Locationless cache or "have to perform activity"

[+GPSJane]

I am sure there used to be caches where you had to complete some activity rather than find a container. Locationless caches or something else? I would dearly like to set up a cache like this but can't find the right cache type.

[+mpilchfamily]

There use to be several different kinds of caches like you described but most if not all have been phased out. Like Web Cam Caches, Earth Caches and i think Virtuals have been phased out as well. Those still active are grandfathered in but new ones are not being accepted.

[Keystone]

1. Locationless caches ("find this type of object and tell us where you found one") were closed down at the end of 2005. They were not grandfathered. Many locationless caches are now Waymarking categories. Locationless caches were not grandfathered.

 

2. Caches with Additional Logging Requirements ("to claim a find, you must also do this task or write your log in this fashion") were discontinued in 2009. All owners needed to modify their cache designs to eliminate the Additional Logging Requirement or make it optional. "ALR" caches were not grandfathered.

 

3. Virtual caches ("go to this spot, see the cool thing, and verify your visit by answering a question about it") were discontinued for new submissions in November 2005. Existing virtual caches are grandfathered.

 

4. Earthcaches are still an active cache type, but new submissions need to meet the special geology education standards for that cache type.

[+BuckeyeClan]

There use to be several different kinds of caches like you described but most if not all have been phased out. Like Web Cam Caches, Earth Caches and i think Virtuals have been phased out as well. Those still active are grandfathered in but new ones are not being accepted.

 

Earth Caches are allowed, I think you are thinking of Virtuals. You can no longer submit new Virtual caches or Locationless caches, or caches with an ALR (additional logging requirement).

[+pa79]

I've always wondered why A.P.E. caches weren't grandfathered? There were only 14 in 2001, now less, but GC still lists that cache type as active.

[Pup Patrol]

The Guidelines:

http://support.Groundspeak.com/index.php?pg=kb.book&id=11'>http://support.Groundspeak.com/index.php?pg=kb.book&id=11

 

Knowledge Books:

http://support.Groundspeak.com/index.php?pg=kb.book&id=1

[+t4e]

I've always wondered why A.P.E. caches weren't grandfathered? There were only 14 in 2001, now less, but GC still lists that cache type as active.

 

they do?

[Pup Patrol]

I've always wondered why A.P.E. caches weren't grandfathered? There were only 14 in 2001, now less, but GC still lists that cache type as active.

 

they do?

 

Yup:

 

http://www.geocaching.com/about/cache_types.aspx

[+Team GPSaxophone]

I've always wondered why A.P.E. caches weren't grandfathered? There were only 14 in 2001, now less, but GC still lists that cache type as active.

 

they do?

By active he isn't saying you can submit a new one, only that there is still an active cache out there that gives you a unique icon in your stats when you log it as found.

[+sbell111]

I've always wondered why A.P.E. caches weren't grandfathered? There were only 14 in 2001, now less, but GC still lists that cache type as active.

That cache type is 'active' in the sense that you can go out and find an ape cache.

[+Markwell]

There are two remaining APE caches. Only 13 were placed to begin with.

 

http://markwell.us/projectape.htm

[+tozainamboku]

In the early days of geocaching, Geocaching.com was more open to different ideas for GPS related activities. Geocaches were few and far between, so to help the activity grow various ideas were tried. Virtual geocaches involved finding something that was already there instead of having to hide a cache to be found. Webcam caches involve going to the coordinates where you (or a friend) could capture your image from a web cam. Locationless caches involved finding a particular item (like in a scavenger hunt) and posting the coordinates for it. Benchmark hunting involved finding survey benchmarks whose coordinates were listed in a government database.

 

As geocaching grew, Groundspeak decided to start to phase out some of these other activities in favor of emphasizing the core activity of hiding and finding physical geocaches. A moratorium was placed on locationless cache. These never did seem to fit with the core idea of finding an object using a GPS, and because they were fairly easy to set up they were threatening to run out of control. Virtual caches were seen as threatening to the core idea of physical caches as well. They were limited by requiring them to have a certain "wow" factor. But having volunteer reviewers be the arbiter of "wowness" did not seem to be the best idea.

 

Groundspeak developed a new website - Waymarking.com - as the place for listing these alternate GPS games. The idea was that Waymarking categories would take the place of locationless caches. The existing locationless cache were given the opportunity to become Waymarking categories. In addition, once a location is waymarked, it can be visited. Many waymarks will have a logging requirment that must be met in order to log the visit - questions to answer or a photo that must be posted. In this way waymarks could act in much the same way a virtual caches.

 

There is still much controversy over these decisions. Many people enjoyed the creativity of some these alternatives when they were published on Geocaching.com. They find the implementation of Waymarking.com lacking in certain features and not always as easy to use as it was finding virtual or locationless caches on Geocaching.com. Sometimes, new geocachers hear about these old options or find some of the grandfathered examples, and want to create new caches. They may have a difficult time understanding why they now have to go to Waymarking.com to do this.