Zuckerruebensirup

...is paved with good intentions. quote:Originally posted by Eoghan: My excuse is that when I picked it up, my intention was to replace it within a few days, but other things got in the way. I can definitely relate with having good intentions, and then having other things get in the way. I'm sure we all can. And I don't think anyone will be out to lynch you for being slow on one occasion (as long as you keep them informed). If it turns into a regular pattern, they may begin to get less forgiving. quote:Originally posted by Eoghan (on 3/14/02): I'm gonna rehide that Bug today I swear! So did you hide it? (Or at least send the owner an e-mail?) I know the day's not quite over yet...but the daylight pretty much is.

Is it just me, or does there appear to be a common theme developing here?

Is it just me, or does there appear to be a common theme developing here?

After all the horror stories I've been reading about lost travel bugs, I was tickled pink at how near 'picture perfect' my own first travel bug experience was. We've seen plenty of examples of what not to do with travel bugs. I thought I would share one that, in my opinion, was handled very well. I recently released three travel bugs into the system. (And, since this was prior to having checked out this forum, I didn't have the foresight to include any kind of extra 'instruction card' to help ensure that they were being logged on the site, or being kept on track with their goals). One of those, Eensy Weensy Spider was quickly picked up by a nearby cacher, who mentioned (in both the cache log and the TB log) that he was planning to travel to LA in a few weeks, and would be able to get EWS very close to one of the places listed in his goals. Although there was no activity on this traveller for over three weeks, I wan't worried at all, since I knew what the person's gameplan was. Then, upon placing EWS into a new cache, he clearly stated in the log its ultimate goal was, and asked for help in continuing him in that direction. (And yes, I realize that many people deliberately avoid reading the logs in case there are spoilers...but it's still nice that every chance was made for people to be aware of the specific goals for the traveler.) Then today, I got an e-mail with a picture of EWS next to a water fountain in the DTW airport...again, in perfect line with his goals. My hat's off to DrewG, for setting a perfect example of how to play the travel bug game.

After all the horror stories I've been reading about lost travel bugs, I was tickled pink at how near 'picture perfect' my own first travel bug experience was. We've seen plenty of examples of what not to do with travel bugs. I thought I would share one that, in my opinion, was handled very well. I recently released three travel bugs into the system. (And, since this was prior to having checked out this forum, I didn't have the foresight to include any kind of extra 'instruction card' to help ensure that they were being logged on the site, or being kept on track with their goals). One of those, Eensy Weensy Spider was quickly picked up by a nearby cacher, who mentioned (in both the cache log and the TB log) that he was planning to travel to LA in a few weeks, and would be able to get EWS very close to one of the places listed in his goals. Although there was no activity on this traveller for over three weeks, I wan't worried at all, since I knew what the person's gameplan was. Then, upon placing EWS into a new cache, he clearly stated in the log its ultimate goal was, and asked for help in continuing him in that direction. (And yes, I realize that many people deliberately avoid reading the logs in case there are spoilers...but it's still nice that every chance was made for people to be aware of the specific goals for the traveler.) Then today, I got an e-mail with a picture of EWS next to a water fountain in the DTW airport...again, in perfect line with his goals. My hat's off to DrewG, for setting a perfect example of how to play the travel bug game.

quote:Originally posted by Eoghan: I'll admit it. I'm one of the layabout slackers you're all annoyed by. I have a travel bug in my possession that I found a little over a month ago. No real excuse for not just dumping it in the nearest drive-by cache [...] Not everyone lives, breathes, and dreams geocaching. I understand that people have different levels of interest and enthusiasm for geocaching. But, in my opinion, if you can't commit to moving travelers along in a timely fashion, then the polite thing to do is pass them up, and leave them available for those who are willing to move them along quickly. There's no rule that says you have to latch on to a travel bug if you run across one. But even more important than moving travelers along quickly is simple COMMUNICATION. I had a travel bug picked up a few weeks ago...and just as I was starting to wonder whether it was AWOL, the person sent an e-mail to reassure me that it wasn't lost; but that, due to the streak of bad weather we've been having (especially on weekends), he hadn't had the chance to get it back into circulation. He assured me that he'd be doing so ASAP. Notes like that can go a long way to helping out a travel bug owner's patience. (At least it works for me.) [This message was edited by Zuckerruebensirup on March 13, 2002 at 10:39 PM.]

quote:Originally posted by Eoghan: I'll admit it. I'm one of the layabout slackers you're all annoyed by. I have a travel bug in my possession that I found a little over a month ago. No real excuse for not just dumping it in the nearest drive-by cache [...] Not everyone lives, breathes, and dreams geocaching. I understand that people have different levels of interest and enthusiasm for geocaching. But, in my opinion, if you can't commit to moving travelers along in a timely fashion, then the polite thing to do is pass them up, and leave them available for those who are willing to move them along quickly. There's no rule that says you have to latch on to a travel bug if you run across one. But even more important than moving travelers along quickly is simple COMMUNICATION. I had a travel bug picked up a few weeks ago...and just as I was starting to wonder whether it was AWOL, the person sent an e-mail to reassure me that it wasn't lost; but that, due to the streak of bad weather we've been having (especially on weekends), he hadn't had the chance to get it back into circulation. He assured me that he'd be doing so ASAP. Notes like that can go a long way to helping out a travel bug owner's patience. (At least it works for me.) [This message was edited by Zuckerruebensirup on March 13, 2002 at 10:39 PM.]

I wonder whether that's just coincidence. I've never noticed anything like that before*, but now that you've piqued my curiousity, I'll start paying closer attention from now on. *Except, of course, that if you look at an aerial view of my state (Michigan), it looks kinda like a mitten. Eerie, huh? (Or, maybe that would be 'Erie'...as in lake. )

I wonder whether that's just coincidence. I've never noticed anything like that before*, but now that you've piqued my curiousity, I'll start paying closer attention from now on. *Except, of course, that if you look at an aerial view of my state (Michigan), it looks kinda like a mitten. Eerie, huh? (Or, maybe that would be 'Erie'...as in lake. )

I love to read, and my hubby complains about all the books that I have stored around the house. This is a great idea. I'll have to sign up.

I love to read, and my hubby complains about all the books that I have stored around the house. This is a great idea. I'll have to sign up.

quote:Originally posted by Walkin Stick: I'm getting a little too old (read that: lazy and/or uncoordinated) to try to tackle one that required the ability to grab it quickly as you go past it while falling the last 50 feet to the boulders below. Aw c'mon, Walkin Stick...where's your sense of adventure?!?

quote:Originally posted by Walkin Stick: I'm getting a little too old (read that: lazy and/or uncoordinated) to try to tackle one that required the ability to grab it quickly as you go past it while falling the last 50 feet to the boulders below. Aw c'mon, Walkin Stick...where's your sense of adventure?!?

I found the treasure! What? A dumb McDonald's toy? No. Nature's beauty.

I found the treasure! What? A dumb McDonald's toy? No. Nature's beauty.

quote:Originally posted by harrkev: Access to cache information is **NOT** a feature. It is the main thing. This is like calling having an engine and four wheels on a car a feature. This is like buying a house and calling the roof and walls a "feature." Think of it this way, you still have the car...complete with engine...the SAME car you had before. But you can pay to upgrade that engine from a 4-cylinder to a supercharged V-8. You still have the house...complete with roof and walls...the SAME house you had before. But you can pay to upgrade your vinyl siding and asphalt shingles to brick and slate. Jeremy is not FORCING anyone to place members-only caches. If I want to place a cache, and only share it with those who I feel are serious enough about the sport to put their money where their mouth is, why should I be forced to share it with the entire world? It's MY cache. Shouldn't I, as the owner, have some choice in how widely I want to share it? To use your house analogy, should I, as a homeowner, be forced to leave my front door unlocked, so the entire world has access? Or is it ok for me, as the homeowner, to only allow friends and invited guests in? Nobody is forcing us to lock our doors. But it's nice to have that right, if we want to do so.

quote:Originally posted by Renegade Knight: If it took me a week or a month to move it on, that would not bother me at all. Are you in a rush? My personal rule of thumb is that I try to place the bug into another cache within two weekends of having taken it. I think most people like to see their bugs in circulation, rather than sitting in someone's house, where nobody can get to it. If you're going to hang onto it for longer than a couple of weeks, it might be a good idea to e-mail the owner, just to ease their mind and let them know you haven't forgotten about it. quote:Originally posted by Renegade Knight: And no I may not even log it right away until I knew what I was doing with one. I think it's common courtesy to log a bug THE SAME DAY that you take it. If you don't log it, other people may make a specific trip to the cache, thinking they can grab the travel bug...only find out that it's already been taken. (The cache description page will indicate the bug is still in the cache until you've logged it out.) You can always add a note to the bug's page later, once you know what your plans for it are.

quote:Originally posted by Renegade Knight: If it took me a week or a month to move it on, that would not bother me at all. Are you in a rush? My personal rule of thumb is that I try to place the bug into another cache within two weekends of having taken it. I think most people like to see their bugs in circulation, rather than sitting in someone's house, where nobody can get to it. If you're going to hang onto it for longer than a couple of weeks, it might be a good idea to e-mail the owner, just to ease their mind and let them know you haven't forgotten about it. quote:Originally posted by Renegade Knight: And no I may not even log it right away until I knew what I was doing with one. I think it's common courtesy to log a bug THE SAME DAY that you take it. If you don't log it, other people may make a specific trip to the cache, thinking they can grab the travel bug...only find out that it's already been taken. (The cache description page will indicate the bug is still in the cache until you've logged it out.) You can always add a note to the bug's page later, once you know what your plans for it are.

quote:Originally posted by Markwell: Maybe you could contact and English speaking cacher in the area and see if they'll pick him up and mail him to you. Do you really think that LB is still at the bus stop??? (And I don't believe it even said what bus stop...who knows how many are in the area.) The cache that was logged wasn't where the person left LB...he didn't even go there, but noticed it after the fact...and thought it would be a convenient place to log the bug, to give it credit for the mileage. I'm pretty confident that some non-geocacher found the toy, and will simply keep it.

quote:Originally posted by Markwell: Maybe you could contact and English speaking cacher in the area and see if they'll pick him up and mail him to you. Do you really think that LB is still at the bus stop??? (And I don't believe it even said what bus stop...who knows how many are in the area.) The cache that was logged wasn't where the person left LB...he didn't even go there, but noticed it after the fact...and thought it would be a convenient place to log the bug, to give it credit for the mileage. I'm pretty confident that some non-geocacher found the toy, and will simply keep it.

quote:Originally posted by BassoonPilot: I already notice a proliferation of "trash caches" placed in uninteresting areas with apparently little forethought. One thing this poll has made me become more aware of is the huge differences of cache availability in various areas of the country. As an exercize, I compared the number of caches within 15, 30, and 60 miles of my zipcode vs. yours. For mine it was 2 (the two I myself placed, actually), 13, and 50, respectively. For yours it was 84, 233, and 433. A huge difference! No wonder so many people are saying that there are too many low quality caches out there. In my neck of the woods, beggers can't be choosers...and any cache is a treat! (Of course, there are definitely some that are much better than others.)

quote:Originally posted by BassoonPilot: I already notice a proliferation of "trash caches" placed in uninteresting areas with apparently little forethought. One thing this poll has made me become more aware of is the huge differences of cache availability in various areas of the country. As an exercize, I compared the number of caches within 15, 30, and 60 miles of my zipcode vs. yours. For mine it was 2 (the two I myself placed, actually), 13, and 50, respectively. For yours it was 84, 233, and 433. A huge difference! No wonder so many people are saying that there are too many low quality caches out there. In my neck of the woods, beggers can't be choosers...and any cache is a treat! (Of course, there are definitely some that are much better than others.)

quote:Originally posted by Markwell: Wonder Woman has been recovered from Florida and will be returned to Pennsylvania after her 1257 mile detour. [...] Thanks for all who told me to wait. Woo hoo! That's great news. In light of this, do you have any hope that Lord Baltimore will ever be recovered?

quote:Originally posted by Markwell: Wonder Woman has been recovered from Florida and will be returned to Pennsylvania after her 1257 mile detour. [...] Thanks for all who told me to wait. Woo hoo! That's great news. In light of this, do you have any hope that Lord Baltimore will ever be recovered?

quote:Originally posted by bunkerdave: Of course, my immediate response was a BIG thumbs down, for all the obvious reasons. First, odds are, many, if not most of those caches would have SUCKED. Second, it would be nothing more than Geotrashing, and it would only increase the risk that more caches would be abandoned, and draw the attention of an already hostile environmental extremist faction in our state. And so on. These are excellent points. I would rather have a few GOOD caches, and approval of the NPS and similar organizations, than to have a bunch of poorly planned/implemented caches, and a poor reputation with the people we don't want to get on the wrong side of. quote:Originally posted by bunkerdave: I notice the OP is from MI. I do not know off the top of my head how MI is doing cache-wise, but let's assume this is an effort to jump-start the caching in your area. Areas like Detroit (and its suburbs) are doing great. I just happen to live in a little 'one-traffic-light' town, where caches are few and far between. But I wouldn't trade my daily (and ongoing) breath of fresh air for all the caches in the world. I enjoy being out in nature, and don't really need an excuse to do so...it's just that the caching adds an element of fun. I can be patient. Here it is, still middle of dead winter, and new caches are popping up here and there. I'm sure it'll only get better once nice weather gets here to stay.