Wnat Keeps You Multi-thousand Finders Going?

June 26, 2005

I've been wondering about where you multi-thousand finders get your motivation to keep on caching. After the first thousand, I'd think you'd have seen just about every variation on hide location, puzzle, cache container, etc.

Based on my limited experience, I know it can't be the trade items.

So fill me in, what gets you fired up to go caching for the 3000th time?

FiddlinFool

1.8k · June 26, 2005

Even after all those finds, I still enjoy getting out and seeing new places and enjoying the hunt. Even to this day, I'm still impressed from time to time with the new and unusual ways that people come up with to hide caches.

June 26, 2005

I enjoy spending time with all of my crazy friends! You should here some of the wild stuff that comes up when we get together. Sawdust92

2.4k · June 26, 2005

We are years away from 1000 finds, but I would guess that it's the same as any other activity that you enjoy. For instance, I love doing cryptic crosswords. I've been doing them for thirty years, but I never get tired of them. And I find a lot of similarities between cryptics and caches: a lot of the clues are fairly straightforward and I can get them with just a bit of thought; some take more effort or multiple attempts; some I just never get at all (and either kick myself for beig stupid when I find out the answer, or growl at the constructor for breaking the rules)... and every once in a while I come across one that is just delightful, so elegant in concept and construction, something that makes me smile and wish I had thought of that -- that's what keeps bringing me back to cryptics, and I wouldn't be surprised if that's what keeps the 1000+ finders going, too.

Edited June 26, 2005 by the hermit crabs

June 26, 2005

What keeps me going after 2100 finds is the same thing that got me started in the first place. The type of hide, container, puzzle ect changes but what really get's me going is the thrill of the hunt. There are still so many places that I haven't seen or would never see if it weren't for Geocaching that it keeps me going. Yes I occassionally get burnt out on the film container in a lamp post hide but then there is the cache along side a busy major highway where a cacher gets me 25 feet off the road to see a Historic Ruin in the Middle of Daytona Beach that is passed all the time without anyone ever seeing it that makes the hunt worth continuing.

1.5k · June 26, 2005

Well, I've only found my first thousand caches, but I can tell you that for me it is the novelty. There are always new places to see, a new twist on a hide, a new puzzle, new cachers to meet. I'm still happy to find the caches in light post skirts and guard rails, especially after a DNF on some evil hide.

June 26, 2005

I'm only at 650+, but every cache I find is one more spot I've been to that I probably haven't been to before. The rest of the time, it's just the thrill of the hunt!

June 26, 2005

We just have passed the 1K mark, but I'd say that it's the thrill of the hunt and the fun of going new places that keeps us as addicted today as we were when we found our first cache. In fact we will be leaving on vacation in a week and this will be the second year that we have made caching a predominate part of our vacation plan. No need to consult guide books to find interesting places in other states. Just go cache and you'll find all of the cool, out-of-the-way places (that aren't mentioned in guide books) that only the locals know about!

1.2k · June 26, 2005

Well...We are only halfway to 1000, and I'm burning out quickly.

The invasion of the lame urban micros in my area, the lost art of a fun, interesting and descriptive cache page, and the number of uninspired hides are causing me to lose interest. I now find a few a week or month, rather than dozens. I have a been-there, seen-that, didn't-like-it-the-first-time feeling lately.

I have tried a few different (and what I thought would be fun) hides, only to have them sit for extended periods of time because cachers seem to prefer numbers-building 1/1 grab/sign/race to the next one caches here.

Hopefully something will inspire me soon...

Time to stand on the desk and gain a new perspective.

Ed

TB&TB

June 27, 2005

No need to consult guide books to find interesting places in other states. Just go cache and you'll find all of the cool, out-of-the-way places (that aren't mentioned in guide books) that only the locals know about!

Just did that in Nashville while I was at the Southern Baptist Convention. The others in the group wondered how I got to see so many neat places that weren't on their tour. :angry:

9.1k · June 27, 2005

After 1500 or so cache hunts, there are still lots of ways to keep it interesting:

-- Go caching with different people. The social aspect of geocaching was totally unexpected when I first started.

-- Visit different areas. My average cache find is 385 miles away from my home coordinates. That's a lot of exploring in far-off places. While it might get boring to return to the big local park for the sixth time to find the latest cache, it's always interesting to cache for the first time in Alabama or Kansas or Idaho -- all of which I've added to my state count after hitting 1,000 finds.

-- Seek out the truly great destination caches. The longer you play, the more you learn about the can't miss caches and the best hiders. I make these destination caches, and the ones I find along the way to get to them are just icing on the cake.

-- Do it in different ways. Find a cache using a mountain bike. Or just a map and compass. Do a cache in the woods at night, if it's legal. See how many caches you can find in an afternoon, or a day, or in 24 hours nonstop. Go caching right after a big snowstorm and see how many DNF's you can collect on 1/1 caches.

-- Skip the caches you're not interested in. I have 1,700 unfound geocaches within 100 miles of me. Some I very much want to visit. Some have been on the list a long time. I will get to them when I feel like it.

June 27, 2005

I'm quickly approaching the 1,000 mark but I enjoy going out hunting with other cachers. I also enjoy finding interesting areas that I never knew about. The variety of caches gives something to be enjoyed in one way or another.

5.3k · June 27, 2005

If it were not for having to move I would be a bit past the 1K mark(Moving relly cuts into cachng, 6 caches in two months :angry: ). Like others have said, it is finding new interesting areas and cache styles that we have not found in the past.

June 27, 2005

After 3 K finds, I still (and often) learn new things when caching.

. . . new people on events and when group caching,

. . . new places, even near my home,

. . . seeing new countries,

. . . new hiding styles and different GC.COM-ratings in new areas,

. . . making new friends,

. . . and - most important to me - it get's me out of the house and is fun.

Enjoy it !

1k · June 27, 2005

Three words: obsessive compulsive disorder. :angry:

June 27, 2005

Well I only have two finds so I'm no expert, but what keeps me going is fiber! :angry:

June 27, 2005

adventure , friendship, etc. You see and learn something new everyday. Gotta find them all!

June 27, 2005

After 1500 or so cache hunts, there are still lots of ways to keep it interesting:

-- Go caching with different people. The social aspect of geocaching was totally unexpected when I first started.

-- Visit different areas. My average cache find is 385 miles away from my home coordinates. That's a lot of exploring in far-off places. While it might get boring to return to the big local park for the sixth time to find the latest cache, it's always interesting to cache for the first time in Alabama or Kansas or Idaho -- all of which I've added to my state count after hitting 1,000 finds.

-- Seek out the truly great destination caches. The longer you play, the more you learn about the can't miss caches and the best hiders. I make these destination caches, and the ones I find along the way to get to them are just icing on the cake.

-- Do it in different ways. Find a cache using a mountain bike. Or just a map and compass. Do a cache in the woods at night, if it's legal. See how many caches you can find in an afternoon, or a day, or in 24 hours nonstop. Go caching right after a big snowstorm and see how many DNF's you can collect on 1/1 caches.

-- Skip the caches you're not interested in. I have 1,700 unfound geocaches within 100 miles of me. Some I very much want to visit. Some have been on the list a long time. I will get to them when I feel like it.

Perfectly said for my case. :anicute: Except that last part about skipping caches. :blink:

20.7k · June 27, 2005

I agree with Reveritt. I think many of us have just a bit of OCD. This combined with my need to get out of the house keeps me involved.

June 28, 2005

The adventure. Every cache is a 5-10 minute story.

I often say, a picture is worth a dozen words. This weekend's little Sierra trip netted a 1200 word essay for about 30 caches. Caching at 10,000 feet, closing a 400 mile multi, a short snow storm, hot springs, petting trout at a fish farm, herding horses on a dude ranch round up, down 250 feet into a pitch black mining shaft.

June 28, 2005

OK, I finally got an answer that I can subscribe to: OCD makes perfect sense, and I'm a classic case.

1.2k · June 28, 2005

I just hit 1000, but I can say that I keep going because I really enjoy getting out, seeing new places and adding to my photo collection. And I still get excited every time I open up a cache and see all the trade items. I may not always trade, but it fun to look through them.

Now I have my own little question. This isn't supposed to sound rude, but don't some of you ever feel embarrassed posting the same cut and paste log on hundreds of caches after going on a binge? Heck, I feel bad when I can't think of something to say about a cache, even the easy and "forgettable" ones. It might take a bit longer, but the cache owners will appreciate it. I know that the #1 cacher in NY always writes down in a notebook something about every cache he finds, so that he can say something about it. I, for one, find that very admirable.

June 28, 2005

gotta agree with vargseld...

I have never used the cut and paste log message (okay, so I've only found 850 caches and my busiest day was 31 finds) but I'd rather take the extra time to tell a little bit of the story with each cache. As an owner of nearly 50 caches, I much appreciate seeing a well written log come across my inbox than the 12 of 185 for the day TFTC messages...

So, I take the extra time to write a 'real' log. It may take a few hours or days to get caught up on the logs, but worth it for me, and for the cache owner... :rolleyes:

6.7k · June 28, 2005

I love this game more every day! When I retired my IT consultancy I was at loose ends, but looking forward to years of fishing when I wanted to, maybe travel a little, just relax and smell the roses after 26 years of hard work and long hours.

Man was I in for a surprise! I discovered geocaching in August of '03 and have never stopped! If I take my fishing boat out it's as likely as not to have geocachers aboard to go find island caches than to be rigged for fishing!

Except for ten years in the Navy I have lived in the outlying suburbs of Birmingham and thought I knew this town - geocaching has introduced me to hundreds of places I never had a clue existed; I have discovered more of the history and hidden gems here than in the previous fifty years!

Then I discovered the people of geocaching, first online through Clayjar's chat room and then in person as I became involved in building the Alabama Geocachers Association.

What I have discovered is that for me it's all about the people! I have met some fantastic people in this game, cached with folks in ten states, become an active participant in a group of folks I respect and just had an absolute ball!

I can honestly say that I have only met one geocacher and seen but one geocache I didn't like, while I daily meet new friends and experiences, regularly see cache hides that are new to me, and continue to find this game and the people drawn to it interesting and exciting!

I went on a 18 hour run with two preachers and an engineer last week to Chattanooga, we got 60-something caches and the laughter never stopped.

I went geocaching in North Alabama yesterday with 25 people from 3 states, ranging from 0 found caches to thousands, ranging from a construction worker to a heart surgeon, men, women, and 8 kids under 13. This wasn't an official event, just one cacher inviting another and the group swelled!

One mom was new to the game, she and her kids had never found a cache, don't own a GPS. I loaned them one of mine and they found 33 their first time out; she was just as excited as any of the kids!

Another mom had found a few, 6 I think, and was determined to get ahead of her 15-year old son, who had found 30-something on his bicycle, but was not with us. After 14 hours of geocaching she and her youngest found their 50th at 1 ayem!

We had an absolute blast! Who could EVER get tired of a game like that?

Just got a call as I write this; Saturday I am off to Atlanta with another eclectic group to geocache, another fun day in store!

And, the game is constantly reminding me not to focus on me and my personal opinions - at GeoWoodstockIII I took out a local group, each of whom had found less than ten. We eventually, inevitably, ended up in a WalMart parking lot - they jump out, see nothing, run around, finally find the light-pole cache and were seriously impressed with this ingenious hide! It was a great lesson to me that just because I have seen something, others haven't and will enjoy it!

Have fun out there!

June 28, 2005

I'll grant that 10 is hardly 1000+, but I'll drop my 2 pennies about why I THINK I'll still be doing this after a thousand or two. The average distance between my home and my finds is 4,342.12 miles. That's not a typo. I fly internationally, and though the Navy (no, I'm not in the Navy) offers the opportunity to travel to far off, exotic places, I've got news for you. After going a time or two they're no longer exotic, they're just FAR OFF. Geocaching gives me an opportunity to get out of my hotel room and see some stuff the tourists don't see. I probably get to see things the locals don't see.

Plus the hiking around is great exercise. I compete in triathlons, but after flying for 10+ hours, the last thing I want to do is swim a couple of thousand meters or run a few miles. And I don't carry a bike with me. But today the GPS said I put in over 7 miles of walking, and that'll help burn off all the crap calories consumed when I have little control over what I eat.

I've also been having a blast getting to "know" some folks online thanks to Geocaching. I picked up 2 TBs in Hawaii last week from a couple who want to see which bug will make it home first in AZ. I dropped one in Hong Kong and one in Anchorage. They were thrilled when I e-mailed them with pictures of where their bugs had been.

I got some great help from the owner of a cache in Hong Kong. It was a brand new cache and I was having a tough time keeping a signal among the buildings. I probably would have just written it off as a DNF, but I REALLY wanted to drop one of the TBs there.

And today I wrote the owner of a cache in Anchorage for some help. It was a brilliant cache that takes you to an "information board" (for lack of a better term) and from clues on the board you get the coordinates to the actual cache. When I went by where the cache was, there were muggles everywhere. So I headed to lunch and the hotel room. I e-mailed him to confirm my answers for the cache coordinates so I wouldn't be wasting my time when I go back in the morning, and when he wrote back he even included his cell number if I needed more help. It's nice to know there are still people in the world who will go out of their way to help a complete stranger.

Probably more than you really wanted to know.

Happy caching.

Freightdawg

Edited June 28, 2005 by Freightdawg

1.1k · June 28, 2005

I've been wondering about where you multi-thousand finders get your motivation to keep on caching. After the first thousand, I'd think you'd have seen just about every variation on hide location, puzzle, cache container, etc.

Based on my limited experience, I know it can't be the trade items.

So fill me in, what gets you fired up to go caching for the 3000th time?

FiddlinFool

But it is the novelity. You need to travel outside your area and experiance caching more to see varity. But then again when I think I have a new idea I see it is done some place else. I only have one cache that I think is totaly unique and hard to find for thus such a reason. You have to learn to think out side the box.

cheers

June 28, 2005

I do not yet have 1000 - but it is my goal to be there within 60 days. That is what keeps me going . . . having a goal, putting it out there in print for all to see and driving toward it (my profile).

A career in outside sales where my production was limited only by my personal drive & esablished goals has slipped into my retirement as an SOP for me - it worked during my career & it does in my hobby.

The other side of 1000 will be upon me very soon, it will be time for another goal to be set OR I can begin to just be selective in cache types I seek. No matter, that is tomorrow . . . sitting on 853 and going strong!

Granpa Alex

Lovin' Carolina Cachin'

Edited June 28, 2005 by GRANPA ALEX

5.7k · June 28, 2005

I enjoy the technology, being outdoors, the thrill of the hunt, all the creative hides in our area and the social aspect of the pastime. All of my best friends geocache. We've found 1500 a year for the past three years, so we haven't burned out at all. I could echo a lot of what other people have stated as well.

--Marky

20.7k · June 28, 2005

... This isn't supposed to sound rude, but don't some of you ever feel embarrassed posting the same cut and paste log on hundreds of caches after going on a binge? ...

I've been known to cut and paste, but not necessarily how you meen. I use Cache Log Book on my pda to record my visit to each cache.

When I log my visits, I copy and paste a short blurb of why I'm in the area and thanking the cache owners for placing their caches. Then I add text to communicate my trade or report on the condition of the cache.

I can't imagine why I would be embarrassed by this.

Edited June 28, 2005 by sbell111

5.7k · June 28, 2005

Now I have my own little question. This isn't supposed to sound rude, but don't some of you ever feel embarrassed posting the same cut and paste log on hundreds of caches after going on a binge?

I'm not a binge cacher. A big day for me is 15 or 20. I log all my finds from the cache site on my sidekick phone, no cutting and pasting.

Some people, however, are not comfortable writing a lot (for what ever reason). That is okay with me too. There is room in this sport/pastime for all types of people. That's what is so great about it.

--Marky

1.8k · June 29, 2005

When I log my visits, I copy and paste a short blurb of why I'm in the area and thanking the cache owners for placing their caches. Then I add text to communicate my trade or report on the condition of the cache.

That's what I usually do. A quick "intro sentence" about how I'm enjoying a nice Saturday exploring a new town or something like that. Then my impressions and experiences at each cache. I always forget to write notes, but at the end of the day I can still remember pretty close to 100% of the caches I found.

June 29, 2005

For me, it's the P.S. at the end of the cut and paste part.

1.2k · June 29, 2005

I can't imagine why I would be embarrassed by this.

That's nothing to be embarrassed about. It just when someone says the exact same thing in all of their logs that I'm referring to. You're taking the time to add a little something personal about the cache you're logging, which I'm sure the cache owner appreciates.

June 29, 2005

There is always new places to experience and it gets my wife and I out of the house,away from the TV and computer!I also enjoy meeting others that share our addiction!

1.5k · June 29, 2005

As others have said, to me it's mostly about seeing new places and interesting out-of-the-way locations that I otherwise wouldn't know about when visiting an area. Many of my finds after #1000 have been more than 100 miles from my home, since I've been able to travel alot over the last year. I like to find at least one cache in any area I visit, since it gives me a chance to get to know the area. Also, many areas have unique hiding styles and new forms of caching that can still be new and fun even after 1500 finds (those darn "pouch" micros around Jacksonville were new to me and stumped me the first couple times I looked for them).

Recently, I've made it my goal to find a cache in every U.S. state (and, maybe sometime soon, also as many Canadian Provinces and other countries as I can). After the road trip to Woodstock this summer as well as other travels, I have only 8 to go and hope to finish them within a year.

June 30, 2005

O.k... for me it's:

1. I just bought a new GPS so to quit now would be stupid

2. I have no life outside of geocaching

3. The chicks

4. I have no life

5. The beer and wings after caching.

6. It validates my existence on this planet

7. It's all about the numbers

8. Finding golf balls.

9. I like smileys... I like them alot.

Wnat Keeps You Multi-thousand Finders Going?

Recommended Posts

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Join the conversation