snapshot7's First Cache Project

[+snapshot7]

Hello, my name is snapshot7 (Travis) and I would like to share my first cache project with my fellow Geocachers!

 

I chose a small plastic peanut butter jar as my container. I then painted it a dirt like cammo and glued a rubber seal inside the lid because these jars are not water tight.

 

 

Here is the cammo that will blend in to it's surroundings well. It is a semi-large stump I pulled from a nearby trail.

 

 

I then cut the top off and prepped it for drilling.

 

 

 

 

After the hole was hollowed out I poked a straw through the bottom for drainage and completely sealed the base with Gorilla Outdoor wood glue.

 

 

 

The shade of green you see is a wood protection solution to prevent decay, fungus, insect infestation etc...

 

 

I then sealed all the remaining cracks to ensure the structure of the stump stays intact and also to keep rain from damaging the container itself.

 

[+snapshot7]

cont.

 

I mounted magnets on both the top and bottom to secure the lid down

 

 

prepped and painting of the hinge for the lid attachment..

 

 

 

 

Next I dremeled and notched out the a space so that the hinge sits flush with the surface to hide the hinge as much as I can.

 

 

 

 

[+snapshot7]

Now the final results:

 

 

 

 

 

 

When planted I will take some pics of the cache in it's natural surrounding and post them in this thread. If you have any questions feel free to post em', any feedback is appreciated.

Edited March 6, 2011 by snapshot7

[+Kyle98632]

Nice cache! Ive seen one somewhat like it before, but not as detailed as yours! Too bad you werent hiding it in my area

[+G & C]

Looks good to me! Way to put a lot of thought and work into it. That's sure to show up on more than a few people's favorites lists.

 

Now, go stick it under a parking lot lamp post. They'll never find it there.

[+drain13]

i wish i could give you 5 favorite points just for your dedication... great job

[+tango501]

Looks great

 

only thing I would do is drill a hole so any water that does collect will drain out bottom of stump

[+natterjacktoad]

It's very good. However, pulling up wood, dead or alive, isn't very environmentally sound. Dead wood is an incredibly important habitat and I thought we, as geocachers, tried not to have a negative impact on the countryside

[+snapshot7]

Looks great

 

only thing I would do is drill a hole so any water that does collect will drain out bottom of stump

 

You may have missed this from my first post, drainage has been accounted for.

 

[+aka Momster]

Well thought out and nicely executed, snapshot7! So, is that going out in my neck of the woods??? In truth, I prefer finding the cache prior to seeing the spoiler photographs; it makes the hunt more fun that way. Although, at the slow pace I have been geocaching lately, I'll probably forget what it looks like before I get to it anyway.

Appears to me as if your project has the makings of a great first hide!

[+power69]

VERY NICE!

I'd glue some moss on the sides where the parting line is to hide where you cut it.

[sabrefan7]

Very cool! A great use of natural surroundings put to good use instead of rotting away. I hope its hidden in a area were it wont get muggle or worse, inconsiderate cacher abuse.

[knowschad]

Very nicely done, and nicely documented, too! I'm also glad that you linked to it from the CCC thread. If I had a concern, it would be the hinge. I can see the screws getting pulled out from cachers throwing the top back instead of gently lifting it.

 

Good idea of painting the inside with GG and treating the outside. Caches of this nature tend to become homes for ants pretty quickly... those substances may at least slow that down.

 

You're going to get some very good comments once that gets out there!

[+StarBrand]

That is a lot of dedicated work for a cache. Nice job!!

[+briansnat]

I think that unless the property is your own, you shouldn't go around pulling up stumps to use for geocaches.

[+M 5]

That is a nice cache. I would echo some others and try to figure a way out to cammo the hinge and cut line some. Might be as easy as attaching moss. or lichen type material or use a shelf mushroom like the ones shown above yours on the CCC's page. I would enjoy finding that cache, especially if it's down a nice trail a ways. Since we have all seen it, can we log as a find? J/K

[mtbikernate]

That cache will certainly throw some folks for a loop. Other folks have pointed out that it's not a good idea to obtain materials from parks. That can be interpreted as theft or vandalizing depending on the agency. I have a log in my backyard that'd be perfect for this sort of thing. I made an attempt at making something like this on a bigger scale for a pretzel jar, but had a hard time getting my hands on a suitable piece of wood.

[+Rckhnd]

If I'm ever in your part of Cali, I'd like to take a shot at getting this one.

 

As a former USDA Forest Service Timber Cruiser / Firefighter, I wouldn't worry too much about people getting concerned because you removed some deadwood. One of our biggest problems in Sequoia / Kings Canyon was the overabundance of the thousand hour fuels. As long as it was not a habitat stump, you're good.

[+stinger503]

Consider me impressed

[+snapshot7]

Well thought out and nicely executed, snapshot7! So, is that going out in my neck of the woods??? In truth, I prefer finding the cache prior to seeing the spoiler photographs; it makes the hunt more fun that way. Although, at the slow pace I have been geocaching lately, I'll probably forget what it looks like before I get to it anyway.

Appears to me as if your project has the makings of a great first hide!

 

Now this is what I was afraid of... , by posting these pics on the forum and some of the local cachers would see it. Your the first familiar cacher I have seen on this site and don't show anyone else we might know. I might have to delete this log to prevent furtue spoilers (sorry I blew it for you Momster, bt you still dont know the name or where it will be hidden. )

 

Very cool! A great use of natural surroundings put to good use instead of rotting away. I hope its hidden in a area were it wont get muggle or worse, inconsiderate cacher abuse.

 

Now that was my biggest concern, I didn't want to stick it close to urban areas because of muggled activity, but I also dont want it waaaay out on some trail because it wouldn't get a lot of attention, maintenance would be a pain and flooding was a concern too. This will be a premium hide so hopefully cacher abuse will be at a minimum. I picked a spot that is off a bike trail and well hidden from hikers, but it's not far from the town. The trail is right behind a parking lot of local business's and the path is hidden from the building windows with trees. As long as cachers are cautious and wait for hikers to pass, making the grab will be safe and stealth.

 

That is a nice cache. I would echo some others and try to figure a way out to cammo the hinge and cut line some. Might be as easy as attaching moss. or lichen type material or use a shelf mushroom like the ones shown above yours on the CCC's page. I would enjoy finding that cache, especially if it's down a nice trail a ways. Since we have all seen it, can we log as a find? J/K

 

The hinge will be on the back side not facing the trail, which should help a bit until you get close to it. However, I do like the idea that some of you mentioned about covering the crack with moss etc. The cache is already in it's spot but I have not yet set up the page to be published.

Edited March 6, 2011 by snapshot7

[sabrefan7]

Good luck! Lets us know when its goes live

[+snapshot7]

Very nicely done, and nicely documented, too! I'm also glad that you linked to it from the CCC thread. If I had a concern, it would be the hinge. I can see the screws getting pulled out from cachers throwing the top back instead of gently lifting it.

 

Good idea of painting the inside with GG and treating the outside. Caches of this nature tend to become homes for ants pretty quickly... those substances may at least slow that down.

 

You're going to get some very good comments once that gets out there!

 

The way the lid is shaped wont allow the hinge to be pulled on. In other words, the lid hits the back of the stump before the hinge is fully opened.

 

Bugs were a large concern as well...I think most cachers hate retrieving a container and have a family of ants or earwigs pouring out and all over their hands! eeek! Hopefully the wood treatment works for awhile.

 

Good luck! Lets us know when its goes live

 

Will do.

Edited March 7, 2011 by snapshot7

[+Team GraMon]

Love it

 

1 What a beautiful stump you found - just lovely.

 

2 Great job of making a cache from it.

 

Well done indeed.

 

Team GraMon

[+thecaswellfamily]

Wow, that looks just GREAT! Way to go snapshot7... we would LOVE finding something like that! Very nice... very nice indeed.

[+MontyFam]

Awesome dedication to the sport! Thanks for putting in that kind of effort. I hope this thread inspires others to get creative and build great caches like this one! I know I am inspired. Best of luck and watch the favorite points stack up

 

We found one like this a few months ago. After searching for about 15 minutes we were almost ready to DNF it when our 10 year old kicked a stump out of frustration saying "This one must be missing" The cache had magnets but no hinge and was easily discoverd when the stump "opened up"

[+Mudfrog]

I put together a cache like that a few years ago that ended up being very challenging. OK, before anyone asks, i got the stump from a tree that Rita took down in 2005 and that was on my Dad n law's property.

 

I'm definitely impressed by Snapshot's cache as he put in a lot more work than i did. First, i just used a chainsaw to do all the cutting. Needless to say, the cuts weren't as smooth as they could have been. I did not paint the hinge but like Snapshot, i placed the cache with the hinge facing a tree so that it wasn't noticeable. Even with the wide gap between the body and the lid, it still proved to be hard to notice. With his detail, i imagine that Snapshot's is gonna be a booger for alot of people to find!

 

p.s. One thing that i did different was to add a chain between the body and the lid to keep it from opening too far and straining the hinge.

[+bflentje]

It's very good. However, pulling up wood, dead or alive, isn't very environmentally sound. Dead wood is an incredibly important habitat and I thought we, as geocachers, tried not to have a negative impact on the countryside

 

HUGE EYEROLL. Because there's a shortage of rotten material in our world and no where else for ants and slugs to live.

 

I love the container though the visible hinge removes a few stars from the rating. The magnet also seems pretty useless. But beyond that, I love it. And I love the effort even more.

Edited March 7, 2011 by bflentje

[+gummibjorn]

This is one of the best caches I've ever seen bro. I would have loved to go and grab that one when I was back in Cali. That will be in most peoples favorites for sure. Nice photos too. This is what happens when a smart person, with also well over a hundred finds, hides his first cache. You don't see that when someone hides one after a few finds... I still think there should be a limit. You've got to get p72pi to go grab this one. In the comments you should make sure that people "open" the lid carefully as to not damage the edge of the camo as well as the hinge. Hope too see more in the future of this calibre... you will become well known. Happy caching bro...

 

gummibjorn (logan) of Team Cachco

[+Dgwphotos]

Very nice! I'd like to do something like that around here myself. Please ignore the nattering nanoobs of negativity and keep up the good work!

[+popokiiti]

Very clever...I'd probably DNF the cache on the first try!

[michael612]

You enjoy, as I, the preparation. Nice work, I'll take two in desert sand, size medium, with an extra coat of UV protective mat finish spray!

 

Just bring them down when you come sport fishing in La Paz.

Edited March 9, 2011 by michael612

[+GeoGeeBee]

This is a horrible idea for a first cache... there's no way that thing is going to fit under a lamp post skirt.

 

OK, just kidding.

 

Seriously, that is one very impressive creation. I wish you were local to me, I think you have a bright future in this game.

[+snapshot7]

This is one of the best caches I've ever seen bro. I would have loved to go and grab that one when I was back in Cali. That will be in most peoples favorites for sure. Nice photos too. This is what happens when a smart person, with also well over a hundred finds, hides his first cache. You don't see that when someone hides one after a few finds... I still think there should be a limit. You've got to get p72pi to go grab this one. In the comments you should make sure that people "open" the lid carefully as to not damage the edge of the camo as well as the hinge. Hope too see more in the future of this calibre... you will become well known. Happy caching bro...

 

gummibjorn (logan) of Team Cachco

 

Well, well...it's awesome to see the one and only gummibjorn in the GS-Forums! Thanks bro, I don't want to reveal any details in the cache description abou the camo and this thing is pretty beefy so the edge is not a big concern. As for the hinge? no problem! the lid is not allowed to cock all the way back and cause any damage. I think it last through the weather and moderate cacher abuse.!

[+klien]

if i get down to OC this summer to visit my bro in irvine this

is going to be one of my Must do's even if i only have time to get one cache

 

also hope to get some caches with some of you guys

[+popokiiti]

We were clearing up the yard and under the blackberries invading from the neighbour's found a couple of similar stumps. Just as I was thinking of this thread, Popoki Nui said "I know what I could use this for..." - not as big as your specimen, however!

[+GrateBear]

Wow! Really nice job--the type I admire and love to find. I'm guessing that even if you do nothing about the cut, many will not even notice. With so many LPCs/guardrails/etc out there, have to think that many just don't think outside the box.

[vagabond]

I really hate driving over the Ortega, but it has been about a year since we have done any caches over there and I've seen you've placed a few caches in the last week or so.

It just might be time to make the trek over the hill

[+snapshot7]

if i get down to OC this summer to visit my bro in irvine this

is going to be one of my Must do's even if i only have time to get one cache

 

also hope to get some caches with some of you guys

 

Right on, nice to see ya on the GS-forums! It would be awesome to cache with ya bro.

 

We were clearing up the yard and under the blackberries invading from the neighbour's found a couple of similar stumps. Just as I was thinking of this thread, Popoki Nui said "I know what I could use this for..." - not as big as your specimen, however!

 

Haha thanks, Glad to inspire you to construct a cache like this one.

 

Wow! Really nice job--the type I admire and love to find. I'm guessing that even if you do nothing about the cut, many will not even notice. With so many LPCs/guardrails/etc out there, have to think that many just don't think outside the box.

 

Yeah I decided to leave the cut the way it is, I spoke to a couple of the cachers who found it and they said it was not very noticeable at all!

 

I really hate driving over the Ortega, but it has been about a year since we have done any caches over there and I've seen you've placed a few caches in the last week or so.

It just might be time to make the trek over the hill

 

Yes, I think I've got the hiding bug!!! I planted 15 caches in just under 2 weeks. but only 9 of them are in my home town Rancho Santa Margarita. I plan on filling up the town to the MAX so that when out of town cachers search the map my town stands out from the rest!

Edited March 20, 2011 by snapshot7