The VanDucks

Cache on Wheels: I was so glad to see your post. I thought some of our caches might be handicap accessible but I could never figure out how to put that information on the description page, since I wasn't sure if the cacher would need help to grab the container. This rating system and link makes it so much easier! I've now Handicache rated seven of our 32 caches, which are all in the northern Virginia area. Can you check to see if you can see the necessary info. on the pages? Please try looking up GCYFYV (Meet me at the Corner) and see if it's working. I added notes to the Handicache pages to say if the handicacher will need some help, since I realize some may have limited mobility in their arms. Hopefully, someone in our locality will be able to use this information to enjoy a day of caching! I was glad to see that you are able to enjoy this hobby with your family!

That was so neat! Our seven and five year old grandkids love geocaching with us. Just a thought - if the caches in the park near the school are relatively easy to find and within easy walking distance, why not ask the teacher if she'd like for you to set up a "geocaching field trip?" Obviously, you need permission from the school, but you could ask a few fellow cachers to help out and let the school class actually find a few caches with you and see how the GPS works. Our local park authority started holding summer geocaching camps two years ago (with the help of local cachers who placed the "beginner caches" in the parks) and now have introduced many local kids to the hobby.

Thanks for the helpful links posted above. I was able to find some smaller bisons at World Caching, a Canadian company; I hope they will be the right size when they arrive! Thanks, Clan Riffster for your comment; I wish I had thought to just google "Bison tubes!" I will keep that link bookmarked for next time! I have had to replace O rings a few times on the current bisons, and I was able to find replacement O rings at our local Home Depot; I took one of the old ones along to check the size. The store had quite a few different sizes; I think they were in the plumbing section.

Humor can be tricky! What's funny to some may not be to others. I think you could develop a cache idea based on marriage proposals - maybe ask the finders to submit log entries about their own experences with proposals? You could set it up as a puzzle cache, maybe using famous lovers as the theme! (Although that sounds more like Valentines Day than April Fools!) Or just do a April Fools' Day cache that involves a funny container or some other twist that "fools" the finder a bit. We own some caches that were placed on holidays; of course, they are permanent caches that can be found at any time.

Be prepared to hear "No." A common reason for "no" is that the "insurance won't cover people doing this!" You may have a better chance of getting permission if you are asking the actual owner of the business and it's a small local business. You should go to see the owner in person (after calling to see if you need an appointment) and take the container you will be using. You might want to print up a sample cache page or two of similar hides in your area. Most people will have no idea what geocaching is, so you need to give them something they can keep and read. They may also want to think about it before giving you an answer. You can try telling the owner that a cache will bring more customers to the business (this is sort of true, depending on how many cachers are in your area.) If you decide to hide your cache in a park instead, check with your local reviewer to see if the parks in your locality have geocaching guidelines. Good luck! It is fun to own some caches and read the logs!

I was going to say NAME TAGS too, but the poster above beat me to it! Our local geocaching club hosts many events. There are always a lot of new cachers attending, but it's hard for many people to just start talking to a stranger. Wearing name tags helps break the ice, especially if you recognize the name as someone who placed some caches you found. My suggestion is to ask everyone to fill out the name tag with both their caching name and their real first name. I saw that several people who posted above said not to play games. One of our more successful events was when one of the organizers planned a simple getting-to-know you type game. It didn't take long, but it got people talking to each other. Those who don't like games could just decline to participate.

OK - I'll ask the question - what the heck is a Tank Cache? Surely you don't mean one hidden on a tank - how mmany tanks are around except on military bases? Is the tank the container type? (I've just posted about bison tubes so I wonder if that's a "tank"?)

The larger bisons will be fine for new hides, where I have that size planned to match the location ... but I need the thinner ones for our older caches where only that size will fit! One cache, for example, is hidden inside a sign post, where the thin bison can drop down to be concealed within the metal post; the new thicker bison won't fit there.

I ordered some bison tubes last week. We have several hides using bisons, so I like to always have some extra ones to use for replacements. When the new ones came, they were much larger than the old style ones I purchased a few years ago. These new ones are 2" by .75"; I think the older ones were about the same length but much thinner and less obvious when hidden. I've looked on-line for the suppliers I used before, but sadly, many of them seem to have gone out of business. Does anyone have a source for the old "skinny" bisons?

Some of our local cachers consistently place great caches, with interesting locations, clever containers, well-thought out directions, and a real box of swag at the end. We will do the whole "series" of those cachers, and eagerly wait for their next one! Of course, the reverse is true, with other cachers who place such bad caches, such as a string of micros in the woods surrounded by PI and sticker bushes, that we know to avoid their caches. We also find that the new favorite points are a good indication of whether a cache is worthwhile, although we've found some very good caches that didn't have any favorite votes yet.

We are 66 and 64; we began caching in 2006 so we were 58 and 60 then. We sometimes cache with our daughter and son-in-law who are both 27, with a one year old son. We also cache with our other daughter and her family when we visit them; they are ages 35 (the parents) and kids ages 7, 5 and 2. One of the best things about geocaching is that it's fun for all ages!

We have placed 34 caches, of which 32 are still active. Only one is a Premium Member cache. That's because the container is one of a kind and hand-crafted. I guess we could duplicate it if we had to, but we thought making it a premium cache might increase the chance of it surviving longer. Also, it's in a spot that has very limited parking, although the cache itself is on public parkland and placed with permission. It's been found 29 times and has three favorite awards.

Well, regardless of whether it was a real cache or not, you found out how much fun geocaching can be! I hope you continue to seek for caches and to have a lot of fun with this hobby!

I'm always curious too, to know why geocachers have picked their user names. It's funny that when we see our friends at local caching events, we tend to call them by their user names rather than their actual names! (But that's hard if the username is unpronounceable!) When my husband and I joined up on the site, we tried many different names, trying to be clever or funny, but of course all the "good" names were already taken! So we picked our name because we like ducks (we used to go feed the ducks at a local pond together in our dating days) and we drive a van. Of course, this means that we have to leave signature rubber duckies as our swag items!

If we're taking a caching trip out of state, I like to bring some special swag to leave in new found caches.(We have mostly micros in our urban area, so I'm thrilled to find caches with real boxes large enough to do some trading!) Our local geocaching club has some pins and magnets for sale on cafepress, so I order a supply of them to take, and sometimes I buy a few keychains or magnets from our local area (northern VA, near DC). The best place for cheap touristy swag is often in a local drugstore, where I only want to spend a dollar or so per item. We also leave signature duckies, and I try to remember to take more than I think we'll need, since we almost always find caches to leave them all. I like to find something that a previous cacher left behind, especially if there's a tie in to the cacher's home. Also, try leaving coins, US coins if you're caching in another country- these are fun for kids to find!

Yes, Yes, Yes! Always give parking coordinates! You may think the parking location is obvious, but a cacher coming to your area from somewhere else won't know where to park! (Unless your cache is a LPC in the Walmart lot!) We've spend some very frustrating caching days fighting heavy traffic to get to a cache because the CO assumed cachers would know where to park, even though the cache GZ may show up on the GPS right at the edge of a busy multi-lane highway! Our local park authority actually requires cachers requesting approval to place a cache in their parks to give a parking coordinate, in part because local residents had complaints about cachers cutting through private property to search for caches. Those who consider part of the charm of caching to be figuring out where to park can just not look at the parking coordinates!

Me again - NeWhere, just for fun I clicked on the last cache you logged, then searched for Favorited caches near that area. It looks like you cache around where I grew up, in East Point, GA.! I haven't been back there in many, many years, and I've never geocached there. I see several caches that you might want to take a look at; here are the GC numbers and following each in (Paren.) is the number of cachers who marked that cache as a favorite: GCGFDE (85 favorites) one of several Virtual caches in your locality. GCC2D2 (10 fav.) another virtual GC2MWEY (2) GC2QT (20) GC1MRZ9 (1) GCD496 (1) GC2KAC4 (2) GC58A1 (40) another virtual GC2E3PR (2) GCHRVX (11 favorites) These may not be the type you can do quickly on your lunch break, but the caches that take more time to complete will likely provide more satisfaction!

One benefit of having a premium membership is that you can see "Favorited" caches on the cache listing page; the caches selected by other local members as their favorites tend to be very interesting, well thought out caches. I also find a correlation between the difficulty rating of the cache and its fun value; the caches we have worked the hardest to find are usually the ones we enjoyed the most. As you become more familiar with the cachers placing caches in your area, you'll probably figure out which ones place the caches that you like to find! (Often, but not always, they'll be the geocachers with the largest number of hides.)You should also see if there is a geocacher club in your locality and plan to attend an event. It sounds to me like you've become rather angry and bitter at a hobby you expected to like, and getting in touch with other local cachers will help you find out where and when to search for worthwhile caches. Good luck!

Those are really nice cards! I've never seen personal geocaching trading cards, although we've cached in quite a few states along the east coast, including a few caches in New York. I would certainly be happy to find a personal sig item like those. A trend I've noticed in our area (northern Virginia) is that almost all the new caches are nanos and micros, with no space for trading anything! We have some photo cards, made up for me when I worked at a print shop a few years back, that we leave if we do find a cache big enough to put one inside.

Too bad some cachers won't bother to do a good deed and just leave a piece of paper to replace a wet log. It's not so hard to carry a few sizes of paper with you, if you have a geocaching bag or just keep a few geo-supplies in your car. One of the great aspects of this game is that most cachers are willing to help each other out. When I replace a wet log, or dry out a wet container, I mention that in my online log so the CO will be aware that they need to do a maintenance check. There can be lots of reasons why the CO hasn't been able to replace the wet log. We try to take care of our caches regularly, but sometimes other things in life get in the way. You can print out the usual sizes of logs for nanos and bison tubes on the geocaching.com website, cut them apart, and keep a few with you when you go caching. And why sign the log? Well, that's the way the game is played. You can make up your own rules, but most of us do play with the accepted rules as stated on the website. If I just wanted to say I'd found those caches that were hidden in muggle-rich areas, without going to the trouble of waiting out the muggles, pretending to talk on my cell phone, or tie my shoe while grabbing the cache and signing the actual log, I would be the only one knowing I cheated. That would bother my conscience.

Most of our caches are lock and lock boxes, and the paint I prefer is spray paint, the "Rust-Oleum Camouflage, Non reflective finish, ultra-flat." It's sold at Home Depot, and I usually combine the deep forest green and black on the boxes. I don't use primer or sand the boxes. We are in Virginia, so our climate is wet, with lots of rain and some snow in the winter. The paint lasts for about a year or more, depending on exposure (some of the caches are more protected from the elements than others.) If I check on the cache and the paint has worn off, I bring the box home and re-spray it. Seems to work just fine. I find that some sort of camo paint is better than leaving the boxes clear, because some cachers don't do a very good job of re-hiding the caches!

Sadly, you may never see that TB again! We've had the same thing happen to us, and if the cacher ignores your first e-mail, you'll probably never get any type of response. I don't know why people do this, but I think the best philosophy about TB's is what Snoogams once said about realizing that when you release a Tb or geocoin, it just belongs to whomever wants to take it or keep it. We've learned that if we really like a trackable, it's best to buy two of them - one to send out, one to keep!

Geico is starting a new promotion with Geocaching.com tomorrow, May 14; 6,000 Gecko-shaped TB's are to be released. You can request a free TB to be sent to you. The contest lasts for 20 weeks and some entries will win free GPS units. We have a relative who works for Geico who told us about this one. See details at http://www.geocaching.com/geico/

I agree with an earlier post; sometimes you just have to say a cache is too dangerous and beyond your personal comfort level, and pass on by. This is a game and not worth risking anyone's safety or life! If you feel that this cache presents a dangerous situation, then post a very specific log talking about the risks involved. That way, the next cacher who decides to try this one will at least know there may be a problem. I think this sort of placement also illustrates the need for common sense of the part of the person owning the cache. There are millions of spots where a cache COULD be placed, but many or most of those spots may be where a cache should NOT be placed!

We totally agree! It's very disappointing to take our grandkids geocaching and not find anything worth the hunt. Even when we adults go out by ourselves, the little kid inside me still wants to look at loot, even though we rarely take anything for ourselves. When we restock our own caches with swag, we often find after a few months that everything is gone and nothing left behind. It's a shame but seems to be a common problem. Maybe your crusade will get other cachers thinking about this - swag doesn't have to be expensive, and homemade items are always appreciated! But please - NO dirty golf balls, even as a joke!