Travel bug missions

[+karnzen]

First off, this is purely hypothetical. I cache with my phone and can look up a travel bug's mission while I'm still at the cache, then decide whether or not to take it.

 

Say you don't have that ability, though, and remove the travel bug from the cache. When you get home, you look it up and realize that you can't help it on its quest. Do you run back to the cache and put it back? If you've already logged the find, do you put another note saying you put the bug back? Put it in a different cache, but still close to the one you found it in?

 

I'm just curious, in case I'm ever in a situation where I can't look up the bug before taking it. Is it best to just leave the bug there if you don't know its mission, or always look up the bug before you go hunting for the cache?

 

Thanks for any info!

[+hukilaulau]

just move it to another cache! Owners are generally glad just to have their bug moved. once in awhile someone will get a little annoyed if the mission is to go to the Alamo and you take it to, say, nova Scotia, but once the bug is released the name of the game is mostly to see how many caches it can get to before it's eventually lost or stolen.

[+atmospherium]

I wonder how many bugs ever do achieve their mission?

 

I've picked up a few bugs on impulse, and then realised that I couldn't really help them along, so I simply dropped them in a cache that gets lots of traffic. Someone else can probably get them going soon enough.

[+BlueDeuce]

First off, this is purely hypothetical. I cache with my phone and can look up a travel bug's mission while I'm still at the cache, then decide whether or not to take it.

 

Say you don't have that ability, though, and remove the travel bug from the cache. When you get home, you look it up and realize that you can't help it on its quest. Do you run back to the cache and put it back? If you've already logged the find, do you put another note saying you put the bug back? Put it in a different cache, but still close to the one you found it in?

 

I'm just curious, in case I'm ever in a situation where I can't look up the bug before taking it. Is it best to just leave the bug there if you don't know its mission, or always look up the bug before you go hunting for the cache?

 

Thanks for any info!

 

Even if you can't fully complete the goal, any movement is better than none.

 

As long as you aren't picking up a bug sight unseen and traveling some 500 miles before you look up the mission, chances are pretty good that you can't go too far off its goal by moving it a few miles.

 

The point is to journey not just reach the goal.

[+Borst68]

It is also permissible to transfer it to another Geocacher that you know. If you happen to know another cacher going in a direction that would further the goal, give the TB to them and let them move it along. You still have to do the transfer on the log page.

[+karnzen]

Thanks for the info, guys! I wasn't too sure about how hard-nosed some travel bug owners might be about their bug going off-course, but now I won't worry too much about grabbing one without knowing the mission first.

[+gururyan]

I recently picked up a bug wanting to go to the White House in D.C. I did not know its desired destination when at the cache, just like you suggested. When I got home and realized where it wanted to go, I simply dropped it back into another cache not even a mile away just a couple days later so that it could continue its journey. A couple days after that, somebody picked it up from where I left it...turns out that person is headed to D.C. in just a week or so. So, had I not moved it that one mile it may have never found the 'cacher that is headed to D.C.

 

Any movement is good movement, just don't sit on it too long. Keep it moving.

Edited April 6, 2010 by gururyan

[+Nathan Wert]

I generally don't put a mission on my travel bugs. I just like to see where they go wandering like gypsies.

[+roziecakes]

Not one of ours has ever achieved their mission, but honestly I don't mind too much It's just fun to see where they go.

[+:DK]

i picked one up in south carolina and was on my way back to tennessee before i knew it was only wanting to travel between NY and PN or something like that.. the person before me didnt realize and thats why they took it to SC.

when we realease ours, we are going to also attatch mission tags to ours telling what their goal is.. i thought i was going to have to make them, but i found a site that already has them made, you just fill in blanks, print, laminate, and attatch!! i think doing this is a great idea if their is a certain mission.

 

edit: here is a link to that site: http://www.dreamcircle.com/gcache/TB_Mission_cards.pdf

Edited November 22, 2010 by ffemt1721

[+theshows]

I'm releasing 2 on Thankgiving, and I printed and laminated the mission. I hadn't seen that before I thought of doing it. I wondered why people wouldn't do that...unless their bug didn't have a mission. I would like mine to accomplish the mission, but, it's okay if it doesn't. I mainly just don't want it to dissappear fast.

[hoosier guy]

I just move it onto a new cache. From what I hear most TB owners are happy just to know the TB is still out there and active!

[+Chokecherry]

I move to the next cache able if I can't do the mission or pass it to a friend if I know they are going closer to where the mission is.

 

I know people get really angry about their bugs not going in the right direction occasionally but really if there's nothing attached to it saying where it wants to go that's the best you can expect really. I don't use my phone in the field like that nor do I have a computer with me.

 

Also if you attach mission tags keep them short and sweet. I went to one cache only to find this tome attached to a bug with all these details about the history etc. Being in a hot, muggy area next to a mosquito infested river trying to avoid any muggles and read that was just too much. Ended up taking it with and reading in the car as we drove back.