Any Words of Encouragement?

October 24, 2011

My son and I have just started and would love to be good at geocaching! This is right up our alley since I love tech stuff, camping, computers, and fun things to do outside for free that give us a little excercise. I am a little heartbroken becuase I was really hoping to have a good time and I'm getting very frustrated that we can't find anything. We've only found 2 out of 7 and some we've gone back multiple times. The two we found were only because the listing on geocache.com had a picture of the missles that the caches were hidden on. I am using the GPS on my Nokia Nuron cell phone and I think has done decentley to near the sites. We are starting out with urban caches near home which happen to be all micros. I have read tons of info in the Geocaching Guide and got some books from the library. I have read about some typical places where caches in general might be and have looked in all these type places and kept an open mind for other hiding spots. Obviously my mind is not open enough? Some of the cache sites, I don't even need a GPS and still cant find the cache. ANY help, ideas, knowledge would be appreciated because I really want to keep geocaching but it's not FUN and I feel like I want to give up even though I won't. Thanks in advance.

8.3k · October 24, 2011

You are starting with some of the harder caches to find. For starting most will recommend 1 or 1.5 star difficulty caches. I would probably keep the terrain at or less than 2 stars. For size concentrate on small and regular. After you build some confidence you can go back and try the micros again. It will be a building process, you learn techniques and then have a list of things to check to make the finds. For now I would stay well clear of any that say they are nanos. But don't feel to bad, I've found more than a couple and I still have trouble finding some of the micros and nanos.

October 24, 2011

I agree with jholly, I'd start with a local park, or an area that has larger caches. Micros can be difficult.

Remember, a GPS is only but so accurate, so when you find "the spot", it may still be a few feet or a few yards off. Read the hint if any, and be sure to read the recent logs, they can sometimes help. Lastly, don't get too caught in looking for a specific container, as you may have the wrong idea of what you're looking for. Look for anything out of the ordinary, it can often lead to the cache.

Welcome to geocaching, and good luck, I hope it gets better for you!

October 24, 2011

My son and I have just started and would love to be good at geocaching! This is right up our alley since I love tech stuff, camping, computers, and fun things to do outside for free that give us a little excercise. I am a little heartbroken becuase I was really hoping to have a good time and I'm getting very frustrated that we can't find anything. We've only found 2 out of 7 and some we've gone back multiple times. The two we found were only because the listing on geocache.com had a picture of the missles that the caches were hidden on. I am using the GPS on my Nokia Nuron cell phone and I think has done decentley to near the sites. We are starting out with urban caches near home which happen to be all micros. I have read tons of info in the Geocaching Guide and got some books from the library. I have read about some typical places where caches in general might be and have looked in all these type places and kept an open mind for other hiding spots. Obviously my mind is not open enough? Some of the cache sites, I don't even need a GPS and still cant find the cache. ANY help, ideas, knowledge would be appreciated because I really want to keep geocaching but it's not FUN and I feel like I want to give up even though I won't. Thanks in advance.

Welcome to the obsession!

You found 2 out of 7!!!! Maybe my son and I could learn from you! What is your secret? We often do not even find that many!

After a little more experience, plus from reading some of the posts in here, this is what I have gleaned:

It is supposed to be fun, but due to the nature of the beast, some caches that are supposed to be there JUST AREN'T THERE. And, sometimes the fact that they are not there does not get reported online or even by the other folks who try to find it and do not. This is why we are encouraged to ALSO LOG our "did not find it" experiences, not just our "found it!!!" experiences.

That's unfortunate that the only ones close to home are micros. Micros are some of the toughest ones to find. My son and I filter out the micros in our search criteria. We go for the regular and large sizes. If you can do the same, your chances of finding a cache you are looking for go up.

I have also seen on here where folks have determined that between the GPS coords of the hider being off PLUS your GPS coords potentially being OFF ---- the actual location of the cache could be 100ft from where your GPS unit says is "ground zero"!!! That is a pretty wide margin for error! Many people advise that once you reach ground zero, begin searching in ever widening circles from that point...up to 100 feet concentrically from where your GPS said the location of the cache is.

Attempt to think like the hider. Look around. Meaning...look for places where YOU think a good hiding spot might be. Is there an odd looking pile of rocks or sticks on the ground that don't seem to be just random ground clutter? More than once we have found caches hidden in those spots!

Many caches are camouflaged. Some hiders are EEEEE vil !!!!!!!! Chances are if you can dream up a bizarre way to hide a cache ... somebody else has too!

Finally - my son and I have discovered that the actual fun is not just in the finding, but in the journey. That sounds like a truism, but that really is a real phenomenon! Some of our best stories that my son and I have to share have come from the caches we DID NOT FIND. Those are often much more memorable than the finds! Those are the real adventures!

Finally, there are at least a few members who have posted some great videos online for beginners like you and me. "Head Hard Hat" is one of those:

http://www.youtube.com/user/headhardhat#p/a/C409C12B171D7ACB/0/hvWBOPxHBnM

Good luck!

Tom

3.4k · October 24, 2011

I agree that you might want to start with easier caches. Groundspeak has recently instituted the concept of the "Beginners' caches." In a page of cache listings, look for the ones that are highlighted in green and go for those specifically; then next look for some other "Regular" or "Small" size caches that are no more than 2.0 in Difficulty rating and don't have a string of "Didn't Find It" logs. And don't get too discouraged; as you gain experience it will get easier. Too, sometimes it's all about the adventure.

October 24, 2011

As a newer cacher myself....

1. As said, start with lower level caches.

2. Don't look for containers, but think about where a container could be. Try and think about all the places and ways you might hide it.

3. Accept there is a learning curve. The more you find, the better you will get. It takes time.

4. It takes a while before you can figure out how your GPS reads. GPS will rarely drop you onto the target.

5. Slow down...don't try and speed find. Enjoy the process of the hunt. It is less frustrating. Searching takes a lot longer then just 5 minutes, and much longer depending on the search area.

6. Search in an organize pattern or method every time. Don't just jump out of the car and run around.

7. Don't be afraid to recheck. I have found caches, I have missed the first time and actually almost touched.

8. I like to plan my routes. I write down a list of my objectives for the day. Before leave the house I have read the descriptions once, double check if they have recently been found, and to insure they are not under maintenance, or special tools needed etc. If they haven't been found in a while or have a lot of consecutive DNFs, I leave it alone until people post they have found it.

9. Enjoy the day regardless of how many you find. You are out together...that more important then the count. The count and speed will come with experience.

10. Always keep a positive view. Even when I don't find a cache, I am thinking great hide. I am going to come back and get it. I have a list of caches I need to revisit after I posted a DNF. Some just take more experience.

Welcome to a great activity.

Edited October 24, 2011 by Russ!

1.5k · October 24, 2011

If it's that important then maybe you should consider buying a dedicated gps. There are plenty of handhelds to choose from depending on how much you can afford. Cell phones are just not very accurate.

2.4k · October 24, 2011

You are being a bit hard on yourselves! Your first two cache finds were micros. On machinery. The bane of my life!! I would never have found those first time out. Congratulations are in order for those finds.

As for size, look for caches that are bigger...medium and up. See if you can touch base with other cachers in your area and maybe meet up so you can get a feel for things. Your GPS/phone won't put you right on top of the cache, you need to be a bit of a detective.

I am not sure how old your son is, but I am sure you're aware that the younger they are, the shorter the kids' attention span. If a cache stops being fun...move on to the next, or to the ice cream parlour.

Also a look at the Cool Cache Containers thread in the Geocaching Topics forum - you'll see how sneaky some hides can be.

We put caches we DNF on our watchlist (you did log a Did Not Find, I hope) sometimes we get a pointer from the cache owner, or another cacher who also has the cache on their watchlist. Don't be afraid to drop the cache owner (CO) a note asking for a hint after that DNF is logged, explaining you are new.

Have patience, it will come...best advice we ever had was "think where you would hide it."

Welcome to geocaching and the forums!

October 25, 2011

Maybe look through and look at the pictures of other people's cool caches that they made, there is a thread on the forums. I also found watching youtube videos of what people were making and hiding really helped me. There is a certain cache near where I live. It was impossible for me to find. I went many days after work trying to find it. I know that location inside and out. I probably have spent at least 40 hours searching there. After watching a youtube video, and exhausting all other possible hiding spots. I took my mom out to the spot. She started searching and couldn't find it. I casually put my hand on a random spot, and proclaimed "Imagine! Cachers are hiding them in HERE now!" and the spot loosened and there was the cache. I was dumbfounded that I actually found it...after months. Loved that cache. Now to find the other one that I can't find, it may take me into next summer, which will be year 2, to actually find the cache. It's not like it's a race or anything.

2.2k · October 25, 2011

Ohhhh.... Baby!! Look at all that woods and green space right near the ones you found!

You gotta get out of town! Here, start with this one then see what's nearby. But first, go to Walmart or BestBuy and get a gps.

You love tech stuff, and camping, and outdoor free things to do? You'll never look back!

October 25, 2011

Good advice, Go buy a handheld GPS device, I may be wrong but I think the phone/gps systems in many cases are suspect, but that's just me.

It is not intended that you find every one every time,

The hunt is suppose to be a challenge, 1/1 = small challenge, 5/5 = BIG CHALLENGE.

If they were easy to find every time, Geocaching would become very boring, IE, LPC's.

October 25, 2011

I agree go look at the cool cache container thread, it has helped us lots

Also see if there are any get togethers in your area and talk to others

October 25, 2011

I agree go look at the cool cache container thread, it has helped us lots

Also see if there are any get togethers in your area and talk to others

Just as a reference, we started a month ago and are just over 50 finds now. Out of that 50 we have had about 8 DNFs. Tonight we went out to clear up 3 DNFs and found all 3.

Reading logs, expand your search area and most importantly use your developing geosense. Like people say think about where the cache will be. We had a cache in a heavily wooded rough terrain. The GPSr was bouncing all over the place but before we got to the GZ I saw a great place for a hide. Shined my flashlight in there and there it was.

October 25, 2011

Just as a reference, we started a month ago and are just over 50 finds now. Out of that 50 we have had about 8 DNFs. Tonight we went out to clear up 3 DNFs and found all 3.

Reading logs, expand your search area and most importantly use your developing geosense. Like people say think about where the cache will be. We had a cache in a heavily wooded rough terrain. The GPSr was bouncing all over the place but before we got to the GZ I saw a great place for a hide. Shined my flashlight in there and there it was.

All of that ^ makes sense.

I also use the Dynamic map option on the cache page and switch to hybrid view and zoom in. If you've got a good visual sense of what's around you then I find that pretty helpful much of the time - imo better than a gps in many ways.

October 25, 2011

The more you find, the easier it'll get and you will be able to go back and find those DNF's. Enjoy the time together.

October 26, 2011

WOW!!!! Thanks to everyone that took your time to help me. There is much great advice to put to work as I am still anxious to keep trying. This is just what I needed. I'll try to look for larger caches by filtering my search that may be farther from home but it sounds like it will be worth it. Then maybe go back to the micros closer to home after I've been at it a while. I'll take a look at the link that shows different cache containers, that may help me. Thanks again for your words of encouragement and help! :0

2.4k · October 26, 2011

It is worth going a bit further from home. We try and group our caches in one area as we don't want to waste too much gas.

The best thing is the time you are spending with your son - those young eyes are pretty good at spotting what we adults miss...

2.2k · October 26, 2011

Tell us what happens! And in case I was too subtle, it's a 5 GALLON BUCKET! What could be a better start than that? :lol:

October 26, 2011

@hukilaulau: Thanks for the specific cache advice. It looks like a perfect one to try first and even printed a few more in the area that don't seem that bad. I have to wait for a day when my husband can go with us since i'm want to be cautious near the woods, but I'll be sure to let everyone know! I really researched, read logs, looked at maps, and took lots of notes. I can't wait to go out again! Hubby is working lots of hours lately, and its been raining a lot around here. Hopefully it will be soon that we can go looking again. Thanks!

October 26, 2011

Welcome to the fun!

It's hard to start out looking for micros. They are very small and due to their small size, they typically present many hiding places when you get to where your GPSr takes you. The normal range of error may be 20 feet when hiding the cache, plus another 20 feet or so error in the person looking for the cache, so it is not unusual to be looking in a circle with a 40 foot radius. If my math is right (area = pi * r squared) that is about 5057 square feet to scour for an object that may be the size of your little finger.

Also keep in mind that many players in this game have been playing for upwards of 10 years and some of them will be placing hides intended for players that have been doing this for a long time. Some of them will be very devious hides intended to challenge players that have found thousands of caches. Don't feel at all bad if you can't find some micros, especially if you are just starting out.

Some micros are very easy to find once you have an idea of the kinds of places they are hidden. Difficulty on micros varies a lot.

Sometimes finding one of the hard ones can give you a great feeling. A couple of years back we were searching for a difficult micro hidden in a forested area. There was a team of 6 cachers there prior to us that looked for the cache and failed to find it. Some of them had several thousand finds to their names so the group as a whole had over 10,000 finds. We thought our chances of finding it after they failed would be nil, but we enjoy spending time in the forest anyway so we went to look for it. After about 45 minutes of searching, we finally found it just as the sun was setting and we were running out of time. That was a great feeling considering that at the time we had only about 300 finds. Finds like that are worth the time and effort they take and the experience you gain finding them.

So keep looking and have a lot of fun in the search whether you find the cache or not. Don't feel bad having a hard time finding some micros. Heck, I have had to go back on some caches just to find an ammo can.

Have fun!

October 27, 2011

Yay! We found R U Blind, http://coord.info/GC1C9MX. We went out to the woods for this large one instead of the urban micros.

Wow, what a difference! It was nicer, easier, more fun, and barely any muggles compared to the urban ones. Loved it. Thanks for all your advice everyone. I think I'll be sticking to these larger ones in the woods/meadows for a while to get a better understanding. Then someday back to the micros!

8.3k · October 27, 2011

Yay! We found R U Blind, http://coord.info/GC1C9MX. We went out to the woods for this large one instead of the urban micros.

Wow, what a difference! It was nicer, easier, more fun, and barely any muggles compared to the urban ones. Loved it. Thanks for all your advice everyone. I think I'll be sticking to these larger ones in the woods/meadows for a while to get a better understanding. Then someday back to the micros!

There is nothing like success. Glad you got your find and got that good feeling. Enjoy all your future finds and you will get the hang of it quickly, but don't let the DNF's get you down. We all get them.

1.4k · October 27, 2011

Yay! We found R U Blind, http://coord.info/GC1C9MX. We went out to the woods for this large one instead of the urban micros.

Wow, what a difference! It was nicer, easier, more fun, and barely any muggles compared to the urban ones. Loved it. Thanks for all your advice everyone. I think I'll be sticking to these larger ones in the woods/meadows for a while to get a better understanding. Then someday back to the micros!

Congrats on the positive outing! You'll come to find which types of caches you prefer, it may be that you just don't much care for the urban micros. I would much rather go to a nice park and hunt around there than poke around a bush or phone booth in town. Remember, you don't have to get them all. If it stops being fun, stop doing it. Welcome!

October 27, 2011

Don't be discouraged about DNFs. Happens to the best of us. I actually had a cacher who had several thousand finds file a DNF on a really simple urban micro (1.5 IMHO) because it was a bit different than most of the urban micros that were hidden like that.

November 2, 2011

If you have a premium membership, go to your statistics tab. It sorts your finds by size, difficulty etc. you can use this to later search for harder, difficult terrain or sizes you've yet to find. It really helps in becoming a well-rounded cacher to find a variety of types by different owners.

Also, you usually get a sense for a certain owners hiding style after some time. You'll start to notice who placed it & look for the similarities of their other hides.

Edited November 2, 2011 by Rychu

1.7k · November 2, 2011

As bad as it may feel to be a new cacher who gets DNFs, just wait until you are a well-seasoned cacher and you get DNFs. :lol:

So embarrassing...but it is always good to keep humble. At least that is what I tell myself.

Keep having fun. Don't sweat the DNFs. It is all part of the game.

November 2, 2011

Yay! We found R U Blind, http://coord.info/GC1C9MX. We went out to the woods for this large one instead of the urban micros.

Wow, what a difference! It was nicer, easier, more fun, and barely any muggles compared to the urban ones. Loved it. Thanks for all your advice everyone. I think I'll be sticking to these larger ones in the woods/meadows for a while to get a better understanding. Then someday back to the micros!

Now, that you are on your way I would like to offer a little constructive criticism. I okay that you didn't know this. I certain did the same thing at first but it is considered bad form to leave just the TFTC log. A lot of cache owners use the logs as kind of reward for them putting out the cache. Also, people searching for the cache next like to read through the logs to get an idea of whats going on with the cache.

So, try adding a bit more information. Was it easy to find? Was the cache in good shape? Were the coords good? Did anything interesting happen while you were looking for it?

Read a bunch of logs and you will understand better what I am talking about.

Congrats and good luck.

November 5, 2011

Sometimes, you can find caches by accident.

I remember how I once strolled down the street with a buddy of mine (he's a cacher too),

and we weren't even out caching, and suddenly he's like: "Check out that spot, we could hide a cache there".

And he points to an old fire hydrant with a screw on lid and goes to open it and out pops a micro.....

So we are looking at each other on total disbelief...turns out it was the final of a mistery that we had already started but not yet finished...

Long story short, if you think like a cacher, you will find the cache...

2.6k · November 5, 2011

Obviously my mind is not open enough? Some of the cache sites, I don't even need a GPS and still cant find the cache. ANY help, ideas, knowledge would be appreciated because I really want to keep geocaching but it's not FUN and I feel like I want to give up even though I won't. Thanks in advance.

Visit an Event cache and meet the local cachers, you will get plenty of tips and meet some nice folks that will point you in the right direction as well as give you opportunities to go on cache adventures with them.

Any Words of Encouragement?

Recommended Posts

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Link to comment

Join the conversation