Jump to content

Logging a visit: selecting "Type of Log"


blue fox

Recommended Posts

I checked the FAQ, and it indicated the mechanics of logging a visit, but nothing further.

 

I'd like some guidance on what information to include in the log, and especially some guidance on choosing the "Type of Log"

 

I went to a cache that had clearly been removed. I sent the placer a message about it, and haven't heard anything back. At this point I want to log my visit.

 

What do "Write Note", "Needs Maintenance" and "Needs Archived" imply in terms of Found It / Did Not Find?

 

Do they affect the stats at all?

 

Taking the conservative approach, I'd say that if one didn't find the cache, one has no business declaring that it needs maintenance. I happen to be convinced, but that doesn't mean I'm right.

 

Do I log a "Did Not Find" and then log a "Needs Maintenance" directly after, so the hider can delete that second entry if I'm wrong?

 

Thanks for any help.

Link to comment

Going by what you described - I would simply log a DNF. You cannot be 100% certain that it is missing because you have never found it before. You might mention in the DNF log that you suspect it is missing.

 

DNF = didn't find it

SBA = Does not fit the guidelines in some way or has been missing for a long period of time (verified)

Needs Maintenance = Some issue with the cache you found requires some attention that you were unable to provide.

 

IMHO

Link to comment

Going by what you described - I would simply log a DNF. You cannot be 100% certain that it is missing because you have never found it before. You might mention in the DNF log that you suspect it is missing.

 

DNF = didn't find it

SBA = Does not fit the guidelines in some way or has been missing for a long period of time (verified)

Needs Maintenance = Some issue with the cache you found requires some attention that you were unable to provide.

 

IMHO

 

Yep, agreed.

Link to comment

I would add just one thing about using the SBA for a cache that doesn't meet the guidelines. Some caches did meet the guidelines when they were placed, and are "grandfathered" in, even though they would not be approved today.

 

It doesn't hurt to drop a note to the cache owner before submitting a SBA log. They placed the cache and want people to find it safely so they will want to fix any problems. They may be able to provide information you didn't have that addresses any concerns--or it may help them fix a problem with the cache that has ocurred since they placed it.

 

Of course, if the owner doesn't respond in a reasonable amount of time, or if there is an urgent need to have the cache removed, then the SBA log will call it to the attention of the reviewers.

Link to comment
log a "Needs Maintenance" directly after, so the hider can delete that second entry if I'm wrong?

 

If you log a Needs Maintenance the owner can only remove the needs maintenance icon from the cache page by logging an ower maintenance visit. Not that the owner actually has to visit, but they do have to post that log. Even if they delete your needs maintenance log, the icon remains. I mention this as many owners don't seem to understand it.

 

As far as your specific case, you log a DNF.

Link to comment

I went to a cache that had clearly been removed. I sent the placer a message about it, and haven't heard anything back. At this point I want to log my visit.

 

My question would be: How do you know that the cache had "clearly been removed"? What is your criteria for making that statement?

Link to comment

I went to a cache that had clearly been removed. I sent the placer a message about it, and haven't heard anything back. At this point I want to log my visit.

 

My question would be: How do you know that the cache had "clearly been removed"? What is your criteria for making that statement?

 

Yeah, and I wouldn't trust your judgement either, which is why I took the conservative approach and logged a DNF rather than a Needs Maintenance.

 

And, no, I'm not about to get involved in a discussion of criteria. That whole path is flawed.

 

It would be nice if the FAQ had some guidelines about when to suggest that a cache isn't being maintained. And it would be nice if the FAQ had some guidance about each field on the form for logging a visit.

Edited by blue fox
Link to comment

I know it sounds harsh to ask how you know a cache has been moved, but it isn't.

 

When we first started, there were two very near our home we couldn't find. We looked twice for at least a half an hour each. The first time we were brand new, so we figured we were just terrible at geocaching. The second time, we had found ten other caches, so we logged a DNF on both caches. Not because we thought they were missing, but because we thought we knew enough about what we were doing to admit that we had looked, but hadn't found the cache.

 

One cache owner wrote back to say that they "never logged a DNF unless they were sure the cache was missing" and that really threw me for a loop. I wondered how I could decide a cache was missing if I didn't really know where it was supposed to be because I hadn't found it? It sounded like some kind of Catch-22.

 

Since then I've run across a handful of caches that really were missing, as the owner admitted later. If I am fairly sure the caches is missing, I write the owner to tell them all the places I looked. That usually lets them decide if they need to check on the cache. If I'm just overlooking the cache, they usually write to ask if I'd like a hint.

 

But I've also found parts of caches and begun to think they were missing, only to find a whole cache two feet away. And I've looked four times for a caches that other people said "Thanks for the easy one!" on the logs.

 

Just last Sunday, we looked exactly where the cache was three times before we saw it. Literally. We had already looked for the cache one other day, and the cache owner had told us a funny story about the cache moving on him before when he took guests out to it. When several people in a row didn't find it, he emailed us to ask us to look again and included a big fat hint. So we went to try again. We looked where we "knew" it had to be, didn't see it, looked where we thought it might be if it wasn't the first place. Looked again in "the right spot"...Checked another location about thirty feet away that also fit the decription. And then looked one more time in the "right place" My husband was going crazy. Just as he said "It ought to be right here when you do this" I suddenly SAW it--right there, just were it was supposed to be, and just where we had looked every time before.

Link to comment

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
×
×
  • Create New...