Tips for finding caches

[ke7wnp]

Hey all,

 

Just finished trying to hunt down a few 1/1s, and I had some problems locating some of them. Clear skies and quite a few (like 8) WAAS locks, with the GPS reporting a bit less than 3 meters accuracy (I think it even went down to 2m at one point), so I'm pretty sure getting close wasn't the issue. My brother and I both combed the areas several times, widening our search scope as we went, but no luck.

 

So I wanted to ask...any tips for newbies on what to look for to figure out where a cache is stashed, and good places to check? Kinda embarrassed that we had trouble with 1/1s.

And for the DNFs, there weren't any lamp posts, or stick or rock piles, so those are out, heheh.

 

Thanks

[+Rezza]

Don't be afraid to move stuff around, like in urban areas that I've hunted in, I have had to move some rocks around to find the cache. Also check the logs for when the cache was last found to make sure it's still there and hasn't been muggled.

[+StarBrand]

Here are some general hints:

 

Look for caches with a difficulty of 2 or less for your fist few caches. Stick with regular sized caches for your first few. Micros can be quite hard to find sometimes. Stick to areas you are familiar with. Look for anything out of place or unusual. Look for unusual piles of sticks, grass, leaves, rocks, sand, etc. Feel where you cannot look. Think vertical, not all caches are on the ground. Look up or at eye level. Look for traces of previous searches to zero in on the spot. Think like the hider - where would you put a container in this location? Look for things too new, too old, too perfect, not like the others, too many, too few. Change your perspective - a shift in lighting can sometimes reveal a cache. Keep in mind that many micros are magnetic or attached to something (via string, wire etc). Slowly expand your search area to about 40 feet from where your GPS says ground zero is. Bring garden gloves and a flashlight - they help! Be prepared to not find the cache more often then you think.

 

Most of all - have fun!!

[gojkgo]

What kind of area were these in?

[+blueberryice]

Look around trees and rocks.. most of hte caches I have found have been near there covered by some sticks. worry less about the gps when you get close and don't be afraid to use the hint. That can be so helpful if your gps is off or the caches owners were off. I use the the hint almost every time right now. I plan as i get better to not use it as much. Even with the hit it won't give you the location.

[+blueberryice]

Look around trees and rocks.. most of hte caches I have found have been near there covered by some sticks. worry less about the gps when you get close and don't be afraid to use the hint. That can be so helpful if your gps is off or the caches owners were off. I use the the hint almost every time right now. I plan as i get better to not use it as much. Even with the hit it won't give you the location.

[+Puppy Dawg]

Some people like to glue magnets to things and stick them on...anything metal. That could be a 1/1.

[ke7wnp]

It's an urban area.

 

And thanks for the advice guys.

[gojkgo]

Given I'm a newbie, but the urban caches I've come across generally fall into one of three categories.

 

1) Magnetic. Now, these can be teeny tiny nanos the size of a pencil eraser, or a regular hide-a-key type box. They *can* be easier to find because you know the cache will be attached to something metallic. However, like I said, they can be tiny. They can be disguised or camouflaged as something other than a cache container. They can be hidden away from plain sight inside of something else. Since you're looking for a 1/1, it's probably out in the open and not too terribly disguised. But everyone rates their caches differently, so nothing's certain.

 

2) In landscaping. Pay particular attention to things that would make a good hiding spot year-round. Be very careful not to disturb the landscaping at all. Don't walk through flower beds, etc. Never dig. "Leave no trace" that you were even there.

 

3) Parking Lots. Not much I can say without giving away the secret of the parking lot cache. Consider where one could possibly hide something in a parking lot. What's even in a parking lot?

 

That said, I can think of at least three urban (or suburban) caches we've found, off the top of my head, that don't fit into any of these categories. Two were in stands of trees. One was cleverly hidden in a way we hadn't seen before. The above suggestions are just kind of starting points. As you find more caches, your geosense will get sharper.

 

Some suggestions that helped us greatly as we're really just starting out with this ourselves. One, read up on all of the lingo related to geocaching. There can be clues about common types of hides in the lingo that's developed. Two, read up on cache containers here on the forum, and do a search for "geocache" on ebay. You have no idea the kind of things people come up with!

 

Happy hunting!

[+bartrod]

We've all, at times, been stumped with 1/1 difficulty caches. Eventually, the "duh" moment arrives and the find is made. One thing that might help is never arrive at a site with a preconceived notion of the difficulty of the cache...treat them all as difficult finds. Then start looking for what seems out of place, the "black holes," and places you'd hide a cache. Look low...look high...look from different angles. Look on top of...look under...look in. Look near ground zero and expand from there.

Good luck on your great adventure[]

[+niraD]

And after expanding your search radius to 30' or more, be sure to come back to ground zero and start over. I've lost count of the number of times that I've found the cache within inches of where I started, but only after having searched everything within 30-40' of there.

[+cpttango30]

We have come upon some that say 1/1 and they are crazy hard to find. We had one with 3 of us my wife and I and a friend looking for 3 hours. The cache owner was not very forth coming in the discription nor did he leave a hint. His coords were off by over 50 ft on this one and many other this cacher did.

 

When I get to within 10 to 20' of GZ i put the GPSr in my pocket and start the search.

 

I look at it like this. If his GPSr was off 10' and mine is off 20' then that is a 30' radius I need to search.

 

I also find that if I am having troubles I will walk 200 or 300' away and approach from a differ direction. 9 times out of 10 I make the find after doing that once.

 

We had a cache recently placed in my area and within 30 minutes it had been taken down and put back up 4 times because the coords were off my MILES not feet but we are talking a mile or 2 off each time. This cacher has 5 or 6 times the finds and 20 times the hides as I do. Some people are just not very good at getting the right coords.

Edited July 18, 2009 by cpttango30

[ke7wnp]

Ok, thanks again for the tips (And heh...I've already done the same thing, NiraD). I've had a little more success since the time of my OP (though, unfortunately, been too busy to hunt down caches the last 2 or 3 days)

 

All that said...While I will search 20 ft or so if I'm having trouble with one...these GPS things seem to be a lot more accurate than I thought they'd be. Usually mine reports 2m accuracy after it's been on 10 mins or so, and in practice takes me to <0.5m of the cache. (But I guess that also only works if the hider's coords are pretty good...and hopefully don't end up miles off

[+GrateBear]

In urban areas, it's not unusual to use a sign post to hide the cache in. I've found one that had a bolt, washer, nut combo that sat on top of the pole with the container attached below by wire, two that were very vexing that turned out to be small plastic containers stuck into one of the holes in the post about 7' off the ground, and one I placed that is a bison tube tied to a piece of fishing line and dropped down inside the pole. If you take a look at the "cool cache containers" topic in the Geocaching Topics forum, there's a really neat sign post set-up that I have to try.

[+popokiiti]

If in a flower/shrub bed, check for drains - the sort you may find on the floor in a washroom. The water is supposed to go into the soil, right? If in a parking lot, by those concrete wheel stops...if you see rebar sticking out...check that.

Good luck, you will find your inspiration soon. Lets us know how you get on......