Is this Geocache container idea over the line?

February 28, 2008

After seeing Geocache containers disguised as deer poop, bee hives, birds nests, etc. I had an idea for a cache container. I bought a fake rubber snake, spray painted it black to look more realistic, and am going to attach a bison tube to it. After the spray paint, it does look frighteningly realistic. I have never seen a cache like this before, or ever heard of one being hidden like this (yeah, you're all welcome to steal my idea now, lol). I have not placed this yet and am wanting to get some feedback on it.

Do you think this goes too far? Will it scare too many cachers? I figure I would make it a fairly easy find. And I would include something in the hint that lets you know you are looking for something that may scare you, but not give away what exactly you are looking for. And maybe even write Geocaching on the snake in white marker somewhere so the cacher will be able to see that this is a fake snake after examining it for a minute.

I have gotten quite a few caches that I thought were far too dangerously hid. So something like a fake snake would not bother me. It would give me a startle, but I would be cracking up after I figured it out. But that is just me. I need others opinions on this before I do anything with it. If people think this is going too far, I won't put it out.

Thanks,

The Fej

February 28, 2008

After seeing Geocache containers disguised as deer poop, bee hives, birds nests, etc. I had an idea for a cache container. I bought a fake rubber snake, spray painted it black to look more realistic, and am going to attach a bison tube to it. After the spray paint, it does look frighteningly realistic. I have never seen a cache like this before, or ever heard of one being hidden like this (yeah, you're all welcome to steal my idea now, lol). I have not placed this yet and am wanting to get some feedback on it.

Do you think this goes too far? Will it scare too many cachers? I figure I would make it a fairly easy find. And I would include something in the hint that lets you know you are looking for something that may scare you, but not give away what exactly you are looking for. And maybe even write Geocaching on the snake in white marker somewhere so the cacher will be able to see that this is a fake snake after examining it for a minute.

I have gotten quite a few caches that I thought were far too dangerously hid. So something like a fake snake would not bother me. It would give me a startle, but I would be cracking up after I figured it out. But that is just me. I need others opinions on this before I do anything with it. If people think this is going too far, I won't put it out.

Thanks,

The Fej

Sounds ok to me. If the bison tube is actually hidden inside the snake and it looks as real as you say, you might end up maintaining the hide after a log like:

"We tossed a dead snake deeper into the woods, but DNF the cache!"

1.1k · February 28, 2008

If you do hide that cache, put a note in the description that says you'll delete any logs that reveal the cache container. With that type of "surprise" cache, you can usually tell what's going on if you read the logs.

1.5k · February 28, 2008

I've seen a few done that way. Go for it!

February 28, 2008

The head of the snake has a wide open mouth with it's tongue sticking out. You can tell it's fake once you see it, so I would have to hide the head under something or inside a tree a bit so it wouldn't be seen at first. The tube will be hidden in it's open mouth and easy to notice once you see the head.

Edited February 28, 2008 by The Fej

February 28, 2008

We found a cache here in Central FL that was hidden inside a fake coral snake that was attached to a tree. I hate creepy crawlies and things that slither, but this was a fun hunt and a cool hide. I'll have to do a little research as to which one it was and I'll try to come back with a link to the cache page so that you can see how they went about setting it up and hopefully this will help you place your hide idea in your local area. :laughing:

February 28, 2008

Thank you Flatouts, I would really appreciate that!

February 28, 2008

As Indiana Jones once said, "Snakes, I hate Snakes!".

I would run and move to the next cache.

February 28, 2008

I've done one of these before. Go for it!

Most cachers are used to seeing snakes of one kind or another. After a couple of good pokes with a stick, they'll figure out it's not real. :laughing:

There is a local series of micros hidden in one of our local state forests with fake snakes, spiders, and frogs.

It's a very cool series and enjoyed by all.

Good luck!

February 28, 2008

Okay, I've found it but I'm not good at posting links, so here's the number GCPB5C and the name Red Touches Yellow. Let me know if this helps and keep me posted on it's success!!! Good luck. Perhaps sometime in the future if my journey takes me your way I'll be able to hunt it down and sign the log!!! :laughing:

7.3k · February 28, 2008

I've done at least one like that. The cache description discussed watching out for snakes, because it was in a rocky area that could have rattlesnakes. A good warning, and knowing the cache hider, I kinda had a clue what I was going to be looking for. :laughing:

February 28, 2008

I like the bird nest hide, but I ran into a problem:

One cache I found was indeed a bison tube firmly attached to a fake birds nest. Cool, I thought.

A few weeks later, hunting a different cache by the same hider, I spotted another bird nest. A ha! I pulled the branch with the nest on it closer to me. Of course, this time it was a real nest. Oh well.

February 28, 2008

There is a cache locally just like that. It's actually easy to tell its a fake snake once you get close enough. Maybe I shouldn't have shot it and chopped it's head off with a shovel.... ;-)

Seriously, I would go for it. In the right location it will be a great cache.

1k · February 28, 2008

I had an idea for a cache container. I bought a fake rubber snake, spray painted it black to look more realistic, and am going to attach a bison tube to it. After the spray paint, it does look frighteningly realistic.

We have a stage of a multi like that and it's been well received. As well as some that are fake squirells hanging on the side of a tree staring down at you and other various critters. Found one that was a big bug on a beam under a deck and you had to poke your head up close and personal to find it.... those are always fun finds :laughing:

Go for it!!!!

4k · February 28, 2008

Seems fine to me.

We had considered attaching this to the inside of an ammo can.

http://www.defensedevices.com/door-window-alarm.html

I really dont want local cachers more mad at me than they are now. Worse yet, i would hate to find someone deceased with the cache in their hands.

Just not quite sure i want to do it... My son does though!

February 28, 2008

I love that, hate snakes, but love the idea! Now you have me thinking lol

38.2k · February 28, 2008

A cache like this has been floating around in my mind for a few years. I just had two concerns. Living in the northeast, it would look quite out of place in the winter. Also, depending where I would hide it, it might be harassed by a passerby (who would soon discover it's a fake, or carried off by a hungry hawk.

If I find the right fake snake and the right hiding place I may still do it.

18.9k · February 28, 2008

I've found 3 that were just like this - the bison tube was stuck down in the mouth/throat area.

Edited February 28, 2008 by StarBrand

1k · February 28, 2008

We had considered attaching this to the inside of an ammo can.

I love it!!! You should make it a rural cache to keep from waking the neighbors... but then again that would be harder for EMT's to get to when the elderly cacher has a heart attack... :laughing:

hehehe

One day here I got a call from someone from the state wildlife office. They said there was a nest of some endangered species snake and they found a cache hidden right in it with the snake eggs. They saw my name in it and that is why they were contacting me. Told me it was a serious offense to endanger this nest. I was at work and caught off guard so I explained the cache was there first. They really got after me and after dragging me over the coals for a while identified themselves as one of the local cachers who's been fighting for FTF's on my new caches. Was funny... after I knew who it was it was funny... but I had planned, but never did, a cache that was going to be in some remote swampy area (i.e. gator and snake country), and fill a container with those spring loaded snakes (from the old peanut can prank) as I knew he would probably be the FTF on it. Never got around to doing it and he's been inactive for a while (a new baby) but he's been talking about getting back into it. So it's still on my game plan....

February 28, 2008

Thanks to everyone for the advise. I'm glad to see all the positive feedback. I have decided that I am going to put it out for sure now! Probably sometime this weeekend or this coming week. And I am planning on putting it out in a nearby forest off a hiking trail where it wouldn't be out of place to find a snake. I am looking forward to the comments. I'll definitely have to put something in the description to not put any details about the container in the logs, or publish any photos of it though. Thanks everybody.

February 28, 2008

Found a cache once where the fake snake was attached to the ammo can with fishing wire. When you removed the can from the hide spot, the snake followed.

Gotta say, once our hearts started beating again, it was kinda fun. :laughing:

And there was a cache in Great Falls, MT that had a real garter snake living in the hole with it. You never knew if the snake was home until after removing the cache. It was rather odd.

And once we found a micro cache which had been painted up like a grainy rock- it had a snake skin wrapped around it from a recent shed. Was very cool!

-J

February 28, 2008

Found a cache once where the fake snake was attached to the ammo can with fishing wire. When you removed the can from the hide spot, the snake followed.

Gotta say, once our hearts started beating again, it was kinda fun.

Now THAT is a great idea! This cache may be changing now!

February 28, 2008

I live in South Florida, and one of the caches I found was inside a, um, fake critter...this was right next to a lake, and we have some pretty interesting lake critters around.

Anyway, it went something like this:

Looking-for-the-cache, looking-for-the-cache, looking-for-the-cache, looking-for-the-HOLY CRAP!!!!!!!

After the shock wore off, I had a good laugh. Very fun.

February 28, 2008

In a rocky area in the So. Cal. desert, we came across a fake rat with a 35mm film cannister in it's belly. I think the yelp I let out could be heard for miles!

February 28, 2008

I would probably scream bloody murder if it came anywhere near my face - and then highly appreciate the amusement of the cache. (Just don't ever hide a micro in one of those joke peanut jars that have the jumping spring snake things in them!)

February 29, 2008

I have seen plenty of caches like this. Snakes aren't the only varmint used...rats, alligators, bats, owls, and once I saw a rubber Halloween hand with a Bison Tube.

All good fun!

February 29, 2008

I've got a cache that is a bison tube in the mouth of a 32" rubber timber rattler in the hollow end of a large fallen tree. I almost didn't put it out because I was afraid of the reaction to it. I thought I'd give it a try and see what happened. The logs have been positive and very funny. It's GCYKG9 It's been out a year and a half now and is starting to show wear. I'm going to have to replace it soon.

Edited February 29, 2008 by 89SC

2.7k · March 1, 2008

Snowfrog attached a film can to the tail of a stuffed REAL baby alligator and placed it in a hollow log by the creek.

baby alligators are not too common in Indiana... but there ARE the urban legends...

March 1, 2008

There is one around me that is a skirt lifter with a rubber Rat that jumps out when you lift it. Scared the kids. Go for it.

March 2, 2008

I "found" one like this and am still ridiculed by my wife and son for screaming like a girl. It did look real. I hate snakes.

March 2, 2008

Have seen "peanut brittle spring snakes" as well as caches attached to fake snakes, spiders, rats either inside or outside of the cache. It is somehow terrifying to hear a "laughing battery powered noisemaker" go off in the middle of a forest upon opening a cache. Good luck finding even the most obvious off switch under those circumstances. All good fun - so far....

There was a recent cache I searched for that was listed as a "unique container, probably not up to some people's standards". All I found in the area was a large black plastic rodent bait/glue trap in some bushes in a commercial area. It's only been found once and I have no confirmation on whether or not that was the cache container, but if it was, it crosses the line in my book. Like poking around beneath the electrical panels of traffic lights, we shouldn't place caches in situations that would ordinarily be considered "unsafe".

There is a "common sense" element in my book that separates these from a 5/5 "adventure cache" that articulates the risk of an underwater cache, a technical climb, or venturing into a radioactive site. With those types of caches, any type of risk is spelled out and special equipment requirements are stated.

1.5k · March 2, 2008

DNF.

Sorry, I couldn't find your cache. I pushed my stick into the likly hidy-hole but all I came up with was my worst fear... a rattle snake. Fortunatly when caching in the desert I always carry snake shot as the first couple rounds in my sidearm. The snake won't be bothering anyone, but the cache still appears to be missing.

Edited March 2, 2008 by Right Wing Wacko

6.1k · March 2, 2008

This cache:

http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_detai...=y&decrypt=

has a "anti-muggle deterrent" in front of it. You can read the logs to see what other cachers thought about it.

14.3k · March 2, 2008

I've seen a few done that way. Go for it!

I've found a few like that too!

March 3, 2008

Amusing cache story: I was hunting a cache that was hidden in some bushes near a local Wal-Mart this past summer. I peeked into the bush and saw this small grey snake looking back at me perfectly still. I thought, "Oh, I've heard of these kinds of hides" and reached for it. It slithered away...

Later on I hunted a cache about 200 miles from my home. It was a hide like you describe, except that it was hidden underneath a walkway slab. I almost peed my pants after the previous experience!

Then I had a great laugh! Good luck with your cache!

2.6k · March 3, 2008

We've found plenty of bisons hidden in fake critters ( rats, lizards, frogs, alligators, snakes, spiders, etc )

I like them but lots of folks hate snakes. Someone put a realistic snake ( except for forked tongue sticking out) in an ammo can..........the owner asked that the next finder remove it because it was scaring everyone so I complied. I took it home and snipped the tongue off and tossed it on my workbench where it proceeded to scare the hell out of me every time I went in my shop. After a few months I think I put it back in a cache.

Bottom Line.....GO FOR IT.

March 3, 2008

Wow, thanks for all the great response! I have had a ball reading about all the encounters with fake snakes and other critters. When I first thought of the fake snake cache, I figured some cacher somewhere had already thought of it and placed one. I have not yet run into any in my area, so I am at least hoping that it will be the first like that around here. I have a spot that I am going to be placing it, but with all the comments on the different types of hides, I am trying to figure out how to incorporate it into the cache.

I did, however, just put out a fake spider cache with a bison tube attached underneath it. The cache has not yet been approved, but I am looking forward to people's comments on it once it is.

March 4, 2008

Go for it.

Make a spare, though. Your original is likely to get poked with a lot of sticks. :laughing:

March 4, 2008

Do you think this goes too far? Will it scare too many cachers? I figure I would make it a fairly easy find. And I would include something in the hint that lets you know you are looking for something that may scare you, but not give away what exactly you are looking for. And maybe even write Geocaching on the snake in white marker somewhere so the cacher will be able to see that this is a fake snake after examining it for a minute.

Nice of you to ask, honestly I don't see a problem with it. As many of alluded you may have a problem with muggles that may mess with your cache thinking it is a real snake. I've seen other cache containers that look much more scarier unintentionally. How many cache containers have you come across that look like a pipe bomb?

Go for it! The worse thing that can happen is someone may need to clean their shorts if you scare them bad enough!

March 13, 2008

Just my two cents worth: please, PLEASE put a hint of some sort!!! I take a little kiddo caching with me and we would both be screaming like fools (and I'm not sure who would wet their pants first)... But what a story we'd have! Good luck!

19k · March 23, 2008

It wouldn't bother me in the least, but many years ago, I played a "practical joke" on a coworker by putting a plaster (yes, plaster!) coiled up rattlesnake on the hood of his Mack truck while he was sleeping. Once he woke up and saw it, he PEELED himself from that truck, ran about 50 feet away, bent over and puked. It was NOT funny any more.

I knew another guy that would freak if someone tossed a short rope at him (fear of snakes, again).

This is just to point out that some people have very strong phobias. You can't be responsible for everyone's phobias, but you do need to be aware that whats funny to most can be terrifying to others.

March 24, 2008

I found one like that around here. It was a hot summer afternoon and I was hopping around all these big rocks and climbing all around fallen trees for about an hour (sweating, getting all dirty, and eaten alive by bugs) when I found a rubber snake. I put it in my pocket because it was nowhere near ground zero. Just as I was ready to give up, I re-read the cache page and saw a DNF log from a previous finder that went like this:

"Didn't find the cache. It seems to have changed names since i last updated my Palm (its been a while). I did find a plastic green snake though. I scared my fiance with it"

Reading the cache page didn't give any more clues but for some dumb reason I pulled the snake from my pocket and saw the small container in it's mouth. The previous DNF'r must have found the snake and threw it at the fiance who was waiting outside of the boulders, trees, mud and bugs.

Edited March 24, 2008 by kingsting

March 24, 2008

I have seen a leg, a tribute to a great cacher in Alabama, so a snake that looks real would be a great container. Go for it.

March 28, 2008

"Realistic" snake container idea

Sounds ok to me. If the bison tube is actually hidden inside the snake and it looks as real as you say, you might end up maintaining the hide after a log like:

"We tossed a dead snake deeper into the woods, but DNF the cache!"

Classic... I nearly had a monitor cleanup needed after reading this reply.

But yeah, as others have pointed out... should make it clear in the description that anything revealing the location and/or container in the logs, even "encrypted" might be subject to deletion.

2k · March 28, 2008

I highly doubt that this cache idea hasn't already been done numerous times.

March 30, 2008

Snowfrog attached a film can to the tail of a stuffed REAL baby alligator and placed it in a hollow log by the creek.

baby alligators are not too common in Indiana... but there ARE the urban legends...

Cat stole my thunder. It was very well liked by all, until the city's newest expansion project dozed over it.I believe there was only one mention of wet drawers in the logs, followed by thumbs up.

Edited March 30, 2008 by snowfrog

March 31, 2008

I have a major phobia of snakes. Luckily living in New Zealand I don't have to deal with them at all.

Have seen some in the wild while overseas, and to be honest you wouldn't get me close enought to find out if it was fake or not!

I understand that many find them funny but for those that don't a warning in the cache that the hide is different and not to everyones taste would be appreciated by people like myself who may or maynot stick around long enough to find out if it is dead or alive.

March 31, 2008

Read the FTF post on this cache...

puzzle cache

April 1, 2008

No, I don't think that is over the line! I have one as part of a Multi. How about this??A deer skull with antlers?? Is that over the line because I just found one in the woods caching the other day and I was thinking of sticking a 35mm container in it's eye socket and making it a traditional??? Perhaps "Rudolphs Last Cache" for all the kids. Am I sick or is that cool? hehehehe

April 1, 2008

I am new to Geocaching and am enjoying the sport, however, Using fake snakes as containers for caches seem a bit cruel to me...apparently some are taking the fun out of geocaching and becoming vindective to others out there trying to enjoy themselves...If you insist on doing this please put some kind of hint so that the ones of us that are VERY AFRAID of snakes will stay away from your caches...Thank you, firstteach

Is this Geocache container idea over the line?

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