Bad Cache Locations

August 20, 2010

I saw a post in the "Bad Cache Containers" thread that suggested a bad locations topic. It sounded like a great idea, so here it is.

Lets hear about and see the locations you dislike (or just plain hate) to see a cache!!

August 20, 2010

In a ravine! We had this problem today and decided to come back later with better equipment.

The cache was under a bush on a VERY steep decline

August 20, 2010

From my profile:

The Kinds of Caches I Dislike:

* Needle-in-a-haystack hides : A bison tube in a tree or a container hidden in ivy.

* Caches near private houses or anywhere that someone might get nervous due to me being there

* Light pole caches. (Do we really need any more of these?)

* Most parking lot caches

August 20, 2010

I abhor bush hides, and micros in rock piles/bushes.

Edited August 20, 2010 by Dragery

1.8k · August 20, 2010

I hate caches near homes.

8.6k · August 20, 2010

Magnetic ones attached to, or close to, 'dog poo bins'. :grin:

MrsB

Edited August 20, 2010 by The Blorenges

38.2k · August 20, 2010

Strip malls, big box store parking lots, near residences, in alley ways, around dumpsters and loading docks, near homeless encampments and on guard rails along nondescript stretches of road.

1.4k · August 20, 2010

Magnetic ones attached to, or close to, 'dog poo bins'.

MrsB

Dog poo bins? That's not cool...

All of the above mentioned, plus Blackberry bushes, Poison oak infestations, PnGs on a busy road with no pullout.

9.3k · August 20, 2010

My least favorite locations include parking lots, most guard rails, those big green electrical transformers, landscaping, dumpsters, most street signs, porto-lets, urban outdoorsman encampments, near houses, near businesses... Basically, given a choice, I'll avoid any cache that exists where Momma Nature is not welcome.

Edited August 20, 2010 by Clan Riffster

August 20, 2010

Magnetic ones attached to, or close to, 'dog poo bins'.

MrsB

It really is gross - we have found one of them and I was quite suprised someone had put it there actually. ~~~~~~~stinky~~~~~~~~~~

2.3k · August 20, 2010

Basically, given a choice, I'll avoid any cache that exists where Momma Nature is not welcome.

+1

Expresses my preference much better than I could have. I still do some urban caching, but only when I can't get out of the city.

--Larry

4.2k · August 20, 2010

Big box parking lots, inside gated communities, on any equipment with high voltage warnings, property that may be owned by the cache owner but is in clear view of their neighbors' house and not theirs.

Any cache located on the other side of a no trespassing sign.

4.2k · August 20, 2010

Any place where a cache has been placed just to put a cache.

More specifically parking lots; juniper bushes; playgrounds; by a house with a yappy dog; by a house with lots of windows; on property posted with "no trespassing" signs; in front of a business; in brambles or poison oak; inside a newspaper rack on a busy street; landscaping on private property; squeaky lamp skirts in a public area.

Some of these places might be mitigated if the CO states that permission was given.

Edited August 20, 2010 by mulvaney

August 20, 2010

Alley's in cities!! Did one the other day and really it was the first time I did not have fun geocaching!!

4.2k · August 20, 2010

From my profile:

The Kinds of Caches I Dislike:

* Needle-in-a-haystack hides : A bison tube in a tree or a container hidden in ivy.

that just sounds like you don't like a challenging/high difficulty cache

we went to one recently that its a nano set in a real rock amongst a 5 meter radius of pile of rocks, needless to say the landscape has been rearranged a bit

personally i don't like caches in places that serve as dumpsters/toilets or too close to someone's back yard

Edited August 20, 2010 by t4e

August 20, 2010

I don't like caches that are halve way up very steep hills. Where a couple meters of directional change means at least a couple meters of altitude change.

2.3k · August 20, 2010

that just sounds like you don't like a challenging/high difficulty cache

It sounds to me like a lazy way to make a cache difficult to find. If I approach a cache location and discover it's a pile of rocks or a huge conifer with a micro hiding inside, I'll walk away and put it on my Ignore List in a heartbeat. I learned a long time ago that, at least for me, looking for a cache hidden that way is just an exercise in tedium. I have no patience for this sort of hide.

As always, YMMV and probably will.

--Larry

1.5k · August 20, 2010

There are 'bad' locations and there are locations that I don't like (perfectly legit, but just aren't my 'cup of tea').

Bad Locations That I've Seen

Super simple caches (LPC, etc.) with extremely high levels of muggle traffic. Give me a chance to grab the cache without risking your cache getting muggled or called in to the police. Alternatively, if I got to grab it at 3am, at least make it worth my while with a interesting cache.

In the bushes that are bordering a public children's pool.

On Elementary School property, not far from a classroom.

In front of the window (a couple of feet away) and drive-thru of a 24hr fast food joint.

Locations I Don't Like

Ceder/Juniper bushes or similar. (HATE these)

On the property of a private home.

On church property.

Needle in a Haystack (rock in a field of rocks, etc.).

Magnetics on a business's electrical equipment.

4.2k · August 20, 2010

From my profile:

The Kinds of Caches I Dislike:

* Needle-in-a-haystack hides : A bison tube in a tree or a container hidden in ivy.

that just sounds like you don't like a challenging/high difficulty cache

we went to one recently that its a nano set in a real rock amongst a 5 meter radius of pile of rocks, needless to say the landscape has been rearranged a bit

I would add to my list any cache that requires you to rearrange the landscape to find a micro. I have done challenging and high difficulty caches that are creative, but I don't put these in the same category.

August 20, 2010

Needle in a haystack:

This wall was about 20 feet one way, 20 feet around the bend, and about 12 feet high at the corner. The actual hide was just a nano tucked in one of the cracks at the top.

Edit to add this is at the entrance of a gated community. and across the street from a train station. LOTS of muggles.

Edited August 20, 2010 by Dragery

August 20, 2010

I once saw a LPC in a parking lot at a grocery store. It was literally the first LPC in the front about 30 ft away in a straight line.

11.7k · August 20, 2010

Give me a chance to grab the cache without risking your cache getting muggled or called in to the police.

I've heard that geocachers are likely to get detained!

I do not like not knowing advance if it's a spot that the police "monitor". It's fine with me if a cop shows up to ask what I'm doing, but I don't want to encounter the persons that the cops are watching for.

August 20, 2010

And another by the same hider, a hide a key rock in the middle of a field, with tons of small rocks, and the coords ended up being 27 feet off:

August 20, 2010

And another by the same hider, a hide a key rock in the middle of a field, with tons of small rocks, and the coords ended up being 27 feet off:

Hey I replaced that cache the coords weren't off.

Micros hidden in the mountains or open desert i just don't understand that at all.

4.2k · August 20, 2010

It sounds to me like a lazy way to make a cache difficult to find. If I approach a cache location and discover it's a pile of rocks or a huge conifer with a micro hiding inside, I'll walk away and put it on my Ignore List in a heartbeat. I learned a long time ago that, at least for me, looking for a cache hidden that way is just an exercise in tedium. I have no patience for this sort of hide.

As always, YMMV and probably will.

--Larry

as weird as it may sound, i like looking for the needle in the haystack, i do eventually get frustrated, but until i do to me its therapeutic, helps me take my mind off any worries i may have

I would add to my list any cache that requires you to rearrange the landscape to find a micro. I have done challenging and high difficulty caches that are creative, but I don't put these in the same category.

nano

i agree with you, but in this instance it did not cause any damage, was just a random pile of rocks

And another by the same hider, a hide a key rock in the middle of a field, with tons of small rocks, and the coords ended up being 27 feet off:

i'm not surprised, that cache will never be at the posted coordinates, its bound to move around

Edited August 20, 2010 by t4e

August 20, 2010

the coords weren't off.

Micros hidden in the mountains or open desert i just don't understand that at all.

They were when I went looking for it, Larry had left a plastic bug at GZ to kinda give a hint to where it was supposed to be. When I went the first 2 times I found the bug in the "circular" area where it was supposed to be, and found it roughly 20-25 feet west-south-west of that spot. It was off.

Edited August 20, 2010 by Dragery

August 20, 2010

found one like that... except it wasn't a rock. it was a tube which had been inserted into the ground to serve as a trenching wall for the bison tube that was inserted. the hole was then covered with something that looked like it might belong there flush with the ground. the good news was the coordinates were only off by 20 feet.

And another by the same hider, a hide a key rock in the middle of a field, with tons of small rocks, and the coords ended up being 27 feet off:

2.2k · August 20, 2010

I hate:

* Hides in Arborvitae or Juniper bushes because the bushes smell like cat pee and are scratchy. Other bushes or trees, I actually don't mind so much. Cedar trees smell particularly nice.

* Playground Hides. Just a bad idea to skulk around a playground no matter what you're doing.

* Dumpsters. PEEE--EEWW. Ickers.

* Caches way down in holes. Mostly this freaks me out because I'm afraid some animal will jump out at me. Call it a silly phobia if you will.

* Caches in Blackberry bushes!!! I mean, really? Are you just sadistic or are you collecting blood for experiments/voodoo/DNA?

* Caches in really trashy areas. Just disgusting. And I'm talking about trash where it's really too much for a CITO because there are potentially dangerous or hazardous items like used condoms or hypodermic needles.

* Caches by homeless camps. It's not fair to the cacher or the homeless person.

* And most importantly, caches that are on obvious private property with signs that don't have permission. Really?

Other than that, I'm pretty cool with anything. I even don't mind the occasional LPC. I certainly prefer caches in beautiful areas in nature, but I even actually like the guardrail caches along long windy nondescript roads. Mostly because I like driving down roads I've never been down, and around here in Oregon there are A LOT of long country roads.

There are a lot of pretty small towns that are spread far apart out here, and I love driving in between them and learning where long country roads go. I especially love exploring dirt roads, whether by car or on foot (If I could bicycle, I'd love to... my back just won't let me yet).

August 20, 2010

One of my least favorite cache locations from a few years ago.

August 20, 2010

One of my least favorite cache locations from a few years ago.

...and you CITO'd the whole thing. that's what is great about it!

2.2k · August 20, 2010

What's with the face in the garbage??!!??

August 20, 2010

What's with the face in the garbage??!!??

LOL you found Waldo... or what's left of him after strolling through Compton, CA.

2.2k · August 20, 2010

LOL you found Waldo... or what's left of him after strolling through Compton, CA.

LOL :anibad: :laughing: I've been to Compton...

3.1k · August 20, 2010

I'm very self-concious about muggles spotting me caching. LPCs in high muggle areas are thus troublesome because I have to retrieve them without being noticed. I worry that some muggle will call the police on my suspicious activity or perhaps worse a muggle will investiage the area I was investigating and muggle the cache.

Not generally a fan of Needle In A Haystack caches though if its clear thats what it is I'm sure there are some people who really like them. And in moderation they can be amusing sometimes: the first time you open an ammon can full of 35mm film cans only 1 of which has the real log which you must sign to get the find it could be amusing. The 10th time you find such a cache it has probably gotten pretty old.

August 21, 2010

I would have to say "skirt lifting" is the worst.....

Only reason I say this is because when you lift it squeals and makes the most god aweful noise I have ever heard, you can never do one of these easily or quietly....They suck and they are the worst!!!

Edited August 21, 2010 by Flaggal

2.2k · August 21, 2010

I would have to say "skirt lifting" is the worst.....

Only reason I say this is because when you lift it squeals and makes the most god aweful noise I have ever heard, you can never do one of these easily or quietly....They suck and they are the worst!!!

I must admit that is a truly embarrassing noise.

August 21, 2010

Here are a few I don't like:

1. Caches behind businesses.

2. Caches at private homes.

3. Caches at playgrounds.

Basically, I don't like any location where my searching is going to make someone else uncomfortable.

August 21, 2010

Attached to playground equipment
On or in a park shelter
At the town dump

August 21, 2010

I love anything clever and well-hidden, even if that means getting a little (or a lot) scratched and bruised. The only ones I have a problem with are ones in questionable parts of town or under bridges with obviously dangerous/gang-related grafitti. Anything else, even the "light pole skirts," I'm totally up for. That's the game!

1.5k · August 21, 2010

Basically, I don't like any location where my searching is going to make someone else uncomfortable.

Well said.

August 21, 2010

1. In bushes

2. parking lot's of schools ( I wonder how some of them even got approved?)

3. Dumpsters, or other assorted trash piles

4. Private residences for sure ( i have found several of them now, really don't like em

5. Shady old abandoned houses/businesses.

6. Guar rails/signs on busy roads

7. Playgrounds or just close enough to a playground to make mom's give you the evil eye ( and understandably so)

7. And like PissedFish said, anywhere that makes me feel uncomfortable.

I'm sure there are other examples that Iv'e left out that I don't like, but those are at the top of my list.

Edit for the lack of my fingers dexterity at this moment in time.

Edited August 21, 2010 by orion X

August 21, 2010

In no particular order (hates them all I does)...

1) Micros in a frakkin evergreen (other then cedar... those needles are soft at least)

2) Skirt lifters.... yeah... screeching turns me off...

3) Out of town multi mail boxes at the corner of roads... these are supposed to be off limits I trhought... but an awful lot of them in Alberta for some reason...

4) Any cache, any size, "hidden" in a reinforcing rock pile alongside a highway... as many hiding spaces as there are rocks...

5) Hides listed as a 2 difficulty with 66 DNF's for 100 finds... maybe this should be listed as a 4-5 difficulty instead of 2... FE: GC1261V... grrr

6) ANY cache that has been moved without the coordinates updated for it....

August 21, 2010

Trash. In, on, under or anywhere near trash bins of any size. Or just in very trashy areas.

Near electrical equipment. Some can be very cleaver, but it seems like they incite stupid behavior (like unscrewing of things that shouldn't be messed with)

Most lamp post skirts. One had a funny container and was clearly done with permission so I liked it. Magnetics ON lamp posts are OK.

1.3k · August 21, 2010

What's with the face in the garbage??!!??

LOL you found Waldo... or what's left of him after strolling through Compton, CA.

Looks more like Elvis to me.

Edit to add: I never met a cache I didn't like. I do like some less than others, though.

Edited August 21, 2010 by Trinity's Crew

3k · August 21, 2010

Anywhere big enough to hold any sized cache whatsoever, being used to hide a film can!

3.2k · August 21, 2010

1. Thick picky evergreen trees.

2. Trash piles

3. Private residences

4. Guard rails or signs on busy roads without adequate parking

5. Playground Equipment

6. Micros thrown into rock piles and other needle in the haystack hides.

7. Busy high muggle locations.

Geez.. I've just eliminated about half my unfound caches around here.... :anibad:

Time for a road trip. :laughing:

3.2k · August 21, 2010

What's with the face in the garbage??!!??

LOL you found Waldo... or what's left of him after strolling through Compton, CA.

Looks more like Elvis to me.

Edit to add: I never met a cache I didn't like. I do like some less than others, though.

No.. its Jimmy H. Elvis is still alive and living in Las Vegas.

Edited August 21, 2010 by edscott

August 21, 2010

The ones that I don't like are micros in Juniper/cedar bushes. Or even worse, Micro's in juniper bushes in front of a bank. Usually when I see these, I just keep driving.

I have never come across a Lamp skirt hide, so I don't have any dislike towards those. :anibad: .

The ones in playgrounds I actually enjoy. I am guessing they are probably hidden by kids, and if you have kids, this is pretty much the best place to bring your kids to help them get hooked on Geocaching. Sometimes people have to accept their map not filled with smileys. Just becuase its there, doesn't mean you HAVE to find it :laughing:

1.5k · August 21, 2010

What's with the face in the garbage??!!??

Creepy... that was the very first thing I noticed when I first looked at the picture. It was a bit startling.

As for the topic at hand, my absolute least favorite cache location has already been mentioned: along the shoulder of a busy highway with little to no room to pull over safely. When logging them, I'll usually include a subtle criticism such as, "quick find, but I'd recommend leaving the kids in the car while you seek this one".

7.5k · August 21, 2010

I know it's been said already but.....

ROCK PILES

I live a shortish drive to Lake Ontario and love caches near the water but 90% of the time if it's on the waterfront it's somewhere deep in a pile of rocks and boulders. Lots of spiderwebs and washed-up of wind-blown trash. Pinched fingers from moving rocks. Turned ankles from crawling all over rocks and boulders. More often then not there's nothing in the description that specifically says it's going to be in a boulder pile. You don't know until you get there. What's worse is when the clue says something vague like: 'Under the triangular rock'

The last rock pile cache I went to had an irate plea from the CO to be careful when seeking/placing the cache because the CO had to replace the cache 3 times already due to cracked containers. When I found it, the lock and lock (a real one, not a knockoff, so it was a fairly sturdy box) was cracked again. If you are going to place it so that it's crammed on all sides by 10 pound rocks (or greater weight) and heavy rocks need to be placed on top of the container to conceal it, then have people stepping on it during their search, it's going to crack.

Bad Cache Locations

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