Long Beach Cache Machine

1.8k · November 15, 2011

(Note: circumstances may change after this initial posting. Look for my posts (with the icon) in this thread for all the important details and changes.)

(Link to dinner event cache.)

Oyster farms, cranberry bogs, historic lighthouses... the Long Beach Peninsula could be considered Cape Cod West. Come cache with us and see what you find.

Fill up the tank, toss down some breakfast at way-too-early o'clock, and meet a mob of fellow cachers at sunrise on Saturday, January 7, at 7:15 a.m.

Follow all traffic laws, and drive safely. This is not a race; there are no winners. The only loser will be someone who gets hurt.

If you're still out on the road at dinner time (5:00 p.m.), skip the rest of the route and come on in. Socializing at dinner is one of the best parts of machine events (and that's coming from me -- someone who usually hates socializing). There will be travel bugs to discover, the best pizza around, and more geocachers to commiserate with than you can shake a walking stick at. The most important rule:

As with all cache machines, if you find the cache, you'll be the one who has to re-hide it. Hide it as well as you found it.

For any micro cache with a tiny logbook that we find on the event, one "LBCM" log entry should suffice for the group. We tend to fill up log books too quickly, and our stickers tend to make micro log books hard to re-stash. For normal-sized caches, or even large micros (like key holders and pill bottles), everyone should sign in.

If you’ve already found a couple of these caches, that’s fine - give us a chance to find the cache, and then we may turn to you for a hint. Suggestions and ''Count me ins'' are welcome on the event page.

----

The Long Beach Cache Machine FAQ:

When is it?

7:15 a.m., Saturday, January 7, 2012. Latecomers can track us down en route.

Will it be one large group, will we be split into teams, or what?

We start the day as one giant group. Then it's on to the next one as a group, which means we'll hopefully find each cache quickly. The group tends to fragment after the first few caches, though. The longer we can keep the big group together, the more fun it is!

Where does the route start?

GC13ZCZ, "Elves Love Dolphins", about a quarter mile from the dinner location.

Is anything going on before, during, or after?

- Friday, January 6: Maybe. See below in late December for details.

- Saturday, January 7, at 5:00 p.m., dinner will be at Chico's Pizza, 4301 Pacific Highway, Seaview. (N 46° 20.027 W 124° 03.284). I've created an event page for this dinner event.

- Sunday, sleep in and then get the caches you didn't get on Saturday. Did I mention there's a lot of them?

A cache on your map shows the wrong place to park.

Let me know, and I'll incorporate it into the route.

It sounds fun, but I've already found some of them.

Then come laugh at us, or guess when we'll be at the caches you haven't hit yet.

You don't have X cache on the route. Why aren't we getting that one?

I try to avoid most multicaches, most puzzle caches, caches that appear to be overly time consuming, and caches that the owner has asked us to avoid.

You have X cache on the route, but it's disabled/archived/a two mile hike.

Let me know, and I'll remove it from the route (if archived) or will check with the owner (if disabled).

X cache is in an environmentally sensitive area.

By all means, let me know. I'll work with the cache owner to minimize our impact, or skip the cache altogether.

I disagree with the whole idea of cache machines. I don't want you finding my cache.

Sorry to hear that. It's too bad you've got a neat place to show us that we won't be able to see. Let me know, and I'll remove it from the route.

What's this gonna cost me?

If you don't want to risk a ticket, you'll need a Discover Pass for caching in Fort Canby State Park. Otherwise, it'll cost nothing for the caching. Or, at least, nothing more than it would cost than if you did the trip solo (e.g., paying for your own gas, hotel, and dinner). I'm not collecting any money for this.

Lunch? Breaks? Bathrooms?

Lunch: You should probably bring a sack lunch to eat on the road.

Breaks and Bathrooms: There's no breaks in cache machines! Just hold it. :-P Or find something on the way.

Rain? Snow? Landslides? Flooding?

Could be. Do what you safely can, and skip ahead when reality or your capabilities don't match the plan. Be prepared and flexible. Don't drive through deep water. Don't drive your sedan to the top of a radar hill in the snow. Don't do stupid things.

What do the map symbols mean?

Edit: Adding note about Discover Pass at Fort Canby.

Edited November 16, 2011 by travisl

November 15, 2011

Sounds like fun! I'll have to see if I can convince the wife to come.

1.8k · November 15, 2011

The first draft of the route is available. Take a look and let me know if you see me routing us somewhere dumb, or if you have any questions or suggestions for improvement.

The event page should go live in the next day or so.

8.3k · November 16, 2011

Premium member caches:

Regular members will have to use geocachingadmin.com or express logger in order to log these caches. Your on your own for coordinates.

Potential problems:

GC2EK48

GCHZ94

Once the event is published I'll post the bookmark. Or if your really anxious to get it, check my profile for my public lists. GSAK version 8 makes generating the bookmark fall down easy.

Edited November 16, 2011 by jholly

1.2k · November 16, 2011

Note that the starting location is a micro cache not the small sized letterbox that is way easier to spot and is less than 4 feet away.

November 16, 2011

Might want to add an FAQ about a Discover Pass being needed for access to Fort Canby State Park.

1.2k · November 16, 2011

Ok a few thoughts

63 is a hike from the location of 64 about 1 mile RT

66 there is a trail from the north From the North Head Lighthouse. May be possible from the south but it is a lot steeper that way.

70 is about .6 mile RT

One of these caches needs water, nearly a full gallon.

1.4k · November 16, 2011

If you're doing the Pickled Pepper series (38-40) you can get the Pickled Pepper Series Finale which is just a bit further up the same road. (You'll need to get info from the other 3 caches first.)

5.6k · November 16, 2011

You can not get to 68 from 67 (unless you make it terrain 5 with reppeling gear). You have to walk the trail past 69 down to the beach and head south. 69 is a very steep scramble trail (a true 4* terrain).

November 16, 2011

Premium member caches:

GC2Y1W6

GC2YZQY

GC2YZQY

GC14NTJ

GC2ZBPE

GC74C3

Regular members will have to use geocachingadmin.com or express logger in order to log these caches. Your on your own for coordinates.

Potential problems:

GC2EK48

GCHZ94

Once the event is published I'll post the bookmark. Or if your really anxious to get it, check my profile for my public lists. GSAK version 8 makes generating the bookmark fall down easy.

We will update GC2ZBPE prior to the start so it is available to all.

Edited November 16, 2011 by SteadyPop

1.8k · November 16, 2011

Premium member caches: [
]
Potential problems: [

]

So noted. Thanks.

Might want to add an FAQ about a Discover Pass being needed for access to Fort Canby State Park.

I've just added it to the "What will this cost" FAQ, and I'll have a note on the map. Good point.

63 is a hike from the location of 64 about 1 mile RT

Google maps shows roads approaching very close to each of these. Is this incorrect? Even if 63 (Graveyard of the Pacific) is a half mile hike, I think I still want to keep it on the route, because seeing the bar from the lighthouse sounds so cool.

66 there is a trail from the north From the North Head Lighthouse. May be possible from the south but it is a lot steeper that way.

Good catch. I see the trailhead in the aerial photos. I'll update the map. Thanks.

70 is about .6 mile RT

I actually found this one the day before the Astoria Cache Machine. It didn't seem like that long of a hike to me. Are you including the drive halfway around the lake in your distance, or am I mis-remembering?

One of these caches needs water, nearly a full gallon.

Yup; saw that. I think folks have seen enough of these that they'll know what to do.

you can get the Pickled Pepper Series Finale which is just a bit further up the same road.

Nice. I'll add it to the route.

You can not get to 68 from 67 (unless you make it terrain 5 with reppeling gear). You have to walk the trail past 69 down to the beach and head south. 69 is a very steep scramble trail (a true 4* terrain).

I'll remove 68 (it looks to be at least 0.5 mile RT from 69), and put up a caution on 69. Thanks for the heads up.

Y'all are awesome. Keep the advice coming!

8.3k · November 16, 2011

Bookmark is posted to Dinner event page.

1.2k · November 16, 2011

63 is a hike from the location of 64 about 1 mile RT

Google maps shows roads approaching very close to each of these. Is this incorrect? Even if 63 (Graveyard of the Pacific) is a half mile hike, I think I still want to keep it on the route, because seeing the bar from the lighthouse sounds so cool.

The road to 63 (Coast Guard Road) is gated at N46.28218 W123.05444. To get 63 and 64 you park at the parking for the Lewis and Clark Museum at N46.27865 W124.05295. There is a steep paved trail up the hill to the south to get 64 and then a trail that heads east around the inlet to 64 down a steep hill then back up a steep paved road to the lighthouse. It is a fantastic view from the lighthouse, just the hike is a bit longer then the route shows and about 200 feet of elevation change.

70 is about .6 mile RT

I actually found this one the day before the Astoria Cache Machine. It didn't seem like that long of a hike to me. Are you including the drive halfway around the lake in your distance, or am I mis-remembering?

I measured the distance based on how I remember the trail wrapping the lake and measuring the route using google earth. From the parking across the lake it was about a .3 mile hike in. It was a very nice hike and I would keep the cache on the route.

November 17, 2011

I would add GC434C as it looks like it would be a good location for another grab. Also there have been recent finders even though it is marked disabled

November 17, 2011

If 69 is the one I'm thinking of-it's awesome and really not too difficult a climb. I plan on being there also which is awesome since my parent's used to live there and I know the pennisula pretty well!

November 19, 2011

I am boycotting the discover pass until it covers all of my vehicles so my car will not be going in the park. does the fee apply to mopeds?

November 20, 2011

I was just looking at your posted route. There is no access to Radar Hill off of 101 near South Nemah. You have to use the road just east of Naselle to get up there. The other road has a gate on it. This is for both of the caches up there.

6.4k · November 21, 2011

~ ANY group rates for the Hotel yet???

1.8k · November 22, 2011

Nope. I reserved the $45/night room available at the Arcadia Court Hotel, but they told me it's the only one they had at that rate.

I stayed at Our Place at the Beach when I was in town for the Astoria Cache Machine. It was pretty good.

3.7k · November 27, 2011

I reserved the $45/night room available at the Arcadia Court Hotel, but they told me it's the only one they had at that rate.

I stayed at Our Place at the Beach when I was in town for the Astoria Cache Machine. It was pretty good.

I just booked at the Arcadia as well. Travis has the $45 Cozy room, and I got the $49 Snug room. There's one more budget room ($55, king bed) left at Arcadia, plus several other rooms, some of which are suites that could be split among a few folks for a good price. Arcadia rooms.

The hotel owner is Carl; he's very nice on the phone. He was wondering why his hotel is getting business in early January. I told him about geocaching, and he said "oh, we have a cache in front of the hotel!"

1.8k · November 28, 2011

The second draft is up! Keep the suggestions coming.

The road to 63 (Coast Guard Road) is gated ... park at the parking for the Lewis and Clark Museum at N46.27865 W124.05295. There is a steep paved trail ... that heads east around the inlet ... to the lighthouse. It is a fantastic view from the lighthouse, just the hike is a bit longer then the route shows and about 200 feet of elevation change.

I think I've visualized this correctly in the second draft. Let me know if I didn't. Thanks for the detailed description.

I would add GC434C as it looks like it would be a good location for another grab. Also there have been recent finders even though it is marked disabled

Added. Thanks.

I am boycotting the discover pass until it covers all of my vehicles so my car will not be going in the park.

If you park outside, I'm sure someone will let you hang off the side of their truck ;-)

I was just looking at your posted route. There is no access to Radar Hill off of 101 near South Nemah. You have to use the road just east of Naselle to get up there. The other road has a gate on it. This is for both of the caches up there.

Yeah, those two were marginal enough already, being a 4+ mile round-trip for two caches on logging roads with elevation gain in January. I've removed them from the route.

November 29, 2011

I reserved the $45/night room available at the Arcadia Court Hotel, but they told me it's the only one they had at that rate.

I stayed at Our Place at the Beach when I was in town for the Astoria Cache Machine. It was pretty good.

I just booked at the Arcadia as well. Travis has the $45 Cozy room, and I got the $49 Snug room. There's one more budget room ($55, king bed) left at Arcadia, plus several other rooms, some of which are suites that could be split among a few folks for a good price. Arcadia rooms.

The hotel owner is Carl; he's very nice on the phone. He was wondering why his hotel is getting business in early January. I told him about geocaching, and he said "oh, we have a cache in front of the hotel!"

I just got off the phone with Carl, and we have reserved the Bosun Berth ($55) for the weekend. He asked if we were some of the Geocachers, and if we were he was going to have to charge us double, because we are such partieres and all ways leave behind a mess. (He was kidding) Seems like a nice guy.

This should be fun.

Terrible Ts

6.4k · November 29, 2011

I reserved the $45/night room available at the Arcadia Court Hotel, but they told me it's the only one they had at that rate.

I stayed at Our Place at the Beach when I was in town for the Astoria Cache Machine. It was pretty good.

I just booked at the Arcadia as well. Travis has the $45 Cozy room, and I got the $49 Snug room. There's one more budget room ($55, king bed) left at Arcadia, plus several other rooms, some of which are suites that could be split among a few folks for a good price. Arcadia rooms.

The hotel owner is Carl; he's very nice on the phone. He was wondering why his hotel is getting business in early January. I told him about geocaching, and he said "oh, we have a cache in front of the hotel!"

I just got off the phone with Carl, and we have reserved the Bosun Berth ($55) for the weekend. He asked if we were some of the Geocachers, and if we were he was going to have to charge us double, because we are such partieres and all ways leave behind a mess. (He was kidding) Seems like a nice guy.

This should be fun.

Terrible Ts

WAS this the Price for 2 nights??? Or for each??

Edited November 29, 2011 by fairyhoney

November 29, 2011

I reserved the $45/night room available at the Arcadia Court Hotel, but they told me it's the only one they had at that rate.

I stayed at Our Place at the Beach when I was in town for the Astoria Cache Machine. It was pretty good.

I just booked at the Arcadia as well. Travis has the $45 Cozy room, and I got the $49 Snug room. There's one more budget room ($55, king bed) left at Arcadia, plus several other rooms, some of which are suites that could be split among a few folks for a good price. Arcadia rooms.

The hotel owner is Carl; he's very nice on the phone. He was wondering why his hotel is getting business in early January. I told him about geocaching, and he said "oh, we have a cache in front of the hotel!"

I just got off the phone with Carl, and we have reserved the Bosun Berth ($55) for the weekend. He asked if we were some of the Geocachers, and if we were he was going to have to charge us double, because we are such partieres and all ways leave behind a mess. (He was kidding) Seems like a nice guy.

This should be fun.

Terrible Ts

WAS this the Price for 2 nights??? Or for each??

Each night. $110 total (+$20 for our dog)

Terrible Ts

8.3k · November 29, 2011

The second draft is up! Keep the suggestions coming.

I'm traveling and won't have time to get the new draft up until Wednesday or Thursday. I don't expect that will be a problem for most.

1.2k · November 30, 2011

Travis, The area around 63 and the lighthouse is exactly correct now. Glad you understood my description.

December 1, 2011

Anyone gonna camp Saturday night??

8.3k · December 1, 2011

Draft 2 bookmark is posted.

Potential problems.

GC2TVG6 - 4 DNF's in a row, disabled 11/26

GC434C - Big string of DNF's, disabled last August and recent finds. YMMV.

GC2NJTD - Couple DNF's, disabled 11/20 when CO confirmed it missing. Promise to replace.

December 5, 2011

Has it been considered that Fort Canby/Cape Disappointment is a day use park? According to the second draft we will be arriving well past sunset for #63-67. Also, #68 Summit View is listed as a steep scramble T4 which may not be wise in the dark.

December 8, 2011

Will attend. Thanks.

1.7k · December 8, 2011

Got the lodging taken care of. Now as long as we don't get tons of snow or ice that weekend, looks like one or more of us will be able to attend.

I love Long Beach and have been wanting to cache there for years now! We nearly purchased some property in Ilwaco and have gotten to know the area fairly well over the years.

1.8k · December 9, 2011

Has it been considered that Fort Canby/Cape Disappointment is a day use park? According to the second draft we will be arriving well past sunset for #63-67. Also, #68 Summit View is listed as a steep scramble T4 which may not be wise in the dark.

Somehow I dropped a question out of my FAQ two years ago, and never put it back. Consider this to be added in:

The route goes past dinner time, into Sunday. Is this a two-day event?
Nope. The extra time is a buffer, in case you're so good that you run out of caches before you run out of daylight. I don't expect to hit all of them, and designed the route so that the last section of the caches are near the evening dinner spot. Of course, if you wanted to hit them after dinner, or on Sunday, I'm sure you'll be able to find folks to join you.

I've also listed a caution on the route for Summit View indicating that it's a steep scramble. Thanks for the reminder.

Now as long as we don't get tons of snow or ice that weekend, looks like one or more of us will be able to attend.

Regardless of the weather, the event's going to be a go. If I can't make it from my home in Tacoma, I expect it'll still kick off without me. Participation is, of course, at your own risk:

Geocaching, hiking, backpacking and other outdoor activities involve risk to both persons and property. There are many variables including, but not limited to, weather, fitness level, terrain features and outdoor experience, that must be considered prior to seeking or placing a Cache. Be prepared for your journey and be sure to check the current weather and conditions before heading outdoors. Always exercise common sense and caution.

The only thing I can see causing cancellation would be a tsunami.

Edited December 9, 2011 by travisl

5.6k · December 10, 2011

The only thing I can see causing cancellation would be a tsunami.

Or an earthquake causing the whole peninsula to slid into the sea...

December 14, 2011

I used a GroupOn coupon for the Adrift in LongBeach. Looking forward to this cache machine.

December 15, 2011

I have two caches in Ocean Park for this event. Here is a road change. After you leave Pitstop GC2K5K7 the road (255th) you have listed is a closed road.

To drive to Wind Fall GC2ZHTT you will need to take U Street to get to Wind Fall coords. Thanks 0rang3D00r

1.8k · December 16, 2011

the road (255th) you have listed is a closed road.

Thanks for the heads up. Google Maps caching view confirms what you've clearly explained. It's relatively a long way around to head up to SR-103 and back down U street, adding 1.15 miles to the route.

Instead, on the final, which I'll post January 2, I'll move Wind Fall to a later spot in the route, between GC2BFT6 Nahcotta Tidelands and GC2NJTD Fern Gully (or GC2MF7H The Hen House Travelbug Motel, if Fern Gully isn't replaced in time). Because the route loops back this direction already, this only adds about 0.25 miles to the route length.

December 19, 2011

Got a place to stay (it's good to have family in the area), and looking forward to this cache machine. We will probably have a muggle with us (not sure it's the best idea to show them geocaching at a cache machine...trial by fire I guess). We've done a few of these already, so it will be fun to pick up some of the ones we weren't able to grab on our last visit down. I'm looking forward to getting some more goat's milk soap while in the area too

1.2k · December 19, 2011

Got a place to stay (it's good to have family in the area), and looking forward to this cache machine. We will probably have a muggle with us (not sure it's the best idea to show them geocaching at a cache machine...trial by fire I guess). We've done a few of these already, so it will be fun to pick up some of the ones we weren't able to grab on our last visit down. I'm looking forward to getting some more goat's milk soap while in the area too

Oh the shell shocked look in their eyes is going to be priceless. That said, I know at least one cacher who started their first cache machine with 3 caches under their belt and they survived and loved it.

December 20, 2011

Found rooms at Super 8 in Long Beach for 55/nt, and continental breakfast at 6 am. Ask for Christine.

Looks likes this will be another fun Cache Machine!

December 26, 2011

Wish I could attend (I've missed a couple cache machines recently) but I'm going to be in Seattle the week before.

I'm planning to attend the next one (Coeur D'Alene in March 2012)

This one is a good opportunity to find caches in some of the smaller counties (like Wahkiakum) for the Washington Counties Challenge. Was one of the harder counties to complete.

Fuzzywhip

Edited December 26, 2011 by Fuzzywhip

December 29, 2011

Premium member caches:

GC2Y1W6

GC2YZQY

GC2YZQY

GC14NTJ

GC2ZBPE

GC74C3

Regular members will have to use geocachingadmin.com or express logger in order to log these caches. Your on your own for coordinates.

Potential problems:

GC2EK48

GCHZ94

Once the event is published I'll post the bookmark. Or if your really anxious to get it, check my profile for my public lists. GSAK version 8 makes generating the bookmark fall down easy.

December 29, 2011

Oops, hit a wrong button... Sneaky pickle is there and will freshen up the logs before the CM

8.3k · January 2, 2012

I preparation of the final draft being posted tomorrow, I'm disabling the bookmark for now. I don't want anyone downloading the wrong bookmark. Once Travis posts the route and I have a couple hours I'll repost the final.

1.8k · January 2, 2012

1) The final route is up, available as a PDF.

2) There will be an informal pre-event dinner at 6:00 PM on Friday, January 6, at The Lost Roo, 1700 S Pacific Highway, Long Beach, N 46.34091, W 124.05435. Any last minute changes to the route will be announced there.

3) Last minute route changes will also be announced here and as a note on the dinner event page, so it might be a good idea to add it to your watch list if you haven't already done so.

4) The forecast is for a high of 46° with only a 20% chance of rain, but I can't imagine we won't get rained on in Long Beach in January, so dress warmly and dryly.

See you all soon!

[edit: link fix to PDF, deleting .EST]

Edited January 2, 2012 by travisl

8.3k · January 2, 2012

1) The final route is up, available as a PDF or as a Streets & Trips 2009 file.

Bummer

Sorry, we are unable to generate a view of the document at this time.

Please try again later.

1.8k · January 2, 2012

Sorry, we are unable to generate a view of the document at this time.
Please try again later.

Typo in the URL for the PDF, and now I remember why I never post .EST files. It's fixed. If someone wants an .EST, send me an message.

8.3k · January 2, 2012

Final draft bookmark posted. See the event page for the link.

Notes:

#5 has new coordinates in the logs, the posted coordinates are the old coordinates.

#7 is marked disabled, but folks seem to be finding it.

#37 last two logs were DNF's

See you all there!

January 4, 2012

Numbers 47 and 53 belong to me and both have recent DNFs on them. I will be making my way down for the event Friday night and will do maintenance on the both of them so that they are ready for Saturday!

1.8k · January 4, 2012

Sneaky pickle is there and will freshen up the logs before the CM

Numbers 47 and 53 belong to me and both have recent DNFs on them. I will be making my way down for the event Friday night and will do maintenance on the both of them so that they are ready for Saturday!

Thanks to both of you for being so welcoming to this herd that's visiting your corner of the great Northwest. I look forward to thanking you in person this weekend.

January 5, 2012

Number 2 seems to have been pulled.

Long Beach Cache Machine

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