Virginia State Parks -- Approvals & Time Limits

[+DragonflyTotem]

I'm looking around at a Virginia State Park as a location for an EC, and saw this in their guidelines:

"A cache may remain at the permitted site for no more than three years. At that time the cache must be moved to a new location or removed."

 

I found on the Virginia Dept. of Conservation & Recreation site a reference to one EC that is currently located at a Virginia State Park, and they refer to it as a Virtual (I'm sure it is that cache as they identify the park and it is the only cache there). And I notice that cache has just crossed its three year anniversary. So I'm wondering if the above does actually apply to ECs. Does anyone have any experience with Virginia Dept. of Conservation & Recreation related to ECs and know about this issue?

[+narcissa]

I'm looking around at a Virginia State Park as a location for an EC, and saw this in their guidelines:

"A cache may remain at the permitted site for no more than three years. At that time the cache must be moved to a new location or removed."

 

I found on the Virginia Dept. of Conservation & Recreation site a reference to one EC that is currently located at a Virginia State Park, and they refer to it as a Virtual (I'm sure it is that cache as they identify the park and it is the only cache there). And I notice that cache has just crossed its three year anniversary. So I'm wondering if the above does actually apply to ECs. Does anyone have any experience with Virginia Dept. of Conservation & Recreation related to ECs and know about this issue?

 

It probably isn't meant to apply to virtual geocaches and Earthcaches. Usually, those placement rules are meant to minimize the environmental damage caused by geocachers trampling the area around a physical cache. That's not a problem with virtual geocaches, where there's no concentrated container search involved.

[+Manville Possum]

I'm looking around at a Virginia State Park as a location for an EC, and saw this in their guidelines:

"A cache may remain at the permitted site for no more than three years. At that time the cache must be moved to a new location or removed."

 

I found on the Virginia Dept. of Conservation & Recreation site a reference to one EC that is currently located at a Virginia State Park, and they refer to it as a Virtual (I'm sure it is that cache as they identify the park and it is the only cache there). And I notice that cache has just crossed its three year anniversary. So I'm wondering if the above does actually apply to ECs. Does anyone have any experience with Virginia Dept. of Conservation & Recreation related to ECs and know about this issue?

I have caches in Virginia State Parks, the rule would not apply to EarthCaches. All caches MUST be placed on/near established trails. The limit on cache placements is 2 years, then they must be moved to avoid cache saturation to the area. They can simply be moved a few feet, but you may have to re-apply. Keep in good contact with the land manager, and keep the caches maintained. VSP's are cache friendly, they even rent GPS units. PMO caches are highly frowned upon in State Parks, and most land managers will not allow them. Also the cache should relate in some way to the Park agenda. Your EarthCache sounds like a great idea, I suggest that you fill out the form on the DC&R website and contact the Park manager.

[+DragonflyTotem]

I'm looking around at a Virginia State Park as a location for an EC, and saw this in their guidelines:

"A cache may remain at the permitted site for no more than three years. At that time the cache must be moved to a new location or removed."

 

I found on the Virginia Dept. of Conservation & Recreation site a reference to one EC that is currently located at a Virginia State Park, and they refer to it as a Virtual (I'm sure it is that cache as they identify the park and it is the only cache there). And I notice that cache has just crossed its three year anniversary. So I'm wondering if the above does actually apply to ECs. Does anyone have any experience with Virginia Dept. of Conservation & Recreation related to ECs and know about this issue?

I have caches in Virginia State Parks, the rule would not apply to EarthCaches. All caches MUST be placed on/near established trails. The limit on cache placements is 2 years, then they must be moved to avoid cache saturation to the area. They can simply be moved a few feet, but you may have to re-apply. Keep in good contact with the land manager, and keep the caches maintained. VSP's are cache friendly, they even rent GPS units. PMO caches are highly frowned upon in State Parks, and most land managers will not allow them. Also the cache should relate in some way to the Park agenda. Your EarthCache sounds like a great idea, I suggest that you fill out the form on the DC&R website and contact the Park manager.

 

Thanks for the reply! Are those ECs that you have in VSPs? If so, have you had to move one yet?

 

Also, you mentioned 2 years -- but the VSP guidelines that go with the form say 3 years. I can't find anything that says that the limit is two years. Do you recall where you saw that it was 2 years?

[+GEO WALKER]

Here in PA the "permit lenght" is 3 yrs.

The "virtual" tag is just a note in their system that no container is involved.

I'm not sure about permit renewals for ECs but I did mine anyway. Luckily the ECs are exempt for fees...

Edited November 2, 2010 by GEO WALKER

[+Manville Possum]

I'm looking around at a Virginia State Park as a location for an EC, and saw this in their guidelines:

"A cache may remain at the permitted site for no more than three years. At that time the cache must be moved to a new location or removed."

 

I found on the Virginia Dept. of Conservation & Recreation site a reference to one EC that is currently located at a Virginia State Park, and they refer to it as a Virtual (I'm sure it is that cache as they identify the park and it is the only cache there). And I notice that cache has just crossed its three year anniversary. So I'm wondering if the above does actually apply to ECs. Does anyone have any experience with Virginia Dept. of Conservation & Recreation related to ECs and know about this issue?

I have caches in Virginia State Parks, the rule would not apply to EarthCaches. All caches MUST be placed on/near established trails. The limit on cache placements is 2 years, then they must be moved to avoid cache saturation to the area. They can simply be moved a few feet, but you may have to re-apply. Keep in good contact with the land manager, and keep the caches maintained. VSP's are cache friendly, they even rent GPS units. PMO caches are highly frowned upon in State Parks, and most land managers will not allow them. Also the cache should relate in some way to the Park agenda. Your EarthCache sounds like a great idea, I suggest that you fill out the form on the DC&R website and contact the Park manager.

 

Thanks for the reply! Are those ECs that you have in VSPs? If so, have you had to move one yet?

 

Also, you mentioned 2 years -- but the VSP guidelines that go with the form say 3 years. I can't find anything that says that the limit is two years. Do you recall where you saw that it was 2 years?

Sorry, it is 3 years. I have an EC in a State Park in Tennessee, that was tough to track down the correct person for permission. Tennessee will not allow any new cache placements in State Parks, other than a virtual type. Virginia is quite geocache friendly in State Parks. One of the first Parks in our area to have caches was the Breaks Interstate Park, the campground hosts were geocachers. We attended a geocache event there last year, some really nice EC's there.

[+Manville Possum]

Here in PA the "permit lenght" is 3 yrs.

The "virtual" tag is just a note in their system that no container is involved.

I'm not sure about permit renewals for ECs but I did mine anyway. Luckily the ECs are exempt for fees...

"Luckily the ECs are exempt for fees". Does PA charge a fee to place a cache in a State Park, and do the Parks also charge an entrance fee?

[+DragonflyTotem]

This is a "how-to" additional question about the application itself. The VA form asks for you to identify the date that the cache is placed. Yet we cannot "place" the cache until we have the signed permission in hand. Which you can't get until you place the cache. And so on.

 

So do I assume that others just have put the current date on the application so that it can go through the VA approval process?

[+Manville Possum]

This is a "how-to" additional question about the application itself. The VA form asks for you to identify the date that the cache is placed. Yet we cannot "place" the cache until we have the signed permission in hand. Which you can't get until you place the cache. And so on.

 

So do I assume that others just have put the current date on the application so that it can go through the VA approval process?

First I contact the Park manager and we discuss the geocache placements. I like to develop caches based on history of the area, or features in the Park. I feel that this has helped get my caches approved bt the Park managers. I scout the areas discussed with the land managers, and fill out the application, and place the cache (with VSP approved geocache sticker attached). Then I take the applications to the Park office, normally there is a contact person that is in charge of geocaching that can sign the applications. I have not had any problems at all, everything has went very well. We geocachers must remember that our sport has been forced on VSP employees, most of which know nothing about it. It has became extra work for them. When you have the applications signed, submit the listings on GC for review.

Edited November 5, 2010 by Manville Possum Hunters