Shiggaddi

The best idea is to look at when the trackables were placed in the cache. If it was only a few days ago, then it's not unreasonable to wait a few days for people to log their finds, especially if they're on holiday and with limited or no internet. I was on holiday to London at the weekend, and bought a trackable to place into any decent sized caches (there are some around in amongst the nanos), and when I got back home the next day to log my finds, I found that the trackable had been grabbed from me before I could drop it off. It hadn't even been 24 hours.

There is also the recently published Halo series in Cornwall. There are a few who completed it in a day. There are over 100 caches in the series, plus quite a few others which don't divert from the route. One thing that I discovered when doing a high number in a day, and that was when caching by myself, it would be handy to have company to speed things up a little. It can take a good few minutes of searching, but with more people searching, the cache is found quicker. It it a wise idea for the finder to be last to sign the log and replace, as they know the hiding place better, whilst in the meantime other people will be on the way to the next cache. If this saves say a minute per cache, then times that by 100 and you've saved 100 minutes (1 hour and 40 minutes) which could be the difference between getting 100 finds or not getting them.

Some interesting arguments about multi caches here. I personally do think that a multi cache and a power trail are 2 different things. I did once do a walk where the CO set the start point which was a film pot, then in the film pot were the co-ords for another film pot, but it was the 4th location which was the final and it was a bigger cache. Some of the film pots were placed less than 500ft together. The more appropriate use of the multi cache would be taken to a war memorial or the sign outside a church etc and collect numbers from the writing and the final is only a short walk away. I've done a few where I'm taken to a few places of interest very close together and then use the collected numbers to work out the final. At the end of the day, it is up to the cache owner how they wish to present their cache. Personally I'm a bit put off by multis that have more than 4-5 stages as I've come across situations where I'm asked to obtain some information and it could be interpreted differently, or it's been removed etc. When that happens, it's then back to the start, do not pass go, do not collect the find. On a power trail, I would just carry on to the next cache, and depending on the number missing, maybe still attempt the bonus or maybe not. Also, not all power trails have a bonus, so the worse that can happen is 1 DNF and 15 finds. There will always be disagreements on what a cache should be, as everyone thinks differently. I personally think the multi that contained 3 film pots and a bonus should have been set as 2 caches (allowing for close proximity rule) and a bonus or 3 caches, but it was still a nice walk, and with not many multi or puzzle caches under my belt I was happy. At the end of the day both the multi and power trail do have their place, and if used sensibly then it only adds to the enjoyment of geocaching for all.

I wonder if someone is going to be lucky enough to get 61 FTFs, lol.

Not too far from Oxford then, where I'll be in July this year. I did have a look at the series, and although details would be nice, I have to admit when doing a large power trail like this, especially when the cache page is a repeat of the first page, I don't look at the cache page very often as I'm more concerned with completing the trail as quick as I can. I would look at the clue and if I'm searching with no luck, I would then look at previous logs and the cache description for any more help. At the end of the day, this series might be a lovely walk, and you won't know until you've done it. I felt that the CO put enough info on No. 1 that it's about what I'd expect in a power trail, although I'd keep my fingers crossed not to encounter the dog!!

Whilst I agree, the CO has definitely gone against the guidelines, it would be unfair for the cachers who have logged their find in good faith to be punished. It is not unusual for new caches to be published in time for an event to attract lots of people attending the event to also look for the new cache. If I was just a few caches off a milestone and a decision was taken to retract a cache about a week afterwards whilst in the meantime I finally celebrated that milestone, I would be pretty annoyed if my milestone wasn't the view from the top of the mountain that took an hour to climb, but instead the micro in the hedge on the way home.

Well, the Greeks do suffer from a lack of "cache"

I think you have a good point Colin about time spent at each cache. I usually cache by myself, and all it takes is a few caches that require alot of searching along with caches that are time consuming to replace and the time starts to rack up. In this scenario, people would be working as a team, so a small team of cachers would mean that as soon as a find is located, and the 1st person signs the log, they could head forward to the next cache and start the search whilst others are signing the log and replacing the cache. The person who signs the log last and replaces the cache would catch up in time and either sign the log for the next cache or if the next search requires more effort, they could join in the hunt. It would rotate between people on who goes ahead first, or who replaces the cache, but with a few people working together, the walk can progress quicker as the onward march towards the next cache can start before the previous cache can be re-hidden. This would only work with smallish teams, as 3-5 people waiting to sign a log is manageable as the person who is last won't be too far behind and can easily catch up for in time, but having 3-5 people join in a search for a tricky hide would reduce the search time. However if 25 people are waiting to sign a log, by the time the log gets passed round to the last person, the 1st person would already be at the next cache, and there would be too much waiting to make sure those at the back are kept in the loop as to what is happening at the front.

I'm happy to do both, but my favourite would be a nice circular walk in the countryside. Quite recently whilst travelling back home from a trip to London, I stopped just off the M3 and did a circular walk lasting about 3 hours and got about 25 caches. Although the walk was mainly countryside, the public footpaths were varied in that they passed by MOD training land, backs of housing estates, side by side with the noisy M3, including 2 bridges over the motorway, and through quiet woodland. It's amazing how sometimes a really nice countryside view with nobody around can be a 5 minute walk away from a town.

I've been asked a few times. Once, on the way to London I pulled off the A303 to do a few caches on some local roads before rejoining the A303. There was a cache tucked behind a road sign, and just as I finished putting the cache back and getting into my car, an Army Landrover pulled up, and a soldier asked what I was doing. I explained that I was geocaching and shown him the GPS. He accepted my reason, and just said that if they see anything suspicios, they need to check it up, and then said he had heard about geocaching.

Just read their log in that they hope to find many more. I hope they mean "find" rather than just turn up at a location and show something to prove they have been there.

Good luck with the planning, and look forward to hearing more about the event.

I've now managed to hit the 1200 mark. Hoping to get to that 2000 by the end of 2012.

It's a pity you didn't review my cache which I tried to set with exactly the same idea a couple of months back. I had it reviewed by Lindinus, but he said that requiring cachers to call a phone number, or visit a website to solve a cache puzzle was not allowed. I had put out 4 caches, 2 of which contained half the phone number needed, plus another traditional without any clues on, and the bonus cache (which I had named "phone a friend" but had to revert back to bonus) would be obtained by a voicemail message giving the final co-ords. In the end, I had to create a puzzle out of the 2 sets of digits left, to find the co-ords for the bonus, and although I chose a lovely area for a short walk, working out the bonus doesn't have the same edge as phoning for the bonus. The phone (or rather sim) used for this would only be used for the cache, and wouldn't be in everyday use.

Today marks the 100th anniversary of Roald Amundsen's FTF to the South Pole. If geocaching was around then, he'd be very happy with his FTF. Scott would have found it a few weeks later, and be gutted at being beaten to that FTF, but would never make it back to log his find. And a few years later, Shackleton would have logged a DNF, as his transport failed.

I always write the date, then my name. About a year ago, I started signing some logs by drawing a smiley face afterwards if space permitted, and that is now part of my normal signing process.

Congratulations to Hobo and Miss on their 4000th find!!

After reading the comments already, it seems more of an Exeter based forum, especially as you reach out to other outlying areas such as Okehampton or Seaton. I'm down in Plymouth, and there is a large community of geocachers down here as well. I go to as many local events as I can, especially our popular Stop the Clocks which attracts people from all over Cornwall and Devon, and a few further afield. I do like the idea of more Devon events, but I'd like to see more inclusion of Plymouth, and perhaps seeing you in person at Stop the Clocks in a few weeks.

Well, not so much a numerical milestone, but more of an achievement. I've now done the whole route of the Way Down West series with just 2 DNFs. In fairness, I did the North loop at the beginning of July, and the South loop on Sunday. The South loop was much harder work than I imagined, and it took 10 hours compared to just under 8 for the North loop. Was totally shattered by the end, and I've heard that some people can manage the whole lot in one day!!

As soon as I saw your post, and a circular drive on the Cotswolds, I went to check if it's the one that I'd done part of and it was. I done a few of the series as a C&D whilst travelling from where I was staying in London, on the way to the Wales Mega. It was good to find some nice caches to break up the journey.

There is also the question of what is defined as a "crappy cache" There are a few million people all over the world with geocaching accounts, and you can't please everyone. Everyone has pet hates, and everyone has their favourite type, and as long as the cache is maintained and in good condition, then I'm happy to find a lamp post micro, although I do much prefer a walk on a footpath leading to a scenic view and a cache to find with very few muggles around. However if the CO explains that it's just a micro attached to a lamp post, then there's no problem as people who hate this sort of cache can decide not to find it. However if a cache is placed around lots of rubbish and dog mess, the cache is waterlogged and damaged, and was just a broken ice cream container, and the owner hasn't logged in for 2 years, and the description says it's a nice walk in the park, is also rated a 1/1 even though wheelchair users would never be able to reach it, then I would certainly voice all my concerns in the log. Also, remember there's always cachers around who are trying to fill in their caching calender, or need a few more caches to reach a milestone, or people on a long journey will all appreciate sensibly placed C&Ds when they don't have the time for a longer walk.

There is also the question of what is defined as a "crappy cache" There are a few million people all over the world with geocaching accounts, and you can't please everyone. Everyone has pet hates, and everyone has their favourite type, and as long as the cache is maintained and in good condition, then I'm happy to find a lamp post micro, although I do much prefer a walk on a footpath leading to a scenic view and a cache to find with very few muggles around. However if the CO explains that it's just a micro attached to a lamp post, then there's no problem as people who hate this sort of cache can decide not to find it. However if a cache is placed around lots of rubbish and dog mess, the cache is waterlogged and damaged, and was just a broken ice cream container, and the owner hasn't logged in for 2 years, and the description says it's a nice walk in the park, is also rated a 1/1 even though wheelchair users would never be able to reach it, then I would certainly voice all my concerns in the log. Also, remember there's always cachers around who are trying to fill in their caching calender, or need a few more caches to reach a milestone, or people on a long journey will all appreciate sensibly placed C&Ds when they don't have the time for a longer walk.

I agree with the principle of something like 20, or even 100 finds before being allowed to set a cache, however I can see quite a few problems arising. 1. In the UK, in most areas it is possible to reach 100 easily, however in some countries, there's only 1 or 2 caches within 100 miles of the capital city. I think it would be reasonable to allow someone to set up an account and place a 3rd cache. 2. I recall from my visit to Mega Wales, one of the guest speakers was part of the local tourism board, and to encourage more people to visit a certain part of Wales, she looked into setting up geocaches, and the tourism board paid for a GPS, and she asked for advice on the forum. If organisations want to encourage tourism via geocaching, but can't do so because of the rules, then we'd be missing out on lots of good caches. Also, people do have different opinions on what makes a good cache. A nano hidden along a tarmac path at a back of a lamp post might not be everyone's cup of tea, but I'm sure wheelchair users would appreciate it. Newcomers also bring with them, their experience of favourite places. They might have a favourite spot or two in the countryside where it's quite a way to the nearest geocache. I've seen some newcomers place some really good caches, but they stop after a few, as they placed them in a few favourite places close to their home, and don't race to put out lots of bad quality caches.

Time to congratulate myself on the following milestones. First ever find outside the UK. First ever find in Spain. New record for find furthest West. New record for find furthest South. New record for find furthest away from home. But above all, I had a great holiday in Lanzarote!!

Be very careful about putting 1 cache into your GPS and going the distance, only to find it's been muggled or can't be found. I was trying to beat my record of days with consecutive finds, and with some time off work to visit family in London followed by the Wales Mega, I come back to Plymouth and still have a handful of local caches left thanks to new ones being published. However, after a day of having other things to do other than caching, and a plan to get just the 1 to keep me going, it ended up as a DNF. I had a backup plan, but that also resulted in a DNF, so instead of 13 days of consecutive finds, and the potential for even more, it stays at 12. The next chance I'll have at beating that record will probably be for the Cartmel Mega next year.