digitalgoddess

I guess I must be the odd person out because I LOVE virtuals. The ones that we have locally are to places that you have never visitied and may have lived in that city all your life. My favorite is a virtual tour of the series of bronze sculptures that resides in our downtown area. You start at ###### coordinates, and move on to the next and so on until you travel down one side of the main street for 6 blocks and come back on the other side of the street. You have a series of questions to answer as you progress through the tour. After you are finished, you email the author and give the answers and a photo showing the ending spot. We did this one as a large group on a Sunday morning due to heavy traffic during the week. It took about 1 hour to do and then we all went out for lunch. Makes for a really nice day out looking at stuff you drive by every day and never really see. I took my camera and took photos of all of the sculptures. BRING BACK VIRTUALS !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Digitalgoddess Mulvane,Kansas

I have only logged a DNF twice. One was a 50degree down slope and if I slid down it, I might not get back up again. Will not go back to that one The second was a series of micros that were at a park, put the hider decided to put them all off in the heavy brush at the very edges of the park. Won't go back to that one either. The others, I intend to go look for when there isn't snow on the ground. If I can't find it, then I will log it DNF. Colleen Mills digitalgoddess Mulvane,Kansas

I was on facebook not too long ago, when a friend casually mentioned geocaching. When I asked what that was, I was totally ignored. Since I am a self proclaimed gadget geek, I did a google for geocaching and found geocaching.com After some research on the different GPS units, my husband asked me to show him. We ordered our Dakota 20 the next week after payday. I actually did a couple of caches before it arrived because I knew where to look. I go out by myself most of the time to search-husband goes when he can manage to get out of bed.(works 2nd shift) Since I am old fat and out of shape-the exercise is just what I need and tickles my doctor pink. Colleen Mills digitalgoddess

I just got my backpack at walmart in the accessories area. It was the old one that I used to carry my laptop to class. It works great for carrying cachng stuff. I agree about the whistle-my falconry whistle is attached to one of the shoulder straps in front. I don't carry alot of survival gear since I do caches near the city. I do keep a small first aid kit and a LED flahlight in case it gets dark while I am out, Extra socks and a heavy sweatshirt. Colleen Mills digitalgoddess

Braxton is a beautiful dog and obviously very well trained. What do you do for a living?? I am guessing police or Military work. The portrait of Braxton is indeed handsome. digitalgoddess Mulvane,Kansas

I go farther down in the Groundspeak forums, look for my area or state and then search by the city that I want, or you can search by zipcode,area code or key words. digitalgoddess Mulvane,Kansas

Not quite true. I've attended dozens of soccer tournaments at Fort Dix in NJ and I am none of the above, nor were probably most of the thousands of the other people in attendance. We just had to show our drivers license at the gate, the guard took a glance inside the car, one time they made us open the trunk and we were on our way. There was a terrorist threat against the base (several guys were arrested who were planning an attack on the base) so for that summer we had to be on a list to get in, and every car was searched, but that was relaxed and the following year it was just back to showing a drivers license. Every base is different. WOW !!! McConnell AFB must just really must be strict. I was an approved vendor for the base gift shop (just last year), and I had to fill out a very long application and have a background check, photo, and fingerprints on file in order to go on base for business. Each time I went to service the shop, they would have to call the visitors center, and I would have to go in and show my Drivers license, my vendors ID, and show my registration for my car. My car was then searched at the gate-Then I was allowed to go through. This was each time I went to service my account, and I was only allowed on base for the time it took to service my account- approx an hour. Even the students that had class at the on base campus of the local college, has to be on a registration list and be bused onto base-They cannot drive their cars on base. Colleen Mills digitalgoddess

Hi Scrapes, You are right. This is a hobby that could be come obsessive very quickly. My Dr. loves the result of my new hobby. All of the walking has caused me to lose 9 pounds in the last 2 weeks, and is fun instead of doing the boring treadmill. My blood sugars are much better, and I sleep better at night. I am doing a couple of caches each day, and looking forward to warmer weather to do more. Nice few hours spent with my husband too. Katie the super beagle loves to go for long walks and patiently wanders from tree to tree while mom is hunting. I have decided that searching for micros in the winter is an exercise in futility, especially when we have 6" of snow. Colleen Mills digitalgoddess

I cannot imagine that any base commander would open his base to a bunch of civilians for any reason. If you are in the military, you know that the only way onto a base is 1. Be a member of the active military with proper credentials(ie military ID), 2.Be a retired military or family with proper military ID, or 3.have someone on base vouch for you and get a proper visitors pass (this is for vendors who have passed the application and background check and is only good for the time you need to conduct business). I grew up in the military(living on base) and from the experience of wearing my ID on a lanyard around my neck any time I was out of the house, and the national alert still at the yellow level, I cannot think that this is a good idea in any way. JJTally- If you are around the Ft Riley area, you are only a few hours from me here in the Wichita area. We are in a small town just 12 miles straight south of Mc Connell AFB. If you find yourself in this area, I would love to meet you. Colleen Mills digitalgoddess

I too believe that it is wiser to just tell the truth. After reading the account of the guy in Texas that was arrested, I also took the precaution of printing a few of the grocacher-u pamplets that has my real name as well as my GC handle, and my email address. I alway make sure I have my ID in a pocket of my backpack. If anyone questions me, I think that telling them that you are playing a scavenger hunt game would put most nervous people at ease. Of coursr if I am stopped by an LEO, they get the full explaination as well as a pamplet. I believe staying calm, cooperative, and non threatening is the key. Colleen Mills digitalgoddess

the icons don't belong to geocaching.com, the icons come from your GPS"s software Thanks for that info. We have figured some of it out ourselves over the last few days. (trial and error) The Garmin manual is less than usless. It gives very short explainations for any subject-just enough that they answered-was it a help, NO. And the knowledge base is just as bad. I think I am going to write a new manual entitled "A User Manual for the Dakota 20- What Garmin doesn't tell you."

I am using the computer to Garmin download cord from www.geocaching.com. I chose the caches that I want and then hit "send to gps" button. I thought the red "stick pin" was supposed to be the cache. When we get close it changes to a blue dot. How do you read this thing anyway ??? Colleen Mills digitalgoddess

I own a Dakota 20. Is this info that I need to go to Garmin for ?? I wasn't sure if this was a geocaching.com issue-since I do paperless downloads, and therefor the icons would belong to geocaching.com Thanks for any assistance you can give. Colleen Mills digitalgoddess

That is just irresponsibledog owners Most of us put the poop bags into another plastic bag and dispose of it when we get home. I don't even put it in public trashcans. Colleen Mills digitalgoddess

I know this sounds stupid, but I am having problems understanding what the symbols mean that I am seeing on my gps screen during a hunt. I went to knowledge base and didn't find anything there that seemed to help. What symbol marks the cache. I thought it was a red pin, but when we get close it changes to a blue dot- What does that mean ????

Jim, Who knows-you may find someone that has an extra to sell or otherwise fall into a great deal. If you have the time, continue to shop around. If you have any plans to play the game Wherigo, you will need the oregon 300. The Dakota 20 does not have this capeability. Everyone I have talked to had been upgrading from the lower end units to the higher end to take advantage of that paperless feature. I will let you know how it works after Sunday. We are going to KC from Wichita, Kanas and plan to GC on the way and on the way home- I loaded 40 possible caches to work on. The Dakota was super simple to set up and get info to download, once you get the garmin communicator plug in installed on your computer. Colleen Mills digitalgoddess

I just purchased a Dakota 20- should be delivered Friday. For me it was between the Oregon 300, the Colorado 300 and the Dakota 20. Even though the Oregon 300 has better resolution on the screen, the Dakota 20 has the compensated 3-axis compass. We purchased ours through "The GPS Store" online. I got mine for 309.00 + 9.95 for 2 day(list price from Garmin is 399.00) delivery. Even though you are a weekend warrior, get the best unit you can afford to avoid outgrowing too quickly. It is very doubtful that you will find any of those 3 for 150.00. Even a used machine will run 250.00 Try checking craigs list and perhaps E-bay. Colleen Mills digitalgoddess

Is it possible for the teacher to get permission for a short walking field trip ?? Maybe steer them to a cache that you have already found, so you can narrow the hunting zone for the time you have and the age level of the class. If that is not possible, then a fake cache can be done just to demonstrate the process. I think I would have a load of trinkety swag so each classmate gets a little something when they find the cache. Children are so "reward" oriented. Colleen Mills digitalgoddess

I am really sorry that happened to the guy in Texas. I just reminds me to be careful while in persuit of my hobby. I think I will get a dozen or so of the brochures printed and keep them handy in case I am stopped. I have always been careful of LEO's after I obtained a concealed carry permit. When you have a loaded weapon in your car, you learn to move carefully, have the permit handy, and keep my hands in plain site on the steering wheel.

I posed this question in another thread. If you opened a cach and found a neat embroidered patch with a business card attached, would you enjoy a unique item or would the business card diminish the value ?? I do machine embroidery from my home and love to do patches as giveaways, and they are very easy for me to do. I would rather add something nice rather than add junk to a cach. I can always find stuff for kids-perhaps one girl item and 1 boy item in each cach ?? I think it is important to make each find exciting.

We are a serious masonic family. Husband is 32degree Scottish Rite I am Eastern Star- Past Worthy Matron and new initiate of Ladies Oriental Shrine Daughter Amanda started with Rainbow Girls and moved on to Ladies Oriental Shrine with me. We are all getting into GC and just waiting for my new Oregon 300 to arrive. We are all going GC together.

One more question. What technology makes a TB or geocoin trackable ?? I see that you have to use an approved vendor to make your coins, etc. Why can we not do them ourslves ?? Anyone can make a TB or geocoin, and if you know a little web programming, you can make it trackable. But you have to work with Groundspeak or one of their approved vendors if you want it to be trackable on geocaching.com. Thank you for the information and thanks for the feedback on the patch idea. I wanted something personal to me, and I figured that patches would be a popular item-lucky they are easy for me to make my own.

What would you all think if you found a nicely embroidered patch with a business card attached in your cach ?? I do machine embrodery work and love to do patches (something to do with geocaching) as give aways. Would this be an acceptable signature item ?? Or would the business card make it less acceptable ?? I would f course still sign the log and log my find online. One more question. What technology makes a TB or geocoin trackable ?? I see that you have to use an approved vendor to make your coins, etc. Why can we not do them ourslves ??

I am also looking for a new gps unit. I am comparing the Dakota 20 and the Oregon 300. When reading various websites, it seemed that the main beef about the Oregon was that the screen was hard to see in bright light. Is this not your experience??? I know that according to the specs, the oregon has the higher screen resolution, and the Dakota has the 3 axis compensated compass. Which in your opinion is the more needed ???

Support Center » Knowledgebase » Geocaching » Trackable Items HOW TO LOG A TRAVEL BUG OR GEOCOIN Thank you for your kind information. I admit I am ignorant and really want to change that,