Cache Maintenance

[+JABs]

OK sick of posting notes on local cache pages or even emailing there owners re a problem

 

and nothing been done. There needs to be a better way to control the trash out there.

 

 

Here are a few examples

 

Too TwistedGCXYTW

 

Derros WorkGC115T6

 

Pro Utilitate HominumGC14MRG

 

Charlee's PlanesGCQ6EC

 

Look left, look right!GC10ZYP

 

South Side.GCT5YM

 

FROG HOLLOWGCW055

 

Under the OverGCZRH3

 

 

These are only a few of the disabled or needs maintenance caches just within the local area.

 

Is there a better way to clean up out there. There is even one cache that was archived after this

 

note posted by another cacher

 

-The lid is cracked along the seal and the cache was full of water.

 

The Log book is soaked.This one NEEDS ATTENTION ASAP.

 

 

Two weeks later while driving pass we stopped by because there sitting in the open was the

 

cache container sitting out in the open after the owner posted this note and archived it.

 

-fix maybe April 2

 

Then a couple of days later There rubbish left for others to clean up.

 

-Bye April 7

 

 

And no it wasn't along way from anywhere, about 10 min drive from town on a main road.

 

 

How long after an event before it should be archived?

 

Who is responsable for the Coins and Bugs going in and out?

 

Bathurst 24 Hour Endurance Event GC14BD3

 

[Keystone]

1. Posting a note and writing to the cache owner are always the right first steps. But if that doesn't produce any results, leave a "needs archived" log. This will attract the attention of your friendly volunteer cache reviewer. A "needs maintenance" log will not.

 

2. Per the listing guidelines, an event cache should be archived by the organizer within thirty days after the event date.

 

3. Event owners are NOT personally responsible for trackable items dropped onto the event page. It's fine to write and ask, but don't blame the event organizer if an item never got logged out of the event.

[+Cache O'Plenty]

Any guidelines on how long a cache should sit disabled before it's appropriate for a "needs archived" post? Say 3 months max before an update. Seems to me the cache owner should have to post periodic updates to the disabled cache with some explanation as to why it's still disabled. Valid reasons might be winter conditions (not so good a reason in the southwest desert areas!), illness, construction, etc.

 

Seems that after 6 months the cache should almost automatically go to archive.

[+JABs]

Ok a few caches have taken to ever repairing or archiving there caches

but there is still one cacher who has not even posted a note.

 

EVEN WITH A NEED ARCHIVING NOTE POSTED A WEEK AND A HALF AGO HAS NOTHING BEEN DONE>

[+Harry Dolphin]

I do not know of any requirement that an event needst remain active in order to retrieve travel bugs. Or else many, if not most, events would still be active. I have retrieved travel bugs from archived caches, and not had any problem. Nine months does seem a bit log to hope that a cacher would still see the cache active, and remember retrieving a bug from that event.

It is sad that some event owners do not take more effort to keep track of travel bugs dropped into their event (especially when the event owner put the bug there.) (Oh. That was my TB, and a different event. ) I have been to several events with sign in/sign out sheets for TBs. But it is not a requirement. Oh, well.

[Ingy]

Is there any way to take over a Cache from someone who has stopped geocaching? We have moved across the country and are willing to take over a local cache, and may need to handover ourold one to someone else if it goes missing. Any help would be appreciated.

 

Cheers

Ingy

[AZcachemeister]

Is there any way to take over a Cache from someone who has stopped geocaching? We have moved across the country and are willing to take over a local cache, and may need to handover ourold one to someone else if it goes missing. Any help would be appreciated.

 

Cheers

Ingy

 

Geocaching.com is a listing site/service, they in no way own the actual caches listed.

Therefore, caches with absentee, or otherwise unresponsive owners can only be removed from this site's listings.

If the owner wants to transfer ownership, This Cache Adoption Page allows the interested parties to make the transfer on their own.

[AZcachemeister]

Ok a few caches have taken to ever repairing or archiving there caches

but there is still one cacher who has not even posted a note.

 

EVEN WITH A NEED ARCHIVING NOTE POSTED A WEEK AND A HALF AGO HAS NOTHING BEEN DONE>

 

There are irresponsible people everywhere.

You can:

Ignore those caches.

Go do the maintenance yourself. (The 'needs Maintenance' attribute will remain,however)

Go remove the geo-litter yourself (of course you just DNF it), post the another SBA, and wait for the reviewer to archive it.

[+Cache O'Plenty]

Adoption is the best route, of course. If you can make contact with the cache owner, and he's willing, you can adopt it. Same works the other way. Try to contact someone in your old neighborhood that's will to adopt your caches. Then use the Adoption page quoted above. http://www.geocaching.com/adopt/

Edited August 11, 2008 by Cache O'Plenty

[+LifeOnEdge!]

JABs,

 

I'm not quite sure what you are asking or trying to tell us. I can only make a couple of assumptions:

 

- Are you saying that you're (these are my sentiments) sick and tired of so many active caches out there in trouble with only a small percentage of cache owners being responsible and maintaining their caches

 

- or -

 

- Are you saying that you're (again, my sentiment) frustrated with archived caches sitting out as geo-trash after they are archived?

 

I would like to share with you many, many aspects of this, but wish to do this outside of the forums. Feel absolutely free to contact me at lifeonedge@gmail.com regarding this. I think you'll be interested in some if not all that I have to say.

 

For now, I'll say a couple things:

 

- I too have been very frustrated with both of the above. I have tried to act on this and motivate others to no avail. I was even accused of stealing geocaches after I removed remnants of a destroyed geocache.

 

- Too many cachers feel little or no need to maintain their caches. Attempts to inform or motivate these cachers have come to punishing those trying to help. This punishment comes from ALL LEVELS and is quite unfortunate.

 

- I hate to admit this, especially publicly, but I too have become "under-motivated" in this regard after years of being told to "mind your own business" after asking cache owners what the status of their cache was. Where I would have jumped out of my chair and driven 100 miles one way to check on and replace a cache previously, I am now simply archiving caches that appear missing with the future hope of dropping by the cache site "sometime in the future." I can't say that I'm proud of my current stance, but "when in Rome ..."

 

I really wish that the "community" would see that this is a serious problem that needs to be addressed and a set of common statements made that can be sent to lackadaisical cache owners who may or may not even be aware that their cache is in need to owner maintenance.

 

I see growing discontent by many good cachers in this regard and only see a knee-jerk reaction to reign in these persons as malcontents. It's like an handful of surgeons removing tumor after tumor instead of raising the price of a carton of cigarettes AND informing th public of the dangers of smoking.

 

I have taken all the steps that Keystone suggests above and have been told time after time that I am harassing those to which I write. It's a fine line. On one side you're caring and want to help point out a problem, but to someone else, you're trying to get rid of the very cache that some cachers found as their "first cache" and who hold emotional value. While you are seen as an "evil-doer" by some of your fellow cachers, we all lose sight of the big picture: How will geocaching be seen by John Q. Public when these piles of geo-trash are found, one after another, after these cache owner's simply lose interest in the hobby and walk off unaccountable?

 

I see a day when geocaching is only allowed in certain areas, being banned from those places where the sport is seen as a nuisance. *sigh*

[+LifeOnEdge!]

Ok a few caches have taken to ever repairing or archiving there caches

but there is still one cacher who has not even posted a note.

 

EVEN WITH A NEED ARCHIVING NOTE POSTED A WEEK AND A HALF AGO HAS NOTHING BEEN DONE>

 

What people are missing in all this is that ARCHIVING a cache simply removes the cache listing. Nothing more. This action can be and is often reversed. Its not a big deal. Why then can't these caches be archived, the cache owners fix them up, and then have their local reviewers un-archive the cache?

 

In the meantime, maybe someone else places their cache and the cache owner is off the hook AND has a cache they can go after?

 

Can't this turned into a WIN-WIN situation with the RIGHT ATTITUDE instead of it being a continual thorn in the side of all those involved??? *** I don't understand! ***

[Ingy]

Thatnk guys for the Adopt a cache link. I had no luck finding it on my own (that's why I take my kids geocaching )

[+JABs]

The biggest problem here is caches that are missing.

 

Have visited the site myself with another cacher and as I had found these caches before we can confirm that they are missing.

 

All the owner has done is disabled these caches, somethimes the only note posted is . yes thats right a full stop no note on what may or maynot be done.

 

So how long should these caches be left to come up?

How long after a needs archiving BECAUSE ITS MISSING and been missing for quite a while before it gets replaced or arhived?

 

Just in case these caches are within about 10 km radius of a main town where the cacher lives and works.

 

Yes I have tried to contact them by email with a couple replacing/repairing and even arhiving those trouble caches.

Thanks to those caches who took responsiblity with there caches.

 

Now to get these missing caches to be replace or archived.

[AZcachemeister]

The biggest problem here is caches that are missing.

 

Have visited the site myself with another cacher and as I had found these caches before we can confirm that they are missing.

 

All the owner has done is disabled these caches, somethimes the only note posted is . yes thats right a full stop no note on what may or maynot be done.

 

So how long should these caches be left to come up?

How long after a needs archiving BECAUSE ITS MISSING and been missing for quite a while before it gets replaced or arhived?

 

Just in case these caches are within about 10 km radius of a main town where the cacher lives and works.

 

Yes I have tried to contact them by email with a couple replacing/repairing and even arhiving those trouble caches.

Thanks to those caches who took responsiblity with there caches.

 

Now to get these missing caches to be replace or archived.

 

I share your dismay...the same thing happens around here from time-to-time.

If the owners have really dragged it out, probably best to reiterate the SBA and let the reviewer sort it out.