Finding archived caches

[+admo1972]

My worst fear, being the last to find before a string of DNF's. Then the cache was archived. Was it me? Maybe. So, using only memory and no GPS, I went back to GZ, and got a bit worried that the area didn't look exactly how I remembered it. But, finding the spot where I think I last hid it, I got out a stick and dug. Success! When I last hid it, it was at the base of a tree, buried loosely under pine needles. Now it was buried under about 3 inches of packed soil. I rehid somewhat and emailed the CO on how to find.

 

Finding this archived cache was about just as fun as when I found it proper before. Anyone else the last to find before a cache was archived, only to go back later and find it? Can archived caches be unarchived by the CO?

[+Miragee]

Ideally, when a cache is Archived, it should be removed by the cache owner, otherwise it is "Geo-litter."

 

Since the cache is still there, if the cache owner wants to re-activate it, they have to contact their local Reviewer. If they don't reactivate it, they should remove it.

 

Congrats on going back and finding it . . .

[+admo1972]

Since the cache is still there, if the cache owner wants to re-activate it, they have to contact their local Reviewer.

 

That is what I was thinking. I interpret archiving normally to mean a cache that is actually gone. Stolen, destroyed, or otherwise rendered obsolete. In this case, the cache is in fine shape, it just inadvertently got buried at GZ. I would think that in this case the CO will go back and find it, hide how he wants it it be hidden at that location, and then a reviewer simply make it active again. Meh. I leave it up to the CO and the reviewer.

[+klipsch49er]

This is an interesting topic. I recenlty found a cache that was marked unavailable (GCKV45). I'm not the only finder either. I didn't relize that there was anything wrong with it before I went there and it was a destination I had always wanted the time to visit and the cache provided and additional excuse. I found the cache in great condition and, therefore, logged my find.

 

I checked today and the listing still shows unavailable. I'm sure many more people would visit this cache if it weren't marked as unavailble. I thought about sending an e-mail to the CO but isn't that what happens when someone visits and logs anyway? Is the e-mail notification of logs disabled when a cache is marked unavailable?

 

Cheers

[+admo1972]

Is the e-mail notification of logs disabled when a cache is marked unavailable?

 

No. unavailable logs (temporary or archived) just don't show up on normal searches. Email notifications are still sent if anything is logged on it.

[Clan Riffster]

Two similar incidents:

One was Fergie Le Frog's Reflection Cache.

I was setting up a night cache in a part of Central Florida where I hadn't cached before, and a reviewer noticed the initial coords I had pecked in as being the same as that night cache. It had last been found on August 24th, 2004, disabled by the owner on June 7th, 2005, archived on October 7th, 2005, and found by me on February 7th, 2006. This area is a wetland, which had been hit by 3 hurricanes, and judging by the watermarks, the ammo can had been submerged for at least 6 months. Everything was dry when I opened it up.

 

The other was Zatoichi's Widow Maker.

I was running off an old PQ. We found the Gladware cache, noticing that the lid was broken. It was inverted, so the contents were mostly dry. When we got home to log it, we noticed that it had been archived a month earlier.

[+Knight2000]

This is an interesting topic. I recenlty found a cache that was marked unavailable (GCKV45). I'm not the only finder either. I didn't relize that there was anything wrong with it before I went there and it was a destination I had always wanted the time to visit and the cache provided and additional excuse. I found the cache in great condition and, therefore, logged my find.

 

I checked today and the listing still shows unavailable. I'm sure many more people would visit this cache if it weren't marked as unavailble. I thought about sending an e-mail to the CO but isn't that what happens when someone visits and logs anyway? Is the e-mail notification of logs disabled when a cache is marked unavailable?

 

Cheers

I understand why the cache was disabled. The owner doesn't want someone to come find a cache with problems. They disabled it to replace the container and logbook.

 

The cache needs maintenance. Disabling may or may not mean that the cache is there. In your case the cache was there, and may or may not have been repaired yet.

[+klipsch49er]

THaks admo1972 and knight2000....

 

The cache I refered to actually shows up on my seach for caches in my area. So annotating it doesn't insure it is removed form searhes.

 

Cheers

[+Harry Dolphin]

"If wishes were horses, I'd wear one by my side."

Perhaps it is the semantics that is confusing? "Temoprarily unavailable" will still show on searches. "Archived" will not.

A cache can be "temporarily unavailable" for many reasons. The cache owner might have marked is thus, or the local reviewer might have. Reviewers might so that because of reports that the cache is in bad condition, or missing, and in need of maintenance based on reports from cachers, (who may or may not be correct in their assessment.) Many reviewers will check back on 'temporarily unavailable' caches, and archive them if no maintenance is done by the cache owner (or minimally, if the cache owner removes that label, which may or may not mean that maintenance was done.)

Many cache owners will make their cache "temporarily unavailable" after a series of unexpected DNFs or reports in logs or problems. Theoretically, they will make necessary repairs within a few weeks. (On the other hand, some cache owners will wait a year after the last series of DNFs to mark it unavailable, then let the reviewer archive it after another few months.) I can think of a very nice cachein New Hampshire that is 'temporarily unavailable' because several cachers could not find it, or reported it 70 feet off. It's still there, where we found it last year. But the cache owners (who made it 'temporarily unavailable' have not revisited the cache to put it back where it was supposed to be, or change the coordinates to reflect the actual hide.) Oh, well.

Many caches are archived because they are missing, marked thusly by either revewer or owner, or marked 'archived' by the reviewer after maintenance has not been performed. Many of the latter are still in place (especially for mystery or multi caches. Just because a cache is archived does not mean that the cache has been removed by the cache owner (though that is how it is supposed to be!) (I know someone who found a cache that was archived three years ago, but it is still in place!!) I have visited a few archived caches to try to rescue travel bugs. One was successful, the other cache was muggled, and geotrash. There are a few more on my list to visit, when I get the opportunity.

To sum up, just because a cache is 'archived' or 'temporarily unavailable' does not mean that the cache is not still in place, and in good condition! But, you do take your chances!

(I have seen a recent rash of cachers logging 'needs maintenance' or 'SBA' on caches because they did not like the hide location, or considered it 'too dangerous', or 'if they couldn't find it, it must be missing!'. I find that to be a sad commentary.)