iPhone users?

[TheGoldenMen]

Greetings everyone! New game player here. I used the trial three clue game and my kiddos are hooked! (S0 am I) Our first one was a bust. It was an old location and had ants and a broken toy in it. There was also no log to sign. The second we found a TRAVEL BUG! My boys were jumping up and down. And the third was a heart felt hide in a cemetery to commemorate a Granddaughter's love for her grandmother. So I have a few questions.

1)If I pay for the iPhone version, it is $9.99 do I still have to pay for the membership? Thus paying $20?

2)If I see a location such as our first find, and it is obviously no longer active, how do I report it?

 

Thanks!

[+JesandTodd]

I don't know what you mean in question 2...

 

1- yes-you still have to pay for premium membership which is $30 a year. The $10 fee is for the app use only. It's worth it...trust me. Welcome to the game!

[+Chief301]

Greetings everyone! New game player here. I used the trial three clue game and my kiddos are hooked! (S0 am I) Our first one was a bust. It was an old location and had ants and a broken toy in it. There was also no log to sign. The second we found a TRAVEL BUG! My boys were jumping up and down. And the third was a heart felt hide in a cemetery to commemorate a Granddaughter's love for her grandmother. So I have a few questions.

1)If I pay for the iPhone version, it is $9.99 do I still have to pay for the membership? Thus paying $20?

 

Purchase of the iPhone app and Premium membership are not related in any way. So if you want to become a Premium member, then yes, it will be $30 for a year (or I think $10 for a three-month membership)

 

$10 may sound like a lot for an iPhone app but it's well worth it, IMO. I use both the iPhone app and a dedicated handheld, depending on the situation. Don't think you're getting just a little nicer version of the trial app, the paid app is a totally different animal and is a real serious Geocaching tool.

 

You can play the game just fine without a Premium membership, but you do get some additional features if you sign up. Pocket Queries is probably the biggest one, plus access to Premium Member Only caches and a few other things.

 

2)If I see a location such as our first find, and it is obviously no longer active, how do I report it?

 

If you are certain that the cache is in fact damaged or out of play in some way (not just a case of you couldn't find it), then go to the cache page just like you logged your find, but select the Needs Maintenance option. This will alert the owner that there is a problem with the cache and "should" prompt them to go take care of it. In this case you would just log the NM (Needs Maintenance)...if you actually found the cache and signed the log but still think the cache needs work (maybe the container was broken, log sheet is wet, something like that)then you can post your Found It log and then an additional NM log to alert the owner.

 

Thanks!

[Blue Square Thing]

I'd strongly suggest the app - it works and there are plenty of people you ask some of the slightly harder questions about how it works here!

 

To be honest, I'd suggest you do that and then see if you want premium membership after a few months of finding stuff.

[+Lieblweb]

Get the $10 APP and cache away....

 

You'll know soon enough if you want to continue this hobby further. The next thing...Premium membership, then...a handheld GPS... and then....a car GPS...and then....another GPS.... and special clothes, bikes, hiking boots... and the list goes on.

 

The only true 'expense' in this hobby - is GAS & TRAVEL money.

[TheGoldenMen]

Thanks everyone for the replies!

As for my inactive Cache, it was found easily. The house was for sale and the grass growing real high. The house was empty. The cache was hanging on a fence post in front of the house. There was no log, or pen. There was a broken toy. Someone had put candy in it and there were ants in it eating on the candy. The date of activation was 05/11/2005 and the last time someone checked it was 05/29/2012. There is a maintenance tag on the "Hide and Seek" portion of the site. The user was mbarkley with a tag of GCNWN7. My boys were real diasapointed because this was the first one we found. But the next two included a Travel Bug, and a real hard micro. Those were real fun. There is also a little guy with a line through it. What does this represent?

[+Chief301]

If the cache name has a line through it, that means the cache has been disabled (temporarily) by the owner for some reason. Was it the cache you mentioned with the missing logbook and the ants? If owners are made aware of a problem with one of their caches they can go online and disable it until they have a chance to go out and fix it. This is usually meant to be for a "reasonable" amount of time, but it varies...some caches may be disabled for months because they are not accessible at certain times of the year, for example. The "disabled" status is to let cachers know that the cache is currently not available for some reason, even though it might still be there, so that folks don't waste their time looking for it.

 

Now, regarding a cache container without a logsheet. some folks would say that if you do not sign the log you cannot claim the find. Others (including myself) say that if I found what is clearly the cache container but it has been destroyed, log missing, whatever, claim the find...you did find the container after all. In those cases I would take a pic of the container or what's left of it in case the CO wanted proof that I actually did find "his" container. Most CO's will allow the find under such circumstances and thank you for the heads-up, but some hold firmly to the "no sig, no smiley" rule and would be within their rights to delete the find. It's up to the owner to allow it or not, absent a signed logsheet.

 

(Edit:). I looked at the cache listing you referenced...it is not showing disabled. Reading through the recent logs, there are many mentions of ants (a good reminder not to leave food or candy in a cache). Not until May 3 did someone mention the log being missing (there are a few mentions of it being wet prior to that) , then on May 29th someone finally

posted a Needs Maintenance log. Hopefully the owner (mbarkley) will check on it soon.

 

It's also acceptable to insert a new logsheet if you find one missing or damaged beyond signing. Many cachers carry spare logsheets and baggies with them for such cases. CO's shouldn't expect people to fix their caches for them but it is appreciated if you save them a maintenance trip over something as simple as a missing log sheet. Do a Google search for "printable Geocaching logsheet" there are plenty of free ones out there available for download.

 

You can get a lot of useful information about the cache by reading the Recemt Logs. For example, the cache inventory shows 9 trackables that should be in this cache, but recent logs indicate they are all missing. That means someone took them without logging them, maybe not knowing what they were or maybe maliciously. In either case it's a good thing to know before you go looking for it. I'll usually take a glance at Recent Logs before I go looking for a particular cache....if there are a bunch of easy finds followed by a string of DNF's, it may have gone missing.

Edited June 18, 2012 by Chief301

[+Xavier Horovitz]

The ten dollar app is ridiculous compared to the free version. It easily has everything in it that you could ever need in order to succeed in Geocaching.

[+Team Pixos]

We have been very successful with the official paid app. Worth every penny.

[TheGoldenMen]

Thanks Chief! My boys are already hooked. I couldn't see the status of these caches. They were the first three on the free version I downloaded. I have to study this site more so I can see how to put that I did in fact find it. I also grabbed a Travel Bug, not knowing what it was, out of pure excitement. Now I need to keep this little guy going. It has been to France and England. I have always wanted to see these places and I am a little jealous. Alas, I will not be the little guy's demise. Have you ever seen others while searching? How fun would that be?

[+Chief301]

. Have you ever seen others while searching? How fun would that be?

 

Happens occasionally. We went out on Memorial Day and met cachers at two different caches in Baton Rouge. It's neat to bump into other cachers, especially when you recognize the name and know you have found some of each others' caches. Nice to put a face with a name you have seen often in logs.

 

I couldn't see the status of these caches. They were the first three on the free version I downloaded.

 

Yet another advantage of the paid app. With the paid app you can see all the caches in the area, not just the nearest 3, or look for caches in other areas where you plan to go. You also get the full cache description, recent logs, hints, maps, pictures if any are attached, and more. You have all the information you could possibly need right there in the palm of your hand. If you really want to get into this it's the best $10 you can spend.

Edited June 19, 2012 by Chief301