Rope Attachment idea help

[+Fox_Trot]

im in the process of making a cache similar to the one in this picture. Its a multi that you find a series of ropes that all attach with clips to each other to make one long rope. you take the long rope to the final destination and clip it to the clip thats in the final's tree and it lowers the cache from really high above to the ground. Now the question i have is this. In the picture the clip is sttached to a rope that is wrapped around the tree. I need a way to attach my clip to something. This is going to be UP in a tree, not around a tree trunk. Now ideally a nail in the tree would be perfect but i know thats not possible. The reason i dont want to wrap the rope around like this picture is that i do not want it to be seen unless you were up in the tree which is what the cache is all about. (getting in the tree) If you still dont have an idea what im talking about just imagine this picture flipped on its side... you wouldnt be able to see anything from the bottom expect this rope that goes around it, now how can i attach the clip to something without wrapping a rope around? i know this is a bit confusing but i figured id try my luck asking you guys... thanks

 

[+Mom-n-Andy]

Please don't drive a nail into a tree. If the tree is ever harvested the nail could cause serious injury to the logger or sawmill worker.

 

You might look for a tree that has a low branch to hook the carabiner on.

Edited April 13, 2010 by Mom-n-Andy

[+Fox_Trot]

Please don't drive a nail into a tree. If the tree is ever harvested the nail could cause serious injury to the logger or sawmill worker.

 

You might look for a tree that has a low branch to hook the carabiner on.

 

no,,,, no nails...

[+Mom-n-Andy]

What if you used rope the approximate color of the tree? and painted the carabiner to match?

 

I was looking online for paracord for a project recently, and noted that it comes in lots of colors including camo.

[+eigengott]

how can i attach the clip to something without wrapping a rope around?

 

You could use a counterweight, like a heavy stone, to "fix" the clip. Of course the stone must be heavier than the cache and any potential trade items. But most geocacher don't put gold bars into caches anyway.

[+zgrav]

if folks are bringing pieces of rope from earlier waypoints you also are likely to have instances where the rope pieces are not returned properly. some folks will want to make a path on to the next closest cache when they log your final.

 

also, you would want to somehow make sure that it was exactly those pieces of rope that were needed to prevent other caches from unraveling their survival bracelets to use at the final instead of your rope pieces.

 

sounds like a fun challenge for the builder and eventually for the cachers that go after it.

[+Dread_Pirate_Bruce]

if folks are bringing pieces of rope from earlier waypoints you also are likely to have instances where the rope pieces are not returned properly. some folks will want to make a path on to the next closest cache when they log your final.

 

also, you would want to somehow make sure that it was exactly those pieces of rope that were needed to prevent other caches from unraveling their survival bracelets to use at the final instead of your rope pieces.

 

sounds like a fun challenge for the builder and eventually for the cachers that go after it.

 

Ditto that.

 

While many cachers will be diligent in replacing the rope pieces, it is sure to get messed up pretty quickly. And, when the cache is new, I would anticipate several people going for FTF honors and that someone will be looking for a piece of rope that someone else is already using. Of course, I probably would not be clever enough to figure out to take a segment from every cache and will have to rely on my bag of tricks to find a substitute rope.

 

It is a clever idea, but may cause you a great deal of headache.

[+Fox_Trot]

i plan on doing a simple version of this and if people enjoy it make a harder version later on after i see how this works out. The ropes that are needed to get the final are only 2 ropes and they are found at stage one in two different trees next to each other. I am going to laminate typed out coordinates punch a hole through them and attach them to the carabiner on each rope. Each paper though is only going to contain one part of the coords (one being the N and the other the W) so you would need both in order to figure out where the last/next stage is. I appreciate a bunch of all your ideas and comments, thats what i was looking for. I realy like the big rock idea because there is spots where i can put the rock and the cache container is VERY small. Also, many said that they might not return the ropes? well i hope so and i put the first stages not far from the last stage so they would put them back. There is a big FTF group here also so maybe not publish it till the wee hours of the morning?

[+Fox_Trot]

i plan on doing a simple version of this and if people enjoy it make a harder version later on after i see how this works out. The ropes that are needed to get the final are only 2 ropes and they are found at stage one in two different trees next to each other. I am going to laminate typed out coordinates punch a hole through them and attach them to the carabiner on each rope. Each paper though is only going to contain one part of the coords (one being the N and the other the W) so you would need both in order to figure out where the last/next stage is. I appreciate a bunch of all your ideas and comments, thats what i was looking for. I realy like the big rock idea because there is spots where i can put the rock and the cache container is VERY small. Also, many said that they might not return the ropes? well i hope so and i put the first stages not far from the last stage so they would put them back. There is a big FTF group here also so maybe not publish it till the wee hours of the morning?

 

also do you guys think a simple matchstick tube for the final container would be a lil lame? I just think that has the best chance of not being seen up in the tree and its also the easiest to attach a rope to unless i found something with a handle... any ideas on a final container that would be SUPER cheap?

[+J the Goat]

i plan on doing a simple version of this and if people enjoy it make a harder version later on after i see how this works out. The ropes that are needed to get the final are only 2 ropes and they are found at stage one in two different trees next to each other. I am going to laminate typed out coordinates punch a hole through them and attach them to the carabiner on each rope. Each paper though is only going to contain one part of the coords (one being the N and the other the W) so you would need both in order to figure out where the last/next stage is. I appreciate a bunch of all your ideas and comments, thats what i was looking for. I realy like the big rock idea because there is spots where i can put the rock and the cache container is VERY small. Also, many said that they might not return the ropes? well i hope so and i put the first stages not far from the last stage so they would put them back. There is a big FTF group here also so maybe not publish it till the wee hours of the morning?

 

also do you guys think a simple matchstick tube for the final container would be a lil lame? I just think that has the best chance of not being seen up in the tree and its also the easiest to attach a rope to unless i found something with a handle... any ideas on a final container that would be SUPER cheap?

 

Yes, matchstick container would be kind of anticlimactic for this one. There's one about 40 mintues from me that's an ammo can suspended in the air by a rope, but you can't really see it unless you're really looking for it. That, and what does it really matter if they can see it? There's still the challenge of getting it down. I think this is a classic example of "why put a micro where an ammo can will fit?" You can make it work, especially if you can rig a removable rope retrieval device.

[+WHO-DEY]

I have to do one of these this summer. Theya re so fun to find.

 

Fox trot...nice looking V. I have a three year old female.

[+Ike 13]

If the final is at the end of the trail and to get back to parking you have to pass the other two, then I don't see a huge problem with people returning the ropes.

 

The main problem is if one group is on the final when I arrive to stage 1 then there's no rope. Now if the rope and coords for stage two are seperate, I can at least move forward instead of giving up.

 

I have found ammo cans in tress. The only way I found them was by seeing the rope. Cantelever systems work very well.

[Mushtang]

It's difficult to idiot proof a cache like this. Not that I want to suggest anything about the average level of intelligence of cachers, but people in general tend to do some pretty stupid things even when they're usually very smart and careful people.

 

What's the chance that someone will collect the ropes, get to your cache, and not grasp that they're supposed to connect the ropes they have to the one on the tree, and let the rope get pulled up? It's possible someone will get to the tree, unhook the rope, think to themselves, "I'm not sure how I'm supposed to get the rope back after letting it go, but maybe I'll figure it out after I get to the container", and lets go. Then the cache will come crashing down as the end of the rope flies up into the tree tops, and at that moment they realize what the ropes in their hands are for as they say, "Oh".

 

Or what if they just accidentally let go of the rope while trying to connect the extra pieces?

 

I think it's a great idea for a cache, as long as it works the way you want it to every time. How many times are you willing to get up in the trees to set it all up again before you archive it for being too much trouble?