Geocaching In Wilderness Areas

[tmcsorley]

I'm relatively new to geocaching and was wondering about the legality of leaving a geocache in a designated wilderness area. Can someone clear that up for me?

[+Tahoe Skier5000]

No.

 

These days, the approvers actually check the maps before they allow caches to be placed (so no caches in wilderness areas). However, there are still a few remaining caches from the early days of geocaching still out there in these areas. Whether or not they are still there really depends on the forest service in your area. Some FS rangers are pretty anal about caches in wilderness areas, others are pretty lax.

 

Where I'm from, they put the smack down! There used to be about 4 caches in nearby desolation wilderness, and over the course of a year, they all disappeared. Noone really knows who takes them, some suspect FS rangers, and others think its the tree huggers. Kinda hard to catch them if you think about it though...

 

But to answer your question, no physical caches are not allowed in wilderness areas anymore. You can try a virtual cache though, those are allowed.

[+Criminal]

Not to argue the point, but caches are allowed in some wilderness areas and not allowed in others. Here in Washington, they are OK. So far.....

[+Miragee]

There is one in a Wilderness Area near my house . . . but I don't know how long it has been there.

 

It is in a hollow log just off the trail, so it has no impact on the environment . . . no rocks were moved to hide the cache, no branches were picked up to cover the cache, no leaves were moved, etc.

[+briansnat]

But to answer your question, no physical caches are not allowed in wilderness areas anymore. You can try a virtual cache though, those are allowed.

 

Not quite true. It depends on the wilderness area. Some ban geocaches, some welcome them and some don't care. There is no blanket policy. Ask your local approver if in doubt.

[+Criminal]

But to answer your question, no physical caches are not allowed in wilderness areas anymore. You can try a virtual cache though, those are allowed.

Wait, I missed the double negative, so we’re in agreement...I think.

[+Ed & Julie]

Per the guidelines, caches are not allowed on land maintained by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (National Wildlife Refuges).

 

The long version:

Caches may be quickly archived if we see the following (which is not inclusive):

 

* Caches on land maintained by the U.S. National Park Service or U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (National Wildlife Refuges)

* Caches that are buried. If a shovel, trowel or other “pointy” object is used to dig, whether in order to hide or to find the cache, then it is not appropriate.

* Caches that deface public or private property, whether a natural or man-made object, in order to provide a clue or a logging method.

* Caches placed on archaeological or historical sites. In most cases these areas are highly sensitive to the extra traffic that would be caused by vehicles and humans.

* Caches hidden in close proximity to active railroad tracks. In general we use a distance of 150 ft but your local area’s trespassing laws may be different. All local laws apply.

* Caches near or on military installations.

* Caches near or under public structures deemed potential or possible targets for terrorist attacks. These include but are not limited to highway bridges, dams, government buildings, elementary and secondary schools, and airports.

 

There may be some exceptions. If your cache fits within one of the above areas, please explain in notes to the reviewer section of the cache page. For example, if you are given permission to place a cache on private property, indicate it in the notes for the benefit of both the reviewer and people seeking out the cache.

 

In addition, there may be local regulations already in place for certain types of parks in your region (state parks, county preserves, etc.). There are many local caching organizations that would be able to help you out with those regulations. If your area does not have a local caching organization please contact your local reviewer for information on regulations. If you have complied with special regulations by obtaining a permit, please state this on your cache page or in a ‘note to the reviewer’.

 

If the Geocaching.com web site is contacted and informed that your cache has been placed inappropriately, your cache may be archived or disabled and you may be contacted with any information provided by the individual or organization who contacted us.

Edited July 19, 2005 by The Badge & the Butterfly

[+Criminal]

Wilderness areas and National Park Service areas are two entirely separate entities. Caches in the NPS administered areas will not be approved on the GC site, caches in areas administered by the Nation Forest Service are usually OK depending on where they are.

[+jimmyreno]

It is in a hollow log just off the trail, so it has no impact on the environment . . . no rocks were moved to hide the cache, no branches were picked up to cover the cache, no leaves were moved, etc.

Yesterday someone posted a found it for a cache I just placed a few weeks ago.

He said it was easy to find, he just followed the geotrail up the hill !!!!

 

When I placed that cache I had no idea that would happen, let alone so soon.

 

It may not be necessary to move anything, but you can be sure that some people will tear things up if they can't find it in 30 seconds.

 

A cache beside a busy street in Reno was pulled by the owner 2 weeks ago because people were tearing the area up. And that area was mostly just

rocks 6" to 12" across laying on the ground.

 

Wilderness areas are places to go to get away from the rat race,

a cache is an attractive nuisance.

 

Many Wildnerness areas have quotas because the rangers think too many

people go there, we don't need a trivial reason like logging one more find

to add to the mob.

 

In some Wilderness areas the rangers have pulled all the summit registers.

These are just a small simple log of the mountains history.

 

That is a loss of our history . So I'm amazed some people can say

it's ok to put a cache with trade items in the same area.

[+briansnat]

It is in a hollow log just off the trail, so it has no impact on the environment . . . no rocks were moved to hide the cache, no branches were picked up to cover the cache, no leaves were moved, etc.

Yesterday someone posted a found it for a cache I just placed a few weeks ago.

He said it was easy to find, he just followed the geotrail up the hill !!!!

 

When I placed that cache I had no idea that would happen, let alone so soon.

 

It may not be necessary to move anything, but you can be sure that some people will tear things up if they can't find it in 30 seconds.

 

A cache beside a busy street in Reno was pulled by the owner 2 weeks ago because people were tearing the area up. And that area was mostly just

rocks 6" to 12" across laying on the ground.

 

Wilderness areas are places to go to get away from the rat race,

a cache is an attractive nuisance.

 

Many Wildnerness areas have quotas because the rangers think too many

people go there, we don't need a trivial reason like logging one more find

to add to the mob.

 

In some Wilderness areas the rangers have pulled all the summit registers.

These are just a small simple log of the mountains history.

 

That is a loss of our history . So I'm amazed some people can say

it's ok to put a cache with trade items in the same area.

I think the managers of these lands are better judges of what is appropriate than "Jimmyreno".

[dsandbro]

Wilderness areas and National Park Service areas are two entirely separate entities. Caches in the NPS administered areas will not be approved on the GC site, caches in areas administered by the Nation Forest Service are usually OK depending on where they are.

OK. A little confusion and misunderstanding is apparent here.

 

Wilderness can be designated inside a National Park, National Forest, BLM public lands, National Wildlife Refuges, or other federal lands. There is National Park Wilderness and National Park non-wilderness, same for National Forests, BLM public lands, and the rest.

 

Per agency policy, physical caches are not allowed inside National Parks, whether it is National Park Wilderness or non-Wilderness.

 

National Forests and BLM public lands generally allow caches freely (some exceptions) on non-Wilderness. Inside designated FS or BLM Wilderness, caches may or may not be allowed depending on local policy. Agency policies allow local managers leeway in how stringent to apply Wilderness Act restrictions, so the Desolation Wilderness in CA (most heavily used in the nation) does not allow caches while the Caribou Wilderness north of there (mostly empty, even on three day summer weekends) has caches inside with the full knowledge and consent of local Forest Service officials.

 

Confusing enough for ya?

 

Just to add some more complications to the mix -- state and local lands may have their own wilderness designation with their own separate rules. All these lands, Federal, state, and local, often lie adjacent to or inside each other, so a cache may be allowed at point A but not allowed at point B just a short distance away. Backcountry boundaries are often not marked well, so it is possible to not really be sure exactly whose jurisdiction lies beneath your feet. Check the GPS and map very carefully if anywhere near a boundary line. Just to be safe, don't place a new cache near a property line -- back off a distance, well beyond the margin of error in your GPS. 3x should be sufficient.

 

National Forest roadless areas classified under the Roadless Initiative are NOT wilderness areas, and Wilderness Act restrictions do not apply to the roadless areas.

[+jimmyreno]

I think the managers of these lands are better judges of what is appropriate than "Jimmyreno".

I think I'm a better judge than someone who is underemployed.