SNOW CACHEING

[blobingob]

ok so just because winter is coming doesnt mean cacheing is over !!! but is cacheing really worth going if there is alot of snow? because i live in northern illinois next to lake michigan and the lake causes us to get ALOT of snow.

but i dont want to stop cacheing it is alot alot alot of fun?

[+flask]

it's different, but it's worth doing.

 

it will take longer to find most containers.

 

a ski pole will come in very handy for poking and a small shovel or scoop will help you dig better.

 

you won't find as many caches in winter, but you'll sped as much time hunting and you'll get a feeling of rugged accomplishment when you find that ammo can in hip deep snow.

[knowschad]

ok so just because winter is coming doesnt mean cacheing is over !!! but is cacheing really worth going if there is alot of snow? because i live in northern illinois next to lake michigan and the lake causes us to get ALOT of snow.

but i dont want to stop cacheing it is alot alot alot of fun?

Come on up to Minnesota some weekend and we'll show you how its done.

[+NYPaddleCacher]

it's different, but it's worth doing.

 

it will take longer to find most containers.

 

a ski pole will come in very handy for poking and a small shovel or scoop will help you dig better.

 

you won't find as many caches in winter, but you'll sped as much time hunting and you'll get a feeling of rugged accomplishment when you find that ammo can in hip deep snow.

 

It can also be easier for some caches when you've got a clear geotrail in 6" of fresh snow to follow that was made the previous person to seek a cache.

 

Caches located off the ground in the woods may also be easier because satellite reception is often better when the leaves are off the trees.

 

Caches, which might be difficult to retrieve when there are lots of muggles out on a warm summer day, can be much easier to get on a very cold winter day.

[+flask]

 

It can also be easier for some caches when you've got a clear geotrail in 6" of fresh snow to follow that was made the previous person to seek a cache.

 

 

...unless you come after us. we leave decoy tracks.

 

we do this for two reasons: one is so that next finders don't have their hunt spoiled, and the other is that so passers-by won't see the tracks and follow them to the cache, thereby compromising its safety.

[+briansnat]

It tales some luck and experience helps, but it can be done. Sometimes they are even easier to find in the snow when footprints lead right tothe cache.

[knowschad]

By the time I'm finished looking, I generally don't need to build decoy tracks!

[+bflentje]

I generally find more caches during the Minnesota winter than the Minnesota summer. Snow and temperature are meaningless unless you're a woos.

[+Gitchee-Gummee]

 

Maybe you should come on up to where the snowmobilers get stuck!!!

[+ECplus3]

Here's a few things that I like about caching in the winter:

 

1. You can walk to all those pesky island caches once the lakes freeze good and solid!

2. You can follow someone else's footprints to finally find that cache that has foiled you all summer!

3. NO BUGS!

 

Here are some of the drawbacks:

 

1. If you don't have snowshoes, some 'easy' trails become nearly impossible to travel

2. 'Winter Friendly' is subjective. A crack in a rock face 3 feet off the ground can become filled with ice, entombing the cache

3. Pens will freeze... bring a pencil just in case!

4. Nanos are just plain nasty when it is -30C! You have to take your gloves off to open it, and trying to put it back together with numb fingers is challenging. And good luck if you drop part of the container in the snow!!!

[+Taoiseach]

I've actually been told that I excel at winter caching

 

I've lost count of how many caches I've dug out from under 4 or 5 feet of snow, and then chiseled out of the ice.

 

On our local forums right now, we're talking about making 'medals' to put on your cache page if you've completed certain achievements - For example, becoming a binthair All Finder. One of the suggestions was the 'Taoiseach Icepicker Award'

[+Ladybug Kids]

Snow caching...no bugs, stay dry, especially pretty woods, fewer muggles...what's not to like? We cache in the snow six months a year up here!

[+pirateRACE]

By the time I'm finished looking, I generally don't need to build decoy tracks!

 

I've only been doing this since June... but I was just thinking the same thing!

[+flask]

By the time I'm finished looking, I generally don't need to build decoy tracks!

 

think of it this way: how amusing a decoy track can you leave?

 

i like looking at track. i like to try to reconstruct what happened at a location from track. now go and invent an amusing little scenario and see if you can leave tracks that suggest it.

 

it's hours of fun, and you get more value to your geocaching day!

[kent.babcock]

I'm still very much the newb when it comes to caching, but I've been tromping around the woods on skis and snowshoes for years.

 

Frankly, winter caching sounds like a real grin to me. A good excuse to load up a pack with gorp and coffee and head out into the snow.

 

Let's have at it!

[+CanadaKate]

Here in Ontario, Canada, if we didn't do snow caching we wouldn't have much to do for several months of the year. For some photos of my kids (Team_BG) going the extra mile to extricate a snowbound cache, check out the photos from 1/1/09 at GCH0D1 .

 

This was a cache that we had DNF'd in the summer due to just too much vegetation not to mention nasty insects. It was easier to find in the winter than the summer.

 

Have fun this winter!

 

CanadaKate

 

http://www.geocaching.com/seek/log.aspx?LU...e7-994dd41f68c9

Edited November 13, 2009 by CanadaKate

[+Buggheart]

Winter caching is awesome! I didn't think I'd like it but I much prefer winter caching to summer caching. No bugs, no mud, no leaves on the trees, not a lot of nosy muggles getting in the way as their just walking with their heads down to keep out of the wind. And the fresh air feels great. Having a path in the snow helps a lot too and it's fun to leave decoy tracks and other crazy things. I really hate winter, but I have to say it's a lot more bearable since I've started geocaching. And it's a good way to get some exercise in the winter.