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Storm Whistles Available at many camping supply places.

I do very fine, delicate electronic work all day, and have no problem with that kind of stuff. However, its nothing like trying to deal with a micro or nano in cold weather when you have to take your gloves off to open the stupid thing and extract the log. I'd almost rather go to the dentist. Not to mention when the cache owner doesn't bother to put a fresh log in when the old one is full, and someone stuffs something else in there with their sig just to get a smiley. Grrrrrr! Like the others, I've found the Swiss Army Knife tweezers work wonders, but the self-closing tweezers look pretty handy as well, especially for rewinding the log. Best stick a cork or something over the end of the tweezers or store them in a tube -- I can see ramming them through your hand during a blind grab into your caching bag.

If I see a newbie cacher with few finds and more DNFs than smileys, and who logged a DNF on a cache I know to be a bit tough, I will offer some insight via private mail. I do this because I got really lucky on the first few caches in my area -- had I got some tough ones right up front, I might have dropped the hobby. Usually my hints start out with 'where did you look, what did you see, did you notice, was there something that didn't look right?' Usually they will answer their own question once I get their brain jump-started. When I have been stumped, some of the more seasoned cachers have offered the same sort of hints when asked. Hints in the logs -- maybe. Usually silly or very cryptic. Unless the CO says absolutely no.

Isn't there one up the crotch of a giant fiberglass gnome somewhere here in the U.S.? I seem to recall a link to it in one of the forums.

I like a good multi, if it doesn't require a calculator, sextant and night-vision googles to complete, especially if it has a good twist at the end. One local one takes you through a beautiful park, with the final being at a well-hidden *something* that is totally out of place. Despite being scuffed up and dirty, I chuckled all the way back to the main trail. It was like being the butt of a good joke.

Less than a mile from the house. Apparently a micro in the bushes in front of a 24-hour restaurant. I'm gonna have to be pretty hard up for a find before I go get this one.

There are a few CO's I avoid in our area, either because they are buttheads, or because they don't make an effort to check their caches when there are a lot of DNFs or its reported as missing. They always assume the cache is still there because they believe their hiding skills are better than everyone's finding skills. Other caches I don't necessarily avoid, but since we have an abundance of LPC's and other lame Bison-tube-in-a-bush in our area, I won't make a special effort to find them unless its rainy and cold and I have nothing else to do (ie sock drawer already sorted, toe-jams already picked out). At minimum I try to keep a 2-mile swath cleared around the casa, and the rest I will get to eventually. FYI -- the Wal-Mart parking lot is not scenic.

Nothing wrong with a micro under the bench if the view is good. Sticking a micro in a bunch of shrubs behind Home Depot is not good. A micro hidden in plain sight is an adventure. One stuck under some tree roots behind someone's fence, complete with yappy dog, is not.

Just wondering if people placing caches ever bother to think about cachers tearing things up trying to find their cache? Some cachers apparently have no sense when it comes to looking for things, and they totally trash out an area trying to find the elusive cache. I've ran across several that had people prying on things, removing covers, opening utility boxes, digging through landscaping, taking apart sprinkler heads, etc... In many cases they don't put back things they have disturbed, and I'm certain the property owners are none to pleased. All it would take is a bit of common sense, and perhaps a note in the cache description directing people not to disturb things or advising them where not to look.

We don't carry near the stuff as what the photos above show, but at least I have a few blank logs, some cheap small spiral notepads, bags, pencils, some camo duct tape, a few magnets and a spare decon container. Found two caches today that needed new logs. One had the old 'bag-o-mush' log, and the other was just plumb full up with signatures.

Thats kind a of a weird feature. My van will relock the doors if you unlock them with the remote and don't open any of the doors within 30 seconds. That being said, I learned a lesson from my uncle about spare keys. He passed away, and we inherited his old pickup. One day the bottom radiator hose busted, and in replacing it, I found a huge lump of tape wrapped around the hose. I figured the cheap SOB had fixed a leak, rather than replacing the hose, but I was curious how it held up so long, so I started cutting the tap off. Lo and behold, there was a set of keys taped to the hose. My van has really expensive security keys and the dealer charges way to much to activate the key, so I have yet to buy a spare. Besides, you really have to work hard to lock the keys in the van, as the Germans saw fit to make sure you can't manually lock the drivers door and then shut it. The nice thing is you can get a standard key cut that will at least open the doors. I keep it around my neck so I can at least get in the van if I lose my key or if I want to leave the engine running on a cold morning.

Simple. Watch where you are going, listen to things around you, use a stick to poke and prod things, use a flashlight and caution when looking under things, and never reach into a hole without checking it out first.

If I get into poison ivy and get home within an hour or two, usually a good hot shower and soap will keep me from breaking out. Normal washing gets it out of the clothes, but... I managed to get some on my cellphone case, which caused a recurring outbreak on my arm. When I finally figured it out, I washed the case in Woolite along with my other stuff that can't be washed with laundry soap, and no more problems.

Incorrect, see Oregon 200 thread You CAN view 3D and DEM information on the 200. Just like the 300, you need to load Topo2008. So it does not come with a shaded basemap, like other units. I never said it would not support them, only that they were not included. In any case, still a good deal on an entry-level GPS with lots of features.

If you have internet access, there are a number of conversion websites out there that will convert back and forth between formats. Probably not something you can do in the field without a smartphone though. Some GPS units also let you switch formats, or will display coordinates in different formats.

What is the "Garmin interface" you mention? No sound for autorouting doesn't bother me because I have a nuvi for the car. They don't list sound on the specs, but I'm guessing it probably beeps like most modern GPSr units. The Colorado gives you beeps when you have an auto-routing map and a turn is coming up.

??? Are you thinking or a different model, perhaps? Here is the poop from Garmin's website: Find Fun Oregon 200 supports Geocaching.com GPX files for downloading geocaches and details straight to your unit. No more manually entering coordinates and paper print outs! Simply upload the GPX file to your unit and start hunting for caches. Show off photos of your excursions with Oregon’s picture viewer. Slim and lightweight, Oregon is the perfect companion for all your outdoor pursuits. What's in the Box: * Oregon 200 * Lanyard * USB cable * Owner's manual on disk * Quick start guide

Ran across another deal today -- act fast, it may be gone by this evening. This is the stripped model without the DEM shaded maps, wireless, compass and altimeter. Might be a good entry-level GPS for those who want a touch screen. They also had some deals on Oregon and Colorado units with the inland lakes and coastal waterways maps if anyone needs them.

Heh Heh. Don't need winter boots, but I do switch from tennis shoes and footie socks to tennis shoes and cotton tube socks and eventually to hiking boots with tube socks or to maybe wool socks when it gets down to freezing or so.

-1 for the cacher for getting into that situation. At minimum, each party should carry some water, a few granola bars, a space blanket and a whistle, any medication needed during the day, as well as clothing appropriate for the time of year. At least one person should also carry a knife, a flashlight, some light rope and a first aid kit. We carry these things on anything beyond an urban cache right off the roadway. Never know when something may happen that requires staying put for a while. If this was not an atypical cache for the area, (ie longer, more difficult terrain, etc...) the CO should have mentioned taking supplies, advising how long it takes if everything goes well and the fact that you probably should backtrack to get to the car. Around here the cachers have a bad habit of going over fences instead of around, so many caches advise that you don't have to cross any fences if you do it right. They also will warn of any hazards that may not be obvious until its too late, and suggest taking water due to the distance involved.

The main thing you want to do is protect the straps, buckles, zipper tabs, etc... from the baggage handling equipment. If it gets hung up in the works, they are gonna cut off whatever gets jammed and blame it on you. If you have a place to store it when you arrive, I would shoot for a large wheeled duffle that the pack fits in. Possibly one with a telescoping handle as well. If you have to keep it with you or dispose of it, shoot for a heavy plastic bag. Just remember to check with the airlines for size and weight restrictions before taking the plunge. Also, remember, TSA needs to be able to search your checked baggage, so you either have to leave it unlocked, or use one of the TSA-approved locks. And they may not get your stuff re-packed as neatly as you, so leave a bit of unused space.

The coolest feature I've seen added to a GPS in a while is the sign / lane deal Navigon does on their units. It overlays a sign above the 3-D map showing you which lanes go where on interstate exits, splits, etc... The 3-D ghost image thing for showing buildings in a downtown area is pretty cool, but I can't see using it around here. Maybe if aliens abduct me and take me to the middle of Manhattan, I might appreciate it. I think some refinement on the POI algorithms where considerations like making a left across a busy street or finding a gas station on the same side of the highway that you are on would be a good start, especially as cities do away with the tall signage that used to show you where things were at from a distance. I'll take a good GPS over a GPS phone any day.

If it hasn't been suggested already, make sure you have the latest GPS chipset firmware and GPS firmware. The compass issues have been reduced quite a bit from the early firmware. I usually keep my compass turned off for the reasons you saw. However, the Colorado sometimes gets 'behind' when you start getting close to the cache, so you walk past the actual location to a position 20-30 feet away, which the GPS says is ground zero. Within 30 seconds or so the GPS will catch up and show you are off by that distance. What I do when I'm still several hundred feet away from the cache is guestimate where its going to be, then keep going until the pointer shows I'm right on it. If I think the position is off, I'll continue another 20-30 feet, then walk back slowly, watching the direction and distance. Sometimes going out and back in one of the cardinal directions will help. The satellite constellation and the amount of tree cover or terrain cover seems to affect this quite a bit. As far as being stopped and the pointer showing the last direction it thought you were headed, just keep tabs on where north is and use the north indicator on the screen to orient the GPS so the indicator is pointing the right way. Saves a lot of heartaches!

We were out caching in a local park one weekend and had just finished visiting a cache back in a field off the paved path. As we were walking back to the dirt bicycle path for the next cache, a dad and two boys rode up and the boys bailed and headed straight for the tree the cache was under. Realizing we where there, they all sort of froze. I looked at dad and said, 'I know what you're looking for!' He told the boys it was ok to pull the cache out as we already knew it was there. I suspect it was the CO and offspring, but I'm not sure. Kinda funny.

$250 was my price point. Purchased! Glad to be of assistance. I was tempted to get another one for the spousal unit. Of course, when the Oregons come down in price I could get me one and give her the old, worn-out Colorado! If they would just run a good deal on the Zumos I would be a happy camper.