We are pretty new to geocaching. We started it some years ago but quit do to a very bad experience unrelated to what I am writing here. I want to make a travel bug hotel. Here are my ideas so far and if you have thoughts that would improve it let me know. It will be on our property near a hwy and active park so it seems like a good place for people to drop off or pick up travel bugs. There is a lane way on the least used corner of our property where geocachers won't disturb our dogs. There is a dense bunch of cedars beside that laneway and the cache will be tucked in there. The cache is an old Canada Post mail collection box that was put out of commission decades ago and given to me as a gift. Inside I want to put in a plastic tool drawers for the hotel "rooms". I want to set it up with a fun theme like that famous one in Florida did such as have a hotel lobby were the large TBs can hang out and a box of tradables as well as the log book. I want the hotel to be precisely at the co ordinates. I know how to do that by checking carefully multiple times on different devices. I want to make opening the lock on the cache a good tough challenge. I've been working on ideas for this.
When we first started geocaching two things turned me off. One is still to upsetting to talk about. The other one was buying a geocoin, giving it an assignment and putting it in a cache only to have it stolen that same day. I say stolen because it was never logged as removed from the cache, never entered a new cache, and is now marked unknown. I have 2 unknowns now. I realize it happens but when you first start it makes for disappointment. I sent out a stunning Ontario coin and was quite worried about it. I would like to retire it and get it back. I wonder if that can happen? Thankfully it is in safe hands that keep it visiting caches and I can learn about it's travels.
I have purchased a number of geotags, geocoins, and travel buddies and have been holding them, building up to stock this TB hotel. I won't put them all in at once but release them slowly. Hopefully my cache will provide a safe place for other people wanting to move TBs along their assigned missions.
My hope is that people would read the missions of the TBs and only take one if they can help move it on it's mission. For example, I have a friend with a tb that he wants to have go to harbours. If you don't plan to go to harbours then leave his TB for someone who can. That seems fair to me. I have one that's mission is to visit forests, that is pretty easy and so I expect it to move frequently.
People grabbing all the TBs in a cache might not be stopping to read their missions and see if they can help the owner move them in the direction they wish. It doesn't feel thoughtful to empty a cache of TBs just because you can hog them without thinking of their owner and the assigned missions. The owner wants them moved along yes but according to their missions.
Someone here mentioned they feel TBs are becoming somewhat rare. If that is true could it be from people who grab them and hoard them, people who had them in their possession when they quit the game, and from caches that were muggled? Those aspects would discourage someone from buying TBs.
I think a secure TB hotel cache could be a fun and useful place if it is near where people travel through. I think cachers are on their honour to take only the TBs whose mission they can help and leave some for others, preferably swapping with one you are carrying if it doesn't contradict or impede the mission of the TB.
