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Willy Wonka muggled my cache...


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This is my cache: 3-in-1 Traveler's Rest

 

I adopted it a few months ago from a cacher that was moving to a different area.

 

Here's a snippet of the log that was waiting for me this morning:

 

"Cache needs serious maintenance. No sign of a logbook. It appears someone has put some kind of chocolate pudding in the cache, and it has melted all over everything; no sign of a travel bug."

 

Oh boy. :laughing:

 

As I type this I have the whole thing running in the dish washer, so we'll see how that goes. I've posted pictures to my maintenance log as a sort of visual documentation. I'm posting this here because on some level it's almost amusing and because I'm sure somebody has wondered about the washibility of an ammo can...

 

I thought about washing the contents and the can by hand but then it occurred to me: when I cache do I use a compass and a paper map? Heck no! I use technology! So let the machines do the work, I say. I did add a full load of dishes after I realized how much water I was wasting on just the cache. That, and so when it all goes wrong and my wife gets home to laugh at me I can say, "but look, I've washed and put away a load of dishes!"

 

I also post a question: what are your individual gut feelings about the sustainability of the location as a spot for the cache? Should I take this as a sign and archive the sucker or should I replace it and see what happens. It wouldn't bother me so much, but a Unite for Diabetes Travel Bug was perhaps also lost it appears. I would hate to see this be a spot of repeat muggling.

Edited by ec3forme
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This is my cache: 3-in-1 Traveler's Rest

 

I adopted it a few months ago from a cacher that was moving to a different area.

 

Here's a snippet of the log that was waiting for me this morning:

 

"Cache needs serious maintenance. No sign of a logbook. It appears someone has put some kind of chocolate pudding in the cache, and it has melted all over everything; no sign of a travel bug."

 

Oh boy. :laughing:

 

As I type this I have the whole thing running in the dish washer, so we'll see how that goes. I've posted pictures to my maintenance log as a sort of visual documentation. I'm posting this here because on some level it's almost amusing and because I'm sure somebody has wondered about the washibility of an ammo can...

 

I thought about washing the contents and the can by hand but then it occurred to me: when I cache do I use a compass and a paper map? Heck no! I use technology! So let the machines do the work, I say. I did add a full load of dishes after I realized how much water I was wasting on just the cache. That, and so when it all goes wrong and my wife gets home to laugh at me I can say, "but look, I've washed and put away a load of dishes!"

 

I also post a question: what are your individual gut feelings about the sustainability of the location as a spot for the cache? Should I take this as a sign and archive the sucker or should I replace it and see what happens. It wouldn't bother me so much, but a Unite for Diabetes Travel Bug was perhaps also lost it appears. I would hate to see this be a spot of repeat muggling.

 

It going to be interesting to see the outcome of the claiming :anibad: It almost looks like a candy bar was left in the heat…

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Well, as far as replacing it goes...

 

We had an ammo box in a rest area. It was traded for a purple lunch bag (with a local girl's name on it!). All the contents were switched to the new purple bag.

We replaced the ammo can. The entire ammo can was taken the next time, contents and all. (No big deal, we got a really good deal on a lot of ammo cans--heck, if they had asked, we would have given them their own ammo cans!).

 

We decide to archive that one.

 

If I were you, I'd at least move it to a new spot in the area (in case it is just local kids). Chances are, someone left something in it that they shouldn't have and all would be well from here on out, but better safe than sorry.

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WHEW! That's not what I was thinking. I thought you were saying Willy Wonka because someone, well, er.........use your imagination. One of the caches near here was used as a restroom once. Disgusting!

 

In my area, we have had two cache defications in ammo boxes. They were 4 years or so apart, and took place within a couple hundred feet. (The first cache was archived). The serial cache pooper is still at large. :laughing:

 

To stay on topic, I'd probably move the cache in question, not use the same exact spot.

Edited by TheWhiteUrkel
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The cleaning went very, very well! :laughing: All the contents that I pulled out are now chocolate free (trust me, it was chocolate) and the ammo can is squeaky clean!

 

I had hoped that it was going to be a case of candy bar left in the cache, but the consistency and the shear amount of the chocolate could only be syrup.

 

The cache is located near a business (original owner got permission from the owner) that also houses an ice-cream shop. I'm thinking bored/underpaid kid working at the DQ might have seen somebody finding the cache and dumped the sauce in the cache.

 

I sent a PM to the last person that found the travel bug that was in the cache- it sounds like maybe they picked it up but logged it as discovered...

 

I also sent a PM to the person that I adopted the cache from to get his feedback and thoughts.

 

So I have learned that ammo cans seem to be pretty dishwasher rugged. I'm thinking about giving it a WB40 wipe-down to protect the metal before putting it back out in the wild.

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I've had two ammo box caches savaged by raccoons. They opened them, scattered the contents a little and then bit open the Play Dough containers inside and ate it.

 

One of our locals likes to leave those little Play Dough key chains in caches. Not good. Play Dough is FOOD! I'm surprised some Alabama critter didn't get wind of that one before you rescued it. Think, my ammo box was sealed and the Play Dough was inside its own little "airtight" container. Still attracted those pesky critters.....

 

Good idea about the dishwasher. That would be a good way to test the "water proofness" of your next container idea, too.

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We had an ammo can/TB hotel near a major highway get stolen, and instead of just replacing it, we moved it to another hiding spot about 150 feet away and off the ground. Then we just submitted the new coords to our reviewer to get that changed on the cache page. Our thinking was that it might have been muggle-kids who found it and stole it, so getting it above their heads and away from the original spot may preserve it. So far it is doing great.

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I have been to this cache. As a matter of fact, I am the one that left the Diabetes TB that may or may not be missing.

 

I am not sure I would call it extremely well-hidden...especially since it is in an area that employees from the nearby establishments might be taking a smoke break or taking out trash. (I do not think I am giving much away for future searchers here.)

 

To what extent do the business owners approve of this cache? They must be aware...but could they tell their staff not to mess with it? (Surely it was an employee from the food establishment that did this.)

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I would inquire as to if the DQ seemed to be missing a large amount of chocolate sauce lately, then reveal the photographic evidence to them. :laughing:

 

Otherwise, perhaps shifting the coordinates a bit would help. Out of the view of DQ break-takers.

Edited by NeoAddict
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I've been racking my brain trying to think of a spot that would be a little more sneaky. Its current hiding spot is almost so obvious that it's perfect, but I fear it's been compromised. The problem is that there's the final stage to a multi about 1000 feet away and another TB drop on the opposite side of the interstate. Also if I move it, the cache name doesn't really work. I'm thinking that it might just be better to archive it and wait for the new construction to be finished on the new gas/food stop one exit north of here and hope there's a good spot there (and claim it before a hundred or so other cachers get there first!)

 

Also: raccoons can open ammo cans?!?!

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As I type this I have the whole thing running in the dish washer, so we'll see how that goes. I've posted pictures to my maintenance log as a sort of visual documentation. I'm posting this here because on some level it's almost amusing and because I'm sure somebody has wondered about the washibility of an ammo can...

 

I thought about washing the contents and the can by hand but then it occurred to me: when I cache do I use a compass and a paper map? Heck no! I use technology! So let the machines do the work, I say. I did add a full load of dishes after I realized how much water I was wasting on just the cache. That, and so when it all goes wrong and my wife gets home to laugh at me I can say, "but look, I've washed and put away a load of dishes!"

 

 

I don't have a dish washer, but I do have a clothes washer and dryer. If I set it on cold wash/rinse and put the dryer on tumble-dry, do you think it would work equally well? Hmmm... :laughing:

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This is my cache: 3-in-1 Traveler's Rest

 

I did add a full load of dishes after I realized how much water I was wasting on just the cache. That, and so when it all goes wrong and my wife gets home to laugh at me I can say, "but look, I've washed and put away a load of dishes!"

 

 

Yikes!!! I have a thing about germs. I think I have Obsessive Comulsive Disorder. If my husband did that, I would probably throw all those dishes away. I know it was just chocolate and I believe you but ... ewww. The thought of that ammo can being in my dishwasher gives me the creepy crawlies.

 

At least rewash the dishes. :laughing: please

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I don't have a dish washer, but I do have a clothes washer and dryer. If I set it on cold wash/rinse and put the dryer on tumble-dry, do you think it would work equally well? Hmmm... :laughing:

 

Man! And I thought tennis shoes in the dryer made a lot of noise!

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I don't have a dish washer, but I do have a clothes washer and dryer. If I set it on cold wash/rinse and put the dryer on tumble-dry, do you think it would work equally well?

The problem with using a clothes washing machine & dryer is the lack of pressurized water. This can be corrected by tossing in a couple of cats. As the machines are doing their thing, the cats will self aggitate and greatly improve the overall cleansing & drying cycles.

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This is my cache: 3-in-1 Traveler's Rest

 

I did add a full load of dishes after I realized how much water I was wasting on just the cache. That, and so when it all goes wrong and my wife gets home to laugh at me I can say, "but look, I've washed and put away a load of dishes!"

 

 

Yikes!!! I have a thing about germs. I think I have Obsessive Comulsive Disorder. If my husband did that, I would probably throw all those dishes away. I know it was just chocolate and I believe you but ... ewww. The thought of that ammo can being in my dishwasher gives me the creepy crawlies.

 

At least rewash the dishes. :anicute: please

I would be so dead if I did that. :drama:

 

Let me know if you need an assist with the cache, ec3forme.

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This is my cache: 3-in-1 Traveler's Rest

 

I did add a full load of dishes after I realized how much water I was wasting on just the cache. That, and so when it all goes wrong and my wife gets home to laugh at me I can say, "but look, I've washed and put away a load of dishes!"

 

 

Yikes!!! I have a thing about germs. I think I have Obsessive Comulsive Disorder. If my husband did that, I would probably throw all those dishes away. I know it was just chocolate and I believe you but ... ewww. The thought of that ammo can being in my dishwasher gives me the creepy crawlies.

 

At least rewash the dishes. :anicute: please

 

I think you should wash those dishes several times, due to the "unknown" properties of the brown residue. :drama:

 

or you will drive this guy nuts... :huh:

monk.jpg

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I don't have a dish washer, but I do have a clothes washer and dryer. If I set it on cold wash/rinse and put the dryer on tumble-dry, do you think it would work equally well?

The problem with using a clothes washing machine & dryer is the lack of pressurized water. This can be corrected by tossing in a couple of cats. As the machines are doing their thing, the cats will self aggitate and greatly improve the overall cleansing & drying cycles.

 

Cats.... hmm... What a great idea! And that way the cat gets cleaned too. That'll save me taking it down to the dock and throwing is it in the water to clean it up every weekend, especially in the winter when I have to chip a hole in the ice. Nothing like a spiffy clean ammo box AND a spiffy clean cat. I like it. :anicute:

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I don't have a dish washer, but I do have a clothes washer and dryer. If I set it on cold wash/rinse and put the dryer on tumble-dry, do you think it would work equally well?

 

The problem with using a clothes washing machine & dryer is the lack of pressurized water. This can be corrected by tossing in a couple of cats. As the machines are doing their thing, the cats will self aggitate and greatly improve the overall cleansing & drying cycles.

 

Cats.... hmm... What a great idea! And that way the cat gets cleaned too. That'll save me taking it down to the dock and throwing is it in the water to clean it up every weekend, especially in the winter when I have to chip a hole in the ice. Nothing like a spiffy clean ammo box AND a spiffy clean cat. I like it. B)

 

 

As a cat lover, I must say that I am extremely disappointed in the promotion of ideas such as this.

 

B)

 

Putting a cat in a washing machine?

 

:blink:

 

AND a dryer?

 

:D

 

Utterly horrible!

 

B)

 

What kind of fool would even think to take such action?

 

B)

 

It is reprehensible.

 

B)

 

Especially since everyone knows to truly get into all the nooks and crannies you need to use something smaller, like a hamster.

 

:rolleyes:

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I don't have a dish washer, but I do have a clothes washer and dryer. If I set it on cold wash/rinse and put the dryer on tumble-dry, do you think it would work equally well?

 

The problem with using a clothes washing machine & dryer is the lack of pressurized water. This can be corrected by tossing in a couple of cats. As the machines are doing their thing, the cats will self aggitate and greatly improve the overall cleansing & drying cycles.

 

Cats.... hmm... What a great idea! And that way the cat gets cleaned too. That'll save me taking it down to the dock and throwing is it in the water to clean it up every weekend, especially in the winter when I have to chip a hole in the ice. Nothing like a spiffy clean ammo box AND a spiffy clean cat. I like it. :rolleyes:

 

 

As a cat lover, I must say that I am extremely disappointed in the promotion of ideas such as this.

 

:blink:

 

Putting a cat in a washing machine?

 

B)

 

AND a dryer?

 

:D

 

Utterly horrible!

 

B)

 

What kind of fool would even think to take such action?

 

B)

 

It is reprehensible.

 

B)

 

Especially since everyone knows to truly get into all the nooks and crannies you need to use something smaller, like a hamster.

 

B)

Hmm... another excellent idea, especially since this is the cat I would be using:

 

de15d1f4-fe9c-455f-893e-9324d152a038.jpg

 

A hamster or three would definately do a better job getting the dirt out of the deep corners...

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This is my cache: 3-in-1 Traveler's Rest

 

I did add a full load of dishes after I realized how much water I was wasting on just the cache. That, and so when it all goes wrong and my wife gets home to laugh at me I can say, "but look, I've washed and put away a load of dishes!"

 

 

Yikes!!! I have a thing about germs. I think I have Obsessive Comulsive Disorder. If my husband did that, I would probably throw all those dishes away. I know it was just chocolate and I believe you but ... ewww. The thought of that ammo can being in my dishwasher gives me the creepy crawlies.

 

At least rewash the dishes. :rolleyes: please

 

You know that dish washers are where things go to get rid of germs, right? That would be like washing the casserole pan separate from the plates because I don't want the casserole pan cooties to mix with the plate cooties. This is the same dish washer that washes the knives that cut raw meat... All the cooties are dead and every thing's clean and I didn't waste the water to wash the ammo can alone.

 

And the wife never flinched.

 

Now if I had then cooked a casserole in the ammo can...

 

Anyway, I'm leaning towards an archive on this cache.

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I had one vandalized recently. There were three in the area, all by different cachers, each vandalized with bodily fluids of some sort. Mine was pooped. I thought about archiving it, but I got a nice note from a local cacher who hoped I would replace it. They said they had fun with my hides and looked forward to finding that one if replaced. I decided to stick it out and replaced with a small cache, about twice the size of a match stick holder. It is more aggressively hidden, but not impossible for a geocacher. If damaged again, I've got lots of match stick holders. I've decided not to give in to the vandals and keep it going. All three cache owners are doing the same thing.

 

It is a tough decision, but you can show that you have more persistence than they do. It is easy to replace it with a micro and move the ammo can elsewhere.

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This is my cache: 3-in-1 Traveler's Rest

 

I did add a full load of dishes after I realized how much water I was wasting on just the cache. That, and so when it all goes wrong and my wife gets home to laugh at me I can say, "but look, I've washed and put away a load of dishes!"

 

 

Yikes!!! I have a thing about germs. I think I have Obsessive Comulsive Disorder. If my husband did that, I would probably throw all those dishes away. I know it was just chocolate and I believe you but ... ewww. The thought of that ammo can being in my dishwasher gives me the creepy crawlies.

 

At least rewash the dishes. :rolleyes: please

 

How did I miss this post?

I must apologize in advance, sorry.

The first thing I thought of when I read this was "Gee, I think I'll go make soup in an ammo can." So what'll it be? Chicken noodle, or beef vegetable?

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This is my cache: 3-in-1 Traveler's Rest

 

I did add a full load of dishes after I realized how much water I was wasting on just the cache. That, and so when it all goes wrong and my wife gets home to laugh at me I can say, "but look, I've washed and put away a load of dishes!"

 

 

Yikes!!! I have a thing about germs. I think I have Obsessive Comulsive Disorder. If my husband did that, I would probably throw all those dishes away. I know it was just chocolate and I believe you but ... ewww. The thought of that ammo can being in my dishwasher gives me the creepy crawlies.

 

At least rewash the dishes. :blink: please

 

You know that dish washers are where things go to get rid of germs, right? That would be like washing the casserole pan separate from the plates because I don't want the casserole pan cooties to mix with the plate cooties. This is the same dish washer that washes the knives that cut raw meat... All the cooties are dead and every thing's clean and I didn't waste the water to wash the ammo can alone.

 

And the wife never flinched.

 

Now if I had then cooked a casserole in the ammo can...

 

Anyway, I'm leaning towards an archive on this cache.

 

:D I know... :rolleyes:

 

So if you archive it do you get to keep the ammo can or give it back to the original owner? Thats too bad that you would have to archive.

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:) I know... :rolleyes:

 

So if you archive it do you get to keep the ammo can or give it back to the original owner? Thats too bad that you would have to archive.

 

If I archive I'll place the can back out and re-name the cache after the original owner. I haven't heard from him yet, but if he want it back and I can get it too him then that's fine too.

 

GOOD NEWS! The travel bug was not lost! I just heard back from the last person that logged the find that mentioned the TB and he did, indeed, pick it up and had not logged the retrieval yet. That was my first concern, that the TB had been stolen.

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This is my cache: 3-in-1 Traveler's Rest

 

I adopted it a few months ago from a cacher that was moving to a different area.

 

Here's a snippet of the log that was waiting for me this morning:

 

"Cache needs serious maintenance. No sign of a logbook. It appears someone has put some kind of chocolate pudding in the cache, and it has melted all over everything; no sign of a travel bug."

 

Oh boy. :)

 

As I type this I have the whole thing running in the dish washer, so we'll see how that goes. I've posted pictures to my maintenance log as a sort of visual documentation. I'm posting this here because on some level it's almost amusing and because I'm sure somebody has wondered about the washibility of an ammo can...

 

I thought about washing the contents and the can by hand but then it occurred to me: when I cache do I use a compass and a paper map? Heck no! I use technology! So let the machines do the work, I say. I did add a full load of dishes after I realized how much water I was wasting on just the cache. That, and so when it all goes wrong and my wife gets home to laugh at me I can say, "but look, I've washed and put away a load of dishes!"

 

I also post a question: what are your individual gut feelings about the sustainability of the location as a spot for the cache? Should I take this as a sign and archive the sucker or should I replace it and see what happens. It wouldn't bother me so much, but a Unite for Diabetes Travel Bug was perhaps also lost it appears. I would hate to see this be a spot of repeat muggling.

The best way to handle this is to see the humor in it, which is what you did. :ph34r: The Willy Wonka thing still kills me... :ph34r:

 

I would find a new home for your clean ammo can and hope that Willy doesn't find that one. :ph34r:

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