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I'm an Out-of-Date Cacher?


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My feet got wet this morning, collecting a find and a travel bug. Where do I contact an attorney? Can I sue the CO & the TB owner, each for mental anguish (brough about by terminal stink foot and toe rot?) :surprise:

The footrot, insanity and briar scratches are just badges of honor.

 

I fit both old school and number groups. I am a caching junkie, I'll go for whatever strikes the mood. You need a hike or a bushwhack now and then.

 

I envy the kayakers and climbers.

 

It's a treat to log a multi or puzzle that hasn't been seen in a year!

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I'm a complete n00b, which means I'm just old, not old-school. All I've done is bag a few practice finds near home but, so far, I've only been interested in looking for caches I have to hike to.

 

If the numbers game means people are keeping score based strictly on "Found its," I think it's silly that a cache on a power trail counts the same as a cache that requires a 6 mile round-trip hike, with no other caches in a 10-mile radius. Unless there's a points system based on cache density, difficulty & terrain, the numbers thing seems kind of meaningless. It's not comparing apples to oranges, it's comparing grapes to bowling balls.

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I'm a complete n00b, which means I'm just old, not old-school. All I've done is bag a few practice finds near home but, so far, I've only been interested in looking for caches I have to hike to.

 

If the numbers game means people are keeping score based strictly on "Found its," I think it's silly that a cache on a power trail counts the same as a cache that requires a 6 mile round-trip hike, with no other caches in a 10-mile radius. Unless there's a points system based on cache density, difficulty & terrain, the numbers thing seems kind of meaningless. It's not comparing apples to oranges, it's comparing grapes to bowling balls.

Ding, ding, ding! We have a winner.

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I'm a complete n00b, which means I'm just old, not old-school. All I've done is bag a few practice finds near home but, so far, I've only been interested in looking for caches I have to hike to.

 

If the numbers game means people are keeping score based strictly on "Found its," I think it's silly that a cache on a power trail counts the same as a cache that requires a 6 mile round-trip hike, with no other caches in a 10-mile radius. Unless there's a points system based on cache density, difficulty & terrain, the numbers thing seems kind of meaningless. It's not comparing apples to oranges, it's comparing grapes to bowling balls.

Yes!

The numbers don't really mean much, there are so many ways to play.

Just go out and have fun.

 

Some days fun for me was a number, other days it was finding just one good one.

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If the numbers game means people are keeping score based strictly on "Found its," I think it's silly that a cache on a power trail counts the same as a cache that requires a 6 mile round-trip hike, with no other caches in a 10-mile radius.
The numbers game can mean anything you want it to mean. Some people count smileys. Some count stars. Some count difficulty–terrain grid spaces. Some count day of the year grid spaces. Some count DeLorme pages. Some count cache type icons. Some count trackables logged. Some count average difficulty/terrain ratings. Some count USGS map quadrangles. Some count consecutive days. Some count countries/states/counties/provinces. Some count the months since someone else found the cache. And so on.

 

If you're counting Found logs, then I think it's perfectly reasonable for a cache on a numbers run trail to count the same as a lonely backwoods cache. If you think lonely backwoods caches should be worth more than caches on a numbers run trail, then you need to count something else.

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I have a few multi caches, that I like. (Nothing as hard as the OP's cache) I don't really care whether they get less finds than my traditionals. I will continue to hide them, low traffic or not. I have one that uses waypoint projection, and it gets very little traffic and a somewhat long history tour cache, which doesn't get that much traffic either, but I have no problem with that. I do, however, work to simplify them to make them easier. Unfortunately, I had to make the history tour more complicated, because one of the local cachers googled the answers to avoid having to actually go on the tour. I don't appreciate that kind of lazyness.

Edited by Dgwphotos
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Unfortunately, I had to make the history tour more complicated, because one of the local cachers googled the answers to avoid having to actually go on the tour. I don't appreciate that kind of lazyness.

 

It's not necessarily lazyness. It can be a challenge itself trying to crack certain stages without going there by using diverse tools and searching techniques. Such approaches are appealing to a certain group of puzzle fans. I know from others and from personal experience that sometimes it feels much better to be able to obtain the coordinates of a cache without visiting the stages than by simply visiting them and doing what everyone is able to do without any effort. (The methods used are often much more complex than simplying using google and taking one of the first 5 hits.)

 

I have obtained the final coordinates of several caches in that manner, but always have visited the stages if they were not well known to me anyway. When I used this approach, I did not too it to save time (sometimes going to a location costs less time than the alternative approach), but to see what can be done just out of curiosity or to deal with a cache when I was not able to go outdoors.

 

You always will be confronted with different target audiences. Some cachers will prefer if the tasks are as simple as possible and already regard simple calculations as tiresome while other people will be challenged to exploit the weaknesses of very simple tasks. Typically the latter group of people owns the sort of thinking that checks concepts for their crackability. If this sort of thinking is in inherent in a person, it cannot be easily switched off. One needs to take into account that among the cachers there are also people who deal in their job with solving problems, checking concepts for their weaknesses etc. I know for example a couple of stories where someone started out with one set of calculations for the final and later on changed over to another one (e.g. to make things simpler). What these people typically miss that by solving some systems of equations one often can obtain much more than they want to give away.

There are just two ways out: Either live with the situation that if the tasks are somehow weak some people will regard it as challenge to find alternative approaches, or try to come up with strong tasks.

 

Cezanne

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Unfortunately, I had to make the history tour more complicated, because one of the local cachers googled the answers to avoid having to actually go on the tour. I don't appreciate that kind of lazyness.

 

It's not necessarily lazyness. It can be a challenge itself trying to crack certain stages without going there by using diverse tools and searching techniques. ....

Some cachers will prefer if the tasks are as simple as possible and already regard simple calculations as tiresome while other people will be challenged to exploit the weaknesses of very simple tasks. Typically the latter group of people owns the sort of thinking that checks concepts for their crackability. If this sort of thinking is in inherent in a person, it cannot be easily switched off. One needs to take into account that among the cachers there are also people who deal in their job with solving problems, checking concepts for their weaknesses etc....if the tasks are somehow weak some people will regard it as challenge to find alternative approaches, or try to come up with strong tasks.

 

Cezanne

 

Excellent summary!!

Cache owners need to understand this.

It's often more fun (for some, for me) to "crack" the design then to simply follow it. Having fun is the name of the game.

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Unfortunately, I had to make the history tour more complicated, because one of the local cachers googled the answers to avoid having to actually go on the tour. I don't appreciate that kind of lazyness.

 

It's not necessarily lazyness. It can be a challenge itself trying to crack certain stages without going there by using diverse tools and searching techniques. ....

Some cachers will prefer if the tasks are as simple as possible and already regard simple calculations as tiresome while other people will be challenged to exploit the weaknesses of very simple tasks. Typically the latter group of people owns the sort of thinking that checks concepts for their crackability. If this sort of thinking is in inherent in a person, it cannot be easily switched off. One needs to take into account that among the cachers there are also people who deal in their job with solving problems, checking concepts for their weaknesses etc....if the tasks are somehow weak some people will regard it as challenge to find alternative approaches, or try to come up with strong tasks.

 

Cezanne

 

Excellent summary!!

Cache owners need to understand this.

It's often more fun (for some, for me) to "crack" the design then to simply follow it. Having fun is the name of the game.

I can undersand why some folks would try things like this. There's an Earthcache in this area that I knew the answers to the monent it was published. In fact when I logged it I found out I knew more about than the owner did. I didn't log it until I stopped by because that's the way I play this game. I don't think it was lazyness that made the cacher skip your to just as cezanne pointed out. It would have been best if they had it even though they solved the tour. However not ever cacher will do what you want them to. It's just the nature of the beast.

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Unfortunately, I had to make the history tour more complicated, because one of the local cachers googled the answers to avoid having to actually go on the tour. I don't appreciate that kind of lazyness.

 

It's not necessarily lazyness. It can be a challenge itself trying to crack certain stages without going there by using diverse tools and searching techniques. Such approaches are appealing to a certain group of puzzle fans. I know from others and from personal experience that sometimes it feels much better to be able to obtain the coordinates of a cache without visiting the stages than by simply visiting them and doing what everyone is able to do without any effort. (The methods used are often much more complex than simplying using google and taking one of the first 5 hits.)

 

I have obtained the final coordinates of several caches in that manner, but always have visited the stages if they were not well known to me anyway. When I used this approach, I did not too it to save time (sometimes going to a location costs less time than the alternative approach), but to see what can be done just out of curiosity or to deal with a cache when I was not able to go outdoors.

 

You always will be confronted with different target audiences. Some cachers will prefer if the tasks are as simple as possible and already regard simple calculations as tiresome while other people will be challenged to exploit the weaknesses of very simple tasks. Typically the latter group of people owns the sort of thinking that checks concepts for their crackability. If this sort of thinking is in inherent in a person, it cannot be easily switched off. One needs to take into account that among the cachers there are also people who deal in their job with solving problems, checking concepts for their weaknesses etc. I know for example a couple of stories where someone started out with one set of calculations for the final and later on changed over to another one (e.g. to make things simpler). What these people typically miss that by solving some systems of equations one often can obtain much more than they want to give away.

There are just two ways out: Either live with the situation that if the tasks are somehow weak some people will regard it as challenge to find alternative approaches, or try to come up with strong tasks.

 

Cezanne

 

I have a multi (Miss Veedol) that takes you driving for miles all around town. There are eight stops total. I felt bad when setting it up, because of cost of gas and time, so I made a way that people could do all the stages online, and I pretty much say that in two places in the description.

 

I've been surprised that in the (almost) two years that the cache has been out, it has 17 finds on it, and except for a couple that I'm not sure about, it looks like everybody went to the physical locations. But hey, they really seemed to enjoy it, which was the point of setting up the multi.

 

I probably won't get that many more finders, as the core group of cachers in my area have found it. But I'm still happy with the cache.

Edited by Ambrosia
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My feet got wet this morning, collecting a find and a travel bug. Where do I contact an attorney? Can I sue the CO & the TB owner, each for mental anguish (brough about by terminal stink foot and toe rot?) :surprise:

 

The judge you would get would probably be an avid cahcer and throw the case out because you actially found a TB which is rare theses days! :D

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I have a multi (Miss Veedol) that takes you driving for miles all around town. There are eight stops total. I felt bad when setting it up, because of cost of gas and time, so I made a way that people could do all the stages online, and I pretty much say that in two places in the description.

 

I've been surprised that in the (almost) two years that the cache has been out, it has 17 finds on it, and except for a couple that I'm not sure about, it looks like everybody went to the physical locations. But hey, they really seemed to enjoy it, which was the point of setting up the multi.

 

In this case cracking is not a challenge and not interesting. The interesting case is where one is able to do something the cache hider has not planned. If a simple 10 seconds google brings the results, it gets boring.

 

Moreover, as I said, I use to visit the locations of a cache also if I am able to obtain the information in another way unless the locations are already well known to me. I would enjoy a cache with eight stops and would do it by bicycle - but yes, I know the traffic situation where I live is different.

 

Cezanne

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I agree wholeheartedly with Snoogans on this one, as I've had the pleasure of finding many of Snoogan's hides in the Eastern Sierras. Most of them are/were challenging and some were pretty innovative hides for their time. The Off-road Adventure Series (Can't remember the actual cache names) took some serious effort to get to and had great views to go along with them. I also had the pleasure of caching with Ranboze who also liked getting the tougher caches to find, although she went after the long hike caches and really rural hides. Having lived in the Sierras full time, I had hoped there would be more cachers that would make hiking or off-road hides and was not disappointed when MrSR71 started hiding caches in the area. The Southern California numbers crowd started hiding street sign, newspaper machine hides, etc. and a lot of the park and grab type of caches, but there's still plenty of middle of nowhere type hides to seek. My feeling is that caching has changed drastically after Groundspeak started allowing "power trails", or as some call them "Series caches" ie: ET Highway, Route 66, etc. . Most of the people who hide or seek these types of caches don't really care about the scenery or effort it takes to get to a cache, they just want the numbers. It's too bad as I've seen logs where somebody finds a rural cache or caches have been muggled, and write "Our whole day was ruined due to muggles stealing the power trail caches. Apparently they don't see the value of being out in the beautiful desert on a sunny day, just the fact that they couldn't get 50-100 finds for the day. It's too bad, in my opinion, that goecaching has gone down that road to a large extent. Ther's still great caches that take effort to get to, and those are the ones I'll tend to seek out most of the time. If you call me "old-school" that's fine with me. And thanks to Snoogans for placing caches in the Mammoth/June Lake area. It' much appreciated...........

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Out-of-Date cacher? Hmm...

Went off caching in an area that we've cleared a few times. There had been some very nice caches. Maybe a low number, but some memorable ones. New caches! Umm... Maybe one worth finding? And that was a non-waterproof container that had a broken top. Four of the eight had coords forty feet off, as noted by several finders. One with the bottom broken off. Three in interesting areas! Look for a fake sprinkler head? We found a coffee can. Dunno if that were a throw down or not. 1/1 'available from outside the park'. Only if you can fit your hand through the cyclone fence, and manage to find it with the coords 40' off. And the log was wet.

Guess I'm out-of-date and old-fashioned. Makes me wonder why I bothered looking for these caches...

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Out-of-Date cacher? Hmm...

Went off caching in an area that we've cleared a few times. There had been some very nice caches. Maybe a low number, but some memorable ones. New caches! Umm... Maybe one worth finding? And that was a non-waterproof container that had a broken top. Four of the eight had coords forty feet off, as noted by several finders. One with the bottom broken off. Three in interesting areas! Look for a fake sprinkler head? We found a coffee can. Dunno if that were a throw down or not. 1/1 'available from outside the park'. Only if you can fit your hand through the cyclone fence, and manage to find it with the coords 40' off. And the log was wet.

Guess I'm out-of-date and old-fashioned. Makes me wonder why I bothered looking for these caches...

A coffee can? That's old school. :laughing:

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I love long hike caches and long multis! My second favorite find last year was an 11-stage multi over several miles and several thousand feet of elevation gain! Had it been 11 separate caches, it could have been tempting to quit after just a few. Also it would have been much less rewarding to find the final.

One of my all-time favorite caches was a traditional that was 2 miles up the California coast. Sure, a power trail could yield 20 smilies in that distance, but I wouldn't trade the experience for 1,000 smilies!

 

I cache for the experience, not the numbers. :smile:

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And thanks to Snoogans for placing caches in the Mammoth/June Lake area. It' much appreciated...........

 

I'd love to go find some of those caches some day. I lived in California for 40 years and traveled all over the State. The Mammoth/June Lake ares is one of my favorite places in a state that has a *lot* of really nice areas to visit.

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they all count for one !

just ONE !

no matter if it is a 10 sec P&G

or a full weekend of hiking on that 5 star hardcore multi.

so what ?

you do what you like, please..

Wrong.

 

They all raise your find count by one.

 

Saying they all count the same is like saying kissing your Aunt Flo is the same as making out with the hot babe from the bar every guy was watching all night.

 

They both raise your kiss count by one but they're not the same.

Edited by Totem Clan
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they all count for one !

just ONE !

no matter if it is a 10 sec P&G

or a full weekend of hiking on that 5 star hardcore multi.

so what ?

you do what you like, please..

Wrong.

 

They all raise your find count by one.

 

Saying they all count the same is like saying kissing your Aunt Flo is the same as making out with the hot babe from the bar every guy was watching all night.

 

They both raise your kiss count by one but their not the same.

 

:laughing: :laughing: :laughing: :laughing: :laughing:

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Yesterday's definition of "Fun"

 

Lexy to Hicks

 

Drive-ups ... <_<

 

Wow. I lived in Los Gatos for several years, did a lot of fishing at Lexington reservoir, and road dirt bikes in those hills many times, so I'm pretty familiar with the area. That's quite a hike.

 

These big hike finds are some of the most rewarding, taking us places above or away from it all. One hide placed along the route mentions snow on Mt. Umunhum. While it isn't rare to see snow on the higher peaks around the Bay Area, it's a real treat to be hiking up there and coming around a corner in the trail and seeing it. Also a blast to be snowed upon up here. I grew up in the Great White North, but don't get to see it up close very much, living where I do. It's that old journey being it's own reward sorta fing.

 

Very impressed the first to finders, who helped me with a GPSr malfunction the weekend before, mountain biked all the way up to this one from their home near Los Gatos to keep a clean slate on the trail. :anibad:

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Yesterday's definition of "Fun"

 

Lexy to Hicks

 

Drive-ups ... <_<

 

Wow. I lived in Los Gatos for several years, did a lot of fishing at Lexington reservoir, and road dirt bikes in those hills many times, so I'm pretty familiar with the area. That's quite a hike.

 

These big hike finds are some of the most rewarding, taking us places above or away from it all. One hide placed along the route mentions snow on Mt. Umunhum. While it isn't rare to see snow on the higher peaks around the Bay Area, it's a real treat to be hiking up there and coming around a corner in the trail and seeing it. Also a blast to be snowed upon up here. I grew up in the Great White North, but don't get to see it up close very much, living where I do. It's that old journey being it's own reward sorta fing.

 

Very impressed the first to finders, who helped me with a GPSr malfunction the weekend before, mountain biked all the way up to this one from their home near Los Gatos to keep a clean slate on the trail. :anibad:

 

When I lived there it was fairly common to see snow up on Mt. Hamilton but I'd seen snow coming over the summit on highway 17 a few times as well.

 

There used to be a trail that started at the Novitiate (before it became a full time winery) in Los Gatos and went up and over the hill to Lexington. When I was a kid I road a bicycle over that trail several times and I lived about 5 miles away from the Novitiate (off Quito Rd.). I also to ride a dirt bike up near Mt. Umunhum when I was a kid as well as on numerous trails near Loma Prieta.

 

The closest I've been to the area since I started geocaching was when I spent a couple of days a few years ago in Mountain View to attend a meeting at Google.

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they all count for one !

just ONE !

no matter if it is a 10 sec P&G

or a full weekend of hiking on that 5 star hardcore multi.

so what ?

you do what you like, please..

Wrong.

 

They all raise your find count by one.

 

Saying they all count the same is like saying kissing your Aunt Flo is the same as making out with the hot babe from the bar every guy was watching all night.

 

They both raise your kiss count by one but their not the same.

Indeed.

 

There's a 24-part multi/puzzle near me in a very historic cemetery. You can spend the better part of an afternoon chasing down all of the "famous residents" to get the information needed to get the final coords.

 

The response when I told someone that I was really itching to do this cache? "All that work for one find? No way!"

 

Nevermind that there are at least 4 other caches (multis & puzzles as well) in the same cemetery that you can complete while you're at it, as long as you're paying attention to what you're walking past and keep track of all your waypoints & notes.

 

The experience of that one cache would be worth more to me than the half-dozen plain-jane caches I found in another cemetery this weekend.

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Hello,

Long time forum reader, first time participant. I felt the need to comment on this one, because I love the idea of a long hike cache. I'm not what you would call an avid cacher - I only have 61 finds, and I go months at a time without searching for a cache. For me, caching is more of a thing that I do when I have a free weekend and I just want to go outside. When I first started caching, I thought I would be one of those people with thousands of finds, but then I quickly discovered that most of the caches in my area are completely uninteresting and not worth the time. Boring caches are the reason why I only have 61 finds after about two years of being a cacher. I want to be taken somewhere interesting when I go geocaching! I don't care if I spend an entire day looking for just one cache. I no longer care how many finds I have, and I don't care if a cache contains swag or not. Most of the caches I find are filled with junk anyway. I do not like park & grabs, and I do not care if I never get a FTF. I guess I'm an outdoorsy hiker who uses geocaching to find great new hikes. Don't get me wrong - I do enjoy geocaching. I do enjoy finding hidden things, especially ones in clever containers or hiding places. It would be nice if there were more caches like yours for casual cashers/hiking enthusiasts like me. I like multi caches because then I get to find several things on one hiking trip. So, maybe caching has changed. I'll never be one of the cool cachers, but I'm perfectly content with being out-of-date.

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Hello,

Long time forum reader, first time participant. I felt the need to comment on this one, because I love the idea of a long hike cache. I'm not what you would call an avid cacher - I only have 61 finds, and I go months at a time without searching for a cache. For me, caching is more of a thing that I do when I have a free weekend and I just want to go outside. When I first started caching, I thought I would be one of those people with thousands of finds, but then I quickly discovered that most of the caches in my area are completely uninteresting and not worth the time. Boring caches are the reason why I only have 61 finds after about two years of being a cacher. I want to be taken somewhere interesting when I go geocaching! I don't care if I spend an entire day looking for just one cache. I no longer care how many finds I have, and I don't care if a cache contains swag or not. Most of the caches I find are filled with junk anyway. I do not like park & grabs, and I do not care if I never get a FTF. I guess I'm an outdoorsy hiker who uses geocaching to find great new hikes. Don't get me wrong - I do enjoy geocaching. I do enjoy finding hidden things, especially ones in clever containers or hiding places. It would be nice if there were more caches like yours for casual cashers/hiking enthusiasts like me. I like multi caches because then I get to find several things on one hiking trip. So, maybe caching has changed. I'll never be one of the cool cachers, but I'm perfectly content with being out-of-date.

 

As Popeye says, "I yam what I yam." Don't compare yourself to other cachers and expect the result to be personally meaningful. Just have fun and cache to your own drummer. :)

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....has caching changed that much over the years that a long hike is not considered a good cache anymore?

 

Not at all. The difference is that now cachers want those long hikes riddled with other caches along the way.

I was wading through all the replies to see if anyone else noticed this too as it was going to be my comment.

 

We used to have caches sitting on top of mountains or at the end of a long trail. That was the goal. Now it seems every trail has been littered with multiple caches along the way because "one smiley isn't good enough" to motivate people.

 

The only place to stash a matchstick container in the woods should be in your backpack and if there's going to be a log sheet in it it should be because you want it for kindling. :laughing:

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they all count for one !

just ONE !

no matter if it is a 10 sec P&G

or a full weekend of hiking on that 5 star hardcore multi.

so what ?

you do what you like, please..

Wrong.

 

They all raise your find count by one.

 

Saying they all count the same is like saying kissing your Aunt Flo is the same as making out with the hot babe from the bar every guy was watching all night.

 

They both raise your kiss count by one but their not the same.

Indeed.

 

There's a 24-part multi/puzzle near me in a very historic cemetery. You can spend the better part of an afternoon chasing down all of the "famous residents" to get the information needed to get the final coords.

 

The response when I told someone that I was really itching to do this cache? "All that work for one find? No way!"

 

Nevermind that there are at least 4 other caches (multis & puzzles as well) in the same cemetery that you can complete while you're at it, as long as you're paying attention to what you're walking past and keep track of all your waypoints & notes.

 

The experience of that one cache would be worth more to me than the half-dozen plain-jane caches I found in another cemetery this weekend.

 

Although it was not as elaborate as the multi you're describing I went to do a multi that was about 25 miles south of where I live. I had to grab 6 numbers from various headstones at a cemetery then, after doing the math, discovered that the final was 12 miles away (and not on the way home). Two years later, I still haven't gone to search for the final container, and even though I don't even have one smiley for the effort, searching for the information at that particular cemetery was worth the effort. If the preliminary stages were not located there I would have never driven to the top of the hill where the cemetery was located and taken in the wonderful views of the valley below and spent some time in a really pretty cemetery.

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You can not get 100+ finds in a day if each one has 10+ stages and you have to walk 0.1+ miles for each.

 

When i started caching almost ten years ago, i considered it a great day if i walked five miles and found three caches.

 

On the other hand, i get a little cranky if i spend several hours on a multi just to fail on the final stage.

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Hello,

Long time forum reader, first time participant. I felt the need to comment on this one, because I love the idea of a long hike cache. I'm not what you would call an avid cacher - I only have 61 finds, and I go months at a time without searching for a cache. For me, caching is more of a thing that I do when I have a free weekend and I just want to go outside. When I first started caching, I thought I would be one of those people with thousands of finds, but then I quickly discovered that most of the caches in my area are completely uninteresting and not worth the time. Boring caches are the reason why I only have 61 finds after about two years of being a cacher. I want to be taken somewhere interesting when I go geocaching! I don't care if I spend an entire day looking for just one cache. I no longer care how many finds I have, and I don't care if a cache contains swag or not. Most of the caches I find are filled with junk anyway. I do not like park & grabs, and I do not care if I never get a FTF. I guess I'm an outdoorsy hiker who uses geocaching to find great new hikes. Don't get me wrong - I do enjoy geocaching. I do enjoy finding hidden things, especially ones in clever containers or hiding places. It would be nice if there were more caches like yours for casual cashers/hiking enthusiasts like me. I like multi caches because then I get to find several things on one hiking trip. So, maybe caching has changed. I'll never be one of the cool cachers, but I'm perfectly content with being out-of-date.

 

As Popeye says, "I yam what I yam." Don't compare yourself to other cachers and expect the result to be personally meaningful. Just have fun and cache to your own drummer. :)

And that's the way I've always looked at it. I would never want to go a big numbers run like some cachers do just because I wouldn't have time to enjoy where I was. I like to take my time and look around some when I'm caching. Even when I urban cahce. But that's me. If another cacher wants to go on nothing but numbers runs, then fine.

 

That's what bothered me about the comment this lady made. Caching hasn't changed for me but it does seem that it has morphed in some new ways. I just wonder how much.

Edited by Totem Clan
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NYPaddleCacher and DragonsWest.......I used to live in the Felton/Boulder Creek area for years, and am familiar with all the places you're discussing. I have fond memories of riding my old Husky 390 dirt bike around Loma Prieta and on the sand trails heading up to Mt. Umunhum and Mt. Madonna. I left there when I was 24 years old, and don't really visit the area anymore, even though my sister lives in Capitola. I got a kick out of the kissing Aunt Flo remark, and agree wholeheartedly. I guess if you're into finds numbers, it may be the same, but the quality may not be the same. We used to get caught up in the numbers thing when we started playing this game (not a sport) many years ago. At that time, there was only a few hundred cachers (just guessing) that were involved in the whole thing, and quite a few of us knew the other cachers personally. Cache events obviously didn't have the attendance that they do today, so it was a closer knit group of people getting together. Now, with all the flash mob crap, everybody gets together for a quick photo-op and runs off to grab a few more dog-poop container caches. To say every cache is the same because your find count bumped up one, is ridiculous, but that seems to be the mentality of quite a few cachers nowadays. It's too bad, as far as I'm concerned, but if that's the way they want to play the game, have at it. But if I hear the quote "you play the game your way, I'll play it mine" one more time, I'll vomit on my keyboard. Every game has rules and guidelines, and to skirt those rules, or cheat, says quite a bit about the person doing so. Some may not like my opinion on this, but I really don't care. I have just as much right to express my views, as you do to express yours. The most timportant thing to me is that my wife and I seek the caches we only really want to go after, most of the time, and don't feel compelled to get every cache within 20 miles of our home. I drive by hundreds of caches every day, and don't feel that I have to grab each and every one on the way to work and back. This is just my opinion, although I know many other "old-time" cachers who feel the same way, but may not say so. Anyway, that's my two cents worth..........

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NYPaddleCacher and DragonsWest.......I used to live in the Felton/Boulder Creek area for years, and am familiar with all the places you're discussing. I have fond memories of riding my old Husky 390 dirt bike around Loma Prieta and on the sand trails heading up to Mt. Umunhum and Mt. Madonna. I left there when I was 24 years old, and don't really visit the area anymore, even though my sister lives in Capitola. I got a kick out of the kissing Aunt Flo remark, and agree wholeheartedly. I guess if you're into finds numbers, it may be the same, but the quality may not be the same. We used to get caught up in the numbers thing when we started playing this game (not a sport) many years ago. At that time, there was only a few hundred cachers (just guessing) that were involved in the whole thing, and quite a few of us knew the other cachers personally. Cache events obviously didn't have the attendance that they do today, so it was a closer knit group of people getting together. Now, with all the flash mob crap, everybody gets together for a quick photo-op and runs off to grab a few more dog-poop container caches. To say every cache is the same because your find count bumped up one, is ridiculous, but that seems to be the mentality of quite a few cachers nowadays. It's too bad, as far as I'm concerned, but if that's the way they want to play the game, have at it. But if I hear the quote "you play the game your way, I'll play it mine" one more time, I'll vomit on my keyboard. Every game has rules and guidelines, and to skirt those rules, or cheat, says quite a bit about the person doing so. Some may not like my opinion on this, but I really don't care. I have just as much right to express my views, as you do to express yours. The most timportant thing to me is that my wife and I seek the caches we only really want to go after, most of the time, and don't feel compelled to get every cache within 20 miles of our home. I drive by hundreds of caches every day, and don't feel that I have to grab each and every one on the way to work and back. This is just my opinion, although I know many other "old-time" cachers who feel the same way, but may not say so. Anyway, that's my two cents worth..........

I have to agree with you there. Arnold Palmer once said that he would never make a business deal with a person until he had played a friendly round of golf with them. He said that if they didn't have integrity and self-control on the course while playing a game, they most absurdly would not have it in the rest of life.

If you can’t be trust to play with Tupperware with cheating yourself, what will you to others when it really counts?

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But if I hear the quote "you play the game your way, I'll play it mine" one more time, I'll vomit on my keyboard. Every game has rules and guidelines, and to skirt those rules, or cheat, says quite a bit about the person doing so.

I have to agree with you there. Arnold Palmer once said that he would never make a business deal with a person until he had played a friendly round of golf with them. He said that if they didn't have integrity and self-control on the course while playing a game, they most absurdly would not have it in the rest of life.

If you can’t be trust to play with Tupperware with cheating yourself, what will you to others when it really counts?

 

I also agree, but I think it goes beyond whether one is cheating themselves.

 

The "you play the game your way, I'll play it mine" mantra is all well and good up until the point where one one person plays that game has a negative impact on another". If "how you play the game" includes playing loose and free with the guidelines, and specifically guidelines that are in place to present Geocaching in a favorable light, then "you play the game your way, I'll play it mine" starts to look more like "I'll play the game my way whether you like it or not".

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For the last year I have been working on a 16 WP multi that circles the entire city. I am only half done. So I think your idea is great. Maybe give some private property info to cacher who are going to do it one or two stages at a time.

Yeah, I was planning on doing that.

 

I was hoping to have it ready this week, but it doesn't look like I will. Real life keeps rearing its ugly head.

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My daughter and I did the whole loop today. From the parking coords all the way around and back, hiding the caches as we went, it took about 4 hours.

 

What a beautiful hike. The wildflowers were in full bloom. The birds were all out. We even saw a bobcat, some deer, and the first rattlesnake of the season. There was one point while going arcoss a 1/4 mile wide meadow at the far point of the loop where we could not see any sign of man at all. It was like we were the only two in the world.

 

What I great day. .... and my find count didn't go up but we went home with smiles. She even said that now she has more stories to tell her grandkids someday. :D

 

 

That wasn't kissing Aunt Flo!!!

Edited by Totem Clan
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My daughter and I did the whole loop today. From the parking coords all the way around and back, hiding the caches as we went, it took about 4 hours.

 

What a beautiful hike. The wildflowers were in full bloom. The birds were all out. We even saw a bobcat, some deer, and the first rattlesnake of the season. There was one point while going arcoss a 1/4 mile wide meadow at the far point of the loop where we could not see any sign of man at all. It was like we were the only two the world.

 

What I great day. .... and my find count didn't go up be we went with smiles. She even said that now she has more stories to tell her grandkids someday. :D

 

 

That wasn't kissing Aunt Flo!!!

Reading this alone made me want to visit your state. Sounds great.

I drove 25 miles one way two weeks ago to hike a multi with my family and a couple of friends. Only cache I did all day.

Thanks for sharing.

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Yesterday I hiked 7 miles and found 10 caches (2 were multis) in a neat little park I had never been to before. Thats why I cache. I think this game evolves as the players change. In my area micros seem to have now become small. Folks feel the need to hide something in every parking lot and race for the FTF. People also like to claim a find for getting to the area were a cache used to be and is not maintained. My guess its a lot like that all over. My next 2 hides will be (1) a multi with a significant hike and (2) a bonus that you have to find the former to get the corrds too :grin: Look for what you like and hide what you like to look for. Dont worry if it only gets less than 15 finds in a year, unlike the LPC with 15 finds the first day :laughing: Oh yeah I was the jerk who droped the NA on the missing cache and didnt not claim a :) So I guess Im an out of date jerk old schooler :antenna:

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I just wanted to add a bit here.

 

I learned about caching in 2005 and because of "real life" obligations could not devote the time to it that I do now. I live in the Sierra Nevada above 5000ft. I am personally glad that there are so many different ways to play the game. There is a place in this "sport", yes sport because I sweat, for hike-ins, power runs, puzzels, etc! While the origins of this sport-game are with individuals who could hike confidently into the bush, there are those of us who are a little older and not willing or able to set out into the deep cover for a find.

 

I enjoy the cache that takes me to a senic area. I am still able to hike a bit but can see the sunset of that activity in my future. I value the hide that I can drive to and see some amazing thing along the way, many of which can be man made or historic. I feel that the cachers who feel that caching is pure only in it's original form have yet to age enough where they discover that things in life can become more difficult with age.

 

I have been doing power runs for the past few months across the countryb and frankly have gotten bored. I now am focusing on experiencing high favorite point caches and randomly selected ones.

 

Glad the game has so many facets!

 

Edited by klipsch49er
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My wife and I tend to be open to any form of geocaching. Though with her having multiple issues with her feet we tend to avoid the crazier terrain ratings and yes, we'll grab P & G's usually when we're doing errands or other mundane things.

 

My father in law (who started caching long before us) is a die hard "hike up a mountain type" who isn't really interested in any other type of caching. I guess that's why geocaching is so great there's so many ways to play the game.

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My wife and I tend to be open to any form of geocaching. Though with her having multiple issues with her feet we tend to avoid the crazier terrain ratings and yes, we'll grab P & G's usually when we're doing errands or other mundane things.

 

My father in law (who started caching long before us) is a die hard "hike up a mountain type" who isn't really interested in any other type of caching. I guess that's why geocaching is so great there's so many ways to play the game.

 

A grate point! Not to long ago a family team not to far from me came out of "retirement" They were active in the very beginning days and had many hides. After knee surgery and other family health issues they had to give up the game for a long time. We exchanged emails a few times taking about caching in general and they were amazed at how the hobby had grown. It was not uncommon to drive 50-100 miles to find 6 or less a day. Neither one we to thrilled with all the LPC's out there but with their limited mobility they understood the change. They still prefer the park/woods type caches. She told me there are now over 1000 caches 100 miles from my zip I have no interest in looking for. Its all part of the game/sport/hobby/obsession :anibad:

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My wife and I tend to be open to any form of geocaching. Though with her having multiple issues with her feet we tend to avoid the crazier terrain ratings and yes, we'll grab P & G's usually when we're doing errands or other mundane things.

 

My father in law (who started caching long before us) is a die hard "hike up a mountain type" who isn't really interested in any other type of caching. I guess that's why geocaching is so great there's so many ways to play the game.

Exacatly.

 

My wife used to be the first to go after caches like this in a heartbeat. Now her health just won't let her. It makes her mad. :(

 

Caching should be something everyone can do and enjoy. It should not be limited to just one group. It should not become just a bunch of long hikes. In the same vien it should not become just a bunch of P&G's at Wally World.

Caching may have swung more toward the urban tech crowd and away from the hiker/camper crowd, but not to the exclusion of either group.

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"Get with the times" has always been a rude comment, usually rendered by narrow-minded people. Nothing I see in this case leads me to change that opinion.

 

Yes, geocaching has changed. I'm pretty sure a higher percentage of cachers are interested in quick around-town caches. But that doesn't mean fewer are interested in good, hiking caches, in absolute numbers. On the contrary -- it appears to me that few hiking cachers have quit, and more have joined the game. I have two challenge caches that require a lot of hiking. They are currently being worked by cachers who hadn't even joined the game when I placed them. That tells me that new hikers are joining geocaching. And I see many more good hiking caches now than five years ago.

 

Maybe I'll come out to do your cache ... hey, I have relatives in Ardmore, that's only 180 miles away.

 

Edward

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