Camo or not to camo?

[+Cindyj2]

I've been on here reading alot and also watching videos online and just trying to learn all I can about geocaching and I thought I read somewhere that if possible the contents should be viewable so that nobody thinks it's a bomb ya know and that the container should have sticker stating that it's a geocache?

 

Everybody seems to be either camo spray painting their containgers or duct taping them so they'll blend in and be better hid.

 

So was wondering what you all do? Or does that depend on where your hiding it?

 

Do you have any do's and dont's you could share?

 

And How to's if you do decide to camo?

 

Thanks for the info!

 

Cindy

[+mpilchfamily]

Depends on the location of the hide. In an urban area you'll want to keep things visible to prevent any bomb scares. Out in the woods camo it up and make it harder to find.

 

As for how to camo it that will depend on the container being used.

[+Cindyj2]

I will probably be using rubbermaid lock its. lol

[sdarken]

In an urban or suburban location, a rubbermaid container with at least one side (or top or bottom) left uncovered should work fine. That way it can be examined without opening if anyone is concerned about it's contents.

[+Harry Dolphin]

Atually, my 'urban' hides tend to be micros, and they do get the camo. My 'off in the wild' caches generally do not need camouflage.

[+briansnat]

I'm with Mr Dolphin. The more urban the more camo required. I camo all of my containers because I know that whether you hide it in the middle of nowhere or in the town park, SOMEBODY is going to happen by the cache eventually. I like to make them invisible to non cachers but findable for anybody who is looking for the cache.

 

The only time I would use a clear container is if it were required by the park management.

[sabrefan7]

Cammo your Ammo Cans. especially if they say "explosives" on the out side

[+ton9819]

Cammo your Ammo Cans. especially if they say "explosives" on the out side

Definitly!,I have seen many ammo cans with "30mm tracer round" STILL on them.

And That+bomb squad means "Cache go BYE BYE"/Banned Geocaches

[mcdhuibh]

some of the hardest are blatantly in plane sight.

[+dreamarcher]

I just spend an hour camo'ing up a container. Afterward I tossed it in the trash because it looked dumb and started with a new container. But like someone mentioned above, location is important. Mine will be at least 1/4 mile off the trail in the woods so no worries about muggles or the bomb squad. There are plenty of rocks for hiding cover.

[+Ecylram]

I'm a big believer in camo, either by making it blend into the environment, making it appear its supposed to be 'there', or placing it completely out of site.

 

In an urban environment it is especially important to make your hide more effective. But 'camo' doesn't mean putting woodland camo tape on everything. A camo taped pipe in a parking lot could get easily mistaken for something more sinister. One of my least favorite camo jobs that I came across was a silver duct-taped extra long pill bottle that was placed under a lamp skirt. From a distance it could be construed as a pipe bomb. And, yes, somebody came around a corner and saw me with it. Fortunately, nothing came of it.

 

Uncamouflaged containers, in an urban environment OFTEN stick out like a sore thumb. Especially when the leaves, needles, debris aren't used to properly obscure the cache (often happens).

 

Wierd thing is...I've seen caches that look like muggle bait that have lasted for years. I've also had a cache that I found where I logged about how muggle proof the hide was. That was the last log as the cache promptly disappeared after that. In the last month, I saw a baaaad plastic container in a baggie that was laying in the open and had lasted for sometime. Yet, a 3-star hide inside a small log disappear. The geocaching gods are random.

 

If you're going to place something without camo, place it where it can't be seen.

[+Cindyj2]

Thanks everyone with all the advice and keep posting your advice and ideas for me! Think my first hide might be in a brick wall outside a store.

 

The owner of the stores son who also works at the store said there were some bricks around the back of the building are loose and there's a little hole back there and he thought that might be a good place but it's been so cold I haven't made it in town to look yet. Hoping I won't have to camo that at all.

[+StarBrand]

A well camo'd cache that blends into it's surroundings is far less likely to be accidently found and have issues. The only real exception is for areas that require clear containers or have other relevant rules.