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Underwater caches?


collinwoods

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Iv head about people puting caches under water and was wondering what kind of caches thes were and how popular they were. It sounds perty cool, have you done it?

 

I would do it, but i dont know how the items would stay dry underwater. I think its just a little too extreme and a little impractical, but thats just me.

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I've done two underwater caches, actually both on the same day. Not extreme at all if you are a certified diver. Both were designed so that the gps took you to a location on shore, then gave a distance, bearing and approximate depth to find the cache. Both were also "wet" caches, containing only items that wouldn't be damaged by being underwater for extended periods. As I remember, one had a "cache guardian" that you had to describe to the owner to claim credit, and the other had an underwater slate that you signed. I'd be willing to do more underwater caches, but those are the only two in the area. Neither got enough finds for me to bother putting one out myself.

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how good are the waterproof logs?

 

I would hope pretty darn good since it's like 14 bucks for a notepad after shipping.

 

 

I have a cache coming up that's going to be floating in the middle of a lake, and I'm thinking that it's going to be a requirement to have a waterproof log even with a waterproof container.

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I went in with a group of cachers to Moose Lake in Oregon. The cache we were headed for : GCNQR9

Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is: 5/5 The final cache location coords are attached to the bottom not far from shore in about 3-4 feet of water. It can be quite a challenge to find it. The cache itself has been chewed on by a bear since I saw it last June. Check Odder's maintainance log pictures. :anibad:

Tom Fuller

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My second favorite find of all time was Towelie II - Evil Towelie. The GPSr takes you to a spot out in a small lake. About 10' below you is the cache. Very kewl! No silly "E-mail me _____(<~~fill in blank) to get credit" requirements. It's been out since May of '04, and the Rite In the Rain Logbook has held up just fine. I've got one ready to hide, but I gotta wait on the spot to get freed up. It's a doubled up, heavy duty Ziplock, inside a Lock-n-Lock, inside an ammo can. Not sure how it will do over time.

Edited by Keystone
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It's a doubled up, heavy duty Ziplock, inside a Lock-n-Lock, inside an ammo can. Not sure how it will do over time.

There's a land-based ammo can high in the crotch of a tree near me that's started to come apart due to heavy rust. Its lid no longer stays seated and the gasket is ineffective. I can't imagine one underwater would fare better, but I hope it does.

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I know of one other land based ammo can cache that is rusting to pieces. Contents are completely ruined. This is in a part of the Ocala National Forest that is subject to seasonal standing water. For at least 4 months out of the year, the can is laying in about 4" of water with a high level of tanic acid. It went about 5 years before finally losing integrity. What I'm hoping for is to get 6 months out of the can before having to swap it out. Time will tell, I reckon. If I can't get 6 months out of it, I'll come up with a different plan. I'm satisfied with the short term waterproofness, (is that a word?), of ammo cans, as I've tested them by putting a lead brick in one and leaving it at the bottom of my pool for a week. No water got inside.

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This cache Snorkel Cache went live when I was in Maui over Halloween. We were going after it as it looked well prepared and a great spot to snorkel. Sadly the water was blown out and there was a hefty swell so we passed. Was hoping to get back to it this spring but it looks like it has been muggled - or torn up in the last storm that came through (Both are common problems in Hawaii, especially for those by the shores)

 

Hopefully it will get repaired, but the initial setup is not cheap.

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I got really excited after reading this. Can not wait for the weather to warm up so I can break out the ole scuba and dive gear. Hope to find some around here or within a days drive or so. Will have to see about setting a few of these up within some semi local clear springs.

 

Thanks for the posts and info

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I've been thinking / working on an underwater container for a while now. Not one that you need scuba gear for, but maybe a large lung capacity. I don't know how other people have handled the container issue, but I think the majority leaves some sort of plaque underwater with coords on it leading you to a cache on dry land. But I think it would be cool to have the actual container underwater. I just think it would feel better finding that, and having to bring it to the surface/dry land to open it and sign the log. This way it would also require I return trip to replace the thing.

 

Since you wouldn't need scuba gear for the one I want to hide, I don't have to worry about any insane pressure on the container under the water. I don't really think you would have to worry about underwater pressure so much if you kept the cache on the shallow side of 10 foot or so. That being said, I have found PVC to work well. If you cut yourself 8 inches of 2 inch PVC, and cement a cap on one end (the good pvc cement), you are half way there. They also sell plumbing caps, the kind where you turn the wingnut to expand a rubber ring around the inside diameter of the PVC. If you seal the other end with this, your container will be water proof. I've made a bunch, and have minor testing with them. By minor I mean filling up the sink in the work room, and weighting the container to the bottom and just leaving it there for a few days. I find that the seal on my sink will drain the water out after a few days, but the inside of the container would still be dry. Of course 10 foot down is different from 3 inches down, but its a start.

 

The only problem with that design I have found is the wingnut on top. If you don't get a stainless one, it will rust very quickly, making the container super hard to open. They make great marine grease for applications like this, but I don't think that would be enough.

The other problem would be anchoring it to the bottom, or something to hold it down. You could attach a cable to rocks, or a large cement block, but you would have to attach an i-let or ring to the cache container, and use a beaner or something to connect the two. There you have the problem of properly sealing the bottom of the container again after drilling a hole in it, and I don't think your average silicone would do the trick. And again, more hardware under the water, means rust that future finders would have to contend with.

 

I'm sure you could buy some sort of container made to be underwater at a scuba gear store, but I get a charge out of the problem solving needed in making your own container. That and I think people appreciate a cache more when they see the time and effort you have put into it. I know I do at least :rolleyes:

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8161bdab-e0b1-48b3-ad60-cef50c558df6.jpg

 

1NatureDad made these (he's a plumber). It is PVC pipe with marque plug. Cemented brick with a long eye screw thru it. The cement&brick weight it down. The eye screw enables a rope to be tied to a tree. the PVC & Marque plug enable waterproof (has o-ring) and ez opening. THere is rite-n-rain paper for a log book.

 

We've tied them along the shore on a lake, and have gotten good feedback from paddlers!

 

Out of the 4 we placed, only 1 is leaking in need of replacement over the past year.

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This one, Water Maple, doesn't require scuba and is a whole lot of fun. It's been there over 4 years now! :wub:

That's a great one - one of my all time favorites. It took me quite a while to get up the gumption to jump in the cold water with two large snapping turtles swimming below me but I did it.

 

Off topic, but someone recently didn't sign the log but claimed a find on the cache. :rolleyes:

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