Cache-to-cache distance

[+TheAlabamaRambler]

So I was prompted by another thread to look at my stats in ItsNotAboutTheNumbers tonight and one of the many meaningless stats caught my attention:

 

Approximate cache-to-cache distance: 74527.9 miles (119941.02 kilometres)

 

Wow. No way to translate that to road miles or anything meaningful, but still... almost 75,000 miles chasing geocaches?

 

Most of those miles were in my Jeep or Tahoe, averaging 15 mpg.

 

Gas prices being what they are I don't think I will share that little factoid with GeoRose!

 

I'm scared to do the math myself, especially knowing that road miles may be many times the straight-line number!

 

So, just for grins, what is your between-cache driving mileage? Be sure to read the definition underlined for that data item, as the number can be thrown off by armchair and locationless logging and airplane trips and such.

 

EDIT to add:

Oh, before anyone asks, you have to be a Premium Member.

 

Go to your gc.com account and get a My Finds PQ.

 

Upload the zip file as it was sent to your email to ItsNotAboutTheNumbers.com

 

Largely meaningless but fun-to-see stats will be calculated.

 

If you want to see what it calculates before you do all that see my profile.

Edited January 24, 2007 by TheAlabamaRambler

[+TrailGators]

It says I've gone 22479.01 miles (36176.47 kilometres) in the 236 days that I went caching. That means I traveled an average of 95 miles each day I cached. I don't think so...Something is hosed up....

 

Other interesting things I found:

On average I cache once every 6.3 days.

My longest caching drought was 211 days.

My average physical terrain rating: 1.76

85.8% of the caches I've found are still active.

I haven't looked at this site for a while. It is pretty cool!

[+fizzymagic]

The algorithm for calculating the distance is extremely unreliable. I was tempted to put something like it into my FindStats program, but chose not to because the results are so bad.

 

It only (approximately) works if:

• You always log your caches in exactly the order you found them on each individual day.
  
• You have done no moving caches or armchair caches.
  
• You have never gone back and deleted and then re-entered a log at a later date.
  

I don't know whether or not it excludes locationless caches; if it doesn't, then you have another big problem there, too.

 

The only reliable way to calculate your caching distance is to keep your own database of the actual order of finds and their actual locations.

[+Jhwk]

The algorithm for calculating the distance is extremely unreliable. I was tempted to put something like it into my FindStats program, but chose not to because the results are so bad.

 

It only (approximately) works if:

• You always log your caches in exactly the order you found them on each individual day.
  
• You have done no moving caches or armchair caches.
  
• You have never gone back and deleted and then re-entered a log at a later date.
  

I don't know whether or not it excludes locationless caches; if it doesn't, then you have another big problem there, too.

 

The only reliable way to calculate your caching distance is to keep your own database of the actual order of finds and their actual locations.

Which is why I went with a Geocoin that I carry in my pocket or camelbak while caching. I log the finds in order, and it calculates the distances travelled so far. Of course it's not perfect. I flew for my 25th anniversary to St. Lucia and found a cache while there. It was like 5000 round trip, but I didn't drive it.

 

13237 mi since January of last year when I activated the coin. Not too bad. But, again, I do a good bit of travel that piles on the miles.

 

Jhwks Geocoin, in case you were interested.

 

edit, because it was 'only' 2500 miles to St. Lucia.

Edited January 24, 2007 by Jhwk

[+TrailGators]

The algorithm for calculating the distance is extremely unreliable. I was tempted to put something like it into my FindStats program, but chose not to because the results are so bad.

 

It only (approximately) works if:

• You always log your caches in exactly the order you found them on each individual day.
  
• You have done no moving caches or armchair caches.
  
• You have never gone back and deleted and then re-entered a log at a later date.
  

I don't know whether or not it excludes locationless caches; if it doesn't, then you have another big problem there, too.

 

The only reliable way to calculate your caching distance is to keep your own database of the actual order of finds and their actual locations.

What's funny is that I used to log my caches in reverse order so they would show up in the proper order on the webpage. Yes, I know that is pretty anal retentive. Anyhow, the distances are still way off for me and my anal logging method. I think that besides the cache logging order issue the distances wouldn't work because they don't take into account where you parked for each cache. T

 

They might be more accurate if they used the average distance traveled for each type of terrain; multiplied that by the numbers of caches you found with each terrain rating and then summed that up. Of course the standard devation for terrain distance would be huge because so many people don't rate their caches properly. I've found 3.5 terrains and 1.5 terrain caches that I walked the same distance to find. But still, this average method might get you closer than the method they are using....

Edited January 24, 2007 by TrailGators

[+DudleyGrunt]

Which is why I went with a Geocoin that I carry in my pocket or camelbak while caching. I log the finds in order, and it calculates the distances travelled so far. Of course it's not perfect. I flew for my 25th anniversary to St. Lucia and found a cache while there. It was like 5000 round trip, but I didn't drive it.

 

13237 mi since January of last year when I activated the coin. Not too bad. But, again, I do a good bit of travel that piles on the miles.

 

Jhwks Geocoin, in case you were interested.

 

edit, because it was 'only' 2500 miles to St. Lucia.

 

Like Jhwk, I use a special travel bug (CRV) to track my milage. Since I started, May 06, I have logged 2846 miles. So far, the CRV TB has taken me to each cache (or as close as it could get). I haven't decided what to do if I fly somewhere or take another vehicle. I'll have to decide if the milage tracked should be mine or the CRV's. So far it's both.

Edited January 30, 2007 by DudleyGrunt

[Mushtang]

My personal TB (which excludes locationless, armchair, moving caches, etc) shows 80,774 miles.

 

<edit> uploading the latest My Finds PQ changed the number on the site significantly, it used to show a LOT higher, but now is more in line with my TB.

Edited January 30, 2007 by Mushtang

[+txoilgas]

My personal TB (which excludes locationless, armchair, moving caches, etc) shows 80,774 miles.

 

My personal TB TBN0FB shows 55,256 this morning. A couple of trips to East Africa sure helps the mileage.

[Tahosa and Sons]

The amount of miles can be a lot. For the heck of it I started to put my finds on the TOPO map and set it up as a route. Now that shows direct miles as the crow flies from Cache to Cache, not the miles out and back. back and out, and to and fro. And it was enough miles that I'm not about to tell the wifey how many miles I've gone chasing locations.

[Mushtang]

Now that shows direct miles as the crow flies from Cache to Cache, not the miles out and back. back and out, and to and fro.

TB miles show the same thing if you don't have a cache at your house.

 

I did hear of a guy that set up an archived cache with his home coords that he would use just for his TB mileage, so it would show back and forth and not cache to cache. I suppose that was a more accurate meaningless number?

[+spazz191]

I am sure that the algorithym is not totally accurate for cache to cache but for myself I find the other stats somewhat interesting

 

Total: 25 finds

Total days since first find: 32 - Overall find Rate: 0.8/day, 5.57/week

Total days with a find: 10 (Every 3.1 days or 31.8% of your total days) - Average finds per caching day: 2.5

Best day: 1/07/07 - 6 finds

Most consecutive days with a find: 2 from 1/06/07 to 1/07/07

Longest caching drought: 7 days from 1/19/07 to 1/25/07

Average total cache difficulty: 1.66 - Average total terrain rating: 1.54

Average physical cache difficulty: 1.66 - Average physical terrain rating: 1.54 (Traditional, Multi, Unknown, Project APE, Letterbox)

Approximate cache-to-cache distance: 163.65 miles (263.37 kilometres) (Excludes locationless and known traveling caches)

Active Caches: 25 of the caches you've found are still active (100%)