The Spindoctors

A quick note to bring you up to date on what Geocaching NSW has been doing over the New Year. First off, there is to be an event at the Carlingford Bowling Club on Sunday 8 February - http://coord.info/GC1KV3T We will record the minutes of the meeting and publish them on the website ASAP. An agenda will be posted here in the next few days. I strongly encourage you to all look closely at this as there are a number of issues that need to be agreed upon to get the association going strong. Secondly, we will be meeting with a representative from NSW Parks and Wildlife service to brief her on geocaching. We understand that a number of people have also made contact with various Parks staff - from rangers through to managers. We thank you for doing this as every little bit helps. It appears quite clear that there are two main issues - potential for environmental damage due to geocaching being an 'unregulated' activity and the lack of a contact body for issues relating to geocaching. We will discuss this and other issues at the meeting. We will inform all of the outcomes of that meeting. Finally this featured in SHM a few weeks ago - http://tinyurl.com/7bt8gh All the best and safe geocaching

Army disposal stores stock them. Also try Anaconda. Not sure about the Penrith store, but certainly available in Auburn.

From the NSW Parks website. Geocaching is not permitted in protected areas managed by the NPWS. As an activity organised from the internet, geocaching events have indefinite time frames and undefined numbers of participants, rendering management of the activity ineffective. While it is recognised that geocaching shares some common attributes with orienteering and rogaining, there is also an insufficient nexus between geocaching as a recreational activity and the conservation purpose for which NPWS protected areas are reserved or dedicated. A full copy of the policy is available at http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/policies...eringpolicy.htm

It appears to be missing.

Obviously helps differentiate from other countries that might use a four-digit postcode.

Looking forward to seeing it up and running. Not enough Earthcaches in the Sydney Basin.

Best to contact Dooghan (Rockhampton) or any number of geocachers in the Queensland region. You may also consider posting on the Australian Forums here: http://forum.geocaching.com.au/index.php

Dundas dig (GC1HDG5) is now online. Now to plan my next one.

You get in touch with Marcus Vitruvius. He is based in Albury and I've caches with him before. The nearest hotspot to you is Wagga Wagga which is about 90 minutes north. If you're still around during Easter 2010 you may make it to the first Australian mega event.

Misty As far as I understand, Victoria is tolerant of geocaching. The ranger I spoke to at Brisbane Ranges (near Geelong) appreciates knowing where geocachers intend to place them. Best bet for Mexicans is to speak to the Head Ranger beforehand if you plan to place a cache in 'their' backyard. Locals maybe able to provide more information. BTW - I found the cache near the lighthouse. Environmentally, very little to no impact from this cache.

Count The Spindoctors as coming - 3 people.

Given the amount of effort and time invested in creating them, I thought this might be a good place to list locations where Australians are planning on setting them up. It would help duplication (and waste) of effort. Please respect the fact that people are being open in highlighting there prospective locations - i.e. don't steal or criticise. To get things rolling, I am currently finishing up an EarthCache for re-submission in Dundas Valley, Sydney.

Neglected to mention that Geocaching NSW's website is http://www.geocachingnsw.asn.au

James You're quite correct in that National Parks are run by state governments, each with their own set of rules. In NSW, geocaching is not allowed. Other states are lenient in their approach. The approach in Tasmania (from what I understand) is that most geocachers won't place them in national parks because each park has an entrance fee. As Andrew suggests, I'd go to the Tasmanian section of the GCA forums. Darren

Some cache solo/family groups and other in organised groups. When I started in 2003 in Canberra, it was certainly the former. But I've found in the bigger cities, and more recently in the smaller ones, the later is becoming more common. I find that caching in groups is great for the more 'difficult' caches that require equipment (canoes, abseiling, etc) or are long distance.

Emma You're more than likely to get a rapid response from this forum's webpage. http://forum.geocaching.com.au/viewforum.php?f=8 This is where most Australian geocachers chat. Good luck.

Rainbow Spirit - I'm not sure what your comment was/is.

A reminder to all that nominations MUST BE RECEIVED BY MIDNIGHT TOMORROW (7 Oct). For those coming to the meeting, it will be no more than 15 minutes, strictly for the purpose of confirming nominations and voting. I will grab a table immediately in front of the bar. If you are unable to attend, please email me your proxy and how you would prefer to vote. A list of nominees will be posted on Wednesday. There is also a 'trivia event' hosted by the hotel starts at 8 pm. Those willing to join us and form a team are more than welcome to stay and have some evening fun.

In accordance with the outcomes of the meeting of Geocaching NSW Incorporated held on 13 September 2008, nominations are being called for an interim committee consisting of a President, Secretary, Treasurer and additional committee members. The interim committee will be charged with setting up the association. Tasks will include: - develop a structure for the association - develop duty statements for the committee and sub-committees - develop a future budget, including membership fees - recommend changes to the model rules - develop a calendar of events - organise the next general meeting to be held no later than the first quarter of 2009 Nominations for these positions should be emailed to darren.osborne@mac.com no later than Tuesday 7 October. For the purpose of the interim committee, self-nominations will be accepted. A special meeting will be help at The Ranch Hotel, Epping Rd, North Ryde, at 7.30pm on Tuesday 14 October. In the event of more than nomination for President, Secretary or Treasurer, an election will be held during the meeting. Nominees do not need to be present at the meeting. Proxies for voting can be forwarded to an attendee.

Meeting from the meeting are now available online at http://www.geocachingnsw.asn.au/index.php/...tes-13-sep-2008

I've managed to load Navman Unlock and then install .NET CF 2 (I think?) and Wherigo on the device. Unfortunately when I try to run Wherigo I get the following error. Player.exe Cannot find 'Player' (or one of its components). Make sure the path and filename are correct and that all the required libraries are available. The Player.exe file is located at \Program Files\Groundspeak\Wherigo\Player on the device. Do the error messages provide any clues? The device is running Windows CE .NET 4.2

I too would love to hear if anyone is running it on this hardware platform.

Sending you a private message now.

Busy week at work (and after). I will type up the minutes from the meeting and have them posted in various locations on Saturday. Thank you to those that turned up and shared their thoughts/provided input.

Looking forward to all of those attending. Thank you to those that cannot for your emails and notes. I will post notes both here, on the GCA and Groundspeak forums. There will be no food or drink provided (otherwise the hall hire is charged as a function, not a meeting), so please bring along your own snacks and drinks. The meeting will start at 10.30 SHARP. After the meeting, we will disperse outside and go through the usual geocaching event pleasantries. To cover the cost of the hall hire, we'll be conducting a closest to the pin contest. Bring along a gold coin to enter. There will be geocoin prizes for the closest adult and closest geokids (under 14) to the pin. I would appreciate at least two people to assist - one in helping run the competition, and another help co-ordinate any TB/coin swaps. Please don't forget to vote in the council elections before the event, if you plan on geocaching afterwards. Look forward to meeting you all and hearing your ideas.