping them in like nobody's business. Be patient, with yourself and your eTrex. The thing HATES trees. When you're getting close stop and stand still for a minute or two to let the GPSr catch up and get a strong fix. When I'm having a tough time getting a lock I'll set the thing down near the best guess and take a break. You can be all day trying to find stuff if you keep wandering back and forth.

The golfballs. Definitely the golfballs.

Co-ords?

If it got to the point where the soil was compacted and barren, that's one thing, but some trampled grass and broken sticks are not environmental damage. But the purty stuff there is for everyone to enjoy. Even the loss of a couple of ferns can be devastating and unpleasant to look at. OH POOEY! Y'all caught me on the "Fauna/Flora" thing. sorry.

Actually, i'd be more concerned with the way the dog team would "mark" the cache!

I did my first few before I had a GPSr. Had some DNF's and a lot of time invested. The satellite shots were helpful.

Micros along the path are useful. Magnets under benches and guardrails, etc.; film cans in the I-beams or supports - -- I wouldn't recommend the breath strip containers ( 1. I hate 'em. and 2. They can be a pain to manipulate.)I have one that's a nice drive-by. just reach out the car door if you do it right. I've seen some caches located under the concrete parking lot "stoppers" that require bending down but would be do-able with some intelligent camouflage. Old signs often have electrical wiring access panels. A fake panel or just an unlabelled one could be added to some structures surreptitiously. Jim_eye in Lincoln, Nebraska had a neat cache hidden in a "fake" birdhouse. This could be copied and attached openly to a fence or stuck in on a pole. ("Fake" birdhouse recipe: Take one normal birdhouse, such as used to encourage bluebirds. cover the hole with black paper on the inside. Put cache inside.)

hmmm

Yes, but how do you convince your wife to let you go out for hours to look for a cross on a tree. She'd think you were crazy. But bringing back a Tele-Tubbie key chain and two buckeyes convinces here you're stupid. .. And stupidity is NOT grounds for divorce.

My specific issue is more with localized damage to possibly sensitive fauna. The area around a deviously hidden cache can get pretty well trampled in some areas. While I have no idea of the story that started this thread i have observed the damage that cachers are capable of.

NASA spent thousands of dollars developing a pen that could write in zero gravity. The russians gave their cosmonauts pencils. But a sharpie is the greatest and you can use it to brag in the truck stop bathrooms... or cause problems for an ex-girlfriend

Hey, I'm just looking for a decent place to hang out where they don't fetch the mall cops and make me pull my pants up.

I do much of my caching while on lunch breaks ( or other breaks, or just goofing off) and rarely have time to mess with multis. I have done a few or attempted a few and if I can skip the intermediary parts of the tour I will. Give the guy his FTF and congratulate him on his good fortune. It's only a game, dagnabbit!

I'll chime in as a newbie who likes it here after wandering the web and woods. "Upinyachit" - right off the bat you have chosen a title that is intentionally off-color but slightly "camouflaged" to sneak past the mods. There are lots of kids, families and cachers who are not the least bit interested in this sort of language. I notice you use the phrase "chit" on other occassions and even tried to sneak the word past the mods as part of a cache title. Childish. Let it die. Move on. If you like the other caching site and they accept your confrontational behavior, then go.

Is this dead yet?