Hello all
I personally like clues that make me think a bit; not a clue that I spend hours on trying to decipher, but one that will make me take a step back and say "How is this going to help me find the cache?" For example, I liked the clue that George and Mary used in "21st Symphony."
We tried to use a "puzzle clue" when we placed Verde Mucho, but we really didn't do anything too deep when we placed Giddy Up, mainly because there are not too many places that the cache could actually be when you are in that area. That cache requires lots of looking, probably best done if you have a stick or something to poke around with.
I think there are some folks that are better at developing clues than others, just as there are folks that are better at placing caches and finding caches than others.
I will say what I have already said in conversations with some fellow cachers; Clues are subjective, just like the rating system. I might find a clue very helpful while someone else finds it useless, and vice versa.
As for coordinates, we have found a few caches whose listed coordinates were not even close to what our GPS unit said when we actually found the cache. I don't know why this occurs because I really don't know all the mechanics behind the satellite systems. We always take several readings, at least 8, before recording coordinates, and these are done by walking away and then coming back from a different direction. We then try to do an average to give the best coordinates. Most of the readings will be very, very close.
Jaimee