EC's In US National Parks

[+Gan Dalf]

OK so I looked for threads and did a search (and got some weird search result back) but I can't find the info that I am sure is somewhere inside the EC forums. I have a great idea for an EC in the State in which I live but the placement would be inside the boundries of a National Park. Having found several (recently placed) EC's inside of Yellowstone last year I am sure that it is possible but I believe there are several hoops that need to be jumped through to do it. I would appriciate any advice on how to go about placing an Earthcache inside of Olympic National Park on the Washington Coast. Thanks in advance for any help you can offer.

[+TerryDad2]

The hoops depend on the park. I've had to fill out special use permits, digitally agree to placements, write a 20 page proposal, and just send the writeups to rangers. You'll just have to see what they want. At a minimum you will need to send the coordinates and the writeup of the EarthCache. Is there one aready in the Park. If so contact that owner to see who they contacted.

 

If not, I've used the general contact e-mail that is on the park's webpage. It may take a while to get a response. It has taken up to 5 months to get a response that way. Usually it takes just a couple of weeks. If you want to get a faster response, call up the park and ask for the Natural Resource Officer, the ranger in charge of education, or if all else fails the superintendant.

 

Be sure to mention the educational aspect and that nothing is left behind. I would not mention geocaching if you don't have to. You can check out my profile for the letter I usually use.

 

Feel free to contact me if you have specific questions.

[+Arby Gee]

A cacher in our area (Northeast Ohio) contacted the "Interpretive and Education Specialist" at our National Park a couple years ago to set up an Earthcaching program there. It took over a year to get it started, but now they are ardent supporters of Earthcaching and we have over half a dozen Earthcaches in the park. In order to place an EC in this park you need to fill out a Volunteer Agreement form and submit the entire cache writeup for approval and revision. You also have to track your hours and submit them. The park gets funding from the Federal government based on the number of volunteer hours worked, so this is a big plus for them.

[+geodarts]

Be sure to mention the educational aspect and that nothing is left behind. I would not mention geocaching if you don't have to. You can check out my profile for the letter I usually use.

 

I always mention that earthcache listings are maintained by Groundspeak as part of geocaching.com. I am not sure how to get permission without that basic information. But I do make sure that I describe earthcaching in detail, state that it does not involve leaving any containers in the park, and direct them to the earthcache web site.

 

I would defer to TerryDad2's expertise. In my much more limited experience, park officials have been supportive but it has taken some work in various locations. It's a good idea to include the proposed description. Some parks have referred that to their geological people - others have only wanted a basic summary to let them know where people will be and what they will be doing. Officials have generally wanted to make sure that people are going to follow the rules, be safe, and not leave trash.

 

The most interesting question I was asked is how earthcaches relate to existing virtuals.

 

The last earthcache I developed is on NPS land that already had five or six earthcaches - the last one I had placed there was approved within hours and the chief ranger was only concerned about visitors taking back everything they brought. I thought it would be a breeze, but there had been a change in management and the new people knew nothing about earthcaches in their park. So I had to start from the beginning and inform them about what was already there. The lesson in that was to assume nothing.

 

By the way, the new people thought earthcaching sounded "cool and educational" unlike traditional caching which they compared to littering that caused environmental problems.

Edited June 19, 2010 by mulvaney

[+geodarts]

Since we are thinking about a very quick trip to the area, I noticed that there are a few earthcaches on the Peninsula. Park officials should be aware of them. Contact the owners and find out who they dealt with and what was required.

[+TerryDad2]

Be sure to mention the educational aspect and that nothing is left behind. I would not mention geocaching if you don't have to. You can check out my profile for the letter I usually use.

 

I always mention that earthcache listings are maintained by Groundspeak as part of geocaching.com. I am not sure how to get permission without that basic information. But I do make sure that I describe earthcaching in detail, state that it does not involve leaving any containers in the park, and direct them to the earthcache web site.

 

That advice is from my early attempts to obtain permission. The EarthCache program has been getting a better reception. Initially, I had a couple of rangers (from the CA State Park system in particular) that just shut me down as soon as I metioned geocaching.com. Now they at least hear me out.

 

That is also why I prefer to contact them by e-mail so the entire program can be described before they cut me off.

 

There are many others that are successfully getting EarthCaches approved in National Parks, so there are multiple ways to get this done.

[calgriz]

The main page on the geocahing site says NO geocaches in parks ran by US Park Service.......is this TRUE or is this thread topic a way to get around this GCing rule ??? OR, This is double speak.

[+Touchstone]

The main page on the geocahing site says NO geocaches in parks ran by US Park Service.......is this TRUE or is this thread topic a way to get around this GCing rule ??? OR, This is double speak.

 

From the GSA FAQ:

 

Can we develop EarthCaches in National Parks and other public land?

EarthCaches can be developed on public land only if you have the prior approval of the local land manager. Most land managers, once they are told that concept and that no physical container will be left behind, are happy to have an EarthCache in their park, forest etc. We would suggest however, that you develop EarthCaches in partnership with the land managers, to ensure that sensitive areas are avoided, that multi-cache concepts are used with waypoints to keep people on trails and that cache-in-trash-out is advertised.

Caches of any description that are developed on public land without prior approval are undesirable, and on some land illegal.

[Wintertime]

The main page on the geocahing site says NO geocaches in parks ran by US Park Service.......is this TRUE or is this thread topic a way to get around this GCing rule ??? OR, This is double speak.

"Calgriz," that statement is absolutely true for geocaches, but Earthcaches are a different animal.

 

NPS banned real geocaches years ago. Groundspeak asked that ones that were already in parks be removed. At the time, Groundspeak also had a category called "virtual caches," so many of those were created in national parks. Those virtuals still exist, but a few years ago, Groundspeak stopped the virtual geocache program, so no new ones are being created.

 

Earthcaches are a special type of virtual cache that the GSA developed in conjunction with Groundspeak as an educational activity. As others have pointed out in this thread, the policies for Earthcaches are currently being handled on a park-by-park basis within the NPS system. Geocachers can also participate in CITO events in some national parks. And of course, there are waymarks in the parks. So there are still plenty of ways for cachers to enjoy their hobby on NPS lands.

 

Patty

[+geoaware]

The main page on the geocahing site says NO geocaches in parks ran by US Park Service.......is this TRUE or is this thread topic a way to get around this GCing rule ??? OR, This is double speak.

"Calgriz," that statement is absolutely true for geocaches, but Earthcaches are a different animal.

 

NPS banned real geocaches years ago. Groundspeak asked that ones that were already in parks be removed. At the time, Groundspeak also had a category called "virtual caches," so many of those were created in national parks. Those virtuals still exist, but a few years ago, Groundspeak stopped the virtual geocache program, so no new ones are being created.

 

Earthcaches are a special type of virtual cache that the GSA developed in conjunction with Groundspeak as an educational activity. As others have pointed out in this thread, the policies for Earthcaches are currently being handled on a park-by-park basis within the NPS system. Geocachers can also participate in CITO events in some national parks. And of course, there are waymarks in the parks. So there are still plenty of ways for cachers to enjoy their hobby on NPS lands.

 

Patty

 

Actually it should read

 

Earthcaches are a special type of virtual cache that the GSA developed in conjunction with Groundspeak and the US National Park Service as an educational activity.

 

And that change makes all the difference. However the NPS rule is that you MUST HAVE the local park approval before you develop and EarthCache in a National Park. That is why you must provide a name and number - as we call to check.