cache stolen by geocacher

October 2, 2007

I set up a difficult three part cache. Lots of distance between the three spots. It did not have many finders. This summer, a 15 year old mentioned that he had failed to find the first stage and begged for a hint. I checked to make sure all stages were in place and gave a hint. Two days later, I jogged by the cache sites and found the last two missing. I sent an email to the 15 year old kid askiing if he knew anything about the cache. His failure to respond told me all I needed to know. I figure he took some friends with him who were impressed by the geo-coins and travel bugs and couldn't resist taking everything. It seems that there ought to be a way to discipline offending members.

8.9k · October 2, 2007

You are working on assumptions. Maybe the kid isn't around the computer, was grounded from the computer or ANY other reason you can think of??

October 2, 2007

You are working on assumptions, but it does suck when a cache gets stolen.

We had one placed in one of those snazzy green geocaching bison tubes and someone stole the tube and replaced it with a smaller, crappier bison tube. 'Course I'm working on assumptions too.. perhaps the whole tube was missing and someone generously replaced it with whatever they had on them.... who knows. Still stinks though.

3.9k · October 2, 2007

You are working on assumptions. Maybe the kid isn't around the computer, was grounded from the computer or ANY other reason you can think of??

Exactly. I agree with RR. You have built an entire castle out of numerous assumptions. In reality, you have no idea who took the cache container; it may not have even been a cacher.

24.7k · October 2, 2007

I set up a difficult three part cache. Lots of distance between the three spots. It did not have many finders. This summer, a 15 year old mentioned that he had failed to find the first stage and begged for a hint. I checked to make sure all stages were in place and gave a hint. Two days later, I jogged by the cache sites and found the last two missing. I sent an email to the 15 year old kid askiing if he knew anything about the cache. His failure to respond told me all I needed to know. I figure he took some friends with him who were impressed by the geo-coins and travel bugs and couldn't resist taking everything. It seems that there ought to be a way to discipline offending members.

First, you start with proof. You have a hunch. Maybe a good one, but that's all you got.

You get more than that and this site can and will ban accounts.

Edited October 2, 2007 by Renegade Knight

1.2k · October 3, 2007

Looks like the witch hunt is off to a good start. Of course, there are always the doubters. Perhaps they are only defending the offenders because they, themselves, have done the same!

[ :laughing: ]

8.9k · October 3, 2007

Or maybe we're just using common sense? Please don't suggest that I would steal ANYTHING...you don't know me at all!

October 3, 2007

Or maybe we're just using common sense? Please don't suggest that I would steal ANYTHING...you don't know me at all!

I would take this one to a jury on a "beyond a reasonable doubt standard."

October 3, 2007

I should add that it would have been impossible for anyone to find the stage 2 microcache without at GPS. For it to disappear the same day as the final stage can only mean that the trasher had a GPS. The hunt required a three mile walk and there was only one person looking. I rest my case.

8.9k · October 3, 2007

More assumptions. What, is the area ONLY accessible with a GPS unit? How do you know there was only one person looking? Were you out there watching...and if so, how did you not see who stole the caches?

I suppose there aren't any other users in that area (bikers, hikers etc..) ONLY those caches and nothing more for miles in all directions??

8.9k · October 3, 2007

Or maybe we're just using common sense? Please don't suggest that I would steal ANYTHING...you don't know me at all!

I would take this one to a jury on a "beyond a reasonable doubt standard."

And you'd be wasting your time, effort and money. A jury would likely laugh at the evidence. In case you didn't know, you do need more than assumptions to convict!

October 3, 2007

I hate it when people badly assume things and bring us teens down another notch. You have no proof it was him.

1.2k · October 3, 2007

It sounds more like a "best guess" scenario. Not worth losing friends over.

Put yourself in the hypothetical thief's postition: are you really going to ask for a clue only to steal the cache? If I really intended to take it, I'd try to get a clue from someone else instead, or wait until someone else had found it, first.

Your evidence is shaky. You're too quick to judge. This is not a good way to win friends and influence people.

Edited October 3, 2007 by nonaeroterraqueous

22k · October 3, 2007

It was me. I did it.

October 3, 2007

It was me. I did it.

Aha! The culprit reveals himself :lol: :laughing:

1.1k · October 3, 2007

I should add that it would have been impossible for anyone to find the stage 2 microcache without at GPS.

You might find this hard to believe, but people visited the beach before GPS even existed.

3.9k · October 3, 2007

It was me. I did it.

No! No! You are lying! Scoundrel! Scalawag! Hooligan! You are lying! You did NOT do it! I did it! In fact, I emptied the five gold coins and the logbook from the container and sold the purple anodized bison tube container on Ebay for $78.54.

1.7k · October 3, 2007

It was me. I did it.

No! No! You are lying! Scoundrel! Scalawag! Hooligan! You are lying! You did NOT do it! I did it! In fact, I emptied the five gold coins and the logbook from the container and sold the purple anodized bison tube container on Ebay for $78.54.

WAIT! You mean my newly purchased purple anodized bison tube container was STOLEN? I want a refund!!

1.2k · October 3, 2007

Or maybe we're just using common sense? Please don't suggest that I would steal ANYTHING...you don't know me at all!

I hope this doesn't mean you took me seriously in the post above yours.

3.8k · October 3, 2007

And only geocachers have a gps!! No possibility that someone happened upon the second stage. Plugged the coordinates into a gps and thought that you were supposed to take the cache with them. Nope, never could happen.

3.8k · October 3, 2007

And only geocachers have a gps!! No possibility that someone happened upon the second stage. Plugged the coordinates into a gps and thought that you were supposed to take the cache with them. Nope, never could happen.

October 4, 2007

Or maybe we're just using common sense? Please don't suggest that I would steal ANYTHING...you don't know me at all!

I would take this one to a jury on a "beyond a reasonable doubt standard."

And you'd be wasting your time, effort and money. A jury would likely laugh at the evidence. In case you didn't know, you do need more than assumptions to convict!

Good luck even getting this CHARGED!! This stuff is ABANDONED PROPERTY. No cop or prosecutor is going to waste their time on something like this!!

October 4, 2007

I hate it when people badly assume things and bring us teens down another notch. You have no proof it was him.

Hear, hear!

October 4, 2007

I hate it when people badly assume things and bring us teens down another notch. You have no proof it was him.

Hear, hear!

I have had many teens find one of my caches. They will leave their ASB cards in the cache. Some have even returned the next year and left a newer ASB card.

I recognize the names of some of them as children of people I went to school with.

The cache wasn't in its original hiding place but many adult non cachers have found it and written in the log book also, so one of them may have not replaced it right.

Kudos for those teens that have found my ammo can and not harmed it but logged it.

8.3k · October 4, 2007

If I asked an owner for a hint and then a day or so later I got an email accusing me of stealing the cache I probably would not bother to respond. The fact the cache went missing does not mean I took it. Good grief, even with hints I've been unable to find a cache. Since the owner was so quick to jump I would ignore him.

Jim

October 5, 2007

If I asked an owner for a hint and then a day or so later I got an email accusing me of stealing the cache I probably would not bother to respond. The fact the cache went missing does not mean I took it. Good grief, even with hints I've been unable to find a cache. Since the owner was so quick to jump I would ignore him.

Jim

If you live in Michigan, please identify yourself so I will exclude you the next time I pick a jury.

8.9k · October 5, 2007

Truly rblaw, you are going on assumptions. You can write Groundspeak and tell them all this if you want, but I'm seriously doubting they would even entertain action on what you've got!

I don't understand though, your last log says "multiple stages trashed"...were the containers stolen or were the caches trashed?

And yes, I do live in Michigan, 200+ miles south of you! Hello Neighbor!

3.9k · October 5, 2007

It was me. I did it.

No! No! You are lying! Scoundrel! Scalawag! Hooligan! You are lying! You did NOT do it! I did it! In fact, I emptied the five gold coins and the logbook from the container and sold the purple anodized bison tube container on Ebay for $78.54.

WAIT! You mean my newly purchased purple anodized bison tube container was STOLEN? I want a refund!!

[stern parental mode ON] Could you stop whining for just two minutes? Huh? You got what you paid for, and you got a bargain -- an anodized only-slightly-used bison tube, and a purple one at that, for less than eighty dollars! Wow! What a deal! Why worry about the history of the thing? Relax and enjoy life! [stern parental mode OFF]

:sad:

:sad: :grin:

October 5, 2007

Maybe the cache container was a peanut butter jar and it didn't contain a warning that there maybe bees in the area and had some sort of religious connotation.. So the teen in question, having read his/her fair share of stupid threads in the forum, decided to be responsible and remove the offending cache before the peanut-butter-jar-allergic-to-bee-stings-religion-doesn't-belong-in-caching police came along and made it into a HUGE deal in a forum post.

Or they stole it

Or someone else found it

Or aliens collected it as an example of an Earth artifact

Or ....well who cares really.

Isn't that the risk you take in placing a cache?

October 5, 2007

Hear, hear!

Err, that would be "Here here" just to keep things straight.

8k · October 5, 2007

Hear, hear!

Err, that would be "Here here" just to keep things straight.

No, the expression is Hear hear! coming from Hear ye, hear ye or hear him, hear him! meaning that fellow is right listen to what he has to say.

20.7k · October 5, 2007

D'Oh!

22k · October 5, 2007

If I asked an owner for a hint and then a day or so later I got an email accusing me of stealing the cache I probably would not bother to respond. The fact the cache went missing does not mean I took it. Good grief, even with hints I've been unable to find a cache. Since the owner was so quick to jump I would ignore him.

Jim

True story from about 11 years ago.

At work, every year we would receive new phone books, as I'm sure everyone else did too. (My company just happened to publish them)

Well, since we had about 90 employees on our floor we would receive a couple these 50 count, plastic wrapped, stacks of books.

Rather than just setting out the books for the taking like they did every other year, the receptionist sent out an email stating the books were in the back conference room.

Okay, something must be going on. So when I went for a new book I told her I was going back to grab one.

About 4 hours later she came stomping up and said, "You took 17 phone books!"

:sad:

"No, I'm pretty sure that I'm probably the only person who told you I was taking one."

Edited October 5, 2007 by BlueDeuce

October 5, 2007

It may also be that the 2nd leg and final cache were missing before the teen cacher asked for the extra hint.

[Just reread the first post and had missed that the OP did go out and confirm that the cache and its parts were in their proper places. DOH!

Perhaps that is why it wasn't found when they looked before? Maybe...We'll never know unless it really was BlueDeuce or the Vinny & Sue Team. :sad:

The age of the culprit shouldn't be the focus of the issue. Cache trashers come in all shapes, sizes and species. They also come in both sexes, and yes,....all ages.

I have a teen age cache related issue (confirmed) that left me in wonder as well.

A teenager (non-cacher) but knew about the pastime from scouting found my cache. A few miles from where I hid it. It had washed away due to flooding. This teen took the time to look up who owned the cache and arranged through their dad to get the cache back to me.

What is this world coming to. This one teen is letting the entire rebellious teen crowd down.

Edited October 5, 2007 by TheBeanTeam

3.9k · October 5, 2007

If I asked an owner for a hint and then a day or so later I got an email accusing me of stealing the cache I probably would not bother to respond. The fact the cache went missing does not mean I took it. Good grief, even with hints I've been unable to find a cache. Since the owner was so quick to jump I would ignore him.

Jim

True story from about 11 years ago.

At work, every year we would receive new phone books, as I'm sure everyone else did too. (My company just happened to publish them)

Well, since we had about 90 employees on our floor we would receive a couple these 50 count, plastic wrapped, stacks of books.

Rather than just setting out the books for the taking like they did every other year, the receptionist sent out an email stating the books were in the back conference room.

Okay, something must be going on. So when I went for a new book I told her I was going back to grab one.

About 4 hours later she came stomping up and said, "You took 17 phone books!"

"No, I'm pretty sure that I'm probably the only person who told you I was taking one."

Wow! Excellent example!

By the way, how did you prepare the other 16 phone books before eating them for dinner? Did you steam them, did you make a nice sauce or dressing for them? ....just wondering...

22k · October 5, 2007

By the way, how did you prepare the other 16 phone books before eating them for dinner? Did you steam them, did you make a nice sauce or dressing for them? ....just wondering...

Now you're just teasing me. :sad:

This was just when they came out with those complete but mini-sized books. Taxi drivers were paying top dollars for a copy.

October 6, 2007

You're lucky in was only a few caches, in my area we had to deal with a cache maggot for over a year, every cache new or existing would come up missing only to appear in another place and sometimes we weren’t even that lucky, we never did "catch" the guy but we made many attempts, GC.com blocked several accounts that we found out he was using but it didn't stop, most caches were not member only.

My suggestion would be to make the cache members only, you can see everyone who visits the page and the dates and times.

I would not be so quick to point fingers, who in there right mind asks for hints to a cache they are going to steal, sounds like a genuine cacher to me, it may have been a friend with the cacher that came back at a later time, or a squirrel or possibly even a distant onlooker, who knows.

A sad but realistic part of the game is maintenance

cache stolen by geocacher

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