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What if i put the wrong cords on a cache?


Fox_Trot

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So i recently placed a cache, it was published yesterday. There is a big FTF group down in the area and i heard that there were about 8 cachers who went out and looked for it when it was published. Some were there for quite some time, no one found it I temporary disabled the cache and went out to check on it. IT IS there but my coordinates were off by 60 feet. Now i dont know if its because i mistyped a 6 instead of a 7 or i just didnt quadruple check before i published. I feel really bad about this, ive placed 6 caches before this and they were all spot on and when i went out to check these w/ my GPS before i checked it my GPS said it was spot on but it was obviously jumping due to tree cover. Any ideas/advice on how i should go about this when i enable it again? I know i messed up but this is not why im posting this, i am asking for what you would do, thanks

 

Fox_Trot

Edited by Fox_Trot
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I would ask your approver for help since it is a brand new cache - first disable it and go back and make sure - over and over and over again that you NOW have the co-ordinate correct and that it proves to be correct over many approches on different days - find a friend with another gps to help verify. Here is the deal - some cache locations are simply bad and you cannot for what ever reason get a good enough fix on a signal and just cannot put a cache there. Rocks can mess with a signal something terrible and a partial WAAS signal can send things amuck - not sure how many other reasons there are - but you just may have a bad location. Consider this - if your cache location is awesome and you really want to bring people here but can't nail a good signal consistantly - just mention it in the description and give hints that tell how to make it a better search - it can still be fun for everyone.

 

Always work hard getting the co-ordinates correct - if it is not consistant for you it will not be for others - consider the day as a problem and see if another day is the same. Don't get in a hurry if you are having trouble with the signal. You don't want to publish a problem cache. You must be successful with your own cache before asking others to find it. Double check the typing of your co-ordinates again and again - it is so easy to typ wrng we amaz our-selfs. Good Luck Pal! You'll get it!

 

I think a little begging to the approver will get the co-ordinates straight!

Edited by GPS-Hermit
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I had one that was off by about 80 miles. The FTF crew in these parts still managed to find it - one of them used Google Earth + my description of the area and guessed that the coords were off by a digit in the degrees.

 

In between publishing the cache and the FTF, I realized my mistake and disabled the cache. I couldn't correct the coords myself because it was too great a distance. My reviewer made the necessary changes and I enabled the cache again. The only harm was to my pride (which needs a good bruising now and then anyway).

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So i recently placed a cache, it was published yesterday. There is a big FTF group down in the area and i heard that there were about 8 cachers who went out and looked for it when it was published. Some were there for quite some time, no one found it I temporary disabled the cache and went out to check on it. IT IS there but my coordinates were off by 60 feet. Now i dont know if its because i mistyped a 6 instead of a 7 or i just didnt quadruple check before i published. I feel really bad about this, ive placed 6 caches before this and they were all spot on and when i went out to check these w/ my GPS before i checked it my GPS said it was spot on but it was obviously jumping due to tree cover. Any ideas/advice on how i should go about this when i enable it again? I know i messed up but this is not why im posting this, i am asking for what you would do, thanks

 

Fox_Trot

 

I agree with the fix-it and move along advice, but I'm curious to know what the cache container is, and a description of the hiding area. Even though you were about 60' off, according to your machine, common sense needs to prevail in this game. That's why in many cases, I turn the GPSr off when I'm close, and then use my eyes and common sense to find the cache.

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Good job fixing this. I'm so worried I'm going to do something like that, that I'm afraid to hide one. OK so I just haven't found a spot or the right box to make one special enough for my first cache but soon. LOL

 

I've tried for several FTF's where the numbers were off. Actually I was headed out for one when the notes started coming in saying that they couldn't find it so I waited and the owner posted a note that they were off and they were going to get better numbers. Still waiting for that one. I did try google earth thinking that maybe I could figure it out before they fixed it, but no luck.

 

One that I was FTF on the owner later corrected was off by 200 feet. Truthfully I was using my cell phone and I wasn't sure how much of the problem was caused by it, but the next finders also reported that it was way off. In the short time I've been searching I've seen enought to know it's something to learn from, not to hide from. But I also learned not look for a micro for more than about 15 minutes if no one else has found it, because I think I spent about an hour on one no one else could find either. The owner fixed it quickly too.

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Just post an Update Coordinates log with the correct coords, and in the text area write an apology. Then go on with your life.

+1

 

The FTF hounds know that this is part of the risk in running out there to be FTF.

Yup, a good friend loves FTFs and says that roughly 1/4 of the FTFs he goes for end up having the wrong coords, coords in stages of multis mixed up or some other issue. He knows it happens and considers it part of the FTF hunt.

 

However, 60 feet isn't really that far off. Most FTFers cachers I know would expand their search out that far if they couldn't find it.

Edited by Skippermark
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They did expand their search out that far but it is a 5 difficulty hide so they wouldn't necessarily have found it even with the right coords. I'm guessing they would not have found it. It took me about 25 minutes or so with the updated coords which may or may not still be a little off. Nobody seems to be getting a good reading in that particular area. I used my :huh: skills and got the FTF though.

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So i recently placed a cache, it was published yesterday. There is a big FTF group down in the area and i heard that there were about 8 cachers who went out and looked for it when it was published. Some were there for quite some time, no one found it I temporary disabled the cache and went out to check on it. IT IS there but my coordinates were off by 60 feet. Now i dont know if its because i mistyped a 6 instead of a 7 or i just didnt quadruple check before i published. I feel really bad about this, ive placed 6 caches before this and they were all spot on and when i went out to check these w/ my GPS before i checked it my GPS said it was spot on but it was obviously jumping due to tree cover. Any ideas/advice on how i should go about this when i enable it again? I know i messed up but this is not why im posting this, i am asking for what you would do, thanks

 

Fox_Trot

 

I had this happen on the first cache I published. Despite taking three readings with my Garmin on top of the cache, the coordinates turned out to be 120' off.

 

The first person to solve the puzzle (who is also a friend and had my phone #) called me from the GZ. I was driving at the time, but pulled over and described where the cache was (fortunately I'd taken a picture and had it on my phone) and he was able to find it and log the FTF.

 

When I got home I disabled the cache. The FTF took readings with his GPSr, and when he emailed them to me I used his numbers. I had to redo my puzzle, but afterward everything seemed to work fine. I enabled the cache again, and everything was fine.

 

It seems the coords are correct now as there have been three reported findings now, and one who signed the log book but hasn't logged the find ( :huh: )

 

I'd just check as many times as you can with your GPSr, then verify as well as you can on Google Maps that you're close.

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They did expand their search out that far but it is a 5 difficulty hide so they wouldn't necessarily have found it even with the right coords. I'm guessing they would not have found it. It took me about 25 minutes or so with the updated coords which may or may not still be a little off. Nobody seems to be getting a good reading in that particular area. I used my :huh: skills and got the FTF though.

Yeah, that makes a difference then. I was thinking of a more average hide. Congrats on the FTF!

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