Problem cachers?

[+swizzle]

I started looking for a local multi in late may, early june. After several trips to the location without a find I asked a buddy who did the cache to confirm the location of #1. As I had suspected part 1 was suppose to be in a drilled hole in a public park bench. I e-mailed the guy twice with no reply. After a few weeks I posted a note on the cache page that said basically. "I e-mailed you twice and no reply, I'm dissapointed with the lack of communication. Part 1 is missing. I've checked on this cache 5 or 6 times to see if you replaced part 1 and its still missing. It's costing me about $5 per trip and I've spent $25 to $30 already just trying to get this cache. What's the status of this cache? Will this spot be available in the near future?" A day or two later he disabled it and said he couldn't get to it because of high water. A month later (2 weeks after the water went down) I e-mailed the administrater and asked what was up with the cache and will the spot be available. A few days later the guy sends me a nasty e-mail telling me if I'm so worried about gas to ride a bike and "NO THIS SPOT IS NOT AVAILABLE". I sent him another e-mail stating that I wasn't trying to start trouble that its a nice spot and if he wasn't going to maintain his cache then I would like to take over the spot. I also told him that all he had to do was send me a simple e-mail and we wouldn't be having this discussion. Well he finally set the cache back up and I tried for 4 days to get it. In the summer this place is a muggle haven. I finally got my shot on monday morning. Guess what? Part 1 is missing or was never replaced?!? All the people in and out of there must have shaken up the park bench just enough to drop the micro from its hidding spot. I'm trying to get a hold of my buddy who's finished the cache to see if I can get the coordinates to stage 2 so I can set up stage 1 for the guy. I really don't want any trouble as this guy is close enough to cause damage or theft to my own caches. Should I go through the trouble to set it back up for him? With all the recent trouble I've had with him it will look like I'm trying to sabotage his cache so I can have the spot. If I set it back up then maybe he'll see I'm not trying to mess with his cache. Any thoughts on this one?

 

Trouble cacher number 2, The unfair trader: This guy is well known for taking geocoins and trading them for geocoins that he wants. He recently followed a cacher around that had a personal coin made up and grabbed all of them. My buddy had two geocoins and a unactivated TB traded for a lollipop. He's taking multiple items out of my caches and replaced them with a quarter or in at least one case nothing at all and then listed that he left a trade item. He also has some of the nastiest locations for his own caches. Like a short hike through a TP trail (YUK!!) and some trashy area's. He's had 1 cache confinscated because it wasn't labeled as a geocache and another archived because it was in a sacred place. I've never met him but everyone I've talked to about him say they hate him. At least 3 people that I've met have said he's a geocoin thief. Is there anyway to discourage this type of behaviour or a way to get people banned from cachin'? I just feel that people like this really destroy the hobby and make an enjoyable hobby much less enjoyable. I want to hear it all. What would you guys and girls do if anything? I was thinking of setting up a multi where you would need to e-mail for the final coordinates and when I get his e-mail send him 5 miles into the woods through some swamp land. Swizzle

[+hikergps]

Let it go man, let it go.

[+baby jojo's playpen]

As far as dealing with the first cache, I would just notify the administrator one last time that the first part of the multi is missing again. Then drop it and move on to other hides. Don't try to take over the location anytime soon. Perhaps down the road the spot will be available. But just let the administrator handle it from here on out. Don't get into any more email battles with this idiot. Hopefully there are lots of other caches in your area that you can spend your gas money and time on and have fun!

[+Team Perks]

The great thing about this hobby is that it attracts people from all walks of life.

 

The worst thing about this hobby is that it attracts people from all walks of life.

 

My advice: Take a few deep breaths, add that person's caches to your ignore list, and go out searching for some caches you're more likely to enjoy. While you're there, leave some nice swag to replace the stuff that the 'unfair trader' took.

 

I think you'll find yourself enjoying this game much more that way.

[+Kit Fox]

Since Geocoins, and Travel bugs are not trade items, cachers don't have to leave anything in there place.

 

We had a case of greedy cachers in our area. There is a geocoin cache that had nine geocoins in it. The majority of the local cachers revisited the cache daily to discover the new coins. A fairly new cachers stopped by and took all nine geocoins. This angered everyone, and we all sent him an email about being greedy. Guess what, peer pressure worked, and he replaced all the coins.

 

As for the multi, you can always log a Should be archived note. This will really piss him off, but sometimes cachers need some extra "incentive" to fix their caches. Here is an example of why a Needs maintenance log is useless, Lava Lamp.

Edited August 9, 2006 by Kit Fox

[CoyoteRed]

Since Geocoins ... are not trade items, cachers don't have to leave anything in there place.

 

This is news to me. Geocoins can serve at least two roles; as a traveler or as a signature item. If it is a traveler it falls under the rules of a traveler and if it's a signature item it falls under the rules for a signature trade item.

 

As a traveler, the coin continues to stay under the control of the owner. You don't trade for it and you don't keep it. You move it along according to the goals set by the owner.

 

As a signature item, it is a trade item meant to be traded for and you can keep it or do whatever you want with it. It's yours.

 

You can generally tell if a trackable geocoin is meant to be a traveler or a collectible by whether it is activiated or not. (Same with TB tags.)

[CoyoteRed]

As for the OP queries:

 

Taken from personal experience, you might have already caused too much friction to do much good, but you could post an SBA with pictures. "...in a drilled hole in a public park bench." I'm not sure this is a common occurrence where you live, but I'd think this would be against the guidelines without some detailed and ironclad proof of permission. This is one avenue to pursue, but be prepared to take the heat.

 

As for the second, peer pressure is the only avenue I can think of at the moment.

[+Mudfrog]

As a signature item, it is a trade item meant to be traded for and you can keep it or do whatever you want with it. It's yours.

 

I may have been doing wrong but i sure didn't think trading was necessary for a signature item!

 

On topic, It hasnt been mentioned but, when he replaced that first stage (at least he said he did), might he have moved it a few feet to a better hiding spot? The thing may very well be there if you didn't look around some.

 

Like others have said,, peer pressure or just letting him/her know that it isn't kosher may be the best thing to do for that greedy cacher in your 2nd case.

Edited August 9, 2006 by Mudfrog

[Mushtang]

I'm trying to get a hold of my buddy who's finished the cache to see if I can get the coordinates to stage 2 so I can set up stage 1 for the guy.

I'd recommend, as others have above, not doing anything about this and just letting it go. It IS possible that stage 1 is actually there, and somehow you've missed it. It could have been slightly relocated by a previous cacher and it no longer in the drilled hole, or maybe it was never supposed to be in the drilled hole to begin with but someone put it there right before your buddy found it. There are a lot of threads in the forums from a hider complaining about someone "replacing" their cache after not finding it, and now there are two containers.

 

I just feel that people like this really destroy the hobby and make an enjoyable hobby much less enjoyable.

 

I was thinking of setting up a multi where you would need to e-mail for the final coordinates and when I get his e-mail send him 5 miles into the woods through some swamp land.

If you tried to set up a cache like this, it wouldn't be approved because of the final email required.

 

And what would you do if you did send him on a 5 mile trek through a swamp, and then found out it was you that had been wrong?

[CoyoteRed]

I may have been doing wrong but i sure didn't think trading was necessary for a signature item!

 

Nah, I've probably got it wrong, but I've always thought a signature item was simply a special, personal trade item that folks left instead of a more generic item. You'd always know they've been there if you found such an item--it's their signature.

 

That's how I've always saw it and I've not ever seen where someone had taken one without trading, so I've never heard different until today.

[+sbell111]

Here's my advice:

 

Try not to pay so much attention to the actions of others. It will only lead you to despair.

 

Related to the mystery of the missing micro, wait until someone else finds the thing before you try it again. If that doesn't work for you, ignore the cache.

[+Allen_L]

Around here (Corner of GA, SC, NC) signature items are considered trade items. Signature items are about the only thing I will take in trade. Now some people like me will leave a signature item and take nothing, they consider that a trade up for the geocache. I tend to do this when there isn't a signature item in the geocache.

[ju66l3r]

If you have a problem with these cachers, you could ask them to come on the forums and post something politically incorrect in the geocoin forums. I hear that's a fast-track to bannination these days. Problem solved.

[+OHMIKY]

Around here (Corner of GA, SC, NC) signature items are considered trade items. Signature items are about the only thing I will take in trade. Now some people like me will leave a signature item and take nothing, they consider that a trade up for the geocache. I tend to do this when there isn't a signature item in the geocache.

 

I do trade sometimes but I have taken to leaving a sig item as well - the intention is for the sig item to be another item for trade in the cache. I figure trading up (by providing extra loot) can only improve the sport (game, pasttime, or whatever other descriptive nominative you prefer).

[+swizzle]

Problem cacher #1 has gotten flak for his actions before. His cache is located in the Adirondack Park. Part 1 I'm sure was in the drill hole and I've done everything but tear the bench apart and searched an area 20 feet round as well as searching another bench over 100 feet away in the same manor. Part 2 is written on the back of a peeled piece of bark off of a live birch tree (illegal to deface tree's in the adirondacks). Part 3 is of the side of the beach on private property. There is dozens of excellent hidding spots on this beach and he seems to choose all the wrong ones. Its people like this who will get geocaching banned in the adirondacks. I can't let that go. The benchs are taken inside for storage in the winter. I am going to wait until someone else post a dnf before I do anything else. For now I'll sit back and wait. Problem cacher #2 will most likely get a nasty note or 2. Nothing threatening life or limb, just expressing our dislike of his actions. Thanx for all of your opinions. Swizzle

[+SixDogTeam]

fORGET ABOUT IT. YOU'RE GETTING ALL WORKED UP OVER NOTHING.

[+swizzle]

Probably. Sometimes you just gotta vent. Just wanted to get a few different points of view is all. The majority is saying to let it go so I'm guessing that you've all seen your share of these types of cachers. Swizzle