Criminal Element That Might Be Present

[Tally Dragon]

When choosing a location for hiding a geocache I think about the criminal element that might be present. I wonder sometimes if I’m putting people in danger by hiding geocaches in certain areas. You find a lot of homeless people and criminal types these days in public parks and wooded areas in cities. Not that all homeless people are all dangerous, but some are. Local geocachers are generally aware of high crime areas, but people from out of town may not be. Also, from reading my cache logs, I realized that women sometimes geocache alone. Should I place a warning on the web page like, watch out for snakes, mosquitoes, stickers and criminal types?

 

I'm a middle-aged man and I normally hunt geocaches alone or with my dog. The dog makes me feel a little safer and lends some legitimacy to my presence. In addition I carry a cell phone and sometimes a can of pepper spray. Some people even carry firearms, but I’m not that scared, …yet. I worry about some of my fellow geocachers and their families going around thinking they are in Disney World all the time.

 

What’s it like where you are? Is it dangerous? Is the typical geocacher a lone white male of a certain age group? Or is it a young family of three or four? Has anyone done a survey on this?

[+DaveA]

When choosing a location for hiding a geocache I think about the criminal element that might be present.

 

It must be scary where you live, I have never felt afraid of the people when I go caching. Then again I don't do caches in Milwaukee's inner city, I stay more rural.

 

I also generally don't do caches where there are lots of people.

 

I am fairly choosy that way.

[+wimseyguy]

There is most definitely a Criminal element in geocaching, and he should be avoided at all costs. Contact with this individual cound be a life altering experience (or so I'm told).

 

But seriously folks;geocaching is just one more activity you do in the great outdoors. There are some scary people out there, but most are not. Use your common sense; if you think a spot will lead people into danger, think twice before placing a cache there. If you still think it's a good spot, then at least have the courtesy to mention this on the cache page, so cachers unfamiliar with the area have half a clue.

 

More important is that you as a cache seeker are responsible for your actions, where you choose to go and when you choose to go there. Many of us are comfortable walking just about anywhere, urban or rural. Some of us grew up around elements that you may not have, some of us are even LEO's who see way more than we will ever want to. If you aren't comfortable (and I don't mean a nice pair of hiking shoes) somewhere, then you need to pay attention to where you are, and who is around you. If you feel uncomfortable, just walk, run, or drive away. You don't need one more smiley that bad do you? But just because you felt uncomfortable or unsafe doesn't mean that someone else will, so don't come in the forums whining about it either. A polite log on the cache page will accomplish much more.

 

I'll also state the obvious-so that obviousman doesn't need to follow up my post with this observation: this bit of advice runs 24/7/365-not just when you are out caching!

[+cachew nut]

What’s it like where you are? Is it dangerous?

I live in Chicago and have never felt unsafe while geocaching. I've spooked myself at times through a wild imagination, but never found any real reason to be afraid.

 

Frankly, it's probably a bit more dangerous here when not geocaching. The cops in this town are pretty good at getting the bad guys, provided you call them, but most of the danger seems to be petty. If you look for trouble though, you will surely find it.

[+Mr. Fantastic]

I am former Chicago resident who now lives in the nearby suburbs. I have cached in Chicago on several occasions and never have I put myself in a postion to feel uncomfortable. There are areas I would choose to frequent during the day but not at night. I think most of that is just common sense.

[+Hoppingcrow]

I was caching along a popular bike trail a few weeks ago, riding my bike from cache to cache. The waypoint for one cache took me into a neighborhood I didn't care for, but I figured what the heck, I wouldn't be more than a few feet from my bike so I didn't chain it up. As I walked away, two 'characters' popped up out of nowhere, looking like they were headed for my bike. I reversed course and so did they. Could have been circumstantial, so I tried it again. Same thing happened, but it was a different guy!

 

After my third attempt to walk away from the bike and having to go back to it when two rough-looking chaps approached, I gave up. The last time, I heard one of them say something about having to grab it quick.

 

No, I didn't post a DNF or a note. I try to have something good to say about caches I search for, and there was nothing about this one worth saying. I should have listened to the voices in my head on this one. They were saying, "Leave now. This area is not safe," and their opinion was based on the number of ratty cars parked on the seedy lawns in front of run-down houses across the street from the trailer septic dump station where the cache was purportedly hidden, to say nothing of the greasy long-haired druggie types who were lounging around.

[+thumperness]

I have to admit I am comfortable cacheing alone in my area (and Im female) my biggest scare was thinking I heard a gator go under water while cacheing a a swamp area.

[+Robespierre]

I often take a 100 pound black dog. I have two caches in my stable for which I do not recommend solo caching - very isolated, and there was once a sad event back there. But I'm comfortable there with the dog.

[+WaldenRun]

What’s it like where you are? Is it dangerous? Is the typical geocacher a lone white male of a certain age group? Or is it a young family of three or four? Has anyone done a survey on this?

The most dangerous part of geocaching is driving to the site. The most dangerous threat to your property is parking at the site. Don't let the media-hype over the rather rare stranger attacks in this country keep you from paying attention to the real threats.

 

-WR

[+The Waldo's]

Always go with friends I take Smith & Wesson along with me.

[PyroDave]

one time I came up frome a gorge from doing a cache. As soon as I got up there I ran into to cops they looked at me and the camera I had and said "what are you doing down here" I exsplaned it and then told me people have gotten muged down here a couple days ago. Judgeing but sseing alot of evidence of drug use a homeless shelter and cops busting underage drinkers down in the area the same day ya they might have been right but well I'm just a little guy and sill didnt feal uncomftrable doing the cache (ok ok at one point I did wory about snakes).

[+Lemon Fresh Dog]

I've been pretty lucky. I had a cacher find used syringes near one of my caches, so I moved the cache in the name of safety.

 

As a cacher, I always appreciate owners that post warnings in their cache listings. This is especially helpful when in a different area/country. In a few days I am going to be in Minniapolis for the first time, so I visited the regional forum to ask for caches of note, etc, etc. I find folks are very helpful when you ask.

[+cachew nut]

I often take a 100 pound black dog.

Are the black ones more effective than perhaps the brown ones?

 

Edited July 3, 2005 by cachew nut

[+cachew nut]

Always go with friends I take Smith & Wesson along with me.

Not really interested in what you and Smith do with that cooking oil thankyouverymuch.

[+Team Neos]

You know, this is a very good question...and one that I have given some thought to in the past.

 

A few months ago, my husband and I went caching in "the big city" near us. There were a couple of caches that, when we got to the site, he refused to stop to look for them. He told me that the area just wasn't safe, and that even the people who live there don't walk around outside, except to go to their cars and back.

 

Now, my husband grew up in the city--he loves the place and knows it like the back of his hand. He is also a big guy--the kind that most people won't try to start trouble with. If he says it isn't safe, it isn't safe.

 

BUT there was absolutely nothing around there that set off any alarms in my head. The neighborhood was a little older, but kept up fairly well. There weren't many people around, but it was the middle of a normal workday. The people that were around seemed in no way remarkable to me. There was parking about not too far from what I presumed was the cache site. I would not have thought twice about caching there--even alone.

[+deimos444]

I often take a 100 pound black dog.

Are the black ones more effective than perhaps the brown ones?

 

its the little green and pink ones that yuo have to worry about.

[+Team Cotati]

Strangely, I've found that using the common sense bestowed upon me by God Almighty works well.

[+treasure_hunter]

I think that one of the places that may be trouble for Geocachers would be when a cache is near a school or somewhere where people may look suspicious near or around.

[nobby.nobbs]

yep my vote goes for common sense aswell. if i don't feel happy then walk away. always happy to have info about anything doddgy turning up at my hides.

[+sept1c_tank]

I have to admit I am comfortable cacheing alone in my area (and Im female) my biggest scare was  thinking I heard a gator go under water while cacheing a a swamp area.

That would definitely get my attention, too.

 

I feel pretty safe just about everywhere I go around these parts (and others); if I don't, I usually skedaddle.

Edited July 4, 2005 by sept1c_tank

[+Ambrosia]

In our town, 4 out of the 6 main cachers are women who are either single, or who's husband's aren't really into caching. But we can hold our own, pretty much! There are some caches that we know not to do at night, etc. though, because we know our area. We have a relatively low crime rate in general.

[spydero99]

Thats good thinking. I have never even thought about that. Being that I am young and generally geocache alone or with my little brother, I should be more careful. When I geocache I always take a knife and a phone. I do think that everyone should post the dangers arount their cache.

Edited July 4, 2005 by spydero99

[+Mule Ears]

If you're aware of a chronic problem in an area that you're considering as a cache location, don't place a cache there. Some cachers seem to derive sadistic pleasure from locating caches in/near homeless encampments, drug market corners, or known pervert parks. (Memo to all: If a park has numerous signs listing the penalties for public lewdness, it's because there's an out-of-control pervert problem and it is not a suitable cache location.)

 

Why would someone place a cache in a blighted area? Two motives occur to me and neither reflects well on the placer: (1) They believe themselves to be social reformers shaking the rest of us out of our presumed complacency. (2) They see criminals, hapless mental cases and substance-slaves as legitimate game pieces to increase their cache's difficulty level.

 

No patience for either motive.

[ScottFla]

I live in the same town as Tally dragon and it is for the most part a very safe city. However, I understand what he's trying to say.

 

I'm a big guy and wouldn't really be too worried about any of the caches in the area but the other day while taking the entire family out, we went looking for a cache in an area of town that may not be the best area. The park was very pretty but on the way out, we had a not quite edgy encounter and it really made me think about what we were doing.

 

Should that cache be there? Sure. Should we as cachers use a bit more caution in what we do? Sure. But should caches be in areas that really are trouble areas? No.

[+ZillahBillies]

We cache with our kids so naturally, I'm not fond of stumbling into a "homeless hide-away." However, I think one of the greatest side-effects of geocaching is that this sport is "reclaiming" the neglected regions of our community. The fact that geocachers continue to find & report such things like meth labs and stake claim to public parks as actual public use areas again (rather then homeless havens)...well, I consider it a terrific service to the community. I also don't believe that anyone would purposely place caches in well-known crime ridden areas for the purpose of increasing the challenge. That's quite a sick accusation and I'm rather shocked someone would even imply the possibility.

Edited July 5, 2005 by ZillahBillies