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My Problem with solving Puzzles Caches


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Posted

I don't think it is unreasonable at all to have some confirmation that you have solved the puzzle before cranking up the cachemobile to go looking for the cache. Gasoline is about $4 a gallon now in the US.

 

I want people to find all my caches. I have a few puzzle caches and have provided a way for people to check the coordinates before going to the site.

 

In my area, I have several puzzle caches in my ignore list and they will stay there as I am not going to waste my time solving them. Let's say that they even guide you to the last three digits of the lattitude and longitude. I am no math expert, but I can thell you that that is 1,000,000 possible combinations (10 x 10 x 10 x 10 x 10 x 10). Each of the least significant digits is worth about 5 to 6 feet where I live. Thus the tens are about 50+ feet and the 100s are 500+ feet.

 

I think the idea is to give you something to do at your desk during the week and it should be fun.

 

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I have been geocaching for a few years and I do enjoy it very much until it comes to the Puzzle caches.

 

You see im just a regular girl who is not as educated as the "Bulk" of geocachers out there. Most of you have had years of college while myself...well I didn't have the chance to further my education because I was a single mom at the age of 16 and had other important things to take care of during my life.

 

So...puzzle caches....they are so very hard for me to solve. A few cachers in my area have been very nice about it. Some have sat with me at events and tried to show me how they solve some of the caches and I have appreciated that very much but still my brain just doesnt let it sink in.

 

Try teaching auto mechanics to someone who doesnt even know what a car is....and well you get the drift.

 

I took the time today to try to solve a new puzzle in my area and even though it looked hard I think I had solved it. But im very unsure about my skills here so I emailed the placer of the cache looking for confirmation on the coords I had provided them I also asked if they could provide a coord checker in the cache discription. They emailed me back within 2 minutes and said "I think having the checker out

there makes it a bit easier." and that was that. No confirmation of my coords. So I email back again asking if they could let me know if my coords were correct or if I was even close and well they just ignored me and wont return my email.

 

I guess the only reason I am writing this is to vent my frustrations. Maybe alot of the geocachers out there think its easy for everyone to solve puzzles and I want you to know that its NOT easy for some of us.

 

For the people who have as much trouble as I do...for the ones that are so unsure about thier puzzle solving skills well I speak for them. If your gonna be making puzzle caches the least you can do is confirm the coordinates when people email you.

 

If you have no intention of confirming the cords...you should atleast put that in your cache description that you will not confirm coords so people like myself wont waste several hours of thier time trying to solve them.

 

I have a massave headache from trying to solve the puzzle...which was magnified by the fact I now have no way of confirming my solution.

 

Do I really need to contact all the people who's puzzles I want to solve before hand to see if they will confirm the coords before I waste my time? Well it looks so to me.

 

Please...the moral of this story that I want you all to get from reading this is...not all geocachers are brain surgeons, IT Professionals and other things that require years and years of a college education. Geocachers are made up of all kinds of people...please consider this when doing the puzzle caches...help those that need it...atleast help by comfirming coordinates. Please continue to put out the tough puzzles but the least you can do is understand where I'm coming from.

Posted

WeatherednBoston, don't worry about the education level. Some of the smartest people I have met didn't have college degrees or PhD's by their names.

 

The best ability you have is COMMON SENSE. Book smarts are just that, book smarts.

 

Now that you have a puzzle maker in your area, use them to help build your skills. They seem very willing to help you learn and help you with the tools you need to move forward in the puzzle caching your doing.

Your ability to use that and learn from that is the best tool you will ever have.

 

I'm not a huge fan of puzzles. I've found a few. The last one I solved I still haven't gotten to yet due to the conditions. I will get it, but can't claim it just yet. I can see the cache, but can't reach it. Indiana is still too soggy.

 

Just remember that you can do it.

Posted

I think the idea is to give you something to do at your desk during the week and it should be fun.

And when you run out of puzzles to do, you can always dig up 7-month-old messages to respond to, for no apparent reason. ;)

Posted

All I can say to the op is keep trying, some will help some won't.

I agree that even with a ftf up for grabs that a simple e-mail saying 'Thanks for you interest in my cache unfortunately the ftf has not been grabbed yet so I am not confirming if the coordinates you provided are correct at this stage'.

Ok they haven't told you what you wanted but at least you get a reply.

 

On a brighter note....

Last Christmas I traveled to a city about on another island about two days full drive (not including caches) away. So before I left I tried solving some of the puzzles. In particular the one closest to where I was staying. I googled and got no where, tried solving it on about three different occasions and finaly gave up.

Well I am going to be back there again in a couple of months time and I already have the list of puzzles out again to see how many I can add to the list of solved and not found yet (didn't get a chance last time).

 

I solved it, it made me so happy to know I have finaly solved it. Ok so I haven't signed the log book yet but I'm already smiling (just not online ;) ). The one I solved was called Navigation 301 and no I have not solved Navigation 101 and 201! not yet anyway.

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