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Power Trails - Guidelines?


Aushiker

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G'day

 

The term "power trail" came up today in the Geocaching Australia forums in the context of placing two caches about 300 - 400 metres apart. The placements where in the context of a broader discussion in respect of an exisitng multi which is about 6 km long (12 km return). This is considered to long and therefore discourages people going for the cache.

 

Anyway a search of the hiding guidelines did not bring up the term, hence this posting.

 

Therefore I am seeking an explanation as to what would be considered a power trail.

 

Regards

Andrew

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As for as I know there is nothing definitive, but in essence it's a cache hunt along one, or several connecting, trails that has several caches. These caches have to be the minimum distance to satisfy the proximity rule, but I seem to have heard of complaints when the caches where are far apart as 1 mile.

 

I'm sure a reviewer will pop in here soon, but I think it's another one of those subjective rules that are interpreted at the whim of the reviewer.

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I think you will find that many reviewers may try to discourage "power trails" if the only intent is to add more caches just for the sake of adding more caches. When I placed a few caches along a multi-mile hike I made sure all the spots had cool views.

 

But as long as each individual cache along the trail conformd to the guidelines you should be fine.

 

Cheers!

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The placements where in the context of a broader discussion in respect of an exisitng multi which is about 6 km long (12 km return). This is considered to long and therefore discourages people going for the cache.

This could be what the hider had intended. Not all caches hides are intended to give the same experience or intended for the same people.

 

As far as power-trails go, personally I think hiding a micro every 0.1 miles along a road/trail for a several mile stretch is silly. I might do one or two along the road/trail, but I wouldn't be bothered with more than that.

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This could be what the hider had intended. Not all caches hides are intended to give the same experience or intended for the same people.

 

Hi

 

I am the guilty party, the hider. It was suggested that my approach may discourage finders and in the context of the locality I am starting to agree with the poster, hence was exploring ways to stimulate interest in the multi and/or the area when the power trails concept was raised.

 

BTW the two new caches suggested where going to be traditionals. I am not into micros, even though still have one left to be converted to a traditional.

 

Andrew

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I believe a "power trail" is caching along a trial or in a park that has more than 2 caches on it.

Along a trail seems way to subjective. I will have three caches on a trail which takes three and a half days to walk. Does that make it a power trail?

 

Andrew

No.

A power trail is more like hiding 15-20 caches along a 2 mile trail.

All of them within 10ft of the trail and easy to find.

Hidden just for the sake of increasing your find count.

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I thought if you looked up power trails in terms of geocaching you would find the keywords Nashville and lamp pole micros....

Those are lame micros in a big city, this is a real power trail. d8ea6fe4-b2a4-4052-99de-aadf61996d4c.jpg

 

Here is another one: 64826b65-6c90-4687-9241-ffa7b93da152.jpg

 

The key feature of a power trail compared to a cache dense city, is that the the trail usually takes you to a scenic area:

 

"This scenic desert hiking trail follows an uplifted section of the Mission Creek Fault, which is part of the San Andreas Fault system. It returns via a section of sandy desert wash.

 

At the end of the trail is the beautiful Pushawalla Palms Oasis, located in a deep canyon carved by flash floods over the years. Here the trees obtain water from where seismic action has breached underlying rock and directed water to the surface.

 

Best suited for early morning or evening hikes, this trail loop is 5 miles, and difficulty level ranges from easy to moderate. Having hiked this trail both ways, it is recommended that you start your hunt in reverse order as it is somewhat easier to take the high route in. It can take about four hours to complete. TAKE PLENTY OF WATER! Enjoy the unique desert Flora and Fauna along the way."

 

This type of hike is far more interesting, and rewarding than driving around the city hunting magnetic micros all day.

Edited by Kit Fox
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I wonder what would have been the result had the OP asked those in the Australia chat session?  :D Whatever their response might have been is my response too.  :drama:

Hi

 

Not sure what your point is but it was asked in the Australian forums and as I have been told in the past by the local reviewer that it is a Geocaching.com issue it should be asked in the gc.com forums I have done that.

 

Seems no matter which way one jumps, one gets a kick for it .... BTW the reviewer's response to my question was a bit vague, so not sure if that says more about you or the reviewer. :cool:

 

The responses here have been more informative.

 

Cheers and sorry for upsetting your day.

 

Regards

Andrew

Edited by Aushiker
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I wonder what would have been the result had the OP asked those in the Australia chat session?  :) Whatever their response might have been is my response too.  :D

Hi

 

Not sure what your point is but it was asked in the Australian forums and as I have been told in the past by the local reviewer that it is a Geocaching.com issue it should be asked in the gc.com forums I have done that.

 

Seems no matter which way one jumps, one gets a kick for it .... BTW the reviewer's response to my question was a bit vague, so not sure if that says more about you or the reviewer. :D

 

The responses here have been more informative.

 

Cheers and sorry for upsetting your day.

 

Regards

Andrew

Well it's like this: I fully understand that forums in general can be a bit insensitive and/or brutal at times. However I must admit that I am having trouble picturing even the Aussie's treating a forum participant who is so bold as to request clarification of a particular term like this one, so rudely: "The term "power trail" came up today in the Geocaching Australia forums in the context of placing two caches about 300 - 400 metres apart."

 

And then being so discourteous and insensitive towards such a simple request so as to essentially tell the questioner to go away and bother someone else. Why our Aussie buds would react in such a manner to being asked "What does the term 'power trail' mean?" is a mystery to me.

 

Considering this, I must agree with you, I'd have taken their kind advice also. :D

Edited by Team Cotati
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Anyway a search of the hiding guidelines did not bring up the term, hence this posting.

Thank you for mentioning this. One of the other volunteers had suggested that the term "power trail" ought to appear directly in the listing guidelines, as that is what people are likely to search for. You just proved him right.

 

The answer can be found within the Cache Saturation section of the Geocache Listing Requirements / Guidelines document, in the text I've highlighted in blue:

 

Cache Saturation

 

The reviewers use a rule of thumb that caches placed within .10 miles (528 feet or 161 meters) of another cache may not be listed on the site. This is an arbitrary distance and is just a guideline, but the ultimate goal is to reduce the number of caches hidden in a particular area and to reduce confusion that might otherwise result when one cache is found while looking for another. This guideline applies to all stages of multicaches and mystery/puzzle caches, except for any “bogus” posted coordinates for a puzzle cache.

 

On the same note, don't go cache crazy and hide a cache every 600 feet just because you can. If you want to create a series of caches, the reviewer may require you to create a multi-cache, if the waypoints are close together.

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However I must admit that I am having trouble picturing even the Aussie's treating a forum participant who is so bold as to request clarification of a particular term like this one, so rudely: "The term "power trail" came up today in the Geocaching Australia forums in the context of placing two caches about 300 - 400 metres apart."

Hi

 

What is rude about that statement?

 

In fact I really don't understand your posting or why you have a problem about asking for a clarification of a term used in another forum, but related to geocaching and in particular geoaching in the context of geocaching.com?

 

The term come up in another forum, as it is a Gc.com issue, I sort clarification of that term here in these forums, as this is the approach considered appropriate by the Australian gc.com reviewier, as he has indicated in past unreleated discussions.

 

Again, I go back to the point, why get up my nose for asking clarification of what a term means, more so given that term apparently emerged in the context of geocaching at gc.com in Americia?

 

I would appreciate the forum moderator's ruling on this. If I have posted an inappropriate request for information I would like to know so as to avoid that approach again in the future. If Australian members of Geocaching.com are not allowed to post in these forums then again we should be told.

 

Andrew

Edited by Aushiker
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Andrew, thanks for starting your thread. I would simply ignore whatever misunderstanding that may have arisen on the side issue of how you got here, and concentrate instead on asking your questions about "power trails."

 

Kit Fox has given some pictorial examples of a power trail. Mopar, OzGuff and Ferreter5 contributed their attempts to define in words what a power trail is. I posted to quote the applicable section of the listing guidelines.

 

So, take a deep breath, read the responses and let us know what other questions you might have.

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Andrew, thanks for starting your thread. I would simply ignore whatever misunderstanding that may have arisen on the side issue of how you got here, and concentrate instead on asking your questions about "power trails."

 

Kit Fox has given some pictorial examples of a power trail. Mopar, OzGuff and Ferreter5 contributed their attempts to define in words what a power trail is. I posted to quote the applicable section of the listing guidelines.

 

So, take a deep breath, read the responses and let us know what other questions you might have.

Thank you. I have found the responses very informative and they have been commented on further in the local forums. Furthermore they have assisted in the redesigning of a set of cache placements.

 

I will take your advice, and will head out for the night (Monday here) for a spot of camping and to hide a cache.

 

Regards

Andrew

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Whatever their response might have been is my response too.

 

Their response was "Whats a Power Trail"? We don't have an issue with them here yet - hence we don't even know what they are!

 

Goodonya Aushiker for coming here to ask a question when your usual community couldn't come up with the answers you wanted.

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To address the question, My understanding of a "Power trail" is a hike or path where there is a cache hidden about every .10 miles. If you hiked three miles, you could find 30 caches. I may be wrong, but that's what I've heard. I guess they are for those who like to rack up the numbers.

 

I don't think it's an official term.

Edited by WRITE SHOP ROBERT
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