The Leprechauns

I love the phrasing of this. I wouldn't ask my local reviewer either, but it's because I just don't like him.

AmishHacker, it is wonderful to see you here again. A lot has happened while you've been gone, and I encourage you to get back into the game. One of the most positive geocaching developments in recent years is the rise of the "Gadget Cache" as a genre. Your example reminded me immediately of this cache in Poplar Bluff, Missouri, that I found during a roadtrip a few months ago. Since the cache is named "The Cleanout," I don't feel like I'm posting a spoiler! It has a 37% favorite points average.

It depends on how flexible your ethics are. Mine aren't very flexible. When I did a 366 day cache finds streak, I found each cache ON that calendar day - even if it was snowing, even if I had the flu. When I had to travel for work, I found a cache at 4:00 a.m. on my way to the airport. One possible exception would be challenge caches. Personally I log my online find on a challenge cache dated on the date when I met the challenge requirements - even if I signed the physical cache log months or years earlier. So, if you met the final requirement for a challenge cache while you were at sea, and you'd previously signed the physical log for that challenge cache, there's a good argument for dating your find as of the date when you were at sea. A practical example would be an old school challenge based on Waymarking. There are more than 40 of these. You have a better chance of creating a waymark, or visiting an existing waymark, out in the middle of the ocean. Suppose you sign the log for a Waymarking Challenge requiring finds in 50 different Waymarking categories. You find 49 different categories prior to your trip. While at sea, you validly log a waymark for an International Space Station sighting. That is your 50th waymark, and you could log a find on the challenge cache the same day. That is an edge case, to be sure.

I've been to Mingo twice - once when GeoWoodstock was in Denver, and again when I drove from Pittsburgh to Denver because my daughter moved there. So, with everything else going on in 2020, it's hard to make the argument for a third visit to northwest Kansas. My priorities are Seattle, GeoWoodstock in Vancouver, and Midwest GeoBash. That said, for anyone who hasn't scored a find on the world's oldest surviving cache, I encourage you to check out this event. The planning and add-ons look really good. The GPS Adventures Maze will be there! (But I'll be scoring another Maze find at Midwest GeoBash.) If you do go to Mingo, do not miss a drive north to Arikaree. Like so many of us, the hider of the world's oldest surviving geocache did a far better job with his second cache placement. Arikaree is in an interesting location with a unique natural landscape (loess hills). And, as you travel in and to the area, make a point of finding as many caches hidden by ottieolsen as possible. Stopping off to find a cache from this truly talented hider unexpectedly turned a monotonous drive across the prairie into an enjoyable potpourri of highly-favorited gadget caches and amusing placements.

That sounds pretty similar, except the person I encountered was sitting by himself in a picnic shelter I walked past, rather than a fisherman on a bridge. Had the guy not reached out and touched me, my story would have ended like yours did.

My worst memory goes all the way back to 2004, when I wrote this log on a cache I found while traveling to the second GeoWoodstock. You don't forget being followed into the woods by a person "looking for company." I had good situational awareness, so once I knew someone was watching me, I took off at top speed and hid in a thicket. A few minutes later, he found my thicket. My exit was swift, and began with the last punch I threw at someone in anger. It connected. You don't forget muggles like that.

My 2020 goals are a mix of 2019 carryovers that I didn't meet, updates for some that I did meet (challenge caches, Fizzy) and several new ones (items 2 through 6). 1. To find at least 400 "Challenge Caches" (309 found so far). 2. To complete the Ohio History Challenge (38 old school caches down, 4 to go). 3. To complete the 360 Degrees of Ohio Challenge (Caches found in 339 degrees, 21 to go). 4. To have at least two finds on each calendar date (32 days left with only one find). 5. To log the Signal the Frog locationless as part of a new "Busy Day" personal best. 6. To host a successful Community Celebration Event. 7. To find caches in contiguous counties from the Atlantic to the Pacific coast (8 counties to go). 8. To find caches in contiguous counties from the US northern border to southern border (6 counties to go). 9 To log at least 5 finds on each of the 81 Terrain & Difficulty Star combinations ("Fizzy") (1 short of 4th loop). 10. To find at least two caches hidden in each month since May 2000 ("Double Jasmer" - 4 months left). 11. To find caches in all 50 US states and DC (46 down, 5 to go). 12. To find 360 virtual caches (288 down, 72 to go). 13. To find 150 letterbox hybrid caches (139 down, 11 to go). 14. To hide and maintain 50 active, quality caches (32 active hides, owned/co-owned).

I bought a Toyota RAV-4 last summer, and being able to navigate to cache or parking coordinates was one factor that drove my choice over the 4Runner. The 2019 4Runner had outdated technology, but I think I read that it was updated for the 2020 model year. I plug my phone in, wait for the giant dashboard screen to say "Apple Car Play connected," find the next cache on my phone app, click on the car icon, and ask it to navigate using Google Maps. So easy! In 2019, the RAV-4 did not offer the same connectivity for Android, but I think I read this was added for 2020. The other factors that made me choose the RAV-4 included great styling, gas mileage (I'm getting 28.4 mpg since the date of purchase) and safety features. Geocachers can appreciate a huge screen and guidance lines for the backup camera, and radar sensors that alert me before I bump into a tree stump, guardrail, etc.

Yesterday I had the pleasure of finding 14 of geocat's challenge caches, including his new ones that resulted from this discussion. What a great way to end a decade of geocaching! Thank you to geocat for hiding most of the 18 caches we found yesterday. As I wrote in one of my logs, it is challenge caches that keep me motivated to keep going out and finding more geocaches.

This thread is supposed to be about helping geocat come up with new ideas for challenge caches. All of page two has been off topic and (presumably) unhelpful to him. Geocat has hidden many awesome ones in Ohio, but mainly under the pre-moratorium guidelines. I would like to see him hide more, so I can find them! In an effort to get back on topic, I wanted to post about the awesome "Cache of the Month" challenge series hidden here in the Pittsburgh area by Penny's Pack. There are many similar series, where each of the 12 challenge caches requires finding a cache (in any year) on each day of one of the calendar months. What sets Penny's Pack apart from owners of similar series is that they chose themed locations for each of the months. The January challenge is hidden at the bottom of a popular sledding hill, the June challenge is hidden near a popular spot for weddings, the September challenge is hidden near a college campus ("back to school"), the October challenge is near a spot popular at Halloween, and so forth. As a result, the caches are scattered all over the area, instead of along a road in 528 foot increments. I pick off one of the challenges when I'm in the area where it's hidden - one challenge at a time. I'd like to encourage geocat to consider a similar themed series.

"Primary" Interstate routes end in zero for east-west routes, and end in five for north-south routes. Detailed requirements are specified on the linked challenge cache page:

Progress in 2019 towards each goal is indicated in bold in the quotey box below. In addition to achieving two goals and making progress towards five others, I also managed to do the following along the way: I got to 8,000 total finds a few weeks ago. I had my best year for D/T averages (2.27 Difficulty, 2.38 Terrain), which brought up my overall average to 1.85 / 1.78. I've now cached in 634 U.S. counties, with 537 of them being connected in a contiguous chain.

These are fun, provided that there isn't a silly restriction like having two qualifying caches within X miles of each other and on opposite sides of the specified Interstate. That wouldn't be allowed anymore. But finding a cache in each state that a major Interstate highway passes through is quite an achievement in and of itself. For example, I-70 runs from Maryland to Utah, and runs across all of Ohio. As someone who relies on Interstate 70 for monthly visits to geocat's home area, I would love to find an I-70 Challenge Cache. Ohio doesn't have one - just the Boreal Walker Version with the now disallowed restriction. (Hint, hint, geocat.) Speaking of I-40, I found my most epic Interstate Challenge Cache ever down in North Carolina, in a spot overlooking I-40. For that one, you need to find caches in states where EVERY primary Interstate highway passes through. geocat, I know you qualify!

Well, the cache page contains an impermissible logging requirement (posting the output from the challenge checker). For post-moratorium challenges, it is up to the challenge cache owner to use the geochecker for validating the finder. But, that is a minor detail. By saying "approved by HQ," are you saying that someone appealed to Geocaching HQ and received a favorable answer for the challenge design? If so, then that's great!

New "Bingo" challenges are still allowed. The most important things to remember are that each individual square needs to be a qualifying challenge all on its own (so no trackables, no cache names, etc.) and that you must demonstrate that enough people in your area already qualify or are close to qualifying for the challenge (to prevent "look at all the quirky things that only I have done in combination" bingo challenges).

I love working towards challenge caches, and I'm closing in on finding 300 of them, including nine of yours (so far). My current challenge goals include finishing up the 360 Degrees of Ohio Challenge and the Ohio History Challenge. One challenge cache I enjoyed finding recently is a Continental Expansion Challenge. To qualify, you have to find at least as many caches in a state as the order in which that state was admitted to the Union. (Delaware, find one cache; Hawaii, find 50 caches - and you need 13 qualifying states.) I don't think that Ohio has one, and it would be a nice compliment to your Signal for President Challenge. If you hid this, I'd find it soon, as I will be in the general area of most of your challenge caches in order to score a find I need for the Ohio History Challenge. Thank you for hiding challenge caches!

BAD CELL SERVICE HAPPENS. A FREE APP THAT'S EMPOWERED ME TO FIND HUNDREDS OF CACHES IS NOT A SCAM. NEVER SEEN AN APP WITH A WARNING POPUP THAT IT MIGHT NOT WORK UNDER CERTAIN CONDITIONS, LIKE BAD CELL COVERAGE.

I get this message when I have poor cell reception - 1 bar, maybe 2. When this happens, I get upset with my cellular provider, not the developer of the app I'm trying to use.

Thank you very much for the quick response.

This is truly impressive. I've only been to six, but at least "The Spot" is one of them. "The Spot," along with GCD, are among the best caches I've visited, although neither is in my Top 10. Each was a good hike ending with a great view.

My unexpected encounter with a drop bear in Buladelah State Forest was nothing short of terrifying. It's a memory of my 2016 Australia trip that I'd prefer to erase. Just your post has triggered me. Back on topic, please follow up once you've finalized an acceptable challenge design. I may adapt it for use here in Pennsylvania, with the possible addition of the "Hunting Allowed" attribute. Come to think of it, if hunting were allowed on protected lands in New South Wales, perhaps that would solve your drop bear problem, leading to increased tourism and a revival of the caching scene in your home area.

I like this challenge idea a lot (perhaps because I easily qualify for it)! The conditions are logically related to a central theme. You would run afoul of the "overly complicated" guideline if you insisted that all of the caches must have been hidden on an odd numbered calendar date, in a month that doesn't end in "R," and only in states that have the word "South" in their name.

I use the Project-GC Challenge Map. If the challenge has a checker (which most do, especially all the "new" post-moratorium challenges) then the map shows at a glance whether you already qualify.

It's not just the log type that persists in the dashboard view even after being corrected in the underlying log. I noticed the same type of discrepancy between the dashboard and my actual log after I corrected the text of my log. I logged 39 finds Sunday evening, including one where I made an error in the log content which I corrected the same day. It is now Tuesday morning and the dashboard view of my recent logs still shows the old log text with the error in it. Confusing!

Thanks for reminding me why I don't create waymarks anymore. Enjoy your fun!