YooperSnowman

really? i like this idea. now to look into this thanx Monty Its very easy to do. Go to your bookmark list and view it. At the bottom is a button to "Create Pocket Query". It really is a useful feature.

Here's what I have done with my Garmin Dakota: 1. Install Garmin Communicator from garmin.com (I registered my device on garmin.com as well) 2. Connect your Oregon to your computer with the USB cable and login to geocaching.com 3. Search for a cache in you are interested in and open the cache page. 4. Press the "Send to GPS" button. A window will open and follow along. As a premium member you can also create Pocket Queries. These will be emailed to you and you can download the file directly to your gps if it is connected. You can also create a bookmark list, convert it to a Pocket Query, then down load it. Hope this helps and welcome.

A local, experienced, geocaching couple just put out a very nice 4 stage multi in our area. I went out last night in hopes to be FTF and just enjoy this challenge. I found stage one after looking for a while and then went on and found stage 2. Things were going great. But as I handled stage 2 to get a look at the coords, I fumbled it and dropped it down a deep hole into the abyss! OMG! Its gone--no way to get it back. My hunt was over. I screwed up the whole cache! I felt terrible. Here I am, the very first person to hunt this cache and I killed stage two. I immediately went home and emailed the cache owner and posted a NM log. The CO then temporarily disabled it and said they would go back to fix it soon. I felt so bad because they put so much effort and time into creating this great cache. Has anything like this happened to you?

I agree 100%. Its seems too many logs just say TFTC and nothing more. Please continue to share your experiences. We learn from them, we enjoy them, and they motivate us. Keep up the good work.

The beauty of geocaching is that we each play it in our own way. Some cachers go for every published cache as fast as they can. Some are FTF hounds and are bolting out the door the minute a new cache is published. For some, its all about the numbers. Thats fine--we all play differently. Like you, I like to take my time and enjoy the journey. Before I go out, I research each cache I've targeted. I read the logs, check out the location on the maps, check D/T ratings, size, history, etc. To me, it adds to the anticipation of the hunt and find. I skip many that do not interest me, so my numbers may not get very high, but I have just as much fun as anybody else. Do it your way...and have fun.

I think we have all experienced this on occasion while looking for a 1/1 cache

Hey Dragons. If you ever get back to the Keweenaw, let me know. There are some great caches here.

Same here. I will hit 200 next time I'm out caching, but I live in a small town and can no longer go out after dinner and grab a few near-by caches. I now have to plan extended day trips or over-night outings to get to un-found caches. So I am slowing down as well. I disappeared from the caching scene for about a year when my sons lost my gps. I didn't get a new one for over a year ($$$ were tight). I didn't have a smart phone at the time either. But I hope to be around in the future.

Same here. And then we're always asking, "do you think there's a cache there?" or "look there-that would be a great place for a cache". And I often have dreams about geocaching. Heck...I think I'm forgetting how to do my day job

That will only be a few more weeks for you, won't it? Ha, yeah! In Minnesota too right? Here in Upper Michigan we have very short summers. On the 4th of July we take our long johns off before the parade and put them back on again after the fireworks

Thanks everyone for the suggestions. I plan to go back over the next few days and get more readings along with experimenting with WAAS turned off. I also like the idea of going back in the fall when the leaves are off the trees. I will definitely give a good hint in the description and perhaps increase the difficulty rating a bit. And as someone mentioned, I'm sure I'll get some complaints that the coords are off no matter what I do--thats ok, it goes with the territory I guess. Thanks again.

I am planning to hide a cache in an area under very dense tree cover. I found a hiding place and did waypoint averaging twice to get a set of coords. Time between samples was about 30 minutes. For the second sampling, I approached the area from a different direction. I then hiked back to my car and began to navigate back to GZ to test the accuracy of the averaged coords. Needless to say my GPSr was challenged to place me within a decent distance that would be acceptable to anyone looking for the cache (approx 70 ft). I plan to go back one or two more times to do more waypoint averaging. Do you have any suggestions on how to record better coords under dense tree cover? Here’s some data to help you form any suggestions: GPSr=Garmin Dakota, WAAS enabled, track set to “off road”. Thank you.

My wife and I were driving across North Dakota and wanted to grab a quick cache or two in that state. I identified one just off the freeway so we decided to go for it. As we got to the end of the ramp and parked on an access road, I started to look at the description like I always do, when my wife said, "there it is" as she pointed out the windshield. Sure enough, about 150 feet away, was the cache container, next to a fence post and in full view. It was a large camo plastic jar. It was early spring and the grass had not grown up around it yet. I assume the CO "hid" it when the grass was higher. BTW, the coords were right on.

Welcome to Geocaching and its great that you are thinking about hiding some of your own. It might be wise to get some more experience before hiding your first cache. That way you will see what kind of containers work well for caches. Perhaps wait until you have found 50-100 to give you a good idea of the creativity and cleverness that you will find in container types and hiding places. Also start with finding easier, larger caches with low difficulty/terrain ratings. Again welcome and best wishes as you immerse yourself in the madness of geocaching

Be patient with her so she doesn't feel "forced" into anything she is not comfortable with. My wife was very luke-warm to joining me. I continued to talk about geocaching and all thats involved, but stressed spending time together, being outdoors, etc. I then planned an outing where we could take a little hike and, oh by the way, I want to grab a cache along the trail. I didn't make a big deal of using the GPSr to get to gz, but when we got there and told her what to look for, she found the cache. It was regular sized and easy to find. She was thrilled to open it an see what was in side. Now she's hooked. She still doesn't care about the techy part of geocaching, but now when we get to gz she loves the hunt and the treasures that await opening the container. As I mentioned, be patient. Your wife knows geocaching is important to you and will want to share that part of your life. Keep us posted on how it goes.

Yes, having never used a GPSr can be confusing. If you know a hunter or fisherman who has a gps, perhaps they can give you a few tips-and thats all it will take to get you comfortable learning your unit. Also consider a high school or college student to help you out. You would be surprise how tech saavy they are and are not afraid to explore new technology. Give them some pizza and a coke and turn them loose with it If nothing else, you will have a good time. Good luck and hang in there--you will catch on quickly.

I have not had that problem with my Dakota 10. Garmin released a new operation system several months ago that improved performance on mine. Its possible you bought a unit with the old OS. Is your unit registered on Garmin.com? If so you can connect to the site and get the upgrade free. If that is not the case I would contact Gramin directly as suggested by others.

We did our first winter caching here in Upper Michigan this year. First we checked the attributes to see if the cache was accessible in winter. As mentioned in Gitchee_Gumee's post, we get more that 250 inches of snow per year, so access can be an issue. We've also contacted a CO to ask about accessibility. However, one cache we found was accessible, but not retrievable, because it was encased completely in ice. We had to snowshoe in to these caches and it was great fun. Just be prepared for conditions in your area.

Hmmmm. Now when I see someone in a vest I will have to take a closer look and see if they are fellow cachers Personally, I tend to avoid caches that require a lot of stealth or look for them during "off" hours when there are few folks around.

I would not consider this cheating. Some folks prefer not to use the photos or logs as they like the challenge of the hunt without these helpers. As a new cacher, I would recommend you use them and as you gain experience might elect not to. The beauty of Geocaching is that we play the game in a way that is best for each us. Also, reading the logs can tell you a lot about the status of the cache. For example, if you see a number of DNFs in a row, it might indicate the cache is missing. Have fun.

Same here. I work in an office and have grabbed some nearby caches on lunch breaks. I have found most of them that are within walking distance of work, so I will have to adjust my lunch break strategy soon.

I've never encountered other cachers on my way, or at, gz. I know I will some day. How do you deal with the situation? Do you ask to join in on the hunt with them? Do you invite them to join you in the search? Do you back off and wait until they are finished? Is it disappointing to meet someone looking for the same GC? I would appreciate your wise counsel. Thanks.

Hey... If its the one that I'm thinking of, I got FTF on that cache while visiting from Minnesota! Otter Lake? Thats the one, Knowschad. Small world. Congrats on the FTF. Hope you can get back to the UP in the future.

Hey snowman, I like to hear it when guys speak well of their wives, good on you bro! Thanks Hoosier Guy. She is my caching buddy. I get her to gz and she is the expert at finding the prize. She loves to discover what is in the container. The joy of discovery is new to her every time and I enjoy watching her smile when she opens it--no matter what she finds. Cheers.

We still have 25-30" of snow on the ground here in Upper Michigan. But last weekend my wife and I found two caches that were accessible using snowshoes. For each one, we had to hike about .5 mi. One cache however was in a fork of a tree and was so encased in ice that we couldn't retrieve it. But it was a beautiful sunny winter day to be out with my bride. Winter caching can be fun...just be prepared for conditions in your area and research the caches to make sure they are accessible.