JJEF

I have disabled a few of my hides due to exceptional levels of water & mud, I could say this would only effect these hides in extreme circumstances but that is exactly what we've had in the past few months! There were two occasions whereby I disabled other hides having found for myself that the dry leaf filled ditch that had been adjacent to GZ was now a moat several feet deep and just as wide across, the cache was accessible with extreme caution but the difficulty rating should have doubled! I am very proactive with my cache updates as producer of such hides in muddy places and I too think it a good idea to add "Notes" where applicable to warn the not quite so prepared that it might not be the same leafy lane as seen in last Summers photographs Good idea and one I agree with

Hi tez_i I will add a little of my experience to this thread as I too have given a great deal of thought prior to placing caches for others to "Go Get"! I currently have forty five hides with almost all of them being unique in their construction and method of retrieval, that said I do like inventing & building but the biggest problem is always making it "Cacher Proof"! With the best will in the world not everyone will understand the concept or bother replacing a hide the way it was intended, I've learnt the hard way and often make adjustments afterward when people manage to rearrange the hide As previous people have said being prompt with maintenance is very important as none of us like to find a log book that is more water than paper having discovered the hide. For the most part I like to hide caches in rural locations I tend not to search for urban hides as I get really self-conscious about how dodgy I must look to the people that live nearby! I get a great many response's to say they had fun or laughed when they discovered the hide and that makes it all worthwhile, pleased to have given someone else a nice day out John

Hi All I have a circular route planned where I would like to include a combination locked hide with the required data presented on the previous hides, my question is "Can I place these as normal hides or must the series be classed as a Multi Cache trail"? The route is rather restricted for Hidden/Invisible hide spots so the option of having the Co-Ords shown and a note to say it's not obtainable seems reasonable? I would rather keep it simple but don't want to fall foul of the rules John

Umm Quite an unusual reply, at least most other responders made sense and spoke civill English! Don't think I will be taking any further part in this Forum in future!

I'm a qualified Pest Controller and well aware of the hazards, that said I hadent thought of including any hazard information on my Cache Details till now! The ones that are near water or require the use of water I have added a warning about personal hygiene and the possibility of additional dangers associated with the area. Of course the danger exisits in many places but near a water source is an even greater hazard! Thanks for bringing this up, most relvant for our hobby John

OK well I did not expect this thread to go on this long but there have been a variety of worthy points raised and I appreciate everyone taking the time to respond. Not wanting to take this discussion too much further I would just add that most if not all the caches I have placed have been created with the utmost care and on the whole are enjoyed by the majority of finders due to they're quirkiness or back drop of the setting. I often respond to a polite log report and thank the finder whilst hoping they had a good time. I guess I embrace the community spirit and respond favourably when I enjoy another CO's efforts, thus showing my appreciation of their work. Thanks to everyone that has replied and I hope all those people that have read these entries will see all sides of the argument

I think you'll find that for many cachers, logging and writing about their experiences, is every bit as important as the actual act! I'm on this side of the fence, I like to let people know "Nicely" what I thought of they're hide and the route or fun & games I had getting to it. I guess I look at the bigger picture not just number collecting, but then this is a game and I appreciate everyones different.

Don't want to go down the road of saying this type is better than that or those ones are boring and in hindsight I guess I have been very fortunate in that the vast majority of finders have written kind words about my hides in the past! Most of my caches are meant to be novelty and enjoyable once located, I'm so happy to hear of people having a chuckle whilst out hunting I guess that's why I think a single full stop is just a lack of appreciation in some cases. Lets not get carried away with who's right & who's wrong as we all have our own method and I don't want to initiate a bitching match John

A couple of reasonable replies that I've taken on board here. Maybe I have been fortunate in that the vast majority do write a few words and I do likewise when I find a cache, that said I can see the points put forward and No I won't be hounding any one that ticks them off in they're own way. Had a bad day yesterday and a moan seemed logical at the time Thanks to responders and please everyone take on board these valid points and lets get out there in this glorious sunshine forecast for this week John

I'm probably just being a bit tetchy here but does anyone else feel miffed when a "Found It Log" consists of so little it means nothing? TFTC is a minimal but accepted report used by a great many finders, but I've recently had numerous reports by certain members whom simply place a single full stop in the log and utter no other phrase Yes I accept when we place a cache we are at the mercy of human nature and the attitudes of people most of who we will never meet but I just find this minimal dismissal almost curt and I feel like telling them to leave my hides alone if they can't be bothered to join in! OK rant over, the weather this week is due to be pretty good so so I hope to get out there with the rest of you good folks John

I have placed a few caches around Berkshire over the past year but I guess the ones I think will get most appreciation are the Twin Lanes Trail I placed a few weeks back. I can't say too much but one of them has a "Dummy Obvious" hide that entices the searcher to assume they have sussed it really easily, they then see the note burnt on to the inner stem stating "Nope Try Again" !!! The person whom got the FTF stated he burst out laughing even though he was alone in a wood so I reckon that was mission accomplished The rest of the series is designed to bring a smile to the searchers faces and the youngsters that have accompanied the adults have had a great time assisting and taking over from the older ones. Wish I could say more but hey that's all part of the fun John

Only just joined in with posting on the Forum's but I love some of the ideas shown here I made a few containers today to suit the wooded areas where we search here in the UK, I will experiment some more now I have the basics sorted and maybe get even more wicked with the concealment I do wonder though how difficult should we make it before they become unfindable ? Look forward to more crafty themes. J & E

Good Day One n All Been searching for about a year now and have found so many new areas within the district I thought I knew here in the UK, a cracking good way to get out and stretch off. Just placed my first hide having fallen foul of a few sub rules and unknown difficulties but hey ho we live & learn. Have started making my own cache containers to make things a bit more interesting but I will continue that on the appropriate thread. My good lady and I enjoy this pastime and hope to keep in touch J & E