How well do "fake rock" cache containers work?

[Nick - Cacher]

Hi, I was thinking of ordering online one of those fake rock geocache containers. Although geocaching.com is out of stock for these, other websites have them too. I was wondering if these rocks only look neat to a lot of people and that's the only reason they're out of stock, or do they actually work well (example, some think the fake pine cones are too shiny to look realistic; how do these rocks compare)?

 

I've noticed some things which are supposed to look real often look fake. I was curious if these come across as realistic? How easy are they for others to find?

[+StarBrand]

I don't know about the new ones but I have had one out in the wild for around 6 years that I bought from the site. Several finders comment that it took a bit to spot it. Only rock in the area and it doesn't stand out as fake. It did go through a brief faze where the color faded a bit in the bright sunlight but now it just looks all the more natural.

[+JesandTodd]

Depends. If its the only rock nestled in a bed of forested earth, they are pretty easy to pick out. But when I saw them in Az, in a field of rocks, they are literally a needle in a haystack. And brutal. Just brutal...

[+The_Incredibles_]

Overall they work well. How well depends on the placement. The only issue I've noticed is many fake rock containers are not waterproof. If they contain just a ziplock to keep the log dry, the log is often wet.

[+The A-Team]

The only issue I've noticed is many fake rock containers are not waterproof. If they contain just a ziplock to keep the log dry, the log is often wet.

+1

The fake rocks are not and are not intended to be watertight. They're designed to hold a spare key for your house, and it doesn't matter if that gets wet. You will need to use some kind of waterproof container, like one of the larger Bison tubes, inside the fake rock. Like The_Incredibles_ said, just a ziploc won't cut it. I've seen oh so many wet logs inside fake rocks.

[+power69]

Hi, I was thinking of ordering online one of those fake rock geocache containers. Although geocaching.com is out of stock for these, other websites have them too. I was wondering if these rocks only look neat to a lot of people and that's the only reason they're out of stock, or do they actually work well (example, some think the fake pine cones are too shiny to look realistic; how do these rocks compare)?

 

I've noticed some things which are supposed to look real often look fake. I was curious if these come across as realistic? How easy are they for others to find?

find em at your local locksmith shop or your local home improvement store[home depot, lowes etc]

[+NYPaddleCacher]

Overall they work well. How well depends on the placement. The only issue I've noticed is many fake rock containers are not waterproof. If they contain just a ziplock to keep the log dry, the log is often wet.

 

I've got a fake rock hide that uses a real rock that I drilled out to place a "bison" tube inside. It's not a "real" bison (it's slightly larger) and I've had problems with keeping the log dry even with the log sheets inside a plastic baggie inside the "bison" tube. It's not meant to be a difficult hide but that container follows the theme of the cache.

[knowschad]

Hi, I was thinking of ordering online one of those fake rock geocache containers. Although geocaching.com is out of stock for these, other websites have them too. I was wondering if these rocks only look neat to a lot of people and that's the only reason they're out of stock, or do they actually work well (example, some think the fake pine cones are too shiny to look realistic; how do these rocks compare)?

 

I've noticed some things which are supposed to look real often look fake. I was curious if these come across as realistic? How easy are they for others to find?

 

The "official" ones have the Groundspeak logo molded into them. In addition, they all look alike. No surprise to an experienced cacher... most can be spotted at a distance. Much better to make your own. I've made them using epoxy putty molded around a plastic match container and painted with "granite" spray paint. Takes more effort, but you will then have a container that nobody has seen before.

[+the4dirtydogs]

I have a fake rock in play but I use the fake rock for the 1st stage of our multi. I wrote the coords on the inside with a sharpie and the rock seems to be holding up. It's hidden on an old rock chimney on a hiking trail. I'm like the rest here, these are not water tight. I like the idea of making your own so the container will keep the log dry. I've seen a lot of bison tube drilled into real rocks and those seem to last. I just don't like looking for those type of hides anymore.

[+OZ2CPU]

The whole idea is (I hope) the fake rock should be possible to find by geocachers who are looking for it,

and impossible to spot by muglers who come by this location by accident.

I hope you do not try to make cache containers IMPOSSIBLE to find by geocachers ?

[Love]

We include a micro cache capsule with the fake rocks on Shop Geocaching so that the log will be in a water proof container.

 

I love finding any type of rock cache container. I remember searching for 45 minutes and coming up empty handed for my first rock cache. It occurred to me later that the HUGE rock that I walked past about 50 times could have been a fake rock. Sure enough when I went back, there was an ammo can under the rock. Talk about feeling stupid.

[+Max and 99]

The one I placed has held up very well. It is placed in the perfect spot, and is a challenging hide.

[+ras_oscar]

Fake rock is fine so long as it contains a waterproof log container. The real challenge is coloring; If you pay attention, you will find that most rocks in a given area are a similar color. That makes the "fake" rock stand out like a fish in an orchestra. I had one fake rock that was about 4" diameter and took me 3 trips with 3 separate groups to find. It was in the forest in a small depression with no rocks nearby. Nothing to compare to, so the color difference was not detectable. I only found it because I picked it up to look underneath.

[+popokiiti]

Took us a while to locate a small one, which was hidden in plain sight among many other similar sized stones/little rocks. It was just a lucky grab that revealed it. A big (real) rock had a hole that was drilled large enough for a film canister. The log was a bit damp, partly due to the rainy weather as the log was signed and partly the chilly time of year.

[+Chrysalides]

I've made them using epoxy putty molded around a plastic match container and painted with "granite" spray paint. Takes more effort, but you will then have a container that nobody has seen before.

Great idea. Can you tell me what's the material you use? I thought epoxy putty is something like this - a two part clay-like substance that you knead, and it will harden over a 24 hour period. One of my favorite material to work with, but usually for something much smaller.

[knowschad]

I've made them using epoxy putty molded around a plastic match container and painted with "granite" spray paint. Takes more effort, but you will then have a container that nobody has seen before.

Great idea. Can you tell me what's the material you use? I thought epoxy putty is something like this - a two part clay-like substance that you knead, and it will harden over a 24 hour period. One of my favorite material to work with, but usually for something much smaller.

 

I've used Locktite and another brand that I don't recall (pretty generic). The Locktite hardens in 5 minutes, so you have have a pretty good idea of what you want before you start, and you have to to work fast. I also found the granite spray paint to look unrealistic as-is, so I'd sort of buff it down a bit with a rag, which rounds the texture and gives it a more natural looking sheen. Then finish with a matte clear spray. Every one I've made has gone missing, though. I don't know if they are that attractive to muggles, or that hard to find once they've migrated from the original hidiing spot.

[+TerraViators]

I've never been fooled by a fake rock, however, I've been fooled by a real rock with a notch in it or a drilled hole.

[+JesandTodd]

Fake rock is fine so long as it contains a waterproof log container. The real challenge is coloring; If you pay attention, you will find that most rocks in a given area are a similar color. That makes the "fake" rock stand out like a fish in an orchestra. I had one fake rock that was about 4" diameter and took me 3 trips with 3 separate groups to find. It was in the forest in a small depression with no rocks nearby. Nothing to compare to, so the color difference was not detectable. I only found it because I picked it up to look underneath.

 

Quite the opposite for me. Most of our rocks vary is size, shape and color. A rock in a rock pile in Az is like a micro in the forest. Bleh.

 

This one took me over 2 hrs to find. Just had to be methodical. Unfortunatly, both sides of the wash looked like this, and the wall ran for hundreds of feet. Lots of places to look...

 

Brutal...

 

Edited April 7, 2012 by JesandTodd

[+Sagefox]

I was wondering if these rocks only look neat to a lot of people and that's the only reason they're out of stock, or do they actually work well

 

I love fake rock caches and wish there were more of them. It is good when they look just a tad bit fake so you can have that ah-ha moment when you spot it.

[+Ambrosia]

It depends on the fake rock. I've used two different styles (the only ones that I can find locally). One kind broke right away. The other one looks sorta ok but after a while in the wild it wears down and looks so fake it's easily spottable by anyone. I've also seen the official Groundspeak ones break.

[+DontPanic67]

It all depends on the location and the rock hide. This hide is between two trees with a bunch of holes and I had almost tripped over several river rocks and concrete debris littered all around the area. Once I went thru the holes in the trees that COULD hold a micro, I kicked over a couple of rocks before calling it a DNF.

 

Here's one I put together -

 

I just needed to paint the head of the cache white and speckle it a little with black.

Edited April 7, 2012 by DontPanic67

[mjb716]

I'll throw my two cents into the "wet logs" complaint. I've dealt with a fake rock or two since I started caching, and each one had a destroyed log inside of it. It's a clever hide, because I honestly didn't think to check the rocks in the area until we accidentally knocked it over. However, the log was so wet that it was nothing more than a wet ball.

[+power69]

Fake rock is fine so long as it contains a waterproof log container. The real challenge is coloring; If you pay attention, you will find that most rocks in a given area are a similar color. That makes the "fake" rock stand out like a fish in an orchestra. I had one fake rock that was about 4" diameter and took me 3 trips with 3 separate groups to find. It was in the forest in a small depression with no rocks nearby. Nothing to compare to, so the color difference was not detectable. I only found it because I picked it up to look underneath.

 

Quite the opposite for me. Most of our rocks vary is size, shape and color. A rock in a rock pile in Az is like a micro in the forest. Bleh.

 

This one took me over 2 hrs to find. Just had to be methodical. Unfortunatly, both sides of the wash looked like this, and the wall ran for hundreds of feet. Lots of places to look...

 

Brutal...

 

That would get put on my ignore faster than you could blink an eye.

NiH hides aren't fun!

[knowschad]

Fake rock is fine so long as it contains a waterproof log container. The real challenge is coloring; If you pay attention, you will find that most rocks in a given area are a similar color. That makes the "fake" rock stand out like a fish in an orchestra. I had one fake rock that was about 4" diameter and took me 3 trips with 3 separate groups to find. It was in the forest in a small depression with no rocks nearby. Nothing to compare to, so the color difference was not detectable. I only found it because I picked it up to look underneath.

 

Quite the opposite for me. Most of our rocks vary is size, shape and color. A rock in a rock pile in Az is like a micro in the forest. Bleh.

 

This one took me over 2 hrs to find. Just had to be methodical. Unfortunatly, both sides of the wash looked like this, and the wall ran for hundreds of feet. Lots of places to look...

 

Brutal...

 

 

Note to Tozainamboku: THIS is a "needle-in-a-haystack" hide.

Edited April 9, 2012 by knowschad

[+SoonerCardsFan]

That wash posted by JesandTodd looks a lot like one here that has a cache. Took two of us two trips totaling about 2 hours to find it. I love hides like that. The more challenging the hide the more rewarding it is when you do find it.

 

Another of my favorite finds was a fake rock in a small park. Just laying on the ground under a bush. Pretty much the only rock around. Took me over an hour to decide to pick up the rock. My poor brain kept overlooking it.