TetrAmigos

We sure do, in fact we try to keep it updated fairly regularly too: http://gc4dummies.blogspot.com/ SOkie's got a much more comprehensive blog than ours, but we try!

Yesterday I went out of my way to hit a 1/1 park-n-grab on the way to a client meeting. Based on the cache, description, type and comments I figured exactly what the others did.. it'd be a quick grab and just the right amount of positive energy buzz I would need to get to my client meeting ready to close the deal. Wrong. I got DNF'ed on what was "reportedly" a very easy cache. Frankly, I love a DNF.. if I deserve it. If the cache was well-placed, the difficulty level proper and the hint an actual hint and I still can't find it? Well done, cache-placer. However, when I visit a cache and find that the cache was poorly placed (in this case, an area where the placer should have known the landscape maintenance would dislodge and likely throw out the cache), place it somewhere else! The worst part was the hint: "It's in the most obvious location...really!" Even some of the early experienced cache finders teased the cache placer about the hint.

derandere, I know exactly what you are looking for -- I would love to use that sort of utility myself. As it stands, I usually only travel in the United States and as such I use Mapopolis on my PDA and GPXtoMaplet to pick the "seemingly" most effective routing but it's always hand-to-mouth, point-to-point. I'd love to be able to print out (or display) a route like the one you are talking about, even if it took my PC an hour to compute!

One aspect that isn't covered often is your appearance. Geocaching can be an awfully rugged sport depending on the cache, so it's understandable that we cachers don't venture into the fray in our Sunday best. However, taking a shower, putting on clean clothes and looking generally presentable (I know, for some it's a stretch ) can go an awfully long way. The other day I hit a cache that was in an expensive, corporate business zone dressed in a pair of sweats and a hat. I was a bit sweaty, tired and I was walking around looking at seemingly innocuous objects.. that drew attention. I came back later the next day following work dressed in my slacks and a dress shirt, and I didn't attract anyone. In my area there's a number of caches that are so muggle-heavy that you are bound to be passed by a LEO at least once. For those caches, acting confident, being confident and keeping your eyes on the game is important. If your standing on the corner with darting eyes, people will know you feel uncomfortable and you will look suspicious no matter how hard you try. Being prepared with brochures is important.

For us, it's a 2005 Pontiac Aztek (which may not look beautiful, but she's amazing to drive): Otherwise, it's my daily-driver 2001 Toyota Camry Solara:

I dropped my TE and now the power button doesn't work. I have to turn it on using the other buttons. My understanding is that this is common with TEs. I hope to come up with a good excuse to buy a TX soon. At least it still works!!

One of the best investments I ever made in my PDA was a solid aluminum case from eBay I bought for $5. About a week later I dropped my axim so hard that the SD card flew out, but the case took most of the brunt and she lived to see another day.

What type of PDA are you using and what software do you have?

I log a DNF only after I've spent a minimum of 5 minutes at the exact GPS coords, after I've read and digested the hint (where neccesary) and after checking and re-checking the last 5 posts of the cache finds. If I still come up dry, I try not to spend too long at the location (ususally time is not on my side) and make a note to log a detailed DNF.

Exactly! P.S. to the Others: And for the record, this topic is regarding business cards that are actually business cards and not personal item cards.

Classic!

I've found that six (6) count LED flashlights generate just enough light (they are much brighter than the standard flashlight) to make geocaching at night an easier pasttime. There's lots of 10-16-24 and even 30+ count LED flashlights, but if you need that much light you might as well bring the sun along with you. Lots of folks on eBay sell lights like the ones below really cheap, with the LED lights protected by the casing. They use 1 AAA battery and last for many many nights of use before you need to switch in another battery. I own a much more expensive version, but it's a green LED flashlight which makes caching HARD. White ambient LED light is the best way to go, and a flashlight with 6-count LED lights in white is the best choice IMO. These lights are $5.99 for the lot plus $10 to ship (typical for eBay):

I agree.

Funny you folks mention this thread topic.. just yesterday I was out caching around and was surprised to find a user who had placed a cache in a notable spot! Thousand Oaks is not without its remarkable hiking and picturesque landscape, yet there's more pavement caches than ever before. Make no mistake, I actually like my share of pavement cahces -- sometimes I want to snag one or two before I head home from work and these types of caches are much easier on my attire (don't have to explain to the wife why my dress shoes have mud on them..) But yesterday the cache placer took me to the top of a local bluff, and by luck I happened to be there as the sun was setting. I was so pleased with the placement of this cache, that when I got back to my car I decided to get out and take a picture of my good mood. The kicker is that it only took 5 extra minutes out of the cache-placer's day to find a notable location vs. a lightpost in a Costco parking lot. THAT is what I like about geocaching. (and for those who are curious, here's the photo of me with my caching gear in front of my caching machine):

Exactly. When times are light and a good cache has been down in our area for longer than 4-5 months, we ususally send an email to our friends (or do it ourself) to contact the owner and offer to adopt the location. If the location was poor to begin with or fraught with constant muggling, we usually let the reviewer in on the loop and the cache is most likely taken down for good. It's certainly important to spend the few extra minutes to share with the cache owner and local reviewer. It can be especially frustrating for other cachers who would like to place a cache nearby but can't because the "temp. disabled cache" is holding down the minimum cache placement radius and could "potentially" be re-activated at any time.

Naturally, but alas that's only a suggestion and the few that I've seen are just plain ole' business cards. I did see one about 2 years ago that listed the owner as a certified "Beer Consumption Specialist". Now THAT'S funny.

There's a program called iSilo at http://www.isilo.com/ that has a version supporting Windows CE devices to bring cache details with you on the fly. Try it out and let us know how it works for you.

Holy smokes, Brian! That's some pretty neat loot.

I remember seeing a bunch of little plastic containers no larger than the tip of your pinky finger, each with a small ball bearing in them and an inscription of the owner's name inside. They were so bizarre and unique, they've stuck with me over the years.. Any idea who's they might have been? As for us, we just kept it simple and stuck with the old .0001 Mexican peso coins:

That's a good point. Out here, the caches are very kid friendly so we tend to take nothing, and usually leave a Trace Amigos signature Peso. Ok, so business cards are OK? That's really good to hear. It's a neat way to cache when you are out of town, that's for sure. More than anything, I was intrigued to see a Floridian caching in Thousand Oaks -- but between you and I (and anyone else on these forums) I wouldn't put a card with my picture on it in a cache!

We've been caching for over 2 years now, though we havn't cached steadily for some time (new kid, inujury, etc. etc.). We recently got back out caching again, much to our relief. Last evening we visited this cache here: Why Em See Aye (GCGG24) It was a great cache, with lots of little knick-knacks packed into a flat AOL case (infamous for soaking their contents). Everything was dry, and amongst the contents was a Real Estate agent's business card. I was under the impression that "advertising" (and yes, this card was very much an advertisement) in caches was forbidden. I was tempted to remove the card and mail it back to it's owner, when I realized that the owner was a Florida resident. Clearly being in a California cache, this person was most likely not advertising just pointing out that he'd hit a CA cache from Florida. What's the rule of thumb to govern this sort of scenario?

I absolutely insist on my PDA and bluetooth reciever to geocache. I too have a Dell Axim and with a Holux reciever, and they both work fabulously! I wrote an article on the equipment and software I use to geocache back in April of 2005 on my geocaching blog. The link to it is unfortunately not direct, but you can scroll down to it: http://gc4dummies.blogspot.com/2005_04_01_archive.html Goto the article called "The Equipment." The only thing that I've changed is my use of cachemate instead of freeware GPXSonar. Even though GPXSonar was free, cachemate was faster and easier to use, so we switched. Best of luck!

ThisCacheIsHiddenDirectlyUnderTheSignRightHereYouCantMissIt (just kidding)

I placed a geocache within 100 feet of m office window, so I can see people drive up and excercise some serious stealth. My favorites are the ones who use the "wandering cellphone user" trick. Oh it's so much fun.

I own a Commercial Aircraft Sales & Leasing (CASL) company in Southern California--only the heavies, not GA or executive aircraft. Here's an actual sample of a B733F (Pemco) we are currently selling: