Wooden Cyclist

Ammo cans and Lock & Locks are proven performers.

Homebru and Sudsy hit that milestone here in Michigan last month. How many cachers have hit that milestone? It has to be a pretty exclusive club.

I had a similar experience recently and it taught me to take a few breaths before writing something negative in a log. A new cache popped up. The listing said that it was a micro in a city park. Micros aren't my favorite type of cache but I do like caches in parks. When I got there I found that the cache wasn't actually in a park. There was a "trail" that lead out of the park. Its actually the area that is kept clear for the power lines that run along the "trail". As I got closer to GZ the amount of garbage and trash increased. Old tires, bottles, empty chemical containers, used diapers, broken furniture, you name it, it was there. After searching for about 3 minutes I left. In my DNF log I wrote, " I searched for a few minutes but lost interest because looking for a micro tossed out along a trash strewn trail is not my idea of fun". The CO emailed me through my profile saying "I don't know if you were having a bad day, but there was no reason to put that in a log. Next I received notice that he had deleted my log. If it stopped there I wouldn't have cared much, but the CO sent me another email saying that he was offended by my comments and that he had intended the hide to be a CITO opportunity. He hadn't mentioned anything about CITO in the cache description. This story still doesn't stop there, In response to the rash of micro hides and the lack of hides using larger containers, another cacher and I hid a series of caches called the Old School Cache series. There are 10 caches hidden in or near 7 different towns. All are regulars hidden in a natural setting, mostly in the woods. The series has been very well received by the local cachers and the logs have been a joy to read, until the CO of the garbage micro logged his find. He and a friend of his claimed that my hide near his town needed CITO. There is no trash anywhere near the cache and no other logs make any mention of trash or garbage. The other cacher sent me another email telling me that my series lacked any amount of originality and that I as a hypocrite. The first cache in the series is GC267XJ Old School Cache #1 - Niles. There are links to the other caches in the series listed in the caches description. I haven't replied to any of the other cacher's emails and I don't intend to . Thanks for letting me ramble on. It was therapeutic.

I criticized someones hide in my log. It upset the CO so much that he is now logging critical and inaccurate logs on some of my caches.

Does the MnGCA have regional or local chapters? If so, you might be able to start a chapter in your area.

I can't wait to look for them. The containers on your current caches are unique, but moss covered concrete would be a whole new experience.

Cover Operations. Seems like a good way to describe the actions we take when we are looking for a caches that have the Stealth Required attribute.

Hitting 1000 changed the game for me. I no longer feel the need to find every cache within 50 miles of my house. Caches that look interesting, challenging or fun catch my attention, the others don't. I also am trying to "become part of the change I want to see" by not hiding micros unless nothing else will work in a very place that would be interesting to visit.

Other geocachers are supposed to keep an eye on caches. If you know of one that the owner is not maintaining then log an NA.

I log all of my finds and most of my DNF's. My son stopped logging his finds almost a year ago. He is 10 years old and doesn't want to use up his computer time by logging finds. He does, however, enjoy tramping around the woods looking for caches and checking out the contents and logs in cache containers.

MiGo (Michigan Geocachers Organization) has this. MiGo Rescue Mission Its our way of making sure that archived caches don't become goetrash.

I'll add my endorsement for the Otterbox Defender case. I have dropped my phone on rock, concrete, mud and slush without my BlackBerry Curve getting damaged. I do carry insurance but have never had to use it.

It can also be done with a hacksaw and a drill.

A 5/5 multi was published in our area last week. The decoys were not only fun they were very helpful. Stage one was a relatively standard find. Stage the final was a bison tube about 45 feet high in a large pine tree. There are 2 decoys in the pine tree. One of the aspects of this hide that makes it difficult is that there are two other large pine trees near GZ. By finding one of the decoys lower in the tree the seeker knows that they are looking in the right tree and won't waste time climbing one of the other trees. The other decoy is farther up the tree, about halfway to the final. Again by finding the decoy you know you are on the right track. Its like being told that you are getting a new care for your 16th birthday and getting a hotwheels car with a note telling you to look in the garage for your real car. It's like being asked on a date with someone you have been fascinated with and then getting a note stating that they are running late and will meet you soon. Don't be surprised if someone mentions in their log that they appreciated the decoy. It's happened to me. I hid a cache in a tree. The spot was tricky to find. I placed a decoy in an obvious spot with a note that said "Keep looking, your close but its not that easy". Several people told me that they got a laugh out of the decoy.

It depends on they type of wood you are working with. Pre-stain treatments are only effective on soft woods. When choosing a stain color keep this in mind, if you choose a color that is drastically different from the woods natural color, scratches and other damage will be more visible. As the wood gets scratched and gouged from use the light color of the wood will be exposed. If you use a natural or very light colored stain it will enhance the natural color of the wood and not get as worn looking as fast as a contrasting stain will. Personally I like to pick wood that has color and characteristics that are appealing then use some natural danish oil or tung oil to enhance that natural beauty of the wood.

While preparing for a trip out of state I realized that I would probably make my 1000th find, so I made a wooden sig token to leave in the milestone cache. I realized after I was on the road for about 5 hours that I had forgotten the token.

A baggie containing a man's necklace, some cuff links and a note that said " The well dressed man gets the (insert slang for female body part here)". I took it out and disposed of it.

I'm sorry, but I think you've misconstrued the intent of my question. Feels so strongly? I asked a question. Overreact much? My cache has a request on it. Logs that don't follow that request don't get deleted. No nasty emails sent. I simply put another GC in there. No biggie. The fact that it's Premium Members Only simply helps ensure that the cachers that find my cache are those of the quality variety. Too many people not willing to support the Groundspeak sites lose TBs, and/or get caches muggled in my area. However, you're welcome to think as you like. Quite honestly, I don't care. Too many rules, regulations, and big headed opinions will make geocaching not fun for a lot of people, and I have no intention of being a part of that problem. If you think that adding too many rules will make geocaching not fun for a lot of people why are you adding rules to your caches?

A CO in SW MI had quite a few NM logs on his hides because of his faulty containers. He posted an apology saying that his wife was ill so he didn't have the time to do maintenance. But today he logged an FTF 20 miles from his home and had a new cache published. Guess he has his priorities.

Use leather cord, it's natural and fits better to a wooden hiking stick. Comes in many many colors. You should find it in mostly every craft store. Use small metal staples or cramps to fix the leather cord to the stick. You might want to to try using paracord. I attached mine using french whipping. It provides a very good grip and you can remove it easily if you get into a situation that requires some rope. I can't wait to see what Bitsen will say about french whipping.

I hid GC2105W This Is Only A Test to test a cheap Lock & Lock knockoff. Its been out since November 13 so I can't say the results are in, but it spent at least 2 months covered with snow.. The latest log states that the contents are dry. So far so good.

Most of the Letterbox Hybrids I have found were at the posted coordinates. One was different in that it put the starting point at the parking area and then listed directions and clues to the hiding spot. That was an added dimension that our group greatly enjoyed.

I guess there are two items to address here. First, thank you for taking the time to list the missing trackables as missing. Moving trackables is something I enjoy and it is always a disappointment to open a cache and find that the listed trackables are missing. Second. Your case for converting micro haters to micro lovers didn't sway me. I don't hate micros, but I do prefer larger containers. Maintenance of a cache goes with being the owner of a cache. The amount of time used to maintain most caches isn't all that bad. So far I haven't had to list any trackables as missing, but I am sure that will come in time. If you look at the list of caches that I own, you will see that more than 50% are micros. That is about to change. To commemorate my 1000th find I have made a goal to become the change that I want to see. My next five hides will not be micros. That will be followed by a series of ten letterbox hybrids hidden at the request of the manager of several nature preserves that are located across SW Michigan. This hobby of ours benefits from caches of all sizes being hidden, but I feel that a nicely hidden small, regular or large caches add more to the enjoyment of Geocaching than a well hidden micro.

Thanks for the directions in your P.S. I haven"t run into that situation yet, but I was wondering how to handle it.

and if you perform a phoon in the photo you're allowed not to submit any answers at all? Hey, I like that idea. Bet Geoware wouldn't think very highly of it though.