Which cache of yours frustrated you the most?

[Clan Riffster]

I'm wondering which cache, that you own, active or archived, has caused you the most frustration, and why? What was the root cause of the frustration?

 

I guess mine would have to be "Just Freekin' Grate". http://coord.info/GC1RCZH

I was at a friend's house, talking about caches local to him, and our observations were that the area was being inundated with park & grabs. In speaking with some of the owners of these caches, a common theme was their belief that, because the area was fairly urban, there was no way to hide anything bigger than a film can. With the sound of opportunity knocking in our ears, we decided that we would disprove those theories by hiding a bright pink ammo can literally just a few fet from a major roadway, in an area with no vegetation other than grass.

 

We found what we thought was a perfect spot, a 180' long culvert, about 5' tall, (with generally a couple feet of water running through them), with a storm drain set in it's center. The storm drain had two heavy grates, a couple hundred pounds each. I used a chain and D-rings to hang the ammo can from the grates, tying the grates together with the intention of keeping folks from simply raising a grate to access the can. I had hoped to share my love of swampy, icky, critter infested places by urging folks to access the can in the manner in which it was hidden, sloshing stooped over, 90' from the culvert opening to the can.

 

The locals mostly decided that they were going to treat it as a park & grab, undoing my chain, lifting one grate, signing the log, and replacing the chain around just one grate to make it easier on the next finder. Some, deciding that even lifting the grate was too much trouble, logged finds without ever touching the can, saying they "found" it because they could see it while standing on the grate looking down.

 

I quickly decided that I was unwilling to judge what others defined as a find, so no logs were deleted, but still it " grated" on me that so few were willing to earn the cache's D/T rating. Eventually, one of the grates fell in. Personally, I think it was mishandled and dropped by a cacher, but none were willing to own up to it. With no proof otherwise, I kept my muttering to myself.

 

The root cause of this aggravation? Poor placement, combined with feelings of entitlement on my part, as well as fostering the myth that I can control anyone other than myself.

Edited January 18, 2011 by Clan Riffster

[+Max and 99]

Love the story. Love the pink ammo can. Too funny!

[+lamoracke]

well, you gotta admire their resourcefulness in a way, to get access to the cache from above than the way you intended. Folks not signing is not proper for any cache of course, tough to reach or otherwise.

 

We have a 5 terrain cache in WA that is rated as 5 terrain because the CO thought the only way to get at it was a boat or swimming but 99-100% of the folks who have done it have simply gone through the apartment building complex property. I did that too and freely admitted. Seemed like public access and I did not feel like I was not allowed to. The easiest 5 terrain find in Washington I bet.

 

Mine? Nothing out of the ordinary like yours.

[Andronicus]

Our city parks department asked us to hide 100 caches in 100 parks. I took 4. One of them, I put on an island by the zoo. I had intended the searchers to walk along the river. In order to stay on public land, most times of the year you would have to walk in the water. The only other way was to walk on a road with a "NO Trespassing" sign.

 

Most of the finders complained that they "had to walk past a No Trespassing sign". Ummm..No you didn't. I guess they didn't read the cache page or make an attempt to follow the law. Anyway, after 13 days, the parks people got all upset, also stating that "the only way to get to this cache is to walk along a private road with a no trespassing sign". So in the end, I had to moved it. I put it on the other end of the park. It is now a normal boring cache.

 

Hm, maybe I should put a new one on that island, but make it a simple puzzle just so people have to read the cache page.

[+Isonzo Karst]

I put out a big multi-cache. Like your "grate cache" it's archived, and had a high percentage of favorites (a lot fewer finds).

 

It was "overly complicated" - that's direct quote from a finder, and now, with 20/20 hindsight, I agree.

 

Lots of props, some puzzles along the way. Waaaay too many people started and quit, usually sending me cryptic emails about not finding some stage 3 with not quite enough info in their email for me to determine if they'd been at the right coords.

 

When I archived it (2 prop heavy middle stages burned), I got a number of "we were gonna do it" emails, and 3 "we got as far as stage 3" emails. It has been unfound 2 years. Stages 1 -3 are all within range of a relatively high number of other trads along trail. Once you've got stage 4 coords, you need to cover some distance, and stop picking up extra smileys along the way....

 

Design flaws: the puzzle stages should have been fewer and in the early stages, when people are physically and mentally fresh, the latter stages should have been simpler. It could have done with 1 less middle stage.

When I place it, it needed stage one to get people on the correct trail, but trail changes made that stage entirely superfluous.

[+Isonzo Karst]

Most of the finders complained that they "had to walk past a No Trespassing sign

 

yeah, I had one like that.

Cache description gave the name of the public property, and said "hike of about a mile". But people could drive closer and closer, beyond the trail head parking, until they were less then 1200 feet from the cache. Just needing to walk across the HEAVILY POSTED private property and jump 2 fences, to short-cut the cache.

 

So they did. And then complained about it!

 

I got an email from one of these nitwits, telling me "you're the kind of cacher who gives geocaching a bad name"!!! yep, I made you ignore the trailhead, the one mile hike, and made you trespass. All my fault. Yep.

[Andronicus]

Most of the finders complained that they "had to walk past a No Trespassing sign

 

yeah, I had one like that.

Cache description gave the name of the public property, and said "hike of about a mile". But people could drive closer and closer, beyond the trail head parking, until they were less then 1200 feet from the cache. Just needing to walk across the HEAVILY POSTED private property and jump 2 fences, to short-cut the cache.

 

So they did. And then complained about it!

 

I got an email from one of these nitwits, telling me "you're the kind of cacher who gives geocaching a bad name"!!! yep, I made you ignore the trailhead, the one mile hike, and made you trespass. All my fault. Yep.

This cache had a fairly high terrain raiting, and the wadeing attribute, but they still "had to tresspass".

[+niraD]

My first hide frustrated me, but I learned a lot in the process of trying to maintain it.

 

It was hidden in a set of steps in a public park. The camouflage made it look like part of the steps. I got a lot of positive comments about its construction. The problem was that the area was being used as an unofficial skateboard park. The skateboarders would do stunts on the steps, and they'd dislodge the cache when their skateboards slammed into the steps. Once the cache was out of place, it was easy to spot. Eventually, they destroyed the steps. The city rebuilt the steps and I was rebuilding the camouflage for my cache, but before I finished, the skateboarders destroyed the steps again. I archived my cache.

 

The last time I checked, there were no steps at the location. I guess the city gave up too.

[+Harry Dolphin]

Lots of frustration about cachers not putting the cache back the way it was intended. (Still have one of those I may archive...)

Most frustrating was an evil mystery cache. I (thought I'd) found a great hiding spot! On the Palisades in a park in West New York. Rock jutting up, with a pile of rocks at the bottom. The cache was in the brambles, move a few rocks. About a 20' climb from the path. Poor cache got muggled almost as often as it got found! No idea what the kids were hiding there...

Pretty spot. Found five times. Muggled twice. Then they closed the park down for reconstruction for about a year. So I gave up.

[+ironman114]

My most frustrating cache is my Psycho Vertigo cache.

 

I had the idea of where to place it in 2005 or 06. But I drug my foot in placing it. A week before I was going to do It I got a call from another cacher to beta test their newest cache. It was where I was going to place mine.

 

But the owner didn't activate it and kinda dropped from the scene. Later I found out they had pulled it and AGAIN someone placed one at the same place but in a less imaginative way.

 

This one I figured would disappear soon and since the cache owner never found any more than the first five I thought he might not replace this one when it disappeared. I was right but it took close to a year.

 

But I rethought mine and placed the first waypoint just outside the 528' circle, and the final across the canyon and bridge from his.

 

The final was stolen first. I replaced it and moved it a few feet to a more hidden spot among the framework.

 

Since then the first waypoint consisting of two stainless washers stamped with wp #2 coordinates and zip tied down to grating hanging over the side 350' above the creek have gone missing twice as well as the last replacement set placed under a RR tie for three times stolen. Another cacher decided to help me replace the coordinates by writing them on the old rails. I would have preferred not to write on or damage the structure since it is on a historic register.

 

WP #2 a magnetic film can has gone missing once also.

 

After the one placed at the opposite end went missing my wife placed one close and it has remained trouble free.

 

It is time for me to get a new set of washers ready since spring will be here soon and I will probably to take need another trip out there.

[+tango501]

I have had my eyes set on Psycho Vertigo for a year now. Missed going

with some of the locals last summer.

 

I will attempt sometime this coming spring or summer-looks awesome and

I am always up to a fun challenge.

[+Isonzo Karst]

Another cacher decided to help me replace the coordinates by writing them on the old rails. I would have preferred not to write on or damage the structure since it is on a historic register.

 

Major major ouch. My sincerest condolences.

Having a cache go missing is in the cards - having some nitwit deliberately deface something on your "behalf"? yuck.

 

I had a cacher "help" on the multi-cache I reference above - they decided my attachment wasn't secure - 1/2" nylon strap in a loose noose around a pine trunk, the rough bark held it in place nicely. So they helpfully went out with a battery operated drill and drove a heavy I bolt into the tree.

 

Eventually I got out removed the bolt, dressed the weeping wound properly. And put it back as it was.