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J the Goat

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Posts posted by J the Goat

  1. Forgot one

    9) Use the Field Notes feature and upload all of your logs when you get home

     

    Here's another. Get a handheld GPS and use that for finding caches and keep the battery in the phone charged in case you need to make an emergency phone call.

     

    This one gets my vote as well. Hand held units can be bought pretty cheaply on the big name auction sites. Until then, the suggestions above are all really good ones.

  2. kudos for your newest cache-to-be...

    a suggestion perhaps for a hiking hide - while still using the smartphone for coordinates, please do try and get three

    different readings around the hide site for reference...also, you may want to try loading them into google or bing maps

    first, to see where they show up on the map actually is as close as you think they should be where you placed it...that will

    help get those coords closer to the actual GZ - ground zero - since you're using the phone, and please the ftf'ers who will be racing to find it... :smile:

     

    Online maps should only be used as another way to take a look at your cords after you place the cache and get good readings. They're not reliable at all, and shouldn't be used to verify anything. I'm also concerned about your container (although if its similar to what you're already using and you're maintaining well, go for it). Let me be the first to bring up the cell phone cords as well. Just be careful, I know there are a grip of folks who swear there's nothing wrong with using a smart phone to obtain cords for a hide, but in my experience they're always bad. Again, if you can get them on point, go for it.

     

    Your swag looks good. I'd cammo the container.

  3. Generally, there's more to the story than we get in the initial post on things of this nature. I'd suggest checking the cache pages again to make sure the proper boxes are checked and that there are no reviewer notes regarding changes that need to be made. After that, we or you or Bozo the Clown can assume all we want, but your best bet is to contact your reviewer. We can't do much for you here. Unless Keystone is feeling generous with his time. I anticipate more story here...

  4. I think the reviewer should be chastised for expressing his view as a reviewer in communication with the CO. Once the reviewers start publishing or not based on what their opinion of silly is, things are going to get ugly fast. Again, that's if there were no other communication between the two. If there was an email or note back to the reviewer that prompted such a remark, then I'm all for it.

     

    I'm just not sure how well the idea of chastising the volunteer reviewer for being human would work.

     

    To me it sounds like all stick - and no carrot which, even if we account only for the lack of vegetables in that diet - sounds decidedly unhealthy.

     

    Maybe you're right though - maybe we should stamp out any sign of human response as soon as we see it and have them held to account for speaking out - before it gets ugly. I'm pretty sure that won't cause the volunteer reviewers to become demotivated and find something better / more enjoyable to do with their time.

     

    I dare say GS could actually replace the reviewers completely - with a software program that, so long as the cache met the guidelines, would publish every cache quietly and efficiently without a single shred of emotion.

     

    Of course no software program could make sense of the numerous discrepancies and contradictions within the several parallel versions of the guidelines currently in service - so those would have to be re-written first. :ph34r:

     

    I'd actually rather see them treat more caches in general this way. It will create problems though. I feel like the reviewers publish garbage caches every day (not at all a knock at the reviewers, they're doing what they're paid to do :ph34r: ) many time without any suggestion at how silly/pointless/tedious/crappy the cache may be. I'd be interested to see if this reviewer has had similar communication with anyone else. As much as I dislike acknowledging it, the reviewers opinions are not in the cache placement guidelines. I know it mentions something about their years of experience and that playing some sort of factor, but if they're going to apply that little tidbit, it should be used far more often than it is.

  5.  

    I think this thread should be less about how you think about the OP's challenges, and more about the words in the reviewers response.

     

     

    I disagree - unless you think the reviewer should be chastised for having a view?

     

    Swap the word silly for the word complicated in the reviewer's comments and I'd say it's perfectly reasonable - although I can fully appreciate the use of the word silly.

     

    And yes - there probably is more to the story - there was even a vague suggestion of same earlier in the thread.

     

    I think the reviewer should be chastised for expressing his view as a reviewer in communication with the CO. Once the reviewers start publishing or not based on what their opinion of silly is, things are going to get ugly fast. Again, that's if there were no other communication between the two. If there was an email or note back to the reviewer that prompted such a remark, then I'm all for it.

     

    Either that, or allow them to comment like that on every cache listing they read. "It's silly to put a pill bottle under a lamp skirt across the parking lot from another pill bottle under a lamp skirt, what are you thinking?"

     

    So again, the OP's other caches have no bearing, or shouldn't, on the response he got from the reviewer on a newly submitted cache.

     

    I too appreciate the use of the word silly, but unless there's more to the story here, it shouldn't have been used. That's the topic, that's my opinion.

  6. Well, I'll side with both of them. I agree with the message the reviewer was trying to convey, however if the hides fall within the guidelines then the reviewer really has no reason not to publish the listing. They certainly shouldn't word the message that way.

     

    I think this thread should be less about how you think about the OP's challenges, and more about the words in the reviewers response.

     

    Just a couple more things. We all have bad days and say/type/send things that we later realize we shouldn't have. I'd be willing that either that's the case or...... There's more to this story than we're getting. Prior communication with the reviewer from the OP that warrants a snarky response maybe? Either of those things explains the message. I'm not leaning one way or the other, those are just the only two things I can think of that make sense.

  7. Let me throw my pair of pennies in the mix. I've found that hides in town are far more likely to be put there without any though or plan to maintain. My preference is to hunt caches on hiking trails, or even better, well off of hiking trails :anibad: They may not always be creative, but more often than not if someone puts a cache in a really nice location (nice view, nice hike, nice swimming hole), it's a better container and I enjoy finding it. Usually the spot is better than the cache itself, but who's gonna complain about a really nice spot?

     

    Just taking a quick look at the map around the area where you've found caches already, try this one or this one for something a little different.

  8. Poison oak runs rampant here, and rattlesnakes are fairly common if you cache where I like to. Bears are rare but present, and the occasional big cat makes it's way out of hiding. Otherwise, I either know from growing up here, or guess, or have no idea at all :laughing:

     

    It's something I'd like to be more knowledgeable about. That's why I'm excited about the iNaturalist. I just downloaded the app :D

     

    Awesome! I'll be sure to look for your observations and add an ID when I can, since I think our caching areas overlap somewhat. :D

     

    They most certainly do. Our caching buddies might even overlap a bit B)

  9. Poison oak runs rampant here, and rattlesnakes are fairly common if you cache where I like to. Bears are rare but present, and the occasional big cat makes it's way out of hiding. Otherwise, I either know from growing up here, or guess, or have no idea at all :laughing:

     

    It's something I'd like to be more knowledgeable about. That's why I'm excited about the iNaturalist. I just downloaded the app :D

  10. I led hikes as my job for 6 years, and am currently a biologist, so I generally feel pretty well-versed when I'm out caching, especially of plants, birds, herps, and marine critters (if I'm caching near the coast). Can definitely identify poison oak and stinging nettle, and rattlesnakes too... the things I want to avoid the most. :lol:

     

    A really great resource to get help identifying things you're seeing while you're out caching/hiking is iNaturalist - it's both an app and a online platform, you can take photos of what you're seeing and then the community helps you identify what it is... if it's a good enough photo, and if it's not so obscure that only a few people would know about it. :) It goes really well with caching, I've found, since it's all about geo-referenced observations.

     

    Hopefully it's useful to those who want to know more about what they're seeing while out in the nature!

     

    Thanks for the iNaturalist information. Looks interesting and I think I'll get a lot of use out of it.

     

    Ditto that, I'll use that a lot.

  11. Looks like it's a little bit near the parking lot for my taste as well.

     

    Between your reviewers denial, then GS's denial, and your accusatory attitude throughout this thread, I'd guess you're pretty well SOL when it comes to these caches being published. I think it's a shame, because if things are the way you describe them as far as the area is concerned then I think it would be an interesting little series of caches. Good luck in your future endeavors.

  12. Sounds about right reviewer think there all knowing probably told ground speak not to publish could have lied

     

    <_<:unsure:

     

    I sincerely hope that your reviewer sees this and keeps it in mind the next time you try to publish a cache. Bad form.

     

    The young lady ALWAYS has an interesting negative perspective. However, I don't think that would adversely influence a reviewer if her proposed hide is within guidelines. They are better than that.

     

    No, but they might be a little more "by the letter" if you will, to make sure the hide falls within the guidelines. She certainly shouldn't be asking for any special exemptions or favors from her reviewer with an attitude like that.

  13. I wish I had a dime for every time I screwed up because I didn't read the cache page. Caches are available in state parks from dawn till dusk. At night time, they close the gate. If I try to go in there when they are closed, I am met with a closed gate. Shame on me for not reading the cache page. Nobody's fault but mine.

     

    Well, yes and no. There is no requirement to read cache pages. A CO may put information pertinent to the cache or access on the page, but GS allows for cachers to search for caches without reading the pages. My GPS isn't paperless. If I'm traveling out of the area and load a PQ into my unit, I don't read all the descriptions. Many people are in the same boat. It's up to the CO not to place caches in areas that there shouldn't be caches. This looks like one of those areas.

     

    And on top of that, people will still do it. I'd hate to see your friend's property vandalized or have someone get arrested trying to access the cache because the property is closed.

     

    The area sounds interesting, and I like that you're trying to place caches that aren't just another LPC. However, not everyplace can have caches. I still agree with GS on this one (although my opinion matters about the same as my muggle neighbors). Good luck, but don't expect them to change their minds.

     

    Edited because I can't read good.

  14. I've added a "Needs Maintenance" log to À l'intersection, closest cache to the center.

     

    Why? Did You visit the site?

     

    You really think that with all the other potential issues the CO is dealing with, they're going to take time out of whatever they're doing to go check on an altoids tin?

     

    Don't worry about it. These caches will be dealt with at a time when it's appropriate. I would be willing to guess that now is not that time.

  15. OK, I just talked to Josh and as it turns out, the property is only open on weekends after the summer. During the summer, or on school breaks, the gate is always open. When the kiddos are in school, it is only open on the weekends. He guesses the picture was taken on one of the days that the property was not open. He said when they are open, the gate is never closed. He gave me the gate code if for some reason the gate was closed when the property is open.

    The months/days that the caches are available can be posted on the cache page. So then cachers would only go looking for them on the weekends or summer, whatever the case may be.

     

    There are no other gates of any type.

    If you look at a birds eye view of this area you can plainly see a perimeter road that leads all around the property and the caches are nowhere near the restaurant, animals, or cabins.

     

    I don't know the specific rules about this, but this statement above makes me feel that the cache shouldn't be there. Nevermind the fact that many, if not most, cachers don't read the cache page before searching, and therefor wouldn't know when it was available or not. No, I think these caches are better left unpublished.

  16. First, let me say that you should be patient with your reviewer. They work hard, and I guarantee there's no personal agenda (despite what a few folks my rant about).

     

    Silly question, but it has to be asked. Did you give GS all the information you gave us as far as the difference between the pay area and the non-pay area? When did you receive the email from GS? When did you respond? I've had minimal contact with GS directly, but the contact I had took about a week for a reply. They're busy too.

     

    Providing the contact information for the land owner (if he/she is okay with it) is probably a good idea. They can give GS more information in the instance that they ask for it.

     

    Unfortunately, if HQ denies your placement, there's not another route to take. They have the final say. You might just have to find another place to put your caches. At least you're going about it the right way and getting permission from the land owner, I hope the reviewer keeps that in the back of their mind the next time you place a cache. Too many people don't do this the right way, and it reflects poorly on the rest of us.

  17. Dude, that was an awesome video! I haven't made it through the second one yet, but I think you did a stellar job. The little ammo can baby made me smile, and I was jazzed that you used one of my photos in your montage at the end (little dude in his jammies with a scraped up nose). I might even check out your website now :ph34r:

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