Difficulty rating for soda/beer cap caches

[+Nat Sherman]

Hi all,

 

Fairly new here (Dec 2011) and am working on placing my first 10 caches this month. I have a question regarding the difficulty rating on soda/beer cap caches where it appears the cap is simply lying on the ground but it attached to a container that is in the ground or in a pvc tube.

 

I've found three of these so far - one in Fredricksberg, VA, one in Moyock, NC, and one in Hixson, TN. All are on flat ground (terrain either a 1.0 or 1.5) but all three had vastly different difficulty ratings - 2.5, 3.5, and 5.0 respectively. The first two are in fairly high muggle areas but the second is at the end of a cul-de-sac just off the road on a trail.

 

I'm planning on placing one or two of this kind and wondered what everyone things a proper difficulty rating should be for this type of cache, both in a high muggle area as well as an area in which muggles are not an issue.

 

Thanks for any input!

Mike

(Nat Sherman)

[+J the Goat]

Difficulty ratings are extemely subjective, and you'll get all kinds of answers here. I'll be the first to suggest you don't hide a geocache to look like a piece of garbage. Those containers generally don't hold up to the elements, they go missing very quickly (as they look like trash), and I'm willing to bet that the area you want to hide it isn't being highlighted for something interesting that's close. I'd implore you to reconsider your hide.

[+SwineFlew]

Not a 5 but they tend to be around 4 or so around here.

 

Keep in mind that for someone that been caching for years will think its a 2 or so. But for a newbie, not so easy for them. I tend to rated my caches higher if I think it would stumped a newbie.

Edited May 4, 2012 by SwineFlew

[+Nat Sherman]

Thanks for the input Nobody and Pasture Dweller...appreciate it!

[+lamoracke]

have seen a few of them. Sometimes they are next to a business, sometimes in a park. It depends on many things. Can the cap be obscured by bark or other items on the ground? Are there many other places to hide a cache around it? Muggles? Part of a puzzle?

 

There are other kinds of similar caches, like bisons or nanos attached to the underside of rocks, but you asked about cap bottles.

 

Its not a 1 or 1.5 hide, but anywhere between 2 and 5, it depends what else is around there. If for example there is only one fence post there and its not in the grass and it kinda sticks out, that could be a 2 hide. Can't imagine it being a 5 unless part of some crazy puzzle or partially buried and if the latter, well, that is just a bit unfair for that kind of hide if I was looking.

[+Nat Sherman]

have seen a few of them. Sometimes they are next to a business, sometimes in a park. It depends on many things. Can the cap be obscured by bark or other items on the ground? Are there many other places to hide a cache around it? Muggles? Part of a puzzle?

 

Its not a 1 or 1.5 hide, but anywhere between 2 and 5, it depends what else is around there. If for example there is only one fence post there and its not in the grass and it kinda sticks out, that could be a 2 hide. Can't imagine it being a 5 unless part of some crazy puzzle or partially buried and if the latter, well, that is just a bit unfair for that kind of hide if I was looking.

 

Good point, Lamoracke! Of the three I mentioned in the original post, one is located in the dirt at the base of a tree between a sidewalk and asphalt (2.5 seems accurate). One is located in grass which sometimes grows 8-10 inches high until mowed on the edge of a parking lot (3.5 seems accurate). One is located at the trail head in grass and gravel (5.0 seems slightly high).

[+littlegemsy]

I'd assume anywhere between 1.5 and 4, depending how well hidden. The 1 of these I've found was a 3, seemed fairly accurate on average difficulty to others I'd found of the same rating. If it was plain site from a few feet away, it's obviously going to be easier than if pushed in the ground in a tree stump covered by a rock and some natural foliage.

[+JesandTodd]

Unless its in a trash pile, I'd give it a 2.

[knowschad]

Be aware that a cache like this can cause quite a bit of damage to an area. If you insist on putting it out, consider hiding it in a spot where that won't matter too much. Also, its easy for them to get moved or covered with dirt & debris accidentally, making it even harder to find and more likely to elicit damage from over-eager seekers.

[+ras_oscar]

As stated above, the d/t ratings are highly subjective. If you want to be extremely objective, try soliciting the support of 3 "beta testers". Find cacher friends, give the the coords and see how long it take them to find the cache. A 1 rating should take less than 5 minutes, a 2 5-8 minutes, a 3 8-15 minutes, a 4 15-30 minutes and a 5 anything over 30 minutes. However, most people just put their thumb out, whip a number on it and move on.

[+briansnat]

Easy answer. It depends on how hard it is to find.

[+tamwood53]

Also be aware of the guidelines, that state making a hole below ground to place the cache and not in an existing depression might be considered a buried cache.

[+NYPaddleCacher]

Also be aware of the guidelines, that state making a hole below ground to place the cache and not in an existing depression might be considered a buried cache.

 

The language in the "no buried caches" guideline has recently changed. It now reads:

 

"Geocaches are never buried. If one has to dig or break ground to hide or to find the cache, then the cache is not permitted."

 

Pounding a piece of PVC pipe into the ground could certainly be perceived as "breaking ground".

 

Now might also be a good time to remind others of the "no precedent" guideline...

 

"Please be advised that there is no precedent for placing geocaches. This means that the past publication of a similar geocache in and of itself is not a valid justification for the publication of a new geocache."

[+Nat Sherman]

Thanks for the input everyone...very helpful!

[+lamoracke]

Have seen so many very recent bisons under rocks or bisons under bottle caps and reviewers themselves have "found" them and not said a word, I hardly think the "buried" rule applies to anyone just sticking a bison or tiny tube in loose dirt in the ground. No tool involved with that.

Edited May 4, 2012 by lamoracke

[knowschad]

Also be aware of the guidelines, that state making a hole below ground to place the cache and not in an existing depression might be considered a buried cache.

Hi, Tom.

[+Nat Sherman]

Have seen so many very recent bisons under rocks or bisons under bottle caps and reviewers themselves have "found" them and not said a word, I hardly think the "buried" rule applies to anyone just sticking a bison or tiny tube in loose dirt in the ground. No tool involved with that.

 

That's what I've been thinking, too, lamoracke. Thanks for the input!