QuesterMark

Maybe you could pattern it similar to the Passport used by Texas Parks and Wildlife for the Texas Geocache Challenge.

I read the site you quote and I ordered, among other things, three of the containers to which you refer. Mine have white lids. I haven't put them out yet, but they do seem to be VERY strong. They come with the lids not screwed on all the way because they are pop bottle lids with the ring still attached. The inside seems to be very very close to the same diameter as the mouth opening, maybe just a tiny bit bigger.

I agree (for my 550, no T).

I just received my City Navigator North America NT 2010 DVD. On the package it lists "Oregon series" as one of the platforms with which it works. Unfortunately I got an error trying to unlock mine and I've had to send a note to Support....

Here's a variant on the details of the question. Is it better to use the averaging function in the GPS or just set the GPS at a fixed spot and let the coordinates and reported accuracy settle before "marking" the point?

Garmin's FAQ says that 4GB is the biggest that will work. But if you already HAVE an 8GB, I don't see how it could hurt to TRY it.

I have a third party doodad that attaches a two-line display to the OBDII port under the dash. It reads out a slightly different speed than my analog dashboard speedometer. For example, I have to go well over 65 on the dashboard speedo for the OBDII device to show 65. My GPSrs match the ODBII device pretty closely.

Are you using the usb port on the 60CSx for power in the car or the other 4-pin connector? The other 4-pin seems to make a more reliable connection, though I've used both. Given the way the port is on the back of the unit, I could imagine a 3rd party power cable that uses the USB port not going in all the way.... I got the other cable because I was afraid of the wear on the unit's USB port, and I need that for data!

You must configure it the right way: http://garminoregon.wikispaces.com/Power#toc9 OK, this may be my mistake. I thought I'd configured it for Spanner, but when I checked after reading your post it wasn't. Or is that also a profile thing? Maybe I just configured it in the wrong profile. I'll check that. Note that I still haven't tested in the car...but until now when I connected to a computer I didn't get the prompt on the GPS. Now I know what to expect and what to check. Thanks for the link!

OK, so the actual Garmin adapter gets past that issue. Thanks for the info! I'll probably end up getting a Garmin adapter, but I have to still consider that a minus.

Tozainamboku's Corollary to Godwin's Law. Too funny. Thank you for the laugh!

The camera did not actually factor into my decision. I have an iPhone and I often carry a "dedicated" camera with optical zoom and stuff. Still, I did take one photo (so far) with the camera, and I like the way it works. I'll edit those lists. (I already added a couple of lines to them since my reply to your post.) Agreed on the accuracy, plus I know there's new firmware for the GPS chipset in the 550 pending... The 60Cx has had a long time for both parts of the firmware to become mature. I will copy that last paragraph of yours into a memo on my iPhone and specifically try those items.

What I like about my Oregon 550 What I would change about my 550 (I just added a couple of lines today!)

The OR can hold 2000 caches, the DeLormes hold 1000. Now, the big difference is, the OR can hold a TON of waypoints where the DeLorme counts the waypoints against your total...meaning if you load a PQ which also has child waypoints (parking coords and such) these will go against the total number you can load on the DeLorme! Not a problem for me since I only load a PQ of the area I'm going when I need it, but it could be an issue for some! The Oregon 550 and 550T will hold 5,000 caches, up from 2,000 on the other Oregon models. That first startup after you dump that GPX file in there takes a while, but subsequent startups are fast. For more on the overall question, check out this post by jeanne123.

Great write up on your decision process; thank you. I'm interested in your thoughts....I just got an Oregon 550 (no T) myself... What I like about the Oregon 550 What I'd change about the Oregon 550

I read this whole forum thread and most of the advice here is good (just ignore the argument about the iPhone for now). No one mentioned this: Don't get hung up on finding any particular cache. If you've looked for it, and didn't find it, go look for a different one. So you missed three. Oh well. Don't worry about those three until you get some finds under your belt. Now...my experience with the iPhone 3G (not the 3GS) is that the compass is much too slow to respond. So, for your first find, pick a 1/1 traditional at a fairly urban spot. Not downtown, but maybe a parking lot. In the geocaching app, go into the listing (so the name of the cache and the little green box icon is at the top) read the description, and then scroll all the way to the bottom of the page. Tap View on External Map. For this first time pick Google Maps and let it exit the Geocaching app to get to the map. When the map comes up, click that peeled back icon in the lower right corner and select Satellite or Hybrid. Wait for the map to draw and zoom in as far as it will go around the red pin. This will give you a general idea of where the cache actually is. Try to figure out the landmarks (bush, fence, light, payphone, whatever). Now go to the landmark and try to think of where you'd hide a cache (as the description describes it) and look there first. Repeat this last step until you find it. Once you find a couple try the other features on the iPhone. If you have the Garmin, the compass on it will be much more responsive, but unless it has an electronic compass (it'll be mentioned on the package if it has one) then you have to be moving pretty quickly for the arrow to be at all accurate. One last detail about the iPhone. In my experience with the current version (and there's one about to drop, so this statement might be wrong any moment), the app is not always quite accurate with the difficulty and terrain stars. It might drop a half. So the cache might be a 1.5/1 and the app will show 1 star for each.

Yes. Look in the Beads department.

Hi Matt. I think what you are describing here is the problem that GPS receivers that have no electronic compass all have: you have to be moving rather quickly (fast walk) for the arrow to point the right way. My Garmin 60Cx has no electronic compass. Once I get fairly close to the cache (usually closer than 30 meters, maybe more like 30 feet, but it depends on terrain and obstacles), then I use either the specific gps coordinates (a couple more steps north, then a step east--am I closer?), or I hang the GPS on my belt and think, OK, where would I hide a cache around here?

I don't have a DeLorme, but perhaps some general info about how that is supposed to work would help: You will need to install a driver and a plugin on your computer. The driver tells the computer how to talk to the GPS. The plugin tells your BROWSER (Internet Explorer or, better, Firefox) how to send the cache info from the website to the driver (and into your GPS). When you then click on the Send To GPS button, you should get a little popup (if you don't you might need to configure your browser to allow it). The ones I've seen have some tabs to select Garmin or DeLorme, and you'll need to select DeLorme. Follow the instructions there (I don't have a DeLorme, so I can't help you past that). I have a Garmin, so I go to the Garmin tab and hit the Write button. Hopefully this helps. Good luck and Happy Caching!

Well, it'd certainly be a 5/5. Not sure what you're worried about though. It's not like you had to DIG or anything.

I want one too! I've been trying to think of way to make that happen. Maybe if the reviewer got a copy of one's will where the instructions were there...

Thank you, I wasn't looking for a little open box... Your directions were perfect. Normally, on that model of GPS, when you hit Find on a Geocache (the closed box icon) the compass screen that points which way to go also has a FOUND button at the bottom. If you select that button, the GPS will change the icon to the open box for you AND ask you if you want to seek the next closest geocache that it has in memory. Welcome to the hobby!

As you play this game, you'll have good days and bad days. Log your DNF's, all of them, but never -assume- the cache is actually missing. Just say you didn't find it. If there was a reason, like muggle activity or construction at the site, then you might mention that. Similarly, when you log a find, it's nice if you state the condition of the container and log--that way the owner knows if the log is nearly full or the container is cracked or whatever.

My wife often accompanies me on cache hunts; she's a wizard at finding the nanos. I knew what the nanos looked like, and she didn't (other than my verbal description), but STILL she found our first one.

Pretty sure it's got a SiRFStar III chipset. Similar to my Garmin GPSMAP 60Cx. That's pretty "high-sensitivity". http://reviews.cnet.com/gps/geomate-jr/450...7-33645600.html