Tobias & Petronella

Here's an idea... If everyone on the forum becomes one team, "Team Earth" and signs the log books with that name then we all could find over 5,000 caches a month. And if this idea catches on, then "Team Earth" could start finding over 5,000 a week. Tobias

Shouldn't take 20 minutes. Should take more like 1. On Google Maps you can place "via" markers. Just put one near each end of the route. Voila. I'm going to need a little help with this. On "Google Maps" I see how this can be done, but I don't see a way to save it as a KML file. On "Google Earth" I don't see a way to add a via point to the route I created. So what am I missing? Tobias

This "work-around" means that I will need to plot the route by hand instead of just picking two points on Google Earth and letting it draw the path for me. This extra work will add a little over 20 minutes to the planning of a 1000 mile trip. Because we will be driving through that area and might look for a few more of your hides. So far we have found three of them. We really enjoy Rest Stop hides.

Over the years I have used "Caches Along a Route", whenever we go on long drives and have known that a few caches every now and then get left. But this time I have a Dead Zone. I've made the route public in hopes someone can help figure out whats going on. The name of the route is: Z-8-9 The description is: Dead Zone The "Search Radius" is at 6.21 mi and the "Show Me" is at 1000. The "Any Cache Type" and "Any Container Type" are checked. Everything else is unchecked or unchanged. Here is what the area looks like with and without using "Caches Along a Route". So does anyone have a clue what's wrong or how to fix it? Tobias

Speaking as someone who will "Drop Everything" to chase after an FTF. If a reviewer in the Greater Seattle Area also wants to go after a newly published Traditional Cache or easy Puzzles, just wait 10-15 minutes. By that time I or one of the other FTFers (that we know of) will already have the cache in hand, or at the very least still be looking for it. For Multi-Caches they would also need to find each WP first. It doesn't matter what time of day, day of week or weather, come out and play. If Petronella and I want to chase after FTFs, we can be on the road (normally) in 90 seconds or less, and I know of a cacher that can do it in half that time. I have told a lot of new cachers ways to speed up their time, so if a reviewer wants to join the party they are welcome by us and every FTFer that we know. If for some reason the reviewer doesn't want to wait 10-15 minutes before heading out, then wait 10-15 minutes at GZ before looking. A co-FTF is still an FTF. It's not a race unless you have someone to race against.

I (Tobias) have never been much of a "Save the Planet" type of person, since the planet will be around long after Humans are extinct. The damage that us cachers do is very small compared to some other outdoor activities. If a person wanted to make a big difference in there local area, get your city to synchronize the stoplights. This will lower pollution, save gas, get the cars off of the roads quicker, and lower road rage.

Here is something to check out about average 'Found It' log lengths. If the link doesn't work go to http://www.mygeocachingprofile.com and click on "Extras" at the top, then click on "Average 'Found It' Log Length". We have found 5081 caches and have an average Found It log of 455 characters per log. For a total of 2,311,855 characters typed so far. Compared to some we are a lightweight when it comes to writing logs. Tobias

We have a couple other hobbies that have large groups in them. The one thing that I tell the new people that we meet is that at least 90%-95% of those in these groups are really fun people to be around and you should get to know them. However there are a few that are real jerks that you should a void. But to a void them you will first need to find out who they are. This part is very easy to do. A lot of the time these few will either say or do something to you to let you know just who they are. So think of that email that you got as a notice of who and what this person is. If you have a story to tell, then tell it. If you had an adventure then share it. Those that are not interested don't need to read it. Tobias

Greetings and welcome to the long running debate of Nuvi vs. Handheld. We have posted many times in favor of the Nuvi and how with a little bit learning it can be used for Geocaching just as well as a Handheld most of the time. We started with the 255W then upgraded to the 1350LMT and just bought the 2450LMT. To get a better idea what we have done, check out our Profile Page. Our main thought is that since you already have a Nuvi, use that for caching. That way it will give you an idea if you like this game without spending any more money equipment. Most of the cachers only use a Handheld, there are others cachers that use both a Nuvi and a Handheld when they go out. Nuvi on the road then switch to handheld for caching. Then there are some of us that only use a Nuvi. So feel free to ask anything, there is a lot of knowledge in these forums (if you can find it )

I have a question for you... Why do you want or need proof for something that isn't that hard to understand? Most cachers don't record themselves as they cache and those that do only do it for one or two finds. If you already "believe" (since you don't disbelieve) what others saying then proof is not needed. Are you looking for tips on camera angles or what most caches wear while caching and if not what do you want them to prove? Tobias

How many caches do you think a skilled geocacher could do in one hour? If the caches are very close to each other so that it only takes 4 minutes to drive to it and then another 6 minutes to find, sign and replace the "park & grab", that's 10 minutes for 1 find. This works out to 6 finds per hour. If these hides are very easy to drive to and even closer so that it only takes 2 minutes to drive from one to the next and these "park & grabs" take 3 minutes to sign, then you are caching at a rate of 12 per hour. To drive .1 of a mile at 20 mph (average) will take 18 seconds. Tobias

5 geocaches per hour... We get those numbers in city with traffic. It's not that hard with a little planning. Tobias

Why go after a FTF? Getting a FTF is like: Walking through a field of snow before anyone else. Winning a race that could start at any time. Seeing the cache as the CO wanted you to see it. Being the first person in line to buy or see that special something. Not having any geo-track to help you out. Getting to a cache before it's archived. A chance of having a mini event at GZ. Doing something that no one else has done. Being put to the test on how good you really are. Having first chance to trade for some real cool items. Getting something special if there is a FTF prize. (This is always a nice bonus no matter what it is.) Adding one more level to already a fun game. I have more I could add, but I hope that you get the idea. In geocaching there is no winning. but with a FTF there is. Tobias

My thoughts on Nuvi's. We do expect to get exactly to GZ with our 1350 nuvi. We do expect to get 1.5 to 2 hours minimum (3 to 3.5 if we don't run two map sets at the same time) when unpluged. One time we did a five hour hike through the woods to find 10 caches and our 1350 still had some battery life. We starting caching with the 255w then upgraded to the 1350lmt. In almost 4.5 years, we have over 4500 finds with 8% of them being FTF's and with 20% of all our finds being at night, we are able to find GZ very quickly. The 1350 fits neatly into the inside pocket of my coat or into the back pocket of my jeans. Unlike hand-helds we never need to replace the batteries. There is no such thing as the perfect GPSr. All units have there good points and bad. For example, most hand-held units (that I've seen) have tiny dull looking screens and doesn't have voice turn by turn navigation when on the road. The biggest problem when talking about "Nuvi's" is that Garmin has made over 100 different models. Some are almost the same, while others are very different. So when we say that a Nuvi doesn't do this or that it does do that, which style or model are we talking about. Their early units did not have "High-sensitivity receivers" and were not as good as the ones today that do have them. As I have stated in another thread, both their hand-helds and car units that are made during the same time period use the same receiver. The real difference between hand-helds and car units are how they're package and the bells and whistles that come with them. So when it comes to finding caches, a good car unit will work as well as a good hand-held if the owner knows what they are doing. Tobias

Here is a quote from the famous American Gordon Gekko: "The point is, ladies and gentleman, that greed -- for lack of a better word -- is good. Greed is right. Greed works. Greed clarifies, cuts through, and captures the essence of the evolutionary spirit. Greed, in all of its forms -- greed for life, for money, for love, knowledge -- has marked the upward surge of mankind." Those that go after FTF's are doing the geocaching society a great service. We warn of hazards that the CO has failed to mention. We make sure that the cache is in place so others don't waste their time and money going out there and looking for it. We are the ones that are first to be greeted by the police and neighbors to explain this game and what they can expect from time to time. We are the ones that help "fix" the puzzles and multis so that so it makes sense, so others can enjoy the challenge and the fun, knowing that the cache does work and can be found. We do this and a lot more not to prove anything, but because we care so much for this game and the others players. Tobias

First you need to go outside and start looking for them. Did a quick search of the area that you have your hide (GC2VPQM), and found over 1000 caches with in 35km by air (just under 22 miles) rated at 2D/2T or easier. So if you don't have a car, find a friend with one and go caching together. Its always more fun with another person. If you only have a bike or just want to walk, then there are 179 caches with in 10km of your hide also rated 2D/2T and under. If you want to do a power trail and can get there, a drive of 44km from you cache will put at one that is over 60 caches long. But most of all, why do you want to find caches? If part of the answer is to have fun, then who cares have many finds you have as long as you are having a good time doing it. But if you do want to find more, here is a very simple thing you can do. Whenever you are going somewhere, check the map to see what caches are along that route, and try to find one or two. This won't add much time to your trip and if you can do this twice a week, in a year it could add 100-300 finds to your total with out much work.

I have not been following this thread so someone may have already tossed this idea out to the group. The way to solve the FTF "Problem" is to have the CO claim the FTF on their own cache as they place it, so anyone that finds it after that is second. The only downside is that for a short time there will be a rush on placing Film Canisters or just a zip-lock baggies with a logbook under rocks, in the bushes or under every lampskirt. But after an area hits 100% saturation everything will slow down. Problem solved. You're Welcome. Tobias

9/28/08 we found our first cache. Just like you we thought about it for a while. Our big question was why should we pay for something that we can get for free. But at the time we didn't fully understand what all the benefits were. On 10/11/08 (or 10/10/08 we're not sure) we signed up for a Premium Membership to "test" it out. On the evening of the 11th was our eighth find and our first First To Find. Four years and four thousands finds later, for us and the way we have played this game, the extra fee is a small price to pay for what we get.

This game can be very simple or very complex, very little paper work / bookkeeping or its full of charts and graphs. For us, it doesn't matter if we find a cache together or by ourselves. Or if I (Tobias) go out with someone else and find caches and Petronella stays at home or the other way around. For us, a smiley is a smiley. They all go into one account as a total of what "we" have found. We don't log our finds until the end of the day or trip, and if we had two accounts the logging would take twice as long. And if we both wanted to say a lot about the cache/hide would we cut & paste the other persons log, try to tell the same story in different words or have one person do the long story while the other just does TFTH (which we think is lame). But that's us. Even though there are millions of cachers, when you do it... It's your game. Your game, your account(s), your style. Just make sure that both of you agree on how you want to do it.

Keep in mind that Google Earth can be exact on the spot or be off 100+ feet. However it will get you close enough that the hint on the cache page or hints in the logs of other finders should give you an idea where to look. If you stick with caching long enough, after awhile your skill will increase to the point where you will walk into the area and be able see 10-15 possible hiding spots at which a GPS might just slow you down. Good Luck.

Here's a quick update for those that are keeping score at home. Somebody finally got back to me and told me that I needed to do what I had already tried, which was a little frustrating to say the least. However shortly after their e-mail I started getting automated responses to my gmail account, each containing a temporary password. Not knowing how many times I requested a new password over the past two weeks, I just sat back and watched them roll in. As each one arrived I gave it a try, only to have it fail. This last e-mail I received had a password that worked and I was able to get into my account. I don't know what the problem was, I'm not sure why the e-mails were held up, all I know is that we finally got into our account and everything seems to be working as it should.

I've been unable to log in to this geochecker website for the past couple of days and have been unable to get any help from the site. I've tried their contact button and having my pass code e-mailed to me, and none of that has happened. Does anybody know who is running this site or any back doors to reset my pass code? I really don't want to redo everything through a different geochecker. Thanks in advance. Tobias

The "plan" is to find another place near by to hide the cache and just change the puzzle. And if its ok with the reviewer I also hope to keep the same GC number. So if you can solve this last one, you will be able to solve the next one. Tobias

I got a call from a local cacher and was told that there's a problem with our latest hide. Here is what I found.

I'm a little confused... Are you saying that your Nuvi is useless on hiking trails or is it hiking trails with thorny bushes? As far as things that stick to your clothes, I'm guessing you are talking about the thorny bushes and not your GPS unit. :laughing: We are using a 1350LMT Nuvi and not sure what your unit is. When we are not driving, we found that "Bicycle Mode" in the "Off Road" setting works best for us. We have over 4000 finds in just under 4 years, and yes, we have found a lot of caches in the woods. My first thought to your problem is user error. I've been told by Garimn that the High-sensitivity receiver that they use is the same in both their Hand-helds and Car units. So if a current Nuvi and a current Hand-held both have the same receiver in them, they "receive" the signal equally the same. The main difference is what the unit does with this info and how it's packaged. Tobias