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Indiana DNR does geocaching


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Yahoo! Just got this in the mail.

 

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Participate in our "Fall Into Geocaching" Contest

Compete for prizes including campsites, 2007 Annual Passes and a $100 gift certificate to Indiana State Park inns through our “Fall Into Geocaching” contest, set to run from Sept. 15 to Dec. 31, 2006.

 

Each participant is challenged to find a unique cache at the 22 participating properties. Coordinates and clues can be found on-line at www.geocaching.com. After finding the cache and signing into the logbook, you will find a word describing something unique about that property. When you've found 10 of the 22 caches, email the property names and corresponding words to the contest coordinator, whose contact information is found on the website.

 

The first geocacher who finds 10 of the 22 caches will be awarded the $100 gift certificate to Indiana State Park Inns. All other prizes will be awarded at the end of the contest in a drawing for participants who have located at least half of the 22 caches. Anyone who participates will be entered in a drawing for one of 100 "Fall Into Geocaching" t-shirts donated by Indiana State Park Inns.

 

To participate, go to www.geocaching.com after Sept. 15. Cache information will not be available on the site until then so everyone has an equal chance! More information can also be found at www.dnrfall.com.

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Of course the evil minded of us already know how to "game" the system; i.e., simply have a handful of friends go to a couple of the parks, sign each other names, and collect the clues. But where would the fun in that be? :laughing: Personally I am glad to see the Indiana DNR embrace geocaching. Yippee! I see a road trip in my near future.

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Oh, this will be fun! I'll definately play, if just for an excuse to revisit some of my favorite parks and see a few I haven't done yet. Hope there are enough weekends in the allowed time span to get it done.

 

Glad to see the DNR mending fences after last year's guideline imposition and the Rose Island affair. Thta said, from a revenue-generating standpoint, whoever dreamed this up for the DNR should be proud. A minimum of $50 park fees per cacher, one of whom will win a $126 prize. Very nice indeed.

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...A minimum of $50 park fees per cacher ...

 

Just buy the annual pass @ $36. I suspect many people do this already. Personally I am more concerned about the gasoline costs. Unfortunately most of the state parks are in the southern part of the state where I am in the northern part.

 

Still, if people aren't already buying annual passes, then you are correct -- this may be a breakeven for the DNR. T-shirt, postage for the shirts, cache container and personnel costs have to be factored in as well as the $100. My really rough guess on the total cost is $5,000.

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As the dreamer-upper for this, I have had to be tight-lipped since it was proposed in July! Glad I can finally give details now. :D

 

There are some errors on the DNRFall page. The words aren't scrambled. You will need to find 10 of the caches to win prizes. There are 125 prizes, ranging from the $100 gift certificate, annual passes, one night camping passes, day-admission passes, and T-shirts. Playing is not a requirement to find the caches (a Groundspeak stipulation)

 

All the caches look alike to make searching for this series easy. Each park has different terrain and difficulty. Those that saw me at the Fall Picnic might not of known that a primary reason for being there was to check and watch the Brown County cache as it was litearly RIGHT UNDER YOUR NOSE, and many of you walked right by it! :D

 

Here are the parks participating. The caches should be online the 14th or 15th. Just search "Fall Into Geocaching."

 

Brookville Lake

· Brown County State Park

· Fort Harrison State Park

· Indiana Dunes State Park

· J. Edward Roush Reservoir

· McCormick’s Creek State Park

· Mississinewa Reservoir

· Mounds State Park

· Ouabache State Park

· Pokagon State Park

· Potato Creek State Park

· Prophetstown State Park

· Raccoon Lake SRA/Cagles Mill

· Mansfield Mill

· Salamonie Reservoir

· Shades State Park

· Shakamak State Park

· Spring Mill State Park

· Summit Lake State Park

· Tippecanoe River State Park

· Turkey Run State Park

· Whitewater Memorial State Park

 

A thanks should go to Mountain Climber who has the ardous task of reviewing all of these to be released on the 15th. :D

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Four of the parks still do not have geocaches: Lincoln, Whitewater, PROPHETSTOWN :laughing: and CHARLESTOWN :huh: .

 

I guess the still have until the 15th to get them placed though.

 

Unless they have a different property manager at Charlestown, there won't be any caches there. We were run out along with about 50 caches. I don't know of any cachers that have been back since.

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Cache pages are now online! Many questions have been pouring in. To answer some of these, here are some FAQ to help with some of these. Good luck and have fun! :)

 

“Fall into Geocaching” Frequently Asked Questions

 

When I go to the www.geocaching.com home page, I don’t see anything that tells me about this contest. How do I find the coordinates for the caches?

· In the upper right hand corner of the Geocaching home page, you can search by zip code. The zip codes for each property included in the contest is listed below.

· When you get the list of caches, look for one that is titled “Fall into Geocaching: Property Name.” For example, “Fall into Geocaching: Roush Lake.” There may be several pages of caches for each zip code. (Note: if the list seems too long to sort through, you can also go back to the home page and click on “Advanced Search” in the box at the upper right and search by keyword. Enter the park or reservoir name as the keyword.)

· Click on that link and it will take you to the coordinates and other information for that particular cache. At that location, you will also be able to see links to all of the other site’s “Fall into Geocaching” cache information, too.

 

How do I find the zip codes for each property included in the contest?

Beside each property name is its zip code, which you will need to locate the cache information at www.geocaching.com. Brookville Lake ( 47012), Brown County (47448), Fort Harrison (46216), Indiana Dunes 46304), J. Edward Roush Lake (46750), Mansfield Mill (47872), McCormick’s Creek (47460), Mississinewa (46970), Mounds (46017), Ouabache (46714), Pokagon (46703), Potato Creek (46554), Prophetstown (47906), Raccoon (47872), Salamonie (46702), Shades (47989(, Shakamak (47438), Spring Mill (47446), Summit Lake (47362), Tippecanoe River (46996), Turkey Run (47859), and Whitewater Memorial (47353).

 

Many of the properties included in this contest have more than one cache. How do I know which caches on each property are a part of this contest?

The only cache that counts in this contest is the one called “Fall into Geocaching” with the property name listed. For example, “Fall into Geocaching: Pokagon State Park.” You can enjoy each property when you visit and find other caches that have been placed for you to discover by individuals. Remember, these caches can only be placed with a permit from the property manager. We limit the number of caches per site and are careful not to place them in nature preserves or other sensitive areas of the property.

 

How do I contact the contest coordinator if I have a question?

The contest coordinator is Brad Bumgardner, an interpreter at Pokagon State Park. He can be reached by email at bumgbj01@hotmail.com.

 

When I find one cache, should I send the information to the contest coordinator, or should I wait until I’ve found as many as I can?

If you are working to find at least 10 of the 22 caches and racing to win the grand prize of a $100 gift certificate to Indiana State Park Inns, send your information in as soon as you have found 10 of the 22 caches, but not before. Again, send the information about each of the 10 caches you’ve located all at once after you’ve found the 10th one. If you are competing just for fun, take your time! The contest continues through December 31, and the drawings for other prizes will not be until early January. As long as you submit the verification that you’ve found 10 of the 22 caches before January 1, you’ll be included in the drawings. If you haven’t found 10 of the 22 caches by December 31, submit what you have. You’ll be entered in the drawing for one of the 100 t-shirts. No matter how many caches you find, you can go back to www.geocaching.com and log your comments about your search for each cache – that makes it more entertaining for others.

 

Can I work with a group or do I need to work on my own?

It is ok to work as a group, but only one grand prize awarded. All in your group should record names in logbook and report finds to contest coordinator to be included in drawings for other prizes.

 

What if I can’t find the cache?

The caches are not very big (Hint! Hint!) and might occasionally get moved by an animal or a person, as sometimes happens with any cache. If you can’t locate the cache during your visit, stop in the property office or nature center and let them know the cache is missing, then be sure to contact Brad, the contest coordinator, too. We’ll be checking on the caches regularly and make every effort to keep them where they belong!

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I'm interested to see how fast someone gets 10 of them. I figured it up, and decided i'd rather whittle away at them while getting the other caches in the area. Power caching them is possible, but not cost effective. Costs more in gas than the prize is worth.

 

I'm also interested about the hides, i was expecting more hikes! I guess i will find out tommarow at Summit Lake and Mounds.

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I'm interested to see how fast someone gets 10 of them. I figured it up, and decided i'd rather whittle away at them while getting the other caches in the area. Power caching them is possible, but not cost effective. Costs more in gas than the prize is worth.

 

I'm also interested about the hides, i was expecting more hikes! I guess i will find out tommarow at Summit Lake and Mounds.

From the coords given for Brookville Res., you might be in for a swim. :)

 

This looks like it will be alot of fun. Thanks for putting this together.

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I'm interested to see how fast someone gets 10 of them. I figured it up, and decided i'd rather whittle away at them while getting the other caches in the area. Power caching them is possible, but not cost effective. Costs more in gas than the prize is worth.

 

I'm also interested about the hides, i was expecting more hikes! I guess i will find out tommarow at Summit Lake and Mounds.

From the coords given for Brookville Res., you might be in for a swim. :)

 

This looks like it will be alot of fun. Thanks for putting this together.

 

Well Indiana WAS covered in water 100 million years ago, this cache should NOT be!!! :D We will quickly correct any coord errors in the a.m.! We suspected there may have been an error in either Brookville or Whitewater Memorial, but I wasn't for sure. Thanks for the heads up on it!

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Well, the nearest 10 caches to me are a semi-circle of 72 miles from the south-west through the east and up to the north. Of course that is via "how the GPS flys." If I drop Tippecanoe River, then the semi-circle widens to 80 miles but only goes from the south-west to the east -- a bit more managable but still a trip of hundreds of miles. It makes me wish I lived in the southern part of the state where most of the parks are located.

I'll head out to Prophetstown tomorrow and give a report on that cache.

BTW: Thanks to the wolverine warriors for the bookmark list of the DNR caches.

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Now if only ACRES could do something like this!!!

 

Brad, thank you, in advance, for all your hard work. You are an instrumental piece in getting the IDNR and Geocachers to work together!! I would hate to see where we'd be if not for your efforts and your dedication.

 

Thank you!

 

:)

 

I echo this, Thanks Brad!

 

We will have to go up to 127 miles to get at least ten, but it will be fun trying. Maybe ACRES will keep an eye on this contest and see that Geocaching isn't so bad after all.

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I personally am not rushing out to play. Had the IDNR done their homework they would have realized the revenue possibilities of Geocaching and would have catered more to the game from the start. It's perfectly reasonable that the State Park system would need some guidelines for cache hiding on their properties but there is no excuse for the way the situation was handled at Charlestown S.P. (For the record, this comment is intended to reflect on the IDNR and not the Pokagon N.C. As far as it goes the cache idea is a good one and I commend those who came up with it.)

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My report on the Prophetstown SP cache.

 

As always it is fun and interesting to get out to P-town. It keeps growing and changing. We had a nice hike which is, of course, the real object of geocaching. However the cache location itself is nothing special. Just a micro in the wilderness. It could have been placed anywhere.

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Unfortunately most of the state parks are in the southern part of the state where I am in the northern part.

 

 

But most of the parks chosen for this contest are in the north. I counted only seven that were south of Indianapolis (plus one actually in Indy). That should leave fourteen in the northern half of the state.

 

I did the one in Spring Mill this afternoon and it was in a really nice spot -- I'm surprised no one had put a cache there already (back before the new guidelines, that is. . .)

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The contest ends shortly. It's important that any team wishing to go into the drawing for the prizes email their words to my profile (found on any FIG cache page). In addition to the drawing for those that find 10 of the caches, there is also the drawing for everyone who found at least one and submitted the word.

 

Thanks to everyone who got out and enjoyed the fall weather in the parks.

 

You'll have another reason to visit the parks to go geocaching later in the year (besides our great parks' beauty)... a chance to find something small, round, and shiny! ;)

 

Brad Bumgardner

Fall Into Geocaching Coordinator

Pokagon State Park

Angola, IN

bumgbj01@hotmail.com

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The contest ends shortly. It's important that any team wishing to go into the drawing for the prizes email their words to my profile (found on any FIG cache page). In addition to the drawing for those that find 10 of the caches, there is also the drawing for everyone who found at least one and submitted the word.

 

Thanks to everyone who got out and enjoyed the fall weather in the parks.

 

You'll have another reason to visit the parks to go geocaching later in the year (besides our great parks' beauty)... a chance to find something small, round, and shiny! ;)

 

Brad Bumgardner

Fall Into Geocaching Coordinator

Pokagon State Park

Angola, IN

bumgbj01@hotmail.com

 

Thank you for your willingness to provide the "Fall Into Geocaching" contest. After the debacle at Charlestown, I had intentionally stayed away from Indiana state parks and waited to see what would happen with the DNR caching guidelines. You provide a model for others to follow and the Kentucky parks are beginning to get on board. I have no plans to return to Charlestown due to their rude treatment of cachers who would have helped clean the park and remained respectful of park rules. However, I do plan to visit other Indiana state parks in the future. Next year's "small, round, and shiny" idea already intrigues me. Again, thank you.

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The contest ends shortly. It's important that any team wishing to go into the drawing for the prizes email their words to my profile (found on any FIG cache page). In addition to the drawing for those that find 10 of the caches, there is also the drawing for everyone who found at least one and submitted the word.

 

Thanks to everyone who got out and enjoyed the fall weather in the parks.

 

You'll have another reason to visit the parks to go geocaching later in the year (besides our great parks' beauty)... a chance to find something small, round, and shiny! :anibad:

 

Brad Bumgardner

Fall Into Geocaching Coordinator

Pokagon State Park

Angola, IN

bumgbj01@hotmail.com

 

OK you started it you need to tell us more! :ph34r::mad:

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The drawing for the Fall Into Geocaching Contest was held today! Here are the winners:

 

$100 Gift Certificate Grand Prize:

Lazerdazzler (aka. Brent Putnam) 13 hours 2 minutes.

2nd Place Annual Pass:

rubber ducky (aka. Bill Newman) 16 hours 38 minutes.

3rd Place Annual Pass:

BigKatz123 (aka. Mary Ann McDonald) 5 days 12 hours.

For the drawing of those that found at least 10 FIG caches:

 

DNR 2007 Annual Pass:

long lake cachers

Team CB Indy

 

2 Night DNR Camping Passes:

501 Gang

WanderingIndiana

super 7

Team Itchy and Scratchy

grimmyb

 

1 Time Free Daily Admission Pass:

old timers

mica hikers

Dliming

map76track

A Kid At Heart

spiritclan

Dirom2001

KidKrazy

Milesdol

sciencefun

 

The state has decided to award 2 Fall Into Geocaching T-shirts to the following teams that found and reported the code word to at least 1 FIG cache.

 

FIG T-Shirt Winners:

B n J

BVCY Swim

The S Troop

4kclub

Los Lacos

fw_ord

lord family

USAF #1

Roc and Stone

"Paws"itraction

tall one

Balchase

star rider

fishersfinders

Baldeagle06

bdmsremmel

sweetypie

g-winger

ZBQ

Confucious Cat

coolrunnings

ceclemons

Car54

Jamile

PrairiePartners

SassyKat

The Herd

rupert2

HitnRun

Lord Elwood

Team Shydog

Rick K

Team GC Hound

CyBret

are_we_there_yet?

ImaCacher2

BBOYS3

Indy Diver

hungarian barbarian

Baby 627

Eye of the Pirate

1Markymark1

Wolverine Warriors

Atilla the hun

bluegillfisherman

Duckm

soccergirl13

 

In the next few days I will be contacting all the winners to make them aware. If you know anyone on this list, feel free to let them know. It will be a couple weeks before the prizes are handed out. The

T-shirt winners will also be asked to give a shirt size (s/ml/xl/xxl) and we will try to accomodate with what we receive. If you do not get your choice, we will give you the next size up.

 

Thanks everyone! <_<

 

P.S. And no, GC Hound, I can't say anymore about the shinys until the lakes thaw out (at least looking out my back window!)

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The IDNR ROCKS!!!!

 

It is really nice to see just how much the IDNR is willing to work with us and encourage our sport. Where so many land owners are discouraging and even banning Geocaching, the IDNR is sponsering contests to get poepl out there. This truely is a wonderful relationship that us Geocachers have with the IDNR and I wouild like to give my personal thanks and praise to Brad of Pokagon Interpretive Services for making this relationship possible. Without his love and dedication to our sport, I seriously doubt that Geocaching and the IDNR would be where they are today.

 

So Brad, THANK YOU!!!!!

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Some cachers have asked about the official media release that was due out, oh, a month ago! It is out, and you might find it in some of your local newspapers.

 

Here it is in full:

 

State Parks and Reservoirs Division announces new geocaching feature

 

A hundred collectable "geocoins" featuring the DNR and Indiana State Parks and Reservoirs logos are being placed in existing geocaches on various DNR properties around the state in cooperation with The Geocoin Store. A few of these coins will be added to properties each month, partially as a result of the highly successful Fall into Geocaching contest that the DNR staged in autumn 2006.

 

More than a dozen geocoins have been hidden in state park or reservoir caches to date. Geocachers can find hints for the locations at http://raccoonsadventure.indianageocaching.com.

 

The hints also provide insight into some of the unique features that make each state park or reservoir special. Geocachers who find the coins may keep them, trade them, or place them in other caches. These coins are also for sale through The Geocoin Store at http://www.geocoinstore.com/.

 

Most state park and reservoir properties have several geocaches on site. To place your own cache for others to find, you must obtain a permit from the property manager. The number of caches that may be placed at each property is limited by acreage, usage and other factors. To read the DNRÂ’s Geocaching Policy, visit http://www.in.gov/dnr/parklake/publication..._Geocaching.pdf.

 

The contest, which ran from September through December, was conceived and run by Brad Bumgardner, an interpretive naturalist at Pokagon State Park, and hosted by Indiana State Parks and Reservoirs.

 

A total of 340 teams searched for geocaches from Lake Michigan to the Ohio River, attempting to find a unique cache in at least 10 of the 22 participating properties.

 

"We were very pleased with the participation in the contest, and we received a lot of positive comments from geocachers," said Ginger Murphy, assistant director for stewardship.

 

The contest produced 20 winners. The grand prize, a $100 gift certificate to Indiana State Park Inns, was awarded to Brent Putman from Anderson, who found the required 10 caches in less than 24 hours.

 

Annual entrance passes were awarded to Bill Newman, Indianapolis; Mary Ann McDonald, Sweetser; Adena Crisenbery, Albion; and Chuck and Barbara Barnett, New Whiteland.

 

Camping gift cards valued at $50 each were awarded to Daryl Wright, Michigan City; Major Sherwin,West Lafayette; Gordon and Cindy Schuler, Warsaw; Greg and Aleesa Drennan, Cambridge City; and Brandi Grimm, Winona Lake.

 

Ten one-day free admissions to be used at any Indiana state park or reservoir were awarded to Michele Devitt, Crawfordsville, John Haney, Sweetser; Gary Glass, Fort Wayne; Scott and Brenda Bowman, Logansport; Becky Ford from Marion, Curtis Sherman from Romney, Dan Liming from Cincinnati, OH, and Mike Penrose from Mishawaka and Karen Gardner and Miles Stucky, both from Indianapolis.

 

Congrats to all the winners. The T-shirt winners are too many to mention!

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