Ecylram

Post # 3,000,000 hit the Forum 28 months ago. And we need to keep rehashing these frequently re-asked questions so we hit #5,000,000 before the end of 2012. It's rehashing to you, but not the newbie. After many years of scolds jumping on the newbies and the technical neophytes, the questions keep getting asked. It's going to keep happening because there will always be newbies and technical neophytes. Frankly, the whole "Thats been discussed before" behavior comes across as cliquish & unfriendly and pushes people away. A better way to handle the 'irritation' is to welcome the person, answer the question, then provide information to help the person find the information on their own. We've seen examples of this in this thread and others. Granted, this takes a little more effort, but its rewarded by a more positive and welcoming atmosphere.

I'm truly sorry to hear that. My wife believes that Golden Labs are the "best dogs in the world". Sounds like Jessie lived up to that high billing.

Are you sure you are not mixing up driving and geocaching? I never have air conditioning when I'm geocaching. You just strap the air conditioner to your back and get a loooong extension cord. Actually, that day (yesterday) I was hitting an urban/industrial area where the caches were not (usually) close together and where there were a lot of geographical boundaries such as rivers, canals, railroad tracks, fences, and freeways. We gotta get you into the mountains for some 4x4 trails and/or hike to caches. You'll love it. 4x4 event in August. Make your plans to attend. Sounds like fun. I can tell you know that my wife and Jessie would become fast friends.

Are you sure you are not mixing up driving and geocaching? I never have air conditioning when I'm geocaching. You just strap the air conditioner to your back and get a loooong extension cord. Actually, that day (yesterday) I was hitting an urban/industrial area where the caches were not (usually) close together and where there were a lot of geographical boundaries such as rivers, canals, railroad tracks, fences, and freeways.

WOW!!! The OPs first post in the forums and you have to jump on him like this? The OPs question was answered by 2 very helpful people. IMHO this post was completely uncalled for. Way to make new cachers feel welcome. Maybe we can gather all the "That's been posted before" posts and move them to their own forum. There's been over 3 million posts to these forums, I'm pretty sure just about everything has been discussed at one time or the other.

Just started, but this is what we've found so far... As others mentioned...people 'notice' nervous people. Act like you belong there and you won't stick out. Early weekend mornings are great for high muggle areas. Patience can be important. Be willing to wait for the right moment. Some things we did to cover our activities when muggles were around: Carry a camera, pretend to take a picture (or really take one) On a cache & grab, park in front of the suspected area in a way to block the view. Have one person stand to block the view. Appear to be on the phone (as mentioned). It's a great way to fake it until while you wait for someone to leave. I've pulled up to a lamp post hide and lifted the hood of the car as if I was checking the oil. It blocked the view of many of the muggles and explained my parking there. If you get attention, start gathering trash. People will quickly look away so they don't feel the obligation to help.

I'm sure when it happens it'll rise to the top of the list. So far we haven't cached in snake areas.

Regarding 33 (Caching with a muggle): In one instance he wandered off to pet a dog and chat with the dog's owner, then he LOUDLY yelled over "Did ya find it yet"? (I did. It was a very cool stump hide.) Second instance, we pull up to a lamp post hide in a gas station parking lot. It's on a busy corner and there is a car of muggles a few feet away. I tell him its not a good time to get it and lets move on. He jumps out of the car and lifts the skirt to see what it was. A guy parked at the light watched the whole thing and forgot to go when the light turned green.

As a parent of a girl, this is one of the saddest posts I've read. But then, my daughter has no interest in caching as well.

Later today my wife and I will find our 100th cache. This is what we’ve learned so far. 1. Some cachers go to great effort to maintain quality caches. 2. Some cache owners are amazingly creative. 3. Some caches are abandoned relatively fast. 4. There is ambiguity in the geocaching guidelines…and varying interpretations. 5. I don’t think I want to be a reviewer. 6. There is an art to reading the GPS. 7. The vast majority of cache coordinates are pretty gosh darn accurate. 8. Seconds count when attempting to be the FTF. 9. FTF’s are amazingly addictive. 10. It’s stupid to go out caching all afternoon in 102 degree heat with bad air conditioning. 11. A lot of cachers don’t log their DNF’s. 12. I hate lamp post hides – boring. 13. I love lamp post hides – nothing better after a few DNF’s or to reach a milestone. 14. I understand why people have stamps for their names. 15. There is a special place in heck for people who run their stamps across three or four lines on a small cache log. Yes, you should be ashamed if you do this. 16. A lot of logs are damp, moist, wet, mush. 17. A lot of seemingly waterproof containers…aren’t. 18. Some cache owners don’t think their plan through. 19. There are a lot of parks and green areas I didn’t know about. 20. Just because there are a million great hiding places in the rocks doesn’t mean the cache isn’t really in the bushes. 21. There are a lot of cedar trees and bushes in our area. 22. I hate cedar trees and bushes. 23. I’m starting to hate pine trees. 24. Muggles are everywhere. 25. Muggles sneak up on you. 26. Some muggles are oblivious to the world around them. 27. Muggles sometimes find caches…and sign them. 28. I’m surprise that some caches have never been muggled. 29. Some descriptions have nothing to do with the cache. 30. Some hints, really aren’t. 31. I would really like to meet some of the cache owner’s. 32. I find I mentally assign a gender to some ‘genderless’ cache owners – and am often right. 33. There are some muggles you should just not go caching with…seriously. 34. It’s possible to spot another geocacher from several hundred feet away. 35. Some cache descriptions tell some very poignant stories. 36. There are a lot of spiders and bugs in this world. 37. There are a lot of sharp and pokey things in this world. 38. I need to buy gloves. 39. Long sleeve shirt might not be a bad idea either. 40. The best geocaching pen in the world is the Sharpie Fine Point Pen.

**Deleted** Due to the comment of the moderator regarding off topic. (I wasn't helping.) :-)

The ends do not justify the means. The guy was very lucky nobody called his bluff. I stand by my statement before that his decision was poor at best. Sometimes bad decisions have good outcomes. That doesn't make them good decisions. And if he did nothing and was shot...he'd be correct and dead. There is no one answer for these complicated situations. Doing nothing does not always equal safe.

I know this will go down as the minority opinion but, what can I say, I was dropped on my head as kid... While the response was not what many (most?) consider textbook, that doesn't mean that it was the wrong response. There are two types of predators in this world, those that look for weakness to exploit (most common) and those that look for strength in order to go 'mano a mano' (gang initiation crimes often fall in this category). Of the first type of predator, they could be looking to harm a victim or just rob them. There is no one best response for all the types mentioned. I've seen videos (and known) of victims who fully complied and were still shot in the head. In the case of this story, it appears the victim was knowledgeable about predators and was able to convincingly fake confidence (which most people cannot do). What he did worked and he did not become a victim. Granted, it may have been luck but his success may have been due to good instincts and background knowledge/training. A different response may very well have turned out worse. I believe he did the right thing, because it worked. He's safe and no one was harmed. For other people and situations, this response may be wrong. It all depends on the actors involved. Sooo... How about that geocaching??...

I agree with the rest. No matter how safe and interesting the the cache site is, it's private property. I vote for disabling the cache and moving it.

Bumping this to the top as I have the same question. I'd like to download a list of a particular member's caches to my iPhone/GPS unit. Has anybody found an easy way to do this (without visiting each cache webpage)?

I've got a travel bug that is hoping to make it to another state. Are there certain cache locations or type that are better for getting the bug moving toward it's destination?

Is there an active travel bug hotel in the Denver?

The opposite side of this elementary school (north side) meets this description. There is no clear defining line. There is a cache in that park but it is on the far side of the park, about a block away. The cache in question is not on the park side borders home fences. I commented on the permission question in another post, I will add that there is no mention in the post that the cache was placed with permission or has any relationship to the school.

I don't wish to publicly post the name of the cache as this is still up in the air. But...I've sent the information to you via email. Regarding the permission issue, my understanding of the guidlines is that elementary school placements are not to be done even with approval of the school. I understand this as parents dropping their kids off at school aren't going to know about the agreement and may decide to call the police, etc.

Since I am new I'm concerned about all my reactions to involving interactions with other Geocachers. We're still getting familiar with the culture and etiquette. If I run across this situation again I believe I'm in agreement with you regarding sending an email. I just saw the spot this afternoon where you can do that.

Today, I recommended the archival and move of an active cache. Why? Because it's located on the grounds of an elementary school and is a stones throw away from the building. My understanding is that Geocaching guidelines prohibit cache placements near elementary & middle schools. Also, I recall a case in our greater metropolitan area where a school was evacuated and a bomb squad was called due to a geocache. Did I do the right thing or should I have handled it differently? I feel particularly bad as this is the very first cache that was placed by this family.

I'm sure there is a misunderstanding in my tone here. I was referring to the people who try to disrupt our hobby as 'idiots' which indeed they are. I'm absolutely not referring to any person on this forum or any geniune cachers. I'm sure we can all agree that if someone steals a cache they are indeed an idiot, and deserve no respect. No offense to Ms. Moderator, but a warning for "anti-social idiots"? Especially when speaking of cache maggots on generic basis? Seems a bit excessive to me. That word is disrespectful and discourteous. The Forum Guidelines state that everyone is to be treated with courtesy and respect. There are no stipulations that it is okay to speak in a disrespectful manner about anyone. There are other ways to describe the actions of people without resorting to a personal attack even on a generic group of unknown people. With all do respect, the 'idiot' comment seems tame in comparison to what has gone on in the Geocide thread. IMO, the comment is mild as 'idiots' is a milder term than a 'petty thieves' which is an accurate description for persons who steal small items. 'Idiot' implies ignorance, where as a thief implies a level of malevolence not necessarily inherit in an 'idiot'. But then my vote doesn't count here.

Sounds like you're making a good decision to get out of Geocaching. Its definitely not for you.

My favorite item I saw in a cache this holiday weekend was a wooden tongue depressor that some grade schooler had taken the time to decorate. They even invented a cartoon character and gave it a name. I thought it was adorable and if I had something of equivalent value with me I would have traded for it. (Least favorite item was a toothbrush.)

Starligh, I'm a newbie as well and have run into the same issue. Using your example, here's a trick I'm using with my GPS (iPhone 4): At a spot before the compass goes crazy, visualize the path the compass is pointing you. Then move to an open spot that's somewhat perpendicular to that line (the should be at least 15-30 ft off of the imaginary line) and visualize the path the compass is pointing you. Where do these two lines meet? That's the area you should look. This is easier with two people and easier still with two people wielding GPS's. It's easier to do, than it is to describe.