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Question for people who place caches


DaveBrews

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That answer is probably as varied as there are the number of geocachers.

 

Most people though (I think) want to get a sense of the game before they start placing. It is a whole new aspect of the game, many think as fun if not moreso than the hunt.

 

I would arbitrarily suggest 50 - 75 smileys. That would give you a good feel and some pretty good hiding ideas/techniques.

I don't think I waited that long! Use your judgment.

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The correct answer is 3.

Find just 3 caches and you will be quite ready to hide one.

 

I reviewed my history and found that we had found ALL 3 caches that were near us in Southern California back in early 2001. Since we were all done finding caches, we decided to hide our first in Sept 2001.

Perhaps if there were a hundred more caches to find, we would have found a hundred before hiding one.

 

I'd say once you can figure out how to hide a good non-bush hide (do something clever), then you are ready.

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One. If you think you have a good idea for a hide, go for it. I've found outstanding caches placed by people with a few finds and lousy caches placed by people with thousands of finds.

 

It's all about imagination (and reading the guidelines) rather than experience.

 

ONE???? Wow!, and I thought I was too low with 3.... ONE ? :P

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Thanks for all your advice.

 

I'm not ready to hide my first cache just yet. I'm just getting a container ready till I find a good spot to place it.

 

I agree I should find a few more to round out my experience. I guess when I'm ready, I'll be ready. :P

 

Here's stage one of my Keep2Go container.

I'm using a brown texture paint. I might add some other dark colors to further camouflage it.

 

What do ya think?

 

4006712183_fe5734417d_m.jpg

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I waited until I was just shy of 100 finds, mostly because I wanted to be sure I'd seen enough BAD cache placements to know what NOT to do. Additionally, I got lots of great ideas for hides/containers/camo along the way. I really think that there should be a basic minimum standard as to how many you should find first of something like 50 or so. It's really not that many to find, and it really, really helps to get a lay-of-the-land, so to speak!

 

Newbie example: I just recently saw a newbie place his very first traditional cache only 3 feet from an existing traditional cache (end of a guard rail that was next to a fire hydrant that already had a magnetic nano on it), and then he moved it to a location whose coordinates were off by 40 feet. Also, his container was a cheap Glad 2 cup plastic container which won't last through this winter in New Hampshire, I'm sure. All these mistakes could have been avoided by him just finding a few more than the half-dozen he had under his belt before he started placing caches.

 

I'm sure you'll do fine (I love the container already!!), and if I could give one piece of advice from a relative newbie myself, make absolutely sure you get good coordinates! :P

 

MattBecc

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As a newbie I wonder how many caches you found before you placed your first cache?

 

I have 7 finds so far and I'm getting a Keep2Go ready for my first hide.

 

Thanks,

Dave

Rather than suggesting any number of finds, I would suggest giving yourself a number of months before deciding to place your first cache. As with many activities there is a pretty high dropout rate among new geocachers. There are a lot of caches placed by brand new, enthousiastic cachers who then drop out of the game fairly soon and abandon their caches. This ends up making a mess for those of us still playing the game.

 

So my suggestion would be to wait a year before you place your first cache just to make sure you enjoy the game and want to stick with it.

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Wrastro pretty much echoes advice I was given.

 

I've been caching about a month and eager to place my first. Right now, it'd be the first in my town and I have three Lock & Locks complete with logs, cache cards, and swag ready to go. However, an experienced cacher mentioned caches placed by eager newbies in their first flush of caching and then abandoned when the novelty wore off. 200 was the number given to me, but I suspect the correct number is the number on your profile at the time you're absolutely certain that you're in the game long-term, which you can't be until the novelty's worn off and things have settled down.

 

Cache maintenance is an important part of being a CO, so the game needs you to commit to being around long enough to maintain your hides.

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Thanks again for all the great information GeoFriends!

 

Good stuff for all us newbies.

 

I found a cache yesterday that was in a Lock & Lock and the log book was damp. I tried cleaning the dirt off the rubber gasket, re-sealed the container & replaced it. I'm pretty sure my Keep2Go is water tight. :P

 

I have found other Lock & Locks that had the log in a Ziploc. Ah, double protection.

 

A long term commitment and maintenance is essential to cache owners.

 

What is a good maintenance schedule? Once a week, once a month?

 

Thanks again,

Cheers,

 

Dave

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No real need for a set maintenance schedule. If you happen to be near your hide just check on it every once in a while to see if it is properly stocked with at least some decent swag (unfortunately people take but don't leave or leave junk/swag trash) or if it's a micro/nano, check to see if the log is dry and/or not full. Otherwise, just wait for a finder to post a maintenance log at which time you'll get an email notification.

 

I also check the logs for signatures to confirm finds. Something more people should take the time to do when checking their cache hides.

 

BTW, I hid my 1st cache after 16 finds. Have fun! :D

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As a newbie I wonder how many caches you found before you placed your first cache?

 

I have 7 finds so far and I'm getting a Keep2Go ready for my first hide.

 

Thanks,

Dave

 

We didn't feel that we really knew enough about what's BAD until close to 100 finds!

 

We have repeatedly been frustrated by newbys placements with coords WAY off (40-50'), or terrain/difficulty ratings way off. While location and placement are very important, so is the write-up and ratings. Most newbys don't seem to have accurate GPSr and also lack the Experience to get the coords right. I think you are doing right by getting your cache ready but holding off until you have a bit more experience with BAD cache finds so that you know what NOT to do! Cache on!

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What is a good maintenance schedule? Once a week, once a month?
I needed to maintain my first cache (hidden when I had about 75 finds, FWIW) fairly frequently, at least once a month. I learned a lot from the varied caches that I had found, but I learned more from trying to maintain my own cache.

 

I visit my current caches every few months, when it's convenient. Neither one has really required much maintenance. As I said, I learned from trying to maintain that first cache.

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i had like 80 finds and still felt like i wouldn't do a good enough job of hiding. however, i had an area that i thought might be good and it had none so i went for it. not enough people have found the two i put out yet for me to get a good idea of their quality, so i'm still concerned about them being decent.

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around 100 finds for me. (I hide under a different account now)

 

I thought a good rate was one hidden for every hundred found.

 

I didn't really have any sense of the game before 100 finds.

 

and as others are saying I didn't have any idea of what there is to do wrong.

 

Now I have such a better sense of what it takes to make a great hide.

 

I find caches hidden by people with a few finds, and I heave a deep sign and shake my head.

 

i have found them on private property (Don't know how it got published)

 

I have found them right on the property of major electrical stations (good candidate for the bomb squad, with no markings, and covered in duct tape) (dont know how it got published)

 

In the woods in areas that get easily trampled.

 

On a busy street corner with tons of traffic and they wonder why it gets muggled.

 

OH, AND THE BEST. A cache I found that says they wanted to hide their cache in the same clever way they recently found................... under a lamp post skirt. Wow. clever. (groan) :D

 

etc. etc. etc.

 

I'm glad I waited. Glad I waited longer to hide a ton of them.

 

I want my next one to be memorable. See what I can come up with, now that I know what memorable is.

 

I want something to bring a smile, not a groan.

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I think you first need to find a rain-sodden cache with soggy log and rusty swag. THEN you'll understand the importance of w-e-a-t-h-e-r-p-r-o-o-f-i-n-g.

 

Can you say ammo can or Lock'n'Lock? Anything else gets wet.

 

Jim

 

Exactly my point. If you've ever found a soggy cache, you'll know how important it is to use an appropriate container. If you haven't had this problem, you might not realise how important it is to have the right container.

I can't make it plainer than that.

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My favorite was a mortar tube :D in the waist high brush approach to the Sedona airport. Luckily I didn't raise it up to shoulder height before I noticed what it was.... some hides are a bit risky.

 

Maintenance?.....what's that? I just archive the cache when the logsheet gets full.

This question should have it's own thread :D

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I'll weigh in.... We placed our first cache after about 5 finds... While I don't disagree about the "knowing what a good container is" argument I don't buy it... We have found many caches with excellent containers that were sogged... Many of them because they were not closed properly... So IMHO, READ THE REGS on hiding, find at least a couple so you know what it's all about and then hide something...practice makes perfect...just watch the logs and perform the maintenance when required(including upgrading a container if need be).... remember when this addiction started the very first geocachers didn't find 100s or possibly even 10 before they placed a cache.... I also don't get the so many finds per cache hidden theory.... Does being a good finder make you a good hider..? Not really... Just do some research (like reading threads similar to this)...I am sure after reading you know the importance of using the proper container as its been reiterated several times... do you now need to see 100 containers to understand..? I think not...

 

Cache on my friend..cache on

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As a newbie I wonder how many caches you found before you placed your first cache?

 

I have 7 finds so far and I'm getting a Keep2Go ready for my first hide.

**************************************************************

 

Placing caches is as much fun as finding and logging caches....So "Go for it" GFI....Also, when you become a "premium member", you will start having more fun and excitment with all the "bells and whistles that come with the program....CacheMate and GSAK are two more programs that will be helpful...Others will tell you that there are some free programs that will do the same, but, you get what you pay for....Don't think cheap, think "looking for the best deal at a good price"....But of course do this only if you are Hooked on Caching". Then..."Lets go caching" and have a great journey filled with fun, and the enjoyment of the hunt...Stay Safe....Placing caches and becoming a Premium Member" is our way of "paying back" or "Pay Back". for what Groundspeak has made available for us. caching is one heck of a "program". WT73....

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Hide your 1st cache when you think it is best & you feel comfortable on hiding it. I beleive I hid my first around my 25th find. I felt alittle more comfortable then in getting to know a good or decent hide -vs- a bad hide then, however after 2 yrs I am still learning more the difference between good & bad though.

Use your best judgement in deciding it.

 

Everyone here has quite a good input to it so far, with the time frame ranging from 1 -100 caches, that is under their own comfortable judgement. As said before there is no set guideline to when a cacher can set their first hide.

 

As for the brown texture paint idea I have found from personal experience is to paint the container with 2 good camo paint coats first, apply the texture paint with 1 or 2 coats, another coat of camo paint & a final of texture paint. It seems the Texture paint seems to adhere better on another paint coat -vs- placing the texture paint on itself in inclement weather.

 

Have fun & enjoying your caching time. :smile::lol:

As a newbie I wonder how many caches you found before you placed your first cache?

 

I have 7 finds so far and I'm getting a Keep2Go ready for my first hide.

 

Thanks,

Dave

Edited by emtfire10
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