Clan Riffster

Dang Thrak, don't hold back. Tell us how you really feel. Not so funny true story; I created a puzzle cache based upon a typewriter keyboard and the requisite finger placement thereon. I'm not a typist, so I had no clue what fingers go where. I took an on-line typing course that showed me the layout and hand placement, and designated specific fingers for specific letters. I used this data to create my puzzle, dedicating it to a local geogenius. His "ground zero" was 600' from the final coordinates, and cost him the FTF. At first I assumed that he got his numbers wrong, however, several others E-mailed me asking for coordinate verification, and they all made the same error. Obviously that meant the mistake was on my end, not the geocaching general public. I went back to my on-line study course and verified that my data matched their instruction, then I checked out another on-line course that contradicted the first one. After checking numerous sources, I determined that all but one, (the one I initially used), would've resulted in the same 600' error. The bottom line? My initial data was faulty, and it resulted in my puzzle being faulty. If I had taken the time to check with just one person who actually knew how to type, then he would not have wasted an hour in some nasty woods, searching for a cache that was 600' away. Just call me $!%^head.

Otter boxes are supposedly waterproof, airtight containers. I use one to carry my Glock, cellphone & GPSr while kayak fishing. The problem some folks have is they'll leave the pressure valve open, allowing moisture in. Kinda pricey at $20 to $60 a pop.

Wow! Absolutely kewl! This is one of the mony reasons GC outshines the competition. Hats off to Jeremy & crew!

Hmmm...neat idea! I might have to steal it. How 'bout a Monty Python & The Holy Grail cache? Step 1) Find a hiding spot, get the coordinates. Step 2) Watch the movie. Look for parts of the movie that match your numbers. I.e; The cache cane be found at N AB* CD.EFG/W HI* JK.LMN A = The number of killer rabbits B = The number of eyes on the cave monster C = How many times did the knights who say "Neigh", actually say "Neigh". E = How many limbs were hacked off in the battle between _____ F = How many times was the word "Brave" sung in the "Brave Sir Robin" song Etc, etc... ad infinitum

I'd like to see a moratorium against micros, dictating that they can only be placed under the following circumstances; 1) The area absolutely will not support a small or regular cache. 2) There is something definitive that warrants bringing folks to the location. 3) The words "Parking lot" and Film Cannister" are never used in conjunction.

Another handy use for the "Write Note" feature; If I show up at a micro, and waive off a search attempt due to excess muggles, I'll leave a note. I won't DNF it cuz I never looked for it. Otherwise, I follow the aforementioned guidelines.

Decon kits, AKA: M258A1 Plastic Box, are kewl. About twice the volume as a cigarette pack. They are also very water resistent. I found one tied to a brick, in a culvert, that had been submerged for two months. It had a half inch of water in it. You can buy them here: http://www.armysurpluswarehouse.com/itemDe...%20Box&item=559

(In my best John Wayne voice:) Them thar weasels are might fast.

The general rule of thumb is, take an item, leave an item. A variation we sometimes play is, if both my kids see something that catches their fancy, we'll take two and leave two. I've never heard of someone trading out the entire inventory. On occasion, a cache placer will dictate a certain item to be left in the cache. This will usually be noted on the cache page, or by a label on the item. Kinda like a cache guardian or mascot.

Another consideration; For a picture to post succesfully, it not only needs to be on the internet, (in the internet?), it needs to be publicly accessible. If you link to a pic in a private website, you might still see it in your post, while everybody else, who doesn't have the necessary permissions, will only see the dreaded red "X".

Geolite, I would recommend you educate your local officials regarding our obsess..uh..hobby. A well thought out presentation by some well mannered folks will go a long way towards bending their policy in a direction that is workable for all. Once you've taught them the basics, present them with a second draft of their geocaching rules, for their consideration. Let's take a peek at what they've come up with, and see what we can improve; Beautiful. Don't change a thing. This in itself acknowledges that the city officials recognize geocaching in a positive light. This one bothers me. I personally think the Geocaching.com method is great, but this particular rule requires that an applicant support a particular business. Maybe you could "borrow" the GC guidelines and get them included in the rules, so that GC isn't listed by name. That way they are simply guidelines, as opposed to GC guidelines. Nothing wrong with that, but the next sentance in this needs help; Here's where education comes in. This rule seems to assume that a geocacher is only the person doing the hiding, and not the people doing the finding. The way this reads, each person that wants to hunt a cache would need to get permission from the Director. Point out the flaw, (in a nice way), and give them a corrected version. Again, nothing wrong here. They're just trying to protect their flora. Again, basic common sense. Probably could use a bit of tweeking. No problems here. Not sure if you can change this one, though I hope you can educate them. Obviously somebody put a scare into them concerning the evil, dreaded ammo can. Maybe during your presentation you could bring some well camo'ed ammo cans to show off, to dispel their concerns. Point out to them the fact that anything can look suspicious to a person with a suspicious mindset, and that their own existing notification proceedures will negate any possible bomb threat concerns. If someone reports a "suspicious" package, all they gotta do is look up the location and see that it is a cache, not a thermonuclear device. Try not to use sarcasm when dealing with idiots. Suggest a compromise, due to the rather blatent commercialization of this rule. Something to the effect of, "All caches located.....shall be labled in such a manner as to clearly distinguish their purpose. Any unlable caches will be removed Remember, this refers to events, not the everyday CITO'ing by cachers. As such, this rule is OK. They're telling you that, if you want to descend upon their parks in large groups, armed with trash bags, they need to tell you how they want it done. Basic common sense, again. Not a bad rough draft. Good idea, but needs to be rewritten. This is a CYA rule. As much as it makes me cringe, due to it's open ended interpretation, I doubt you'll get them to budge on it. Only fight the battles you can win. OK, now that we've taken a look at their rules, I hope you'll agree that they are not the totalitarian doctrines you initially described. They do need a bit of help, and if you offer that help, in a nonaggressive, professional manner, you might win a few points for the geocaching community. Obviously you're passionate about this game, and it shows loud and clear in your posts. If you present the city officials with the same attitude you originally posted with, they will shut the door in your face, and the battle will be for naught. I'm not saying this to criticise you, because I see that you've already toned down your approach quite a bit. Keep going in that direction and you'll be fine. During your upcoming meeting/event thingy, keep an eye out for those folks who are good public speakers. Those are the ones you want to recruit for your presentation to the Parks Department. When dealing with government, it's often not what you say, but how you say it that matters the most. Good luck in your quest. It's a worthy fight. (note to critics: I already know my spelling sucks. There is no need to point this out to me.)

Hey Cracker, good eye for detail! Unfortunately, it's an IFS, '87. I had an '81 with a straight axle, but I blew the motor running it with no water. Who'd a thunk it? If you go to the Florida Geocaching Association's website, and look at their galleries, I've uploaded pics detailing the whole process. After the silicon dries, I cut along the rim with scissors, trimming back any excess, as well as any "strings" that conect from the lid to the base. http://65.34.18.106/news.php

Moss covered decon kit

There's a cache in Deltona called Lapanocia Butterfly Tree, GCNPM7 that is as close to being a 5 star terrain as any I've done. Like "Wildlife", it's a relitively short hike, but the swamp is so nasty that it took us two hours to complete. Stage 1 is about 250' from parking, then an additional 250' to the main cache. Probably about 400' from the cache back to your vehicle. So, that's about 900' in two hours. Average ground speed 450' per hour. HiddenRock, the evil GeoGenius who hid it, listed it as a 3/4.

Been lost twice, both pre-GPSr... I was bowhunting in Ocala National Forest, parked my truck on one of the infinate dirt roads that bisect the woods, and started my stalk. Crossed several more dirt roads in search of Bambi, but figured I could always find my way out. Ha! After spending the night out there, Viv made me buy my first GPSr, a Magellan GPS-12. Sometime later I was hunting on a friend's property near Ocala. 30 acres, surrounded by zillions of other acres. I didn't bring my shiny new GPSr with me cuz I was so familiar with these woods that I figured I couldn't get lost. A thunderstorm from Hell showed up, with lightning popping trees all around me, and I figured that was my cue to get back to my truck. In the downpour, I misjudged my direction. After walking 30 minutes, when I should've been out of the woods in 10, I stopped and waited for the storm to pass. Naturally, it waited till dark-30 to stop raining. I couldn't see the stars, so navigation was out. Tried several attempts, but couldn't find the road. After what seemed like an eternity, I heard another vehicle driving down the road, and followed the sound out of the woods, then hiked back to my truck.

Good question... When I was setting up this cache, the geocalculator thingy called it a 3/5. Personally I'd call it a 2/3. How do you decide what's right? Things I'd like to see in a 5 star difficulty are hikes over 3 miles, takes more than 2 hours to complete, severe terrain issues such as mountains or swamps. I'm still fairly new to the game, so I'll just sit back and learn.

I tend to think of this as a self correcting problem. My personal thoughts tend to lean against micros, and I'd probably keep quiet if Jeremy suggested banning film cannisters from Burger King landscaping, but then I've always been known for my low LQ, (lame quotiant). That being said, I've done some micros that rated right up with my favorite caches. If a cacher brings me to a beautiful location, or teaches me a bit of local lore, I don't really care what size the container is. There are those among us that honestly believe that dropping a film cannister in every possible parking lot somehow enhances the geocaching experience for the rest of us, and to them I say, "Have fun". Play the game you want, and you'll never be disappointed.

Must be a French thing?

I won't hunt a cache near bowhunters, not for fear of getting an arrow in my backside, but out of respect for their hunting experience. As a bowhunter, I know that it's a sport of stealth, far more so than hunting with a firearm. My skill level requires that I get Bambi within 40 yards of me before I'll attempt a shot with my bow. If the deer near a stand are nervous, the average bowhunter won't see them, and folks hiking about looking for Tupperware tends to make deer nervous. I waived off a search at a local management area last weekend due to seeing a truck parked nearby. I knew that if I were to go tromping around through the woods, it would have a significantly negative impact on that hunter's experience. This is not as necessary during firearms season, due to the extended range, however, I still wouldn't hunt a cache if I knew that by doing so I might hurt someone's chance of harvesting his/her favorite critter. That being said, I think wearing hunter orange is a good idea.

OK, now I've got Garmin-envy.

'87 Toyota 4X4 P/U. 300k+ miles. Gets me where I need to go.

I think it's terrible! You should remove it immedietely! As pennance, mail it to me.

Sigh..... What part of "any activity that does not endanger the public" did you not understand? (post deleted to avoid arguing the same point over, and over, and over....)

As a deputy sheriff, I'm "on call" 24/7, so technically, I'm geocaching on duty, however, I don't get paid for it. On a side note, I've been involved in SAR tasks which have brought me very close to some caches, but I've always left them for later.

Something I've started doing with all my caches is tethering. A short section of paracord tied to the container, then tied to a tree trunk, etc. This won't keep a thief from stealing it, but it does send the message that "This belongs here", and it will keep it in place in the event any storms come along. Red summed it up best.