Newbie And I Thought This Thing Was Easy

[waqui44]

Hi everyone,

I just started 2 weeks ago and have to to 8 different waypoints but only found one... and these are Wally easy caches....they are supposed to be the easiest right?

 

The problem I'm having is that , I have no Idea what I am looking for. Everything sounds easy and when I read the posts, they make LOOK so easy. hehehehe... grunt...hmmp..

 

Is it just me or I just had a beginner lick on the first one and am I looking for the same kind of container? (medicine bottle tied up to a tree).

 

Is anybody out there having a hard time with the supposed to be easy ones? I know I just started and need to have more practice.. I actually am addicted to it... going home late from work.. (wife wondering why)... even though I'm not finding any.. but also gettig so frustrated...

 

I need advice please....

 

Thanks

[+The Leprechauns]

After more than 1750 cache hunts, I *still* have a hard time with the so-called easy ones. That is why my find count is well less than 1750.

 

If they were all easy, it wouldn't be much of a challenge, and not so addictive.

 

My best advice:

 

1. Choose easy caches (difficulty 1 or 2) that are NOT micros.

2. When you are as close to zero feet away as you think you will get, quit looking at the GPS.

3. Look around you in a 40 foot circle and ask, "where would I hide something so that people could only find it if they looked hard?"

4. Look in those places. The last one you check will have a geocache in it.

[+New England n00b]

After more than 1750 cache hunts, I *still* have a hard time with the so-called easy ones. That is why my find count is well less than 1750.

 

If they were all easy, it wouldn't be much of a challenge, and not so addictive.

 

My best advice:

 

1. Choose easy caches (difficulty 1 or 2) that are NOT micros.

2. When you are as close to zero feet away as you think you will get, quit looking at the GPS.

3. Look around you in a 40 foot circle and ask, "where would I hide something so that people could only find it if they looked hard?"

4. Look in those places. The last one you check will have a geocache in it.

I'd like to emphasize that first point. If the cache indicates 'micro', go for a different one until you get a few regular ones under your belt. Look for 'ammo can' or 'lock-n-lock' in the description. These will be easier to find because (1) they are larger, and (2) they are often on trails where you won't feel quite so awkward, and you can focus on the hunt.

 

Good luck! Get the wifey involved. Two sets of eyes are better'n one, and it'll bring you closer together. Gecaching is a great family outdoors activity.

[+StarBrand]

Micros are often in containers like 35mm film cans, altoids boxes, waterproof match containers, pill bottles, bison tubes, key holders. Sometimes in medicine continers that screw together with a rubber O-ring. These will then, often, be camo'd to help hide them better. A lot of them are magnetic (either naturally or because somebody added a magnet). Most are not on the ground but rather slid into or stuck on something else. Many times the name of the cache helps to narrow down the location. Sometimes the clue helps - sometimes not. Look for holes, crevices, sleeves, lamp-post skirts (lift them up).

 

Get some experience with difficulty 1 or 2 larger containers and see if you can find somebody a bit more experienced with micros to show you a few.

[+Eric K]

Also decode the hint and take it with you. Also some caches have 'spoiler' pictures you can use.

[+BlueDeuce]

Is anybody out there having a hard time with the supposed to be easy ones? I know I just started and need to have more practice.. I actually am addicted to it... going home late from work.. (wife wondering why)... even though I'm not finding any.. but also gettig so frustrated...

 

Yep. It took me about fifteen finds to start getting the 'magic'. That's where you walk up to a site and automatically have your top three likely hiding spots picked out to search. The woods doesn't look so much like a blur of places to look.

 

Of course if it was too easy it wouldn't be any fun.

[+Thrak]

Hi everyone,

I just started 2 weeks ago and have to to 8 different waypoints but only found one... and these are Wally easy caches....they are supposed to be the easiest right?

 

The problem I'm having is that , I have no Idea what I am looking for. Everything sounds easy and when I read the posts, they make LOOK so easy. hehehehe... grunt...hmmp..

 

Is it just me or I just had a beginner lick on the first one and am I looking for the same kind of container? (medicine bottle tied up to a tree).

 

Is anybody out there having a hard time with the supposed to be easy ones? I know I just started and need to have more practice.. I actually am addicted to it... going home late from work.. (wife wondering why)... even though I'm not finding any.. but also gettig so frustrated...

 

I need advice please....

 

Thanks

 

Well......... since you said these are Wally caches does that mean they are at WalMart? If so, try going to the coordinates and lifting up the skirt on the nearest lamp post and looking under or inside it for a film can or magnetic key holder.

[+What rock?]

Also, spend some time reading the logs of those who have already found it. They often contain hints.

[+Jhwk]

relax, and remember, it is supposed to be fun! I think I like the hunt better than the find... some basic advice that I give, which is echoed above in different forms is:

 

1. Use the compass screen versus the map screen. Tells you where to go and how far left to go.

2. Rather than trying to get to the 0 point on your GPSr (basically standing on top of where your GPSr thinks the cache is) stop about 50 feet from the expected location. Then stop looking at your GPS and start looking at your location. Look for the obvious clues to the cache location. Piles of sticks, rocks, dead hollow tree, or a stump in plain view. Don't forget to look at the size of the cache you are looking for. Nothing like thinking you are hunting a regular sized cache, when it is actually a micro-cache.

3. Start out with the easiest dificulty caches (D/T). So go for the 1/1 to 2/2 caches first.

4. Have fun and enjoy the great weather

[jamieb520]

If you could just follow the co-ordinates right to where the cache is, and its sitting out in the open with a sign saying "I'm the cache, come get me" what fun or challenging would that be? Some I've gone for have been really easy, others I haven't been able to find or haven't been able to figure out how to get to (and lack of time to try every possible way). It can be frustrating sometimes, just remember its only a game, and if it was that easy the game would be over pretty fast. Then you'd be spending all your money going all over the world to get cache's that you haven't gotten already.

[+gLOBALfINDER]

Don't forget to look at the size of the cache you are looking for. Nothing like thinking you are hunting a regular sized cache, when it is actually a micro-cache.

 

No kidding. Here's a newbie goof (my own!). Loaded some cache coordinates into GPSr and took son for a hike to show him what fun it was. Hiked a mile or so and got to EXACT coordinates of first cache. Nothing. Nada. Zilch. We were in a parking lot. Spent a lot of time examining nearby lamp posts, trees, etc. Nothing. Finally gave up. Went home. Went to this cache's page and discovered that it was a puzzle cache, and we were supposed to park at the coordinate location, starting the search from there. Felt pretty stupid. All part of the learning curve.

 

I really like "woods" caches. I spend a lot of time in the woods anyway, and now can generally spot a cache site from quite a distance. It's that "something's not quite right here" feeling. But really good, cleverly hidden micros are a lot of fun to search out.

 

At the end of the day, it's about the search. Sort of like fishing. If you caught a fish every cast, you'd quickly get tired of it. And if you never caught a fish, you'd get tired of it. But if every so often you catch one, you keep coming back! So keep it up!

[+TCOMGUY]

I also had some problems at the beginning. A couple of tips.

 

1. Take a printed version of the page. The spoilers and sometimes the logs will help you out.

Be patient and stop looking at your gps when u get close to the 15 feet mark. Most GPS cant pinpoint better than that.

 

Have Fun!

Edited May 18, 2006 by TCOMGUY

[+Wild Thing 73]

When using your GPSrec...and you are within 20-30 feet of what your GPSr is indicating >STOP< looking at your GPSr and start looking about and around and up...I found this important method when I was looking at my GPS unit and my wife keeps saying "here it is". The gps fixes just are not the same for the hidder and the looker

[+norsehawk]

I am not the most experienced cacher out there but I have found quite a few good and hard hides in my few finds.

 

My very first cache find was a high difficulty micro, I didn't know the whole thing about on your first hunts go for the easy ones, I went for one that was less than a mile from my house, and in an area I had visited many times when I was younger. I never would have found the cache (and many experienced cachers still haven't) if a more experienced cacher didn't help me with the find for that first one, that particular hide was very well hidden and it hammered into my head that geocachers can be very devious in thier hides. I definately like a challenge when I'm seeking so the standard micro in a lampshade in the wal-mart parking lot doesn't do a whole lot for me except add +1 to my find column.

 

A few questions to ask yourself when you are trying to find one that is tricky. "If I wanted to be really evil, where would I hide the cache" and "If I were a geocache, where would I be hiding"

 

In our area (Tampa Bay, Florida) we have the creator of Mr. Magneto who lives near here so we have some of those sneaky little things hiding around, by thier very nature, they are very very tricky to find because they are so small (think about the size of a pencil erasor, just the rubber part, a bit bigger around, with a strong magnet on the back, and painted to match the surroundings)

 

For micros, I really really like bison tubes, great little cache containers, rugged, and with a rubber seal to keep em closed, I have even picked up some nice containers from the pet stores in the dog collar section, id tubes, they are very tiny, can hold a log, and hang in such a way that water shouldn't get inside em

[+Team Cotati]

The thing that I found most helpful was going out with a friend on the first few hunts. Learned a lot of the 'tricks of the trade' from him. From then on it has just been learning through experience.....AND having Mrs. Team Cotati along. And oh yeah, avoid micros for the first 5 or 6 years. Assuming that you live near the location of your first find, there ought to be lots of 'mentors' available and tons of non-micros available for the beginner. Good luck and Cache on Garth!! As with most things, the 'easiest' is seldom the most rewarding. This stuff, while generally not easy, is not all that difficult either.

Edited May 21, 2006 by Team Cotati

[CurlyBlue]

I'm convinced that we've succeeded so many times (though I never log them) because we have kids. They instinctively know where to look, and often their height is a key advantage. So take a kid or two! And their enthusiasm is contagious.