Jump to content

Cache hide styles that quickly get boring.


L0ne.R

Recommended Posts

For discussion... I thought it might be interesting (and maybe even educational for people thinking about planting their first caches) to list the types of cache hides that are cool at first but get ho-hum after you've found a few? Also, what cache hides never get boring for you?

  • There's the classic LPC (Lamp post cache).
  • The ammo can (or larger container) full of decoy film canisters where you have to find the logbook. It was uber cool the first couple of times. Twists on the theme can be cool as long as I haven't seen them before. Now it's getting irritating. I get to GZ, find a large ammo can and think....'Cool! Lots of room for large swag items', then I open the box to see it's chock full of canisters. It essentially becomes a micro find since there's no swag and I'm looking for a micro or nano scroll.
  • [Your example here]

I never grow tired of the classic ammo can or swag-size watertight container in the woods. I suppose that's because when you open the container the content will always be a little different from the last container.

Link to comment

Amen to the LPC.

 

I could see where finding a bunch of 35mm film cannisters in an ammo can time and time again would get old. Fortunately I haven't found that one yet, however I did find a 5 gallon bucket full of easter eggs that we had to find the log in. It was actually pretty funny.

 

The magnetic key holder on the back of the guardrail gets old really quick.

Link to comment

I never grow tired of the classic ammo can or swag-size watertight container in the woods. I suppose that's because when you open the container the content will always be a little different from the last container.

You can say the same for an LPC. You never know what you'll find when you lift the skirt. Not only can the container be a nano, a bison tube, a film can, altoids tin, small tupperware, waterproof match container, etc.; it can be just sitting there, magnetically attached, velcroed, cammoflaged, disguised as a tarantula, or decorated as a Christmas nativity scene. In addition when you lift the skirt you might find real spiders, crickets, wasps, or other wildlife crawling out. I tend to find each of these an adventure.

 

I suspect the ammo can in the wood don't get stale not so much because of the contents (its mostly going to be old junk and perhaps a few religious tracts and business cards, or more likely no swag at all and log book that is damp and moldy), but because the hike to the cache was different from the last hike - different terrain, different weather conditions, different scenery, and perhaps varied wildlife you see along the way.

 

The way I enjoy geocaching is to enjoy the experience and not be so concerned with how clever or unique the cache is. When I find a clever or unique cache I can give it a favorite point. But it doesn't mean that I didn't have fun on the days when I didn't give a favorite point to any cache.

Link to comment

Boring, tiring or least creative? If you're bored you should probably pick a different hobby or only pick caches that you know will get your adrenaline going. LPC's, gaurdrails and Rock Walls I feel are the least creative but in certain circumstances can be far from boring.

 

I find "evil" hides to be the most tiring unles done creatively. A bison tube tied to some fishing line and thrown into blackberry bushes or a snarly bramble may be difficult to find but I don't find them particularly appealing. Likewise, a fake rock placed in a 100 sq ft area full of other rocks or a film canister hidden in a wooded area full of large stamps and logs are not on my list of favorites either. It just becomes a needle in a haystack search at that point and finding them is more a matter of luck than anything else.

Link to comment

Amen to the LPC.

 

I could see where finding a bunch of 35mm film cannisters in an ammo can time and time again would get old. Fortunately I haven't found that one yet, however I did find a 5 gallon bucket full of easter eggs that we had to find the log in. It was actually pretty funny.

 

The magnetic key holder on the back of the guardrail gets old really quick.

 

I think that's the key to keeping it fresh. Coming up with twists on a theme. It's the copy cat caches that spring forth that can get boring.

 

If someone is going to hide a cache type that's been done over and over it's better if they change it up a bit. One is an ammo can full of 35 mm with one 35mm containing the log. Another a trash can full of easter eggs with a log in one egg. Another a container with 35 mm containers but the actual log is not in any of the 35mm containers but it's still in the box you just have to figure out where.

 

Now what would make a guardrail cache hide fresh and fun?

 

For LPCs I've seen the bison tube, the film canister, the small lock n lock, the altoid tin. So mixing up containers isn't all that exciting. But I have seen a couple of posts on the forums about diorama LPCs. Now that would be interesting to find. Even if there were lots of these, each diorama would be different. (Although I'm still not crazy about the possible electric hazard under those things, as well as the general uninspired locations and private property issues.)

Link to comment

I thought it might be interesting (and maybe even educational for people thinking about planting their first caches) to list the types of cache hides that are cool at first but get ho-hum after you've found a few? Also, what cache hides never get boring for you?

 

Whether one might regard this aspect as educational somehow depends a lot on one's geocaching philosophy. A lot of creative hides cause damage to the environment/surroundings and I prefer standard hideouts that are easy to find (there are also standard hideouts that are hard to find).

 

Personally, for me it is about what I am experiencing on my way to the final container and what is shown to me. The container and the hideout are not playing a key role. I can easily get bored about particular types of puzzles that are well known and are used over and over again in geocaches, but that's not what you asked for as you asked for hide styles. For hide styles, I rather distinguish between those I like and those I do not like and not about boring and not boring as my main expectation for a hideout is easy to find.

 

 

Cezanne

Link to comment

I like it when someone takes a very typical geocache container and turns it into something completely different, all while maintaining it's functionality and keeping the original container recognizable. Like the guy who fabricated a delivery van from an ammo can for instance.

 

I also like it when people spoof an overused and mundane container or poke fun at a particular hide style. Like a 6' long ammo can, a giant match safe or a giant film canister. I have one out that spoofs an overused and irritating geocaching phrase and it has been well received. I've got a couple more spoofs planned for future hides. I'd really like to buy one of these to cut up and spoof an Altiods hide, but $250 is a bit much for a few laughs.

Link to comment

To me, any standard type of hide gets old/boring equally fast. A nano on the back of a street sign or your average LPC is about as exciting as an ammo can under a pile of sticks next to a tree in the woods. Meaning that I can enjoy both the same.

 

At least with the ammo can in the woods you get a nice walk in the woods.

 

We have a bunch of "Bee Box" caches near us. Magnetic key safes inside the boxes of a local free paper called "The Bee". Several dozens of caches. Each just as bad as the last or next. They go straight to the old ignore list as fast as they are identified.

Link to comment

A large container filled with decoy film cans is just plain tedious. I logged one find on the first of these I encountered, since then I just log my DNF and move on. What part of opening and closing film cans can possibly be fun?

 

All other styles are okay with me, like cezanne , it's not about the hide style as about the journey and location. I'd rather find a dry container (ammo can) at the base of a handsome tree, but a somewhat soggy film can in the crotch of same tree is still okay, assuming the walk was nice, or the view is good.

Link to comment

I like 'em all. I never tire of a dry log and a secure container.

 

The only ones I don't care for are the front yard caches...creepy! I just keep driving when they're in someone's lawn. Oh, and I'm not sticking my hands in electrical areas. Those seem like dangerous hides to me. Otherwise, I just enjoy my leisure time and like to take it easy.

Link to comment

I like 'em all. I never tire of a dry log and a secure container.

 

The only ones I don't care for are the front yard caches...creepy! I just keep driving when they're in someone's lawn. Oh, and I'm not sticking my hands in electrical areas. Those seem like dangerous hides to me. Otherwise, I just enjoy my leisure time and like to take it easy.

 

So, you like them all. Oh, except those that you don't.

 

:anibad:

Link to comment

You would proably think my hides were boring! But if I got bored while geocaching for any reason I would find a new activity!

 

Not me. A few ho-hum caches doesn't make me want to pack it in. Even a day filled with copy cat caches wouldn't make me want to quit geocaching.

 

I was thinking about some of the fresh new COs who come into the forums and ask about how to make one of those cool soda cap caches or gum caches or where to get those really tough sneaky button nano caches or the little pop top centrifuge containers so they can stick it under a bottle cap and make the hide devious.

Link to comment

Sprinkler hides!

 

+1

 

I only ever remember finding one of those.

 

Right. That's what I'm after. Sprinkler heads are cool the first time. Maybe even the second time but after that it loses it's impact.

Now you can get Hide a key sprinkler heads. I've seen two caches recently using them. I also don't think they're waterproof.

Edited by Dgwphotos
Link to comment

Sprinkler hides!

 

+1

 

I only ever remember finding one of those.

 

Right. That's what I'm after. Sprinkler heads are cool the first time. Maybe even the second time but after that it loses it's impact.

 

Um, no, actually I meant that literally. I have only seen that oft mentioned hide type once. But that could be because I don't usually include micro caches in my activities.

Link to comment

To me, any standard type of hide gets old/boring equally fast. A nano on the back of a street sign or your average LPC is about as exciting as an ammo can under a pile of sticks next to a tree in the woods. Meaning that I can enjoy both the same.

 

At least with the ammo can in the woods you get a nice walk in the woods.

 

We have a bunch of "Bee Box" caches near us. Magnetic key safes inside the boxes of a local free paper called "The Bee". Several dozens of caches. Each just as bad as the last or next. They go straight to the old ignore list as fast as they are identified.

Doesn't bug me - but I like those low quality caches!

 

What is the attraction? What makes them interesting?

Link to comment

Sprinkler hides!

 

+1

 

I only ever remember finding one of those.

That probably explains a few of those DNFs, doesn' it?

 

I knew you'd come up with that one. No, I don't hunt caches where those typically get hidden and I don't think they are all that popular around here. But I suspect that one DNF I had was one, or something similar. Middle of a large lawn next to a parks building. No trees or structures anywhere near the coordinates. I moved on in search of an ammo box in a nice quiet patch of woods.

Link to comment

A large container filled with decoy film cans is just plain tedious. I logged one find on the first of these I encountered, since then I just log my DNF and move on. What part of opening and closing film cans can possibly be fun?

 

 

If I ever found one of those, I'd probably CITO all the empty cans (as many as I had to open before I found the "right" one); at the least, I wouldn't re-close them.

Link to comment

To me, any standard type of hide gets old/boring equally fast. A nano on the back of a street sign or your average LPC is about as exciting as an ammo can under a pile of sticks next to a tree in the woods. Meaning that I can enjoy both the same.

 

At least with the ammo can in the woods you get a nice walk in the woods.

 

We have a bunch of "Bee Box" caches near us. Magnetic key safes inside the boxes of a local free paper called "The Bee". Several dozens of caches. Each just as bad as the last or next. They go straight to the old ignore list as fast as they are identified.

 

The one is Orchard Park was kinda neat though GOF - it was an old cell phone gutted. At least it got a laugh out of me.

Link to comment

I like 'em all. I never tire of a dry log and a secure container.

 

The only ones I don't care for are the front yard caches...creepy! I just keep driving when they're in someone's lawn. Oh, and I'm not sticking my hands in electrical areas. Those seem like dangerous hides to me. Otherwise, I just enjoy my leisure time and like to take it easy.

 

DITTO

Link to comment

Sprinkler hides!

 

+1

 

I only ever remember finding one of those.

 

I have found more than a few. Very impressed by the first one. Not so impressed afterwards, especially after seeing the problems that they can cause. It seems that when I find one, it is usually a newer hider. After the first one, they learn not to hide them.

Link to comment

Sprinkler hides!

 

+1

 

I only ever remember finding one of those.

 

Right. That's what I'm after. Sprinkler heads are cool the first time. Maybe even the second time but after that it loses it's impact.

 

One of my favorite caches of all time was a fake switch plate stuck to the side of a roadside utility box. Now, they are really no big deal.

 

This one was special as it was the first one I found, and over a three year period, I would drive past every day and see that cache. One day, I noticed that the local gangsters had spray painted right over it, and a few weeks later, the city came and rolled a fresh coat of paint over it. No one was the wiser.

Link to comment

What makes a cache either boring or interesting? Sometimes it can be interesting to do even the boring ones. If I am out caching with friends or have a few minutes before picking up my daughter, then even a routine hide, just another cache that will soon be forgotten, is appreciated in some way..

 

Containers? I have only seen a few containers that really stand out and one of them got destroyed by a bomb squad. Other than that, most containers are things we will see time and time again. I have to appreciate it when I run across something that makes me smile or shows a lot of artistic creativity, but those are few and far between. But a common container does not necessarily mean the cache will be boring.

 

The Cache Page? A good title or a well done cache page will get my attention.. So in a broad sense, if the "hide" includes what you write about it,, a single paragraph stating "there was a blank spot on the map and this parking lot was free" will probably bore me in hurry. A hint stating that there is no hint is very boring indeed. Trying to be too cute often ends up boring because people have likely thought about it already.

 

The Hide? The search is probably the least interesting thing about caching for me. I will quickly lose interest in a nano in a haystack, a rock in a rock pile, or a bison tube under a bit of moss in the middle of a forest with loose coordinates. How many film cans hanging in a tree or stuck under a lamp post skirt do I need to find before my life is complete?

 

The cache type? Letterboxes or wherigos are often interesting because they are somewhat rare. Earthcaches and virtuals are always on the top of my list for reasons explained below. Multis can get boring if they are simply a series of hides that would not be interesting in and of themselves, and if there seems to be no particular reason for it other than to place a bunch of containers. Puzzles can quickly end up feeling too much like work to keep my interest -- do caches based on trigonometry. or puzzles that require complete leaps of faith, bore me or is it simply that I do not like doing that kind of thing?

 

So that leaves the location. An ammo can in the woods, or placed along a ridge with views in every direction, will always be interesting. An earthcache or virtual often brings me to places that I never would have discovered but for caching. And I have also found urban caches that made me realize why I like this game -- a bison tube in a "tree" made of shoes or a small altoids type of tin in bad shape stuck on a sign that just happened to be in a location filled with art and wonder. Both locations were worthy of being included on the roadside america web site; both of those made it to my favorites list. If the cache owner did not consider why he or she wanted to bring someone to a particular spot, the parking lot, street sign, random bush, or guard rail may not hold much interest.

 

I thought about going out and getting a cache this morning before work. It is a nano placed in a shopping mall directly in front of a business, stuck on a metal landscaping trellis. However, on second thought I could not think of any reason to look for that particular cache. Maybe something will occur to me later. Perhaps I will eventually be in the location for reasons that have nothing to do with caching. So I suppose that style of hide has reached its limit for me.

Edited by geodarts
Link to comment

I dont like caches where I have to walk next to a very busy road. Im always nervous Im going to get squashed. But other then that I like them all nanos, guardrails, long hikes in the woods, city caches whatever Im game. And I like that there are lots of mirco city caches I can't always hike far up in the woods but hey I might have 10 minutes to spare in a parking lot.

Link to comment

I like 'em all. I never tire of a dry log and a secure container.

 

The only ones I don't care for are the front yard caches...creepy! I just keep driving when they're in someone's lawn. Oh, and I'm not sticking my hands in electrical areas. Those seem like dangerous hides to me. Otherwise, I just enjoy my leisure time and like to take it easy.

 

Yes to the creepy front lawn ones. I'm supposed to be stealthy, so I try to avoid lurking in someone's front yard!

 

Also, I had to add my two cents - even though it's been said before - MICROS IN THE WOODS. WHY!? WHYYYYY!? I always get a little despondent when I have a bushwhacky hike into a remote area that CLEARLY few people ever venture to - and then I have to look for a bison tube? Or a nano somewhere? I really appreciate when people hide larger containers wherever possible. Micros get old to me in non-urban settings!

Link to comment
Also, I had to add my two cents - even though it's been said before - MICROS IN THE WOODS. WHY!? WHYYYYY!? I always get a little despondent when I have a bushwhacky hike into a remote area that CLEARLY few people ever venture to - and then I have to look for a bison tube? Or a nano somewhere? I really appreciate when people hide larger containers wherever possible. Micros get old to me in non-urban settings!

 

I'm not trying to be a jerk, but I have to ask this question. You say you get despondent having to hike a long, difficult trek just to end up finding a nano. The descriptions clearly show if they are micro, regular, large etc... So my question is this, if you know beforehand that it's a little one, why waste your time going for it to begin with? Seriously, not trying to aggravate the bee's nest, just curious.

MULLY

Link to comment
Also, I had to add my two cents - even though it's been said before - MICROS IN THE WOODS. WHY!? WHYYYYY!? I always get a little despondent when I have a bushwhacky hike into a remote area that CLEARLY few people ever venture to - and then I have to look for a bison tube? Or a nano somewhere? I really appreciate when people hide larger containers wherever possible. Micros get old to me in non-urban settings!

 

I'm not trying to be a jerk, but I have to ask this question. You say you get despondent having to hike a long, difficult trek just to end up finding a nano. The descriptions clearly show if they are micro, regular, large etc... So my question is this, if you know beforehand that it's a little one, why waste your time going for it to begin with? Seriously, not trying to aggravate the bee's nest, just curious.

MULLY

 

I enjoy the hunt, always. But, maybe because I live in a big city and there are SOOOOOOOO many micros, I always just feel a tinge of sadness when a really cool spot that could EASILY hold at LEAST a small container, and perhaps even a large, is used for a micro instead. If there's some cool element or story behind it, that's one thing - and I've seen that. I never judge a cache by its cover until I've been there and found it. Sometimes micros in the woods surprise me. It's just that usually they don't. But it's still a smiley, and it still got me out, hiking, and active - that's why I don't ignore them. Hope that makes sense.

 

Plus, it's a thread about cache types that get old. Do micros in the woods REALLY not bother anyone else?

Edited by Starbuck2011
Link to comment

Do micros in the woods REALLY not bother anyone else?

 

Not particularly, although if I'm aware of the cache size before getting to GZ, I'm not likely to waste much time searching. I tend to pick the hike, and THEN see if there are any caches along my route. Not the other way usually (with a few exceptions).

Link to comment

I am so freaking tired of Finding huge Treasure Chest in the woods full of GOLD! it was cool the first time but now that I own two houses in Hawaii, A couple of hummers and a Cessna, I am getting so BORED. I wish some people would quit hiding these and put back Micros in the woods, Lamp Post Skirt hides(NEVER BORING) and some sweet magnetic key holders on guardrails. For the love of the game stop wasting my time with real treasure!!

Link to comment

I am so freaking tired of Finding huge Treasure Chest in the woods full of GOLD! it was cool the first time but now that I own two houses in Hawaii, A couple of hummers and a Cessna, I am getting so BORED. I wish some people would quit hiding these and put back Micros in the woods, Lamp Post Skirt hides(NEVER BORING) and some sweet magnetic key holders on guardrails. For the love of the game stop wasting my time with real treasure!!

 

You would have liked this one!

Link to comment

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
×
×
  • Create New...