Rock Chalk

Discussion has gone off the rails (well, off geocaching, at least) and thread will be closed.

A new geocache must be at least 0.10 miles (528 ft or 161 m) from the physical element of any other geocache.

Hope you enjoy them! We didn't get to Butchart Gardens last weekend, but will definitely make it there someday. Mrs RJ is big into gardening and would love to see that place. We just didn't have time with traveling to/from the event in Duncan.

Very nice of mjb to come here and explain a bit about how his team does things. His "Found It" log certainly ranks among the best I've ever seen!

Looks like a very fun event. I attended something similar in St. Joseph, MO earlier this year. It was fun to see how creative people got with finding photo opportunities that met the various challenges. (From your event, I liked the "Children Holding Hands" picture that showed a school crossing sign!)

I was just at Guist Creek Lake with my then-new kayak earlier this summer! The wife and and I drove out to that area from Kansas City (several weeks before moving to Seattle) and visited GCL, Laughery Creek, South and North Hogan Creeks, Lake Jericho, AJ Jolly Lake, Liking River, and a few paddle caches near the Ohio River. I think my arms are still a bit sore from that trip! So much fun.

Once again, jealous of all the great adventures I'm reading about. And jealous because I'm guessing Ben and Jayme were on the clock when those pictures were taken! Trying to get my head wrapped around the fact that Roman! drove from Vancouver to Nebraska.

Having a roof rack to carry my kayak(s) is almost a pre-requisite for me for a vehicle. I just realized why your handle looked familiar. I think we may have exchanged email a long time ago when Woodland Clan first moved from my area to KC. Probably familiar from another "Jayhawk" handle. Woodland Clan definitely predates me. He was kicking butt in KC well before I joined the party!

I've never been one to use boilerplate logs, but I admit to once being guilty of not being as thorough with them as I should be. Then I hid some caches on an island. I figured they'd provide folks with a different kind of experience. The type that might produce some interesting logs. Instead, I've seen far more copy/paste logs than I expected. It just seems to me that if finding the caches required you to get in a boat or kayak (and it's not a power trail), then you'd almost have to do more than cut and paste. Anyway, since then I've tried to be a bit more expressive with my logs, when appropriate. If someone has clearly put solid effort into the placement, then it deserves a solid write-up, IMHO. Groups of cachers are known to visit a famous park nearby. It has some traditionals. (Those tend not to last too long.) It has some old Vituals. Some of the COs are long gone. It has some evil Mystery Caches. Those CO's take good care of their caches. It has a 36 stage multi cache! Great cache!! And it has my Letterbox Hybrid. Some great and noteworthy caches! Latest group: Thirteen cachers. The look to have found 23 caches. And most of the logs are boiler plate! That's really sad! Though the best log recently was:

Honda CR-V with a bike rack on the back. Recently added bars to the top and can shuttle the new kayak around. Plenty of room for TOTTs in the back. (Telescoping ladder, pole, boots, box with smaller gear, etc.) Gets up to 25 mpg. When I'm certain I'll only be on paved roads and won't need storage space, we drive our Civic. I run to a lot of caches, so I tend to be outfitted with my Brooks running shoes. But I did buy some Merrell hiking shoes late last year. I love them for the waterproofing. But my particular model has no insulation (which was rough when I was in KS, maybe not so much here in WA). Also, the shoelaces come undone all the time. Doesn't matter if you double or triple knot them. Despite that, I got a pair for the Mrs., and her laces come undone all the time, too. Very annoying.

I don't know if it's particularly good, or funny, or will make you go hmmmmm. But I was inspired to write my longest log when I found a multi-cache on Sunday, GC28H23. It's helpful to read the cache description before reading the log. But if you don't, just know that the hike to the final was a long, hard slog. Only 9 smileys in 4+ years. And yet, a 6-year-old somehow placed the cache. "Since moving to Seattle earlier this month, I've tried to take one day each weekend for a geocaching hike. The first one took me to Mount Margaret, where I found GCD, among others. On the way back home that day, I noticed GC28H23 Moun10Bike Coin #13 near North Bend. Given that I would be starting work at Geocaching HQ a few days later, I thought it might be fun to attempt the cache, as it would give me something to chat about with the cache's namesake, my fellow Lackey Moun10Bike. I made my way to the multi-cache's posted coordinates and, after a brief search, found the information for the next stage. I plugged the coords into the GPSr and realized it might be more of a workout than I had the time or energy for on that late afternoon. So, I tucked the numbers away for another time. Fast forward to a few days ago. As I was planning the weekend's geo-hike, this one to Mount Si, I remembered Moun10Bike Coin #13. I took a look at where the next stage's coords fell on the map and thought, "Hey, I might be able to get that one on the way home from Mount Si." Near the stage's location, the map showed something called Hammy's Trail. That sounded nice. How could anything named Hammy's Trail be a bad thing? I even imagined how Hammy's Trail might have came to be. Perhaps there was once a young boy who grew up in nearby North Bend. He was the sort of lad that any parent would be proud to have as a son. Made straight A's. Captain of the basketball team. Homecoming King. Volunteered at the retirement home during his free time. And he was aces as a ham radio operator. He enlisted in the Army during WWII and was sent into action, using his ham radio skills in his position as a clandestine communications representive. His fellow operators took to calling him "Hammy." After the war, Hammy returned to a hero's welcome in North Bend. He opened a general store, served 20 years as the town's mayor, and saved many lives as a volunteer firefighter. When Hammy passed away at a ripe old age, a town meeting was held to determine how to memorialize him. As much as the citizenry wanted to build a statue or some other monument to Hammy's generosity, they knew he had been a modest man and would be embarrassed by such a bold gesture. Instead, they chose to name a trail for him. The beautiful old trail that led to the pond where Hammy used to fish as a child. And so it was, Hammy's Trail would stand the test of time as a tribute to the man who had done so much for his town, state and country. Anyway, I imagined this cache's CO (MtnMutt and his 6-year-old) enjoying a leisurely stroll down Hammy's Trail in May 2010 as they mulled over a cache placement. The elder regaled his child with stories of Hammy's greatness. It was a sweet idea to consider. And that's what was on my mind today as I parked my geomobile and headed for the next stage's coordinates. What I came to realize, and the realization came not 5 minutes after parking my car, is that perhaps Hammy's Trail earned its moniker from a different source. It could be that, many years ago, a pair of incompetent fools stumbled down Mount Si Road on a cold winter's night. They'd spent the previous several hours at a North Bend tavern, imbiding for far too long, as they often did. On this evening, they zigged when they should have zagged, and found themselves trapped on a forelorn patch of land. To call it a trail would be generous. This area of thistles, steep ridges and perilous dropoffs was not fit for man nor beast. But they were too blind to see it in their states of mind. Before long, the duo found themselves lost from civilization, huddling for warmth on a tiny piece of briar-less ground. One of them pulled a scrap of paper and nubby pencil from his pocket. His hands trembling, he scribbled a few lines, describing what had led them to this horrible place, hoping someone would find the paper and know their story. He turned to his friend and asked, "What name shall we give this spot that doomed us?" The other man, barely conscious, looked up and uttered his final words, "Hammy's Trail." "Of course!" his friend thought. They would name it for Hamfred McHammerin, that awful bully who tormented them during their youth. Not only did Hamfred steal their lunch money and repeatedly trip them in the school hallways, but his breath stank of ham. He put ham on everything, even going so far as to use it as a topping for ice cream. For all of that, he came to be known as Hammy. And this is how Hammy's Trail received its name. A fitting title for an unwelcoming, thistle-filled domain. This is a long-winded way of saying that any 6-year-old who can place this cache is not someone I would want to meet. Because I'm sure he could easily beat me up. And would likely enjoy doing it. Nevertheless, I survived, and I found the cache. TFTC!"

I used the wrong wording. What I should have said was there will no longer be a State/Country box to populate with information. Instead, there will only be a place to fill in Home Coordinates. And, no, of course Home Coordinates would not be publicly displayed. ^ Yes.

Regarding the “List newest caches” in State link… That search was powered by the State/Country information that each user submitted in their account settings. However, the State/Country box is vastly under-utilized in most accounts. Also, users often misspelled one or the other, and/or confused it with Home Coordinates. At some point, State/Country will no longer be listed in the account. Instead, Home Coordinates will be listed. This will make the home location information more intuitive and accessible. However, it also means the site won’t be able to provide you with a “List newest caches” in State/Country link. That said, as a few have noted, the functionality is always available on the Advanced Search page. Just search by Country/State. That search can also be bookmarked, if necessary. For example, Kansas (Rock Chalk!) would be http://www.geocaching.com/seek/nearest.aspx?state_id=17

Very good to know. Thanks! No worries - we have a Cache Machine each quarter in locations around the Pacific Northwet. You can see the upcoming schedule on Travis's profile page. Here are the next three: Gig Harbor II, January 3, 2015 Spokane Valley, March 21, 2015 Everett II, June 20, 2015 And here's a list of all the previous CMs - Travis started them in 2002!

Some awesome adventures here. Very jealous of Z Statman's CITO paddle! I'm still waiting for the moving truck to arrive with my kayak, so I can hit a few of these Seattle-area waterways. Hydnsek- I only noticed the Boundary Bay Cache Machine event late Friday night. I thought seriously about going, but figured it might be best to be better prepared. Maybe next year. It sounds like a ton of fun. humboldt flier- "tiny" run, huh? Very cool to read of CanadianRockies, Gill & Tony, Corfman Clan and gpsblake's adventures, too. Makes me want to hop on a plane!

113,003 miles, 4.54x earth circumnavigation, 0.473x distance to the moon I would have thought our total would have been higher. Guess that's the downside of no trips to Hawaii! On the question of Megas... I attended three of them this year, and all were very different. That's only to say that just because one Mega wasn't enjoyable doesn't mean you might not find another one that appeals to you.

Since moving to Seattle a few weeks ago, I've tried to take at least one day each weekend to find somewhere new to explore. First to Mount Margaret (for GCD, among others). Next to Mailbox Peak. Yesterday, it was a trip to Mount Si. Enjoyed a wonderful 4-mile hike to the summit, finding six caches in the process. The view of Mount Rainier was spectacular! Fog covered Seattle and the surrounding area, but we were above it at the summit. One of the things I love most about Geocaching is that it serves as a bit of a TripAdvisor for me. In the case of Mount Si, I was able to plot out my trip to the summit with the cache waypoints, starting with the trailhead cache and finishing at the summit area. Where did geocaching take you this weekend?

Very interesting topic. It actually reminded me of one of the first caches I ever attempted, GC88B8. It was only a block from work, so I got my phone and headed to GZ. Upon arrival, I searched and searched. I must have spent 20 minutes looking all over the place for a container. Exasperated, I headed back to the office, ready to log a DNF. Then I noticed an important nugget of information on the cache page: it was a virtual. Whoops. Important lesson learned!

Hi Team Orville, The KC-area group is called K.C.G.O. (Kansas City Geocaching Organization). It's a fun and active group of people. If you're in town by August 23, I highly recommend the 14th annual Kansas City Area Picnic event (GC4XEW0) at Shawnee Mission Park. It's a great chance to meet a whole bunch of fun folks. There's also a pancake event that morning (GC583K3) and a dinner event the night before (GC55D2E). As you noticed, we also have the monthly KC MASTER events, which are smaller breakfasts or lunches. The next one is August 9 (GC59MV2). While there's no K.C.G.O. website, there is a Facebook group. If you message me with your email address, I'd be happy to email you an invite to the group. Welcome to the area! Chris Running Jayhawks I was just searching Liberty MO and saw a event when I clicked on it I was thrilled to see that there is a group called KC Masters and it appears they have a monthly meeting. Does anyone know if they have a website or where I can get more information? Our move to the area is slightly over a month away and we are so excited to make new friends and learn the area through caching. I was just there earlier in the month and my daughter and I had a great time caching for 3 days and getting to know the lay of the land.