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Help making it so that night cache found ONLY at night?


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Hi all,

 

I thought I'd solicit some opinions from the community at large.

 

There are a number of night caches in my neck of the woods (all reflector type hides), but sadly, over half the finders seem to be doing them during the day. Some may think that's fine, but not me. Call me crazy, but asking cachers to find a "night cache" during the night isn't unreasonable.

 

So, is there any way to set up the cache so that finders almost HAVE to do it at night? I considered making finders take a picture at night to log the find, but I'd rather not add logging restrictions until I've really exhausted all other options.

 

Thanks,

MW.

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FWIW,

I did a night cache a while back and decided to start a little early. The first reflector was West of the first coordinates and I had to wait until the sun was all the way down before I could see it. It was more than 500 feet away, didn't measure it, and the second one was very difficult to see without a very good light source. It took me two trips as the first time my light was not good enough. I did circle and try to find the first reflector but the vegitation, terrain, and distance to the first marker made it difficult. Finding subsequent reflectors, 9 more, would have been pure luck due to distance between reflectors.

Burt

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You could make the first reflector a led turned on when the sun goes down. Should be an easy thing to find an old solar powered sidewalk light and modify it to have a red led.

 

This is one outstanding idea, thanks! Sadly, I'm about inept as they come in the realm of mechanical/electrical engineering. This is exactly the kind of thinking I'm looking for, though.

 

Keep the ideas coming!

 

Thanks,

MW.

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Use reflectors that are not easy to see during the daylight. Firetacks in "stealth" color come to mind.

 

Hmm, thanks for the idea. I love firetacks, and most night caches out here use them. But they're so easy to see at night. However, I've never see the "stealth" version in use. I wonder if that'll do the trick. I'll look into it, thanks!

 

Anyone have experience using the "Stealth" ones?

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You could make the first reflector a led turned on when the sun goes down. Should be an easy thing to find an old solar powered sidewalk light and modify it to have a red led.

 

This is one outstanding idea, thanks! Sadly, I'm about inept as they come in the realm of mechanical/electrical engineering. This is exactly the kind of thinking I'm looking for, though.

 

Keep the ideas coming!

 

Thanks,

MW.

 

I'm certain that this cache: Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil (GCT3V0)

contains a fair amount of electrical engineering, but it was a *blast* to do with a group.

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Hi all,

 

I thought I'd solicit some opinions from the community at large.

 

There are a number of night caches in my neck of the woods (all reflector type hides), but sadly, over half the finders seem to be doing them during the day. Some may think that's fine, but not me. Call me crazy, but asking cachers to find a "night cache" during the night isn't unreasonable.

 

So, is there any way to set up the cache so that finders almost HAVE to do it at night? I considered making finders take a picture at night to log the find, but I'd rather not add logging restrictions until I've really exhausted all other options.

 

Thanks,

MW.

 

Just a thought for a low-tech option - dunno if it's been done, but have you considered the use of theatrical Glow tape? Most theatres use it to put on the edge of steps or to place "marks" for positioning of actors during blackouts. It's got a good shelf life (months) and would be easy to replace during maintenance visits. Comes in a variety of colors. I'm thinking green or blue to best blend with the scenery during the day. I'd find a nice hole to hide the container and cover it most of the way, w/ only the glow tape exposed.

 

Also, to protect against the elements, I'd glow tape the container, then put a couple of layers of clear packing tape over that.

 

Just my 2 lincolns.

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Those "stealth" firetacks look pretty kewl, though at $10 for 25 of them, they're too pricey for my budget. I own two night caches, with over 3 miles of reflective trail between them, and I hung hundreds of reflectors. I haven't had anyone try mine during the day, but I reckon it's possible. If someone did, more power to 'em. Perhaps you could use the 25 stealth tacks to start your trail, then switch to the generic, low cost version?

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I'm planning an 'absolutely night only' cache using a solar yard/path light.

"Go to location X at night"

"Look around and see the light"

I'm not sure where I might put this (yet), but the points may be separated by as much as a half-mile! This would absolutely eliminate any possibility of a daytime find! Of course it may also result in a lot of frustrated DNFs if the light fails...

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maybe hide the reflectors higher up in the trees? Enough so that those on the ground may have a hard time making them out - but not so much that they are skewed by the leaves and branches.

 

So far this is my only option, as I see it. With "stealth" firetacks up maybe 8 or 9 feet in a forest, that might be hard for daytime seekers.

 

Has anyone used the "stealth" firetacks? I'm also curious which work better, the three or four sided tacks?

 

Thanks for all the helpful posts, keep 'em coming!

 

MW.

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I haves use the Stealth fire tacks for one of my night caches. The stealth ones really cannot be seen in daylight very easily, I have had trouble finding them durring the day when I have done cache maintanance. as a matter of fact I have to chech my night caches at night. The trick is not putting them close together, most of mine are about 200 feet apart, unless the trail makes a turn.

A package of 25 should be fine, one of my night caches is a mile long and one is just under a mile.

About two years ago I found some black reflector tape durring halloween that I use to make my own night cache reflectors, this stuff works very well and I have used it with one of my night caches.

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You could make the first reflector a led turned on when the sun goes down. Should be an easy thing to find an old solar powered sidewalk light and modify it to have a red led.

 

This is one outstanding idea, thanks! Sadly, I'm about inept as they come in the realm of mechanical/electrical engineering. This is exactly the kind of thinking I'm looking for, though.

 

Keep the ideas coming!

 

Thanks,

MW.

 

No need to build them, when you can buy them at Radio Shack (Catalog #: 276-299) . I tested there effective range on a pitch black night, and they were visible from over 500 feet away. This may attract attention from non-cachers. :unsure: Building a waterproof housing would be the only challenging part of hiding this type of blinker.

 

Another method to foil day cachers is to force them to stop at the reflective tacks, and turn in a full circle, until the next reflector reveals itself. Most night caches are easy, because they force you in one general direction. Causing cachers to change directions would up the difficulty level a bit.

Edited by Kit Fox
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Those "stealth" firetacks look pretty kewl, though at $10 for 25 of them, they're too pricey for my budget. I own two night caches, with over 3 miles of reflective trail between them, and I hung hundreds of reflectors. I haven't had anyone try mine during the day, but I reckon it's possible. If someone did, more power to 'em. Perhaps you could use the 25 stealth tacks to start your trail, then switch to the generic, low cost version?

 

Look in the bargin bin, they have ones for $5.00 per 25 right now. Slight defect.

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My brother did a night cache where the hider informed the finder to start at point X and then walk to point Y. From there, swing your light around and you should be fine. Well, he wasn't fine. Couldn't find any reflection at all. Total blank. But on the walk back to point X from Y... about half way home the trail started.

 

Something like this would at least make it harder for the day finder to pick up the trail as it could start at any point along the way from point X to point Y.

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I'm not sure why a hider would want to restrict the manner (or time) in which a cache is found. Judging by the other thread running right now there are plenty of night cachers. On the flip side of this, however, are the folks that simply can not cache at night for whatever reason.

 

If some folks have the capability of finding a "night" cache during the day, why limit that capability by forcing someone to take a picture in the dark? Everyone plays the game in the manner which suits us best, so why impose unnecessary rules? The last time I checked, as long as a cacher signs a log the find is "legal".

 

I would personally avoid a night cache at which I was forced to take a picture (presumably with flash) that may bring unnecessary (and possibly dangerous) attention to myself and whomever was with me. I would discourage anyone from imposing ANY TYPE of logging restrictions on caches. Let's keep the game fun!

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I see no problem with there being a photo restriction to prove the cache was found at night. If a cacher is really set on getting the count while not respecting the rules of the cache, they'll find it in the day and go back at night to take a picture. Something that extreme isn't your problem.

 

Since we have very little time to cache, if there was a night-only cache in our area and we couldn't get a babysitter so we could go together (and I'm not caching alone at night), we just wouldn't get that cache. There were two event caches in our area in August and, for those events, a bunch of new caches were hidden, so I'm not worried that we'll eventually run out of caches to find that we can get to on our schedule.

 

- HauntHunters

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I'm not sure why a hider would want to restrict the manner (or time) in which a cache is found. Judging by the other thread running right now there are plenty of night cachers. On the flip side of this, however, are the folks that simply can not cache at night for whatever reason.

 

If some folks have the capability of finding a "night" cache during the day, why limit that capability by forcing someone to take a picture in the dark? Everyone plays the game in the manner which suits us best, so why impose unnecessary rules? The last time I checked, as long as a cacher signs a log the find is "legal".

 

I would personally avoid a night cache at which I was forced to take a picture (presumably with flash) that may bring unnecessary (and possibly dangerous) attention to myself and whomever was with me. I would discourage anyone from imposing ANY TYPE of logging restrictions on caches. Let's keep the game fun!

 

I agree, in part. I think this rule of thumb applies to most caches.

 

But to add some more info to my OP: This cache will be out in the middle of nowhere. There will be NO muggles for, persumably, a good 1mi + radius. So camera flashes attracted muggles wouldn't be a concern. More importantly, though, we're taking great lengths to make this a "themed" cache. I won't go into detail lest I spoil it for some locals, but its intent is to be 100% spooky and downright scary. It's hard to be spooky in broad daylight, hence why I'm looking for means to make it findable only during the night. Darkness just has that effect on most people :laughing:

 

Thanks for a very good thread, all,

MW.

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The reason some should not be done during daylight hours is that the area in question is used for other activities. The one that we have is on a disc golf course and is near both tees and baskets. Aside from being in the way of the "golfers" in the way of one of those hard thrown discs is not a place to be. Hence the note on the cache page "no daytime finds allowed".

 

One suggestion for limiting the ability of the bright eyes showing up is to place them inside something else, like a bottle cap or piece of pvc pipe to use as a shield where the angle has to be right on to view the tack. You can also paint over part of the tack to diminish the amount of visible surface area.

 

Vary the height and distance between points, change directions, or use different colored tacks are all good suggestions too.

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maybe hide the reflectors higher up in the trees? Enough so that those on the ground may have a hard time making them out - but not so much that they are skewed by the leaves and branches.

 

So far this is my only option, as I see it. With "stealth" firetacks up maybe 8 or 9 feet in a forest, that might be hard for daytime seekers.

 

Has anyone used the "stealth" firetacks? I'm also curious which work better, the three or four sided tacks?

 

Thanks for all the helpful posts, keep 'em coming!

 

MW.

Yes hang 'em high and far apart. I like the three sided because if you place them with the flat side toward the cacher as they go to the cache, they are very difficult to see when backtracking to the starting spot. The light tends to reflect above their head and toward the ground from the two sides then facing them. Some of the best adventures on my night cache are by people who get lost after finding the cache!! If you could see the design you would know that was my plan. :laughing: they are very difficult to spot during the day and mine are placed a hundred meters or so beyond trail junctions so they must make their choice first then confirm it later.. if they see nothing then their choice was wrong... or they missed a tack. Along sections of trail with no junctions there are no markers. Up to them to figure it out, so it is tough enough at night.. daytime would be worth a smiley if someone could do it.

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Got a theory about the use of 3 sided stealth fire tack that I'm getting ready to use on a new cache. Am going to place them on the outside of the trees away from the trail. The idea is that from a distance the tacks wil be visible by flashlight but when up close in the daylight the tacks would be concealed behind the tree. Any thoughts?

 

Deane

AKA: DeRock & the Psychic Cacher - Grattan MI

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Got a theory about the use of 3 sided stealth fire tack that I'm getting ready to use on a new cache. Am going to place them on the outside of the trees away from the trail. The idea is that from a distance the tacks wil be visible by flashlight but when up close in the daylight the tacks would be concealed behind the tree. Any thoughts?

 

Deane

AKA: DeRock & the Psychic Cacher - Grattan MI

 

Very nice.. maybe I'll move some of mine :laughing:

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You could make the first reflector a led turned on when the sun goes down. Should be an easy thing to find an old solar powered sidewalk light and modify it to have a red led.

 

This is one outstanding idea, thanks! Sadly, I'm about inept as they come in the realm of mechanical/electrical engineering. This is exactly the kind of thinking I'm looking for, though.

 

Keep the ideas coming!

 

Thanks,

MW.

 

We have a night cache in our area that uses LED's controlled by remote control. The first waypoint has the remote (you can also bring a householde remote from home, they work too), and then when you get to the next waypoint, you turn around clicking the remote until you see the blinking LED. Below the LED is a tag with the next coords. Then the final has a light shinning on where the cache is hidden. SO far this is my favorite cache yet.

 

Control The Night

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You can control the start point of a multi fairly easily, using a light box and a standard timer.

 

Make or modify a box with a lamp inside (flourescent probably, just for heat reasons) and the waypoint coords printed on a clear front panel in dark green (say) on black (so you can't see the letters without the backlight on.)

Attach it to a 24-hour timer set to turn it on at a specified time (you could alter it seasonally if you wished, but put the dates/times on the listing)

Put the whole thing in a street-visible window in your (or a friend's) office or, if you don't mind people wandering into your property at all hours, in a window at home.

 

Sure, someone could get the coords one night and then find the cache during the day, but at least you've encouraged them to do at least part of it at night, and I think most obsessed cachers will carry one once they've started!

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Use reflectors that are not easy to see during the daylight. Firetacks in "stealth" color come to mind.

 

Hmm, thanks for the idea. I love firetacks, and most night caches out here use them. But they're so easy to see at night. However, I've never see the "stealth" version in use. I wonder if that'll do the trick. I'll look into it, thanks!

 

Anyone have experience using the "Stealth" ones?

On my Night cache I used regular white fire tacks.I put them along a trail so they would be easy to see even in the day.As the tacks left the main trail I hid the so they would be hard to see in the day.I painted some more tacks with white paint and placed them along the main trail further into the forest.At the end of the painted tacks I placed 3 into a tree to give the impresion of THIS IS THE CACHE SITE.When I get a log stating finding 3 tacks in a tree and no cache I know they tried in the day.

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On my Night cache I used regular white fire tacks.I put them along a trail so they would be easy to see even in the day.As the tacks left the main trail I hid the so they would be hard to see in the day.I painted some more tacks with white paint and placed them along the main trail further into the forest.At the end of the painted tacks I placed 3 into a tree to give the impresion of THIS IS THE CACHE SITE.When I get a log stating finding 3 tacks in a tree and no cache I know they tried in the day.

 

Decoy reflectors, very nice idea! <_<

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On my Night cache I used regular white fire tacks.I put them along a trail so they would be easy to see even in the day.As the tacks left the main trail I hid the so they would be hard to see in the day.I painted some more tacks with white paint and placed them along the main trail further into the forest.At the end of the painted tacks I placed 3 into a tree to give the impresion of THIS IS THE CACHE SITE.When I get a log stating finding 3 tacks in a tree and no cache I know they tried in the day.

 

Now that's devious....I like it.

Edited by ar_kayaker
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One way I've come up with (but not yet tried) is to take cachers into a field or other large open area. At night, you could just shine your (powerful) flashlight in a circle until you spot the reflector, but during the day you're pretty much stuck... the next reflector could be anywhere along the perimeter of the field. You'd have to let seeker know to bring a strong light though. DOT reflective tape like the kind used on trailers is very reflective and visible from long distances with minimal light and might suit such a purpose. I like the idea of "fake" reflectors too -- especially at a trail intersection. This idea, coupled with a few new trails I discovered today, might make for a great little night cache. <_<

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On my Night cache I used regular white fire tacks.I put them along a trail so they would be easy to see even in the day.As the tacks left the main trail I hid the so they would be hard to see in the day.I painted some more tacks with white paint and placed them along the main trail further into the forest.At the end of the painted tacks I placed 3 into a tree to give the impresion of THIS IS THE CACHE SITE.When I get a log stating finding 3 tacks in a tree and no cache I know they tried in the day.

 

Ummm... ...my vote is for Halffast for Senior Vice President of Night Caching Operations!!! You're either brilliant, evil, or both!

 

<_<

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I found the actual log:

 

Well, this one eluded me! The only thing I got outta this one was lots of bug bites & muddy boots. I guess SOMEONE has to get a blue face, guess it's me this time. The last 3 reflectors that I found weren't reflecting, I actually found them by looking at every tree. There were 2 on the last tree that I found. I figured I was pretty close, but looked about 500+ ft in every direction & didn't find white, red or any interesting stumps. I was one pretty disappointed & frustrated lady when I drove the 70 miles back home at 2am. I looked for a loooong time!

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