+GeoScooter1 Posted August 28, 2007 Share Posted August 28, 2007 Are their lives so pitiful and pathetic that they have to resort to taking travel bugs and geocoins and keeping them for themselves? I have been to some caches lately that list having these items in inventory, but I have yet to find one in a cache. One cache even had someone log in May that they took the geocoin, but that has been the end of it. One cache was supposed to have 3 travel bugs and 1 coin. The travel bugs were logged in on 6/8/2007 and the next log is on 8/15/2007 by one person. It is frustrating to go looking specifically for a bug or a coin that is listed and finding that someone has taken it and either kept it for themselves or just not bothered to log it and move it. If you can take the time to find a cache and perhaps log that you found the cache, you can take the time to list the bug/coin. I know this is not a new topic but when I am caching in 100 degree temps and hoping to find a bug/coin to move, it really irritates me to find that it is gone. Quote Link to comment
+Miragee Posted August 29, 2007 Share Posted August 29, 2007 Yes, some people's "lives are so pitiful and pathetic that they have to resort to taking travel bugs and geocoins and keeping them for themselves." We have a "Coin Thief" around here who has stolen coins from Puzzle caches open only to Premium Members and from caches at the end of long hikes. I don't know what the thrill is because they cannot share their "collection" with anyone who knows anything about the Tracking Numbers, since the thief will quickly be found out if someone sees a coin in their possession, takes note of the Tracking Number, and then looks it up on this site. Quote Link to comment
+BlueDeuce Posted August 29, 2007 Share Posted August 29, 2007 If the bug has been confirmed as not being in the cache and enough time has passed for someone to log it out, the traveler should be removed from the page listing so people aren't visiting the cache expecting to find one. Try to include in your log if you didn't find a listed TB. Both the cache owner and the bug owner can remove the bug if they see reports of problems. It doesn't solve the problem of the bug being lost in the first place but hey, keep your caches clean is my motto. (well, one of them) Quote Link to comment
+Harry Dolphin Posted August 29, 2007 Share Posted August 29, 2007 Second BlueDeuce. Yes, there are TB/geocin thieves. But, there are also people who move TBs without logging the cache or the TB/coin. Many (fortunately a minority) of geocachers do not know how to log TB/geocoins. (I had one geocoin disappear from Pennsylvania and was found two months later in a cache in Spain. I'll never know how it got there!) There can be many reasons. Not all missing bugs are due to miscreants. But, unfortunately, it is part of life. Quote Link to comment
+jtbrady01 Posted August 29, 2007 Share Posted August 29, 2007 Here's an example of a TB that wasn't logged correctly. Night Owl I'm not trying to point out the flaw in the prior cacher. Look at my post from 06/20/07. I grabbed it from a cache it wasn't logged into. It was only MIA for a little over a week but, it did some traveling during that time. People can just drop a coin or a TB and forget to log it. Things happen. Quote Link to comment
Dinoprophet Posted August 29, 2007 Share Posted August 29, 2007 Second BlueDeuce. Yes, there are TB/geocin thieves. But, there are also people who move TBs without logging the cache or the TB/coin. Many (fortunately a minority) of geocachers do not know how to log TB/geocoins. (I had one geocoin disappear from Pennsylvania and was found two months later in a cache in Spain. I'll never know how it got there!) There can be many reasons. Not all missing bugs are due to miscreants. But, unfortunately, it is part of life. I suspect this is more usual than outright theft. Not that I want it to be the norm or done intentionally, but I enjoy when a TB reappears after vanishing for a while. And now I'm 2000 miles away, ta-da! I've always thought coins were a bad idea as travelers. They're far too collectible-looking. The first person who isn't deep enough into the game to know that they are travelers is likely to keep it as a cool trade item, possibly even assuming it's a shiny-but-cheap fifty-cent trinket. Quote Link to comment
+briansnat Posted August 29, 2007 Share Posted August 29, 2007 (edited) Are their lives so pitiful and pathetic that they have to resort to taking travel bugs and geocoins and keeping them for themselves? Yes. The first person who isn't deep enough into the game to know that they are travelers is likely to keep it as a cool trade item, possibly even assuming it's a shiny-but-cheap fifty-cent trinket. My geocoins are released with a laminated note attached explaining what it is, how to log it and asking the finder not to keep it, but to leave it in circulation for others to enjoy. I've had about 1/3 of them go missing. Some immediately after they were released. They were stolen, no mistake about it. Edited August 29, 2007 by briansnat Quote Link to comment
+Renegade Knight Posted August 29, 2007 Share Posted August 29, 2007 What is wrong with some people? For some, nothing more than they live and breathe. Quote Link to comment
+ADKcachers Posted August 29, 2007 Share Posted August 29, 2007 It is sad, that in this country, most people are the equivalent of respirating meatloaves. Attach instructions the size of a billboard to your traveling trackables and blank stares abound. Accept it, shake your head, roll your eyes, bask in your own superiority. After all, we need someone to do those menial jobs. Quote Link to comment
+nekom Posted August 29, 2007 Share Posted August 29, 2007 The sad fact is that in any cross-section of people, you're gonna have... (searches for a family-friendly word) jerks. Geocaching is unfortunately no exeption. Jerks aren't the ONLY culprit of course, sometimes people are new and don't understand, or they mistakenly forget to log bugs, but there is no denying there are those out there who hoard them. Makes no sense to me, but it happens. Quote Link to comment
Keystone Posted August 29, 2007 Share Posted August 29, 2007 Moving thread from the Geocaching Topics forum to the Travel Bug forum. Quote Link to comment
+Eartha Posted August 29, 2007 Share Posted August 29, 2007 Welcome to the home of never ending angst. We do have pinned threads up top for lost bugs, if you'd like to make a complaint (it only helps to get it off your chest, not much anyone can do about it), and bugs with a bit of longevity, if you'd like to read some of the posts about the brighter side of TBs. Quote Link to comment
+TeamHarpo516 Posted September 4, 2007 Share Posted September 4, 2007 We dropped a Geocoin off in California and it is still listed in the cache but people have logged that it is not present. What can I do? I noticed I can "Mark item as Missing" on the TB page but what does that do? Quote Link to comment
+BlueDeuce Posted September 4, 2007 Share Posted September 4, 2007 We dropped a Geocoin off in California and it is still listed in the cache but people have logged that it is not present. What can I do? I noticed I can "Mark item as Missing" on the TB page but what does that do? The Mark item missing option will remove the coin from the cache page listing and place it out to an unknown location. You'll need to do this since the coin has been confirmed as missing and you don't want people making a trip out to the cache for a coin that isn't there. You can always pull it back out of the unknown location should the coin resurface. Quote Link to comment
+Kabuthunk Posted September 4, 2007 Share Posted September 4, 2007 The sad fact is that in any cross-section of people, you're gonna have... (searches for a family-friendly word) jerks. Geocaching is unfortunately no exeption. Jerks aren't the ONLY culprit of course, sometimes people are new and don't understand, or they mistakenly forget to log bugs, but there is no denying there are those out there who hoard them. Makes no sense to me, but it happens. Maybe it's just me, but about two days after I first started geocaching, I found a TB in a cache. Had no clue if I needed to be a premium member to 'log' it, or if there was a 'maximum' time I could hold it, etc, etc (I was brand new to the game, after all)... so I just, y'know... left it alone! Some of those new people should perhaps look more to the idea of "Don't touch it if you don't understand it" . Quote Link to comment
+shdw_wolf Posted September 4, 2007 Share Posted September 4, 2007 I'm realitively new to Geocaching, but even I did the research needed to figure out how to properly log a travel bug. I let one loose on a recent trip to Seattle, WA and was hoping to enjoy watching it travel over the United States, it's been logged once in a cache that apparently has a lot of TB's through it. I have no idea if it's still there or if it's moving around. I wish people would realize that part of having TB's for some of us is to watch them move. I put a lot of thought and looking into finding the right thing to make a travel bug and now I have no idea where it is. Sorry for venting but it does upset me. Quote Link to comment
+TeamHarpo516 Posted September 5, 2007 Share Posted September 5, 2007 I know what you are saying shdw wolf --- we dropped off 2 while in California. One has moved from Catalina to the mainland California, Nevada, Arizona and then up to Manitoba Canada. It is really cool to see it moving. On the other hand one is still in a cache on Catalina Island, but has not moved and I think it has gone missing b/c no one has logged it and people have said it is not present. Batting .500 - on these 2, go figure! Quote Link to comment
+Eartha Posted September 5, 2007 Share Posted September 5, 2007 Well, ya know, here's how to do it, when you tell someone about geocaching, learn them the ropes, all the ropes. Don't just hand them a GPS and say go find it, tell them all the angles. That's how they learn. Not everyone knows how to navigate a website. I didn't when I first started. It's fine for a news article to come out, but rarely have I seen one that tells about all the aspects of the game. It's up to those of us who take newbies on the trail, to explain how the site works and how the game works. Quote Link to comment
+TeamHarpo516 Posted September 5, 2007 Share Posted September 5, 2007 Thanks - good info Quote Link to comment
+alaska-1 Posted September 5, 2007 Share Posted September 5, 2007 (edited) I too am batting .500... I released a TB in Northern California, and it has been traveling happily (albeit slowly) around the area. A few weeks later, I released an identical one with (of course) a new dog tag in Southern California to have it disappear out of the first cache I dropped it in in Anaheim! Edited September 5, 2007 by alaska-1 Quote Link to comment
+ReadyOrNot Posted September 5, 2007 Share Posted September 5, 2007 (edited) Well, ya know, here's how to do it, when you tell someone about geocaching, learn them the ropes, all the ropes. Don't just hand them a GPS and say go find it, tell them all the angles. That's how they learn. Not everyone knows how to navigate a website. I didn't when I first started. It's fine for a news article to come out, but rarely have I seen one that tells about all the aspects of the game. It's up to those of us who take newbies on the trail, to explain how the site works and how the game works. Ooops.. I posted to the wrong thread Edited September 5, 2007 by ReadyOrNot Quote Link to comment
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