bkydmech

Where I live, its two cacher's who cache together who take 95% of the FTF. Now, its only speculation, but it doesn't matter what time of day these new cache's are published, they are almost always the FTF. So it leads me to believe these people do not have employment or education responsibilities like many cacher's do, so why reward these people? Surely if they had some responsibilities, they would not be able to find them within two hours of publishing. Instead of concentrating on making a cache "rewarding" only for the FTF, then fizzle out after 10 finds, I believe when a cache is created, it should be done so, so its rewarding for ALL to find for months/years to come. No material items are needed to accomplish this if the cache is placed correctly. The true spirit of caching isn't getting free-bees. Its about adventure, nature, exploration, and most of all, a common value you share with a community of others. If finding a FTF reward is the only reason you cache, then your not doing it for the reasons many others do it for. All caches should be rewarding for all, no matter how challanging they may be. If you wouldn't challange yourself without some material reward, then you have other issues Geocaching will never help you outgrow. I personally just like too spend a buck or two on some McDonalds certificates to leave in caches I find so others after me are rewarded on a cold day, not just the FTF's. And my scouting boys almost always leave something behind, but rarely ever take anything. They understand its more rewarding to give than to recieve, but not to the same people every time. Then its just a "hand-out". That my friends is what the true spirit of caching is all about!

I recieved a new Garmin e-trex legend for Christmas. I also own an older Megallan GPS Companion for a Palm device. The "real-time" reading between the both vary about 50' both dirrections and about 20' in elevation. This is standing out in the open in one spot for atleast one minute. How do I figure out which one is lying to me? Please help.

These are some really good suggestions. Mabey he is not aware of the different sizes and shapes caches come in from the size of an ammo can to the size of 10 dimes stacked. And hosting an event might also be the thing we need. Are neighboring county has a park where it costs you $5.00 a year to lay a cache. They provide a sticker to place on your cache which states that it is an "OFFICIAL GEOCACHE/LETTERBOX Placed With Permission Of Davis Park for more info, call ***-****" Putting the parks phone number on it lays to rest any fears someone may have of it being a dangerous package. Again, I like letterboxing too, but geocaching is far more popular resulting in far many more hunts. Just two questions, first, what exactly is a letterbox/geocache hybrid (I don't think I've ever seen one) and second, how does one go about hosting some kind of event? Thanks.

I have been thinking of laying out a cache or two. Being the honest person I am (choke), I sent off a letter to the director of the board at our local county's conservation district regarding their stance on geocaches. His response was the following ; "The District hasn’t adopted a formal policy, but the topic has been discussed. We currently consider the caches as being covered by other ordinances including littering. Typically, the caches are harmless, but we have had several patrons find metal boxes and report them as suspicious packages. After 911 we have to treat every circumstance seriously. So, we really do not want them out there. We also realize that there is a growing number of people who enjoy family outings using their GPS units to locate these items. I believe that letter boxing is a similar activity less the cache. " Now, I understand some people may freak out if they see an unmarked ammo can and have never seen one before. But most caches in the park districts are tupperware/rubbermaid containers, the very same containers used in letterboxing. Letterboxing is also a fun activity, but geocaches out number letterboxes in our parks 10 to 1. I do believe there is a conflict of interest because the district is hosting a letter-boxing hunt. Has anyone else experienced this with their conservation or park districts? Or is there something I'm missing?

I never thought of searching for a cache on a 747. Heck, the cache might be the 747. Would that be considered as a moving cache?

MAN! I feel real bad for keeping that coin now. Incase anyone is missing a nickle, I took it. But seriously, Mabey I go about this whole cacheing thing totally different than others. I don't rush out to find a cache if I see a coin or TB is in it. I've never visited a cache a second time either. Once I've found it, Thats it. I do feel for the origionator of this thread though. The only 'trackable' I have ever found was a TB. I had it for less than a day. I think these trackables bring something to not only the origional owner, but honest cachers too. I enjoy helping others, and moving a trackable along is just another way I can help out. Its a good feeling. But when people take these trackables for themselves, they are not only stealing (yes, I said stealing) from the owner, but they are also taking away some of the enjoyment other cachers can get from these. The TB I found belonged to the children of another cacher. Even if it was a coin, thats like taking candy from a child. And I hope others feel better about themselves for stealing them. Geocaching is based on the system on trust, and unfourtunetly, you can't trust everyone.

When it gets too dark to hunt, I use a light called SUNLIGHT. It takes all night to charge up but you have one bright light come morning.

Grade schools are a no no at any time. Playgrounds on the other hand, well, I did hunt a cache once at a play ground, but I brought my kids with me to play so I did not bring up suspicions.

As many of us have enough common sense and curtousy to respect another's space, there are the occasional numbskulls who don't. Imagine visiting the grave site of a loved one, and someone staggers up behind you with a GPSr in one hand and a piece of paper in the other. If they stop at the stone next to your loved one and yell "FOUND IT!", we as geocachers might join in on the celebration. But most would not. Grave yards hold a wealth of history that even I can't avoid. But I stick to the occasional bicycle ride through one. Searching for a cache in one is against my own morals, after all, it isn't a park. If we were to allow this to become common place, whats next? People playing catch with their dog during a funeral? As funny as this may be to imagine, its just not right. Sorry to be a bummer.

I'm looking into buying a new GPSr to replace my PDA. I have a Handspring Visor using the Magellan GPS Companion Springboard module. I've had these units for over five years and have served me well. (did I mention the maping software was included?) Only recently have I started using it for caching. This unit works very well geocaching and on the road. (accuracy withing 20 feet.) And its "paperless". The problem with this set-up is its not water resistant, impact resistant, uses twice as many batteries, ( 2 for pda and 2 for GPS) which only last for about 4 hours continuously, and quite frankly, not made to be beaten around in the woods. I've heard pros and cons with both Magellan and Garmin stand-alone units, not to mention quality issues with the construction of both units. And an unbeleavable price of $100.00 just for new mapping software. Is there a new unit with mapping software and a good quality satelite accuracy I can get without wraping up $200.00 or am I better off continuing using this set-up from the stone age?