Cache U Nutter
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Posts posted by Cache U Nutter
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No one wants to comment on my comments other than Simply Paul ?
Many of Pauls comments are valid.
I do however request that parties plan their trip very carefully to avoid some of the problems I mentioned.
When I did it [i think in 1997] it was for charity and was organized by one of my colleagues from Manchester.
Unfortunately his planning left something to be desired and we only just made it in the 24 hours [myself with 20 minutes to spare]
The leader had some bowel problems owing to the crap that he was eating and I remember 2 hours before Pen Y Pass driving around in circles trying to find a toilet for him. I think we weasted about an hour
He also wanted us to go up the route from Bedgelert rather than Penypass as he thought parking may be a problem [even though we had our own driver] before we pursuaded him that the PYG track was the quickest way up. Needless to say he did not make it.
I only made it by running all the way down to the astonishment of the crowds of people.
I had managed to wangle a stay in a first class hotel when we finished c/o the company and a merry time was had by allthat evening even though we had had no sleep for hours.
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Hey all,
Two of my friends and myself are planning to do the three peaks challenge in June/July time (date hasn't been confirmed). As my two friends are Geocaching muggles, they wont be interested in doing any caches although I will be doing the earth/victuals at the of the 'hills' shall we say. I was just curious to know if anyone had done the three peak challenge, any interesting stories, ect we've planed quite well, have a designated driver who isn't walking ect, just wanted to know if anyone has done it yet.
Also, I was considering doing it for charity, any charity people? out there who could give me some advice on awareness ect, I did hear about a website which could be set up that allows people to add donations by Paypal ect.
I thought i'd just start up the discussion anyway
fire away!Sorry but my comment may be rather controversial.
I would advise against doing the 3 peaks challenge unless you think very carefully about your intentions for 4 reasons
1] Depending on what order you carry out the walks you are almost certainly going to be disrupting the local community with an early start.
Particularly so if you start from Seathwaite to start the Scafel walk.
Farmers and the local community hate the thousands of walkers who arrive in minibuses, coaches or cars at around 3 in the morning.
They tend to make a lot of noise disrupting stock,dogs and people [some are farmers who may like an extra couple of hours sleep]. They also drop litter and defacate around the parking areas prior to their start.
2]The footpath erosion is immense and costs a fortune in money and man hours to put right
4] Speeding traffic [assuming you are going for the 24 hr challenge] is not only dangerous but of course polluting and environmentally
unfriendly.
4] Unless you are experienced, please be aware of the extra pressure being brought onto the mountain rescue service who every year have to rescue inexperienced and unfit individuals who are just not up to the challenge.
4]There have to be nicer mountains around to climb in Scotland, Wales and the Lakes which will offer just as much of a challenge, if you were to use some imagination you could even find a mountain to climb in solitude instead of with thousands of other bumblers who tend to grace the slopes - particularly in the Summer months !
I should know - I did the 3 peaks some 15 years ago and also the Pennine way and other long distance footpaths and deeply regret doing so in retrospect.
Good luck to you any way and I do hope that you are able to raise some money for a good cause.
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Seems like a great idea [if it was to work]
As a garden designer I had considered using UV paint combined with LV direct lighting as a way of illuminating decorative trees and shrubs. Have come across the same problem of UV stability.
You may consider an alternative such as reflective [hi vis] type material which you can paint on ?
Please be aware that if you are using any such methods that it is well away from any recognised rock climbing area.
Not only do you stand the risk of some muscular Scottish climber pulling you off the crag and tearing you to pieces limb by limb, but Geocaching will feature negatively in one of the largest forum sites in the UK [uK climbing]
You could also check with this site the wherabouts of climbing crags / routes.
Good luck !
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I agree with as much gusto as can be mustered !
As has Paul, [more in his case] , great effort is involved in the research, planning and placement of many new caches - especially his 'extreme location' and my 'extreme physical' caches.
Whilst I hope I am able to provide a little more of a challenge than the 'pot in the ivy' or foot of fence post' cache, I also hope that the finders appreciate them a little bit more [they certainly seem to
]
I also find that my caches neatly conform to many diff/ terrain combinations but as they are all my caches I cannot claim them.
For many of my caches I feel that finding them is considerably easier than placing them but under the Groundspeak systems no stats recognising this fact is in place.
I also feel for the cache setters who have put out hundreds of caches [and maintain them] - even if they are power trails.
Come on Groundspeak, what do you think about showing some appreciation to those who put out Quality caches ?
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O.K the event listed does include a small amount of caching, other wise it is irelevant and as such should have no place in the newsletter.
It is basically using an international site to publizise a non caching activity / business. Guidelines ? what guidelines ?!
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Solely on the G.C website I have some problems with the colour representation.
They seem all washed out / drained of colour [similar to my complexion after a heavy Friday night]
Any one else experiencing this ?
Everything fine on other websites.
All o.k now - not sure what was going on there ?
I'll put it down to the snow belt creeping towards us - all colours will be obscured by morning !
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Google maps are fine here, but do you actually mean the little Open Street Maps near the top of the cache page to the right? They take some getting used to but did change a couple of months back
No , the maps on the drop down list before the logs.
All the other colours on the web site are also poor but the google map is just about unreadable.
:mad: -
Solely on the G.C website I have some problems with the colour representation.
They seem all washed out / drained of colour [similar to my complexion after a heavy Friday night]
Any one else experiencing this ?
Everything fine on other websites.
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'Would it be possible for GS to "lock" the D/T rating of a cache when found.... and to keep this rating in cache stats ?
I suspect it's a mammoth task... '
As the 'birdman' suggests, this is a 'game within a game' and therefor whatever method used is up to the individual member and not the C.O.
I have been known to put out a few caches at the upper end of the D/T spectrum and at this level it is quite difficult to assess the grades.
I frequentely change them based on a number of different factors i.e
How many cachers are finding the cache - if there are repeat finds I may well lower the grade.
Ability to 'cheat' [using ladders being the main reason here]
Change in physical circumstances [a crucial branch or hand hold has fallen/ broken off].
Perceived dangers when placing the cache are no longer the case
I believe that fixing the grades would be ridiculous
Personally I don't have much time to carry out these grid caches - I also feel penalised as for most of them you cannot count your own caches. Given that many of them are the high D/ T there are few alternatives near me for me to qualify .Others are taking advantage of my caches and not appreciating how difficult it is in putting these caches out in the first place !
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The discount card does nothing to erode the price differential between Blacks / Millet pricing and what you can expect to pay for stuff on line from say Cotswold Camping.
The 70 % 'sale in store at the moment is on very limited products and even still their prices are staggeringly high.
One reason they have gone out of business is that they have forgot their core market [walkers] and gone instead for festival goers and holiday punters.
Why did they decide that trendy clothing was more important on the hill than functional clothing ?
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Just out of interest are you in the habit of wearing a Lady Ga Ga style raw meat outfit ?
If so this could explain your regular confrontations with our [not your] 4 legged friends.
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I have been climbing at Vivian Quarry in N. Wales. It may be owned the BMC[british Mountaineering Council] but if not they will certainly know who does own it. If you speak to them ask for the National access officer who will assist you.
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I've always thought stile was something you walked over, and style would be clothing type style. Have you tried googling
I agree with you but clearly others do not [or is this an example of out deteriorating educational standards] ?
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Looking at the cache descriptions of a series I hope to undertake tomorrow I have noticed 2 spellings of stile [or is it style ?]
I believe that it should be stile [i'm from W.Sussex originally]
Near to me now cachers seem to use stile and style so which is the correct spelling for this convenient way of crossing a fence,oh and whilst on the subject any varied designs around the country ?
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How about this one ?
http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.aspx?guid=698020a8-673f-4792-99ba-e29f4596bafe
'Estoy Bajo El Puente'
This one being a tricky extreme cache in Norwich which I clambered over a couple of weeks ago.
For a Zoology student this is an ideal cache for someone wanting to get close up with natural habitats !
:rolleyes: -
Jerry and I never met and I was never able to try any of his caches but we had discussed many aspects of [extreme] caching online. He was a really nice guy and we nearly met in Spain a few years back when we both canoed to a cache on a far away island just hours apart.
He also maintained my cache on Mt Blanc and was ever so helpful about this after it had gone missing.
I know he was frustrated with some of the hardline guidelines on placing caches and removed some of his own for the same reason. He had some really wacky ideas for new caches including placing one on a massive concrete tower which I believe was never published.
I am truly shocked by his premature death and my thoughts go out to his family and friends.
His family should be aware that many in the Geocaching community will be very sad to hear of his death.
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The same thing happened to me and Garmin replaced the unit with a part ex.
That is why I [or rather Father Christmas] will be presenting me with a brand new Oregon 450 T this Christmas.
I firmly believe that you should reward good service and Garmin clearly have looked after the Geocaching community very well.
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Perhaps only to be used in an emergency [or when your torch has gone dead]
I have downloaded an ap for my android phone called 'brightest flashlight' for free.
It really is bright as it's software turns on the flash for the camera permanetely.
It probably uses up a bit of juice though.
there are many occasions that this would have been useful - like daytime caching when that micro is hidden in a dark spot.
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Last night whilst staying in Norwich I did an extreme cache in the dark. No one was around in what is usually a very busy area.
Hanging under a bridge is best done when no one is around !
Afterwards I found a nano and a small container [a sidetracked cache] both in usually very busy areas , so it is a good time to go caching.
One word of advice however, check your shoes when you get home as you don't know what you may have trod in !
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Aldi have a range [well different sizes/ male /female anyway] of boots for about £25. They stock them about 2 or 3 times a year. I bought a pair to live in my second car and honestly they are o.k !
The soles are rather bendy and they are not goretex lined so leak in wet weather but are as good as any other 'cheap' boots costing £30 times as much.
For long walks / the mountains I still use my mountaineering boots which cost me approx £140 more ,but the Aldi ones are o.k
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Without wishing to stir up another can of worms (to nicely mix metaphors) This is one of the reasons that the GAGB has got involved in trying to liaise with various Police Forces, via ACPO, to ensure that police on the ground are aware of Geocaching and what it involves. I am sure that there are many Police Officers out there who know about caching and some actually caching themselves. As a retired Police Officer, and then 10 years as a Police Control Room Supervisor I have been involved in a lot of "suspicious" incidents concerning packages left in unusual places. Certainly within our force there were fairly rigid criteria for dealing with such incidents. These were primarily concerned with the safety of all (officers and civilians alike) The premise being "Better Safe than Sorry",in this day and age no one can be blamed for taking a conservative view of things. I am also aware of locations, types of containers and markings thereon. But again, safety being the main concern, who can critise an Officer for being, perhaps, over-zealous in his approach to what he may think is a "sus" container *ammo box*, perhaps. As one of the organisations concerned with supporting caching and cachers in the UK, GAGB is trying to address these problems with guidelines for putting out caches, markings etc., and liaising with Police re security etc., landowners for permissions and other caching organisations to try and assist all who are involved with caching. Not trying to tread on toes, or "laying down the law" (as some would have it). As all are aware, there are loads of cachers out there who do not read or participate in forums and put out caches without reference to land owners and, some without thought, to the prevalent "security" issues. These are the cachers we all need to reach and try to ensure that they are aware of the consequences. My real nightmare is that one day, someone with "malice aforthought" is going to put a device in a clearly marked geocache - does not bear thinking about !!!. In conclusion, all police actions are recorded and rigourously scrutinised these days, so anyone directly involved in any police incident can be sure that information regarding such incidents can be made available if required
I am happy to say that everything that Palujia says is relevent to this situation as is indicated by the email message I recieved from my cacher / Policeman who wishes to remain 'under cover'
"Had a good look at the ICAD after dropping you the quick e-mail from work last night -
The cache was spotted by a family out walking, near a tree stump. On the box was a picture of a gun, and "M13" written on the side. The family did not touch it, but called the Police, and directed the officer to it.
From reading the log, it appears the officer also believed it contained ammunition, so opened it to check. They saw it contained other items (Not listed what on the log), but the officer described it as a "Keepsake box". They decided to take it to Reigate police station to stop further calls from members of the public, and left a note so the owner would find it, and they could call in to collect it.
There is no crime number on the ICAD, and the log has been closed, so there will be no action taken against the owner if they decide to collect the cache.
I haven't seen the box myself, as I do not cover Reigate, but from reading the log it appears that the military markings were still displayed fully. I also don't know if there was a stash card inside the cache, explaining what it was - maybe if there was one, the officer didn't see it.
Hope this explains what has happened - I will also send this to the cache owner".
I hope that this is a lesson to ensure that cache boxes are clearly marked - I will certainly go back and check my ammo boxes which were placed a few years back.
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I have just recieved an email from a Surrey cacher who is also a Surrey Policeman. He wishes to remain anonomous but is prepared to look into the matter further. He has other geocachers in his division too !
I can confirm that the note was genuine and the number was a ICAD/Crime Reference No.
Still not heard from the owner yet- may get a suprise on return from holiday !
Will keep you informed
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Do we know if it was correctly marked on the outside as a geocache, or were all the military markings still on it, giving the impression that it's full of explosive ammunition?
Not sure if there were any markings[as it had been muggled !
The cache is here :
http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.aspx?guid=29f893ad-1e16-4856-950d-2176363df3f0
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I should add that the cache was not in an urban area, it was in the middle of woodland, adjacent to a public footpath.
Nearest housing approx 900m away.
fire away!
:mad: 
:rolleyes:
Tides and Cache Placement
in United Kingdom and Ireland
Posted
From the 'extreme caches' bookmarked list, here are a few more which might be of interest. (I think I read that cache listings are copyrighted, so copying too closely without COs permissions isn't allowed, but it would probably be a good idea to see how cachers have fared with finding them, and if they have any suggestions anyway.)
Monkey Island
Pirate's treasure Trove
Red Sand's Fort
Somewhere over the...? (Not a Tidal cache, but another interesting cache page, good to see the wording in various extreme caches.)
Copyright listing ?