"Paperless" Geocaching

December 31, 2008

After finding 30 caches in 5 days I decided to upgrade to a premium membership. However the issue I'm having is how to make finding the caches easier on me in terms of note taking and prepping for the search. Right now I find a cache I want, download it to the GPS and take notes on my iPhone. I include the GC code, name of the cache, when it was last found and the type of cache it is as well as any other notes that may be helpful. When I start taking notes for 6 or more caches it gets to be time consuming. I do have the Geocaching app for the iPhone but I don't like it as much as I thought I would.

What are the ways you all prepare for your cache searches? Is there a way to download all of the information on the cache info page onto the GPS (I have a Garmin eTrex Vista HCx)?

December 31, 2008

When I start taking notes for 6 or more caches it gets to be time consuming. I do have the Geocaching app for the iPhone but I don't like it as much as I thought I would.

We use the Geocaching App too but it is not good for planning runs. It can be done (you have to visit each cache page and Save it to the phone) but that is time consuming too.

If you get iGeocacher you can download PQ's directly to the phone, it has five slots for different PQs, so you can do a caches along a route and put it in one, then your watchlist on another, etc etc. You can turn slots off and on so you can see only what you want on the info screen at any time. Accuracy is much better than the Geocaching app as well and the navigation screen WAY better.

As for loading on the GPSr, there are lots of ways to get PQs on, others can help you there (Ours is older and we don;t have a cable for it so have not taken the plunge). HTH.

December 31, 2008

Oh, and DO check out the Pocket Query feature for premium membership. The link is on the right had panel of your member page.

Edited December 31, 2008 by team_goobie

2.7k · December 31, 2008

A Premium Membership entitles you to Pocket Queries which contain MOST of the cache page info. You can not load ALL the PQ data to a Garmin eTrex Vista HCx though. There are ways to get the Cache Name and GC Number on to the GPS. I do it with EasyGPS. There are tricks to get even more info squeezed in there, but I prefer a cheap PDA instead (my preference is a Palm m500 with CacheMate). Certainly a Premium Member does not have to print out or hand write cache info.

Also, many newer GPS units are adding features that include PDA functionallity. I'll wait till that technology is a little more mature before upgrading to it though.

December 31, 2008

I have a two part video about paperless geocaching if you are interested.

Here is my youtube channel with all my tutorials.

http://www.youtube.com/headhardhat

-HHH

January 1, 2009

I have a two part video about paperless geocaching if you are interested.

Here is my youtube channel with all my tutorials.

http://www.youtube.com/headhardhat

-HHH

Still looking thru the videos but so far very help...GOOD JOB

Edited January 1, 2009 by Beakie

January 1, 2009

I have a two part video about paperless geocaching if you are interested.

Here is my youtube channel with all my tutorials.

http://www.youtube.com/headhardhat

-HHH

Still looking thru the videos but so far very help...GOOD JOB

Edited January 1, 2009 by Beakie

January 1, 2009

Thanks for the information and links. I think the biggest problem I'm having is that I have Apple computers (including an iPhone 3G) which makes it difficult to get things onto my GPS. The video tutorials above were for a Palm and Windows (but I appreciate the link anyway! ). I found a way to download the PDF files from the cache pages onto my phone so I can reference it for notes if I need them but I haven't found a way to get the *.gpx files from the PQ email onto my GPS device (and I'm still really not even sure how to work the PQ feature just yet) or how to keep track of which caches I've found so I know which ones to log once I get back to my computer. On my iPhone right now I just write "FOUND" next to the GC code.

I should note that Garmin does support Macs and I'm able to get the coordinates from the cache page onto my GPS without a problem, it's just getting the PQ *.gpx files on there. Any tips? Thanks.

Edited January 1, 2009 by rhuff04

January 1, 2009

Why don't you get the iPhone app.

It's only $2.99 right now, will be going back to $9.99 soon I think.

Edited January 1, 2009 by Vertigo

January 1, 2009

Why don't you get the iPhone app.

It's only $2.99 right now, will be going back to $9.99 soon I think.

I do have it, but I don't much care for it at the moment. I also find some caches in areas in which there is no cell phone service, which makes the app useless. I bought it because it was $2.99 but it doesn't quite do everything I want it to do just yet.

January 1, 2009

The cachemate software on a palm pilot is my preferred method of paperless caching. It has a couple of quirks that throw me off but nothing that affects the function of the software.

It is a great addition to your caching experience. It makes life lots easier.

January 1, 2009

I do have it, but I don't much care for it at the moment. I also find some caches in areas in which there is no cell phone service, which makes the app useless. I bought it because it was $2.99 but it doesn't quite do everything I want it to do just yet.

Check out MacCaching, it's a free piece of software for Macs. I use it to load all my caches into my GPS. Works flawlessly and is simple to use.

http://www.maccaching.com/

January 1, 2009

I do have it, but I don't much care for it at the moment. I also find some caches in areas in which there is no cell phone service, which makes the app useless. I bought it because it was $2.99 but it doesn't quite do everything I want it to do just yet.

Check out MacCaching, it's a free piece of software for Macs. I use it to load all my caches into my GPS. Works flawlessly and is simple to use.

http://www.maccaching.com/

Thanks for the link! I downloaded it and am playing around with it but so far the only thing it seems to do is download all of the caches onto the GPS (which is definitely something I wanted). It doesn't import the notes into the GPS like I thought it would and after doing some searching on their websites' forums I discovered that their development for an iPhone/iPod Touch app had stopped due to Groundspeak's iPhone app release.

Later today I'm going to go try and grab some more caches and I wanted to grab quite a few that are all in a small area but short of doing it the way I have been I'm not sure how else to do it.

January 3, 2009

Thanks for the information and links. I think the biggest problem I'm having is that I have Apple computers (including an iPhone 3G) which makes it difficult to get things onto my GPS. The video tutorials above were for a Palm and Windows (but I appreciate the link anyway! ). I found a way to download the PDF files from the cache pages onto my phone so I can reference it for notes if I need them but I haven't found a way to get the *.gpx files from the PQ email onto my GPS device (and I'm still really not even sure how to work the PQ feature just yet) or how to keep track of which caches I've found so I know which ones to log once I get back to my computer. On my iPhone right now I just write "FOUND" next to the GC code.

I should note that Garmin does support Macs and I'm able to get the coordinates from the cache page onto my GPS without a problem, it's just getting the PQ *.gpx files on there. Any tips? Thanks.

I use a MacBook and I've found that MacCaching is a pretty good product. It has the ability to load caches onto various GPS's.

Another program is GeoJournal but I had problems with it for some reason. I think I messed up the install. I'm running Mac OSX 10.5

January 4, 2009

Newbie here and I was wondering how you folks plan for a geocaching trip. I d/l the caches from the site but they are not in any physical order. The first might be in one location and the next might be several miles away. The the third might be closer to the first. Seems that the caches would be aligned closer to each other so that you can get all the caches that are closer to each other without having to zoom all over town and waste gas and time. I have a etrex legend to start off with and have d/l EasyGPS. Once again when I go to the page on the site where it lists all the caches in an area that I want to hit, they are in no particular order. Is there something I am missing?

Just curious as to how you plan a track without having to go to each individual cache page, send info to GPS, and print out the short info. I don't have the cash for a palm pilot right now. But the questions still remains, why doesn't the site(geocaching.com) list the caches in some sort of distance order? And how do you plan a caching trip without zooming all over town yet not taking a lot of time to plan it one cache at at time. Make any sense?

Thanks!

January 4, 2009

BTW, I do see that the caches are a certain distance from a "middle point" of the map. But one might be on one side of the middle point and the other, still the same distance from the middle point, but yet be 2 miles across from the first cache. Yet, there are many caches that are close to the first cache that are only listed later on.

As you can see I am getting my words confused. lol

Any help? I want to be able to hit as many in an area as I can yet not have to d/l each and every cache one by one.

January 4, 2009

I have a Mac computer. Running these devices off a Mac can be challenging, but I've found I paperless cache very successfully using an iPod in tandem with my Garmin Legend, using the "export notes to iPod" feature from MacCaching. This automatically puts information in the "notes" section of your iPod. If you are a premium member, you can do this using a Pocket Query, up to 500 caches at a time. If you want to fill your Garmin up, just do two Pocket Queries of different local regions. It takes about 2 minutes using the computer interface cable (I have an old blue Legend, so mine is a serial cable).

After I've got the initial Pocket Query loaded, I just run another one for New Caches Placed every week, which keeps me updated.

The notes include everything except the last five logs. If the cache page information is unusually long, it sometimes cuts it off halfway, but generally, all cache pages come through intact with name, difficulty rating, description, owner, and hint (hint is decrypted, so be careful reading if you don't want to know it up front).

The only downside to this is that you must carry two devices, which is why I'm strongly considering buying an Oregon.

If you have an iPod, this is the way to go with Macs. I have tried using a Windows app on the Mac to run GSAK, but it has not been very successful so far. It seems a little buggy and crashes too often for my taste.

January 6, 2009

I have a Mac computer. Running these devices off a Mac can be challenging, but I've found I paperless cache very successfully using an iPod in tandem with my Garmin Legend, using the "export notes to iPod" feature from MacCaching. This automatically puts information in the "notes" section of your iPod. If you are a premium member, you can do this using a Pocket Query, up to 500 caches at a time. If you want to fill your Garmin up, just do two Pocket Queries of different local regions. It takes about 2 minutes using the computer interface cable (I have an old blue Legend, so mine is a serial cable).

After I've got the initial Pocket Query loaded, I just run another one for New Caches Placed every week, which keeps me updated.

The notes include everything except the last five logs. If the cache page information is unusually long, it sometimes cuts it off halfway, but generally, all cache pages come through intact with name, difficulty rating, description, owner, and hint (hint is decrypted, so be careful reading if you don't want to know it up front).

The only downside to this is that you must carry two devices, which is why I'm strongly considering buying an Oregon.

If you have an iPod, this is the way to go with Macs. I have tried using a Windows app on the Mac to run GSAK, but it has not been very successful so far. It seems a little buggy and crashes too often for my taste.

Thanks for the information. When you say iPod, are you talking about the iPod Classic? I have an iPhone and while I realize you can export using the contacts/address book when using MacCaching, I'm looking for an easier way still.

I will say, however, that on my recent trip I used the "Find caches along your route" feature, downloaded them and loaded them onto my GPS (using MacCaching) and then used my iPhone and the Geocaching.com app together. That worked great as long as I had signal since I could get close to a point on the GPS and look up the GC code on the iPhone app and read the description and recent logs. For the time being that'll work but as I start going to places where cell phone signal starts to fade, I'll have to come up with a better way.

1.6k · January 6, 2009

... It doesn't import the notes into the GPS like I thought it would...

Unless you have one of the high-$$$ new Garmin or Delorme receivers I don't think you can download full cache info into a hand-held GPS receiver. There might be a way to add the full information as POIs in some Garmins, but not as normal waypoints.

Most people just download the coordinates and waypoint ID (and sometimes the T/D rating, type, and size into the limited note field) onto their receivers then download full cache info onto a cheap PDA (buy one used off eBay) running Cachemate or similar.

I personally use a PDA running BackCountryNavigator with a bluetooth GPS receiver.

January 7, 2009

Newbie here and I was wondering how you folks plan for a geocaching trip. I d/l the caches from the site but they are not in any physical order. The first might be in one location and the next might be several miles away. The the third might be closer to the first. Seems that the caches would be aligned closer to each other so that you can get all the caches that are closer to each other without having to zoom all over town and waste gas and time. I have a etrex legend to start off with and have d/l EasyGPS. Once again when I go to the page on the site where it lists all the caches in an area that I want to hit, they are in no particular order. Is there something I am missing?

Just curious as to how you plan a track without having to go to each individual cache page, send info to GPS, and print out the short info. I don't have the cash for a palm pilot right now. But the questions still remains, why doesn't the site(geocaching.com) list the caches in some sort of distance order? And how do you plan a caching trip without zooming all over town yet not taking a lot of time to plan it one cache at at time. Make any sense?

Thanks!

I bought a used M500 for about 25 dollars on the net, which made my geocaching experience tons better! I use GSAK and cachemate as my software team to go find them caches.

Joe

January 9, 2009

Thanks for the information. When you say iPod, are you talking about the iPod Classic? I have an iPhone and while I realize you can export using the contacts/address book when using MacCaching, I'm looking for an easier way still.

I will say, however, that on my recent trip I used the "Find caches along your route" feature, downloaded them and loaded them onto my GPS (using MacCaching) and then used my iPhone and the Geocaching.com app together. That worked great as long as I had signal since I could get close to a point on the GPS and look up the GC code on the iPhone app and read the description and recent logs. For the time being that'll work but as I start going to places where cell phone signal starts to fade, I'll have to come up with a better way.

Yes, I'm talking about an iPod (mine is a Gen 5, I believe). I am not sure how you can get any easier than this, unless you buy a Garmin Oregon, plus, there is no phone to fade, so it's reliable. It's simple: have the pocket query sent to your email, drop the email attachment into MacCaching, then click Send to GPS (which does the iPod download at the same time as the GPS download). It's three steps for 500 caches. The iPod notes give you everything on the cache page except pictures and the last five logs. It made life a heckuva lot easier, that is... until....

...I got a Garmin Oregon last week! Yeah, took the plunge... Now, that thing is slick as heck. I can bypass MacCaching altogether, actually. It plugs into the Mac and works like a thumb drive... you take the pocket query email attachment, unzip it, and drop the unzipped files right onto the Oregon's memory. One device covers all: the navigation, all the cache page notes, even allows you to take field notes as you find and mark caches, which upload back to geocaching.com when you're done for the day and help you automate the posting of your online logs. I love this thing! It's the way to go for paperless caching, if you can afford one (I got mine for $350). It does have a few small drawbacks, but compared to my old blue Legend, it's a dream GPSr.

It is Mac friendly, which is a big deal for me, plus (so far) it works flawlessly for the tasks I bought it for.

Edited January 9, 2009 by BlueDamsel

1.7k · January 25, 2009

I think the biggest problem I'm having is that I have Apple computers

No useful information, I just cant resist saying "That is one of the most honest statements I ever read from an Apple owner."

January 25, 2009

I think the biggest problem I'm having is that I have Apple computers

No useful information, I just cant resist saying "That is one of the most honest statements I ever read from an Apple owner."

Well it's not so much that I have an Apple computer but rather that the majority of programs out there for geocaching are made for Windows. I probably shouldn't have stated it like that.

Recently I've been using the iPhone Geocaching program and it's been doing fairly well as long as I'm in a place that has signal. I still haven't figured out what I'm going to use when I go someplace that may not have signal but in the mean time this works nicely.

I would like to get an Oregon at some point but for right now my Vista HCx works just fine.

"Paperless" Geocaching

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