sdarken

If you open the .gpx file in GSAK you can export as a .csv file ( File / Export / As .txt .csv). You could then open that .csv file via Excel. I haven't tried this myself so I'm not sure what it would actually look like. Here's another option that I haven't used myself so I can't vouch for it: http://gpspois.wikispaces.com/

I think you're right but it's not necessarily the mafia that's involved. I heard that there is now a growing industry around Smiley farming in China. There are apparently whole companies that employ people to acquire then resell smileys.. On a related subject, I also hear there is also a black market for Geo-sense (aka geomojo). I was thinking of picking up a few bottles of the stuff. I believe it's sold in small perfume bottles at ridiculously high per-ounce rates.

Funny. Did anyone else notice that one of the caches was hidden near a nuclear power plant? I dont know any of the details of that one but I'm thinking that the parking lot of a nuclear power plant probably isn't the kind of place you want to come across people trying to be stealthy.

I found some wine country bike maps of various areas in the region. Also, you will find companies that offer bike tours if you Google things like : bike ride napa wineries

You might want to try posting your question on the Geocachers of the Bay Area website. You'll need to register to post. Your question should go in the "North Bay" forum.

Nice. Thanks for the information. I would never have figured that out. Here's what I found. I haven't researched any of these: 21-Jun-01 Geocache by turco (GCD30) -- Bolivia 23-Jun-01 4.5lb Walleye by Jamie Matear (GCDFB) -- Ontario 10-Jul-01 Conch Shell Horn by Jeffrey Courrier (GC105E) -- Venezuela 28-Jul-01 Nikolay-Kam by Nikolay-Kam (GC14C3) -- Russia 12-Aug-01 Mount Temple by MCpl. Paul Franklin, MCpl. J. Pawsey (GC1607) -- Alberta 27-Oct-01 Pljesevica by Ivan Ramljak (GC255D) -- Bosnia and Herzegovina

I dont think it's that easy since you have to search a country, a state or a limited radius from a specific point. The oldest I could find was a cache unfound since June 2003. Can anyone find anything older than that?

Realistically, is there anyone reading this thread that would actually rate an light pole cache with a 5/5 rating (unless they intentionally trying to mess with the rating system)? Even for people that prefer drive-ups, I just don't anyone see any rating a light pole cache as a 5 (except maybe the first one they ever found). While I agree that the majority of caches will end up being rated as "average" I still think a 5 star rating system would help exceptional caches rise to the top which is what most people are asking for with a rating system. I don't think a rating system would very good at identifying caches to completely avoid since I expect the many cachers would not want to give a "1 star" ie: "poor" rating and would skip the rating altogether for those or just rate as "average"

Taking a slight tangent from the original topic..... It was my understanding that this cache was the oldest unfound cache in the world. Now that it's been found, anyone know which cache would now get that title?

If you really believe that most people dont take care of the caches they find then it's probably a good thing that stop hiding them. Not everybody needs to hide caches. Some enjoy it more than others. Realistically I think you'd find that most people do take care of caches. That's easier done with some caches than others. The problem is not with most cachers, it's with the few geocachers that make a make a mistake or dont know any better. Subsequent cachers can't necessarily know that someone has replaced a cache in the wrong spot so it stays mis-placed. Unless you want to invite a lot of unnecessary maintenance for yourself you need to try and make the cache idiot proof. That's a skill in itself particularly with clever uban hides. Delicate caches, for example, dont last very long.

You might consider just asking people to post a photo of themselves attempting retrieval of the cache. People are probably going to post spoilers in their logs so it's unlikely that you're going to be able to keep the location a secret. I bet you'd end up with a fun collection of photos in the gallery. We have a cache similar to what you describe (though not as extreme) near here: S4CZ #5 high voltage (GC10YXW)

As I mentioned in a recent log after I nearly DNFd a very obvious hide, my suckage quotient is pretty high so, if the cache isn't an ammo can hidden under a large obvious pile of sticks, I usually end up using the hint.

I'm actually OK with those. I feel they are made a little harder to read in case you mistakenly see a decoded hint and don't want a complete spoiler. I dont mind those either and use that same technique myself sometimes. With paperless caching particularly, it's easy to see the hint when you dont necessarily want to. On the flipside of this discussion, someone once suggested that the best kind of hints are sometimes the ones that tell you where the cache isn't hidden. "Not in the rocks" "No in the bush". Sometimes all that's needed to find a cache is better focus on where to look or not look (without providing a spoiler).

When I first started visiting the forums I remember thinking the same thing as the OP about the amount of hostility. After a while you get used to it and I find it's easiest to stop reading a thread when it devolves into a back-and-forth between a few people. Actually I was thinking that, hypothetically, things might be much-improved in regard to the amount of hostility if the forum would automatically lock a thread after a thread reached a point where people's post contained 4 levels of

Just so you know, the military markings on most ammo cans seem to come off very easily using a bit of Goof Off or similar paint/glue remover so you dont actually have to paint your ammo can unless you really want to.

Cemeteries are usually full of history. Geocaching is a great way to get people to visit and think about that history. Unless a geocache requires me to actually step on a grave to retreive it (which I have come across once), I dont think there is anything wrong with cemetary geocaches. I respect your alternative point of view.

Sounds like one of these 47 moving caches: http://www.geocaching.com/bookmarks/view.a...a7-f01b82ea52ac

... and back on topic for a second..... To the OP, I think there's probably some truth to the idea that a person with a number of hides is likely to be a little less critical of someone else's cache maintenance. I think you have to have experienced a few unnecessary "needs maintenance" logs or complaints to understand what a pain they are. That said, if it that kind of issue becomes a big nuisance to you, it probably suggests that you have too many caches (or caches that are spread out too far) to maintain properly. We all have our own thresholds as to what is possible/comfortable. I dont think there is much correlation between the number of caches a person owns and the amount of maintenance they will do on someone else's cache. It seems like it has much more to do with the kind of person someone is. Some people are much better about that kind of thing than others. It may also depend on the types of caches involved. I dont usually think about doing much maitenance on a drive-up cache whereas I'll usually help out with cache maintenance for a cache that's in a remote location. I see that the OP is from Thailand. By coincidence I visited there last year and took a replacement cache with me specifically to replace a cache that I could tell, by the log photos, was missing. I did it for slightly selfish reasons as I wanted to ensure that I could post at least one "find" while I was there and there were only 2 caches on the island I was visiting.

IMO Good caches are ones where the cache owner has obviously spent some time thinking about the cache before placing it. (Following the suggestions in the previous posts will give you plenty of ideas for a good cache). Great caches are caches that provide a unique experience.

While the government could, in theory, efffectively end geocaching by making it illegal (and attaching large fines to the activity), it seems highly unlikely (in the U.S) even in the scenario you describe. If a crazy bomber started blowing up baseball stadiums do you think the government would make baseball illegal? I wouldn't think so. We'd certainly see some temporary changes in geocaching during the scenario you described though. As for putting bombs in caches, it seems incredibly unlikely though I've had several non-cachers suggest the same kinds of possibilities. For that scenario to play out I think it would have to involve an insane cacher with an axe to grind against the geocaching community (or a muggle with a similar issue). I think that would narrow the range of suspects down pretty quickly and I wouldn't imagine that person would go undetected for long.

I know a number of people including myself that will collect any kind of sig items. They actually make an interesting collection when combined with other types of items. Unlaminated paper items of any kind (sig items included) are not a good idea as they often become trash. I'm not a fan of regular business cards that dont include a way to connect the card to a specific cacher. That verges on junk in my mind.

Most caches found in 24 hours? Here's a link to a thread about a group of Danish cachers that found 315 http://forums.Groundspeak.com/GC/index.php...=194370&hl= They set themselves plenty of rules.

I think there are probably regional normswhen it comes to this question. Around here there is an informal agreement that most co-hiders (not the owner of course) will wait till at least 3 people have logged a find and then they will log their "find". Personally I log finds even when I was present at the time the cache was hidden, not because I'm interested in increasing my find count. It's just that I dont want to have an unfindable cache showing up on my geocaching maps for eternity. It must be a little OCD.

How about this one: Original Stash Tribute 2,200+ visits: http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_detai...313ab&log=y I believe that there are some locationless caches that might have more visits .

Perhaps this is heading in the direction that the original post was asking about: http://live.geocaching.com/ Real-time tracking of geocachers. I wonder what else you could do with this technology? Geocaching rally events perhaps? (ie: like a scavenger hunt but using geocaches and with real-time feedback for non-participants or organizers)