Kohavis

Not really, unless you're not willing to click your mouse a few times, or you're a complete noob with a PC. It's no secret. 5 minutes with Google, or perusing the links provided right here on Geocaching.com at "Shop For Gear" > "Click here" at bottom of page. Scroll down to Cachebox. Bingo! .30 cal. ammo can - $4.49 http://www.cacheboxstore.com/ammocans/30cal.html Two points. One, they are sold out two, add the shipping cost. Two suggestions: 1. Be patient. If you want it today, you'll pay. 2. What "a lot more" is is subjective, I suppose. I don't mind paying a few bucks for shipping it to my door. If things were that tight for me I would be collecting leaves instead of geocaching

Geocaching has its share of people who would have done us all a favor if their "fastest swimmer" had pulled up lame. This forum has even more, it seems. But it isn't hard to identify the ones who have a real "self importance" issue and feel the need to feel better about themselves by belittling someone else. Like ill-timed flatulence, they usually fade with a little time and patience. They're far in the minority, thank goodness. They will no doubt get frustrated and move to another hobby, like torturing puppies or de-winging young flies. They always do. Hang in there, and hide whatever you want, wherever you want, and rate the hide whichever way you want

Don't like LPC's? Don't go after them.

Not really, unless you're not willing to click your mouse a few times, or you're a complete noob with a PC. It's no secret. 5 minutes with Google, or perusing the links provided right here on Geocaching.com at "Shop For Gear" > "Click here" at bottom of page. Scroll down to Cachebox. Bingo! .30 cal. ammo can - $4.49 http://www.cacheboxstore.com/ammocans/30cal.html

Get one that's waterproof. Other than that, any GPS unit should work just fine in the Bahamas.

I've installed it and it's a slick transparent overlay that works in conjunction with other maps on your mapping handheld. Very nice!

I think it all depends on the intensity of the practical joke and the "startle factor". For example, if it's a cache that has a smaller cache inside, then a smaller one inside that, and so on, until it ends up being a nano holding the log, then, no, you probably don't need to warn anyone. If it's something like a coiled "snake in a can" type of thing, then you probably need to put a warning in case there are elderly cachers with weak hearts. You don't want to read about someone getting a coronary over your hide

Nothing more annoying than seeing nothing more than a lazy "TFTC" log entry for a hide that took days to set up, fabricate, hide, then write up and publish Many caches ago I stopped using abbreviations entirely, and I try to include something - anything - to say about the find. Even the most mundane find can include something like "perfect day to be out caching" or "thank you for the exercise and fresh air". If you don't have time to take 30 seconds and type something more interesting and appreciative than "TFTC", you need to look into taking "Time Management" classes at the local junior college

I came across one 3 days ago. The hide had been underwater after a heavy rain. I placed a fresh new logbook in the cache, in a new sealed small ziplock bag. I also placed the soggy log in its original bag in the cache and noted it in the log entry. Subsequent cachers said the new log is still nice and dry A couple months ago I had come across another one that had been underwater, and that time I didn't have a spare logbook. I put a slip of dry paper in the cache and sealed the wet logbook inside a new ziplock bag, dried out the inside of the cache, and noted it in the log entry. that one stayed dry too. The CO later replaced it.

Probably the most embarrassing DNF was one that was an ammo can hidden in one of the state parks here. It's a classic case of being fixated too much on the GPSr and not eyeballing the area. It was one of my earlier finds and I hadn't gotten much experience yet. I looked all over, and my GPSr said the thing was on the other side of a low fence. Knowing that caches usually aren't placed where fences need to be hopped, and especially since there was a sign saying to stay out of the area - the only access path around behind the display wall near the tree - that didn't require I hop the fence: Not wanting to violate the park's rules, and being still wet behind the ears as a geocacher, I gave up and went on to the other 8 or 9 I had on the list. I would periodically check in on the cache page and read the logs, and everyone else was calling it an "easy find" and "it jumped right out at me". I was thinking to myself "How the heck did I miss it? Everyone else is finding this thing, but I gave up on it!!" I always snap a few pics of every hide I go after, and I had snapped a few showing how impossible this one was to reach. I posted to that effect in my DNF at the time. So I went back and reviewed the pic of where the GPRr said it was, and lo and behold, there it was in the picture - sitting there out in the open Here's a zoomed area of the base of that tree behind the low fence: If I had stopped looking at my GPSr and just glanced at the tree, I would have seen it So I went back, and there was a park employee there. I identified myself as a geocacher and asked if I could step over the low fence for the cache. She said "Sure. No problem". It's now a smiley By far the most embarrassing

Attach a cord to the top and just loop it over a branch stub on the main trunk about 4 or 5 feet off the ground. Here's a nicely done one I found a few months ago. It was hung from a branch. Although it was mounted lower than I would have hung it, it was good craftsmanship. You remove the dowels at the bottom and the 4x4 tupperware and a bottom panel drop out. Perfect for high-muggle areas. Some local teacher had her 3rd grade class make it, and then go out and hide it I've also made a couple of smaller birdhouse caches, of which one is in the wild now. It's also hung from a branch stub.

I don't understand the appeal either. But I also won't EVER wear plaid or shave with an electric. Different strokes .... That's the nice thing about geocaching - you can make it whatever you want. Whatever melts your butter

The DNF is an activity. The log records activity. If you didn't find it on that day, the DNF is valid. Unless you go back in time and change history, you shouldn't delete the DNF. Cache owners use the finds and the DNFs to gauge if their difficulty factor is correct or not. A cache that's a 1.5 difficulty that has 35 finds and 50 DNFs is seriously underrated. Remove an old DNF and you're skewing the numbers.

"I found it!" works well for me.

yes this was a great read..is muggles pronounced like mug or moog? Like mug.

Hiding adds another facet to geocaching that has its own benefits. I happen to really enjoy researching a potential hide spot, thinking about a unique and memorable container and a name for it, going out and placing it, then creating a fun cache page. The fun continues when you get appreciative and interesting log entries. There is no set "ratio" to maintain. Mine is currently 7.4 finds per hide, but at one time it was 5 or 6. I've seen lower ratios, and I've also seen cachers with 1,000 finds that haven't hidden any. Placing hides is the flipside of finding. There would be no finds without hides, and placing hides are a way to contribute to the sport to everyone's benefit - "giving back" to the sport. The cachers who have a gazillion finds and no, or few hides are taking more out of the sport than they're putting back, in my opinion. On the other hand, there is a downside to cachers feeling they must put hides out there, but don't really want to. The result is usually really crappy hides that are so unimaginative they look like they've been tossed from the window of a moving vehicle. I've found caches where instead of a container, it was just a scrap of paper in a small baggie. One find was a cut-down post-it note pad shoved inside a balloon and stuffed in a crack inside a dark storm drainage tunnel Don't hide just for the sake of increasing your hide numbers. Make it interesting and put some care into the hide location, and the container. Make it a somewhat scenic spot with something unique or interesting for the finder to enjoy. Very true. There is some work involved in maintaining hides - log replacements, repairs, even total replacements when a muggle or a small animal makes off with the container. I've had maybe 4 hides where the cache has gone missing because of muggles, and another 3 where little animals have kyped the container. I've also had nature destroy a hide or two. These all require a return visit to the hide to correct the situation. But hiding can be just as fun as finding. If you feel mischievous, make a hide a multicache with a puzzle that must be solved for the first stage coordinates. One cache I placed had the finder solve for the missing vertex of an equilateral triangle. Another has them looking up local facts on Wikipedia to get the coordinates. Here's a portion of the puzzle part: It's easily done once you have the hide coordinates. Not everyone likes puzzle caches, and it won't get the activity a traditional will, but there are some who absolutely love the extra challenge. A multicache is another variety that adds some challenge. You can make it a multistage with each stage within walking distance of each other, but with progressively more difficult stages. Or you can combine a puzzle with a multi by requiring solving a puzzle at each stage in order to get the coordinates for the next. The possibilities are endless

Whoa. Hold on a second. I never said I removed a cacher's signature from the log. I'm talking about the random pile of soggy business cards that are usually stuck to the inside of ammo cans. They're nit "signature items" of any worth, like a ceramic custom coin with the cacher's sig. They're paper advertising, and if the cacher who left it was counting on that business card being the same as a log signature, they need a refresher in the guidelines. The same goes for leaving anything of a commercial nature - advertising, etc. That's also contrary to the guidelines. I'm never entertained by laziness, sloppiness or anything that diminishes the sport. But you're free to get a chuckle from it all you want. I'll continue to clean such trash from caches when I come across it

Probably the type of swag that irritates me the most are expired coupons, old food items like stale candy or gum, and someone's business cards. Like I really want a business card from someone who sells orthopedic shoes or soy burgers When I see such trash I do a little CITO on the hide.

Find numbers are of limited value when considering the "geosense" one develops. Someone who has found 10 very difficult and creative hides is far more experienced than someone who has found 50 lamppost skirtlifters. Experience is about quality, not quantity

The Etrex yellow has a "compass mode" which is fine for geocaching. First you need to enter the coordinates of the cache, which can be done one of two ways: Create a waypoint using the "Mark" function on the menu, then edit it changing the coordinates to the geocache coordinates or ... Download the cache waypoint from your PC using the serial cable. This can be a problem for newer PCs that don't have a serial port. In that case you will need to get a USB-to-Serial adapter. Do a forum search and you should be able to find a good one reasonably priced that someone has linked to. Once the waypoint is in your GPSr, select it, then "Go To". Cycle your pages until it's showing the compass mode, and you should see the arrow showing the direction, and a distance indicator. Exactly how you set up your pages display on your unit should be covered in the manual, but while setting it up, MAKE SURE you're using WGS84 datum and "DD MM.MMMM" (degrees, minutes, decimal minutes) for the display mode in order to be compatible with geocaching.com Good luck!

The first time you go out somewhere with your wife, and instead of listening to her, you're eyeballing all the good hide locations along the way and mentally figuring the difficulty and terrain ratings ......you're no longer a noob

I don't think the rubber coming off is an issue unless you mistreat the unit - leaving it on your dashboard on a 90 degree day, mishandling it, etc. I've had my Venture HC for 10 months now and it still looks like new. I use a neoprene window case with a caribiner for my cache hunts and that seems to protect it very well.

I KNEW it! A lamppost skirtlifter!

I've never received an FTF prize because I've never been the FTF for any cache. It's something that doesn't interest me a bit. But early on when I was still learning the ropes, I used to put FTF prizes in. Things like USB-to-Mini USB cables for GPSr units, stereo earbuds, a miniature toolset, rare earth magnets for making magnetic cache containers, a few bucks cash, etc. But most of the time the prize is ignored, and rarely acknowledged. So I stopped doing it, and I haven't heard any negative comments. I think FTF prizes are not expected, since for the FTF hounds, the +1 FTFs is THE prize.

As usual, the "What is the best geocaching handheld" topic yields many replies, usually people plugging the model they own themselves I think the wise thing to do is to hold off on investing in an expensive GPSr and see if geocaching will be an enduring hobby/activity for you. It's tempting to plunk down $400 or $500 and get a "gee whiz" model that gives you real-time satellite images, tells you how full your car's gas tank is, and predicts the weather. But the truth is, all you really need to effectively geocache is a basic model, and if you plan to cache in areas with tree cover, get one with a high-sensitivity receiver. There are several available for $100 - $120 (even less if you buy used or refurbished on Ebay) that will get you every bit as close as the gee whiz model, and probably not burn through batteries as fast Wait until you've got experience and are sure geocaching is something you'll want to be doing a year or two from now. Otherwise, if you buy it and your interest drops off, you'll glance at that fancy GPSr sitting in your sock drawer unused, and mentally kick yourself for spending so much. Also, you will develop a particular style of geocaching that may not be entirely realized with the "gee whiz" model. Learn the basics of geocaching first and develop skills using a simpler model. You can always "trade up" later, and the available models then will be even better than they are today, and probably cheaper too Don't overwhelm yourself with a model that has a huge, steep learning curve, and features that you might not want or need for your particular style of geocaching. For what it's worth