KAPA Pilot

D. All of the above. I referenced both the quick start guide and the owner's manual which accompanied the unit, and I used what turned out to be the same documents available from the Garmin support website.

My wife gave me a new Garmin eTrex 20x for Christmas. Despite the relative simplicity of the device, I found Garmin's documentation severely lacking, especially with regard to methods for loading GPX files onto the device. Nevertheless, I dug in and completed some research, and discovered the process was shockingly simple: treat the device like a simple USB flash drive and copy the files using Windows File Explorer. (Is it really so difficult to state this simply and up front in the device manual?) I started by downloading a GeoTour which my buddy and I had started several weeks back. The GPX file copied and loaded quickly and I thought I was in business, until I tried to load a GPX for a Pocket Query. By the way, some of us are n00bs and don't understand all of the abbreviations, like PQ; it would be a good idea for folks to keep that in mind when contributing to these threads. The GPX file for my first Pocket Query generated a result of approximately 560 caches and seemed to be well within the limits described by other contributors to this thread. Still, after copying the file to my device, none of the caches appeared on the map or in what is essentially a custom list of waypoints. I further refined the query and brought the total number of caches down to approximately 230. Still, the Pocket Query would copy to the device but would not be available within the list of caches in which the GeoTour caches were already presented. Now, I've read plenty of supposition on the reasons why the caches within the Pocket Query GPX may not be listed but all of the conversation revolves around the device software, version 2.30 versus 2.20 or 2.10, etc. All of this ignores the simple fact that some GPX files from the Geocaching website work (i.e. GeoTours) while others (Pocket Queries) do not. Since I have a bit of background with XML schemas, I opened each of the GPX files in Notepad and compared the tags in each. I discovered there is one remarkable difference between the GeoTour GPX file which worked, and the Pocket Query GPX file which failed... There's an additional XML tag in the Pocket Query file which does not exist in the GeoTour file. After I eliminated the extra tag, saved and closed the Pocket Query GPX file, and then copied it back to the device... SURPRISE!!! It loaded correctly. Imagine that! So, the offending tag? It's the <bounds [...] /> tag. In my case, the tag looked something like this... <bounds minlat="nn.nnnnnn" minlon="nnn.nnnnnn" maxlat="nn.nnnnnn" maxlon="nn.nnnnnn" /> To be clear, I first attempted to load the Pocket Query GPX file, unaltered, to my device, and it failed. After removing the file from my device, saving it to my local Desktop, opening the file and deleting the <bounds /> tag, saving the file and copying it back to my device, the caches are now available. That's it; I made no other changes. This issue is probably a limitation of the device software, in that it doesn't know what to do with the extra tag. However, a bit of consistency on the part of the Geocaching website might also be in order. I might suggest the simple elimination of the <bounds /> tag from the query generator template. In the meantime, I'll be sure to edit my GPX files prior to copying them to my device for the foreseeable future. Here's hoping what I've learned may help others having similar problems. Please note, this is not meant as any sort of sleight against the Garmin eTrex 20x; I love the device and am looking forward to many years of caching with it. But, neither the documentation from Garmin, nor the data files generated by the Geocaching website are simple and straight-forward enough for novice users, which may prove a deterrent in a consumer marketplace. I would ask that both Garmin and Geocaching evaluate their pieces of the puzzle and try to iron out the defects. Thanks, KAPA Pilot

Thanks for all of the information. I actually have a location and topic already in mind. The requirements listed on the EarthCache.org website were really helpful and I've started drafting my cache description for review. I even have the benefit of already being in contact with the land manager for the site. The question is whether my idea will be up to snuff for the reviewers. Wish me luck!

Hello. I'm really new to Geocaching and EarthCaches but I have an idea for an EarthCache and would like to know where to start. I've looked through the forums and have been unable to find any advice. I've also been unable to find anything on creating EarthCaches on the Geocaching website. I'm a total n00b at this, so links to appropriate informational websites are greatly appreciated. KAPA Pilot