alienbogey

deleted

I've never heard of it before but 'lame' comes to mind, along with some other descriptive words. As a cache owner, I'd be seriously annoyed if someone took my cache container/log and replaced it with another, as described in 3 Cache Monte.

Ghosts.

I'm the owner of a cache at a local park/baseball field. There are many false finds, labeled "strikes", and the challenge for the cacher is to find the actual cache before "striking out". Each false find is clearly labeled "Geo-Strike" and "NOT THE CACHE". Recently there were two 'Found' log entries, both April 4th, that clearly had only found a false find. One entry even said that the cache said "Not the cache", there was no log, and "maybe park workers had replaced it". I went out the other day for cache maintenance and the real cache is in its original position, with log and trade items, and the latest log entry is 15 March. So, I emailed both April 4th parties and tactfully (I think) suggested that they hadn't found the actual cache and requested that if they hadn't would they please change the internet log to a DNF. One party responded, apologized, thanked me for the cache, changed their log and vowed to find the real one next time. The other party has not responded. So, my question is, should I delete the log of the non-responding cacher? By the way, were the ones whose internet log entry said the cache said "NOT THE CACHE" on it. My reason for doing so is that I like to place challenging caches, I like to keep track of the 'Find' versus 'Did Not Find' entries, and I think that those stats are a good piece of information for someone seeking a cache (currently 19 finds, 11 DNF's for this cache). On the other hand, I don't want to be a jerk. So....opinions....delete or leave be?

I have been using MacCaching and GeoJournal with a Garmin 60cxi and my Macs with no trouble via OS X, with no need to run winbloze at all.

I paintball and geocache and, with apologies, I think this is a poor mix. If the paintball field is active then the cachers would have to, besides most likely paying and absolutely having to sign a liability release (like the paintballers), be searching for the cache while the paintballs are flying. Paintballs, as you know, can SMART when they hit. I would have no desire to wander around a paintball field taking hits from paintballers while looking for a cache. If the paintball field was not active at the time then I, personally, would be uncomfortable on the field without goggles in case some paintballers come on to the field to play without knowing that there are people on it without safety goggles. Furthermore, I wouldn't be interested in searching for a cache while wearing paintball goggles, which somewhat restrict field of view. JMO.

I vote for magnetic. I have a cheap compass on my GPSr lanyard. I get the bearing to the cache, say 270 degrees, and then can put the GPSr on its belt clip and walk fast and far occasionally referencing the little handy compass without having to pull the GPSr. If you're going to use a mag compass at all ===> set to magnetic. JMHO

Put it through and see what happens, WITH complete information for the reviewer which tells him/her all the factors involved, in particular why the normal minimum-distance rule should be waived in this case. My first cache was the same situation - wonderful spot, cache made, THEN I checked and there was another cache 450' away. I thought that an exception should be made due to the nature of my cache, the existing cache and the location. I explained it all to the reviewer in the submission and it was approved. Good luck.

Thanks for the replies. If I change it I will archive and re-post it as a new cache.

I have a multi-cache that I want to change to a traditional in order to get more action at the cache. When I go to "edit listing" the cache "type" menu is grayed out - I can't change the type. So....how can I change the type? A note to the reviewer to unlock the type menu? Archive the cache and submit a whole new listing? Thanks in advance.

A cacher who is really into it could change their name to "Frank T. Frankenfurter" and claim absolutely everything as FTF.

No bums? I'm bummed.

With regard to the original post, I can understand the reaction by the LEO's. Someone sees an adult who is skulking around in the bushes near a school bus stop with children waiting? I'd want it checked out, too. Glad it turned out all right and gave you a story to tell.

A bum is a bum, nothing wrong with calling a spade a spade.

I recently found and moved a Bug that not only had no Bug attached to it, it no longer had the Groundspeak dogtag. It still existed only as a laminated copy of the dogtag. When I logged it the Bug's homepage explained how the Bug itself (a small plush toy) had worn away long ago, and the dogtag had been damaged. It soldiers on, kind of like my grandfather's hatchet - my dad replaced the handle and I replaced the head.

Most Travel Bugs I have found that have a specific mission in mind have a tag attached that tells where they want to go. This helps the finder to decide whether to take the Bug from the cache, for example if the Bug has a mission to get to the Statue of Liberty and you're about to return to your home in Australia you probably should let the bug stay there. If the Bug has no mission tag it may still have one and it will be stated on its geocaching.com web page when you log the grab. Then, under the example above, I guess it would be on its way to Australia. Some Bugs have no mission, they just travel.

Thanks for the feedbck, I'll leave it as is.

As you can see by my join date I'm still relatively new. I placed this cache: http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_detai...=y&decrypt= and rated it as a 2.5 difficulty. So far it has 3 finds and 4 DNF's. I know that's a small sample, but I want the cache to be rated fairly, do you think I should bump it up to a 3? Higher? Stay 2.5?

[ I think common sense would dictate that engineering a cache so no tools are necessary is essential when using hardware of any kind ] Or provide the tool that is required. I have a cache where the container (PVC pipe) is underwater, and for water tightness the PVC plug must be tightened past what one can do by hand. The solution? I provided a cheap chinese wrench that is attached to the cache. Find the cache and you find the wrench that enables you to open it (and re-tighten when replacing the cache). No problems so far, great comments in the log.

In our brief career of caching we've only run into fellow geocachers once. We were pretty sure they were, but we didn't want to give up our secret identity while looking, so my question to the Dad was, "You aren't muggles, are you?" He looked at me and said with significance, "No, we aren't muggles." I figured if I got a blank stare or a Harry Potter conversation we'd know they weren't geocachers.

There are two Mac geocaching apps that I know of, unfortunately I'm on a company computer right now and can't remember the names of them right now. Geojournal?? Something like that for one of them..... Sorry, but if you do a search using "Mac" you'll likely find threads about them. I've used them both and they both work fine for loading to my Garmin 65cxi, so I'm guessing they'll work with your etrex. Open the Mac app, drag the Pocket Query files to the app, they will quickly load, then look for the "Download to GPS" button on the app. Works for me.

Okay, first of all, everyone can see from my join date ( and my 32 finds and 3 hides ) that I've not been at this long, but I'm sure having fun. I've lurked on the forums a lot, read the FAQ's, asked a few questions, made a few comments. As a result, although I had never found a magnetic-key-holder-under-the-lamp-skirt-cache, I was developing an agreement with the, how shall I put this, somewhat elitest attitudes of some towards this "classic". I agree that when possible a cache should be in a neat place with a clever hide, and while the lamp post skirt was clever for the original cacher who conceived it, the cleverness has long since worn off - at least for some. For your consideration I submit two First Lamp Post Skirt Cache Finds, both made today: Number 1. Today I walked out of my hotel with my GPSr freshly loaded with nearby caches. I picked one out because it listed a TB, got myself on the wrong side of the RR tracks, had to backtrack a mile to get across them, found myself starving, ate, had a long cell call, the weather turned unpleasant, gave up on the TB cache as too far away now, located the nearest cache in the GPSr and headed towards it in order to bag one before going back. The GPS was taking me towards a huge mass transit complex - trains, planes & lotsa automobiles - I walked around the huge concrete parking garage - the red arrow was leading me out into a vast expanse of striped asphault dotted with street lights - my pulse was quickening, could this be the one? - 150 feet to go and I was in the middle of 10 acres of sparsely parked cars - 75' and a lamp post, no different than the 100's of others, was beckoning to me - my GPSr chirped to warn me that the big moment was at hand - I was standing next to that one very special lamp post and my receiver had zero'd - there was the metal skirt, do they really just lift off? - Yes!, they lift right up and ......... there it is, the magnetic key holder!!! - My day was complete, I had made my First Lamp Post Skirt Cache Find. And you know what? It WAS special just because of all the rant and counter-rant posts I've read about them. It actually felt good, in a bag-of-Doritos-in-front-of-the-telly-watching-reruns sort of way, not necessarily the purest life experience ever but a little sorta-guilty fun in a schlocky, low rent kind of way. Number 2. I've been telling my brother & sister about geocaching. They've been expressing interest so I launched a TB each of them to stir them up a bit. My brother called today from a Target store in Atlanta, GA. He'd loaded some caches in his GPSr and his kids into the car. Getting out of the car he pulled the GPS out of the dash cradle and without really thinking checked for the nearest cache. 185' away. With the kids they followed the needle until they were standing in the middle of the parking lot with, you guessed it, a lamp post right next to them. Not having read any of the forums, they scratched their heads and looked around for 5 minutes before lifting the skirt and finding it. My brother was psyched that he figured it out, and his kids were thrilled to death to find something hidden under there. Now, later they may look down their noses at lamp post skirt hides but for now they're excited about their find and there may be a new geocaching family. So.....to whomever placed the caches in the Millbrae, CA BART lot and a Target store lot somewhere in or near Atlanta - thanks!

<<Took booger, left fart.>> I think that belongs in the "Gas is Killing our Caching" thread.

While this is not the best compass - at all - for a cross country bushwhack, I have the $1.99 compass from the Groundspeak store on my GPSr lanyard: Its quite handy for taking a quick reference - I can just grab a quick direction check without breaking stride while leaving the GPSr on its belt clip, no need to take it out, hold it level and let the electronic compass unscramble itself.

Thanks for the help. Check out the new & improved cache page: http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_detai...c7-ea5cbe633fbb