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Any tips for finding micros?


DonerKebab

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Just starting out here, and I'm exploring the caches at my university and the nearby city. Unfortunately, this means I'm hunting for a lot of micro/nano caches! Does anyone have any tips on finding them? And what's with all this talk about lamp posts?

 

Mind you, just looking for tips from seasoned Geocachers. Use your discretion as to what would and would not be giving too much away - you're the experts! Thanks! :sad:

 

--Mike

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Hi there from California,

 

Well we wouldn't be giving away anything since we don't know what caches you are actually out to find. However we can give you what could be out there.

 

Lamp post hides are common in urban areas. There are "skirts" at the base and some times they lift up. Some cachers put caches in them or even a flat magnet up on the inside.

 

Nano's are really small. Some cachers will place them under a bench, in a bracket on a cyclone fence, on street sign posts, etc...

 

Once you find one your geosense should turn on and the next one won't be a problem. If you need help you can always look me up via my gc profile; wolf grrl. Good luck!

 

Happy Caching,

Wolf Grrl

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Many micros are magnetic, so look for something metal nearby. A guardrail, street sign, a bench, an electrical box, a pipe, whatever. You may have to feel around in places you can't see or get on the ground and look under things.

 

If there is nothing metal nearby, look in knotholes of trees, or if there is a spot down low where the tree branches off and accumulates leaves and duff inside, check in there.

 

Also look in bushes and evergreens. Sometimes they are just hanging inside like a Christmas tree ornament. I just stick my head in there and look around.

 

And of course if there is a lamp post nearby be sure to lift the skirt and look under it.

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I won't be adding any more hints, and in fact, I suggest that you don't keep reading these replies.

 

They are all well intended but in my opinon they will spoil the fun you might have discovering these things in real life. Now you will not have an 'aha moment' the first time you find a lamp skirt hide.

 

However, you will have others -- this is much of the fun of geocaching.

 

PS -- unless you like to have folks tell you the ending of movies and such. In that case, keep reading. :unsure:

Edited by hikemeister
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Get out and look, look, look. We tried to do a series of micros on a hiking trail near here and did not find one!! It was so hard. Then, last week we took a trip to St. Louis and did a lot of caching along the way. We started finding micros and now have a much better idea what to look for. We also got skunked on our first nano. Wasn't until we found the second one we looked for that we knew what a nano looked like. Practice, practice, practice.

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As for those lamp post micros...Be Careful! Quite often, you may be disturbing a bee/wasp nest when you are moving the skirt and peering for your magnetic key holder! They really like to nest under those babies because the only ones who ever mess with the skirts are geocachers!

 

Speaking from experience!

 

As for other nanos/micros. I like to look for something that is slightly "out of place" or a possible place to put a micro/nano cache. Bolts are quite common. Be willing to "wiggle" them if you are at ground zero and are around something with bolts or screws. Look for crevaces (sp?)....Things that can easily be painted to match the original surroundings.

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I can't tell you how many DNF's I have for my first hunts for Micros that when I went back, turned out I actually found them.

 

Remember this, if it feels like a bolt head, nail head, or a bump, pull on it. Chances are, its a nano/micro.

 

They stink, but hey, its fun to find them once you find them.

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took me about 5 takes (about 3 hours of searching)for my first micro also -.-

embedded in a natural stone, laying on the ground, near a wall wtih dozens of simular stones all over the place ... at the first level of the wall in the ruins of a tower, not at the base of wall near the road... that would be too easy

 

that was a good lesson for thinking 3d with coordinates.

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If you're wanting more of an idea of what kinds of containers some cachers (specially the more evil ones ;)) use for nanos/micros, check ebay for geocaching, and look through all the different containers that are sold there. I did tis after I got started, and it finally started making sense. lol

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Many good ideas and theories have been given. I am really new to geocaching also and would like to confirm some of them that have been a learning experience for me. #1 - don't be too sure of what you are looking for... keep an open mind. #2 Have confidence in your equipment (and hope that the hider knew how to use his/hers LOL) but also remember that when you get to the "exact spot" you could still be off 20 or 30 feet or more away from the target) #3 as I always said in doing security work... "to stop a thief, you have to think like one". ie when you get to your coordinates, begin to look around and think about where you would hide a cache to make it hard to find. You will find that many people have similar thoughts.... if you would put it there... look there. But don't limit yourself to your own ideas. And learn techniques as they present themselves.

 

Anyway, a few things that have helped me. Oh, and one more..... always have fun and enjoy what you are doing. If you don't, then come back another day ;)

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The use of your GPSr would be a big help. When you are at 4-10 feet, start looking at a place were you think the container would be hid. Also, knowing what kind of container you are looking for is very helpful...Hunting/searching for Micros is a challenge and they are not always were you think they might be. Some are hidden "In plain Sight" (IPS)...Hunting micros in an urban area you don't get poison ivy/oak, and bitten by ticks, spiders...but there is all ways a first time. For me, I like all caches that have a log to sign and date. Almost any cacher can find an Ammo Box under a pile of rocks or limbs. Don't forget, Micros are showing up in many wooded area....These can be really "tuff". Open your mind and enjoy all types of caching. There is lots of fun to be had. All you need is experience, experience, experience...GFI...Happy Trails.

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I won't be adding any more hints, and in fact, I suggest that you don't keep reading these replies.

 

They are all well intended but in my opinon they will spoil the fun you might have discovering these things in real life. Now you will not have an 'aha moment' the first time you find a lamp skirt hide.

 

However, you will have others -- this is much of the fun of geocaching.

 

PS -- unless you like to have folks tell you the ending of movies and such. In that case, keep reading. :anitongue:

 

I totally argree. I think this thread is as inappropriate as one where help is given to a puzzle cache. The ONLY LPC cache that I truely enjoyed was my first. The ONLY fencepost cache that I really thought was a challenge was my first. Etc.

 

This thread can ruin a lot of firsts for a lot of people.

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only thing i can share that may help is sometimes if you are stumped & you think you are near the cache, call a time-out, and back-off, and re-group, and take a deep breath. It's the whole can't see the trees because of the forest idea. sometimes just back-off and start looking at the 'big-picture' and then try to narrow your focus. sometimes it's hard when you are so focused on one area/item and it's not there...hmmm..... then maybe it's really not there and somewhere else. After awhile you will get a feel a for these, but really it just takes getting out there and finding them.

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I won't be adding any more hints, and in fact, I suggest that you don't keep reading these replies.

 

They are all well intended but in my opinon they will spoil the fun you might have discovering these things in real life. Now you will not have an 'aha moment' the first time you find a lamp skirt hide.

 

However, you will have others -- this is much of the fun of geocaching.

 

PS -- unless you like to have folks tell you the ending of movies and such. In that case, keep reading. :ph34r:

 

I totally argree. I think this thread is as inappropriate as one where help is given to a puzzle cache. The ONLY LPC cache that I truely enjoyed was my first. The ONLY fencepost cache that I really thought was a challenge was my first. Etc.

 

This thread can ruin a lot of firsts for a lot of people.

 

I own a fence post cache. I'm pretty sure that the next closest fence post cache is about 30 miles from here. I didn't place that cache to be challenging. In fact it's pretty easy as there are very few other places it could be hidden in the area. My intent was to place a cache that would be easy for a beginner, yet demonstrate that a cache can be something other than a tupperware container, ammo can, or hide a key. Not all caches placed need to be placed to challenge experienced cachers.

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I've found that the micro I'm seeking is always in the last place I look, I'm sure you will find the same to be true. Sorry if this post wasn't much help.

 

Funny that, but everything that I find is in the last place that I look :mad: (Probably because when I find something I stop looking for it ;) )

 

Having said that I can't find nanos either, but one day I will get one!!!

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