...The Girl

So I'm not the only X-Files fan eh? Did that expression inspire the avatar? Funny, but I've never seen an entire episode of the X-Files. FlukeMan is a character you won't soon forget though, eh? As for the av ... yikes! I didn't even notice that! The av is from a hike we did the morning after an unfortunate roller blading accident that made climbing excruciatingly painful. Ironically, it was a fluke that Crim just happened to click the pic at the very moment I was yelling "OUCH!!!"

About a month ago we were standing just off the path staring at our GPSrs when a couple waking their dog came by. The man said "Ah, geocaching." and they walked off. That said, when I saw the topic of this thread I expected to see FlukeMan when I opened it. Since I didn't, I'll do the honors ...

For caching and light hiking, I prefer any one of my three pair of Merrells (Chameleon II Stretch Gore-Tex®, Chameleon (the older style) or Caper). They don't need breaking in, are super-comfy right out of the box, and have a female-specific foot bed (Q-Form) in their women's styles. The Gore-Tex® pair are supreme for early morning and after-the-rain walks in the field. The ones pictured are discontinued but are available at the REI Outlet (there's also a non-Gore-Tex® version on sale. For me, nothing compares to Merrell for this type of shoe. I have Asolos for more rigorous hiking and backpacking.

Man! When I saw the thread title I wandered in because I thought it said "... need help buRying a class set" I was all geared up for tips on burying an entire class of kids! Now I realize I should prolly have my eyes checked. Ironic, given that I'm in the optical field.

I'm happy my suggestions are helpful and I'm glad your sunglasses were found! What you want to get the best "wrap effect" is an 8-base lens. Lenses are made in two basic base curves: 6-base and 8-base. The 6 is flatter and what most people are used to. I noticed on the MJ site they give you the base curve in the individual frame information pages ... I didn't check the other manufacturers websites. As far as tint color in relation to snowy environments goes ... you want a high contrast lens. For snow-specific lenses, you'll see tints in red, pink, yellow, amber, persimmon ... all colors that block that evil blue light. All this talk about brown being the better tint is not to say you'll actually prefer the brown or rose tints. Criminal has a considerable dislike for them ... they just don't seem dark enough for him. The best lenses we've found for him to date are the Oakley Black Iridium Polarized and the Ice Iridium Polarized. When he puts on a brown or rose lens he feels like he's squinting. One of my friends has the same problem, her Maui Rose tint makes her feel squinty so she bought a pair in grey and she loves them. The basic grey, brown and rose colors aren't entirely sport or condition specific. If you need something that's more task-specific, this is where the Oakley Half Jackets come in handy ... you can have lots of different colored lenses that mount in one frame. Two asides; Nickel-based frames can and will corrode. Sweat is loaded with acid from your skin and will eat through the coating on the frames and then into the metal. This causes green on your skin where the exposed metal makes contact. If you decide to purchase a metal frame, make sure it's titanium or stainless steel. Also, polycarbonate and trivex lenses are the most shatter-resistant materials available. If you're doing anything where impact is a consideration, do not wear glass or plastic lenses! As much as I love my Mauis, the ones I own are all glass. I never shoot in them. I wear my Oakley Crosshairs for shooting.

Sweet! A topic that's right up my alley! Your main consideration should be quality. Good quality sunglasses will hold up better and last longer than cheap "drugstore" sunglasses. The lenses in quality sunglasses are optical quality and won't distort light as it passes through the lens. This reduces eye strain and helps the visual system work more efficiently. The lenses in cheap sunglasses are not optical quality and distort the light passing through them causing eye strain and often headaches (they are most often cookie-cutter-stamped out of a large piece of plastic). Then there's the warranty, all major sunglass manufacturers have some sort of warranty program. Sounds like this will be a benefit to you so while you're researching products, check out the warranties as well. Look for 100% UV protection, important because UV light is known to cause and/or contribute to pinguecula, cataracts, and macular degeneration. Think of it as sunscreen for your eyes. Polarized lenses are important. There are only a few rare instances where I won't recommend polarized lenses to a patient. Glare is a leading cause of car accidents. Polarization reduces glare. Get it. Tint is also important. Grey lenses filter out the yellow end of the light spectrum making things appear darker and less "sunny". Brown lenses block more of the damage-causing high-energy blue light making things appear brighter and sunnier (more contrast). While we need blue light to balance color, it is known to contribute to macular degeneration. The optical industry is starting to see a sway in the recommendation of brown or rose tints over grey. I prefer brown and rose lenses for hiking because they're high contrast. Contrast is important to me when dealing with uneven terrain. Make certain there's an anti-reflective coating on the back surface of the lenses. This treatment absorbs bounce-back glare, or that irritating reflection on the back of the lens of your eye and the stuff behind you. Again, less eye strain = a happier visual system. You're looking for a "wrap" which is good. The closer the lens sits to your eyes, the less light can get in around them. Make sure the sunglasses fit well. You don't want too small a lens but too large a lens is bad too. Make sure the frame isn't too wide or too narrow and make sure the temples and bridge (or nose pads depending on the style) fit properly. There's nothing worse than an ill-fitting pair of sunglasses when you're hot and sweaty and all moving around and stuff. My recommendations are: #1) Maui Jim: These are my all-time favorite sunglasses ... I can't say enough good things about them. I have three or four pair. I keep trying Oakley because they have some mad styles for women now but I keep going back to my Mauis. Maui Jim has a patented "PolarizedPlus Technology" that absorbs 99% of reflected glare. Less glare reaching the eyes means less squinting and less eye strain. They also apply an anti-reflective coating to the back surface of the lens, absorbing bounce-back glare. They have three tint colors; Grey, Maui Rose and HCL Bronze. I prefer the Maui Rose hands down. Maui Jim has without a doubt been the best company to work with service-wise. Most of their styles are also available in prescription. They have a very informative website where you can search for an authorized dealer in your area. These are the Mauis I recommend: Titanium Sport Collection has three styles. No hinges, no screws to come loose. Extremely flexible metal temples and wicked comfortable fit, they're made for people with an active lifestyle. They have a good wrap and fit wide faces well. These stay put. Titanium Elite Collection has four styles to choose from. Extremely lightweight and comfortable, these are my current favorites. I have no problems with slippage when I'm dewy (girls don't sweat, you know that ... right?) MJ Sport has twelve styles to choose from. This is Maui Jim's lowest priced line. Like the Titanium Sport collection, this line is made with the active person in mind. The pic shows one of the newest styles. Air-light plastic flexible "no-frame frame". These are prolly my next purchase. Love them. #2) Oakley. I have three pair of Oakleys; the M-Frame, the Crosshair and the Dart. I have a love-hate relationship with them because they look so cool but feel so awful. Their customer service borders on abysmal. They have some great styles and some good lens colors. Their website offers simulations of different outdoor environments as viewed through their tints. They also have extensive information (or used to, anyway) on all their tints as far as percentage of light transmission and recommended usage. Many of their styles are available in prescription. None of mine are terribly comfortable but they still have their purposes. Criminal has the M-Frame Magnesium, the Half Jacket and the Juliet and all of his are comfortable. These are the Oakleys I recommend: Crosshair: really cool look that stays put on top of my ball cap as well as on my face. Large lens size. Comes polarized and non-polarized so pay attention. There's also a Crosshair-S for a trimmed-down look. Half Jacket: Criminal's choice for hiking, this is one versatile pair of sunglasses. Durable and lightweight, the frame stays in place. The lenses are removable so you can purchase multiple lens tints for different light situations. They also have a case that houses not only the frame but (I think) three pair of additional lenses. If you want Oakley for hiking, in my opinion this is the best. Some of the Half Jackets are fairly inexpensive but they're going to be the non-polarized ones. Like the Crosshair, these come both polarized and non-polarized so pay attention to what you're getting. #3) Wiley-X. These guys are a smaller company and have good customer service. They have the military contract (or did the last I heard). I don't have as much experience with them as I do with MJ and Oakley but my patients who've purchased them seem happy. Many styles are available in prescription. They don't have anything labeled "hiking-specific" but there are styles that would work well for hiking. Their claim to fame is their motorcycle-specific styles. I don't have anything good to say about most of the other brands. Like Thumper said "if you can't say something nice, don't say nothin' at all". Plus, this post is already *way* too long. Remember, this is really a personal preference type of decision and what works well for one person isn't necessarily going to work well for another. Crim likes his M-Frames (now that he has the smaller lenses) and I really dislike mine. I love the Maui Rose tint and my friend hates it. My final suggestion is to find a licensed optician to help you with the fit and selection of your sunglasses. Places like REI, and Sportsman's Warehouse do not employ people that are trained in the proper fit and adjustment of eyewear. Good fit = good comfort = happy hiker. Good luck and like Michelle said ... research, research, research. Edit to add missing pic.

If I can get away without carrying a bag or pack at all, I will. If I *do* need a bag ... MountainSmith Tour lumbar pack: Although I've used it for caching, I originally used it for day hikes in the Blue Ridge Mountains and it was awesome for that. If you drag swag around with you, there's plenty of room for it. I do not, so it has a little too much room for me to cache with. Maxpedition Versipack: I *love* this one, it's the perfect size for my PDA, GPSr, extra batteries and my wallet ... is it a wallet if I'm a girl? Billfold? I dunno ... the small pink leather Coach thingy with my money and credit cards in it.

I cacheturbate from time to time but only in broad daylight and only where I feel safe. It's not something I make a habit of.

I just killed a bush yesterday. I wasn't caching, I just didn't like the way it was looking at me ... all judgy and stuff.

Welcome to caching! After you selected the type of log you wanted to enter (Found It, Didn't Find It, Write Note, etc.) from the drop-down, did you scroll to the bottom of the page and click the "Submit log entry" button?

I've never lost anything while caching. Although my Palm lost Cachemate a few times and XP lost my Garmin. Come to think of it, the whole Palm fiasco caused me to lose my religion.

It's not something TPTB want getting out but I've heard that caches belonging to Premium Members are approved almost instantaneously. Charter Members can approve their own. Shhhhh!

Oh, and welcome to caching ... have fun!!

Go the cache page, find your log and click on "upload an image for this log".

They don't call it "micro spew" for nuthin'. Oh, and LTF, two things ... 1) I hope you're healed up now. 2) Poo.

Ugh, not more angst! Where's Carleen? We need beer!!!

All Garmin, all the time.

Get one of these and let them do all the work ...

Just guessing here ... Icky Cache? Incredibly Cruddy? Insignificant Cache? Insurmountable Conundrum? Impossible Clue? Impossibly Cute? Indefatigable Curiosity? I Can't? I Can? I Cheated? And my personal favorite ... It's Criminal!!

WOOT!!! Happy anniversary!

I dont' know of any but seeing as you're from Seattle, you might try posing this question in the Northwest Forum. You might also check the WSGA's website and post there.

Pshaw. You have 4488 Finds and your 270 DNF's create a ratio of 16.6 Finds per DNF. I have found 506 caches and I have 71 DNF's, a ratio of 7.1 Finds per DNF. I am much better at Not Finding caches than you are. Okay, Okay. Break it up. You two go rattle your slide rules somewhere else.

It's normal. ... is that what you had in mind or would you prefer something a little more wordy? Yeah, it's normal. There's nothing wrong with your technique. Everybody has trouble now and then. Don't worry, it happens to everyone. You're no less of a man because of it. Keep trying, you'll eventually find the right spot.

For sandal-type kicks, I prefer my Keen Newport H2s ... For caching and light hiking, I prefer any one of my three pair of Merrells (Chameleon Stretch Gore-Tex®, Chameleon (the older style) or Caper). They don't need breaking in, are super-comfy right out of the box, and have a female-specific foot bed (Q-Form) in their women's styles. The Gore-Tex® pair are supreme for early morning and after-the-rain walks in the field. For more aggressive hiking and backpacking, I really dig my Asolo Styngers ... Gore-Tex®, baby! Plus, they just look all hike-y!