RykoalaTeam

OK I have pieced together a very inexpensive caching setup, using my own eTrex yellow, the TomTom One that my boss supplied me for my work vehicle (refurbed for $50), and free software. DISCLAIMER: Do this at your own risk. Its a lot easier to go buy a GPS that has mapping and navigation capabilities, and requires less work. If ease of use is more important to you, go that direction. If you have a TomTom and a cheap GPS, and want to make them mutually useful, follow this tutorial. The idea here is that you can navigate to cache with your TomTom, which gives you the map and directions, and then find the cache with the eTrex. Caches are recognized by the TomTom by adding them as a POI (Points of Interest) file. For this tutorial I'm going to refer to all 3 files needed as the "geocache" file, each with its own extension. Please note that the TomTom will use the filename as a literal name for the POI. If you want it named "Geocache" instead of "geocache" then make sure to capitalize the file. So, here is how to get the tools you need and the procedures to use them. 1) You'll need EasyGPS. Its a free program, and you can get it at www.easygps.com I personally use 4 pocket queries, updated weekly, to find all the caches I want. I use EasyGPS to create a new GPX file and them merge all 4 pocket queries into the new file, and then save it. If you don't do this, or don't want to worry about it, then you can skip EasyGPS. 2) You'll need a program called gpsbabel, available free at www.gpsbabel.org This is the program that converts the .GPX format to the .OV2 format needed by your TomTom. IF you use GSAK, you can skip this. It will export to the .OV2 format, but even it uses gpsbabel in the background to do it. 3) A pocket query. (see step 1 for combining) 4) Save this image to your desktop: martinp13.virtualave.n...ocache.bmp I will not cover the details of running each program or installing them, as that is well documented on their websites. Now, let the fun begin! 1) If you are combining pocket queries as I do, then use EasyGPS to do this, and save the resulting file as geocache.gpx. If not, then just rename your pocket query to geocache.gpx. Save the file on your desktop for ease of use. At this point, you should have geocache.gpx and geocache.bmp on your desktop. 2) Let GPSBabel do its magic. Open GPSBabel by double clicking on the GPSBabelGUI icon. There are two sections: The input, at the top, where you get your data to convert to the TomTom format, and the output below it that translates the GPX file into any format you want. A) In the Input, select the format as GPX XML (.gpx), and at the "file" row, click the shining document icon on the right side. Navigate to your desktop and select "geocache.gpx" as the file. In the Output section, Select the format as "TomTom POI file (.ov2) and then click the "Save" icon (disk -> document icon) on the far right. Navigate to your desktop and for file name put in "geocache" and click "Save" C) Now click on the "lets go" icon below the "Save" icon. You can now close the GPSBabel program. On your desktop there is now a geocache.ov2 file hot out of the oven! This is the file your TomTom wants so that it can help you find geocaches. D) Last but not least lets get those files into your TomTom. Luckly, when you connect your TomTom to USB it shows up as a storage device under "My Computer" in Windows (Or just "computer" in Vista and 7) and you can open it. So, open it up! On my computer it is the D: drive, but on yours it may be different. Whatever the case, it will say "TomTom" and have the TomTom logo. Now, go back to your desktop. Select the geocache.bmp and geocache.ov2 files and drag and drop them into the USA_and_Canada directory on the TomTom. You're done! It takes a LOT longer to explain it than it does to do it, so don't be afraid to give it a shot. The end result is that your TomTom now as POI's that are geocaches. They'll show up on your TomTom with the geocaching.com icon, and when you select Navigate to POI's in your TomTom, Geocache will be an option. You can also select that geocaches are the only POI shown on the map, and you can even make the TomTop audibly notify you when you're within a few hundred feet of one. I made mine "moo" at me for a while, but it drove me nuts. I just turned audio off. As for cache details, I use EasyGPS to decode all the hints at once (Select all, then decrypt hints in the menu) and then have it print all the caches out, landscape style, 4 pages per page. For 450 caches that is 9 pages, but it condenses to 3 pages when you combine 4 pages per page in the print setup. Yes, its awfully small! I have good eyes. I also make sure to SORT the geocaches by their waypoint ID so that they are in ascending order. That makes finding gc123c4 easy, its like looking in the phone book. I hope this is useful to somebody!

"I hope I never find a cache like this" Comparing it to grains of rice Expressing dislike for nano or pico caches That's not input, its just plain criticism. I'm a long time veteran of forums of all sorts with thousands of posts over the last 15 years. I know negativity when I see it. I don't mind that people don't like it, and I don't mind constructive criticism. In the first post of this thread, the poster says "Saw these pics posted in another thread. I love the idea of custom containers. The fav one I found was a log that was split and made into a container. Please post pics or discriptions if you do not have any pics of Cool Custom Cache Containers (ok CCCC's now)" This is all I hoped to accomplish. Like it or lump it, but even my mom said keep rude things to yourself. If anyone wants to see what people really thought of this, feel free to read the logs. I know many of these folks personally, and they really did like it. http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_detai...=y&decrypt= This is my last post in this thread. I'll keep any further ideas to myself.

Wow, I am astounded at the negativity in this forum regarding my cache idea. I come out of the wood work once in a while. Look at my post count, look at my join date. You think I wanted to share my idea so that it could be badmouthed? If you don't like it, fine, but there's no need to mock it or speak so negatively about it. Around here people loved it and I was hoping to share the fun. How about we keep the ideas coming and leave the negativity at the login screen? I think that would be a lot better.

I can understand your point. The idea of these itty bitty caches isn't necessarily the cache itself. Its knowing that the cache is RIGHT THERE but because it is so small it looks like a bit of dirt that got painted along with the objects its attached to. With things like this, its all about placement. The original was on a bike and hidden on the derailer in a gap. It was in very obvious plain sight, and still took a long time to find. I could easily see these being done as an LPC style cache. Pointless and uncreative. As with many caches, its not the container, its the placement and the camo.

Hello everybody, I've looked over this thread and love the caches! There's some great ideas in here. I thought I'd share what around here is the smallest cache yet seen. One cacher with over 1500 caches said that for him this redefined what a cache could be. The cache is a small capacitor taken from a broken piece of electronics. I used a razor blade to cut off the label, exposing the aluminum shell. Then I cut it down with the razor, rolling it back and forth under a straight blade. That exposed the insides which I then removed. Lastly, I super glued a shard of a hard drive magnet to it. You can see that the log is extremely small and is exposed. That's usually not a problem, as you can put this well out of the weather. I put one of these on a ghost bike (a white painted bike as a memorial to a downed cyclist) and painted it white. It took 4 days of intense searching to be found! The next one will be not as easy ;-) I hope this concept will inspire some seriously evil hides outside of the Reno NV area ;-)

I have to agree in part with Vinny and Sue team. I know I can tell if a cache is kid oriented, so far we typically fins junk and looking at the log the first set of people even up into the 20s they all take good stuff and then all the sudden there is no posts of what left and the cache has junky toys. We see this and we have only been doing it for a month. On the other hand I disagree with it being a kid/family thing.( I dont think you where being rude at all) I was reading though the logs in our area and a cache that was high in difficulty it was stocked with alot of really neat items. like the second person took three items all the mist expensive sounding ones and left nothing and said so. A grown man hello and still depleted a cache of its best things. I have read a few times where alone adults have wrote they took a really nice item and left nothing. My mom is a geocacher she take 4 grandkids with her, they all get to pick something and they always trades equal or better for each and every item. I f they dont have equal items she doesnt take anything.I think its about greed in children and adults. We have been guilty of taking a item we could not equal its worth, we were out of town and a really neat team leaves very cool coins. theres three or four in a baggy they leave. it was a small altiods tin and so we had brought stickers to add to it. We decided it would by far not be fair to take all of them since we could not even close do a equal value trade so we took just one, my conscience plague me days later. we in as little of as a month, dont have the excitement of finding anything, we rarely take anything now, we still bring swag so that we can try to give something semi neat for the next one. Side point, I read lots about how bad Urban micros are ect ect. Hmmmm Atleast you know what you get form them;) to sign a log and have a hunt! They may not be so bad after all. Rykoala's wife

Seems like alot to me! We went caching yesterday and hunted 9, found 7 caches.

we signed up for a number of reasons already mentioned. We liked that you get access to member only caches. We also like others like that it helps maintain the site. We reasoned the more that help maintain it, the more likely the owners will see how much people care and will continue to add new features and make it better and better. And ya it being only 3 dollars a month was so reasonable. and we are so so happy not to be hand typing in cord. anymore I just select and as my 6 year old neice says "voila" it's done. Rykoala's wife

Man that is just SAD I have been to that page a billion times and never looked at the nice small word printed underneith the enter zip code. Well I guess I can atleast be glad the "hey your a idiot post" was so subtle I missed it, thank you Night Stalker for being easy on me wait till I tell my mom it was sitting right in front of us, hey atleast I am not the only dummy in the family:lol: Rykoala's wife

My mom who is also a geocacher went to a local craft store and bought a bag full of wooden nickles for like 2.50 She also purchased a fine point wood burner pen. She adds diffrent stones, beads and other neat items she finds on one side with wood burned designs around them. She puts her sig and date on the back. She makes them into keychains. The neat thing about them is even if someone else makes wooden nickles, they would never look the same because everyone has their own creative mind. Rykoala's wife

can I have a link to the zip code site? Rykoala's Wife

We have a relative who is also a Geocacher, she will be traveling from Reno Nevada to El Paso Texas. She was able to find some caches near her hotel in El Paso because she had the address. But how do you map a trip if you dont have zip codes to search since you have not been there before? What suggestions do you have for setting up caching on a trip and what has been most successful? I tried to look through the posts to see if this topic has been discussed but did not see anything and I am totally tired from caching all day and being newbies we went to a hiking cache and got semi lost and made a 2 1/2 star terrain into a 5 So if you know a previous thread about this exact topic, I have no problem being provided links Rykoala's wife

we bought the yellow Etrex. Its very very easy to use and is a simple model. We bought it solely for Geocaching. it does it's job we add way points it give us the directions. We get within 8 feet of the caches with no problems. Its around $100 and was worth it to us. We got the computer attachment for about $15 online. now we download our waypoints!!! rykoala

Well lets see. Our name started out at Rykoala which is Hubby's name shortened Ryan: Ry and his birth lat name was Kowalski so he shortened it and adapted it to koala. This was supposed to be his hobby( it sounded geeky when he talked about it) to do with our son, but the first cache we all went out and all 4 of us got addicted. So he added the Team, since we all are now a geocaching team! Pretty boring name I know, Its been so cool to read through all the names and reasons. thank you! Even if its been shared before. I dont think we would of thought to go searching through all the posts for this topic!! Rykoala

Or if you want to get to know people from all over. you can become a premium member and not only get AWESOME features to help with geocaching but also access Off topic chat or is that feature a secret? I am a premium member and didnt even know we had that till i read about it in another post edited: for clarity

we used a prescription bottle (we tested it in water to check for leakage) its covered in black electrical tape( label removed of course) and then hidden in a second practically water proof container. it works good for a micro. My question is, we see alot of altoids cans are they good micro containers? Do they hold up well? The grocery store near our house had a bunch clearanced down to 49 cents RykoalaTeam

Dear Flowerswife, I had the same question, your thread was very helpful.

man I feel stupid figures I just didnt look hard enough. still trying to get around the site. I appreciate that you helped without pointing out how dumb the question was! THANK YOU!

What are the rules about using the geocaching logo, like we make small homemade items and put some of them in the caches, some are painted. is there any rules about the 4 square logo? rykoala

I think its cool to find a cache without a GPS. Yesterday my wife and I were out caching and we knew the general location of a cache but forgot to print it to bring with us, and it wasn't programmed as a waypoint yet. So we scouted the cache area. There were too many people around to check where I thought it was so I went back late at night and went to the place where I thought the cache was, and sure enough I found it. Some are impossible without a GPSr, others are quite do-able.

thanks for the info. if we had looked at the coin better we would of seen the obvious web address. It is a Kentucky geocoin. Found in Nevada I went and logged it. Someone placed it in the cache a few days ago. So it will get some miles on its tracking we will place it in another cache when we travel soon. thanks again for help! rykoala

We found a Geocoin in a cache today, we are new. do we log them somewhere, or just pass it on when we travel? or even keep it? I would search to see if its been asked but cant and did not see anything on it. Rykoala