m.austin

I did an activity with my high school class. I hid 5 caches, each with a "clue". The clue was something like A=52. One cache contained envelopes that held the math problem they needed to complete to find the longitude/latitude for the final cache, which held a prize (bubblegum). What I would do with this time period is to spend the morning time teaching them how to use the GPS receivers and to find one cache together. Then, in the afternoon I would divide them into groups and have each group start at a different cache so that each group will have equal opportunity to find each cache. Turn them loose & enjoy watching them race to be first to the final cache. My students were so involved that they didn't even care in the end if they were first or not - they just wanted to find the caches!

Not completely sure what the difference is. I am running a PQ the way I always have, choosing the "I have found" option. I thought at first it wasn't pulling up correctly because I was doing something wrong because this was my first batch of finds out of state. However, it is not pulling up several finds I found near my home a couple weeks ago. I've tried doing a PQ for just California (the new state I just cached in) but none show up. However, those caches do show up on my list of finds & on my stat bar, so I know they logged ok.

I did some caches both in state & out of state last week. My last find was Wednesday (today is Friday - well, technically Saturday now!). When I try to run a PQ it does not show my last 21 finds, which were spread out over 2 weeks. Any suggestions? I have tried multiple options, but cannot get it to add those last 21 finds.

How long does it take for caches to be able to be included in a query? I did some caching yesterday morning, but when I run a PQ I can't get any caches I've found for the past week. It runs 287, and my current find count is 308.

If you go to your Flickr page that displays your photo - right click on the photo & choose "properties". Highlight the entire link that is displayed. It should start with http:// and end with .jpg , .gif, or some other image extension (it may have some additional coding such as v=0 - be sure to include that). Place that in the insert image command. Your coding will appear - it should look like {img} replace { with [ . You can also just type in the coding.

I like a blank logbook! The best FTF "prize" I've gotten is a $5 gas card, which I promptly handed over to my son. Gifts are nice and appreciated, but really not necessary for me to enjoy a new cache.

A camera is great camouflage as well. You can really get up close & personal to your desired area if you appear to be taking pictures. Plus you have some cool pics to add to your gallery!

I only take swag if there is something unique about it in some way. Someday in my free time I'm going to paint a large painting incorporating both 3-D swag & painted images. I like sig items, and it is even more special if you get to meet the person who "goes with" the sig item! I also carry about a bag of swag items, but usually just leave stuff if caches are lacking.

I have a combination lock on a cache GC1HARY. You have to be observant of your surroundings to find the combination. Oh - the logbook is made out of library checkout cards!

I have an AT&T Tilt & need to find good software to go paperless with it.

Achievement: Discovering Geocaching! Until March 2008 I had no idea this hobby existed. Now I'm making sure to log at least one cache every 3-4 days when work pulls me in several directions, a dozen a day if I'm lucky! Achievement 2: Getting my superintendant to purchase 6 GPS receivers and getting board permission to start a caching club in my district for MS/HS students (we're a tiny school). We start when we go back after the 1st of the year! Blunder: Telling some of my more embarrassing stories at the lunch table to muggles! Now I get reminded regularly!

I like summer caching best, since I teach & have a couple months off so I have all day to do it. I would like an unlimited amount of gas & hotel vouchers so I can drive all over the countryside caching (I think with the right pocket query I could get 1/2 the USA done this summer, 1/2 the next!). Of course there would be some side trips into Canada & Mexico! Oh, as much as I like hiking outdoors, only 5star hotels please! I'll need the pampering after a hard day of caching! Edited because I can't spell!

One thing I do to painted objects in my classroom is to spray them with several coats of clear spray paint to give extra protection. I haven't done this with an ammo can, but it might help the gold spray paint be more durable to the banging around they'll get from cachers.

JohnE5 - THAT puts a complete different aspect to things. Even if this is "overflowing" there isn't going to be that much trash. Personally I'd still make sure the bin was kept clean, but I really like this container!

I'm not a male, but I was in Girl Scouts AND I was a pack leader for our local cub scouts. No Dad's in the area were interested, but there were several boys wanting to be in scouts.

Pros: I like the idea. Really promotes the CITO concept. Cons: This will be a high maintenance cache. You will have to keep the bin emptied and clean. If the container is not kept up (and there is no way you can monitor WHAT gets dumped in your bin - some people will use it as a regular trash can) the "cache" will become disgusting and people will not want to search. I think overall, the quality of this cache will be dependant on what kind of cache owner you are.

New worst: Last Saturday hubby & I are getting ready to go caching. Now, we tend to be a bit like the Griswald's around Christmas time - WAY too many lights, but hey, there's always one in every town so somebody has to be the one! It's time to leave. Hubby puts the geodog in the back seat of the truck. I jump in the passenger seat, ready to go. Anyways, in Kansas the wind either blows or it blows hard. This was a "blows hard" day, so the wind was wrecking havoc on our decorations. Hubby asks me to help him secure one of the lawn decorations. Out I jump without a thought. We go to get back in the truck, ornament secured. Oops, door locked! Seems geodog stepped on the automatic lock! Hubby wants my keys to the truck. They are in my purse, which of course is in the truck! An hour later I finally find the extra key fob, which had never worked properly, but luckily worked just well enough to open the door. Because of this I missed out on my geocaching! THAT was a tragedy!

I just did one that is listed as a 1/1. After I found it I realized that it is theoretically listed correctly, but it is one toughy. 4 DNFs, clues, even a flat out "it is a green bison tube hidden in something the same color", with only 1 thing being that color. I have figured out that this guy is just really good at hiding typical caches in plain site in such a way that causes you to spend a lot of time searching! My DNFs are more just letting the CO know I didn't find it, not anything against his hide. Keep hiding the caches - we've all had those caches we just can't find, but everyone else comments "easy find".

Ah, you made me spew Diet Dr.Pepper all over my monitor!

I think my worst was going after a cache, DNF, got back to my car & discovered I was covered in ticks. Ticks & leeches are the grossest things I can imagine having on my body! My best - too many to count! The day I took a close friend caching & we drove forever to a remote spot & found 12 caches. A few breathtaking views right in my own backyard that caught me by surprise. Hubby sucking it up & taking me caching on my birthday ALL DAY LONG! He doesn't mind caching, but he gave up a lot of stuff he wanted to do that day. OH WAIT! Finding out I was accepted to present on Geocaching in the Classroom at a National Convention, paid for by my school district & I get to take my friend!!!

I love that "AH-HA" moment, and in caching they come in so many forms. A virtual that takes you to a location that you drove right by for 20 years and now you have a reason to stop, and the new knowledge is priceless. A puzzle cache that drives you crazy & then on your way to work one day you suddenly figure it out. A fiendish nano that you spend 45 minutes looking for & suddenly discover hidden in plain site in an extremely clever way. A cache that takes you to a breathtaking view. A challenge cache that takes you all over the countryside, pushing you to explore your little corner of the world. The thrill of FTF - not necessarily because you are driven to be first, but have discovered a friendly competition between you & other cachers you never would have met if not for caching. The way you begin to look at your world in a new light as you search for places to hide a cache that will give other cachers an "AH-HA" moment. Edited because as I was typing twotfd was responding & we obviously have a lot in common!

Tory is my geo-companion. Actually, she answers best to "Darnit Tory" (cleaned up to be kid-friendly!). We adopted her at 8 months, so she was already named. Her registered name is "Victory Lap", which is what I do when I find that particularly fiendish hide, so I guess it could be kind of a cache name (Yes, I'm stretching it abit). What I call her is also fitting for the DNFs!

Toooo funny! I'm afraid I'm going to get something horribly drab this Christmas - like the ceiling fans I've been wanting. Maybe I need to pick up something fun "from hubby, to Me!"

I published Yellow Nano because those "things" are the biggest nanos I've ever seen and they made me laugh. It has gotten good results. One of my favorite puzzles that amused me kept frustrated forever is I'm Here, I'm Here. It was one of the easiest puzzles I've ever seen - once you know what to look for!

Think positive! Maybe she's buying you some caching essentials: new hiking boots, backpack, ammo cans......