+YeOleImposter Posted December 24, 2007 Share Posted December 24, 2007 Portland-area Maps For Garmin Gps Units I just saw this old topic after it was bumped, so if you would like to add some free, detailed topo maps of the Portland and much of the Vancouver area to your Garmin GPS, check it out. Quote Link to comment
+travisl Posted December 27, 2007 Author Share Posted December 27, 2007 I've added information to the event page about the pre-event dinner, where I'll be giving out last minute changes, if any arise. It will be at the Westfield Vancouver Mall food court at 7:00 p.m. on Friday, January 4. If mall security asks, I don't know you. I don't think I'll have a lot of changes between the final route and the draft I posted last week. I've added one more stop, GCQ456 Stuck Behind the House (Small 1/1), which is listed as a but sure sounds like a . I mean, really, can a be a 1/1 if it's not right there? If any more caches are added before my pocket query runs on Monday, I'll add them to the route. Otherwise, I think the planning for this event is just about done... I've got a nagging feeling I'm forgetting something, though. Pocket queries started? Check. Cache page made? Check. Forum started? Check. Local caching organization notified? Check (pdxgeocaching). Drafts posted? Check. Dinner arrangements finalized? Check. Local police notified? Check (but no response back). Hotel booked (for myself)? Check. Pre-event dinner location identified? Check. Final route posted? Next Monday. Print out last minute changes? Next Thursday night. I think it's just individual stuff... waiting for a good samaritan to post a bookmark list, uploading the coordinates into my GPS, packing... I think that's it. Google tells me there's a Safeway next to the starting point. I plan on arriving early on Saturday and getting my coffee and snacks for the day there, then hanging out at the start point until 7:15. A group photo like we had in Spokane would be nice Quote Link to comment
+klossner Posted December 28, 2007 Share Posted December 28, 2007 I've added one more stop, GCQ456 Stuck Behind the House (Small 1/1), which is listed as a but sure sounds like a .You're right. It should be a 2.5/1.5 . Quote Link to comment
+-Hawk- Posted December 30, 2007 Share Posted December 30, 2007 A group photo like we had in Spokane would be nice I agree, that was a neat touch to the SCM. Too bad the starting point is not a webcam in this case. Quote Link to comment
+travisl Posted December 31, 2007 Author Share Posted December 31, 2007 The final route is posted. Any other updates will be announced at dinner Friday. For those keeping track, the only differences between this and the draft 3 are the addition of stop 23 (Stuck Behind the House), stop 65 (Brain Buster), and a rerouting between stops 62-68 to account for the addition of Brain Buster. Of course, adding stop 23 made every cache after that get renumbered. Fire up them thar gadgety GPS thangs! Quote Link to comment
+Allanon Posted December 31, 2007 Share Posted December 31, 2007 LaPlaya is archived. Quote Link to comment
+GrievousAngel Posted January 1, 2008 Share Posted January 1, 2008 I've never participated in a Cache Machine, and I see from the posts that there are a few others in my position. Do any of you experienced CM-ers have some words of advice for first-timers? What to do ahead of time to prepare, stuff to bring, what to do/not do once we get there... Even stuff that seems obvious to you would be helpful. Quote Link to comment
+Prying Pandora Posted January 1, 2008 Share Posted January 1, 2008 I've never participated in a Cache Machine, and I see from the posts that there are a few others in my position. Do any of you experienced CM-ers have some words of advice for first-timers? What to do ahead of time to prepare, stuff to bring, what to do/not do once we get there... Even stuff that seems obvious to you would be helpful. It's easiest if you get a few friends together and do it as a team. One can drive, one can navigate, one can keep records, one can be snack mom, etc. Divvy it up according to how many people you have. If you have more than one car load of people, a FRS radio is an invaluable tool for communicating with your own team and all the other cachers out there. That way you can get help if you can't find something and hear about problems with caches that weren't known earlier. Everybody will be using channel 2. If you don't have anyone to team up with, don't sweat it. There will probably be others hoping to join up together at the pre-event dinner or at the beginning of the machine. By the end of the day, you will be good friends. I've met many of my best caching buddies at cache machines. Above all, don't sweat the timetable. Everybody does it at their own pace in their own way. As long as you show up for dinner, it's all good. Printing out the stuff Travis provides on the cache page is helpful. I always put the whole pdf file of the route together in a binder so we can refer to it easily. Quote Link to comment
+Riddlers Posted January 1, 2008 Share Posted January 1, 2008 I've never participated in a Cache Machine, and I see from the posts that there are a few others in my position. Do any of you experienced CM-ers have some words of advice for first-timers? What to do ahead of time to prepare, stuff to bring, what to do/not do once we get there... Even stuff that seems obvious to you would be helpful. I remember my first CM. We were new cachers and ran into some of the "names" in caching. We were very impressed and awed. After about 15 caches, we found a group that we cached about the same speed and seemed to enjoy each others' company and kind of stayed with that group throughout the day. It seemed that groups broke off into about six or seven car loads and would follow each other or one would take the lead. At the time we knew nothing about paperless caching and had books and maps and our radios and just tried to keep up with everyone. It was fun even when it seemed over our heads. I hope that when we are caching this time we are able to lend a hand or pull a newbie into a group and make them feel part of a team. And that is to thank all of those experienced cachers who gave us a chance when we only had a few and knew no one. Don't be afraid to use your radio and ask for help or tag along behind another cacher. That is part of the learning experience. Bring maps, snacks, energy, and eyes to help find the cache. Help find parking for others in your group, remember to return the cache to its place and your group will wait, remember to help others and it will come back. A cache machine is a large group with many from out of town or state and some get lost, or caught by a traffic light so be patient and have a ton of fun. If you are a lone cacher, Friday night see if you can find some car that has two or three and team up with them as parking is at a primium sometimes. And in the case of a cache machine, back seat driving can be a help. Having an extra person to read the cache page or check for signs is a real help. I hope this doesn't sound too strange but these are things that stuck with us from many years ago and seemed to help. And thanks Travis for helping us that first time when we were so lost. It was nice to just fall in behind you and not have to worry about getting lost. Travis thanks for another cache machine. See you all next year at the cache machine. Quote Link to comment
+klossner Posted January 1, 2008 Share Posted January 1, 2008 Here's the bookmark list for the final route. Quote Link to comment
+Difranco Posted January 1, 2008 Share Posted January 1, 2008 The final route is posted. Any other updates will be announced at dinner Friday. I won't be able to make the Dinner friday, would there be another way to get those updates? Quote Link to comment
+coreynjoey Posted January 1, 2008 Share Posted January 1, 2008 Here's the bookmark list for the final route. Great!!! May want to add the Vancouver Cache Machine to it so it shows up on the bookmark list on the cache page. Quote Link to comment
+klossner Posted January 1, 2008 Share Posted January 1, 2008 May want to add the Vancouver Cache Machine to it so it shows up on the bookmark list on the cache page.No need. It looks like I'm just duplicating tomison's effort. Quote Link to comment
+travisl Posted January 1, 2008 Author Share Posted January 1, 2008 The final route is posted. Any other updates will be announced at dinner Friday.I won't be able to make the Dinner friday, would there be another way to get those updates?I'll try to post a note to the event cache page with my Blackberry, so if you've got it on your watch list, you'll get an e-mail. Technical difficulties could always make this impossible, though, so if you are at the start point at 7:15, find me and I'll let you know, too. There should be enough people at both Friday dinner and Saturday start that you should be able to ask almost anyone. Thanks to everyone who let me know that LaPlaya is gone. I'll remind the group of that one on Friday. Regarding the question about tips for first-timers: Especially in the winter, if you find an open restroom, use it. You don't know when the next one will appear. It works fastest if you have the following four people in the car:A driver. Someone who can focus on safely getting you from point 33 to point 34 without worrying about looking at a map. A navigator. Someone who can tell the driver where to go. In a good way. A good navigator will also be looking ahead, and can tell when the planning doesn't match reality, and can show the driver how to get to the next cache properly. A paperwork person. Someone who looks up the information for the next cache on the way to the cache's parking area, is able to answer "what's the next cache's GC number", and starts walking in the right direction when the crew gets out of the car Moun10Bike. I swear, that guy can walk into the middle of a field of maple leaves, and the first one he turns over will have the micro cache under it. It's spooky. [*]You won't get all the caches on the route. The times listed are only good for telling you how long it will take to get from one cache to the next. They're a very rough estimate of where you should be at a certain time, but you'll be anywhere from an hour ahead to several hours behind. [*]After you found a cache, write down a few words in your notes about it. That'll make logging them easier. If you write good "found it" logs, that will actually take you longer to do than the CM itself. [*]Print up tiny stickers with your name on it, and use those to sign logbooks. Regular address labels are far too big. The smaller, the better. Or, if you've got a small rubber stamp, that's good, too. [*]Don't be afraid to skip a cache to catch up to someone or to deviate from the suggested route. [*]There's almost always a group of cachers who go out after dinner on Saturday to do the rest of the route. I think they're insane, but they seem to have fun at it. Bring a good flashlight. [*]If you're looking for something to do on Sunday, there's another 40+ caches in the Camas/Washougal area. Across the river, I think Portland may have a cache or two that you could look for, too. [*]If you eat a big breakfast, you won't need to stop for lunch. [*]It's fun (and useful for others) if you decorate your cache-mobile to indicate you're a cacher. A big sticker in the window is usually good enough. [*]If the cops stop you, be friendly, open, and completely honest. If you're driving legally, they shouldn't even have a reason to stop you. But they may have gotten a report of a creepy group of people in the bushes in the alley behind some restaurant, and I don't fault them for checking it out, in spite of the fact that I e-mailed them two weeks ago to warn them that we were coming to town. [*]Keep your FRS radio on channel 2, no filter. Sometimes a cache will go missing the day of the event, and hearing about it on the radio will save you several minutes. [*]Stop to take a hundred photos or so. Cache machines are really about getting to see a lot of neat places you wouldn't otherwise go, and some of my favorite desktop images are photos I took during CM events. [*]If you stop at the caches at the rest areas on I-5 on the way to the event, you'll be able to see who's ahead of you on their way there. Also, FWIW, all of the caches are on page 22 of the old Delorme Challenge, except for stops 75, 76, and 77, which are on page 23. Stop 74, GC15X65 Peet's and RePeet's, looks like it's about 82 yards on the page 22 side of the line. You probably won't get that far during the event if you follow the entire route, so it might be worth it to skip ahead if you really need page 23. Quote Link to comment
+travisl Posted January 2, 2008 Author Share Posted January 2, 2008 I just spoke with the Vancouver Police Department, and they sound very welcoming. They clarified a number of things, so I'm working on a handout for Friday night. I'm keeping the numbering the same, so that bookmark lists don't have to be redone. Here's what it says so far. • According to the Vancouver Police Department, U-turns are legal within the city as long as it’s not marked “no U-turn”, and you’re not crossing a double yellow line. • Parking for stops 6, 7, and 8 is on NE 65th, south of NE18th. This is a new road, built in the last six months. The route had incorrectly indicated that parking was on NE Andresen. Because of this change, the order of stops 9 and 10 are swapped. Stop 10, GC125W2 (William the Conqueror's - The Forbidden Fortress) is now before stop 9, GCJV1B (Station 84). • Despite whatever the privately posted signs may say, parking is legal on SE 17th Circle, stop 57, GCQQ0Z (You are surrounded!). Blocking driveways is not legal, but parking in the cul de sac is. If someone complains, act appropriately, but be aware that the law is on your side. • Stop 52, GCJEF7 LaPlaya, has been archived Quote Link to comment
+Ambrosia Posted January 3, 2008 Share Posted January 3, 2008 We're tentatively planning on being there, if everything works out. I've been wanting to go on another CM since my first one two years ago in Bellingham (I'm not counting the Wenatchee one, as I only attended the dinner). That was one of my favorite days of caching. If we come, there will be 5 of us, total. There are a lot of people attending that I would like to meet, and see again! Thank you for doing these CM's, travis. Quote Link to comment
+Ambrosia Posted January 3, 2008 Share Posted January 3, 2008 (edited) I was curious how much light there is at 7:15, and how my camera acted at that time, so I took some shots out of my windows at home at about 7:20-7:25am yesterday morning. Edited January 3, 2008 by Ambrosia Quote Link to comment
+Recdiver Posted January 3, 2008 Share Posted January 3, 2008 I was curious how much light there is at 7:15, and how my camera acted at that time, so I took some shots out of my windows at home at about 7:20-7:25am yesterday morning. blue photos snipped Nice snaps 'bro . I hope you can make the CM and now I wish I'd tried harder to go. I worked it out that we could go however in the end we decided we just weren't physically up for it. Maybe another time. Quote Link to comment
+Ambrosia Posted January 3, 2008 Share Posted January 3, 2008 I was curious how much light there is at 7:15, and how my camera acted at that time, so I took some shots out of my windows at home at about 7:20-7:25am yesterday morning. blue photos snipped Nice snaps 'bro . I hope you can make the CM and now I wish I'd tried harder to go. I worked it out that we could go however in the end we decided we just weren't physically up for it. Maybe another time. Aw! I'm sorry you guys can't go. That's partly why I posted here, to let people like you know that we were planning on going, just in case it helped with decisions. But I waited until almost the last minute because I've not been getting over the holidays very well. I'm tired of posting that I want to go somewhere when it hasn't been happening lately. Last night was the first time that I felt a twinge of hope that I may be able to go, so I decided to post a "maybe" here in the forums. I'll miss you guys. (((HUGS!))) Quote Link to comment
+1fairygirl Posted January 4, 2008 Share Posted January 4, 2008 (edited) Our son is moving from Vancouver to Seattle in two weeks. Noticed there are a few cachers from seattle area that will be at the Vancouver Cache Machine. Please feel free to give advice on housing and locations in the area. Any input would be appreciated. Edited January 4, 2008 by 1fairygirl Quote Link to comment
+Patudles Posted January 4, 2008 Share Posted January 4, 2008 I've never participated in a Cache Machine, and I see from the posts that there are a few others in my position. Do any of you experienced CM-ers have some words of advice for first-timers? What to do ahead of time to prepare, stuff to bring, what to do/not do once we get there... Even stuff that seems obvious to you would be helpful. I remember the first cache machine I participated in as a cacher(Bellingham). One mistake one family made was not preloading their GSPr. They never were able to keep up with anyone and didn't get very many finds as they were continually and manually putting each cache coords in their unit after each cache they found. They also didn not realize they need to bring the route and such with them. So take advantage of all the work done by Travis and helpers and bring it with you. You will find it useful. I am sure you are prepared but some new cachers may not be. Quote Link to comment
+travisl Posted January 4, 2008 Author Share Posted January 4, 2008 A couple more tips: Bring a flashlight in the morning, too. It's still pretty dark. Spare batteries are a good idea. Quote Link to comment
+Ambrosia Posted January 4, 2008 Share Posted January 4, 2008 (edited) I just realized that posts such as #41 and #45 have lots of wonderful information, but hasn't the numbers of the caches changed since then? If so, I have no clue which caches they're talking about. Edited January 4, 2008 by Ambrosia Quote Link to comment
+klossner Posted January 4, 2008 Share Posted January 4, 2008 (edited) I just realized that posts such as #41 and #45 have lots of wonderful information, but hasn't the numbers of the caches changed since then? If so, I have no clue which caches they're talking about. Those discussions are about the second draft route which can still be found here, and a bookmark list for which is still available here. Edited January 4, 2008 by klossner Quote Link to comment
+Ambrosia Posted January 4, 2008 Share Posted January 4, 2008 I just realized that posts such as #41 and #45 have lots of wonderful information, but hasn't the numbers of the caches changed since then? If so, I have no clue which caches they're talking about. Those discussions are about the second draft route which can still be found here, and a bookmark list for which is still available here. Thanks. Quote Link to comment
+-Hawk- Posted January 4, 2008 Share Posted January 4, 2008 A couple more tips: Bring a flashlight in the morning, too. It's still pretty dark. Spare batteries are a good idea. Spare socks may be in order as well according to the weather report. Quote Link to comment
+Harpo Marx Posted January 4, 2008 Share Posted January 4, 2008 I'm sorry for the late info but I thought I'd better share this info. I found cache #46 "Slytherin 2" GCMZXN in the past and had a run-in with security as did other cachers before and after me. The grumpy old guard claims the cache is on Port-owned private property and we were trespassing. I believe it's in public right-of-way, but wasn't going to argue as we were just leaving anyway. It's a cool cache and worth finding (even though the log was in pretty bad shape at the time), just be aware that you may be hassled. Now here's a dumb question. I attended the GHCM and loved it, but I'm wondering if anyone knows if it's possible to load the entire route as shown on the final draft straight into my Garmin CSx. Last time I PQ'd the bookmark and navigated to each cache separately, but it would be awesome to just start navigating at the start of the day and not have to mess with it again on the whole route. I know Garmins can follow routes, but I've never had much luck using that feature. See y'all in the a.m.! Quote Link to comment
+The Jester Posted January 4, 2008 Share Posted January 4, 2008 A couple more tips: Bring a flashlight in the morning, too. It's still pretty dark. Spare batteries are a good idea. Spare socks may be in order as well according to the weather report. Warm coats and rain coats may be in order - bring extra just in case, remember the car gets to carry them not you. Quote Link to comment
+WeightMan Posted January 4, 2008 Share Posted January 4, 2008 Now here's a dumb question. I attended the GHCM and loved it, but I'm wondering if anyone knows if it's possible to load the entire route as shown on the final draft straight into my Garmin CSx. Last time I PQ'd the bookmark and navigated to each cache separately, but it would be awesome to just start navigating at the start of the day and not have to mess with it again on the whole route. I know Garmins can follow routes, but I've never had much luck using that feature. You can do this on a laptop, but not on my Garmin. The Garmin will only navigate to the next stop. From there you have to select the next in line. Quote Link to comment
+-Hawk- Posted January 6, 2008 Share Posted January 6, 2008 WOOHOO!!!! Was that fun or what!!!!!! Thanks Travis and Happy B-Day Too!! Quote Link to comment
+Sagefox Posted January 6, 2008 Share Posted January 6, 2008 That was, in fact, fuuuuuuuunnnnnnnnnnnnnn! Quote Link to comment
+GrievousAngel Posted January 7, 2008 Share Posted January 7, 2008 Thanks to travisl and the others who helped. I really appreciated the bookmarks and tips from tomison and klossner and for the helpful answers to my question about tips for a first-time attendee at a CM. Quote Link to comment
+Difranco Posted January 7, 2008 Share Posted January 7, 2008 That was my very first CM and it was an absolute blast!!! Thanks to Travis and all those who made this event happen. I'd certainly love to see one in the tri-city area of Tumwater, Olympia, & Lacey. It's been almost 4 years since the last one occured. I think being the mid-way (drive time) point between Seattle and Portland, we would get a lot of cachers from both regions as well as the locals from neighboring counties such as Mason, Graysharbor, & Lewis. So here is to planting a seed..... Quote Link to comment
+Allanon Posted January 7, 2008 Share Posted January 7, 2008 If you check Travis' profile you'll see the locations for the next year and a half are already chosen... Quote Link to comment
+coreynjoey Posted January 7, 2008 Share Posted January 7, 2008 If you check Travis' profile you'll see the locations for the next year and a half are already chosen... In case some people don't feel like clicking. Yakima II, March 22, 2008 Missoula, June 21-22, 2008 Victoria II, September 2008 Whidbey, December 2008 The Palouse, March 2009 Vancouver BC II, June 2009 Quote Link to comment
+Difranco Posted January 8, 2008 Share Posted January 8, 2008 It didn't specify a time frame, I was merely planting a seed of thought. I didn't mean to aggravate anyone, I did see the upcoming CM's in his profile. I will probably do the Yakima II CM. Quote Link to comment
+Allanon Posted January 8, 2008 Share Posted January 8, 2008 I wasn't aggravated...just pointing out something that some may not know about. Quote Link to comment
+Prying Pandora Posted January 8, 2008 Share Posted January 8, 2008 March 22 is Easter weekend so Travis may decide to hold Yakima II on a different date. Quote Link to comment
+-Hawk- Posted January 8, 2008 Share Posted January 8, 2008 (edited) March 22 is Easter weekend so Travis may decide to hold Yakima II on a different date. It says in his profile the 22nd, but I believe at the dinner he announced the 29th for Yakima. Edited January 8, 2008 by -Hawk- Quote Link to comment
+travisl Posted January 10, 2008 Author Share Posted January 10, 2008 (edited) I don't remember what I said, but yeah, March 29th is the date I'm looking at for Yakima II. I've also pushed Missoula out a week, so as to not interfere with some late district school schedules. I've updated my profile, which now says: Yakima II, March 29, 2008 Missoula, June 28-29, 2008 Victoria II, September 2008 Whidbey, January 2009 The Palouse/Quad-Cities, March 2009 Vancouver BC II, June 2009 Tri-Cities II, September 2009 Olympia II, January 2010 As I mention in my profile, all dates are tentative until the event actually gets its own event cache page. Missoula is particularly troublesome for me, as it's now interfering with SeabeckTribe's GeoPoker Run 3, which has been held on this same weekend in 2008, 2007, and 2006. The next weekend is Independence Day, and by the next weekend we're deep into the heat of the summer. I've also got to schedule a family Disneyland vacation around this somewhere. (Edit: Olympia II) Edited January 11, 2008 by travisl Quote Link to comment
+YeOleImposter Posted January 10, 2008 Share Posted January 10, 2008 Tri-Cities II, September 2009 Woot! We will be waiting for you! Kind of like the Olympics coming to town Time to start preparing. Get some more good caches out there and set up a hot chocolate stand next to your favorite cache (just so you can watch others be tormented). Quote Link to comment
+travisl Posted January 11, 2008 Author Share Posted January 11, 2008 (edited) Woot! We will be waiting for you! Kind of like the Olympics coming to town Heh. That was actually something I checked when I was calendaring Vancouver BC II. I do plan to catch some live world class curling in February 2010. FWIW, SeabeckTribe is OK with me scheduling a conflicting event two states away, so Missoula on June 28-29 is looking better. And just to play with the map, I downloaded a pocket query for Yakima last night. Holy $^@&3!! I selected a 3-mile square area* around downtown and got something like 210 caches. I really want to run the route down the canyon again, though, so once I eliminated all the micros and smalls, I was able to come up with a 57-cache route hitting Yakima and Ellensburg. I'm seriously thinking about making Yakima II a micro-free cache machine. If I end up a little short, I might add some smalls to make the route long enough. Ahh... but the start of that planning's still a month away... * (Edit to clarify: 3 mi x 3 mi, not 3 mi²) Edited January 11, 2008 by travisl Quote Link to comment
+-Hawk- Posted January 11, 2008 Share Posted January 11, 2008 And just to play with the map, I downloaded a pocket query for Yakima last night. Holy $^@&3!! I selected a 3-mile square area around downtown and got something like 210 caches. I really want to run the route down the canyon again, though, so once I eliminated all the micros and smalls, I was able to come up with a 57-cache route hitting Yakima and Ellensburg. I'm seriously thinking about making Yakima II a micro-free cache machine. If I end up a little short, I might add some smalls to make the route long enough. Ahh... but the start of that planning's still a month away... A couple questions: 1) Are you thinking of the Route beginning in Ellensburg and ending up in a frenzy through Yakima? (Understanding this in pre-planning stages) 2)How set is the dates for YCM II ? Snookie and I are wanting to start the process of looking for a Hotel, since it is less than 3 months away, and I am going to put in for some vacation and make a looooong weekend of it. I do believe I got my fill of micros last weekend, so if you pull those off the route, no problem here. Quote Link to comment
+Prying Pandora Posted January 11, 2008 Share Posted January 11, 2008 I'm seriously thinking about making Yakima II a micro-free cache machine. If I end up a little short, I might add some smalls to make the route long enough. Ahh... but the start of that planning's still a month away... A lot of us pick up where we left off on Sunday so a longer route isn't a bad thing. Quote Link to comment
+YeOleImposter Posted January 11, 2008 Share Posted January 11, 2008 I too like the idea of a micro-free event. Although there are some cool micros, for the most part they never show off the city, and when they do they are "micros in the woods" which some folk think are great because they are "difficult" but which I just find to be an annoying waste of good cache space A question: On the "II" series of caches, do you also eliminate caches done in the previous cache machine? Quote Link to comment
+Prying Pandora Posted January 11, 2008 Share Posted January 11, 2008 I too like the idea of a micro-free event. Although there are some cool micros, for the most part they never show off the city, and when they do they are "micros in the woods" which some folk think are great because they are "difficult" but which I just find to be an annoying waste of good cache space A question: On the "II" series of caches, do you also eliminate caches done in the previous cache machine? I dislike micros in the woods too. I hope we don't eliminate caches from the previous machine. Most of the people that will attend were not caching yet when Yakima I was held and the few old timers that were there can just skip 'em. Quote Link to comment
+YeOleImposter Posted January 11, 2008 Share Posted January 11, 2008 I hope we don't eliminate caches from the previous machine. Most of the people that will attend were not caching yet when Yakima I was held and the few old timers that were there can just skip 'em. I understand, but realize 1) Travis has done them 2) even many non old timers have done these if they have passed through Yakima at all in the last 5 years. 3) only 1/2 of the ones on the original route are still active and of those that are active many have not been found in 3-6 months -- a good indication they really are missing, just no one bothers to post DNFs 4) and most important -- there are still plenty to do on the cache machine for everyone if these are skipped. If these and the micros are skipped, then on Sunday everyone can have another full day of caching. BTW, the Vancouver cache machine weekend ended up being my best MONTH worth of caching with 135 finds! 26 on the way to Vancouver, 77 (+2 previous finds) at the cache machine, and 32 on the way home to the Tri-Cities. Here is a link to my stats for the weekend Quote Link to comment
+travisl Posted January 11, 2008 Author Share Posted January 11, 2008 So many questions... such tentative answers. In order of confidence: On the "II" series of caches, do you also eliminate caches done in the previous cache machine?Nope. So far, the only II that I organized was Bremerton II, and there were two or three that were repeats from Bremerton I. When the organizers planned Spokane II, I was glad they didn't exclude Spokane I caches, because I was unable to make it to the original event. Good question, though, because as I've said in the past, I'm pretty selfish when it comes to organizing these. I appreciate everyone who decides to come along with me Are you thinking of the Route beginning in Ellensburg and ending up in a frenzy through Yakima?Not at all. The routes work best when the start and end points are close to each other, so people can leave their cars for the day and pick them up after dinner. At this very early stage, I'm pondering making the start point Waterfall View (which was also a YCM I cache; I'm guessing from some things I've read that there's a park and ride nearby) and ending at Old Country Buffet a few miles south. If I do this, we'll be heading north up I-82 fairly early in the morning, hitting Ellensburg, and then taking my favorite drive in the state, SR-821 (Canyon Road) back into Yakima. How set [are] the dates for YCM II?I'm not confident enough to say that March 29 is a definite, but for personal scheduling reasons (kid's going to DC on spring break), I don't want to push it into April, and it's not going to be Easter weekend (March 22) or the week before (I've got a trip scheduled March 15). I'd say I'm 95% sure it'll be March 29. I wouldn't book my hotel reservation yet, but I'd be surprised if the date doesn't stick. I do believe I got my fill of micros last weekend, so if you pull those off the route, no problem here.I'm just speculating wildly at this point, but if I set up a 50+ cache route with just regular sized caches, ending at the dinner location, I could certainly do the opposite -- set up a supplemental "Yakima Micro Madness" route, starting and ending at the dinner location. That way, if someone finishes early, or they're looking for something to do on Sunday, they'll have another hundred caches at their disposal. I didn't save my work, but I'd guess someone could easily get 30 micros on a short walking tour of downtown. Quote Link to comment
+YeOleImposter Posted January 12, 2008 Share Posted January 12, 2008 Everyone, Please upload some of your favorite shots of the cache machine to the cache page -- or tell us here how to view them online if you have them up on Flickr or somewhere else. thanks!! Quote Link to comment
+klossner Posted January 14, 2008 Share Posted January 14, 2008 A friend of mine, one of whose caches was on the VCM route, was chagrined to see this sequence in the cache logs: We found the log to be a bit damp. Log was wet. Log was soaked. Quote Link to comment
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