StumblinMonk
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Posts posted by StumblinMonk
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On 8/21/2018 at 10:07 AM, Fugads said:
To throw out a contrary opinion to most of the previous responses: I have seen folks fill in previous finders on a replacement logsheet where the cache is one that requires special effort to find. High D/T ratings, tough puzzle that kind of thing. In these cases, the logsheet becomes a list of the "elite" who went through the effort to find this crazy cache, and I do not fault COs for wanting to maintain the physical list. As a finder of some of these, I appreciate this gesture by the CO, it makes me smile. But it is a pretty silly gesture when you think about it.
So I'd say, if you want to have the replacement log show all the previous finders, go for it.
This is kind of what I was thinking, but my cache is not one that fits this model. This one is a very simple, off trail cache.
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There is an app that I use for hunting called On X Hunt. One of the map layers shows land owners. When I downloaded it there was a 30 day trial, after that this part is a pay feature. I only needed it to identify a few areas, figure out who to address the letter to and move on. I forget what the fee is, but it was more than I thought I needed to spend.
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Is it bad that I have a couple caches out there that are plenty large enough to hold swag, but I do not put anything but a logbook in it?
I noticed that most I was finding was kids meal junk, and it was more for my kids to trade. I do plan to add some custom items in time, but just a log for now.
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12 hours ago, MNTA said:
You may want to move it to higher ground so to speak if the area supports it.
It is fairly high to begin with. We have been washed out the last month with a ton of rain. It is being replaced with an ammo can, so I hope it will not disappear as easily.
Thank you all for the input.
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I went to do some cache maintenance tonight, and I cannot find one of my hides. After the recent weather, and the washout in the area of the hide I am not that surprised. Do any of you make any attempt to preserve the original paper log? Would you print the one of the cache page and leave or just start fresh?
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6 hours ago, hzoi said:
Speaking as an active duty officer as well as a recent ammo can purchaser, I'm not sure the military is that concerned about lot numbers. I picked up a half pallet of ammo cans from a Defense Re-utilization and Marketing Office (DRMO) sale last year. I don't recall a concerted effort to black out lot numbers, though I may be misremembering. (I'd check, but the 20 cans I have left are with the rest of my household goods, somewhere between Virginia and Germany.)
Certainly, if you look at the videos that Government Liquidation (that is, DRMO) has posted on Youtube, you can see lot numbers clearly displayed.
Might be due to the fact that I get mine pre-DRMO.... The Ord-O just asks that we cover the lot #s. not the first one I have heard it from either.
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On 8/16/2018 at 7:45 PM, Jayeffel said:
How would I clean ammo boxes before painting them? Mostly to get around the original printing which may bother some people.
On others that I have painted, I just spray right over what is there. The only think that the military cares about is having the lot number covered. If your supplier is not military direct and you are buying them, I would not worry.
I use the above mentioned camo paints from krylon. I spray a base green over the lot #s, and I make my own stencils by printing on card stock and cutting it out. When I spray the stencil I usually use a contrasting color to the green, but still a camo color. Light tan on green is easily read, but does not stick out like white paint.
On 8/17/2018 at 11:47 AM, Wet Pancake Touring Club said:Search for "giant mousetrap cache". A giant mousetrap, with the ammo can (painted yellow to look like cheese) as the bait. WVTim has a YouTube video that talks about the construction details.
I have seen this, and had thoughts of doing something similar. I do not think I could get that into an area that would be fun to find, easy enough to access and legal right now. I am looking to buy a property that backs up to a nature area and if that happens I will leave it on my land but
10 hours ago, Bundyrumandcoke said:What is it with all these little rectangular ammo cans. Get yourself a real one.
https://img.geocaching.com/cache/log/large/8c8a9aa4-d7df-4ebc-b54b-5841eea90105.jpg
from one of the trails.
I have a couple. I need to have a few easier to acquire cans last before I trust one of these to the wilderness.
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I recently came into another pile of ammo cans, 12 to be exact, of varying sizes (I was going to post a pic of the pile, but have not covered the lot numbers yet). Does anyone have any interesting ideas they would be willing to share? I want to hide a bunch of these, but I do not want to just throw a can under a tree somewhere.
I have a couple hides out now that I am going to replace the containers on because I suspect one was lost in recent storms and the other is harder to find and had a string of DNF due to its size and surroundings.
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Be patient and look on sites like craigslist or letgo. I found an Oregon 550 for under $100. I have, and use both phone and GPS. The nice thing to me is that the GPS is a little more durable and I do not mind handing it to my kids to follow, rather than the $800 cell phone option.
I have been thinking about getting myself one, but have not pulled the trigger yet. I am on the fence because it looks like the newer ones can connect to your phone so they have the same functionality as the app, and the need to download is gone. I have to plan a head when we use our current GPS
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I would make it a multi or puzzle that require going to the place of interest first to complete the cache. Another option is one of those devious hides that look like a bolt head or anything similar that would fit the surroundings. Last option is micros, but apparently everyone hates micros.
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My boys are 8 and 3. We use this as a family exercise activity, and an excuse to get them outside more frequently. We make a day of it one the weekends when there is nothing else happening. The last trip we had we logged 4 finds, and 9 miles of hiking. We packed a lunch and ate after one of the finds that we knew would not have any muggles near by.
We are lucky enough here that the small and micro caches are not all just bison tubes, but often a fun something hidden that pertains to the cache name.
I made an account for my oldest so he can log his finds, and I had a couple stamps made of his user name for "signing" logs because his handwriting is terrible. I found a use handheld on craigslist for dirt cheap, so I program that before going out as well, so he has his own device. This way he can be the finder with a little support, and not my new phone.
My kids are also into the swag side of it, so I tell them they have to swap, not just take. I try to monitor what they take though to keep with the equal or lesser idea.
I made the mistake of introducing my oldest to a trackable, that has turned into a new part of the game for him.
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Ticks are a regular part of life here. I am in the county with the highest rate in the state with the highest rate of Lyme. Ticks gross me out, and with all that we have tried we simply stick to pants, and sleeves while caching. When we got home we change clothes and tick check. We have a homemade spray that we use on our kids and dog, I do not think it is that great, but my wife seems to like it (pasted below).
I also believe that it is similar to hunting. I use a lot of scent free things, and often do not see many on me. I may not smell pretty, but I also do not have a bug issue.
As for the poison ivy mentioned above, I keep dish soap in the shower in season. It is the oils that cause the irritation, so if properly washed away in time they do not cause the rash.
Homemade Tick and Insect Repellent – Try this simple recipe. Just mix and apply to exposed skin before heading outdoors:
- 9 drops citronella essential oil
- 6 drops Tea Tree essential oil
- 6 drops Peppermint essential oils
- 1 tablespoon almond oil or jojoba oil
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I would glue and maybe spray on a clear coat to try up the water proofing. I agree though, I see it going missing very quick, I would make it a 3/3 at a minimum to try dissuade non premium users
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I have been using plastic jars and pill bottles that I am painting. I agree with what was said above in that they seem to all get wet inside. I am bagging the log inside it in hope that this helps. I also live very close to the ones I have places already, as in I run past them several times a week, and do not mind if I need to replace them. I have a few ammo cans that I am going to start placing soon.
It is getting into garage sale season, that is a great place to find ammo cans. I have been offered some outrageous prices for mine though, so know your local market/availability
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On 5/3/2018 at 8:01 PM, cerberus1 said:
No offense, but when I see posts like this, I wonder whether any caches had permission. I'd be surprised if the local Reviewer didn't already get a copy of this post.
We know of a couple parks that because of people who never bothered to ask, they now don't care to have any caches on their property. Ruins it for responsible, respectful cachers who'd improve the hobby by interacting with landowners ("we help clean up your park with what we call CITO" is one...) .
HAHAHA. I contacted the local township to get permission for placing 1-3 in various parks for a scout event I am planning. The response was "We need to bring this up at a council meeting, no one has ever requested permission that I am aware of". There are a lot of caches in the area, and all types too.
I cannot believe that no one has ever asked, but more that it has not been asked since this person was in the role. Most in the area are placed by a few, and after they get a similar response I doubt they followed up with anymore requests.
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7 hours ago, on4bam said:
It may not be dead but it seems it's being killed. While maintaining my database I noticed a series of caches with 500+ favorites each (and having seen the CO's work before I'm sure they were well worth it) being archived by "Geocaching HQ admin", locking the listing in the process. These were not recently places caches and there is nothing in the logs that even hints to problems which makes this very strange.
Oh well, someone will come around and throw some P&G micros around this new freed up space
I am fairly new to this hobby, but am engrossed and enjoying it. There are a few near me that are in disrepair that I wish someone would kill so I can replace one at better GZ. One in a power-line field near me comes to mind where it was under a bush that the power company removed, so now there is a blue ammo can on the ground in a field.
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I have seen the sharpie method used a lot, I am a fan of masking off the area and spraying it. I commented in your micro cache thread with one of my containers I made. If it is a "Lock and Lock" type make sure you are using the plastic paint. I add the logo and either name or ID# on the outside and leave the printable instructions inside on top of the log. Make sure the instructions can be easily removed. I found one this weekend that I had to use tweezers to get them out, and only pulled it because I was curious as to what was at the bottom.
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1 hour ago, redsox_mark said:
Either caches are in better shape where I am than where you are, or I'm better at filtering. I would say at least 80% of the caches I find meet those criteria.
Similar state here as well. There are a few cachers in my area that have a lot of hides, and they are all properly maintained, and there is some junk mixed in between. Finding the nicer ones makes the bad not a big deal.
The one that my pictures are from above has not been seen since November, and it looks like someone was in there organizing and dusting last week.
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17 hours ago, thebruce0 said:
What you'll very quickly find about geocaching is that of the hundreds or thousands you find, you'll always end up with a handful of gems that make it all worthwhile. We don't necessarily go geocaching for the amazing experience of every single geocache, but we look forward to those unexpected times when we stumble upon a wonderful, a beautiful location, a friendly fellow cacher, or a unique personal experience. We cache for those moments, not every single smiley (at least most of us do after a while, I think
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I found one in a nature area, across the street from my house, in an area I hunt. I had no idea that this area existed and I have spent days in these woods. This past weekend we went to a park we used to go to a lot and found even more cool areas. I take my whole family so we all feel the good and the bad. I let my kids do the swag thing, and I leave trinkets from time to time, but I try make it about the trip through nature, not the contents of the can, and my boys have started to evolve to that.
37 minutes ago, L0ne.R said:This is what I really want to do, focus on gems.
I want to find family-friendly caches. With a focus on responsible active hiders that produce gems--maintained, swag-size containers in nice locations.
All caches are family friendly if you are willing... Big one 8 little one 3, dog 18 months
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1 hour ago, CAVinoGal said:
It's not a hobby that appeals to everyone .....
We have a couple friends asking to join us almost every weekend, and I have to kind of plan for them. My 8 year old gets mad too because we cannot do anything "fun" when they are with us because they whine about it being hard. This past weekend I had to tell them we were having some family time, but they were welcome to get their own account/GPSr, I would use old phones for my tag-a-longs. I knew they would not be up for what I had in mind.
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On 4/25/2018 at 7:34 PM, 321geocache said:
I replaced the cache today. I decided to hide the cache in a tree. You can walk around the tree a hundred times without knowing there's a cache there. I won't say exactly how it's hidden, as someone might see the hint in a post and find it immediately. I did use one of the suggestions that was mentioned in this topic by a member.
Thanks for the help everyone! Hopefully this cache will last for a long time.
I found this shotgun shell pushed into a drilled out hole. If it was placed with the hole down I would have taken a lot longer to find it, noticed the metallic striker fairly quick though.
Under a tree, in a field in a huge park. Plenty of muggles around.
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On 4/27/2018 at 11:20 PM, CAVinoGal said:
I feel I need to weigh in on this - both as a geocacher and a scout leader. I am a counselor for the Boy Scout Geocaching Merit Badge for our local council. I have taught (along with my husband, also a local scouter and MB counselor) a class or two on Geocaching at our District Roundtable. Only one of the requirements for the badge needs an account; there is no requirement to either hide or maintain a geocache. Although it is one of the alternative requirements (for boy scouts - I can't say for girl scouts) a scout can earn the badge without placing their own cache. As a Counselor, i would not encourage the placing of a cache unless this particular scout was already an avid geocacher. The alternatives are simpler, and less likely to result in an abandoned hide.
I have seen several scout placed caches that are poorly maintained - once a scout earns the badge, the cache is forgotten in many cases. I currently have in my possession a trackable released by a scout group as a merit badge requirement - and I intend to visit it to local caches and eventually take it to an ammo can at a BSA council office on the east coast that I have previously visited, and drop it off. A trackable release is an alternate requirement to placing a cache, and this seems much more doable for a scout or group - release it, watch it for a few months, and then it's out there.
The whole intent of merit badges is to encourage scouts to explore various fields, which may lead to an eventual career or a lifelong hobby. The merit badge is an introduction to the hobby, and therefore does not require a long term committment to earn the badge. There are options that do involve a longer term committment, and as a geocacher myself, I would only advise those alternatives IF the scout was already very involved in geocaching.
Caveat: This applies only to the Boy Scout merit badge; I don't know what the GSA merit badge entails!
I found a great place for a 1/1 cache in a local park, and have already obtained permission from the township. I am going to place under my account on behalf of the pack. Hopefully a .50 cal can stays for a while and is not stolen.
Since getting more into this hobby, I have looked into the merit badge for scouts and am going to add it to the list that I can support. I saw the alt req to place a cache, and have come up with a few ideas to support it. After placing my first couple I have to admit there is a certain level of excitement that comes with people finding it and getting those automatic emails.
This past weekend I was out with my family, took a bunch of pictures and my wife posted them to social media. The friends that have been asking to come along have since stopped. We had to cross a creek on a fallen tree
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45 minutes ago, K13 said:
I suggest when teaching the Cub Scouts, stress the guidelines and emphasize "Trade Even or Trade Up", "Leave No Trace (a thing that was a part of the Cub Program a few years ago when I was a Leader)", and "Cache In Trash Out".
I wouldn't mention setting out a cache, but I would stress that the caches out there are owned by people like you, not "the game company".
I was going to try find a way to use CITO to clean up a park and use it as a teaching point there. As for creating a cache, My initial thought was to have each den make one, but now I think I am going to use one of my larger ammo cans and ask them to contribute swag for it, and name it after the pack.
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42 minutes ago, L0ne.R said:
Some swear they loved the activity but wouldn't go caching unless I went. And wouldn't download the app (or get a gps) or create an account. I question whether they really like geocaching. One latched on and tried to be a BFF. Can you tell I'm introverted?
I have one of these as well. She and my wife are good friends, so I have a tough time dodging her since I am not the one to invite. Her husband is into it, but they do not want to shell out the $30 for the premium account. There is a very limited sample near me for free, so they asked for my login info. I gave them the basic I have for my son, and let him create his own new one.
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Has geocaching changed the way you are experiencing your environment?
in General geocaching topics
Posted
For me this started as a way to get my kids off the couch and in nature. Now my oldest has our main account that we log all our finds on. In the first couple times out we learned a lot about a nature area across the street from our home. It has put my family in situations that I do not believe they would attempt without the goal of a smiley in mind, last fall we had to cross about a 60' wide creek on a fallen tree. I am also using this hobby as a training tool of sorts. We are planning a Disney trip in a few months and I am getting my kids used to being out on their feet for extended periods, so 5 days in the parks is not a complete physical shock to them.
To make this even more fun, I have taken Cub Scout groups out in areas I have found and families that have lived in the area for generations did not know of some of the cool places this has taken me.