Are You Addicted?

[+Blue Power Ranger]

Without digressing into a preachy conversation about the numbers game, cache quality, micro-spew, stat-hounds or etc... I thought it would be fun to take a light-hearted look and see who out there truly needs a daily "fix" of Geocaching.

 

How many consecutive days is the most that you have actually found at least one cache?

[CoyoteRed]

Without digressing into a preachy conversation about the numbers game, cache quality, micro-spew, stat-hounds or etc... I thought it would be fun to take a light-hearted look and see who out there truly needs a daily "fix" of Geocaching.

 

How many consecutive days is the most that you have actually found at least one cache?

 

It's somewhere in the "week to 9 days" range where we've taken vacations. Our vacations are based on geocaching.

[+Jhwk]

three or four - but I am addicted to the forums! Come here at least once a day.

[+Airmapper]

Caching, at least 2, maybe 3 days in a row.

 

Forums, umm, turn that around, and you have 2, maybe 3 days in a row I didn't log on.

[+Dread Pirate Roberts of TX]

8 days in a row is the best I could do so far. I have been thinking of trying to get a full month, every day, completed.

[+IC1]

My longest run was 34 days consecutively! I have some good runs broken up by one day, too...

 

I guess I was addicted for a while!

Edited June 8, 2006 by IC1

[+Blue Power Ranger]

The best I have done is 11 days.

[+LostPuppy]

9 days was the best run so far. I guess I need to get out more []

[+Isonzo Karst]

no idea - but we found 1000 caches exactly between 5/28005 and 5/28/06 - so averaging ~2.7 daily. I'd guess the 4 days when my mother was hospitalized was the longest stretch WITHOUT finding a cache (and I did, in fact find one in the little pocket park across from the hospital)(hey, I had to leave the room anyway.)(She's fine).

[+Lovey Pigs]

wanted to share that we wanted to find a cache every day for one month (x30, 31 days). We started last month and as of Dec.23rd we had reached 30 days!!! now, we are to see if we can finish out the month of Dec, now we are trying to find a cache at least once for every day of the the year, this may take some time, but something else to strive for...fun, fun!!!

[+LukeTrocity]

 

Uploaded with ImageShack.us

 

Addicted!

[+NYPaddleCacher]

I think about 9-10 days in a row. That occurred during a vacation a couple of years ago. For three different time periods this year I've gone more that 30 days without finding a cache. There are some nearby that I *could* find so, no, I don't think I"m addicted. Since I've already found most of the caches nearby if I did find a cache everyday it wouldn't be very long before the amount of time to travel the distance to the nearest cache would exceed the amount of time I have available to go geocaching.

 

When considering a stat like "the number of days in a row with at least one find" it's worth noting that while some areas may get an average of several new caches placed a day, other areas can go several months without any new caches being placed. There was about a 5 month period last year when there were no new caches placed within 20 miles of where I live.

[+ZeLonewolf]

I am thoroughly addicted.

 

My girlfriend Aerial and I both found a cache on 365 consecutive days from 11/27/2009 to 11/26/2010. We even found one yesterday (on Christmas), though in our defense we got a FTF out of it.

 

We hid a cache to commemorate our streak, GC2C406: The Geocache-a-Day Club which requires a 30-day streak, and a number of local cachers have completed our challenge. We are planning to find A Cache Every Day in New Hampshire once we get a find on Feb 29, 2012. It was fun, but difficult at times, considering the New England winter and the challenge of every day life, as we both have full time jobs and other responsibilities. There were definitely some borderline-appropriate vaunts into the woods in the dark on the tail end of the challenge. It got a little silly near the end as there were fewer and fewer caches available nearby. It all started when she challenged me to find a cache every day...to see who could last the longest. Once we made it through the winter, it was clear that it was going to go the long haul. We decided to declare a truce at the one year mark and declare it a draw! There are other cachers out there that have multiple years worth of consecutive days, which I think is just insane!

[knowschad]

An addiction is something far more serious than the obsession any of us have to our activity. Unless geocaching is causing your life to be destroyed, it is not an addiction. Too many lives have been ruined by true addictions to use that term for something that you simply enjoy doing frequently. So... no. I am not addicted, nor have I ever met any cachers that I would call addicted. But I have met plenty that go after it with extreme enthusiasm!

[+Scubasonic]

Well have not updated Gsak but so far 908 days and still going strong with over 1220 FTFs

 

Scubasonic

[+Chokecherry]

An addiction is something far more serious than the obsession any of us have to our activity. Unless geocaching is causing your life to be destroyed, it is not an addiction. Too many lives have been ruined by true addictions to use that term for something that you simply enjoy doing frequently. So... no. I am not addicted, nor have I ever met any cachers that I would call addicted. But I have met plenty that go after it with extreme enthusiasm!

 

Didn't destroy my life but one relationship/friendship but it was one that needed to be destroyed anyhow.

 

I'm not addicted. I cache when I am able to. I'm not a big fan of wet and cold so I haven't done much this winter. I had one glorious dive into a snow bank when my footing gave on it (and I didn't find the cache). When spring comes around I'll pickup where I left off on my days off happily and plan my geo-vacation with more enthusiasm.

[+jon.hemlock.Chantal]

Neither addicted, nor obsessed. Just enjoying life in the outdoors more.

[+Scubasonic]

 

When considering a stat like "the number of days in a row with at least one find" it's worth noting that while some areas may get an average of several new caches placed a day, other areas can go several months without any new caches being placed. There was about a 5 month period last year when there were no new caches placed within 20 miles of where I live.

 

Seems like in every situation, there are always excuses for why someone didn't perform.

 

SS

[+briansnat]

According to my stats tab, my record is 6 days in a row. It surprised me that it was that many.

[+Scubasonic]

Yep if I would have known I wanted to do a daily caching streak I wouldn't have cleared out my entire area of caches when I started in mid 2008, now I have to go farther to keep it alive. But I do.

 

Scubasonic

[knowschad]

Yep if I would have known I wanted to do a daily caching streak I wouldn't have cleared out my entire area of caches when I started in mid 2008, now I have to go farther to keep it alive. But I do.

 

Scubasonic

 

Back when gas prices were up in the $4 area, and looked like they were only going to continue to rise, the advice I was giving new cachers was to start caching as far from home as you can afford. I was only half kidding.

 

(Psssst... the spelling police are gonna write you a ticket for your signature if you don't fix it!: "This is just to fun !!! ")

[+Scubasonic]

 

(Psssst... the spelling police are gonna write you a ticket for your signature if you don't fix it!: "This is just to fun !!! ")

 

Thanks for the Spelling B fixed now sorta

 

SS

[+thecaswellfamily]

Our longest streak thus far is 6 days... Momma could probably do better if she wasn't so determined to make this a family activity.

[+Packanack]

6 consecutive days in 2006, which probably was vacation on Cape Cod, where I will take my bike and do a few caches. I can safely say I am not addicted. I usually go for a hike or bike on Sunday AM, and do some caching. I took my pup with me this AM, and when the snow started flying in earnest we headed back to car, leaving a cache for next time. If you can leave one for next time ,you are not addicted.

[+hikerT]

Consecutive cache streaks don't neccessarily measure the level of addictiveness. I ended a 77 day caching streak because I began to feel forced to get a cache every day and it wasn't fun any more. Probably didn't help that I have 8000+ finds so some days I found myself travelling 30-60 min out of my way for one cache. Caching has quite considerably taken over most of my free time, and I am definately addicted... I just don't find one every day.

[+John in Valley Forge]

Four (4) days is my max, while on a cruise vacation.

Can't do more with work and home life. They take a higher priority.

[vagabond]

My Find Rate

1.3719 caches/day

Longest Streak

7 consecutive days with finds from 08/06/2005 to 08/12/2005

Longest Slump

136 consecutive days without a find from 10/04/2004 to 02/17/2005

[knowschad]

(Psssst... the spelling police are gonna write you a ticket for your signature if you don't fix it!: "This is just to fun !!! ")

 

Thanks for the Spelling B fixed now sorta

 

SS

 

This is just to fun !!!

You did? OK. If you say so.

[+Scubasonic]

(Psssst... the spelling police are gonna write you a ticket for your signature if you don't fix it!: "This is just to fun !!! ")

 

Thanks for the Spelling B fixed now sorta

 

SS

 

This is just to fun !!!

You did? OK. If you say so.

 

Passt.......... there are no spelling police here, so buzz off

[+2BAMBAM4]

(Psssst... the spelling police are gonna write you a ticket for your signature if you don't fix it!: "This is just to fun !!! ")

 

Thanks for the Spelling B fixed now sorta

 

SS

 

This is just to fun !!!

You did? OK. If you say so.

 

Passt.......... there are no spelling police here, so buzz off

 

Not every day. But, am usually looking for nearby cache's and loop trails with cache's to find. Planing the hike and cache's. So not everyday on the trail, almost everyday planning.

[+n0k1a]

I hit caches on both days of a weekend, then happened to get one on the following Monday. When I also found one on Tuesday, I realized I had 4 days already, so I kept it going until I hit 25 days. On what would have been day #26, I tried unsuccessfully for several hours at something like 5 different caches, and then the thunderstorms rolled in. At that point, I realized that it was getting to be too much of a chore and a waste of money. I wanted to go caching to get me out in the woods and get much-needed exercise, not to go driving an hour or two for a guard rail MKH.

 

It is kind of a shame, because after I started I found a local streak challenge cache, which requires 100 days in a row...I was 1/4 of the way there!

 

Ironically, I probably should have kept it going, as some locals have placed dozens of new caches since then within just a few miles. But then, those make for fun cache runs with friends!

 

The theory I'm going with for now is that I won't start a streak again until I move to a different area, where they're all new to me.

[+Manville Possum]

No, I'm not addicted to geocaching. I just love history and the great outdoors. So I waymark and develope caches of historic interest. It's just my way of sharing something that I enjoy, and recording historic sites. I also enjoy geneology, marking some of the old pioneer cemeterys and home sites are of great interest to me. I may very well be a GPS unit junkie, but I'm not addicted to geocaching.

[+NYPaddleCacher]

 

When considering a stat like "the number of days in a row with at least one find" it's worth noting that while some areas may get an average of several new caches placed a day, other areas can go several months without any new caches being placed. There was about a 5 month period last year when there were no new caches placed within 20 miles of where I live.

 

Seems like in every situation, there are always excuses for why someone didn't perform.

 

SS

 

It has nothing to do with performance. It's a matter of priorities, opportunity, and motivation. My family and my job take priority over playing a game. If someone else wants to set their priorities different than I do, that's their choice. Frankly, I get a lot more enjoyment from my family, and the opportunities that come from excelling in my job provides than I do finding tupperware in the woods.

 

Call it an excuse if you want, but if someone lives in an area where the nearest caches is hundreds of miles away, while I supposed it would be possible to find a cache a day for a while, it wouldn't take long for the opportunity to continue the streak to become essentially non-existent. I suppose that might be hard to understand by someone that lives in a bubble where every day there is a new cache available to be found, but in the real world, geocaching environments differ and it's ludicrous to try to compare the performance of geocachers living in vastly different environments.

 

Finally, there is the simple fact that some people are just not into the game as others (thus the question of addiction). Some people are addicted to Heroin and I have no desire to compete in that particular activity either. I'm just not that interested in geocaching as I once was, and it's attitudes like yours that contribute to that lack of interest.

[knowschad]

(Psssst... the spelling police are gonna write you a ticket for your signature if you don't fix it!: "This is just to fun !!! ")

 

Thanks for the Spelling B fixed now sorta

 

SS

 

This is just to fun !!!

You did? OK. If you say so.

 

Passt.......... there are no spelling police here, so buzz off

Sorry, but I am addicted to proper spelling.

 

 

[+bflentje]

An addiction is something far more serious than the obsession any of us have to our activity. Unless geocaching is causing your life to be destroyed, it is not an addiction. Too many lives have been ruined by true addictions to use that term for something that you simply enjoy doing frequently. So... no. I am not addicted, nor have I ever met any cachers that I would call addicted. But I have met plenty that go after it with extreme enthusiasm!

 

OMG...

[+Sithlock Holmes]

5 days in a row for me.

That would have been the drive from Calgary to Barrie.

Good times.

[+bflentje]

Longest streak of finds: 176 days

Longest dry spell: 19 days

[knowschad]

Longest streak of finds: 176 days

Longest dry spell: 19 days

OMG...

 

 

[+Scubasonic]

(Psssst... the spelling police are gonna write you a ticket for your signature if you don't fix it!: "This is just to fun !!! ")

 

Thanks for the Spelling B fixed now sorta

 

SS

 

This is just to fun !!!

You did? OK. If you say so.

 

Passt.......... there are no spelling police here, so buzz off

Sorry, but I am addicted to proper spelling.

 

Good for you !

[+Scubasonic]

I'm just not that interested in geocaching as I once was.

 

There you go, and the truth shall set you free !!!!

 

SS

[+GeoGhostX]

I'm addicted because I am posting on this forum from work. Shhhhh!

[+Team Luvbassn]

30 days. a member of our geocaching group just celebrated her 365th day with a find. She went Halloween 09 to Halloween 10

[+Scubasonic]

30 days. a member of our geocaching group just celebrated her 365th day with a find. She went Halloween 09 to Halloween 10

 

good for her.

 

SS

[+bladesedge]

Would love to get a daily fix of caching, but I've exhausted all the caches in my area and not that many new ones are published!

 

Am on my summer holiday at the moment, so planning many long caching runs. Did 21 the other day on a 350km round trip.

[+Harry Dolphin]

Daily fix? Nope. Fix? Yes. It gets me out of the apartment, and keeps me from getting moldy! Very boring yesterday, with the 12" of snow on the ground, and state of emergency. But, tomorrow, I need one to color in December on my calendar. So I'm going out during lunch, with a foot of snow on the ground...

[+jomouse]

111 days - yes, indeedee - I am addicted!

[+FancoverFive]

I had a nine-day streak while on holiday in Iceland. The tenth day we only had chance to get one cache because of our route, and it needed calm dry weather as there were slippery rocks to negotiate, but it was raining and access to the cache became impassable.

[+TheAlabamaRambler]

I was very surprised to check my stats and see that 6 days was my longest 'streak'.

 

I think that has more to do with not being a faithful logger. Even in the early years, particularly during 2005, my most active year, I might go days or even weeks without logging caches online then take a few hours to catch up, and it wasn't uncommon to log them as the date I was entering them rather than the date I found them.

 

Back in 2004 I was on a CacheLeague team that won a 30-day numbers contest and I'm pretty sure we cached every day.

 

I pretty much quit logging caches in 2006 so my stats since then do not reflect true activity, but I would be surprised if there wasn't a longer streak somewhere since then.

 

Am I addicted? No. Been there, done that.

 

And yes, addicted and loving it!

 

The word addiction in its literal context has for me nothing but negative connotations. As described in the intro to The Joy of Geocaching I almost let an addiction to pain meds destroy my life.

 

Geocaching was the lifeline which helped me find a path back to sobriety, health and relative sanity.

 

In the context in which I think the OP meant 'addicted' however then yes, I am! In this context 'addicted' means enjoying something too much to give up. I can't see that happening. Geocaching brings so many benefits and so much fun that I would suffer emotionally and physically if I had to give it up - therefore I am a GeoAddict and having a ball being hooked on this game. Hunting for caches, discovering new places, caching with friends, hosting and attending events, playing in my DixieCachers.com Alabama Geocachers Association forum and in this one with friends I may or may not have met... I love it!

[+FloridaFour]

4 days in a row, but I have caches that are on my watch list, that I get updates on every day, and the new caches placed nearby, I get updates on every day. I visit the forums several times a week. I would get out more often if I could!

 

Alabama, I have read your story and it is inspiring! I think Geocaching is just awesome and it has really opened up new worlds for me. Great for excercise, getting outdoors, and thinking in new ways. Plus the Geocaching community is really great, too.

Edited December 29, 2010 by FloridaFour

[+Semper Questio]

I started a streak some time ago and it lasted 409 days. It only ended because of an accident at a cache. But I am VERY glad it ended.

 

I started the streak just to see how long it would go. But before long, it became more about keeping the streak going, not seeing how long it would last on it's own. Caching became more work than fun, hence my tagline, "If you ain't havin' fun, you're doin' it wrong!" I found myself getting very stressed about finding a cache each day. I was driving quite a distance each day to get my daily find and I got so that getting that daily find was taking precedence over almost everything else.

 

The accident kept me out of caching for several weeks and it changed my caching life. Now I go because I WANT to, not because I think I HAVE to and as soon as my caching time starts declining in fun factor, be it after a full day or only an hour, I call it quits. After all, I do this for recreation and relaxation. If I want obligation and stress, I'll stick with the rest of my life's activities.