luvvinbird

I've noticed a trend lately of too many CO newbies who are in it for the "short haul". Caches are hidden and then neglected, DNF's go unanswered as do messages and e-mails. Anyone else noticing this? I never tire of geocaching and I don't find it to be boring or mundane. As an owner, I respect the guidelines and responsibility of ownership but it appears many don't. There seems to be a pattern. Find one cache, own one cache, neglect one cache.

Ditto. Great batteries. They have a terrific shelf life and seemingly last forever in my eTrex's, too. I switched to the Eneloops a couple of years ago after reading about them here in this forum. It was good advise then and still is now.

Something's not making sense. If you punch in the manual coordinates of a cache location the receiver is bang on? If you "send to my GPS" the receiver is off the mark?

I'm baffled. Both my eTrex 30's and both my eTrex 20's worked perfectly right out of the box after a quick set-up of the numbers already mentioned here. They're great units, I'm sure it's only a setting. Download the .pdf manual from the Garmin website if you haven't already done so. It may be helpful to read it on your PC and follow along with adjustments.

Like you, puzzle caches are not my forte. However, I was lucky enough to attend a puzzle cache event last month where I purchased that same book. I've not read too much of it as yet but I would recommend contacting a puzzle cache owner in your area to see if a similar event designed to help novice puzzle solvers, is upcoming for your locale. We covered a few of the examples in the book but what I got out of attending the event was that puzzle cache owners are very friendly, openly communicate with their puzzler peers and are only too happy to help others. Meanwhile, I'll take a look at page 30 and see if I can come up with something. I thought you might like this....GC1MH0T

No doubt you're aware that the eTrex 20 doesn't have an electronic compass. As you move along at a steady pace, the GPS takes over and realizes you're moving east or west, south, etc. I think you might be referring to the large arrow within the compass that should point to the cache. Again, at a steady pace, you should see the "distance to next" numbers shrink and the arrow should point to the cache. I have encountered seeing the arrow bounce around but the numbers will still count down and you'll soon be at GZ. I hope this helps.

Thank you HxRoamer and kunarion for your opinions. The sale will be on for awhile so I'll give what you've mentioned some thought. Thanks again.

Yes. Log it as found when you actually locate it and sign the log. The first attempt you made on it resulted in a did not find and you logged it as such. Exactly correct! Reporting DNF's to cache owners is important. It's possible the cache has gone missing and, once the owner sees the DNF's adding up, he/she will investigate.

How are you guys all enjoying your Oregon 650? There's been a price drop here in Canada to $470.00 and I've been thinking about it....

Not sure which part of the world you live in but a quick check at GPSCity.com lists the eTrex 20 at $159.95. I totally agree with the others, the 20 is a much better choice and so easy to use right out of the box. Trust me, this one won't end up unused in a drawer or basement shelf.

.....when you finally have a day off that doesn't include a "honey-do" list but you're miserable...because it's raining.

I agree. I take along my eTrex 30 when travelling. It's compact enough to fit into a shirt pocket and feels good in my grip. For added security I've attached a wrist strap to mine.

Well, you'll love the eTrex, then. My eTrex 30 would run 24 hours straight with eneloop 2400 batteries installed. Or three 8-hour days, etc. I used my eTrex 30 (with Eneloop batteries, natch) while cruising for a week in the Caribbean during the last week of February. I had my receiver on every day then, am still using it now and I've yet to change the batteries.

I always have my hiking sticks in the trunk of my car along with a container of wet-naps, and a roll each of paper towel and toilet paper (hey, you never know, lol). With me to the cache, I'll use one of my hiking sticks and carry along extra batteries. Lately, I've added extra logs to my geo-arsenal. Oh yeah, my leatherman and a heavy duty paper clip that has unrolled many nano logs.

I have an S4 which I have occasionally used for geocaching but I much prefer using my eTrex 20 (or 30). The very screen you mention is hard for me to see while using the app whereas my receiver's screen is even better to see in sunlight. I also like the way it feels, it can hang from a lanyard, way better battery life, much more rugged, etc., etc. What it can't do, of course, is to log the find at GZ. A friend at work has the S5 and, being plastic, a lot of the chrome has chipped off making it look as though it's had some rough use. Hey, maybe he's been using it for geocaching, lol. Seriously, this has been a hotly debated issue...phone vs GPSr. It just boils down to personal preference.

I documented logs and photos of my first 100 found caches and have them stored in my PC. I often add FTF's and other significant info to this electronic "scrapbook". I smile when I think about how really keen I was in the beginning and referring to this file always leaves me grinning. Older, tired legs have slowed me down somewhat but I still really enjoy getting out for a cache.

Buy the Garmin case designed for the eTrex 10,20,and 30 and that won't happen. It's specially reinforced and thicker around the thumbstick. I use this case on all my eTrex's and have not encountered a problem as to accidental movement while in my pocket, or by dropping it. About $12.

Yes, that's true for the eTrex 10 and 20. Once moving, the satellites realize what direction you're going and, effectively, become your "compass". They also take over, once moving, for the eTrex30 as well which does have an electronic compass. The difference being that the eTrex 30 will show direction when completely stopped. That being said, I really like caching with my eTrex 20 (and 30). As Chrysalides said, once you've selected the cache you'd like to navigate to, go to the compass page (as I always do) and follow the arrow. Easy peasy, and you'll soon be signing the log. Have fun!

Yep. Been there done that. Most frustrating when you're starting out on the trail and realize there's no caches in your device. After downloading caches at home I'll turn my receiver on to make sure they're there.

Here in Canada, Bass Pro shop has the Garmin eTrex 30 in their flyer for $189.97. That's a great deal for us, but maybe even a better deal for a lot of Americans who live near the border. Our dollar has been slammed lately which would make the drive over worthwhile. Id call ahead for stock availibility.

Thanks for the chuckle on this otherwise dull day at work. I've slowed down quite a bit for various reasons, sub-zero temps and snow don't help either. But I enjoy going out with a buddy and grabbing a few local ones and I'm always up for a cache when travelling. BTW, on a trip to San Francisco a couple of years ago, I sought out and found a cache placed by a forum contributor who had posted many comments. I was disappointed he quit geocaching.....sounded pretty peeved about something. I can't see me getting to that point.

Ha ha, now I know. I started buying Sanyo Eneloops a couple of years ago and purchased a MAHA charger, too. I couldn't be happier with the batteries and the charger. But, at my local Canada Computer store, I noticed more Panasonic Eneloops and only a few Sanyo Eneloops (must be old stock).

I'm glad you did that. Myself and other CO's just love receiving comments like yours. But tell everyone! Others will read about your adventure and how that cache made you feel. That will no doubt inspire others to want to log their finds, too.

I find it kind of annoying. I also have bookmarked the above link but if I log out, head over to the forums here, then click on the "Visit Geocaching.com" tab (at the top of this Forums page, it goes back to the video. And the "keep me logged in" box has now become unchecked, go figger. Anyway, annoying but no biggy, I work around it.

It's too bad you didn't express this kind and friendly sentiment to the CO of GC4Z5NN on his cache page. I'm sure the owner would have enjoyed reading your true thoughts rather than TFTC