thistleRacers

I don't think you have to worry about sounding "crotchety" - don't besides Wagonmaker started by saying "I am always shocked at how many DNFs there are on caches when I go travelling. And most of them are ludicrous!" which is not exactly cheery and respectful.

OK, what mountainman38 wrote makes even more sense. But I still think there is a grey area for when you get to a sight planning to look, but something keeps you from searching...like muggles or your little kid needing to find a potty all of a sudden...or anything like that. If you, yourself, feel you didn't really get the chance to look well, should that be a DNF or a note OR is that just personal preference? I think it should still be logged though, especially if it is muggle activity...so people reading the log know what to expect.

This makes sense to me. I like the idea of note when you have been to sight, but were pressed for time, or there were muggles about. and such. It seems many COs have said they like knowing about these things....but what Wagonmaker wrote makes sense for the over-all Geocaching community. If some one is passing through a city and is making a "plan of attack" for geocaches...they may very well leave off ones that have a DNF as the last post.

I would like to protest the idea of needing 100 caches to place one. I think it is up to the individual and how well you know GPS and how it works as well as how comfortable you are with geocaching. We have only log 19 caches but feel ready to hide one, though I am a geographer and have been responsible for the GPS systems at my work for years, I only recently purchased a family GPS that we can use for Geocaching. I think 20 or 30 finds should be sufficient for someone do get "the feel" for it. Maybe they should add an averaging test to the requirements for a first hide. Make certain that the person knows how to average coordinates...

First you could search the "All Nations" forum for "China" (I just did and looked briefly, there seems to be some helpful ones there) I lived in China for 10 months. I road my bike around alone a lot. Could go most place, people would look but never seemed to be suspicious. But it depends ob where you are. What province are you going to? The Chinese are very community oriented and will go out of their way to help you. I would find a local person to go with you, or a whole local family. Or just some local kids. I am not sure why you are going, but maybe you could take the opportunity to teach some kids about GPS and show them how to Geocache. They may all have cellphones with GPS in them...like I said it really depends on where you are. For example, if your around Guang Dong province (the one around Hong Kong and Macau) there will probably be very little suspicion or questioning. Around Beijing I would be more careful and ensure I had a local with me.

Thanks for being such great COs! I read through the logs of one of the caches we just found this past weekend. We had to dump 1/2 cup of water out of it AND the log is soaked. People had been reporting the wet log for weeks. Not every CO is a vigilant as you folk. Also, I didn't mean i'd just toss it in there. I would put it in a ziplock for sure and put a note on it "temporary log as current one is water-logged" or something and then note it in the online log that I had done so. I believe in re-use as much as possible. No need to get new paper, when we can write just as well on the back of old. Could staple some cardboard to it too, for ease of writing.

Been thinking about things now that people have given some helpful replies. 1. logging a DNF helps me also, it shows up in my profile and I can remember which ones I need to get back to. So, even if I have limited time to look, and don't find...I will still log it. 2. I logged a note "thank you" after the CO replaced a wet log I reported...guess that is unnecessary and causes a bit of clutter...so I'll reserve notes for direct information or comment about a cache. 3. WOW, I just had a revelation , I have been making my own little notebooks out of scrap paper (particularly the back of "a-day desk calendars") for decades. I just staple them together, nothing fancy, sometimes cut them in 1/2 to make them smaller. But these would make great temporary logs to carry around in our "swag bag", as I call it, in the event of encountering wet logs in caches.

We Live in Athens work in I work in Jefferson...looking for people to cache with us.

Good point Klatch! but will COs use it? (I didn't know there was one for "Stealth Required") We have not placed a cache yet, but the ones we have looked for seem to be lacking many attribute symbols that would be appropriate for the cache location.

With only 19 finds, I have found that every spot is different in this regards. For example, in a parks, kids are kids and if they find a cool container, they'll take it...no matter the content. In other places, we have talked about geocaching to passers by and some have watched us sign and trade. I guess some geocachers like the stealth part...making it like a role-playing game. But I do think, to protect the cache, in some instances you have to be careful not to show its location.

Thank you both for your replies! good info, good advice

I cache with just my 5 Year old son and sometimes our dog. But the last trip out (no dog with us) was a little scary as I slipped near the rivers edge. I was able to get back up, but that night had an anxiety attack thinking "what would my poor little boy have done out there in the woods if I had gone in? So now i am very wary of going too deep into the woods or any place else that seem a bit dangerous with just my son and I. We would like to find Geocachers to go with around here. But most near us have already gotten all the caches around us. Hope we find someone new to go caching with. (anyone out there around Athens, GA?)

Hi All, My team only has 19 finds, but I have already posted several "did not find"s and one "needs maintenance" when everything was soaked. I have also written a few notes in logs, saying something like "I am glad someone found it after we didn't, that means it wasn't muggled" How much do cache owners care about or watch their statistics? Is it ok to use notes this way? Is it appropriate to alert the owner that everything is wet this way, or should I have just sent a message to the owner or noted it in my "found it" log? ALSO, I have seen mention of some cachers that carry paper around in the event that a log is wet...is this common practice...if so, how does one find out about all these common practices? Sorry, that's a lot of questions in one post, but they all kind of go together...

I was writing mine at the same time you were posting the answer...Thanx!

is it just that the screw is attracted to the magnet of a small or nano cache..and there for points to it? (the black handle just looks like a marker case)

I am sooo glad you posted something today to send this forum topic to the top of the list. I had no idea about this magazine and it is awesome! Thank you for catching my attention ! I particularly love The Travel Bugs CD going to have to get us a copy

This is a great pic of a diamond back! it looks like he is trying to fly

I just came from a thrift store where I found some very cool items to add to our swag-bag. We also frequent flea markets, you can find cool things there too. I look for small useful and/or unique things...lanyard are great! We have been finding a lot of MardiGras beads.. Also, you can go to any party shop or dollar stores with party items and find cool things in large quantities...on the cheap. I have a few bendy smiley people left from my sons party I traded one so far...I think they make good trade too.

Wow! Thanks! I am not sure Face to Face is possible as some are in other cities...maybe I'll just focus on the local ones for now. :-) I just re-read my post, let me clarify....the land is all in my local community, but the owners are in other cities...

My 5yo son and I are new to the Geocaching community. Just as other newbies/tadpoles, at least as I have read in forum posts, I immediately started thinking of our first hide and where we'd need to go to get permission. Contacting municipal offices or education boards is not a problem for me, but I was wondering if anyone has advice on contacting develpers or land management organizations (private LLCs) ? I have thought of 5 sites I want to investigate 3 of wich are brush areas on the edge of commerical property or vaccant undeveloped lots with easy road access...lots of parking and no muggles after hours...they seem perfect... Should I write a letter/email starting with an explaination of geocaching...that it is a family activity? or Write something brief....or is it always better to call than write? Any advice at all on this? any stories of experiences? Thank you