ChicagoCanineCrew

I am looking for a Canine Cachers geocoin to buy (the one with a German Shepherd on it.) If anyone has one please send me a PM!

I am looking for a few suggestions of good GPSr units that work well for geocaching in the field but can also be used to navigate in a car. Anyone have any they would recommend that work well? I just need something basic (not overly pricey or gadget-filled) but that would work for both uses...

My dog Ginger had a travel bug tag attached to her collar so we could keep track of caches she visited and people we met. Here is a link to her page: http://www.geocaching.com/track/details.aspx?id=209517 I also made her a t-shirt to match: http://www.chicagocanine.com/dogtemp/teegeo.jpg My new dog is getting a geocoin and I'm going to do the same. This helps me to keep track of which caches we visited together which is helpful because I want to get her a geocaching merit badge from Dog Scouts of America.

When does a person stop being a "newbie" though? After a certain number of finds or what? What if someone went out with a group and found 30 or 50 caches on a weekend trip-- does that make them no longer a newbie? How about someone who has found a lot of caches but have only been caching for a few weeks? How about if someone has been active for a long time but has not found a lot of caches? Newbie or no?

I will definitely be buying some! I put this thread in my tracked list, you'll post here when you have a date right?

I was looking at Google Earth to try to find the best parking areas for a few caches in a local forest preserve. There are at least 3-4 different parking areas to choose from. While doing this I also noticed that there was a canal or river branch cutting through the forest preserve so IF Google Earth is accurate enough it could also tell me which side of the canal/river I ought to start from to reach the cache with dry feet.

Yeah that's what I thought as well. Rags sure sounds like a pet name to me. In fact I used to know a dog named Rags...

I don't want to start an argument but I am curious how many "finds" you think a geocacher should have before they hide a cache? I see people saying they are going to hide one now because they just got 50 or 100 finds so I was curious if there is a general consensus? Does the length of time the person has been involved with geocaching make a difference to your opinion?

I don't have a photo, but the most interested sign I've seen while caching was the one for the Krueger Memorial Park. I just kept thinking it had something to do with Freddy... I would have loved to see these signs myself though:

It depends on their tone of voice, what they are doing at the time, and what you are doing at the time.

This is my bike. Oh, and my cat...yes I take my cat on bike rides. This spring/summer I am hoping to start taking him geocaching, to caches that are bicycle accessible or only require short hikes. He LOVES to go out for rides and walks. Once I was riding my bike and I turned my head to look at something across the street. Unfortunately at the moment I looked away I was about to pass a low (6") wall somehow had along their house which started right next to the sidewalk. When I turned away I must have veer off a bit and I ended up hitting the wall and falling off my bike and crashing to the ground. The next few moments were a blur but somehow I ended up with a bleeding gash on my head. I walked my bike home in a bit of a daze. When I got home I called my neighbor who is a nurse and she took a look and told me I'd need stitches. Somehow I had ended up with a puncture wound in my head. The only thing I could think of is the bike must have landed on my head somehow, because the flat sidewalk could not have given me a puncture wound. I had to go to the emergency room and get several stitches in my head. I still have a scar and bump on my scalp years later. The moral of the story is, always wear your helmet!

Sorry, I'm not as photogenic as the dogs but I just realized that you wanted humans included so here you go... Ginger and I at a Classic K9 Agility competition: Niagra Falls with Ginger: Us (me, Ginger, and Pooch) on a hike with a Dog Scout troop: A newer photo, from our last vacation, Summer 08 (Wisconsin)

Thanks! That would be great. I'll send you a PM. Bianca is always looking for new pals!

Oops did you want photos with a human in them too?

Thanks for the link on those Tschakko! I was also looking for one for my cat and I think that cat one in the picture looks good for him... Below is the dog coin I which someone posted a link to in this thread, I think this would be perfect for my German Shepherd. Problem is I can't find it for sale anywhere! I found someone who had it in their trade list on a geocoin trade site but they said they would ONLY trade it and I don't have any other coins so I can't trade them.

He's 18. He posted his myspace link in his geocide thread. Ruh-roh. I was reprimanded by Wrastro. I'm going to plead my case with Rorge. No, I meant this "king riched" person.

King Riched was freaking awesome!! And he was such a horrific speller, I'm sure he meant to call himself King Richard, and didn't know how to spell it. Looks like he logged in a couple of days ago, although he hasn't found a cache since last summer, or hid one since 2007. Please tell me that is a little kid-- like under 12? If not... I'm scared.

I was a Girl Scout for one year, a friend of mine talked me into it. I liked it and I learned quite a bit. We did a lot of outdoor type things such as learning knot tying, compass use, orienteering, and did a winter camp out which was my first and only time camping in the winter... We were in a forest preserve camping in tents, 2 people to a tent, using whatever sleeping bags we owned... Unfortunately it was below freezing with snow on the ground and the sleeping bag I brought was old and not very thick so I shivered most of the night but I still loved the experience! I don't remember any more what badges I earned but I did have fun for the year I was in it.

I don't have any ideas but I think it's a great idea. I was in a LARP at an anime con once where there were a lot of clues to find which were leading to the goal in the game. A few of the clues led me to find a "treasure chest" which contained a cloth bag filled with (plastic) coins, bead necklaces and Swedish Fish. I didn't get the point of the fish until the person running it explained in the after-game meeting- it was a RED HERRING (duh!)

It depends WHY they didn't sign the log. If they found the cache, opened it, but then could not sign the log for some reason (no logbook, wet logbook, no pen) I would count that as a "find" and I have no problem with them logging it as such but I would hope they would go back later to sign in if at all possible. If they did not actually find and OPEN the cache I would not count that as a find. If they found it but didn't open it or saw it but couldn't get to it, how do they know it was really the cache? I logged a find recently on a micro which I didn't sign because there was no pen and I didn't have one with me. I went to look for a nearby cache on a whim while walking my dog to the park so I didn't have my usual caching bag. I mentioned on the page that I didn't have a pen and would go back to sign it within the next few days, which I did.

I try to remember to stop before focusing on my GPSr, and I usually remember so I haven't had any accidents except getting hit in the face with some small branches. Last time I went out earlier this week I got poked in the eye by a branch because I was looking at the ground instead of the brush I was walking through (my GPSr was in my pocket at the time.) I did hurt myself while hiking in the Adirondacks though. I was on a nature trail and I somehow was not looking where I was stepping, the path took a sudden dip and I fell onto a large tree root. I badly skinned my knee and I later found out I also badly sprained my ankle. My knee hurt more when I got back to the car so I didn't think much about the ankle until it swelled up the next day. That was about 6 years ago now and I still have a scar (large red splotch) from the skinned knee.

I was on a picnic with family when some guy walked up the road from further in the forest preserve and threw this thing in the trash can, got in a car and left. Another photo: Sailfish Closer: Fish 2 I have no idea why they were carrying this out of a forest preserve or what exactly it is for (what's with the handle?) If it was in better shape I would have taken it home to turn into a cache. The swordfish-like "bill" was pretty much intact too, but I didn't get a photo of the head.

This seems like good advice. I would suggest the same-- talk to the reviewer in your area and find out if the cache would ever be approved before you worry about the other cache in the area. There is no point in going to a lot of trouble only to find out your cache will never be listed on the website right? If the other cache nearby is missing and/or is no longer being maintained then I agree it should be archived. If the cache owner has moved away or is no longer active in geocaching maybe you can try to contact them and ask them to let you adopt the cache or ask them to archive it? As for caching without a GPSr, I see nothing wrong with that but you WILL need one to place a cache. If you don't have your own you can borrow one or ask someone who owns one to help you place the cache. When I first started geocaching I had an old GPSr which almost never got a lock, so I found my first caches without its help.

Yep I checked there too, none for sale there right now but I guess I'll keep checking back...

Thanks for the link! The GeoDog coin is PERFECT but I can't find it for sale and I don't have any coins to trade someone for it. I also love the Canine Cachers v1 but again I am not sure how to find it without having anything for trade.