Nashville Area And Mcros ( Don't Flame Me! )

[+nicolo]

I spend this last 8 days in the Nashville area ( Opryland resort ) attending a business conference and did a lot of caching last weekend and a bit during the conference. In the end I managed to find 122 caches ( I've only logged about 5 thus far ).

 

What I'm wondering is, what's the deal with all the micros?! Did I just hit a string of them or are there really as many as there seem to be? I would say that out of the 122 caches 115 were micros, most of them film canisters or pill bottles under lamposts or magnetic keyholders also under lamposts or under mailboxes, newspaper stands, etc..

 

Now for me, it was OK as I was looking for numbers. I just found several areas that were thick with caches and drove through them. As I said, I WAS looking for numbers so my pocket query only picked up traditionals, virtuals, and web cam caches ... good caches for the numbers.

 

So ... was it me?

 

btw, lots of nice vituals and the micros were even in some really nice historical locations, thanks folks.

[deviousdalek]

Well just to give you an idea Geowoodstock started there (It's All About The Numbers")

And they don't call Nashville, Cacheville for nothing.

 

If your looking for a powers # run you got it in Nashville, don't know why there, but that is how it is.

[+JoGPS]

nicolo, Noticed you found FORT NEGLEY by Southpaw (GCM77J) which is a regular cache but you did not find my 18 stage multistage cache is the same place Tour Of Historic Fort Negley by JoGPS (GCM95E) wonder why but yet you complain about Nashville micros, and yes there are a lot of them and a lot of very good caches but you have to want to do them.

 

Any where you travel there is a lot of micros, and as you said you were looking for numbers, you found a lot and are still complaining about it, what’s the deal with that

 

JOE

[+Team Neos]

Ah yes, Nashville...I have a grand adventure planned there. School is almost out. A month from now, I will put the last of my grades into the gradebook, and then I can convince my beloved to take a couple of days off near the end of the week, so we can spend two or three days in Cacheville.

 

It won't be long enough, of course. No way could I ever do all the caches I have been looking over. It's a numbers run in some ways, but in others it certainly won't be. There are some old ones, some in historic places, a couple of tough ones that I plan to waste a little time not finding, like so many others before me. A few larger ones that look to be in really pretty places. I won't do the multis this trip, or the ones that take half a day hike, because I want to experience many different caches. Perhaps I will learn a few new tricks. Maybe next time I can try to others.

 

Yep, that's just what I like about a cache dense area. Plenty of something for everyone.

 

I am not sure that the OP was actually complaining. Perhaps they really are just curious why there are that many micros in that area. I have a theory:

 

Part of it is just that the urban environment does dictate the number of larger caches that can be safely and legally placed, but another part of it is that caching in an urban area shouldn't be the same as caching in the middle of the woods. Diversity ensures survival.

 

If your really look, what you find in places like Nashville (or Lousiville, or any of a number of other urban environments) is the usual assortment of caches of all types PLUS many tourist-friendly smaller caches. .

 

They are there because the natives have fun placing caches that people can find without too much headache and agony--even out-of-town visitors.

 

They are there because people don't mind tending to caches that need a bit more frequent log replacement.

 

It's public service thing. Joe found Dave's cache, then put out one for Dave to find, etc.

 

It's the result of people who love to find caches, even if the only thing that can still be hidden away in some spots isn't a huge ammo can.

 

I have never understood the people that cry 'micro spew' --All the micros don't take away from other geocaches, they merely enhance the chances that people will come to the area to do some caching. As far as I can see, no one is putting out micros instead of other caches, they are putting them out along with other caches.

[+nicolo]

nicolo, Noticed you found FORT NEGLEY by Southpaw (GCM77J) which is a regular cache but you did not find my 18 stage multistage cache is the same place Tour Of Historic Fort Negley by JoGPS (GCM95E) wonder why but yet you complain about Nashville micros, and yes there are a lot of them and a lot of very good caches but you have to want to do them.

 

Any where you travel there is a lot of micros, and as you said you were looking for numbers, you found a lot and are still complaining about it, what’s the deal with that

 

JOE

 

Woah Joe, I wasn't complaining, just commenting. No need to get defensive ... what's the deal with THAT?

 

All I was saying was that for my run I noticed that a high proportion of the caches were micros, that's all. Coming from Calgary, Alberta and having done some caching in Edmonton ( north 300 km ) if I ran a pocket query as I did there and hit the high concentration of caches, the ratio of micros would be much lower than in the Nashville area ( or the areas that I hit in the Nashville area ... anyway ).

 

Just a question, not an accusation or criticism. I had a great run and was grateful for the caches that I found.

[+drat19]

I have never understood the people that cry 'micro spew' --All the micros don't take away from other geocaches, they merely enhance the chances that people will come to the area to do some caching. As far as I can see, no one is putting out micros instead of other caches, they are putting them out along with other caches.

I disagree. My elaborated opinion on this is well documented in many other precincts on these and other forums so I'll spare you them here.

 

So, simply here, I disagree.

[+Jamie Z]

To address the OP about why Nashville happens to have a large percentage of micros. I think it's something of a self-perpetuating phenomenon.

 

That is, when new cachers want to hide their first (and subsequent) cache, they'll generally hide caches of the type and style they've already found. So, if an area begins with just a few micros, more micros tend to pop up.

 

As an example, look at just about any other cache-rich country in the world. Europe in particular. Notice the number of multicaches? I might guess that close to half of caches in Europe are multis. Why? Because the first few caches there were probably multis, and when people found them and wanted to hide their own, they copied what they saw.

 

Ever cached in a new city? Notice how the hide techniques are a little different from what you're used to? People stick to what they know, and if micros are what people are used to finding, then micros are what they'll tend to hide.

 

Jamie

[+Airmapper]

I just spent the day with a bunch of Nashville cachers, they are great folks. You also have to consider a lot of the top ranking cachers are there, and they will have well over 100 hides a piece. And in the city, micros are about the most convenient thing to hide. I have cached around Nashville, not in it yet, but on the outskirts. I've found many small/ regular size caches, you just have to get away from town where the places to hide are better for larger containers.

[+cudlecub]

Hearing the stories about Nashville, I was suprised to find a couple of ammo boxes on my first trip there. In later trips I've hit some big numbers and also found some rather diabolical hides that happened to be micros. If I remember right, monkeybrad has some very in depth puzzle caches. There's some of the most excellent virtuals. From what I've seen from that area, there's something for everyone to enjoy and the resident cachers are top notch in more than just finds.

[+drat19]

To address the OP about why Nashville happens to have a large percentage of micros. I think it's something of a self-perpetuating phenomenon.

 

That is, when new cachers want to hide their first (and subsequent) cache, they'll generally hide caches of the type and style they've already found. So, if an area begins with just a few micros, more micros tend to pop up.

Jamie, your point above is true of course; here's a corollary to it:

 

It was explained to me by several leading cachers in the Nashville area (i.e., this is not an assumption I've made or am making) that the micro explosion in that area (note I didn't use the usual name for it here...I'm not in the mood for another flame war with the locals there, nor am I trying to start one) (go figure, JG and MB!) was a result of a handful of mobility-impaired folks wanting to be active participants in our game. VERY active. They started hiding large numbers of drive-up micros - easy to hide, easy to crank for stats. Because they were in large numbers, though, many NON-mobility-impaired people also latched on to the notion of cranking easy hides for stats, and so "Cacheville" was born.

 

I have 3 points of interest on this as an observer not based in the Nashville area, but having cached it:

 

(1) I contended years ago, and still do, that just because you're mobility-impaired (or are catering to the mobility-impaired with your hides), doesn't mean you should be relegated to parking lots and the backsides of supermarkets near the dumpsters. There are/were PLENTY of opportunities for drive-up hides that are in locations more worthwhile than that, if only the effort is/were made to invest more time to choose. It might mean there are fewer stats to crank (oh, misery!), but I would think the caching enjoyment factor would be higher. YMMV, of course.

 

(2) Nashville's micro explosion occurred in the '03 timeframe...well before the mid-'04 timeframe when I believe that the unnamed-in-this-thread situation got out of control in far more areas than Nashville throughout the country/world, changing the fundamental nature of our game. Nashville was merely one of the earliest and most-well-known-at-the-time example of it.

 

(3) I couldn't agree more with others who have posted that the active Nashville-area cacher population is a group of great people, who showed me nothing but hospitality when I came through. I also agree that the area has far more to offer than just drive-up micros. The issue is that, as the OP alluded, there are just SO MANY drive-up micros that one has to do quite a bit more homework to get through to those of (what I would consider to be) more interest/enjoyment.

Edited May 1, 2006 by drat19

[+Monkeybrad]

Based on my limited experience, urban caches tend to be micros and as you move farther from the city the hikes get longer and the caches get bigger. Nashville does have a higher concentration of micros in it's urban areas, but simply because it has a higher concentration of caches and cachers, period. As you get out of town the caches get bigger and the walks get longer. While Nashville has several city parks and our local caching community enjoys a great working relationship with them, we are limited to the number of caches that can be placed in these parks by their geocaching policy. Once you get outside of the parks, the areas to hide a full size cache are fairly limited. With that said there are also some excellent examples of full size caches hidden very close to the city center, Going Gibson and the latest Geo-Mojo come to mind. In my travels, I have not seen those hides matched for sheer ingenuity in concealing a full size cache in an urban setting.

 

It is tru ethat people will often hide what they are most exposed to, but as people grow in the sport and they experience different types of hides, they will com eto hide the kind of caches they like to find. Many of us locally, have worked to increase the diversity of caches in Middle Tennessee and I am confident that you cannot find a more interesting place to cache in the whole country. Yes, there are lots of micros, from quick grab and go's to truly devious hides that have been copied and hidden all over the country. I am constantly amazed when I get to a new area and check out their most devious hides, at how often it is an idea that originated in either Nashville or St. Louis. This is not a slam against anyone, rather it is a testimony to the creative cachers working hard to hide things in new ways in those towns. In addition to our micros, we also have several full size traditionals in beautiful natural settings, just outside of Nashville. Middle Tennessee is full of gentle rolling hills and some of the prettiest country you are likely to find, but out terrain is not that difficult to traverse, and our hikes rarely have over 2,000 feet of elevation change, but you can hardly blame the caching community for that, trust me though we are working hard to get caches placed in our "wilder" areas. Nashville and middle Tennessee cachers have also placed many multicaches and puzzle caches that range from a simple cipher to multi-day, multimedia, multi-headache hunts that will keep you cursing for as long as you want to pursue them. We also offer several historical virtuals in interesting out of the way places. One of the things that drew me to caching in the first place was the incredible amount that I learned about my own backyard through virtual caches spread around the midstate. We have relatively few webcams and very few earthcaches, but they kind of came and went before they had a chance to catch on.

 

Although, Nashville has become the poster child for quick and easy caches, if you come to our area and that is all you hunt you have really missed out on a rich and diverse caching area. I like to think we have something for everyone in the midstate and I invite the rest of the caching community to come and prove me wrong.

 

Another couple of quick things before I go, Geowoodstock actually originated in Louisville, Kentucky and if you think that Woodstock being "all about the numbers" has anything to do with smiley's then you have never experienced the friendship and fellowship of getting together with several hundred other cachers to talk about the adventures we have had, both on the trail and in the parking lots. There is a reason that it is THE national geocaching event, Geowoodstock, like Nashville offers something for everyone, and your level of involvement and enjoyment can only be determined by you.

[+wimseyguy]

I've made two trips to Nashville, just to find caches. No stopping for music or history-just caching. There is a great variety of caches of all types and difficulties there. You just have to do your homework because there are such riches to choose from. I've seen plenty of drive by, but also some of the most devious hides and puzzles imaginable. I also thoroughly enjoyed their hospitality (and pie) at GW3. I haven't done the longer hikes there, but that was my choice. Maybe on my next visit I'll have some time to do so.

 

And yes geowoodstock is all about the numbers as someone pointed out-but there are far more importnat numbers to track than just finds.

Edited May 1, 2006 by wimseyguy

[+Ed & Julie]

To address the OP about why Nashville happens to have a large percentage of micros. I think it's something of a self-perpetuating phenomenon.

 

That is, when new cachers want to hide their first (and subsequent) cache, they'll generally hide caches of the type and style they've already found. So, if an area begins with just a few micros, more micros tend to pop up.

<snip>

 

Jamie

 

I find this to be happening in my city.

We have had an entire crop of new cachers pop up in the last 2 years, and the number of micros has skyrocketed to the point of spew. It's not unusual for a new local cacher to place 6-12 micros a weekend...yuck.

 

As new cacher join up, micros are all they see, and see all the micros getting hidden weekly, and thinks that's the game, and hide their own crop of micros.

 

Ed

[+drat19]

To address the OP about why Nashville happens to have a large percentage of micros. I think it's something of a self-perpetuating phenomenon.

 

That is, when new cachers want to hide their first (and subsequent) cache, they'll generally hide caches of the type and style they've already found. So, if an area begins with just a few micros, more micros tend to pop up.

<snip>

 

Jamie

 

I find this to be happening in my city.

We have had an entire crop of new cachers pop up in the last 2 years, and the number of micros has skyrocketed to the point of spew. It's not unusual for a new local cacher to place 6-12 micros a weekend...yuck.

 

As new cacher join up, micros are all they see, and see all the micros getting hidden weekly, and thinks that's the game, and hide their own crop of micros.

 

Ed

Thank you for validating (sadly) what I've been saying in many precincts on these forums since mid-'04. I looked you up on Mapquest...Orland, CA is not exactly a centrally-located urban area. Micro Spew has fundamentally changed our once-great game everywhere.

[+JoGPS]

It’s still a great game where everyone has a choice and an opinion, and that’s cool, would not have it any other way

[+horsegeeks]

It’s still a great game where everyone has a choice and an opinion, and that’s cool, would not have it any other way

 

Perfect statement JoGPS, each to their own.....that's the beauty of the game