parker2

Info for Saskparks moved to SaskParks Geocaching Guidelines Always check with the Saskparks web site or individual park office for updated information

Saskcachers site is back up and running after a bad run of hackers. www.saskcachers.com www.skgeocaching.com

Here is my 2 cents.... This is one of my biggest pet peaves and I am actually doing something about it. From the time I started caching, I have used PQ's so I have 90% of all the archived caches in gsak. I have made myself an open bookmark list and have added all the archived caches in the province. In the notes field, I have posted either they have been cleaned up or gone awal or just blank. Now I'm not a fan of caches getting archived that are still out there. I know gc.com don't want to deal with the geo-litter issue due to archiving a cache (even though they are helping in creating the issue this way)for IMHO, legal reasons. So I have been taking it on as a project to check the sites and clean them up. In the last few weeks, I have been cleaning up caches from a cacher that just disabled all there caches and posted "REMOVE" on all there cache pages. I have sent 5 email to the owner with no answer and the reviewer has done the same. Now the last two days, I have been checking on another AWOL cacher and found 2 of there caches archived (one from 4 years ago) with absolutly nothing wrong with them. One cache was archived because someone posted it was on posted land, and it was not... and the other because there were 2 DNF's posted and a cacher posted it was gone yet it was still there. I do not have a problem with maintaining a cache that is not mine. I have gone back and even walked over 2 miles to replace a container for another cacher. But the issue still remains the same... when a cacher leaves the area or quits, it is hard to clean up the sites when they get archived and lost in the system. So when I remove a cache, after I have tried contacting the owner for about 30 days if disabled (Unless the cache is already archived), I have been retreving the cache containers and posting a note on the cache page of what i have done and why and if they would like the cache back, I will keep it for 90 days. This is the only route I could think of to address geo-litter and the black eye it could possibly give to geocaching and geocachers as a whole. As we all know, landmanagers, parks, etc. dislike this issue. Just my 2 cents..... comments??? parker2

Awesome Post and well said

Title: Policy on Geocaching on Saskatchewan Provincial Park Lands Approved 2007 INTENT To provide direction for geocaching on/in provincial park lands DEFINITIONS Geocaching is an outdoor recreational skills activity that uses the global positioning system (GPS). Individuals and organizations set up caches all over the world and share the locations of these caches on the internet at www.geocaching.com. GPS users can then use the location coordinates to find the caches. Once found, a cache may provide the visitor with a wide variety of rewards. In return the visitor leaves something for the cache for the next group or individual to find. Global Positioning System (GPS) is a technology that aids people in navigation through the use of satellite signals and geography. It relies on 24 satellites that rotate around the earth every 12 hours and send signals down to earth 24 hours a day. These signals can be picked up by a hand held GPS Unit. GPS (Global Positioning System)Unit is a hand held device that receives signals from satellites that can pinpoint exact locations. It uses these signals to find geographical positions anywhere in the world. CONSIDERATIONS • Provincial park lands contain rare and endangered plant species and historical and cultural artifacts that may be disturbed by geocaching. • Many wild fauna and flora species may be affected by off-trail travel, specifically at certain times of the year when they are nesting or breeding. • The placement of geocaches may increase traffic off-trail and develop new unofficial trails. • The placement of geocaches may place the public at risk. • The contents of geocaches may lead to littering or attracting wildlife. • Geocaching is a recreational activity that attracts visitors to parks and encourages them to explore park areas. • The geocaching community strives to maintain a respectful attitude towards nature and to promote responsible behavior. POLICY 1. Geocaches may be placed on provincial park lands subject to the prior written approval of Park Management. 2. Park management in determining if a cache will be permitted will use the following considerations: a) Proposed location: i. poses no risk to rare or endangered species, or cultural features ii. avoids sensitive ecological and cultural areas iii. creates a low likelihood of new trail developments and/or the time frame for placement is such that there is a low likelihood for the development of new trails iv. poses low risk to public safety v. has minimal to low impact on others using the area vi. avoids disturbing the earth, impacting shrubs, tree growth or other vegetation b. the cache contains no food, scented items or other products that may attract wildlife to the site. c. the cache contains educational/interpretative messages relating to the park. d. the group/individual placing the cache agrees to monitor regularly, to ensure no litter is in the area and the cache is placed and maintained within the terms of the agreement to place the cache e. the group/individual placing the cache agrees to a liability clause providing indemnity for Saskatchewan Environment f. the agreement holder includes with the cache i. a notice for participants not to leave scented or food items ii. a notice of authorization from the park manager 3 Park management may remove a cache if a. it was put in place without prior permission b. the cache no longer meets the considerations indicated in point 2. 4. Park management will attempt to contact groups who placed caches prior to removal. a. The groups will be advised of why removals are to take place and will be given an opportunity to address the reasons for removal. b. For any cache removed for which an organization could not be contacted the cache is to be held and managed as lost property. i. park management is to place a notice on the web site that it has been removed by the land administrator and to please contact park management for further information. EVALUATION: This policy will be evaluated on: a) impact of growing number of geocaches on park natural and cultural resources the cooperation and reaction of organizations in the permitting of geocaching c) the administrative ease/staff time to implement ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION 1. Legislation Reference/Authority The Park Regulations 1991 • Sec. 38: Littering Prohibited: No person shall leave or dispose of any glass, bottles, cans, cartons, bags, garbage, paper, dirt, gravel, tree limbs, or similar refuse on park land except in a place or receptacle provided by the minister for the purpose. • Sec 59 General prohibition: No person shall: (a) take, damage or destroy a flower, plant, shrub, tree or any other natural vegetation on park land without the prior written consent of the minister; ( alter the natural state of any part of park land without the prior written consent of the minister; The Heritage Property Act • Section 64: sites of special nature • Section 67: no person can disturb archaeological or palaeonlogical objects without a permit from the department responsible for the act 2. Reference Material Leave No Trace Camping Ethics

Hey Dale.... I'm game... But I will need a bit more info. I will email you in the next few days to get things rolling.

Hey there ibycus I would be willing to get something going here in Sask. There are 2 large trails in each of the 2 main cities (Saskatoon / Regina) as well as the Trans Canada Trail. I also know of a few other smaller trails that could be included as well and most of the Prov. Parks have walking trails. parker2

Thanks CT.... Once the document gets posted to there website, I will send you the link.

Guidelines for Placing Geocaches in Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park, SK Introduction These guidelines for geocaching pertains only to the Centre Block and West Block of Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park, SK. They have been developed out of concern for the safety of the public, concern for the natural environment and the flora and fauna. The geocaching community will be made aware of these guidelines, on their website at www.geocaching.com through the Saskatchewan liason, and made available to the public. Through this process, geocaches already placed in the park will be "allowed" to come under scrutiny and will be pulled if they don't meet with the criteria suggested by Park Management. Preliminary In keeping with the Park's policy of assessing all new recreational and sporting activities occurring in Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park, SK, Park Management is assessing the activity of geocaching. In reviewing this activity, Park Management is considering the benefits and potential risks this activity poses, particularly with respect to the mandate on protecting and preserving Saskatchewan's natural, historical and cultural heritage in ways that encourage public understanding, appreciation and enjoyment, while ensuring the long-term ecological integrity of the Cypress Hills. The following guidelines will be put into effect for May 1, 2008. * Caches that are placed within the park boundaries must meet with specific criteria. Permission from Park Management must be acquired before caches are allowed to be placed in Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park, SK Criteria includes: * Caches must be located on existing trails and other public accessible areas * Caches must have an education or interpretive message that relates to the Park * Caches need to be monitored regularly, then removed and archived over the winter months * Caches must not contain any food or scented items * Coordinates must be given to Park Management for approval * Caches must be approved by Park Management In order to provide regulatory and compliance guidelines for managing geocaches, a moratorium has been put on all physical caches already placed in Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park, SK. Existing physical caches will be removed and their website postings will be archived. Park Managemnet is sorry for any inconvenience this may cause, however, several geocaches already placed in the park are on private land, causing concern from local ranchers; several geocaches were placed out of bounds as a result of the fire ban from the two previous years; one geocache is placed in a rare orchid community; another is placed in an area where only park maintenance has access. Hence, Park Management's attention to geocaches already placed in the park. Guidelines regarding geocaches in Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park, SK were developed in response to the following concerns regarding the activity of geocaching. * Leave No Trace Outdoor Ethics Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park, SK has adopted the Leave No Trace Outdoor Ethics, and Park Management has worked hard to promote minimal-impact techniques in the park and to park visitors. Both the placement of physical geocaches and travel off designated trails are at odds with the education efforts in this regard. It creates a double standard to allow geocachers to do one thing, while trying to be a role model for our education and interpretation programs. * Littering prohibited The littering aspect of placing a geocache "out there" is against Provincial Park Policy and Regulations. Fines are imposed for this illegality. Pursuant to P1.1 - Reg 6, under the Saskatchewan Park's Regulations: Sec 38: Littering Prohibited . . . No person shall leave or dispose of any glass, bottles, cans, cartons, bags, garbage, paper, dirt, tree limbs, or similar refuse on park land except in a place or receptacle provided by the minister for the purpose. * Off-Trail Use Many wild fauna (animals) and flora (vegetation) species may be affected by off-trail travel, specifically at certain times of the year when they are breeding, nesting, raising young and/or blooming. Maintaining undisturbed and unfragmented habitat is a key priority in protected areas in the park. Unmanaged placement of off-trail geocaches contributes to increased impacts to wildlife and wild flora. Trampled vegetation and soil erosion are also associated with off-trail use. In the fescue grasslands, it takes only a few passes by people, to create a highly visible "social" trail, which in turn, encourage further use and increase impacts. There are some places in the park that designated off-limits to the public, or may become off-limits for reasons of their own safety, for the protection of wildlife, wild flora, and for park maintenance. * Impacts to Natural, Historical and Cultural Heritage A geocacher may unintentionally disturb historical and cultural artifacts and landscapes. In Saskatchewan, the Heritage Property Act, 1980, protects artifacts for the people of Saskatchewan. Artifacts include: fossils, First Nations artifacts, North West Mounted Police and early homesteaders memorabilia. Unintentionally, the earth could be disturbed, unknowingly in an area where artifacts have lain for many years. Once the earth is disturbed, artifacts may become disarticulated, relocated or removed, and lose their relevance to the scientific community and destroy the opportunity for interpretation. Placement of a geocache would be inappropriate and could cause damage to protected and sensitive natural, historical and cultural resources. * Public Safety Public safety concerns related to geocaching are based on the potential for increased off-trail travel in areas where the public may be at risk. The terrain in Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park is composed of loose sands, gravels and cobblestones as this is the geology indicative of the Cypress Hills Formation. Footing can become an issue in many areas where erosion has occurred. In Canada, the Cypress Hills has the highest elevation between the Rocky Mountains and the mountains in Labrador. The air is thinner because of the high altitude, and people don't realize how physically taxing a hike up a hill can be. With the high elevation, the Cypress Hills has its own mini-climate, and weather can be a factor at any time of the year. There may be trail closures related to weather, wildlife, flora, park maintenance, park industry (ie, tree harvesting and cattle moving), fire hazards, or for other reasons deemed necessary by Park Management, that declare areas to become off-limits for reasons of public safety. Summary The Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park's key objective is to provide for visitors to enhance their enjoyment, participate in interesting and educational experiences and activities in ways that minimize potential impacts. Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park, SK, recognizes that the geocaching community has worked hard to maintain a respectful attitude towards nature and to promote responsible behaviour. We look forward to collaborating on the development of creative management solutions that enhance the stewardship of geocaching in Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park, SK. To all geocache owners that have geocaches placed in Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park, SK, and on private land bordering the park, this is your notice that your cache has been pulled, (if you haven't already pulled it over the winter months). Geocachers may contact Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park, SK at cypresshills@gov.sk.ca for further questions about cache removal. Caches will be kept at the new Visitor Centre (by the lake) and may be picked up there. These guidelines pertain only to the Centre Block and the West Block of Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park, SK.

This is not totaly true. If I remember correctly, there are some cachers from way back that did have to agree to the guidelines in place at the time. It was not till a few years ago, that we had to agree to the guidelines before we could continue to review the website and such. I'm not 100% sure of this, but I bet with a few more of the old-timers and the "wayback machine" we could find out. Now for my 2 cents..... IMHO, I think this was the best solution that the geocaching owners / operators could take on this issue. They could of kept it the way it was going, but could over time have a good chance of paying some lawyer fees. But on the other hand.... being the listing service of a ton of caches that have been archived will in turn create a ton of geotrash that could have a large impact on the enviroment. There has to be some leeway!!!! If this new process is to stay there should be some way to combat the issue of geotrash. As I posted in other threads before on this topic, our prov. group is in the process of cleaning up geotrash sites. We have compiled a list of archived caches (have about 90% of them) and cleaning up the sites. Oh.... how wonderful it would be to have the power to run a PQ for archived caches.

Just as a side note.... The Banff Nat. Park manager is not too keen on geocaching during the interm policy. As the park is already stretched to its limits with the #'s of visitors and trail use. As far as I know, the NP at this time is not allowing cachew within its boundaries with the exception of the townsites as they are not administered by Parks Canada.

The conversions are rough as there are diffrent size road alowances. The main road allowances are 66' and the grids are 90' if i remember corectly. I know that in some of the rm's here in SK, that some of the sections of land are smaller than what they are suspose to be as well. The SK gov also has a GIS system in place. Both the lat/lon and DLS are shown for each 1/4. If you need more help accessing this site NONI, you can contact me through the admin address listed on our prov. geocaching website.... www.saskcachers.com parker2

IMHO, the reviewers in my neck of the woods are doing a great job. I have been in contact with a few over both my concern, there concerns, and have both asked and answered general questions with out any issues. I can say though, that about 24 or so months ago, I did have a few emails from Groundspeak over some images that we wanted to use. I had a few questions that I could not get a full answer for (size, colors used, etc.) so I just tossed the idea and we made a new site icon. I know that there can and will be diffrences in opinion in business. They are just looking out for there $$$$. Just be glad that what we have at this time will never change as "geocaching" is a free activity and Groundspeak is just the listing service that we choose to use either free or for a fee..... again your choice. It would be cool to see a good alternative listing service, but until myself or someone who wants to put the $$$$ into the servers and bandwidth this is what we got. So lets make the best of what we have, help the reviewers........ and most of all.... keep caching!!!!

Hey there CT.... Just as a side note.... Most (if not all) Provinces have there GIS mapping online for everyone to use. I know here in Sask I have dropped a few of the questionable cache locations into the system to see if they fell into a park area and passed the info along to the cacher and reviewer. Excelent system.... but I still have issues converting to an extended UTM grid so I can drop them all in at once. lol

Just a quick reply to my post....... I have used the printable window clings that you can get from staples. They stick to the inside of the vehicle so there would be no issues with water. If you are looking at a magnitized sign.... you could always get the printable sheets, but prior to using, use a gloss clear coat spraypaint and this will stop the rain from washing your design away Good Luck

Hey there.... These are extreamly easy to make with a computer. You can get magnetic sheets or clear cling shets from most office supply stores. ie staples

Awesome..... It is great to see a PC site take the leed on this. Fort Walsh has combined forces here with Cypress Hills Prov. Park and they have a series of 7 caches between the parks to give visitors a view of the area that they would not usually see w/o caching. Good luck on your project.

Well..... If you beleave in littering in a Park, go for it.... I think there might be a fine for that as well. There you go again, you can not remove any items from someone's property w/o approval as this would be theft. See my first point in this post..... And it could of been avoided if you would of left things as they were, contacted the owner, reviewer, and if you must...... THE LAND OWNER. I do not have the foggiest of how long you have been geocaching, nor do I even care, but use some common sence and act like a human being. People make mistakes, deal with it in the best possible manner and leave things go. And if you think that the Parks do not watch there lands on geocaching.com, you got another thing comming. How else do you think they might be in need of a policy. And on a side note..... Do you have land owner permission for your caches? I think I just might look into it myself later tonight with an email. parker2

Just found this thread, and got interested right away. I always been 100% for the TCT. I really need to get myself a few chunks of trail myself. lol Have you done this trip yet, or still in the planning stages? I know that there has been a new pavillion added in my area and on portion of the trail has changed to move it off of a busy roadway.

Except for the removal of personal property, I wonder what would happen if you removed one of my caches, as I do have land owner permission and the removal of anything from the land I would consider as THEFT and contact the authorities.

I have just read this thread, and I can not beleave my eyes. IMHO, If you think the cache is in any way harmful, go through the proper channels. My rule of thumb is to email the owner ans CC to the reviewer. I have done this while there was an interm policy for the Nat. Parks when a new cache was placed. I did this because I did not want any black marks towards the policy that was being worked on. Out of the 3 that I sent email for, I did not have any bad issues with anyone involved..... and better yet, met 3 new cachers that wanted to learn more about policy and ethics. In this situation, I would of sent the email to both the reviewer and owner, state your opinion why the cache has issues, and let them hammer the problem out and ask them both to email you back with what has or will be done. You yourself, unless you are the owner, acting for the owner, or land manager have no right to remove any item from a given location as this would constitute theft. If you are not too sure about this statement, maybe someone will come to your land and remove something from your backyard as it might seem out of place. Parker2

I have had this question myself, and have read a few other threads over the past months on this topic. Since the spring, I started to carry everything from extra writing sticks to 3 types of duct tape, tube of silicone, and a extra special roll of electracal tape that fuses to the material and turns to rubber. I have fixed up 10+ caches, replaced a water logged log book (say that fast 10 times lol) and dropped over 2 boxes of pencils into caches. I have not had one bad remark towards the maintance I have done yet. What ever I end up doing, I email the owner, tell him/her the previous and present condition of the cache and what I did at the location. I myself along with a few other members here decided this would be one route we could go with to try and stop the "GEO-TRASH". I feel that this is a good gesture for the cache owner, and to feel out his/her present view on geocaching. We have received a few email back where the owner tells us they have either moved out of the area or lost the caching bug due to what ever reason. This gives us the option through emails to either adopt, do maintance for, or remove and archive before a maintance log gets posted and the reviewers archive the listing w/o the cache being removed. I feel that we should be proactive than reactive to keep the caches in the best usable condition possible. parker2 P.S. Wish I could make it out for a rib breakfast

Just watch the papers & news Friday. I would say they will do a full media release.... But that is just my opinion.

Send me an email @ my profile address and I will see what I can do for ya!

I will agree... but the reporter did make a few mistakes. 1) They are cast in the shape of the province and Parker hopes they'll be cached at every national park. I said we produced our own coin. There are TB also available for purchase. I have one of these TB's that has a mission to see every National Park. LOL 2)"She must have had 500 to 600 of them," he said. I said there must of been 500 to 600 in total at the event. Guess I should of stipulated that was more than one person. lol