10 Essentials of caching

[+Mr.Benchmark]

You forgot to list the spare film cannisters, Riff. Since two of your ten items are not physical items, and one is stuff that you wear (unless you're nude caching) you should have room for quite a few of them.

 

I think that is an excellent point. The film cannisters could be added to the Groundspeak geocaching essentials kit as a way to "turn that frown upside down - and make that darned old Did Not Find log into a Found It!" They support this idea in the newsletter! Hey, you could improve your geocaching performance by up to 10-15% (that's huge!!!!), and rake in big profits for Groundspeak! Sounds like a win-win proposition to me!!!

 

I would definitely buy the official geocaching.com Throwdown Emergency Cache Maintenance kits.

I think I just threw up, in my mouth... just a little.

 

Heh, I figured that remark would get you!

 

Sorry, that really was very snarky on my part - it was the worst idea for a geocaching product I could think of at the moment. (In appropriate of me - there have been a lot of great ideas and constructive things said in this thread.)

 

Guess there's a good reason every single one of my applications for a job in marketing over the years have been turned down?

[+6NoisyHikers]

 

Pre-printed Post-its might be a useful inclusion as well that list the cache name, location, coordinates or other geographical landmark info for caches they will be seeking. Adding the pre-printed Post-its to the geocaching kit will serve as a reminder for the geocacher to leave information for family members that come home to an empty house and wonder where their Geocaching brood has gone... and where to start looking if they are seriously overdue.

 

 

I would go for that! I'd also go for a notebook with pre-printed cache details.

Name, GC#, date, found/DNF, Cache condition, Traded Swag?, TBs dropped or retrieved...

Ok, I'm going to go make a notebook for myself!

[+BlackRose67]

I'm fairly new at geocaching.

 

When I go out, in addition to my GPSr, I currently take:

Fisher space pen or Uni-Ball Power Tank Smart pen (they write on anything in any weather)

Swiss Army Knife

Small LED flashlight

Android phone with NeonGeo

Spare NiMh and/or Lithium batteries for GPS and flashlight

Hat

Sunglasses

Car charger for the phone

Water and snack

Rhodia No. 11 pocket notepad

[etarace]

The grim reality of my pack is I have a lot more than 10 essentials. The other debris which can be found from time to time, depending upon hike and weather:

 

Mirror and auxilliary mirror.

Bubble soap - not for trade, but for blowing bubbles.

Duct tape - camo

Banana (smushed)

Pear - lovingly packed in a lock & lock

Whistle

Frog watch (traded for then fixed)

Sandwich or two (smushed)

One ancient Clif bar, which looks like it's been stepped on about 30 times

Cache containers, various sizes

A book

A map (possibly for the right park)

Plastic bags for opportunity CITO

Binder clips (for no apparent reason)

Swiss Tool - don't cache without it!

A couple of cameras, each with its one strength and many weaknesses

 

Honestly .. I have no idea why this thing weighs 25 pounds...

I think you took my bag..

[+niraD]

Actually, another thread reminded me of something I've been meaning to add to my geocaching kit: an assortment of replacement O-rings for various size Bison tubes. Now where is that round tuit?

[ll JK ll]

Delorme PN-60

iPhone 4 (for pics and field notes)

Leatherman Micra

Water

Swag box

First aid kit

Bug spray

Spare notepads, log sheets

Extra pens to place in needy caches

Various sizes of baggies

 

I carry several other items but these came to mind as the most used items in my kit.

[DannyCaffeine]

GPS

Cellphone (for emergency)

Pocket knife

Flashlight

Walking stick

Water

Snacks

Boots

Pen

Extra batteries