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Yard Caches


Packfan12

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Depends on the yard. I did one that I really liked because it was creative and it wasn't near the front yard of the owner's house but not in the front yard (althougho n their property).

 

I did another one where the gps brought me to a curve in the block and there was quite a bit of bounce there which put me at any of the 3 houses on that corner. I logged a DNF on that because I'm not about to go rummage through numerous people's yards for a cache. And I hated looking for it in general.

 

I've driven by one where the houses were close and it wasn't clear which house I was supposed to be at (good idea to put house color somewhere in that description for that reason).

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TAR? Where are you TAR?

Our Alabama Geocachers Association monthly dinner is two blocks from my house in about an hour.

 

The TB Hotel on my front porch has been visited twice that I know of today and will likely be visited again tonight after the event.

 

This cache or one of its predecessors has been on my porch since 2003 with no issues but lots of positive logs, and given me the chance to meet quite a lot of cachers.

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This yard cache seemed to be a bad idea.

Any cache that annoys its neighbors is a bad idea.

 

Fortunately my neighbors are friends so we don't have such issues.

 

I did get a call from a geocacher friend one day saying that she and her kids had been searching my porch for fifteen minutes, could the cache possibly be behind the shelf cabinet with the flower pots on it? After I quit laughing I told her that the flower cabinet is on my neighbor's porch. ;)

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This yard cache seemed to be a bad idea.

Any cache that annoys its neighbors is a bad idea.

 

Fortunately my neighbors are friends so we don't have such issues.

 

I did get a call from a geocacher friend one day saying that she and her kids had been searching my porch for fifteen minutes, could the cache possibly be behind the shelf cabinet with the flower pots on it? After I quit laughing I told her that the flower cabinet is on my neighbor's porch. ;)

 

Since you're on good terms with your neighbors perhaps you can had a decoy cache on the flower cabinet with a note that reads. "Wrong house. Try next door."

 

I've found a three caches that were on porches. I think all three of them mentioned the color of the house or something unique about where the cache was located.

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I've found a three caches that were on porches. I think all three of them mentioned the color of the house or something unique about where the cache was located.

Good idea. If you look at my listing you'll see that I make my house ID abundantly clear, the cache is out in the open and requires no searching, and my contact info is listed in case anyone has reservations about hunting it.

 

I made it that way after the 'wrong porch' happening.

Edited by TheAlabamaRambler
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Generally I avoid them though I have done two that I recall. One, I knew the CO quite well but still was not comfortable scrounging around his front yard without him around. I would be more likely to attempt a front yard cache if the cache page was detailed enough that I could go directly to the cache without having to "look like a stranger acting oddly".

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I'm not a big fan of them. I always feel a bit creepy and paranoid that the CO didn't really get permission.

 

It's just a bad idea in my area. The few times people have tried, there have been problems. Straight to the ignore list for me.

Edited by Don_J
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I have a puzzle in my yard. I got a few finds on it at first, but none for awhile. not a lot of active cachers here, so it's not surprising.

 

at any rate, if my neighbors ever express any concerns about the people who search for it (we're good friends and they're aware of the cache, anyway), I'll archive it.

 

one cacher did express concern to me at an event recently. he had driven by and saw my neighbor washing his car and was concerned about the safety of the neighborhood considering the race of my neighbor - and then he proceeded to tell me that he was once shot at pursuing a cache on some Deliverance-esque dead end rural road.

 

I really wanted to throttle the guy (especially considering his profession), but I played nice and told him I'm friends with all my neighbors and I live in a very good neighborhood.

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I generally continue on and don't do these finds unless it says very explicitly in the description something like "all the neighbors know" AND the description is detailed enough that I can find the right spot quickly and not be in the wrong yard. Even then, I still feel uncomfortable.

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This yard cache seemed to be a bad idea.

Awww, man. That was on my "to-do" list. I had that planned this weekend.

 

I hope your not serious, because I'd consider a bunch or strangers showing up on a quiet residential street in the suburbs and climbing a tree in view of the whole neighborhood an embarrassment to the hobby.

 

You won't do it now, but someone is going to. Those coordinates are in a whole lot of GPS units right now. :)

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I've found some yard caches. I am not fond of them.

 

I found one on someone's porch. I would not have gone up and gotten it if they had not come out of the house and encouraged me to do so. I still was very uncomfortable. If they had not been home I had no way of knowing if the coord's I had were off, or my GPS had gone nuts that day or something.

The thought of walking up onto someone's porch when it might not be the right house...

And there was no clue that it would be at someone's house.

 

Another yard cache was in a bird feeder on someone's front lawn in front of their huge front window. The cache page said it was a bird feeder, so this one I was more confident on when I saw the feeder. They waved at me from their couch. This was not terribly comfortable, but better than the other one. My friend would not go up with me but waited in the car.

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This yard cache seemed to be a bad idea.

Awww, man. That was on my "to-do" list. I had that planned this weekend.

 

I hope your not serious, because I'd consider a bunch or strangers showing up on a quiet residential street in the suburbs and climbing a tree in view of the whole neighborhood an embarrassment to the hobby.

 

You won't do it now, but someone is going to. Those coordinates are in a whole lot of GPS units right now. :)

 

That's why it is important to double check the logs of a cache before going out to look for it (although I think CG was just kidding).

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This yard cache seemed to be a bad idea.

 

One thing that got me about this one: a GLASS container up in a tree!!!

 

Just drop it once on the head of the waiting cacher below, or on the sidewalk and hope you aren't climbing down with bare feet.

 

Glass???? what were they thinking???

 

I think it was a glass specimen bottle, about the size of a soda bottle pre-form.

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This yard cache seemed to be a bad idea.

Awww, man. That was on my "to-do" list. I had that planned this weekend.

 

I hope your not serious, because I'd consider a bunch or strangers showing up on a quiet residential street in the suburbs and climbing a tree in view of the whole neighborhood an embarrassment to the hobby.

 

 

That reminds me...awhile back there was a discussion about Webcam caches and I discovered that one of the closest to where I live is about 160 miles from me near Warren, PA. That town should sound familiar as it's where the the next Geowoodstock is going to be held. I've been caching for almost four years and have yet to find a Webcam so it's high on my list. I imagine that more than a few GW attendees will take the opportunity to find it as well.

 

The thing is, the camera is on the CO's porch and from the photos appears to be on a small residential street in a small town. You can imagine what that might be like when hundreds if not thousands of geocachers arrive in northwest PA for GW9.

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For me, it depends a lot on the area around the cache. In urban areas, I stay away. Out in rural areas, it's a little more comfortable, but I prefer to stick to checking really obvious locations; I don't like wandering around in peoples' yards.

 

In suburban areas/subdivisions, I wait till I'm there to make the call. If no one's around, I'll go for it.

 

Exceptions abound, of course. I found one in a bush at the end of a driveway out in a rural area, placed by the homeowner (or more likely his teenage son). Then they moved away and didn't archive the cache. The new homeowners got a little upset about people poking around in their yard.

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have you ever seen a very creative yard cache.
One of the yard caches that I found was in a yard with a path made of round stepping stones. A stepping stone near the sidewalk had leatherman's public-domain logo on it.

geol1.jpg

It wasn't hard for geocachers to figure out where the cache was, but I thought it was a creative way to hide such an exposed cache from muggles.

 

Another was a small size container covered with the same shredded-bark mulch used in the landscaping. Maybe not the most exciting camouflage, but certainly a big step up from a lot of suburban hides.

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Just because it is in someone yard doesn't bother me - I don't like any uninteresting cache close to the road cache at all - and I don't like muggle prone or privacy invading area. Get me out there. If there is a reason to have a cache there because the lure is interesting - I am fine with it. Just don't bore me!

Edited by GPS-Hermit
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I'm guessing from Street View one of the trees in the so-called public right of way between the sidewalk and the curb? Public property yes, but in a residential neighborhood, horrible idea. What is this, horrible idea Tuesday around here? :angry:

 

Around here, the land between the sidewalk and the street might be public right of way, but it is privately owned. Landowner get the ticket if s/he doesn't mow the grass there...

 

That being said...

I've probably done four. The first was really bad. With the signal bounce, and soft coords, we searched the wrong lot first. It should have had a much better description to prevent that. The second was far better. "Turn into the driveway wher it says "Grandma's House". Say Hi to Grandma, if you see her." (Actually, Grandma said. "Hmm... He's a little strange with that game...") The other two were very specific which lot to check from the sidewalk. Though we felt very strange checking in the bushes from the sidewalk.

I don't particularly care for them.

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I suppose yard caches are typically bad but I wouldn't know since all the yard caches I've found have been great. In fact, the best two caches I've ever found were located in a yard. Granted the yard is in the middle of nowhere and it's kind of a farm but they are still yard caches.

 

The Air of Your Ways

 

The Outlet Mall

 

The only other yard cache I found was a TB exchange and all the neighbor's are aware of it and it's a really good TB exchange. Still, I wouldn't hide a cache in my yard. :anibad:

 

I live in the N/W area of Los Angeles known as the San Fernando Valley. Our sub divisions exist of houses, usually six to eight to a block.

 

Occasionally, a (usually new), cacher will place a cache in front of his house. I can't think of a single one that turned out well. Yard caches are just a bad idea in the area. I'm happy that TAR"s cache has had so much success. Just can't do this around here.

 

I do have a cache 300' outside my window. After a 100 finds, I a have only seen 2. Geoccachers are sneaky.

Edited by Don_J
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I agree with everyone who states that these caches make them nervous.

 

I also agree with those who say that these have been some of the most creative hides they've ever found.

 

I've found yard caches:

 

In a beehive

 

In an outhouse

 

Under a rock, down a tube in the ground

 

etc, etc, etc.

 

However, I always check the full description and recent logs in my Palm Pilot!

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I did my first yard cache earlier this month. It popped up one evening less than 1/2 mile from my house. I was more than a little uncomfortable doing it, especially at 10:45 at night but it was for an FTF. LOL I did find a subsequent log entry very funny:

 

[Found it] November 7 by thesemster (2 found)

 

since i live on the property it was easy to find but im suprised i wasnt the first to find :anibad:

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I found one on the fence in someone's backyard. I felt funny b/c they were probably watching me wander around looking ridiculous.

 

There is one in a front yard that is on my to-do list. He is a very active cacher around here, so I won't mind going in his yard. I'd like to meet him.

 

I wanted one in my front yard, but there is a Mansion turned Museum across the street from my house and I thought that was probably a more appropriate location. So, I can still see it from my living room. Several finds so far....I've missed them all.

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We found a cache that was in the owner's backyard. Access was through a gate (complete with GC#) from a trail. The yard was beautiful, there was a spot to sit down as we signed the log. I felt as though I was intruding, even though I am sure the neighbours are aware of the existence of the cache. The cache was a "Premium Member Only" for obvious reasons.

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I'm not a big fan of them. I always feel a bit creepy and paranoid that the CO didn't really get permission.

 

It's just a bad idea in my area. The few times people have tried, there have been problems. Straight to the ignore list for me.

 

The only one I've gone after turned out to be in the neighborhood I grew up in which did make it interesting. While I did find and log that one, following lawn caches I just ignored. Just feels too creepy going on someones property.

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I'm not a big fan of them. I always feel a bit creepy and paranoid that the CO didn't really get permission.

 

It's just a bad idea in my area. The few times people have tried, there have been problems. Straight to the ignore list for me.

 

The only one I've gone after turned out to be in the neighborhood I grew up in which did make it interesting. While I did find and log that one, following lawn caches I just ignored. Just feels too creepy going on someones property.

 

That kind of depends on the property. My inlaws live about 4 miles from me on 25 acres of densely wooded property. It would be pretty easy to put a cache there such that anyone that looked for it was never in view of the house where they live *or* any of their neighbors. On the other hand, I've done a few caches that were on public property but had unobstructed views from one or more residences that were a few hundred feet away and wondered how long it would take to get approached by a nearby resident that wondered why someone as acting suspicious near their property.

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