House Caches

June 27, 2006

Well I personally don't like them. It hard to walk in their yards but you spent the time to get there.

June 27, 2006

I've done a few.

But I always have the idea that some guy is going to come running out his door with a shotgun because I've got the wrong house.

10.1k · June 27, 2006

Hmm... The was a cache placed on the back of a stop sign. Not a very interesting or good cache. The cache owner lives in the house nearby. Several female cachers reported getting e-mail from the owner. They declined to take the owner up on a suggestion that they seek something at another location.

Be wary of house caches.

June 27, 2006

They hit my ignore list very quickly.

11.3k · June 27, 2006

I went to one last week and DNFd it. The smell of the garbage cans, the noise from the approaching garbage truck, the proximity to the houses -- all of that -- was very distressing.

That cache goes on my Ignore list.

10.1k · June 28, 2006

And, then, there's my infamous DNF on an FTF attempt:

Met (another team) whilst we were searching for the second stage. Independantly arrived at, our numbers agreed. The house on Woodland Street looked like a very nice house! But we all decided not to search their back yard.

Oh, well. One more DNF.

The math error at the first stage of the multi led us about .10 in the wrong direction. Not the first math error by this hider. On another, the hider entered the coordinates wrong, and was four minutes off. Only 3.5 miles off! We no longer search for FTFs by that hider.

June 28, 2006

I have a large on on the side of my house, but I posted pictures of it so they would know what they are looking for. It can be seen from the street so you know you are in the right spot.

June 28, 2006

There's a cache out in AZ that I did called "Mine's bigger than most" and it is on the hider's property.... it is so obvious once you find it, you'll wonder how you didn't see it when you pulled up and parked. Although I was from out of state and didn't know the area or the hider, I didn't feel uncomfortable at all because I had read the cache page and knew what to expect.

Two weeks ago I did one in Hampton, Va. I hadn't read the cache page, only had the coords downloaded to my GPS. I felt kind of strange going on someone's lawn, so I DNF'd it. Got an email from the owner that night..he was watching me from the window and said I stood right next to it. So knowing it was okay, I went back the next day.

1.7k · June 28, 2006

I felt kind of strange going on someone's lawn...

That's why most people use bathrooms.

38.2k · June 28, 2006

Not a getting started issue. Moving to appropriate forum.

June 28, 2006

I just did one Sunday that was sitting at the bottom of a freshly planted tree. The proeblem was that it was sitting on top of a pile of horse manure

June 28, 2006

don't like them - how many houses are worth caching at? Plus the risk of finding the wrong house, and of course the whole creepy feeling of being on someone's property that you do not know.

1.7k · June 28, 2006

I hate doing those caches. Ive done a few of them, but too many we just drive away from. If its not obvious, I do not want to have neighbors calling the cops as we search for it. Usually Mike looks, and I just hide in the car until he finds it.

20.7k · June 28, 2006

I feel much the same as Tsegi Mike and Desert Viking. I tend not to sort through my caches prior to the hunt, so I've come across these on a number of occasions. Often, if I can't spot the cache from my Jeep it gets ignored. Sometimes, I'll get out of the Jeep and look around, but even then, If I can't spot the cache from the sidewalk, I do not enter the yard.

Thankfully, the 'ignore' feature keeps these caches from ever bugging me again.

7.2k · June 28, 2006

I don't care for them. I don't like the feeling of being watched. I also don't like the ones where you have to walk along folks property to get to a cache as invariably a dog that barks. I can't help feeling I'm disturbing the neighbors.

EDIT TO QUERY: how many caches can you put on your ignore list anyway?

Edited June 28, 2006 by CoyoteRed

June 28, 2006

EDIT TO QUERY: how many caches can you put on your ignore list anyway?

Since it shows up as any other bookmark list, I'd guess 500.

3.9k · June 28, 2006

I totally refuse to seek caches located in the homes or residential yards of cachers or their relatives, with the sole exception of a case where I know the cacher, and she/he has created a cache in their residential yard, and she/he has invited me to seek it, and even then, I would call first. In any case, and luckily, since I primarily seek caches with a Terrain rating of 3.5 or higher; I rarely encounter such things. Rather, I leave such things for Sue, as she seems to have a better tolerance for such caches.

2.2k · June 28, 2006

I hate them. My closest unfound cache is a 1/1.5 traditional located in a public building. Entering this building is allowed but then I tried fo find the cache someone told me that I have to leave the building.

7.3k · June 28, 2006

I think that I've only found one, and it was great. Of course I knew the owner, so....

24.7k · June 28, 2006

I don't like any cache where I feel like I'm being watched as I seek. House caches are among the worst of the lot. My normal strategy is to knock on the door and introduce myself which districts the occupants while the rest of the team finds the cache.

June 28, 2006

Hate 'em. Too creepy. I can picture Norman Bates placing caches outside the motel.

June 28, 2006

Finding a cache where the (seemingly) intended purpose is to be surveilled sounds a little strange to me too. Besides that, I'm not sure what interest the location would hold for me, unless it was intentionally set up to meet a fellow cacher, but then as has been mentioned in another thread, that opens up a whole 'nother ball of wax.

2.3k · June 28, 2006

I feel a bit odd going after them but as long as I know I have the right house I will seek it.

2.6k · June 28, 2006

As with others, these go straight to my ignore list. Just too creepy in too many ways and I sure don't need an uninformed but well-intentioned neighbor callin' the cops on me.

June 28, 2006

As with others, these go straight to my ignore list. Just too creepy in too many ways and I sure don't need an uninformed but well-intentioned neighbor callin' the cops on me.

I've actually had the cops called on me once. I had a little 'splainin' to do. I think he was pretty skeptical as to whether I was telling the truth, but the fact that I had on a GC.com hat helped. In the end he ended up being pretty cool about it and we talked for a little while. I tried to sell him on geocaching.

1.6k · June 28, 2006

I don't really care for them to much .

Have done a couple of them though , but like others have said we have meet the cachers that placed them and knew exactally where to look for the caches. Or the caches have been "spottable" from the road.

Most of these kinda we have just ignored .

Star

10.1k · June 29, 2006

I've actually had the cops called on me once. I had a little 'splainin' to do. I think he was pretty skeptical as to whether I was telling the truth, but the fact that I had on a GC.com hat helped. In the end he ended up being pretty cool about it and we talked for a little while. I tried to sell him on geocaching.

Only once? Neophyte! I've been questioned in three New Jersey counties. For 'standing on a brigdge'. For 'walking on a narrow roadway'. And for 'parking in an office building parking lot'. But, those were for benchmarking, not geocaching.

Finding a cache where the (seemingly) intended purpose is to be surveilled sounds a little strange to me too.

Spell-Check error.

7.3k · June 29, 2006

Heck, I don't even like caches in the little pocket parks in residential neighborhoods, let alone caches in yards. That's what 'ignore' is for.

June 29, 2006

I know the one BigHank is talking about, you can't miss it. All of the ones I have found by peoples houses were larger contains designed as a safe place to drop off TB's inside large cities. Most of the ones here either have pictures of the cache or give the adress so you know you are not in someone elses yard.

June 29, 2006

Only once? Neophyte! I've been questioned in three New Jersey counties. For 'standing on a brigdge'. For 'walking on a narrow roadway'. And for 'parking in an office building parking lot'. But, those were for benchmarking, not geocaching.

Ha! Gotcha back with the spell check error! :wub:

June 29, 2006

I've done 4 or 5 I think. As long as I can see the cache from my vehicle as I pull up I don't have a problem. All the ones I've found have been very well done.

June 29, 2006

For 'walking on a narrow roadway'.

When walking is outlawed, only the pedestrians ... no, wait :wub:

Edited June 29, 2006 by Yellow ants

1.2k · June 29, 2006

I like them depending on the owner. This was a fun one Lost in the woods

38.2k · June 29, 2006

I've encountered a few. One was near the porch steps of a bed & breakfast. I would have had to go through a closed gate to reach it and the porch had customers sitting on it enjoying the view. Another was in the backyard of a prominent local cacher. I passed both by.

3.9k · June 29, 2006

I've encountered a few. One was near the porch steps of a bed & breakfast. I would have had to go through a closed gate to reach it and the porch had customers sitting on it enjoying the view. Another was in the backyard of a prominent local cacher. I passed both by.

I hate it when I search for the cache in Brian's front yard and then, out of the blue, he starts shooting at me from an upstairs window with his sniper rifle. :wub: :wub:

7.3k · June 29, 2006

shooting at me from an upstairs window with his sniper rifle. huh.gif blink.gif

That was a jogfrog marshmallow gun, you ninny ...

June 29, 2006

We've only done one. We just about passed on it when we realized it was in someone's yard, but we'd driven quite a distance to get there. The coords put us right in the middle of the street in a very small town. The hint mentioned a well, but two houses had decorative wishing wells in their yards, one on each side of the street. Which yard to tresspass in? We picked the correct one, but felt really odd about the whole thing. And after reading some of these other posts, unless we know the owner we'll skip house caches in the future.

June 29, 2006

me myself i like all the caches even the ones on front door steps . I did three on a trip to arizona including the one owned by humanloofa . Also did another in that same area that was full of large travel bugs and the owners even stated on the page you could knock on there door and they would give you there password for there wifi so you could log the cache from there porch and the cachers then came out and we got to meet them which was a bonus . They can be a bit scary but hey that just makes the game more of an adventure,and it seems that most of them placed as such are known about by the neighbors that live there and it kinda adds to the fun. Not to sure i would place one where i live as it would get a bit old having people driving up my half mile drive and fighting off the dogs to look on my porch. But all in all i seem to like all the caches as long as i dont have to scoot to far on my but to get them . Thanks :wub: :wub: :wub: :wub: :wub:

Edited June 29, 2006 by 2trax

20.7k · June 29, 2006

House caches are killing the "sport".

1.6k · June 29, 2006

lol - sbell, sometimes you slay me.

Did a "house" cache at the Thomas Hart Benton house in K.C. But that probably doesn't count. This is too creepy. Would have to scope out the site before I left the cache mobile for the hunt.

June 29, 2006

House caches are killing the "sport".

No, I think I'm killing the sport! :wub:

18.9k · June 29, 2006

I have done a few, I've skipped a few. Depends a lot on the wording in the page description. If it isn't real explict as to what I am looking for and where - then I skip it.

I have one in the alley behind my house (there is a historic barn on the property across the alley) but just about any half decent Geocacher should spot it in an instant. Green Sticker with GC logo.

June 29, 2006

What a bunch of sissies!! Afraid of a "house cache"! I think people should put house caches INSIDE the house, maybe hide them in the toilet tank or under the Master Bedroom Bed.

Seriously though, most house caches are done because a cacher wants to MEET other cachers. My parents have a cache at their house, "Howard Blake's Travel Bug Hospital". They live on the corner of Blake Street and Howard Circle. The cache explicitly states that it is in the Car Port, so it is very easy. It is also a nuclear weapon ammo box, so it can hold very large TBs.

So if the cache owner OWNS the house, and explains very clearly about the cache, I think they are fine! After all, if we want to meet cachers, we can't sit all day at our cache at the bottom of the Grand Canyon now, can we?

June 29, 2006

I used to do house caches without a GPSr - we called it trick or treating. :unsure:

June 29, 2006

If the cache page says that its with the owner's consent, then I will go -look- at it.

From reading about humanloofa's cache, I'd probably do that one, next time I go to his area.

As yet, though, I drive away from the others. It's bad enough when there's s private home nearby, much less if the cache is on someone's home property!

June 29, 2006

I used to do house caches without a GPSr - we called it trick or treating.

great now that you've said that, some numbers hound is gonna claim hundreds of multiple finds on an archived cache for all the homes they visited back on October 31st, 1975 :wub:

1.7k · June 30, 2006

If the cache page says that its with the owner's consent, then I will go -look- at it.

From reading about humanloofa's cache, I'd probably do that one, next time I go to his area.

As yet, though, I drive away from the others. It's bad enough when there's s private home nearby, much less if the cache is on someone's home property!

We did Loofas cache. It is easily spotted from the street, so there was no intimidation factor. I even got out of the car myself for that one lol.

June 30, 2006

I haven't seen any of these, but I think the sport is better of away from houses.

June 30, 2006

House caches are killing the "sport".

LOL, the geocaching forums are starting to sound like that Will Ferrell SNL skit where he plays President Bush. Ok, so micros and house caches are now a part of the Axis of Evil.

June 30, 2006

I think male cachers in running shorts are killing the sport! :unsure:

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