woodsters

SAme as the example I used ErSamin. There are not very many caches in a town that is the 2nd largest in the state. I can tell from reading posts of caches that a lot of people that cache there don't know a lot about the area. Since there is a military base there I kind of figured out that most, not all of the cachers in the area are military or haven't been there long. I live in an area that is saturated with caches. I just moved here 6 months ago almost 7 and I don't have the foggiest idea around here to place one, as there are so many. I'm sure a local or someone that had lived here most of their life could point some places out to me. I'd be happy for them to contact me and ask me to adopt a cache they were thinking of placing. I could understand Bloen's point about a local not needing some outsider telling them whereto put a cache. But what we are speaking of it entirely different. How many caches are going unmaintained now due to people having to move suddenly or military being sent off? I'm sure there are situations that happen when the last thing on a persons mind is on a box they put in the middle of woods with some plastic dinosaurs and micky D toys. I think in this whole post that the term "Vacation Cache" was not the correct term to use. Perhaps a better term needs to be derived if not already one. Something like Long Distance Cache. Brian Wood Woodsters Outdoors http://www.woodsters.com

I agree. Everyone has an butt(used nicer version) and an opinion , but.... Brian Wood Woodsters Outdoors http://www.woodsters.com

Placement and description were misleading? You didn't find it, so we exactly aren't sure if it's misleading. Can you post a link to the cache? have others attempted it? If so has anyone found it? Brian Wood Woodsters Outdoors http://www.woodsters.com

Mtn-Man I was using a my trip as an example. As you stated though, before placing a cache ANYWHERE, you should check to see if it's allowed and not only in areas you are not familiar with. I didn't state that part, because I figured that was a gimme. But it appears that what I was talking about then is ok. Brian Wood Woodsters Outdoors http://www.woodsters.com

Even if they had a 100 finds, how do you know they did? When I read the title I thought it was a joke, like how many attorneys does it take screw in a lightbulb or something. No offense carleenp! Brian Wood Woodsters Outdoors http://www.woodsters.com

Read the history on the About Us page... Brian Wood Woodsters Outdoors http://www.woodsters.com

Coastcachers, don't get me wrong, I wasn't saying you did intentionally. I had actually misread your first posting or rather, when I was reading it, it refreshed the idea i had in my mind. Then when I was getting the heat about what i posted and wondered why people weren't understanding me more, I reread your first post. And as I stated earlier I don't think it's a good idea to do things that way. Nothing on you or that you intentionally did it. If you can't find an adopter, then perhaps you can get a relative interested enough in it where they can sign up and adopt it. Brian Wood Woodsters Outdoors http://www.woodsters.com

But why wouldn't you buy a hat from Jeremy? The sale of Association labled products is entirely different from Geocaching.com . I don't think that Texasgeocaching tells you not to buy a hat from Jeremy and only buy theirs. They sell their own products to support their own missions. If you are a member of Texasgeocaching and use their website and other things, then it would be nice to help support them as little as you can. Jeremy does have a Premium member thing to help out costs, but it's never enough. The purchase of the other products help out just as much. No one is telling you to buy a hat. Buy a hat from who you want and for whatever reasons you want. You can come to my site and buy a Woodsters Outdoors hat, t-shirt, underwear and more. I have a Geocaching forum on my outdoors site. Am I competing? Not even the slightest bit. I can't. Brian Wood Woodsters Outdoors http://www.woodsters.com

I wouldn't say that the Texas Geocaching Association is trying to take a slice of the pie. Many states have formed associations. It just networks cachers from certain areas, whereas Geocaching.com is worldly based. But i am sure some one will attempt to run with this site somewhere and perhaps call it something besides geocaching. I imagine there will be a falling out somewhere here. It happens nearly everywhere on the internet. Just have to stay on your toes is all. One slip and and they got a foot in the door. Next thing you know they wil lbe up and running and will have some followers go with them. Brian Wood Woodsters Outdoors http://www.woodsters.com

Print out from the cache page folded up in the pocket is fine for us.Can write on the back of what we took, what we left and any other notes. Quicker than trying to input in a PDA and having to worry whether or not it saved or if you lose it. Plus it's on less thing to drop and break. Brian Wood Woodsters Outdoors http://www.woodsters.com

I also wanted to make mention that I don't agree with the way that the starter of the this topic placed a cache and then tried to find someone and it got archived. I believe that you should find a maintainer prior to placing a cache. As others stated, dropping a cache and leaving it unsupervised is not a good idea. Maybe we need to start a website called AdoptaCache.com...lol Or even better, how about you pay a fee to register a cache? A $1 or $2. Will help prevent the "Vacation Caches" as y'all described. Brian Wood Woodsters Outdoors http://www.woodsters.com

Thanks Mopar! Now I think that could go hand in hand with someone placing a cache (unregistered at first) in an area that they know well and then having someone in that area own it. I'm glad that you cleared up that there is already a place to contact others like that in certain areas. Brian Wood Woodsters Outdoors http://www.woodsters.com

quote:And the third reason. Signature Items. That moves them into the geo-collectable zone. Which raises a question. If they are signature items, should they be marked as such? Perhaps a tag or some kind of markings on them? I mean it's obvious when Team Slinky leaves a miniature slinky, but we know that and not necessarily everyone will. Should Team Slinky have a tag on them that says "Team Slinky Wuz Here!"? hehe Brian Wood Woodsters Outdoors http://www.woodsters.com

Not yet, but it does get confusing when you are going through a container and there are several log books (probably letterboxing or something) in them and the mosquitos are swarming. You are trying to hurry up and hope you signed the right one. Brian Wood Woodsters Outdoors http://www.woodsters.com

Mopar: I agree, I don't like the term Vacation cache. I wouldn't endorse or recommend a cache of someone going somewhere and just dropping a cache and trying to get it registered on the site and never intending on it's upkeep. I agree the find history has something to do with it. But this is all irrelevant to what I was suggesting, except for the fact that someone may frequent a place often that is some distance and can "maintain" it properly. They may hit some caches in that area as well and it would be recorded. Also, it is very easy for someone to go and place a find on caches local to a cache that they placed a distance away in order to look like they are in the area frequently. Jeremy: I agree about the remark you made about the landowner accepting responsibility for it. But what about what my messages were describing? Prescouting a fellow member of GC in the local area to take a cache, that isn't placed yet or at least isn't registered in the GC system and giving it to them to maintain? In other words, I'm going home to Augusta, Georgia in a few weeks for vacation, hopefully. I live over 1000 miles away and it would be absurd for me to own a cache so far away even though I can't maintain it. What if there was a place, where I could post a message looking for members in the Augusta, Georgia area to take this cache that I want to place there? I would make arrangements with them of the details and give them the coordinates once it is placed. They go to it, add to it if they want, but to verify it as well as the coordinates. Then they in turn register it with GC. Why wouldn't something like that work? Or going on with what you said about the land manager's information on the cache page, why couldn't it be someone else like a relative or a friend? I think what may happen, if it already doesn't, is someone will create a seperate account and put they are from the area in which they placed the cache. I've seen plenty of people's profiles with no finds, but a lot of caches hidden. There's no sure fireway of avoiding it. Dishonest people are going to be dishonest. They are going to trick and manipulate the system if they want. I think that all you can expect is that each and every cacher and cache placer follows a general rule of ethics. One should be, that if you place a cache you are expected to maintain it or at least have it maintained. If it getting reported over and over in disrepair, then warnings should be given, leading up to removing a cache from the system. Brian Wood Woodsters Outdoors http://www.woodsters.com

The new icons are fine. If you change one thing, you might as well change it all! Brian Wood Woodsters Outdoors http://www.woodsters.com

quote:Originally posted by Nurse Dave & LKay:My favorite answer to any of these types of things is what if your coords are off? You fly home and the next posts says something like "The coords were pointing me into a KMart"? It happens even with experienced people. The numbers get transposed or your GPS was off that day. You need to be able to check on these types of things. Just on my own soap box - The next person to post a thread saying that vacation caches are a good idea should get their eyes plucked out with a dirty spoon! http://www.sprecher.us/smiles_63.gif ---Real men cache in shorts. Ouch my eyes! LOL Have someone local adopt it or take it in their name before registering it! Especially if it's something that you can not easily get back to. You can also network the area of GC members and see if they are willing to help. See above 2 or 3 messages from me. I stated that dropping a cache and never returning to it, is a bad idea. But having a cache a distance away is not necessarily. Brian Wood Woodsters Outdoors http://www.woodsters.com

quote:Originally posted by Mopar:And what if someone who has been geocaching for 2.5yrs and has never found a single cache in Mass. came and placed one a 5-10 minute walk from one of your caches? What if you spent days or weeks of your time getting permission from the the park, and someone else, who was "too busy" to go hunt your cache, dumps one in the same park. First of all, I'm new to Mass. and it can not be conceived that we know the area as others who do. I know my hometown better than 99% of the cachers in that area, by reading the logs online. If someone planted one 5 or 10 minutes away from a cache that I planted, then now problem. What are the rules? I read something somewhere that it was a tenth of a mile. Is that so? If so and the cache was within the rules as far as that goes, then no problem. I would think that the approvers would not approve it, if it were within the prescribed distance. We found 3 caches here within a short distance from each other here. I don't even think they were more than a tenth apart if that far. Did it bother us? No. We got 3 caches in one trip. We saw 3 completely different beautiful places. There are caches all over around here, which is good for us, at least the way we look it. It gives us a lot of options. Look up our area code of 01462 and start seeing how many there are within 50 miles. quote: What if that person then expected you to do the work of maintaining the cache, while they get the enjoyment of owning it, even though that person, in all their "frequent trips to the area" have always been too busy to actually hunt a cache? You STILL think this is a good idea? First of all, I mentioned adopting it. Not just letting others maintain it for you. Have it in their name. Also on this point. Let's say I know the perfect spot at home where there's no cache and not one nearby at all. What if I posted a message and said I was looking for someone to own a cache in that area? So, someone replies to me that they will. I look at their profile and see how active they are, I may want to meet them when in the area as all this would be up to me. I then plant the cache without registering it to GC. I give the coordinates to the new prospective owner. He goes and finds it to confirm that it is actually there. He confirms the contents, adds if he wants to it and confirms the coordinates. He then goes home and registers it with GC. He places in the description with respect, that the cache was in honor or founded by the original user? The placer wouldn't own it unless they frequently checked it. Nothing you can do about that. What cache owners who never check theirs that live close to it? Brian Wood Woodsters Outdoors http://www.woodsters.com

Vacation caches in the sense that they are dropped and not tended too, yes are not a good ideas. A cache that is called a "Vacation Cache" of someone who can maintain it or have someone do it for them that is a distance away is not necessarily a bad idea and I would not call it a vacation cache in the same sense as my first paragraph. Should there be rules that the cache must be within a certain distance of your residences? If so, what is or should that distance be? Being able ot prove is another thing, especially when someone mentioned the fact to prove that you visit an area an X amount of days a year and can maintain that? How are you going to prove it? People could easily lie and start placing caches around like that. Of course it would be more work on the GC team on finding these out and taking action for them. There's no fool proof way of doing it. I say at least give the chance for others to adopt a cache, before it is suggested or placed. If someone wants to put one nearby me I have no problem helping out with it, as long as I'm not hiking all day and climbing for it. There may be people who used to live here that know of better places than I do, becuase I just moved here 6 months ago. Just as the same for back home. I've looked online and there is a cache about 2 miles from my parents house on an old NASCAR racetrack and a dragstrip. There are neighborhoods and a park built where it used to be. I know the history of it and the area more than 99% of the people posting on it online. I see their questions about what some of the cement things left there are. I usually email them and tell them. But most of them said they didn't even know that the park was there. I'm sure there are plenty other places at home to tell them where to place them or where I could easily place them for them and have them take them as their own and register them with GC. Or I could have my parents, brother, inlaw parents, or inlaw brother check in on them for me when needed and periodically. If it goes too long without being maintained and enough complaints are about it, then archive it, delete it or whatever they do. Brian Wood Woodsters Outdoors http://www.woodsters.com

quote:Originally posted by carleenp:Hmmm. I went back and forth on whether I wanted to post about suggestions of illegal/fraudulent activity. I say to each his/her own, but I hope honesty will win. I just don't like the idea of the geocaching forum used as a way to suggest fraud! I vote for being honest! I agree carleenp! And it has nothing to do with your employment! I'm ex law enforcment of 14 yrs. As FangFour stated, it only hurts us, the consumers, in the long run. Brian Wood Woodsters Outdoors http://www.woodsters.com

Our 2 cents.... I think it would be one thing driving down the road far away from home and say hey I'm going to put a cache here and intend on never returning to maintain it. After all it's evident in many posts on the message board that there are caches that aren't being maintained by people that live a couple miles down the road who placed them. Their reasons may vary, but the point is that if a cache gets "approved" quicker or easier because the person who places it lives close to it, than one that is a distance away, then that reason for approving it needs to be reconsidered. Like others have stated, they live hundreds of miles away, yet visit the area frequently. If the starter of this topic lives in california and home is pennsylvania, then I see no problem of them placing a cache there. As long as they agree that it will be maintained. Briansnat mentioned that he as well as others do help maintain the caches they visit. It's mere respect as geocacher to another geocacher. There can be reasons for the cache not to have been maintained properly that are out of the owners hands. Sometimes they aren't even mentioned in the logs. What about if the people from california, have a family member in the pennsylvania area that can go and check the cache for them when needed? The person who checks it, might not be a cacher themself, but will help them. Also why not have a section that people can post requests for someone to adopt their caches? And also allow people to post a message requesting that they want to place a cache and need someone to adopt it? If someone wanted to place near me and had no way of checking it frequently I would adopt it (as long as it was not a 5/5!) lol... I don't know what the normal requirements are for someone to adopt a cache, but both the person wanting to place a cache and the person adopting it could contact GC.com and let them know. Or the person adopting it could claim it as hidden. I think out of due respect to the placer that the adopter should make mention of who placed it. If it's too much for GC.com to deal with now as I know they are busy, I will gladly add a section to my message board for people to post messages that want to adopt a cache and for those looking for adoptees. Then they could turn to GC.com and get the cache either switched to Adopted status or the adoptee can claim the cache and get unapproved caches approved by them. Brian Wood Woodsters Outdoors http://www.woodsters.com

If you are doing a lot of laminating of cards (small ones ) for travel bugs and etc, you can pick up a box of laminating pouches (plastic 2 sided clear pouches similar to what video rental places use) for laminating machines pretty inexpensive at office supply stores (Office Max and Depot). But you don't need the laminator. Use your iron at home. Make sure it's set on a high setting. Use a cloth of some sort like you would use on delicates when you iron them. It works better on a hrad flat surface, but you can still do it on the iron board. Take the cloth cover the pouch with the card in it. Place the iron over the cloth and press down with some pressure. Let it sit there for a about 10-20 seconds (sometimes longer). Remove the iron and the cloth. Caution!! The card will be somewhat hot. Take the card and place it under a good size book so it will keep it flat. Otherwise it may try to curl a little. It's a lot easier than it sounds. These pouches are better than the big laminating sheets as they are thicker and sturdier. Plus the edges are rounded and don't have shar points. Brian Wood Woodsters Outdoors http://www.woodsters.com

Can Jeremy and the guys make it where you have to log in to "Find Caches" online? At least they can keep getting rid of the accounts of those individuals. Banning the IP will make it more difficult for them or least a hassle. Perhaps this person (Pigman) wasn't "capable" of getting into the military and he takes the TB tags and uses them as dog tags when he's playing army man? Brian Wood Woodsters Outdoors http://www.woodsters.com

looks like they have caches in more states than ma and wa...their hidden caches are in main, connecticut and new york. Their last cached was placed in February in Washington.. Brian Wood Woodsters Outdoors http://www.woodsters.com