astrojr1&GGGal

We have a few caches near beehives here in North Texas. For a hack herp like me, it's not a "ruuuunnn!", it's a sideshow! If you get a "flyby" (those who have know exactly what I mean), which is bee talk for "we got your number, you want a piece of us?", just turn around, and approach from somewhere else. Snakes are even better! We often see them and tell the story and take pics if we can. We grow up learning all kinds of misconceptions about nature, which we tend to jealously guard, viciously defend, and rarely change. It's understandable. The early messages are often the worst-case coping mechanisms. Examples: Snakes are for killing. That's what you do to every snake. Stinging flying insects seek you out and sting you, so don't ever get near them, and destroy every nest. Spiders are bad. We learn these lessons so well, we never turn 'em off and end up passing the same messages on to our children. Evidence such as suburban pesticide sales figures attest to these widely prevailing attitudes towards nature - something to keep out, something to control. If the approver felt the same way, not archiving that cache would have made no sense. It was only natural, no? Snakes, bees, spiders, and the rest of nature are ALL AROUND US, ALL THE TIME. It's less effort, and more fun, to accept and embrace this, than trying to maintain a no-fly zone. KNOWLEDGE is the key to nature. IGNORANCE is the key to injury. Ultimately, nature is the borg. Resistance is futile. We will be assimilated. Geocaching is a natural expression of acceptance of this! Thanks astrojr1&G-O-GardenerGal

Yeah Baby! astrojr1&G-O-GardenerGal

See? See?! That's what I'm talkin' about! Here is one of Goofus's caches. The cache is behind the black spot! astrojr1&G-O-GardenerGal [This message was edited by astrojr1&G-O-GardenerGal on October 14, 2003 at 03:02 PM.]

The world is a big place. Some places it doesn't get cold enough to turn the leaves red. Depending on the amount of sun, length of season, kind of plants nearby, and the density of all plants, it could be anywhere from 1 inch to 6 feet tall, with woody/twiggy, hairy/viny, or smooth/viny, with few to many branches/twigs, with or without leaves, red or green leaves, smooth or textured leaves, smooth or lobed edges, big or small leaves, and many other differences. Yes. We really do realize this. Our "next step" will account (hopefully) for these variances. Hey, maybe that's a good name for it: "next step", as in, be *aware* of where your next step will take you - for some, "into the PI" is as obvious as "off a cliff", but for some...a PI patch looks like a good place to step, and even place a cache! OH THE HUMANITY. astrojr1&G-O-GardenerGal

Okay here's the deal folks. WE can identify it just fine. We know how many many ways it can look. The kicker: We're not making it for PI-sensitive people as much as PI-INsensitive cachers. Case in point with the subjects of another popular thread: Gallant, being PI sensitive, uses every precaution to avoid it before, while, and after caching. Goofus, being not sensitive, proceeds directly through the PI, loading up on urushiol like pollen on a bee, while both hiding and finding caches and handling cache items. Goofus then leaves a trail of invisible urushiol everywhere he goes for awhile. But Goofus, while far from dumb and a generally OK guy, still has a hard time identifying PI simply because it's not on his radar; it's background; Goofus doesn't really have to care. Goofus half-apologetically smiles and tells Gallant that he still can't readily identify PI, despite a lot of up-close-and-personal experience. It's true; Gallant has seen the "PI Tromp" every single time they've been caching together. Experience being the mother of caution, Goofus isn't likely to change without a change of his antigens' attitude or without some kind of practical aid. Enter an effective yet practical field aid. Not just to identify, but to help avoid it. Examples, you get thick PI at a woodline where it gets more sun. It thins significantly in the much shadier canopy. If you see a big hairy stem, trace it and find either Virginia Creeper or PI. It's more likely to look a certain way depending on the amount of sun, direction the woodline faces, characteristics of soil, season, characteristics of companion cover, and so forth. Not just more pictures of PI; although that is important and many links on this page offer excellent pictures and information on PI. We want to make it easy - at the critical time - to at least take a stab at trying to avoid some of the PI you go through. The downshot: There is probably not one person reading this thread who is PI-insensitive! So how 'bout it - would this make a cool event cache present? Cache item? Boot scraper? It'll be maybe 1 inch by 2 by 4 inches. Simple simple. But not just memorizing facts, or even concepts, but linking concepts. Most of the material we've seen is mostly pictures, warnings, and treatment. We want to take another step. BTW can we use some of your quotes on this thread? Thanks astrojr1&G-O-GardenerGal

We are considering producing a field guide such as the one suggested here. The plan is to show PI in most of its forms and habitats, with specimens collected and scanned, not just photographed. It is amazing just how many ways this plant can look. Since many of our cacher friends are PI-ID-challenged, we decided this would be a good idea. We intend for the final product to be waterproof and compact, with a section on detox procedures and early and late remedies. Peterson's field guide is good but incomplete and does not give the reader a definitive sense of what it really can look like. It is somewhat bulky as well; too big for the fanny-pack cache-bag we carry. Anyone interested? Thanks astrojr1&G-O-GardenerGal astrojr1&G-O-GardenerGal

We use a GPSIII I bought in 1997. All the waypoints except GRMPHNX are in this one as well. Still works great! astrojr1&G-O-GardenerGal

There was an article many years ago in Scientific American about Chiggers, which described the deal with chiggers. Before going on, I will say that we somehow don't seem to get chiggers although they are definitely present in Texas. Our rule of thumb is, don't ever stand still, especially in high brush, not to sign the log, not to look around, etc. Although we are extreeemely sensitive to PI, we somehow avoid the chiggers. Anyway, when the chigger digs in and gets ready to dine, his proboscis (snout) gets BIG, and it is this that sucks our tender flesh into the chigger's belly. Even if the chigger is suffocated or otherwise killed, with nail polish or whatever, the proboscis remains for awhile which still causes itching until it dissolves or whatever. Killing the chigger does not magically make it disappear; herein may lie the basis for some of the YMMV discussion. Our 2 cents, astrojr1&The World Famous G-O-GardenerGal astrojr1&G-O-GardenerGal

The worst time geocaching is better than the best time working...the old fishing/vacation/general recreation addage. We got into this for the excercise and to be together outside. Even the crappiest cache does this for us. I burn fat cells even when I DNF, fall in the creek, get PI, stick myself with thorns, get snakebit (almost - see Fish Eye View cache), get dirty, sweaty, sunburned, or wet, picking up trash or looking for new cache-hiding locations. We still enjoy good caches more, but we idle at 'happy' not 'crappy'. It just gets better from there! Take nothing for granted. Life is too short not to enjoy what you're doing. Thanks astrojr1&G-O-GardenerGal

For a while now, we have been volunteering our own 'rating' in our logs. We still go on to say why we liked it so much. If the cache 'rates' a 2.5 or better, we say so. I thought it would be cool to rate caches on logs, and I don't think everyone would rate it a 1 or a 5, but I understand how it could create passionate debate and all those undesirable things. As far as 'practical'? C'mon, what are we all doing here in the first place? We will continue to say things like 'Wow, this one rates a 3 on our enjoyment scale' and feel good about it. We go back to those cache pagess occaisionally and remember the goodnesses... Our 2 cents, thanks, astrojr1&G-O-GardenerGal

There was a Dallas Morning News article recently about Geocaching. It was a good article but the ending quoted someone as saying something like 'the cool thing is, it's kind of a secret society. It's like, I know something you don't know.' Well, yes, we try to be covert when retrieving or replacing a cache, but for us that's a very small part of it. We got into this for the excercise, met a lot of neat people, but secretive? No. Not that there's anything wrong with that (the freemasons for example), but it's not our thing. The media, almost by definition, will take the boldest or most sensational statement made and make that a much higher percent of their published content than it was in the overall context. Shame on the media for skewing meaning like this. Having said that, I am not a journalist and would probably see it differently as one. astrojr1&G-O-GardenerGal

BrianSnat has the best idea. Check the existing regulations. This works advantageously in many ways. By doing this rather than asking, it is already decided. Only if there are specific laws that prohibit some aspect of geocaching would one need to solicit explicit permission. Really. Otherwise, it is a valid argument, and is likely to go a long way with public officials, to say 'I checked the laws and there was nothing prohibiting it.' Why ASK someone who is probably not a lawyer, doesn't usually take risks, and can make you go away with a 'no', whether or not it is a valid answer, when you can go READ for yourself on the internet or in your library, and find out for real. Everyone, on both sides, is protected - even if your cache if found accidentally, the law prevails, which you've already checked. We have a body of law, let's use it. And yes, bomb squads have blown up caches before. I reckon that's to be expected now and then. WWYD? Hide your caches well... Thanks astrojr1&G-O-GardenerGal

Quick, sharp little eyes close to the ground can be a big help. It's amazing how being short can give one an advantage. And having no assumptions... astrojr1&G-O-GardenerGal astrojr1&G-O-GardenerGal

I am slipping into GPSr addiction. I even use it to get to work every day. Our GPSr's speed-o-meter is more accurate than my truck's. Our GPSr is super-accurate. It's amazing how many people's GPSrs don't match ours, even cache owners'. We move all the caches we find to match our exact coordinates, to give other cachers a fighting chance to find it without too much frustration. And that WGS84 map, wow! Anywhere in the world, well, in North Texas, anyway, and there are some little blobs and lines to tell me exactly where I am. I even use it to navigate my sailboat through the crowded marina at night when I can't see the marker buoys. Just keep my eye on the old map page, no worries. When we're looking for caches, I relentlessly seek the zero spot and spiral out from there, bushwhacking and knocking down all that pesky foliage until we find the cache! Geocaching is such great fun, but I don't know how you all do it without a GPSr... astrojr1&G-O-GardenerGal

Criminal Quoted: ...seems someone made a ribbon trail that led right to the cache. He didn’t design the cache with ribbons, why someone felt it necessary to “improve” his cache is beyond me... We had a strange and similar experience with a night cache we co-made with another cacher. The FTFer, a very experienced cache finder and placer, placed a red reflector on the cache tree, and did not notify the cache owner. Hm. The cache owner moved the reflector and incorporated it into the cache his way. If I may offer a summary: 1-don't move or alter caches. This rule is clearly spelled out on the Geocaching site. 2-if you absolutely must move or alter a cache due to extenuating circumstances, notify the cache owner every time. 3-don't "Help" the cache by changing anything unless it is plundered or CLEARLY something is wrong. See #2. 4-If you are thick, or all the bushes look alike, realize this BEFORE retrieving the cache and make every effort to observe #1. Treat altering a cache like you would thrashing through thorns in shorts - a) do it as a very last resort, prepare as much as possible given the fact that you are already there and 3) log it! 4-Cache owners should expect people to move/alter your cache both intentionally or inadvertently, and be prepared to deal as constructively as possible with this reality. 5-Do what is possible or appropriate to help even thick cachers keep your cache on center. Although many of us are geeks, some of us are sometimes indeed thick geeks, myself included. Thanks for the rant. astrojr1&G-O-GardenerGal

GPS coordinates are hard for many law enforcement agencies to deal with, because of dispatchers, who deal almost 100% with addresses, not long/lat, are not well paid, and probably don't do much geocaching (with a few notable exceptions - police officers and dispatchers out there please correct me if I'm wrong). Long/Lat are "outside the box" of almost all processes local LE deal with, so anything OUTSIDE ORDINARY DAILY PROCESSES, unless it deals with emminent threat to life or property, is cast off the system as quickly as possible. This is changing with NEMS, OnStar, etc. but for now, they don't want to "get any on them". You gotta look at it from a beat officer's point of view. Mostly, police are concerned if someone is getting hurt or something is being stolen, unless it's easy and safe. The "find" is not easy to deal with (they have no GPS, they probably can't drive their police car to it, and they most likely have never used a GPS so they'd have to learn about something "technical" before responding - certainly NOT part of their daily processes), it's outside the box, no one was getting hurt, so the police have three good reasons right there not to mess with it. Besides, we are usually better served with them staying on the road arresting dangerous drunks and armed criminals and such. astrojr1&G-O-GardenerGal

Looks like we are the first hike reporteers in the Dallas area. There are a lot of caches, cachers, and both cached and uncached places in this area. Looking forward to adding information to this web site, looks interesting. Thanks, astrojr1&The World Famous G-O-GardenerGal astrojr1&G-O-GardenerGal