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brslk

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Posts posted by brslk

  1. We started caching in 2003.

     

    At first, my wife had no interest in caching at all. I knew I had to find a way to gear caching around her interests. I knew she liked puzzles so I asked for help on some of the puzzle caches. She solved a few that I couldn't solve and then she quickly gained interest.

     

    Then after she had solved the puzzles she naturally had to find out if she had solved it correctly for the correct coords and we had to go looking for the cache. Now we always cache together whether it be for puzzle caches or not, but she loves to be the one to solve the puzzle and I enjoy letting her work on solving those types of caches.

     

    We still find more puzzle caches than the average cacher because my wife is constantly in front of the computer solving new puzzle caches. She keeps an on-going notebook of solved puzzles (for the coords) and sometimes we spend an entire day just driving around looking for the finals to her puzzles.

     

    This way we both have a good time.

     

    What is your spouse interested in? Is there any way to incorporate that into geocaching?

     

    I might try the puzzle angle :P He might be into that :) His hobbies all revolve around being indoors - reading and indoor gaming - computer, console, board, dice, etc. I share the same interests so it's not like we don't do anything fun together. But I'd love for him to share my favorite new hobby with me :huh:

     

    It does work out in the sense that he doesn't mind staying home with anywhere from 1 to 4 children so I can run out and geocache :D

     

    Just make sure and tell him how many children you will be coming home with!

    :rolleyes:

  2. Today I found a full GPS system, granted it was an old school Magellan Roadmap 760 (discontinued model) without the cradle and cigarette lighter power adapter, but I can buy those on E-Bay for cheap. So now, instead of driving around with 2 operating GPS's in the truck I can drive around with 3, plus my satellite radio receiver on the dash. Can never too many electronics I guess.

     

    Kinda puzzled about why you would take the GPS when you stated that you could buy one for cheap and already have 2 Plus a satellite radio (why you mentioned this, i have no idea)?

    Why not leave it for someone caching without one?

    Did you trade up for it?

     

    Even if you were FTF it seems a little greedy to me. I would have left it if I had no use for it.

     

    But that's just me... :rolleyes:

  3.  

    From their FAQ:

    Q. When do you plan to publish the first issue?

     

    A. If all goes as planned, we'll mail the first full issue in mid-to-late January of 2010.

     

    Deja vu all over again!

     

    If all does NOT go as planned will everyone's subscription be refunded? :)

     

    I hope they make it, the more stories we geocachers share with each other the better I like it! It will however be interesting to see how many geocachers will invest in another fledgling commercial print magazine.

     

    I appreciate your concerns about the failures of previous geocaching magazines and acknowledge the fact that the current attempt could fail as well. The decision to do a trial run of 3 issues was made specifically to guarantee that even if subscribership was too low to support the magazine in the long run, we would still be able to fulfill the initial 3-issue subscriptions with a minimal loss of investment at our end. Naturally, we hope to publish many more issues beyond the trial period but, if not, we will bow out gracefully having fulfilled our obligation to our readers.

     

    I would pay for it. I prefer paper versions over online mags.... It's like a newspaper... they have been available online for years... people still prefer the paper version...

     

    I could tell you where a geocache is but isn't it more fun to find the actual thing?

  4. Land Sharkz based in Vancouver, Canada, sells the cloth camo tape. These guys are reputable business people who love caching - and I love to support them! US customers are welcome and well-catered for. Check out their website here :)

     

    Canadian Tire sells camo hockey tape in the sporting goods section. Good stuff. Not shiny. very sticky and lasts good in the cold (it is hockey tape after all).

     

    Bruce.

     

    BTW, checked out the Land Sharkz website... some very nice stuff there at a reasonable price!

  5. The physically challenged argument is incredibly patronizing. As if because you are physically challenged you should be satisfied with visiting strip malls, 7-Eleven dumpsters and Wal-Mart parking lots. They deserve the opportunity for better than that.

    Patronizing to whom?

    To you, who is capable of geocaching for a living? To you who is capable of geocaching 20 mile trails in a deep forest?

    Luckily....geocaching isn't just about YOU.

    One of the major players in that large retirement community is an 80 year old lady. She hides amazing caches! Many, if not all, of them are level one terrain. See, she KNOWS her community.

    She hid a large bolt under the lamp in a walmart parking lot.

    Cut it out and carved the bolt. Took her some time doing so, and I bet she was proud as heck to hide that thing.

    It was an easy find. Was it easy for her to build? I doubt it. When I commented in her log about how clever the container was, I bet it made her happy.

    God forbid this game make anybody happy.

    I LOVE that my able body was able to nab that easy walmart parking lot cache, and that I was able to play a role in someone else's happiness. Instead of spending my life focusing on my own happiness. A little selflessness goes a long way.

    So, to the 80 year old ladies hiding clever caches, spending their time in Ace hardware looking for more creative ideas, spending their days carefully creating their caches: more power to you.

    And I, will happily find, and log your parking lot cache.

    And you can continue to ignore them.

    Touching story, but one in a million. I'd hardly say that such an extreme situation should be used as an argument, one way or 'tother.

     

    It brought a tear to my eye. It seriously made / makes me consider placing a cache near a retirement home.

     

    Bruce.

  6. I'm a total n00b and from the city, but I must say that so far I am really enjoying caches that are well hidden in high traffic areas. Clever camo is awesome.

     

    I guess I like the idea of finding something that a million people have walked by without even noticing...

     

    For me, thats the coolest part. It's like we are in on the secret or something.

     

    I second that (or would it be third that :rolleyes: )

  7. I cache in whatever I happen to be wearing at the time.

     

    It is odd though that if I am at home and about to go geocaching, I do wear my cammo pants... I think it's because of all the extra pockets but then again... I never use them all so... hmm.. maybe I just like to feel all cool and stuff...

     

    Good question.

  8. I try and rate my caches with wheelchair users in mind. Unfortunately I don't have any experience of wheelchair use, and can't really be sure what "wheelchair accessible" actually is. So I tend to only rate a cache 1* terrain if access from the nearest parking area is a short distance via a level hard surface (tarmac or paving) and the cache can be reached whilst sitting in a chair. Is that reasonable?

     

    Sounds good to me. :rolleyes:

  9. I am very much a tadpole (only 8 so far!) but I am already getting a little jaded. What is the point of a geocache in a parking lot? It sort of goes against the spirit of geocaching.

    Complaining about hides is against the spirit of geocaching. I think that was established a few months ago.

     

    Edit to add : I totally understand you not liking certain types of caches. I have my personal preference too. That you feel the need to vent about it here, well, there's still freedom of speech the last time I checked. For you to declare it is against the spirit of geocaching, though, that's stretching it a bit.

     

    By the way, I've nominated vodka to be the spirit of geocaching, but the response has been somewhat less than unanimous around here. I think it's the whiskey lobby. Or maybe AA.

     

    There are enough geocaches out there for every preference. I myself do not like micros or nannos hidden under a lamp post skirt but, i have found them.

     

    I second the nomination for vodka as the spirit of geocaching but if the whiskey lobby wins, lets at least make it a good whiskey... like Beam black... or Makers mark... no JD crap.

     

    Bruce.

  10. A good place to purchase rechargeable batteries and chargers is a hobby shop. One that specializes in RC cars, planes and helicopters.

     

    People that fly very expensive toys do NOT want them to crash due to low batts in the radio (trust me, I know).

     

    Might not be the cheapest source but even if you don't purchase from them, they can steer you in the right direction.

     

    Bruce.

  11. so what your saying is that if i have a beautiful park in my neighborhood with a piece of metal sculpture that is feet from parking that a cache can be placed in at a height of 6.5 feet with no reaching for a fully capable person that this cache should have anything more than a 1 star rating, i disagree.

    and this is properly rated according to the guidelines.

     

    Please define "fully capable person" for me. I may have severe arthritis and use crutches, a wheelchair at times and can sometimes even walk to a cache with a cane.

     

    I would also like to know how rating your hide as a 1.5 harms you or your cache.

     

    Sorry to cramp your style of caching....

     

    And that's the crux of it, isn't it?

     

    If a terrain couldn't possibly be any easier, then it's a 1.0 If it CAN be easier then it's at least a 1.5 IMHO

    Wouldn't you agree?

     

    Excuse me if I am being stupid but I do not understand this...^

     

    Are you partaking of holiday spirits? :rolleyes:

     

    I was agreeing with you. It's not going to hurt someone's cache if they rate it 1.5.

    Basically if anyone feels a terrain isn't really a 1.0, then it should be higher. It's not like people would stop searching for a cache because it has a 1.5 terrain, unless they were only able to cache 1.0 terrain. And, if I'm being dense, the only person who might not be able to traverse a 1.5 terrain is someone in a wheelchair with little mobility. Many wheelchair users could navigate a 1.5 from my observations.

     

    I wish I was partaking in the holiday spirits! My meds do not allow me to imbibe. (wish they did though).

    Lets just say I am fuzzy headed.

     

    Merry Christmas bittsen.

     

    Bruce.

  12. so what your saying is that if i have a beautiful park in my neighborhood with a piece of metal sculpture that is feet from parking that a cache can be placed in at a height of 6.5 feet with no reaching for a fully capable person that this cache should have anything more than a 1 star rating, i disagree.

    and this is properly rated according to the guidelines.

     

    Please define "fully capable person" for me. I may have severe arthritis and use crutches, a wheelchair at times and can sometimes even walk to a cache with a cane.

     

    I would also like to know how rating your hide as a 1.5 harms you or your cache.

     

    Sorry to cramp your style of caching....

     

    And that's the crux of it, isn't it?

     

    If a terrain couldn't possibly be any easier, then it's a 1.0 If it CAN be easier then it's at least a 1.5 IMHO

    Wouldn't you agree?

     

    Excuse me if I am being stupid but I do not understand this...^

  13. so what your saying is that if i have a beautiful park in my neighborhood with a piece of metal sculpture that is feet from parking that a cache can be placed in at a height of 6.5 feet with no reaching for a fully capable person that this cache should have anything more than a 1 star rating, i disagree.

    and this is properly rated according to the guidelines.

     

    Please define "fully capable person" for me. I may have severe arthritis and use crutches, a wheelchair at times and can sometimes even walk to a cache with a cane.

     

    I would also like to know how rating your hide as a 1.5 harms you or your cache.

     

    Sorry to cramp your style of caching....

  14. Post a NEEDS MAINTENANCE - that's the point of this type of log entry. You can post a DNF if you want. I wouldn't post anything else though, since you didn't find the cache.

    You are the one I would like to address the following to, if you don't mind!?

    We headed out this past Sunday to go see my grandmother. We didn't take any of our supplies with us, just a quick list of some that we would like to find along the way there. The listing described the cache as a small nano, and to bring tweezers. We found the cache, went to a nearby store, purchased some tweezers, retrieved the cache. When we opened the cache, the log was soaking wet. We were later given ideas by the owner, but, put the log back, and replaced the cache where we found it. When we unscrewed the nano, paint rubbed off on my fingers. I logged the find, then posted a needs maintenance. I have included the correspondence with the cache owner below:

     

    The following is the note he placed after the needs maintenance post, and following this is the response we sent...

    December 21 by ... (3450 found)

    Damaged while retreiving cache & a wet log. So a "needs maintenance log" is

    posted and now we get to go do maintenance? Let us drop what we're doing & get

    right on that one. ARRRRRRRGH!

     

    Our reply:

    The paint remaining is still concealing this cache. Not quite sure how else we

    would have retrieved this cache. The log was already wet. We didn't drop it.

    If we are back out that way before you, we would be happy to replace the entire

    thing. We apologize for any inconvenience. We thought posting the "needs

    maintenance loge" was the proper thing to do.

     

    Later that evening, we received the following from the owner:

    Hello,

     

    Welcome to geocaching.

     

    In the future, ALWAYS please contact the owner of the cache first before you ever post a "needs maintenance" log. It is a common courtesy. Posting a "needs maintenance log" is very serious and basically means the cache should be maintained or archived because it is inaccessible. The posting of such a log sets a clock in motion where by owners only have so many days to do maintanence--or the cache will be archived. Been caching for over 3 years and never posted that to an owner on a cache. Hide more caches & get a hiders perspective....help when you can.

     

    Please note the cache description clearly tells you to bring tweezers for extraction. "Had to go spend a couple bucks for a tool to retrieve the cache. Once we got it out, discovered the log to be soaked, and as mentioned before, no suppliesI" Really considered deleting your "found it" log due to too many hints provided--please consider editing--so it is not deleted.

     

    I am deleting the "needs maintenance" log--if you simply moved the vine back over to cover the hole--it can survive the damaged paint job.

     

    PS--get used to wet logs this time of year--again--always nice to let a cache owner know about it, but really not a deal breaker in caching. If you want to do a good deed, be resourceful, i.e., you could have easily used the receipt of "the tools" you bought (without returning to nearby stores) and craft that into a new log. Really, even a skinnied down gum wrapper would have done the trick.

     

    Please--don't make it a hard on the hiders--remember, we're the ones doing the extra effort & creating the hunt for you. Always help out where you can. Hail to the hiders--we keep the game alive.

     

    Thanks!

     

    We have hidden only two caches. We have already had to replace one. This person has 50+, so, yes, I can imagine the additional work it takes in keeping them maintained. However, before posting the "needs maintenance" log, we did check to make sure that was the proper thing to do, and that is exactly what it read to do. I did edit my log, as requested, to "thanks". There was nothing in my original log that would have been a spoiler, "the tools", I refered to in my original, was referring to the listing that clearly stated, "we do recommend tweezers". Hail to the hiders...I agree, they provide the hunt and challenge. Am I letting one person take the fun out of it?

    Based on what you have posted I would say you have an owner with a poor attitude. Take their comments under consideration and keep having fun caching. You do not have any obligation to do maintenance on a cache that you do not own but many of us do. The owner DOES have an obligation to do maintenance when it is needed. I find the comment about not making it hard on hiders to be pretty lame. If the hider can't maintain the cache it should never have been hidden, or it should be archived.

     

    For the high up hide, sometimes you do need special tools or accessories to retrieve a cache. I always try to read the cache page in detail in an effort to avoid situations such as this.

     

    To the OP: I would log a DNF and contact the cache owner. You did not find the cache. You may have found the remnants.

     

    I don't think I would log a 'DNF'. I would log a note asking the cache owner to check it out. In this case there seems to be ample evidence the cache was not there anymore. in fact, I wouldn't log anything until I emailed the CO. If it turned out the cache was still there after all, I would then log a DNF.

    I have no problems with logging DNF's if there is a cache to be found, but to say I did not find something that isn't there seems kinda silly.

  15. Why, when the cache is an ammo box with a ful sized spiral notebook for a log, they will sign with a date and initials, but when the cache is a nano, they will sign their full names and a full description of their experience?

     

     

    Huh? Why izzit?!?

     

    Nice hat friend of chad.

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