Does it always start out this hard?

[Squirrelly Whirlies]

My kids and I started a couple of weeks ago. We are using a Garmin GPS, and the first one we looked for, it was so accurate that my foot was actually touching the cache site when the coordinates came up. That was fun, and we thought we were off to a good start.

 

Attempt #2 - we learned about reading all the logs BEFORE trying to find it, since the logs gave new coordinates that were a good 30 feet away from the old one. We spent well over an hour on this hunt and would have saved ourselves a lot of frustrating time up to our knees in brambles and rotten wood if the cache owners had changed the coordinates on the site instead of letting people figure out the mistake on their own!

 

Attempt #3 - We tried again that day, but our GPS couldn't make up its mind and we gave up after 10 minutes of hunting in knee-high wet grass.

 

Attempt #4 - Gave #3 another go, and the GPS seemed to be working. Unfortunately, the clue was to look under a rock, and there were several hundred rocks in the ornamental landscaping. We turned over everything we could lift before giving up.

 

Attempt #5 - another success, GPS coordinates were right, clue was helpful, and my 10-year-old found the cache tucked into a hollow by a tree and loosely covered with bark. Just fun enough to make us try again, unfortunately.

 

Attempt #6 - We learned that the driving directions can be extremely misleading (as was the case on #5), so we will pay less attention to them next time. We eventually parked in a "no unauthorized parking" lot, which was the only parking available, and spent quite a bit of time digging through ivy on a dangerously steep slope in the company of several bees. When one of us got stung, we gave up before our seriously allergic member got stung. If this is really a 1.5 difficulty, I'm not sure we can continue!

 

Is this a normal beginning to this hobby?!

[Motorcycle_Mama]

A few pointers when you are just starting out.

 

1. Stick to 1.0 and 1.5 on both difficulty and terrain at first.

 

2. Definitely stick to Regular and Large size caches (rather than Micro size) at first. This will limit the places that the cache can be hidden sometimes making the search a little easier.

 

3. Read the past logs for sure to garner information from previous searchers. Perhaps also read the hint in advance until you get more accustomed to what to look for on the cache hides.

 

4. Use your GPS unit to get to the general area. Don't expect it to get to the exact point. Recreation GPS units typically have an accuracy of 20-30 feet. Then once you get to the general area, put the GPS unit aside and start looking around for 1) hiding places and 2) things that look out of place (pile of sticks or rocks, unusual items, etc). Thinking like a hider rather than a finder sometimes helps.

 

5. If you get to a cache location where you don't feel comfortable (eg a dangerously steep slope in the company of several bees), skip it and go on to another one.

 

6. Don't get discouraged. Once you have found a few, you will be a pro il no time.

 

7. Have fun.

[+CTYankee9]

Yes; basically a normal beginning, middle, and sometimes end!

 

You will find other threads with lots of wisdom for the beginning cacher in this getting started forum from those with experience. Thing is look back on those 6 attempts/finds that you did with your family, any memories? Now that the "hard" part is over can you maybe say those hunts were actually fun?

 

See MM already got to it Pay very close attention to #7.

Edited October 9, 2009 by CTYankee9

[+fegan]

I would say...you just got lucky on that 1st cache. I've found caches where my GPS read 0 feet, and I've found others where it read 60 feet. It happens, even with the best care given to get good coordinates you can always be off from 20 to 30 feet. Why? Because the GPS system is only accurate to about 10-15 feet. So, if the hider was off by 10-15 feet Northeast and you're off 10-15 feet Southwest...you're now 20-30 feet away from the cache when your GPS reads 0 feet. And things like tree cover, buildings, power lines, etc. will affect GPS accuracy...so if any of those conditions exist it's highly unlikely you'll ever get your GPS to read 0 feet at the geocache. Anywhere from 5 to 15 feet is a good day.

 

Stick with Regular or Small containers (avoid Micro container for now) and stick with Difficulty of 2 or lower...at whatever terrain level you're comfortable, probably no higher than 2 or 2.5 is what I would recommend.

 

When you're GPS gets to about 20 feet, pause and look at your surroundings. Think about where you might hide a geocache. Those few moments will give your GPS time to catch up and may come up with some better coordinates. Now proceed to 0 feet and look around again...do you see any obvious spots (under sticks, behind rocks or a fallen tree). Put the GPS on your belt (if you have a clip) or in your pocket (if you don't) and start looking...there's little point in chasing your GPS around as there is not transmitter in the cache that will guide you to it. If you still aren't having any luck...take the GPS out and walk about 20 yards in a different direction than you approached and try approaching 0 feet again.

 

After you've found a few (anywhere from 10 to 20) your geosense will begin to improve and it will get easier. Now you can start adding those Micro containers and more difficult hides.

 

Welcome to geocaching!

[+WalruZ]

Attend an event, hook up with your fellow geocachers, and go on some group hunts. You can learn a lot by example.

[+kunarion]

we learned about reading all the logs BEFORE trying to find it, since the logs gave new coordinates that were a good 30 feet away from the old one.

Be sure to add your own log to each of these online cache logs, especially the ones you "Did Not Find" (DNF). The next folks may really appreciate knowing, for example, that you checked under all the rocks (they can still decide whether to try that or not). And it lets the Cache Owner know that some people are having trouble finding it.

 

It may be a fine line. After my 3rd DNF on a somewhat simple cache, the poor CO was running out to check on it. I didn't intend to imply that I had "looked everywhere, so I know it must be gone", but somehow that's the message I sent.

Edited October 9, 2009 by kunarion

[+ngrrfan]

And the one hidden VERY WELL in plain sight will kick your butt all over the place.

[+briansnat]

4. Use your GPS unit to get to the general area. Don't expect it to get to the exact point. Recreation GPS units typically have an accuracy of 20-30 feet. Then once you get to the general area, put the GPS unit aside and start looking around for 1) hiding places and 2) things that look out of place (pile of sticks or rocks, unusual items, etc). Thinking like a hider rather than a finder sometimes helps.

 

That is key. Also realize that the unit of the hider also had a similar inaccuracy, so you can potentially double that 20-30 ft. off number.

 

Rely less on your GPS and more on thinking about where you would hide a cache if you were in the area.

 

As others mentioned, also start with easier caches.

[+niraD]

As others have said, avoid micros until you're more experienced with larger containers. Micros can be smaller than most novice geocachers can imagine, and can be camouflaged as almost anything. Look at the various cache containers available online to get an idea of what you might be looking for. Many are magnetic, so check metal structures. But check other places too. And be sure to check the difficulty rating. A 2-star micro is probably something like a magnetic keyholder in an obvious location. A 4-star micro could take a lot longer to find.

 

In addition to the advice others have offered, sometimes it helps to consider the "phone a friend" rule. That is, imagine that you're the cache owner, and you want to be able to tell your buddies where to look when they call on their cell phones. You're going to pick somewhere that is easy to describe to someone over the phone. Or imagine you're a cache owner who wants to be able to find the cache again months later, after you've hidden a dozen others, and after you've found a few hundred more. You're going to pick somewhere that is easy to remember.

[Squirrelly Whirlies]

Thanks for the good suggestions!

 

We started with caches rated 1 to 2 both for difficulty and terrain, but a couple of those were microcaches, and we will know to avoid those for the next few. I hadn't realized there was quite that much margin for error with the coordinates - thanks for the information!

 

We've been decoding the hints all along (since that is something my 7-year-old really gets into), but I will make sure and read the logs as well. The one with all the rocks, for example, apparently frustrated many other people, some of them experienced geocachers who still had quite a bit of difficulty since there it was under a rock and there was no way to tell which one. Reading the logs will be a good way to avoid ones that are meant to be frustrating - we can provide enough frustration all by ourselves!

 

We posted a DNF on #6 and the CO kindly got back to us - if we had just followed the clue and ignored the coordinates, we almost certainly would have found it the first time. When we went back later today and focused on the item that the clue had obviously been about, my 10-year-old found it in about thirty seconds.

 

We learned a few lessons, anyway!

[+ventura_kids]

It gets easier as you start to develop some geo-sense.

 

Although a couple of weekends ago we had 4 Dnf's and only one find

 

It's not about the numbers..... sometimes it's about quitting and going for lunch instead.

[+bittsen]

Echoing the post above. Geosenses will come to you after a while. There were some caches in the beginning that made me look for a very long time but now those same hides will be found in minutes or less.

 

Your geosenses will develop. Give them time. In the meantime, have fun getting out of the house and remember that you don't have to find all the caches. There's no disgrace in not finding them. and if you are like me, you will avoid the rockpiles (also referred to as needle in the haystack hides).