Cache mugglers

[+Fuchsiamagic]

Over the past few months I have been checking the types of caches that are being regularly muggled and have come up with some interesting statistics. I have left out those caches from the calculations which have gone due to site clearance work or floods and just left in those which have simply disappeared for no apparent reason or have been vandalised.

 

It seems that traditional caches, whether micros or not, seem to be the ones that disappear, and at a ratio of 5 to 8 times that of multi or unknown caches. This is also born out with my own experience over the last two years where 50% of my traditionals have been muggled, but no multi or unknown caches.

 

This tells me something. Traditionals must be being deliberately targeted by someone who has the co-ordinates because they are easier to find. Does your own experience bear this out?

[+HazelS]

Could it just be that there are FAR more trads than multis or puzzles?????????

[+Mad H@ter]

Could it just be that there are FAR more trads than multis or puzzles?????????

and also that often a lot more work and effort is put into the hiding of a multi/puzzle than a random micro at the base of a sign post. I know that this is a generalisation and that there are a lot of very fine trads out there, but there are also a lot that aren't.

[+Fuchsiamagic]

Could it just be that there are FAR more trads than multis or puzzles?????????

Possibly, but I have taken this into consideration. For example of my own 18 caches, 10 are traditional and 8 are multi's or unknown. 7 have been muggled and all were traditional.

Edited March 10, 2009 by Fuchsiamagic

[+Pieman]

How many caches did you check for your survey? I have placed 30 caches over the past 5 years and my results are (only counting one muggling per cache):

 

Traditionals- placed 7, muggled zero

Multis- placed 9, muggled 3

Puzzles- placed 14, muggled 7

 

I don't think my figures are a scientifically valid sample of all caches, but it seems that the evil cachers in Cheshire are mainly keen puzzle solvers!

 

Apart from the odd lunatic amongst us, I would be surprised if many caches are deliberately targeted to be muggled by cachers.

[+keehotee]

Could it just be that there are FAR more trads than multis or puzzles?????????

Possibly, but I have taken this into consideration. For example of my own 18 caches, 10 are traditional and 8 are multi's or unknown. 7 have been muggled and all were traditional.

 

Of the sixty something caches that I've put out, only four have ever been muggled - and three of those were justifiable accidents (a JCB turned one into an ammo can pancake, a tree fell on one, the tide took one away with it) - and they were all puzzles.

 

Of another half dozen or so reported mugglings, they have all turned out to be where they should have been - or very close by - and either hadn't been found by the reporters - or had been put back in the wrong place by previous finders.

Edited March 10, 2009 by keehotee

[+gazooks]

Out of the caches I have placed

 

26 trads - 4 muggled (all of these in the same general area)

3 multis - 1 muggled (+ clue)

5 puzzles - 1 muggled

[+Gushoneybun]

Traditionals tend to get more visits so muggles are more likely to spot a cacher. Also the more times a cache is visited the greater the risk that it is not hidden carefully and the more obvious a cacher's trail is created.

 

 

Multi's and puzzles IMHO do tend to be better hidden.

 

 

Just my thoughts.

[+Bear and Ragged]

How specific is the clue, to any muggled trad?

 

Is easy to find with a map and the clue? Just a thought.

[+Mad H@ter]

IMHO the majority of muggled caches are not deliberately muggled by someone with a map or GPSr, it is my belief that the majority are generally found by accident due to a poor hide / not being rehidden correctly / being dislodged by the environment (weather / critters) / accidental find. I'm sure that people can come along with examples of deliberately sabotaged caches, but I am certain that these are a very small minority, probably less than 1%.

Edited March 10, 2009 by Mad H@ter

[+MooToo]

You want to try living in our neck of the woods,they go regularly, if you post honest opinions/logs and tbs and coins go but the caches remain in place .... Out of my six hides one was destroyed at its locale ,two went missing no trace (see above comment) the other three remain intact.

[+martlakes]

After a quick look at the list, out of 134 hides only about 8 have been muggled and gone. About 4 have been muggled and the log signed and put back, inc one by Cumbria Constabulary. One was muggled and ended up on top of a gate post 150m away, which I found while walking to the site to check.

About 6 have been lost to weather (floods) or other accident but been replaced - usually higher up!

 

Of those that have been muggled totally only 3 have been archived and given up on - two were challenging urban sites, one was a busy parking drive-by spot which became too obvious. The other 5 have been moved and reinstated. The 8 muggled ones were all trads, but not sure if that's statistically significant given the relative proportions.

I've retired (10) more than have been muggled (8), and only 3 sites permanently lost.

[+Amberel]

This tells me something. Traditionals must be being deliberately targeted by someone who has the co-ordinates because they are easier to find. Does your own experience bear this out?

Of the 10 "lost caches" I have suffered, all have been trads or the first stage of multis. But, like others, I'm not sure how much can be gleaned from this. I think most of the ones that disappeared can be explained by other reasons than someone getting the co-ordinates off the cache page and visiting the cache specifically to destroy it.

 

I place caches only near to where I live. As this is pretty near London, I don't have many places to put caches that are miles from anywhere. All my sites therefore are subject to some degree of muggle traffic, and the higher the muggle traffic, the greater possibility of accidental discovery.

 

One of them, I suspect, was dropped in the water by someone who might have been too embarrased to report it. On some others, summer vegetation died away to leave them too exposed in the winter. Some others are cheeky camo hides, in full view, and these are are always in some danger of accidental discovery. I have one cache where the pesky squirrels keep ejecting the stage 1 micro from its hiding place and dropping it on the ground!

 

I don't think I can really say there is any likelihood that any of mine have been directly targetted by someone "going equipped with co-ordinates and intent to muggle".

 

Rgds, Andy

[+Fuchsiamagic]

Well thanks for all your experiences, which are encouraging. I was beginning to get a bit paranoid. Maybe I've just had bad luck with mine.

[+Captain Gore-tex]

Interesting, have you had a look at others surrounding your caches, is it the area that is vulnerable or is it a particular Fuchsia sp./var. issue??

[Archangel_UK]

Well thanks for all your experiences, which are encouraging. I was beginning to get a bit paranoid. Maybe I've just had bad luck with mine.

 

Could it be something as simple as trads are larger therefore more easily spotted ?

[+madaxeman]

Has anyone had the experience of having their cache container exchanged for an inferior one ?

 

My 'Calendar Girls' cache (GCPE40) had the 100 round steel ammo box swapped for a small crappy plastic box - but the thief put the log book and contents into the new box

 

- How odd is that!!!

[+Amberel]

Has anyone had the experience of having their cache container exchanged for an inferior one ?

 

My 'Calendar Girls' cache (GCPE40) had the 100 round steel ammo box swapped for a small crappy plastic box - but the thief put the log book and contents into the new box

 

- How odd is that!!!

Just a variation on "take something, leave something" .

 

Rgds, Andy

[+Renegade Knight]

Could it just be that there are FAR more trads than multis or puzzles?????????

Possibly, but I have taken this into consideration. For example of my own 18 caches, 10 are traditional and 8 are multi's or unknown. 7 have been muggled and all were traditional.

Cache maggots are just as lazy as the rest of us when they ply their trade. For less work they get better results when sticking to traditionals. A cache maggot who DNF's a cache is a failure. Nobody likes to fail even when they are just trying to do petty evil.

[+wimpyt2560]

Out of 18 Caches placed, I've only had one muggled so far. To be honest, it was a bit of a trial cache and it wasn't a surprise when it went, even though it was well disguised.

 

Perhaps worse than a Muggled cache was the recent case of the cache at Peatmoor Lagoon, Swindon. A Multi where the final location wasn't easy to find by accident. Yet some filthy lowlife found it and dumped in it (yes, a number 2). They then had the audacity to record it in the log.