Poison Oak Cache

[+Abcede97]

I have seen more & more Caches with Poison Oak Warnings! Really? R U Serious?

Why does a CO think cachers want to go home scratching?

I mean is there just no other place on the planet to place a cache?

Is it just because you want to up the difficulty rating or what?

[+Keelmann And Cici]

In some areas, if you do a hide in the woods, there's a good chance of poison ivy/oak. People like hides in the woods, do they include the warning.

[7rxc]

I have seen more & more Caches with Poison Oak Warnings! Really? R U Serious?

Why does a CO think cachers want to go home scratching?

I mean is there just no other place on the planet to place a cache?

Is it just because you want to up the difficulty rating or what?

 

Sometimes the stuff grows after placement! The warnings tend to follow after that gets to be a problem.

 

Be glad you have warnings... I was after one this summer and just happened to be with a non Geocacher who WAS in forestry surveys.

 

Luckily HE mentioned to me that I really didn't want to go any further in my search... I asked why and he gave me a fast intro into poison oak... P.I. I knew well... but nothing on this scale and not P.O. I satisfied my self with an expanded search, hoping the GPS was off. Time ran out before I managed to explore a safer approach to the likely location. I'm very glad he was there though.

 

No posted warnings yet!.

 

Doug 7rxc

[+FishieFive]

Ugh...I've gotten PO twice from caches. The first time was our very first day caching. I was so excited that I forgot to look for PO. I had a terrible case of it, but I was hooked on caching. The second time I was watching for it and I saw it, but must've gotten slapped by a leaf I didn't see.

 

Out here we have PO everywhere, so any non-urban cache is likely to have it nearby.

[jholly]

Just about every cache in southern Oregon or Northern California that is not in an urban environment seems to be surrounded by PO. Not to mention rattlesnakes.

[+Don_J]

I have seen more & more Caches with Poison Oak Warnings! Really? R U Serious?

Why does a CO think cachers want to go home scratching?

I mean is there just no other place on the planet to place a cache?

Is it just because you want to up the difficulty rating or what?

 

On the contrary. I do not want cachers to go home scratching. That is why I warn them that there may be Poison Oak in the area. I have used the Poison Plants attribute on 27 caches. All can be reached without coming in contact with PO, but one needs to be aware of their environment.

Edited October 9, 2011 by Don_J

[+terrkan78]

Around here it's not easy to find a spot to hide a cache that's free from poison oak (at least around the fringes of town). Pre-geocaching I got poison oak maybe once a decade. Now it's more like every other month. I'm just about done scratching from the last go-round, so I'm due again.

 

I have several spots where I'm considering placing a hide, but they'll all need the poison oak attribute. The more I search, the more cool places I find to hide a cache, but they all seem to be sporting healthy, vibrant poison oak.

 

The only time I've raised an eyebrow is when the cache was actually tied to the poison oak vine climbing the tree, or one that was smack dab in the middle of a chest-deep fortress of poison oak. Not even a helicopter drop would save you on that one. I sure hope it grew up since the cache was placed.

[+SwineFlew]

Around here it's not easy to find a spot to hide a cache that's free from poison oak (at least around the fringes of town). Pre-geocaching I got poison oak maybe once a decade. Now it's more like every other month. I'm just about done scratching from the last go-round, so I'm due again.

 

I have several spots where I'm considering placing a hide, but they'll all need the poison oak attribute. The more I search, the more cool places I find to hide a cache, but they all seem to be sporting healthy, vibrant poison oak.

 

The only time I've raised an eyebrow is when the cache was actually tied to the poison oak vine climbing the tree, or one that was smack dab in the middle of a chest-deep fortress of poison oak. Not even a helicopter drop would save you on that one. I sure hope it grew up since the cache was placed.

 

Yep.. since I live in your area and I feel Mt Pisgah got it the worse of all it seems. Especially those caches that be there forever! (just see some of those people that whine about PO on every log!) Now, we got few caches that is IN the PO on purpose. Personalty, I feel hornets nest is many many time worse than PO since you got more control of how to deal with PO. We got one cacher here that whine and whine about PO but wont do a thing about his cache thats right next to a hornet nest.

[+Doctroid]

If I ever move to Washington, someone remind me to learn to recognize poison oak. We don't have it in the Northeast.

 

Just poison ivy.

[+Touchstone]

Poison oak is endemic in my area. If you hike anywhere, you're pretty much guaranteed to encounter it regardless of how careful you are. I do not put such warnings on my Listings unless it's particularly bad. It's a little like warning people that they'll get wet when it rains.

 

For reference, my wife, who is extremely sensitive to PO, has had pretty good luck with a product called Ivy Block.

[+cerberus1]

I have seen more & more Caches with Poison Oak Warnings! Really? R U Serious?

Why does a CO think cachers want to go home scratching?

I mean is there just no other place on the planet to place a cache?

Is it just because you want to up the difficulty rating or what?

 

In addition to the "poison plant" attribute, we include thorns, dangerous animals and ticks. Oh my !

Most of our hides are in the woods, where one might find one or all-the-above while searching.

I suppose we could find another, safer place on the planet to hide, but Wally parking lots aren't that interesting to us.

[+cerberus1]

If I ever move to Washington, someone remind me to learn to recognize poison oak. We don't have it in the Northeast.

 

Just poison ivy.

 

Since when ?

Poison oak is spread all about the Northeast. Last we were in the Andirondacks, it was everywhere. We've spotted it at most travel centers up Rt. 81.

Think low (10"), not like a tree. Often mixed with blueberry bushes and with scrub oak on ridges.

[+niraD]

The only time I've raised an eyebrow is when the cache was actually tied to the poison oak vine climbing the tree, or one that was smack dab in the middle of a chest-deep fortress of poison oak. Not even a helicopter drop would save you on that one. I sure hope it grew up since the cache was placed.

I've heard of cases where the PO grew around/over the cache after it was placed. I've also heard of cases where the CO was simply oblivious. If you're one of the people who isn't sensitive to urushiol, and you've never learned what PO looks like, then PO plants might look like a nice spot to hide a cache. I'm familiar with both the plant and the results of contact with it, but I still think it's a (visually) attractive plant.

[jholly]

If I ever move to Washington, someone remind me to learn to recognize poison oak. We don't have it in the Northeast.

 

Just poison ivy.

Interesting comment. One the wet side running across PO is a very rare event. A small patch, more like a sprig or two and very scrawny. I don't recall running across PO on the dry side. Maybe along the northern border, but I don't remember much there either. It is mostly along the Southern border.

[+uxorious]

If I ever move to Washington, someone remind me to learn to recognize poison oak. We don't have it in the Northeast.

 

Just poison ivy.

Interesting comment. One the wet side running across PO is a very rare event. A small patch, more like a sprig or two and very scrawny. I don't recall running across PO on the dry side. Maybe along the northern border, but I don't remember much there either. It is mostly along the Southern border.

 

I grew up in Seattle, and remember seeing a couple signs warning of Poison oak. Being a curious kid, I tried to find it, and couldn't. I was told by a park employee that the poison oak signs were put up when the stuff was spotted in the area, but it still was hard to find.

 

I've lived my whole life here in western Washington. I know we have poison oak, but I have never seen it.

[+pppingme]

One thing to remember, only about 1 in 3 people are even sensitive to it, that means 2 out of 3 won't have any issues.

 

I fall in that 2/3 group, so regardless of time of year or amount of foliage, I'm still good to get it.

[Mr.Yuck]

If I ever move to Washington, someone remind me to learn to recognize poison oak. We don't have it in the Northeast.

 

Just poison ivy.

 

Since when ?

Poison oak is spread all about the Northeast. Last we were in the Andirondacks, it was everywhere. We've spotted it at most travel centers up Rt. 81.

Think low (10"), not like a tree. Often mixed with blueberry bushes and with scrub oak on ridges.

 

Count me as another Northeasterner who doesn't think twice about Poison Oak. I see oak leaves, scrub oaks, etc... I don't think twice about going in. I could easily be educated otherwise though.

[+Catydid]

In this area, any cache in the woods will be in the vicinity of poison oak. It's just life as usual. I have just finished my first year of caching and have had poison oak 5 times. I am currently suffering the worst case of it ever--in places that never even saw the light of day that fateful trip. I am going to have to be much more careful in the future. These caches that brought me in contact with po were the most fun ever and I am not going to switch to urban only caches. I just wish there was a way to build up an immunity to it.

[+humboldt flier]

P.O. ... That cursed three leafed plant is something we deal with on a regular basis here in N.W. Calif. Some CO's warn about it, many don't and in fact ridicule those who mention it in the logs.

 

One hundred ( 100 ) miles south ( Willits, Calif. Area ) there is a CO who seems to have no problem with it and deliberately plants caches in the stuff. His cache pages have visual warnings, however, those warnings don't translate to some electronic pages.

 

GC2P4PW, GC2VEDH, GC2PZEA, GC2JE4Q.

 

Three varieties of the cursed stuff abound at Ridgewood Summit GC2P4PW

 

Yikes to travelers who have no knowledge of the nasty stuff. To make matters worse; the crud retains it's potency after the leaves have fallen.

Edited October 20, 2011 by humboldt flier

[+Mitragorz]

Count me as another Northeasterner who doesn't think twice about Poison Oak. I see oak leaves, scrub oaks, etc... I don't think twice about going in. I could easily be educated otherwise though.

 

Same here! I get poison ivy all the time (or so it seems) but never even seen poison oak.

[+TheLoneGrangers]

been caching for a year, have had PO rashes 4 times. never had it before caching lol

[+edscott]

Maybe we need an attribute to say it is off the pavement and one may encounter a natural environment.

[+humboldt flier]

Maybe we need an attribute to say it is off the pavement and one may encounter a natural environment.

 

Or at least put a note in the description noting that it is in the area - be aware of your surroundings and don't blindly follow the needle.

 

Was caching up on Trinidad Head, California with a fellow cacher and a very friendly canine took a fancy to my caching buddy. Lots of cuddly interaction went on over the course of half an hour. Seems like Ms. Canine had been wandering in the stuff.

 

Caching buddy was wildly sensitive to the stuff - was laid up for a week.

[+geodarts]

Or at least put a note in the description noting that it is in the area - be aware of your surroundings and don't blindly follow the needle.

 

I think warnings are in order, and if there is poison oak in the area, I use both an attribute and note it in a cache description.

 

I placed one cache in an area that has far more poison oak than I would normally consider for a cache. There is a narrow trail with poison oak on each side -- you will probably encounter it if you go to find the cache. In mitigation, I could have taken the trail further, but it narrowed even more through a stand of old growth poison oak and I did not want to ask people to go through that. And the cache is not placed in poison oak itself. As the OP asked, is it the only place on the planet I could have placed a cache? Probably not. But it is on a rocky overlook above the Pacific, with stunning views and a location that drew me there before I returned to place the cache.

 

In any case, I do not complain if I see the poison oak attribute. For the most part, the problems lie with caches that do not use it. In some situations, the CO simply did not recognize the plant -- either because it was in a dormant stage or they did not have much experience with it. In other situations, the poison oak grew around the cache. But there are also caches intentionally placed directly in poison oak or in areas where it will be part of the search one way or the other -- a needle in the haystack find on a wooded hillside in a mountain canyon (and a corresponding wide search area) with lots of moss and rocks and poison oak growing everywhere. No attribute. No warning. But the CO had a dedicated following and my friend, who is sensitive to poison oak, had solved the puzzle was not going to be deterred. I suppose that is what technu is for.

[+hzoi]

If I ever move to Washington, someone remind me to learn to recognize poison oak. We don't have it in the Northeast.

 

Just poison ivy.

 

We have a slightly different kind of poison oak in the Southeast, but it peters out around Virginia. It's a littke harder to spot -- no thick hairy vines climbing trees, just ground plants. But it's the same basic thing. Leaves of three, let it be.

 

Poison sumac is much, much, much worse. I find it's harder to spot than poison oak, as it's not as shiny and there's no telltale three leaf cluster. And the reaction is much stronger than poison ivy or poison oak.

 

Lucky us, in Alabama we have all three...

 

I got spoiled in Germany, no poisonous plants at all. But there are stinging nettles. They don't leave a weepy rash, but they're pretty dang painful all by themselves.

[+Presence]

We learned our lessons the hard way, now its long sleeves and pants when in the woods. I doubt people do it on purpose. We live in the woods and theres no amount of poison ivy killer to keep it under control.

[knowschad]

I have seen more & more Caches with Poison Oak Warnings! Really? R U Serious?

Why does a CO think cachers want to go home scratching?

I mean is there just no other place on the planet to place a cache?

Is it just because you want to up the difficulty rating or what?

 

May we assume that you have put those caches on your ignore list?

[CACAHUETES]

All adds to the fun

[+Doctroid]

If I ever move to Washington, someone remind me to learn to recognize poison oak. We don't have it in the Northeast.

 

Just poison ivy.

 

Since when ?

Poison oak is spread all about the Northeast. Last we were in the Andirondacks, it was everywhere. We've spotted it at most travel centers up Rt. 81.

Think low (10"), not like a tree. Often mixed with blueberry bushes and with scrub oak on ridges.

 

I've never seen it in the Adirondacks, or elsewhere in the Northeast, and the USDA has a map that agrees with that: http://plants.usda.g...le?symbol=TOPU2

 

(I should clarify: When I wrote the above quoted post, I wasn't sure what poison oak looked like; now I do know, and am reasonably sure I would remember having seen it if it was there.)

Edited October 21, 2011 by Doctroid

[+Wogus!]

Getting one really good dose of poison oak was enough for me. For those that didn't learn the first time, though, you might want to investigate this stuff, I've heard good things... Gardners Armor

[+edscott]

If I ever move to Washington, someone remind me to learn to recognize poison oak. We don't have it in the Northeast.

 

Just poison ivy.

 

Since when ?

Poison oak is spread all about the Northeast. Last we were in the Andirondacks, it was everywhere. We've spotted it at most travel centers up Rt. 81.

Think low (10"), not like a tree. Often mixed with blueberry bushes and with scrub oak on ridges.

 

Lots of people misidentify Poison oak. The closest Poison Oak gets to the Adirondacks is southern NJ. The lower altitudes of the Adirondacks do support a healthy poison ivy population. Doesn't really matter much as the reaction is the same.

Edited October 20, 2011 by edscott

[+edscott]

If I ever move to Washington, someone remind me to learn to recognize poison oak. We don't have it in the Northeast.

 

Just poison ivy.

 

Since when ?

Poison oak is spread all about the Northeast. Last we were in the Andirondacks, it was everywhere. We've spotted it at most travel centers up Rt. 81.

Think low (10"), not like a tree. Often mixed with blueberry bushes and with scrub oak on ridges.

 

I've never seen it in the Adirondacks, or elsewhere in the Northeast, and the USDA has a map that agrees with that: http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=TOPU2

 

And note that the USDA map is a bit misleading. If a single county in a state has a single sighting of the plant the whole state is shaded in. For example, only southern New Jersey and a single county in West Virginia has a confirmed find. Of course it is probably slowly spreading North as temperatures rise.

Edited October 20, 2011 by edscott

[+edscott]

If I ever move to Washington, someone remind me to learn to recognize poison oak. We don't have it in the Northeast.

 

Just poison ivy.

 

We have a slightly different kind of poison oak in the Southeast, but it peters out around Virginia. It's a littke harder to spot -- no thick hairy vines climbing trees, just ground plants. But it's the same basic thing. Leaves of three, let it be.

 

Poison sumac is much, much, much worse. I find it's harder to spot than poison oak, as it's not as shiny and there's no telltale three leaf cluster. And the reaction is much stronger than poison ivy or poison oak.

 

Lucky us, in Alabama we have all three...

 

I got spoiled in Germany, no poisonous plants at all. But there are stinging nettles. They don't leave a weepy rash, but they're pretty dang painful all by themselves.

 

I'd rather roll around in Poison Ivy than Nettles.

[+Doctroid]

I've never seen it in the Adirondacks, or elsewhere in the Northeast, and the USDA has a map that agrees with that: http://plants.usda.g...le?symbol=TOPU2

 

And note that the USDA map is a bit misleading. If a single county in a state has a single sighting of the plant the whole state is shaded in. For example, only southern New Jersey and a single county in West Virginia has a confirmed find. Of course it is probably slowly spreading North as temperatures rise.

 

True, but if you click on a state (for example NJ) you get a county distribution map: http://plants.usda.g...34&symbol=TOPU2

[+hzoi]

If I ever move to Washington, someone remind me to learn to recognize poison oak. We don't have it in the Northeast.

 

Just poison ivy.

 

We have a slightly different kind of poison oak in the Southeast, but it peters out around Virginia. It's a littke harder to spot -- no thick hairy vines climbing trees, just ground plants. But it's the same basic thing. Leaves of three, let it be.

 

Poison sumac is much, much, much worse. I find it's harder to spot than poison oak, as it's not as shiny and there's no telltale three leaf cluster. And the reaction is much stronger than poison ivy or poison oak.

 

Lucky us, in Alabama we have all three...

 

I got spoiled in Germany, no poisonous plants at all. But there are stinging nettles. They don't leave a weepy rash, but they're pretty dang painful all by themselves.

 

I'd rather roll around in Poison Ivy than Nettles.

 

Oy. And then hose down right afterward, I hope. Or are you not allergic?

[+edscott]

I've never seen it in the Adirondacks, or elsewhere in the Northeast, and the USDA has a map that agrees with that: http://plants.usda.g...le?symbol=TOPU2

 

And note that the USDA map is a bit misleading. If a single county in a state has a single sighting of the plant the whole state is shaded in. For example, only southern New Jersey and a single county in West Virginia has a confirmed find. Of course it is probably slowly spreading North as temperatures rise.

 

True, but if you click on a state (for example NJ) you get a county distribution map: http://plants.usda.g...34&symbol=TOPU2

 

Yes, and you can see the range is confined to the pine barrens.

[+edscott]

 

Oy. And then hose down right afterward, I hope. Or are you not allergic?

 

I get a light rash once in awhile, usually between my fingers if I am handling the stuff, but the point is that Nettles get everyone and nearly instantly, while PI lets you finish your day of caching before starting to itch.

Edited October 21, 2011 by edscott

[vagabond]

Up until I was about 45 PO never bothered me I could wade through it cut it down what ever never a problem. between 45 and 50 it started bothering me, so now I'm very careful about where I am