Navdog

Sounds a lot like an idea that has been sitting idle on my website for a number of years. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to develop it, but it really would be a fun game... at least for me. I sure wish someone would pick up on it. Geotracker GPS Game

Have to second that one for sure. Actually, the park and I suppose the cache has been temporarily moved.

University of Oregon Library. click here.

Dozens of people can be seen camping out or spending the day out on the islands in the summer. I'm sure the proper etiquette is just like hiking or backpacking... bury it. It looks like they actually have a porta potty on the busier west end of Government Island. Firewood may be scarce late in the season due to all the campers. You might want to consider several alternate areas in case a spot/stretch is occupied that day, although the water levels usually will be much lower in September, which will create miles of extra beach space.

Kahonee Falls is a nice adventure, but if you really want to earn your kahonees, then a journey into the valley that only a few have ventured is the ticket. Plus you get this great geo-button if you make it there and back alive.

Looks like you guys will be taking the Navdog's Wooden Nickel TB to its final destination. That's really cool. Thanks!!!

Nightwalker is in the Portland area. It's nice to do things on a night cache other than follow reflectors around in the dark.

The lamp post thing is universal, but after a few... well, the love wears off.

No need to archive or move the cache. The owner only needs to disable the cache for a month or two when they are nesting if there is a real concern. Here in Oregon is a good example of geocachers and a government agency communicating and cooperating when it comes to nesting season concerns. http://www.oregongeocaching.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=89 http://www.oregongeocaching.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=207

I thought this was the general timetable, so there was not necessarily a big rush to get something done last week.

Yes, I would be happy to help. Are you having D&R make the coins again this year? It would be nice to talk to the coin company to see how they can render the steam plume and still color the background/sky. Doing the blue sky and steam plume will require a "ridge" or hard edge to the outline of the steam, so it may not look as realistic as having it blended into the background with no color. Moun10Bike, if you want to email me about the specifics, I can work up something more definitive.

I've never seen eye to eye with CR on a lot of things, but I applaud him for taking up the cause of trying to promote cache quality. There may be many things that will help this sport be a dynamic bit of fun five years from now, with possibly a million caches worldwide, but the most important aspect will the basic concept of a quality caching experience.

That's really becoming a lame argument. If you can't experience the "virtual place" a cacher took you to and then sign a logbook a little further away, then why bother to go at all? Odds are your next cache stop will be a lame lamp post hide at WalMart anyway. Let's look at the big picture here.

I have gotten into the practice of emailing a new cacher after they find one of my caches and thanking them for taking the time to look for the cache and welcome them to the sport. I then give them a link to another cache in the area, not one of mine, but one that I know is also a fun or unique hide and suggest they give it a try. I wouldn't be surprised that someone soon writes a thesis on the sociology of geocaching. There certainly is enough to consider, but one thing I think that occurs, and it relates to the "lead by example" idea , is that there are so many caches these days and most new cachers tend to look for the easy ones first. So, after a dozen mediocre cache finds in parking lots and such, they assume this is the norm and then go out and hide a similar cache.

Reminds me of that Mythbusters episode awhile back. Poor dog.

If it ain't broke... why fix it? Not many, if any gecoins sold 1500, and i'm sure it could have been more, orders on the first minting. Changing the url and the logo kinda defeats the original purpose of that side of the coin. Does "Home of Geocaching World Headquarters" really make any sense then? Nearly all coins are in some type of protective sleeve where the tracking url can be located. Having the gc logo and url on there makes it look more "official" than that generic logo and tends to identify it more as a geocaching coin and not a WSGA coin... no direspect intended.

Geogadgets... "the right tool for the job". Shoot me an email Ambrosia if you want an idea or two.

I believe the die fee was only $50 for each side, so it really won't have an impact spread out over 1,000+ coins. edit: Putting the year on the other side may hinder future design ideas.

So it's ok to break the law and build a trail, but hiding one little box in the woods that has only been attempted 18 times in 2 years and a second one that's only been attempted 26 times in 2 years. (Well, logged online. Not sure what the rate of non-webloggers is in that area). Doesn't seem like a lot of traffic to me. You failed to read further down the cache page to this: Neither of the two caches you mention as suspect are within the wilderness boundary. Wilderness and Scenic Recreation Area Boundary

The problem with the image above that globalgirl tweaked is that you can only have color elements that are divided by a raised ridge. The ash and blue sky can't be done that way. Please look at the 2004 coin to understand the limitations with colors and detail. Also, why would a hiker and be standing there with a GPS. There wasn't handheld GPS units in 1980.

This post by Jeremy yesterday states that gc.com will be allowing tracking of coins in the near future that have alpha numeric numbering. Is this something worth considering?

I'll reiterate what I suggested before about why I would suggest the "lava dome" version. This is a geocoin, not a memorial coin. It needs to have elements that cachers can relate to about geocaching today. If someone just wanted a coin about Mt. St. Helen's, I'm sure they could find one on line somewhere. The "lava dome" version commemorates the 25th anniversary while putting a current perspective to the design. Having spent untold back and forth emails with the manufacturer of the first coin about the design, I learned alot about how to layer the coin to bring out the depth you see in the 2004 coin. If you look closely at the 2004 coin, you will see the mountain and sky are on one layer and the hiker and trees are on an upper layer. This is what give the 3D effect to the coin. I wouldn't suggest using the trees in this version as it would be too similar to the 2004 coin. Having the text in place of the trees balances the design on the left lower portion. Including a full plume as in the 1980 eruption would leave little room for any blue sky. Plus, I think it would be hard to really show the detail of the full plume and differentiate the mountain from the plume itself. Using the "lava dome" version allows for the ability to create more detail in the mountainwith the lava dome and the plume, as well as giving more room for the blue sky to wrap around the top of the coin. The "evergreen state" text on the lower part of the could be changed to something else while still keeping the text on the lower left part of the inside of the coin.

I'm not voting, since I'm not a Washingtonian, although I do live a mile from the border and can see St. Helen's from my patio. I'd strongly consider using the 2004 photo of the mountain for several reasons: If you look at the 2004 coin, part of the uniqueness to it is the 3D effect created by the hiker in the foreground and the raised coin material in the back. Having just an image of raised coin material of the 1980 eruption is going to look pretty blah. There really needs to be something else in the image. The hiker adds a purpose to the coin that geocachers can identify with. And it also give that necessary depth of field. It also makes a statement about the use of a GPS today in and around the mountain. Does the other side of the coin really do enough to identify the coin as a geocoin? It really is just a tribute to gc.com Putting the 25th Anniversary text in the image helps balance the design. Washington is still the Evergreen State, and if you were to hike thorough the blast zone today, you would see how Mother Nature is quickly "greening up" the place. Just some things to consider.