How many caches do you "Watch"?

[+markp99]

I actually "watch" all of my ~120 finds, plus several of unfound caches with my ~10 mi home radius.

 

I really enjoy reading the logs as they come in and reminds me of my own finds at those caches. It also gives me a pretty good idea of the level of caching activity in my area and helps me recognize the cachers names in my area.

 

It seems this practice may not be too common, however. I find I am among only 1-2 others watching most of these caches.

 

Do you like to watch

[+GreyingJay]

I only watch caches that I really, really liked -- some caches have that "ARGH!" surprise element, so it's fun reading the logs that come from those. Or, if I am FTF on a cache, I will watch it for the next week or two to see what the next finders thought of it.

 

For a while I was watching caches that I intended to do "eventually", so that for a few weeks prior to my actually finding the cache, I was seeing regular reports that it was in fact still there, still active.

 

I won't watch too many, though, since that just clutters up my email box.

[+The Leprechauns]

I only have maybe five caches left on my watchlist, because bookmark lists are so much better to work with. For my bookmark lists, I get all the logs from the 80-something caches on my Top 5% Greatest Cache Hunts list, because it is fun to read others' logs on great caches. I also get all the logs for the 45 or so caches on my unresolved DNF's bookmark list, in the hope that a later finder might say something that would make a light bulb go off in my head, or that the owner will confirm the cache was missing.

 

I think that watchlist statistics are down quite a bit because of bookmark lists. Older caches, pre-bookmark lists, tend to have higher watchlist counts on average. For newer caches, it's not uncommon to see 0 or 1 watchers, even for a decent cache. Yet, dozens of people could be receiving log notifications through their bookmark lists, whether public or hidden.

 

I never look at the number of watchers statistic, as it's meaningless. I *do* look to see if a cache is on someone's bookmark list, especially a "favorite caches" list.

[+StarBrand]

It varies but I usually have 20 - 30 local caches on my watchlists. I am transitioning over to bookmarks and am keeping up a favorites bookmark list.

[+Snoogans]

I like this topic. It hasn't really been done to death.

 

Click the picture in the quote if you want to see the information in that thread as well.

 

Do you like to watch?

(He likes...to watch)

 

I like to watch.....

 

I'm currently watching 38 caches and 33 travel bugs.

 

I laugh at the "I demand to know who's watching MY CACHE!" threads. I usually look up the OP's caches and put a watch on every single one.

 

But it has occurred to me that this is grounds for discussion on watching habits.

 

My habits:

 

I watch my favorite caches in several states, caches that I want to visit, upcoming event pages, and the caches nearest my house for the most part. I also keep a watch on several archived caches.

 

I watch my friend's TBs, tbs that I think are cool and would love to find, and tbs that are missing from my caches to see where they resurface if they do at all.

 

What, How many, and why do you watch caches and TBs?

 

Have you learned anything from your watching habits?

 

I.E. I once put a watch on every cache from Lone Pine, Ca. to Bridgeport, Ca., just to gauge the level of cachin' activity in the Long Valley/Eastern Sierra. It worked and I was surprised at the level of activity.

 

I also learned to take my watch OFF of an event page about 2 days out.

 

Do you want to OUT yourself as a watcher of any particular cache or TB?

 

I watch The Frog Shrine in Santa Barbara, Ca. I also watch The Bloated Festering Head of My First Victim.... Of course, I watch the Original Stash..... I keep an eye out for the Chain Chomp TB to come to a cache near me...

 

How much email do you get on average from your watched caches and TBs?

 

I usually get 1 to 7 emails a day just on the 71 items on my watchlist.

 

(BTW-please don't use that last question as a reason to whine about tbs seen at events.)

 

Wellll? Discuss.....

Edited August 15, 2006 by Snoogans

[+Paranoid56]

ummmm, usualy 3 of them

 

shane

[+Tsmola]

If you must know, I have 7 caches and 3 travel bugs on my watchlist of the 7 caches I've only found one of them. I know I'm not gonna put a watch on all the caches I've found, especially ones like Tamrack Cache that get visited 2-3 times a week, and especially not the Maryland Project APE I found that gets 2-3 visits a day!

 

Most of them are caches I found interesting and want to someday do, on my watchlist is a Unknown cache where you find it by finding a travel bug that has the coords with it. I have both the bug and cache on watchlist until I find that one. Another bug on my list is Cold War Relic, just because after I moved it I wanted to see how far it would go. and the last bug on my watchlist belongs to a local cacher, I was the first to move it and wanted to see if it would complete it's goal to get back to MI after I dropped it in Maryland.

 

Does this satisfy your curiosity? Now who's watching my cache? Dang it!

[+New England n00b]

I have a series of caches (not mine) on the Wapack Trail (N. Mass to S. NH) bookmarked. I love the trail, and getting teh bookmark emails lets me live a little vicariously. Additionally, bookmarks allow you to catagorize, unlike watchlists. Great feature!

Edited August 15, 2006 by New England n00b

[+AuntieWeasel]

I don't watch any caches. Wait, no...I watch two caches on which I was a co-hider but not the principle hider (because I won't get auto-notify and they won't show up on my "found" list).

 

What I do is periodically click back through all my finds and take a gander at any recent logs. I have fewer than 400 finds, so this is still doable. Just.

[+markp99]

For the bookmark fans,

 

What advantage do bookmarks have over watched caches? I understand that you can organize different caches into different lists, but after that are they esentially the same?

 

Thanks

[+Snoogans]

For the bookmark fans,

 

What advantage do bookmarks have over watched caches?

 

No emails on cache activity.

[+DocDiTTo]

I don't like a lot of emails, so there are probably less than a dozen caches on my watch list and they're of the type that get hit only a few times a year, mostly. I do have a bookmark list that I get emails from, only because I'm helping a local cacher maintain his caches; he can't do it himself because of a medical condition. I do occasionally watch new caches if they look interesting, but those watches are just temporary. One local guy watches every new cache that pops up anywhere in the area... I can't imagine the number of emails he must get...

[+Stephanie2427]

I'm watching 2 upcoming events.

 

The "Class Six" Cache GCMTZT because I grew up on that A.F.B. and hope to revisit it on my next trip to Cali. I'm also thinking about sending out a 2005 Alabama geocoin with the mission being to reach this cache before I get there.

 

The Treasure (LimeKiln Ruins) GCX4Y7 Because it looks like its near my brothers house and its a place I've never noticed before. So its on my list of caches to get next time I visit.

 

Big Fish GCXM3Q because it looks like its going to have some really entertaining logs.

 

Did You Hear That? GCKWN8 because its a spooky nightime cemetary cache and I think a group of cachers are trying to get together to find it. I want to know when they're going so I can be there and scare the cr@p outta them.

 

Duh Big Boy Travel Bug because it was the first TB I ever found. I can still see the look on my non caching co workers face when I came walking out of the woods carrying a bowling ball.

 

Bobble Buc Travel Bug because I took him to an event and the person who got him hasn't logged him yet. I'm hopeing she'll remember soon.

[+edscott]

I watch DNFs until I find them or they are archived and I watch a couple other really interesting local caches. Must be about 15 right now.

[+New England n00b]

For the bookmark fans,

 

What advantage do bookmarks have over watched caches?

 

No emails on cache activity.

I get emails on my bookmark activity... UNless you are saying those are optional? I never looked beyond that.

 

As for advantages, you can share them with other people, like I have with my Wapack Trail list. That way, someone can click on the bookmark and see all teh caches along that trail (at least the way I did it). Alternatively you can make one that represents your favorite finds and share that... Tons of stuff.

[+briansnat]

I watch pretty much every cache I've found, plus some others for one reason or another. I'd guess about 500 total.

[+Glenn]

I watch more travelbugs and geocoins than I do caches. But of the caches that I watch are those that I liked and know are going to generate more than just TFTC logs and a few near my home.

[+Klondike Mike]

I don't watch many caches, I think I'm down to one now but my ignore list is getting really fat

[+thedeadpirate]

I am watching one fairly difficult cache that I have DNFed 3 times. I plan to give it another shot the next time I am in the area.

 

I have another cache that I have unofficially adopted on my watchlist. The owner has long since quit but the caches get a lot of traffic and it would be a shame for them to be archived.

 

The last one on my watchlist is the only other cache within 20 miles that doesn't belong to me. It's also the first cache I ever found so it has some sentimental value as well.

[4wheelin_fool]

I actually "watch" all of my ~120 finds, plus several of unfound caches with my ~10 mi home radius.

 

I really enjoy reading the logs as they come in and reminds me of my own finds at those caches. It also gives me a pretty good idea of the level of caching activity in my area and helps me recognize the cachers names in my area.

 

It seems this practice may not be too common, however. I find I am among only 1-2 others watching most of these caches.

 

Do you like to watch

I do the same thing for the same reason. When I hit 100 caches, I found out I couldn't watch any more as a regular member, so I paid the $30. I've taken off the watchlist a few urban micros that get found frequently, and I have about 15 on it that I haven't done yet.

[+maureensk]

I watch DNFs until I find them or they are archived and I watch a couple other really interesting local caches. Must be about 15 right now.

 

I also watch any of my DNF's. I am still new to this (trying for #100 tomorrow), and I like to see if a DNF is because the cache is actually missing or due to my inability to find it. Also, sometimes someone will later mention something in a log that will help me realize what I did wrong.

 

I guess I could just as easily start bookmarking all of my DNF's instead of watchlisting them. Sometimes I put them on my ignore list if I am pretty sure they are missing. One day, I suppose, I'll get good enough to report caches as needing maintenance or should be archived if I have searched for them on multiple occasions and am still DNF'ing. For right now, I'd say my DNF's have only about a 50% chance of actually being missing.

 

We recently placed our first cache and were just wondering yesterday why people were watching it. Now we know why.

[+cachew nut]

I used to have quite a few caches on my watchlist, but now I just have a few. I don't care much for bookmark lists, I think I might have had one at one time, maybe it's still there, I don't know.

 

While I loved my watchlist, what turned me off to using a watchlist was the inability to remove more than one cache at a time. Caches that get disabled or archived would remain in the watchlist, and over time would need to be deleted. This was such a PITA. Adding a bulk delete option would seem like a simple programming change, considering that everything else on the website can be done in bulk or selected from one page, (ie. the .loc files, modifying a PQ, or setting cache attributes), but it's probably harder than I'm thinking it is.

[+hikergps]

For the bookmark fans,

 

What advantage do bookmarks have over watched caches? I understand that you can organize different caches into different lists, but after that are they esentially the same?

 

Thanks

 

I bookmark instead of watch to get away from the anonymity of things. If I'm watching a cache, for good reasons or bad, I want the cache owner to know. If someone was watching my cache, it would be nice to know who. I could care less why.

[+Kabuthunk]

The only caches I watch are the ones really close to me (basically... the one that's like... a block from my place, and the ones in the two closest parks that I bike to relatively often), and the ones I DNF'ed. The ones really close to me I'll keep an eye on because I'm close enough to run repairs if needed, or at one point or another I'll stock them up with interesting stuff. As for the DNF's, I just want to watch to see if someone else finds it or it's archived or something... something that indicates that it's either there for sure or not.

[+Glenn]

 

Thats better. Now he is watching geocachers geocache.

 

Hmmm, CH477 all Geocaching all the time. The qestion is will viewers also be able to log finds on the caches they watch being found?

[+Snoogans]

 

Thats better. Now he is watching geocachers geocache.

 

Hmmm, CH477 all Geocaching all the time. The qestion is will viewers also be able to log finds on the caches they watch being found?

 

Great mod of that picture!

 

In answer to your question, if it were a real channel, I'd eat a bug if more than a handful DIDN'T try to log them.