dsandbro

It's possible, but WHY would anyone want to????????

Looks like the same thing I tested about 10 years ago. Several of us at work were selected as beta testers. We panned them, never got anywhere near the life advertised and got too hot to the touch. As far as we knew they were pulled from the test market. Maybe they fixed the bugs by now.

LOL!!!!! I don't know who set this up for google but it has some major flaws. I typed in my home address and it went to another city about 100 miles away!

Some more info: http://www.safnet.org/archive/702_howtogps.cfm Other things to consider... Were you wearing a daypack? If so, how many metal things were in/on the pack? Water affects the signal. Your body is a big bag of water, and if you have a hydration pack on your back, then.... Clothing generally does not affect signal to any significant degree, unless there are many metal zippers or have stuff in the pockets. I have heard unconfirmed anecdotal reports that gore-tex lined clothing may reduce the signal. Doesn't seem likely, but I cannot completely ignore the possibility. In the case you were headed to a retro-70's disco party, shiny metallic clothing can do it. Or if you are a diehard Black Sabbath or Metallica fan and have more rings and studs in your head than in your car, then maybe. In these cases, simply shifting your body to get out of the way could improve things. Also -- was it an electric fence? Any one of the factors mentioned in any of the posts may not be enough to materialy affect the accuracy (30 feet is not bad anyway), but you could have a cumulative affect.

When first arriving in the general area -- place the GPS down on a stump or rock or on the ground. Get it out of your hands and let it stabilize. While waiting for it to settle down slowly turn around 360 degrees looking carefully for anything out of the ordinary -- an unusual pile of sticks, a pile of rocks, likely hiding spots, etc. Also look for displaced dirt or footpaths left by previous seekers (OK, that's sorta cheating and is not always a reliable indicator. They may have diligently searched in the wrong spot.) Most importantly -- do not get bummed out if you do not find it. The real goal is to get away from these silly internet forums and get outdoors. Geocaching is really just an excuse to get out and hike around, and maybe learn and explore a new area. Another important point -- really learn what poisonous plants (poison oak, poison ivy, etc) in your area look like and learn to immediately recognize it 4 seasons and in all its forms.

There will always be someone who finds ANY theme objectionable -- railroad, cats, keychains, etc. Not approving a religious themed cache because it 'might' offend someone is lame. Just state upfront it is a religious themed cache and let the searcher decide whether to find it or not.

Then there are those areas where due to localized anomalies magnetic compasses don't work either. In a small area near here neither compasses nor GPS work. You are following your GPS and all of a sudden you are no longer in northern California, you are swimming in the middle of the Indian Ocean. Five more steps you are in Greenland. Then back to where you should be. And the most bizarre thing is it's intermittent -- a week later go back to same spot and the GPS works fine. Every technical expert I asked is baffled. I like the secret underground UFO base theory best.

A little pricey for the casual home user... and a learning curve to fully use all its potential. It's almost cheating using it for geocaching though.

Just revalidates what I already knew. I stopped subscribing years ago and no longer visit their web site because, well.., they stopped having information of any value. They instead morphed into a left-leaning political rag. Why do all outdoor related magazines and web sites eventually turn political???

Ice chest ice six-pack toilet paper mmmm... that's only nine. Let me ponder on the list for a while... All seriousness aside, as mentioned, the 'ten' list will vary from season of the year and climate and terrain of where you are going. It seems every outdoor web site has their own list, each with the claim that theirs is right and everyone else is wrong. My list varies with what I am doing and whether I am by myself or with someone, whether I intend to stay on an established trail or heading cross-country. Whatever one's list is, decide what is group gear and what is personal gear. For example -- If everyone will stay together then not everyone needs to carry a full blown first aid kit; a couple of bandaids will cover 99% of personal needs. And always try to think up multiple uses for any item -- a bandanna replaces the bulky bandages in the first aid kit, duct tape can replace the tape in the first aid kit, try to buy flashlights, GPSr, etc that all use the same battery. Para cord is your replacement shoelaces and thread for quick torn clothing fixes (use the inner strings), the empty woven outer casing is a flat webbing for lashing. Spare socks are emergency gloves. A note on duct tape -- forget the cheap knockoff brands. Buy a roll of heavy duty industrial grade in a larger width, you can always cut it narrower (I use 4 inch, colored a bright green). Available at large contractor suppliers.

Mount10Bike and TahoeJoe are correct. It is locally determined. TahoeJoe's explanation is also valid. In heavily visited Wilderness Areas like the Desolation (the most heavily used wilderness area in the nation) the local Forest will most likely say no. In lesser used Wilderness Areas the Forest Service is more lenient and will allow many activities that are regulated or prohibited in others. After talking with the local Wilderness manager I am mulling over creating a multi in our local Wilderness that will take a couple days of backpacking to complete. She was completely supportive and encouraging.

Mineral rights on federal land are not controlled by the states. They are controlled by the BLM, regardless of whether it is national forest or BLM public lands. If the mineral rights were retained prior to the legislation creating the Wilderness, then the rights still exist. Mineral rights inside a Wilderness may or may not be transferable. You have to check the wording of the specific legislation that created that particular Wilderness. The federal law that facilitated oil and gas exploration on federal lands, and exempted the exploration from many of the environmental studies that are required for other projects, was signed into law in 1996 by [GASP!] President Bill Clinton. Bush is merely following one of clinton's environmental policies.

After mulling this post over for a day I decided to add my 2 cents (and still get change). He has too many inconsistencies in 'his' definition of Wilderness. He references the spiritual values, but don't most people find spirituality everywhere? Either you have spiritual values or you do not. They do not magically manifest themselves in you only if you cross a Wilderness boundary, an arbitrary line on a map that means nothing to nature. If one needs to travel great distances in a Wilderness area to find spiritual respite, then I would question whether you have found any spirituality at all. He quotes that it is not truly wilderness unless there is something there that can eat you. Under that criteria central Antarctica is not wilderness because there are no large predators there. Around here there are mountain lions. Mountain lions are found where there is prey, and prey is found in greater quantities in the areas that have had timber harvests. So the mountain lions are predominantly seen in the harvested areas. I do not recall ever seeing one deep in the wilderness. So under his definition, logging creates wilderness. He talks of escaping technology, but as many others pointed out no one goes hiking anymore without technology of some level. He has created artificial categories of acceptable and non-acceptable technologies. He has no more right to establish preferences and ideals for others than I do for him. The Wilderness Act allows personal electronic devices and GPS is firmly in that classification. And what is the greater wilderness impact -- seeing a group of neon-colored people bobbing along a trail in the latest designer gear or a well camouflaged cache that is hard to find when you have the coordinates and are actively searching for it? He presumes a lot if he thinks everyone shares his values and he is the arbiter of what is sacred. He is more enamored with the mythical ideal of Wilderness than the reality of Wilderness, and he is unable to discern the difference.

Actually, GPSs ARE off-limits in some Wilderness Areas (though I doubt it would be enforced). (Picture of a sign at a Wilderness Area near my home.) I'm curious. Where exactly is the wilderness area that has that sign? I doubt it is a federal wilderness designated under the 1964 Wilderness Act, or some private individual has posted an unofficial sign as some sort of protest. Perhaps a state or county wilderness, or private land adjacent to a federal wilderness. The Wilderness Act specifically allows horses and personal electronic devices (which includes GPSr, iPods, etc.). The Act also allows hunting and fishing subject to state and local fish and game laws. But back to the original intent of this forum -- Prior to my retirement from the FS I was the unofficial 'geocache monitor' for the Forest where I worked. Basically, I checked every one placed (It was a tough job but someone had to do it. The taxpayers paid me to geocache!) There is a cache in a designated Wilderness with the knowledge and approval of my superiors. When I raised the issue of a cache in the Wilderness I basically received a shrug and the comment that if it is not a problem then leave it alone. Additional discussion with law enforcement said the same thing. The LEO sought legal clarification on geocaching in general from legal staff further up the food chain (how high I cannot say), and according to non-judicial legal interpretation geocaches are NOT litter. There is a specific legal definition of litter and geocaches do not meet the definition. Geocaches are not abandoned property, as by definition they are not abandoned. And although not specifically either banned or allowed under the Wilderness Act or other federal regulations, the wording can be interpreted either way; in the lack of a definitive and formal court ruling any interpretation is subjective and arbitrary and the FS lets local managers decide locally on a case-by-case basis. The LEO also said he would not want to try to argue a citation for 'illegal geocaching' in front of a federal magistrate -- he would lose. The only two geocaches in our local area that raised concern were outside any wilderness boundary (one near an archaeological site, another in a rock outcrop that may be risky for some people to climb). In both cases we decided to leave them because of light use, less than a half dozen or so visits per year and neither created any problems or impacts.

A virtual will have basically the same impact as a real cache. The plants don't know what you're looking for, only that they got stepped on. There has been a lot of references to trampling in this forum in the past. Here is a link to a technical library where several research papers on this topic can be found. Search on 'trampling' http://leopold.wilderness.net/pubs.cfm In a nutshell: There is a measurable effect on vegetation from foot traffic, but the effect is minor and temporary. A year later the impact is statistically insignificant. Given the relatively few geocaches that are a significant distance off a trail, and the relatively few geocachers that will actually travel that far cross country in a backcountry wilderness, the trampling caused by a geocache is insignificant compared to the impact on and alongside main trails caused by general recreation use.

donnelly is well known in environmental circles. He has written copiously on this and related subjects. donnelly [lower case intentional] represents the misanthropic lunatic fringe of the environmental industry, along with reid noss, michael vandeman, and their ilk. Mainstream environmentalists take great efforts to disassociate themselves from their philosophy.

Since the WAAS satellites are over the equator they are low over the southern horizon from most of North America. If there are tall obstacles to your south (like a mountain or buildings) you may not get a clean signal. Distance from one of the ground reference stations will vary the accuracy. The WAAS signal corrects for distortion at the reference sites. If you are more than 200 miles from any stations the corrections decline in accuracy for you.

Try saving your current location as a new waypoint, then edit it.

This link has been offered before, and it has a few pointers on field techniques -- like how to hold the unit. http://www.safnet.org/archive/702_howtogps.cfm

It's better to be tried by twelve than carried by six...

If this is the worst problem anyone has ever encountered while out geocaching then you are doing pretty well -- much better than the rest of us. I'm offended that anyone would find that phrase offensive.

I live right in the heart of mountain lion country. I can see sign any time I go out in the woods. With care and attention I can observe 2-3 lions per year on my hikes. I have never felt threatened or concerned. Yes, they are a potential threat. With the usual precautions you needn't be any more concerned of lions than rattlesnakes, spiders, or poison oak.

From about the center of the conterminous U.S. the WAAS satellites are about 15-20 degrees above the horizon. If you are in a canyon bottom or have a mountain to the south of you higher than 20 degrees then having it turned on doesn't do you any good anyway. WAAS does not like heavy tree canopy either. Even under good conditions it can take up to twenty minutes for the GPSr to get a good lock on the WAAS and update the position. I usually leave it off unless I need it on.

Or intentionally sending them there.

#25 Finding a driving destination you have never visited. Particularly handy when alone in the car and you can't drive, watch for the right street, watch out for traffic, and find yourself on the paper map all at the same time.