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Stealth at all costs?


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We're relatively new to this sport and even newer to the forums. Recent threads involving power trails and nanos started us wondering if stealth is something that is cautioned on cache pages, but not really followed. Obviously everyone does things differently and has a style that makes the sport enjoyable for them. Maybe it's because it's still new to us, but practicing stealth is one of the elements that makes Geocaching a blast for us. There have been times on particularly difficult finds that one or both of us have started to pursue too aggressively and lost sight of our surroundings, but we have caught ourselves and walked away for a few minutes or days. Seems at times that looking out for muggles can really break the concentration on the find.

 

So is there a point where Geocachers loose interest in that part of the game and just focus on the find?

 

:ph34r:

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Acting stealthy attracts attention by its very nature.

 

Instead - be bold. Act as though it is your job to find that cache. A job you take seriously and are proud to do. Just walk right up and locate the cache. No hiding, no glances, no nervousness, no stealth. Sign the log then boldly put it back and move on with the next cache. Carry a clipboad and look really official. Such people often blend into the background.

 

Besides - if there are many muggles nearby and frequently - it likely is a cache that I have little interest in because of location.

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I use to years ago then it got to the point where people would find the busiest intersections or place them where it was almost impossible to not be seen and tell you to use extreme stealth. After these type hide became more common I finally decided that if they wanted to place a cache in a highest muggle area they could find and I got caught looking for it then oh well, whoever hid the cache should have found a better place to begin with

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I am stealthy to a point. I will wait for muggles to exit an area, or pretend to be doing something else if the situation warrants it, but sometimes you just can't be stealthy; especially when your husband is a 6'2" biker with long hair and tattoos. It just doesn't always work. Trust me, you will get noticed at some point. I try to be honest, especially if it's a cop, park ranger, etc.

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I used to, but not so much these days. It's very easy for someone to hide a cache in a high traffic area, many of which are rarely muggle-free. Plus, if it's near a road, the people in the cars going by aren't really going to slow down and ask what some crazy guy is doing poking around in the bushes. The only time I was questioned was by a guy who wanted to know if I was setting trap-lines, as he hunted in the area and wanted to make sure his dog didn't get into an area with traps.

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why wuold someone put a micro on a streetlight in downtown chicago and then tell finders to be staelthy? put the cache somewhere eles or be raedy for some steady maintinance.

 

Have to agree with this one.

Be ready for maintenance and also for replacing it regularly.

THey generally just don't last.

 

I like to note where the really old one's are placed. Those are well placed caches. Generally out in the woods somewhere, or at least somewhere that is not easily seen.

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I practice the art of looking like I belong, rather than being stealthy. If theirs construction near by, throw on a hardhat, while you check that nearby light pole. GPS's look like cell phones most times when you can't see the screen, someone looks like they will be nosey, put it up to your ear, people naturally not interupt you because as kids (no so much anymore) they were trained not to interupt someone on the phone. No one will question you, except maybe a foreman, and then just be honest. Tell'em "I'm playing a global Scavenger hunt, and I'm using the look of your guys as cover to protect the game piece. I'll be out of your way as soon as I find it." The foreman isn't going to care unless its on his construction site, and he'll move on but to the rest of those punk kids and so forth you blend right in. That's true stealth in my opinion. Stay away from dressing up like state employees, Law Enforcement, military and never ever say you work for a state or federal agency. That can end up getting you in some SERIOUS trouble. And when someone IDs themselves as Law Enforecment, or a Gov't Official, ALWAYS come clean with what's going on. That will help your day go by so much nicer.

 

Like Starbrand said, look like you belong and you are supposed to be doing what you are doing. Trying to pretend its mission impossible, is a dead giveaway to everyone, that somethings up, and if you are bad/good enough (Depends on how you look at it) you will attract attention which if you can't find the cache fast enough, eventually earn you a visit from the boys in blue.

Edited by cdwilliams05
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I practice the art of looking like I belong, rather than being stealthy. If theirs construction near by, throw on a hardhat, while you check that nearby light pole. GPS's look like cell phones most times when you can't see the screen, someone looks like they will be nosey, put it up to your ear, people naturally not interupt you because as kids (no so much anymore) they were trained not to interupt someone on the phone. No one will question you, except maybe a foreman, and then just be honest. Tell'em "I'm playing a global Scavenger hunt, and I'm using the look of your guys as cover to protect the game piece. I'll be out of your way as soon as I find it." The foreman isn't going to care unless its on his construction site, and he'll move on but to the rest of those punk kids and so forth you blend right in. That's true stealth in my opinion. Stay away from dressing up like state employees, Law Enforcement, military and never ever say you work for a state or federal agency. That can end up getting you in some SERIOUS trouble. And when someone IDs themselves as Law Enforecment, or a Gov't Official, ALWAYS come clean with what's going on. That will help your day go by so much nicer.

 

Like Starbrand said, look like you belong and you are supposed to be doing what you are doing. Trying to pretend its mission impossible, is a dead giveaway to everyone, that somethings up, and if you are bad/good enough (Depends on how you look at it) you will attract attention which if you can't find the cache fast enough, eventually earn you a visit from the boys in blue.

 

Sheesh. I just dress up as a slightly overweight old man. (I'm not really that old). I realized that when I wore my cammoed baseball cap in urban areas, everyone stared at me. When I put on my floppy cotton old man hat, I'm practicably invisible.

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Like others, I generally will wait for muggles to leave an area, but beyond that, I am not that stealthy. There is just no way to not be seen looking for an LPC in a major parking lot. Even in the middle of the night, you will show up on a security camera. If a cache is placed in a high-muggle density area, that is the owners choice and risk. Most of the time, I just go for them.

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So is there a point where Geocachers loose interest in that part of the game and just focus on the find?

 

:ph34r:

 

I agree with others as far as being stealthy goes. Stealth is a part of the game that some people find fun and others don't. I find it interesting and part of the challenge. The part about losing interest in stealth and focusing on the find, time to walk away is when your having issues finding the cache and it no longer fun :angry: Time to move on.

Edited by Y2KOTA
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if a cache is an obvious, well kinda lame, LPC, my ability to care about being stealthy is pretty low if its in an urban parking lot. I might be a tad more stealthy if its a puzzle or something. The nicer the cache, the more rural, the more lengths I will take to try and not draw attention. I do try to be stealthy when possible but if a cache is in a place its virtually impossible to wait out all muggles and kinda in a bad place to begin with, I will just grab it and act as natural as possible.

 

If I sat there waiting I would think I would draw more attention vs just getting it over with.

Edited by lamoracke
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I long ago stopped worrying about stealth. If someone sees me then I take is as a moment to introduce them to the hobby.

 

The whole stealth thing is overrated.

 

I agree. No costumes for me. No telling tall tales about what I'm doing. All it takes is one suspicious person in the area to call the police and suddenly I'm in a world of hurt. No geocache is worth that to me. Rather just be straight up and honest about what I'm doing and not be sneaking around.

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I long ago stopped worrying about stealth. If someone sees me then I take is as a moment to introduce them to the hobby.

 

The whole stealth thing is overrated.

 

I agree. No costumes for me. No telling tall tales about what I'm doing. All it takes is one suspicious person in the area to call the police and suddenly I'm in a world of hurt. No geocache is worth that to me. Rather just be straight up and honest about what I'm doing and not be sneaking around.

 

I'm with these folk. A confident manner and an honest explanation do way better than stealth for me.

I have made choices in my life regarding physical decoration that make me easily profiled as 'suspicious'.

Acting stealthy: a stranger would only see a stereotype. Acting open, bold and friendly: strangers will see less to worry about.

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I let my 11 yr old daughter grab the ones in high muggle areas cause nobody will question what she is doing. this weekend she grabbed one from a lamp post in front of a Mall entrance and outdoor resturants; I would have looked funny bending down and lifting the cover but she just looked like a kid playing around.

 

On monday I was in a park up a hill looking for a cache when I noticed two other groups with phones walking and searching. I found the cache and hid it under my jacket until they were clear and then signed and replaced it. don't know if they found it but I didn't want to spoil their fun by letting them know where it was.

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We try to be unobtrusive, but not to the point where we would appear suspicious.

 

We try to avoid skirtlifter caches, but on the occasions when we do find them, we have found it nearly impossible to get to them without the lamp skirt letting off a banshee wail/groan as we lift it. So, there's only so stealthy we can really be on those.

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For me, high-muggle hides are stressful and take away from the caching experience.

 

Typically, I will park as close as I can to the GZ and scout for muggles from inside the car. When I decide the time is right I'll retrieve, sign, and return as quickly as possible. Then I return to the car and post the find from my phone.

 

I've had one cache where I said "%& it" and grabbed it with little concern. It was an LPC at the entrance of a VERY BUSY 24-hour grocery on a very busy street. The cherry on the find was that the oversize pill bottle was wrapped in Camo tape so it could look very suspicious to someone getting a glance. Good times.

 

To the best of my knowledge that one has never gone missing in over 2.5 years. Side note, even though it has over a 140 finds it has never been given a favorite vote.

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If someone hides a cache in a high visibility area, I'm not going to make it my problem. I don't geocache to play secret agent.

Me either. That's why I'm not going to allow my actions risk getting it muggled. Their are plenty more caches to go looking for at that moment, after all. There's no point in ruining this one for the next person.
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I long ago stopped worrying about stealth. If someone sees me then I take is as a moment to introduce them to the hobby.

 

The whole stealth thing is overrated.

 

I agree. No costumes for me. No telling tall tales about what I'm doing. All it takes is one suspicious person in the area to call the police and suddenly I'm in a world of hurt. No geocache is worth that to me. Rather just be straight up and honest about what I'm doing and not be sneaking around.

 

I'm with these folk. A confident manner and an honest explanation do way better than stealth for me.

I have made choices in my life regarding physical decoration that make me easily profiled as 'suspicious'.

Acting stealthy: a stranger would only see a stereotype. Acting open, bold and friendly: strangers will see less to worry about.

 

Yup same here. That is my issue.

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I long ago stopped worrying about stealth. If someone sees me then I take is as a moment to introduce them to the hobby.

 

The whole stealth thing is overrated.

 

I agree. No costumes for me. No telling tall tales about what I'm doing. All it takes is one suspicious person in the area to call the police and suddenly I'm in a world of hurt. No geocache is worth that to me. Rather just be straight up and honest about what I'm doing and not be sneaking around.

 

I'm with these folk. A confident manner and an honest explanation do way better than stealth for me.

I have made choices in my life regarding physical decoration that make me easily profiled as 'suspicious'.

Acting stealthy: a stranger would only see a stereotype. Acting open, bold and friendly: strangers will see less to worry about.

 

Yup same here. That is my issue.

 

I don't have that issue, in fact, the opposite: I often go out to find caches during my lunch hour, which means I am caching while wearing a suit and tie. I'm still not going to try to sneak around. And if "stealth required" is, in a particular case, a euphemism for "there shouldn't be a cache here," and the cache ends up being archived because someone saw me... well, shame on the hider for not getting proper permission in the first place.

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I long ago stopped worrying about stealth. If someone sees me then I take is as a moment to introduce them to the hobby.

 

The whole stealth thing is overrated.

 

I agree. No costumes for me. No telling tall tales about what I'm doing. All it takes is one suspicious person in the area to call the police and suddenly I'm in a world of hurt. No geocache is worth that to me. Rather just be straight up and honest about what I'm doing and not be sneaking around.

 

I'm with these folk. A confident manner and an honest explanation do way better than stealth for me.

I have made choices in my life regarding physical decoration that make me easily profiled as 'suspicious'.

Acting stealthy: a stranger would only see a stereotype. Acting open, bold and friendly: strangers will see less to worry about.

 

Yup same here. That is my issue.

 

I don't have that issue, in fact, the opposite: I often go out to find caches during my lunch hour, which means I am caching while wearing a suit and tie. I'm still not going to try to sneak around. And if "stealth required" is, in a particular case, a euphemism for "there shouldn't be a cache here," and the cache ends up being archived because someone saw me... well, shame on the hider for not getting proper permission in the first place.

+1

I just go about my business. I learned from my cat if it can't see me then I can't see him. So I never look at the muggles I just pretend they are not there. Oh, yes, my cat is from Traal.

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A non-cacher approached me a couple weekends ago and asked me what I'd lost (in the parking lot of a popular coffee shop), so I told him "a quarter." That's about as stealthy as I get. I could've given him a pamphlet or explained the game to him, but I just wanted to find the cache & move along, and I'm sure he just wanted to know what I was poking around for and then move along, so I expedited things.

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If someone hides a cache in a high visibility area, I'm not going to make it my problem. I don't geocache to play secret agent.

 

I'm not a big fan of high visibility areas, either, but the game is sometimes rigged in that direction. This morning I found nano a few meters from the grave of Edgar Allen Poe. I used to pass it every morning on my way to the nearby university but Susancycle had not seen it. That is a very busy street corner so we did a little charade and got the cache out and in without incident. If we thought we could not have pulled it off, we would have been content to skip the smilie. In the absence of virtuals the only other strategy the CO could have used would have been a multi that would get far fewer visitors. So spare a thought for the CO that wants you to see something interesting (and for many of us that is a large part of the fun of geocaching) that happens to be in a high muggle location.

That said, if I am killing time waiting for S to finish shopping, I don't practice much stealth on parking lot LPCs :rolleyes:

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My friends came into town today from Las Vegas to go to Downtown Disney to do some shopping. They were very mad when the area was closed off. They got mad at me when I told them what the "problem" actually was and that I would have probably looked for it when I met them for lunch.

 

Funny the way the world works.

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I long ago stopped worrying about stealth. If someone sees me then I take is as a moment to introduce them to the hobby.

 

The whole stealth thing is overrated.

 

I would agree with this or even take it a step farther and say that the whole stealth thing is counter productive. Imagine yourself as Joe Muggle who just read about a bomb threat in a nearby city. The you see some guy wondering around, looking over his shoulder, peaking in the bushes and generally Trying so hard to be inconspicuous that he stands out like a sore thumb. I bet you would REALLY like to know what is going on.

If I can't walk up to a cache acting like I'm exactly where I'm supposed to be doing exactly what I'm supposed to be doing without causing problems (i.e. high muggle areas) I'll go someplace else.

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Thanks to all for your input. It was interesting. Sounds like there are those that "don't practice stealth", but rather are a little more deliberate to go unnoticed (which is stealth :) ), those that don't care if the cache gets muggled because the CO shouldn't have brought them there and a very few that are concerned for the cache to the extent that they would walk away and return later. Probably the most confusing thing is the almost disgust for urban caches and their COs. If you blame the CO for the hide, why did you seek it? A downtown cache is going to have muggles. Anyways, we cache mostly at night so the muggle factor is usually low. That's probably why we walk away from high muggle activity, we're just not used to it...yet. ;)

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Thanks to all for your input. It was interesting. Sounds like there are those that "don't practice stealth", but rather are a little more deliberate to go unnoticed (which is stealth :) ), those that don't care if the cache gets muggled because the CO shouldn't have brought them there and a very few that are concerned for the cache to the extent that they would walk away and return later. Probably the most confusing thing is the almost disgust for urban caches and their COs. If you blame the CO for the hide, why did you seek it? A downtown cache is going to have muggles. Anyways, we cache mostly at night so the muggle factor is usually low. That's probably why we walk away from high muggle activity, we're just not used to it...yet. ;)

 

For myself, I don't feel any "almost disgust for urban caches". I will admit though, I strongly dislike poorly placed caches, urban or not. If you need Harry Potter's invisibility cloak to get the cache it's poorly placed.

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I don't do a lot of urban caches. There are other caches that ask for stealth. And it's not that I don't care about the cache being taken. I just care more about having to spend hours with any one in authority explaining what I'm doing since I get profiled as suspicious anyhow. I've shown a few people this hobby by being honest. Was a good ambassador of the hobby too.

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Thanks to all for your input. It was interesting. Sounds like there are those that "don't practice stealth", but rather are a little more deliberate to go unnoticed (which is stealth :) ), those that don't care if the cache gets muggled because the CO shouldn't have brought them there and a very few that are concerned for the cache to the extent that they would walk away and return later. Probably the most confusing thing is the almost disgust for urban caches and their COs. If you blame the CO for the hide, why did you seek it? A downtown cache is going to have muggles. Anyways, we cache mostly at night so the muggle factor is usually low. That's probably why we walk away from high muggle activity, we're just not used to it...yet. ;)

Can you explain to me WHEN the CO expects cachers to search for and find their hides? A recent hide in my area is at a library (ok so far) and is in the shrubbery a few feet from the main library sign (not so great) and it is about 50' from a main street (not good at all). Anyone who goes for this cache during the day will be seen by the folks in the library and thos driving by. There is absolutely no reason for any regular citizen to be standing in the shrubbery. Can you explain to me HOW the CO expects searchers to be stealthy in this situation? Middle of the night caching? Bleh.

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Thanks to all for your input. It was interesting. Sounds like there are those that "don't practice stealth", but rather are a little more deliberate to go unnoticed (which is stealth :) ), those that don't care if the cache gets muggled because the CO shouldn't have brought them there and a very few that are concerned for the cache to the extent that they would walk away and return later. Probably the most confusing thing is the almost disgust for urban caches and their COs. If you blame the CO for the hide, why did you seek it? A downtown cache is going to have muggles. Anyways, we cache mostly at night so the muggle factor is usually low. That's probably why we walk away from high muggle activity, we're just not used to it...yet. ;)

Can you explain to me WHEN the CO expects cachers to search for and find their hides? A recent hide in my area is at a library (ok so far) and is in the shrubbery a few feet from the main library sign (not so great) and it is about 50' from a main street (not good at all). Anyone who goes for this cache during the day will be seen by the folks in the library and thos driving by. There is absolutely no reason for any regular citizen to be standing in the shrubbery. Can you explain to me HOW the CO expects searchers to be stealthy in this situation? Middle of the night caching? Bleh.

 

It does sound like a night or early morning situation. Hope I didn't come across a judgemental. Like I said, we cache mostly at night. Our idea of a high muggle situation is 5 in the entire Wal Mart lot (that we can see).

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The truth is, I don't really think much about 'stealth'. I do however try to avoid muggles so teh cache isn't compromised. I owe that to the next person who tries to look for the cache.

 

This thread actually reminds me of something that MissJenn posted:

It is also true that the searchers of a geocache have some responsibilities to keep it alive. For a physical cache that means avoiding that muggles see you while getting the cache and re-hiding the cache properly.
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The worst thing you can do in a high muggle area is look over your shoulder or look around nervously...as its been stated...act as if you belong wherever you are...you will look less like a "terrorist" and blend more into the scene.

 

One thing that I have learned while urban caching alone. If you find the cache, sign the log and return the cache, only to realize that you were observed all the while, don't jump in your car and race away from the scene like you were actually doing something nefarious. I usually sit in my car for a few minutes, so that the muggle may realize that I may actually belong there.

 

I find that a lot of the news articles on geocache bomb scares describe people reporting others racing away from a scene, and then discovering a suspicious "device".

 

As far as stealth. How do you be stealthy searching the bowels of a coin operated newspaper rack, three feet from the main door to a large, busy supermarket? I just skip them.

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There are times when stealth is a fun part of the hide. There's a simple keyholder on a sign near here that requires extreme stealth and is very hard to get... the sign is in some bushes right in front of an eyeglass store plate glass window and the challenge is to get it during business hours without the staff inside seeing you (the optometrist owns the cache).

 

Another is a very cleverly hidden piece of wood trim on the roof eave of a restaurant, again right in front of a window, you try to get it without being seen by the staff inside.

 

Another is in the woods outside of an office building, in clear view of the owner's 3rd floor window.

 

A pastor friend has on attached to the outside of his office window... tough to snag that one if he's in the office but doable, you just have to watch him without being seen to see when he's busy or distracted!

 

I really like that kind of cache that requires quile, patience and stealth.

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Personally, I do not like having to use stealth at all. So I mainly go for caches out in the countryside where there generally are not many muggles around.

 

If I do find myself wanting to find a cache in a muggle-filled area:

 

1. If it appears the muggles are temporary, I’ll wait a while and see if they move on. If they don’t, I’ll move on or try later.

2. If the cache is in a location where I do not feel comfortable in general I will just move on and ignore the cache. E.g. recently a cache on private property overlooked by houses.

3. If it is an area of constant muggles, but where I think it is possible to retrieve and replace the cache without compromising it, then I will boldly go for it.

 

It is sometimes in the very busy places where 3) comes into play. If the area is very busy with lots of people, I find it easier to simply make a quick strike. In a crowd you can blend in. I find that is usually easier than a place with fewer muggles around; but the ones who are there are looking at me suspiciously and seem to have no plans to leave….

 

I also appreciate a good hint in a high muggle area hide. As I want to limit the time I am poking around and thus possibly calling attention to myself. In a high muggle area I have a much shorter "I give up" threshold than I do in more quiet areas.

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Wasn't this a nano?

 

Ammo can outside a bank: definitely suspicious.

 

PVC pipe near an elementary school: definitely suspicious.

 

Film can under a payphone: starting to stretch the concept, but OK, better safe than sorry.

 

But a flippin' blinkie? Come on, who the heck called the bomb squad out for this one?

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