Mn-treker

I would not rely on Google maps at all to tell me the truth about the location of anything. I have seen their location of borders be way off. They said a park existed that did not. I had an argument with a reviewer for placement of a geocache in a city that requires a permit to place one in the parks. I see no park I check with the city, The city says no park, I proved my point with city map from the city web page and statement from city parks manager. But the reviewer refused to believe, as far as he was concerned Google is GOD. Another incident, a wildlife refuge border problem. I went to the website for that refuge and got map from them. I went to the border and took coords of the border. I submitted this info to the reviewer. No! Google is GOD. The cache placement was on State property this time and 3/4 of a mile from the border to the wildlife refuge. No! Google is GOD. Google maps are meant to be a reference only and not used for legal definitions My GPS has proven to me to be accurate to +-5 feet. I even recorded the Earths crust movement of 35 feet after the Japan Earthquake. Confirmed by geologists. Numerous State employees kept telling me that their Car GPS kept saying that they were driving in the ditch after that. The system has now compensated for this. Basically just use Google maps/ Earth as reference only. Sometimes they are lucky and place it right and sometimes not.

Not the standard format for coords. What are you using, a GPS or a smartphone? Make sure you set your unit to the GS84 format. It should read as N 40 12.678 W050 32.567 that was only an example. When you get your unit set it should Translate your numbers into some useable info. Good luck.

Even a newbie can make a good hide. I think the big problem with coords is the use of smartphone. Not all use a true GPS, they may use the cell towers only. And those that do have true GPS first start out with a lock from the very inaccurate cell towers. Then switch over to GPS sattelites. Many that I have spoken to who have used only the smart phone GPS have reported turning on the GPS app only to see no change in location for 60 to 100 feet. Learning and knowing how to use what GPS that you have is the most important thing in this game. How to hide is second, yes finding a bunch will help. But if you find a bunch of LPC hides first then what have you learned. Not much! Getting advise is the best way to go for making g your first hide. Then average, average, average those coords, no matter what you use.

Another that I did was to write In UV pen On some clear two inch wide packing tape. The coords were written in the Klingon language. Word format, but over time the ink became visible somewhat. So I switched over to paper with UV pen then tape on top of that. That holds up well, but still it is in a small prescription bottle.

Yes I have had some who do not understand. They signed on the UV note. My replacement then had words, you need a UV light to read this. I also state on the cache page. This is a UV hide you need a UV light. But some just do not read.

That's come up here before (I think it has been years) but that would be a state law. True for some states, not for all. (state trespass laws) Nice link, but Minnesota's is far more detailed than that. If the land is agricultural in any way, no need to post signage. There can also be old crop residue, no signs needed. Trespass absolutely forbidden unless given written Permission. You might see woods with barbed wire fence around it. Darn good possibility, agricultural land. I personally have placed trespassers under arrest at the end of my shotgun. Had to they refused to unload thiers and leave.

Either way SL TFTC. Is OK, what do you say when you see that? Thank you for visiting. Geeze sometimes I have seen only a smiley face. All that Groundspeak requires is that you write something on the online Log. They do not care what, other than no evil stuff or cursing. One of these days I will go find a knowschad hide. I will sign the log. Grunt ugh phttt ahhhh. Personal joke, he knows.

There has been one hell of a lot of BPM about this topic with many different titles. Far too many people gripe about not enough stuff said in the online logs. SL TFTC, TFTC should be good enough. We are not in this game to get high accolades for our hides. Be that Earthcache or traditional or any of the others. When people write great stuff, cool thank you. When they say little. I say so what, they say what they say.

Just do not use that pen sold here. It will wash out with weather or fade with Too much sunlight. I made a multy with UV at stage one. On paper in a medicine bottle wrapped in camo duck tape to keep out the sun. I ran experiment and wrote coords on a metal pole to see what would happen. It did not take long to go away. The pen is OK for note in the bottle or jar.

As long as the finder is posting something in the online log, why get nitpicky about it. Not everybody can come up with the fancy shmancy words you want. If there was something special that the finder saw there they would say so maybe. But what one sees another may not. SL TFTC I am not a newbie and at times that is all I may be willing to say. Get over yourself.

It would be whatever the reviewer say it is. This is why all the confusion. This is the same argument about max distance fo muty final vs puzzle final. And then the confusing puzzle multy pops up. Who wins in the argument? The reviewer wins.

Well so you found that. OK so does that make me wrong. Nope! I have created night hides and was told to make it a mystery as per Groundspeak rules. Due to the fact that no physical cache at stage one. And if you read your own quote it says posted coords reflect the first fire tacks. Can a night hide be a multy? Only if during the hunt one of the stages is not fire tack but is a container with coords to the next point. Which could be another container or more fire tacks. But the vast majority of night hides are listed as mystery. Mystery night hides have only one container, the final. Any fire tacks have no coords location and will not interfere with other hides in the area. If the CO has recorded the GPS coords for those tacks that info is not given to the reviewers.

As per Groundspeak rules. Night hides are mystery type. The posted coords have the first fire tacks. This does not qualify as a physical object even though fire tacks are an object. Stage one, posted coords are a virtual location to start from.

Is there a red wrench icon in any log. Is there a medical plus sign in the attribute section. Both will cause the needs maint. Issue.

What would you call recent. I learned of the rule back in early 2012. The hide I refer to is GC2HPN6 placed on 10/30/2011. Another is GC2K5E3, I have just began that one. Stage two 140 miles from posted. Just remember I have talked with the reviewers and confirmed. This is allowed, puzzle yes multy more. So multy rules.

Well like I stated elsewhere a puzzle multy That I had searched for had the final 50 miles from the posted false coords. You solved the puzzle and that lead you to stage one from there each stage had coords to the next stage. That hide has the ? Icon. Stage one is about 1 mile from posted false coords. .12 to the next then 35 miles to the next then 60 miles to the next. And so on For ten stages. The tenth and final at about 50 miles from the posted false coords. Approved as per Groundspeak rules.

As all can see there is much to learn on these different types of hides. What got me to look things up was I had heard of one in which the final Was 1000 miles from the start. That was a multy and no I did not miss print that. So I did an experiment and made a five stage multy in which the final Is 30 miles from stage one. I checked with my reviewers as to the rules For both multies and puzzles and what I call the puzzle multy hybrid. So only a straight puzzle has the rule that the final must be within two Miles of the posted false coords.

Night hides in the US are ? Hides. The first fire tack gets posted coords. The rest do not nor do you submit those locations to the reviewer. You do however submit the final location to the reviewer. The posted coords are also considered a virtual point. Just like false coords to a puzzle. So it theoretically could be possible To hide something at that spot as another traditional. But that would just be confusing.

But even maintenance issues are subjective. The CO who owns 3001 has in excess Of 4000 hides. One in Hawaii, he has minions to help place them and maintain. I own a hide over 140 miles from home. I do the maint. The hide that I mention with 500 miles is about 500 miles of driving. I do not know where the final is. But stage two is 140 miles from posted coords. So you see to know where a non posted coords is, is almost impossible. Unless you find it. Or are told of it.

This is one I did not long ago 3001 the final oddesy. Final stage is about 50 miles from posted false coords. Made well after the rule was made. The key is it is more a multy. To find stage one you must solve the puzzle. Past that multy, this hide is listed with ?. I have confirmed with my reviewers That this is allowed, this goes under the multy rules. So puzzle multy hybrids follow multy rules. Which have no distance rule.

There is a twist to all rules. Here is this twist. A puzzle can also be a multy. There is no distance rule for multies. I have done some and made some. Also checked with reviewer and find my statement true. Multy no rule, straight puzzle two miles, puzzle hybrid multy no rule on distance. The puzzle multy gets the ? Icon also.

Whana bet?

Mystery caches are supposed to be with in 2 miles of the ? icon on the map. You could submit a page for coordinate check, explain what you said above, and ask for a wider check for other caches. The reviewer may, or may not, admit to caches in the area - IF they think you are trying to 'Battleship' a nearby cache. There can be a twist to that rule, the mystery may be a multy as well. I am currently working on finding one in which stage one to two is about 140 miles. Possibly ten stages. Word is it is 500 miles.

Finding them all does not work. I have a hide in which stage one to two is about 15 miles. Stage three about 5 miles. Stage four about 15 miles. The final another 15 to 20 miles. I know of some others that are like mine. I found one that took me about two years to do. Took me about 300 miles too.

I use IE11 also Firefox. But with Firefox I had to tell it not to block the send to GPS plugin. So yes it will work. My unit is Delorme PN60 and PN20.