Poor swag exchange

[+Absolute_Mellow]

I admit I am a newbie. I have been caching for a little more than a year. Since I live in the desert, I have found some interesting and subtle caches. Some are nearly 10 years old, others are relatively new.

 

I like to plan my finds ahead of time. I look for a cache, see how hold it is, and then look at the last time the CO has logged in. If it is an old cache and a CO who has been absent for a couple of years, I go prepared with a new container, swag and log sheet.

 

What troubles me is the "crap", for lack of a better term, that past finders have left behind. CO2 cartridges, bandaids, shotgun shells, ketchup packets, dead batteries. My God, I could go on. My question is, why? If you have nothing, leave nothing. There is no law saying you have to leave anything. Don't dig through your car until you find something.

 

I have some suggestions for cheap and easy swag to carry around. Guitar picks, our local guitar store has guitar picks with Jimi Hendrix, or the Doors. They are cheap and easy to store. Polished rocks, buy some in bulk and hand paint your own logo on them. Again, they are cheap and easy to store in any car. Inspirational cards. You can buy these at most Christian bookstores very cheap. They bring happiness and are easy to haul around. Pokerchips. Just like polished rocks, you can take a pokerchip and paint a unique logo on it for others to find.

 

Swag doesn't have to be expensive. But it needs to be meaningful.

 

Thank you for letting me vent my spleen

[+The Blorenges]

That's OK, it's good to vent occasionally.

 

I (mostly) agree with you and it's a gripe that appears regularly on these forums. Sometimes cache owners put out a well-stocked cache only to check it after 3 cachers have visited and they find only trashy stuff. It's sad.

 

When we started caching many moons ago cachers regularly mentioned what they'd swapped in their logs. There were often posts on our UK forum where cachers shared ideas about neat little items they'd found to go into caches, where you could buy them etc. There was more interest in the whole aspect of swapping/trading stuff - that seems to have gone now and it's usually only cachers with children who seem to bother with it.

 

Just one of many changes to the game over time.

 

MrsB

[+L0ne.R]

Unfortunately carpy swag happens and builds on itself. As a CO I like to get out to my caches at least a couple of times a year and remove the tarnished stuff and replace with a few inexpensive clean items. It's too bad when COs let their caches get messy. As a finder I will remove the stones, bottle caps, broken toys, dirty and rusty stuff from caches I find and leave a few trinkets (if the cache container is in good shape and not leaky).

[+secretagentbill]

I was dealing with this a couple of days ago. In June, I placed a big Lock&Lock full almost to the brim of toys and neat things. The first several logs talked about how the kids had so much fun trading toys. The other day, I was in the park placing a new cache and also checking on another cache. I found that one of my other ones was muggled (container stolen, but log book left) so I checked them all. When I got to the big cache, it had a keychain, pendant on a chain, and a quarter. Yep. Oh and a couple of little pieces of trash (a plastic cap to something and a prize sticker from a McDonalds cup). I'm still scratching my head on how the inventory devolved so quickly. Oh well.

[+SoloSeekers ヅ]

I admit I am a newbie. I have been caching for a little more than a year. Since I live in the desert, I have found some interesting and subtle caches. Some are nearly 10 years old, others are relatively new.

 

I like to plan my finds ahead of time. I look for a cache, see how hold it is, and then look at the last time the CO has logged in. If it is an old cache and a CO who has been absent for a couple of years, I go prepared with a new container, swag and log sheet.

 

What troubles me is the "crap", for lack of a better term, that past finders have left behind. CO2 cartridges, bandaids, shotgun shells, ketchup packets, dead batteries. My God, I could go on. My question is, why? If you have nothing, leave nothing. There is no law saying you have to leave anything. Don't dig through your car until you find something.

 

I have some suggestions for cheap and easy swag to carry around. Guitar picks, our local guitar store has guitar picks with Jimi Hendrix, or the Doors. They are cheap and easy to store. Polished rocks, buy some in bulk and hand paint your own logo on them. Again, they are cheap and easy to store in any car. Inspirational cards. You can buy these at most Christian bookstores very cheap. They bring happiness and are easy to haul around. Pokerchips. Just like polished rocks, you can take a pokerchip and paint a unique logo on it for others to find.

 

Swag doesn't have to be expensive. But it needs to be meaningful.

 

Thank you for letting me vent my spleen

 

Your venting is noted and I agree with you! I have several caches and I always try to keep children in mind when I purchase swag. I have found the best swag (and least expensive) is party favor's. I like to go to party stores and buy yoyo's or small playing cards or action figures,or mini cars and they are generally very inexpensive. For FTF's I might put something a little more desirable, but that is only one item. I also keep this type of swag in my cache pack to exchange or just fill up poorly stocked caches. It doesn't have to be expensive and it's more fun for the next cacher to find. I am amazed at some of the garbage people throw in caches. I have a couple of a caches close to a golf course and I always seem to be removing old golf balls, cacher's have found on their hike in, as swag. I have requested that they refrain from placing in my cache, I'd rather they leave nothing than discarded items they found along the trail. My only exception would be fossils. Anyway, that's my 2cents! Happy Caching!

Edited October 16, 2012 by smileyfacebandit

[+wimseyguy]

The rules should be trade fairly, but too many do not. Just like too many don't use turn signals either.

 

I understand your frustrations. Swag degradation has been around for a long time, and it isn't likely to go away. I focus on the journey and adventure of the day, what is in the cache besides a clean and dry log sheet doesn't matter to me much any more. I will trash out, but rarely drop swag anymore and cannot remember the last time I traded for something I wanted to have.

I wouldn't get too involved with swag support for caches that you don't own, that will just lead to increased frustration.

[+howarthe]

Before I hide my caches, I stock them up with toys my kids don't play with anymore and promotional items my husband collects at conventions. I do not carry that stuff with me when I cache. I need something smaller. I've been carrying path tags lately, but I'm not sure I'll spring for a bunch more when this supply runs out. Before that I really loved leaving LEGO minifigs, but they cost about a $1.50 - $3.00, so I didn't do that very long either. There is a cacher in my area who leaves toy dinosaurs. I think that's a great idea. There is another cacher who leaves rubber ducks, but they can't leave them in most small caches. I got a mouse stamp to make my log entries a little more interesting. I think the other idea expressed here are pretty good (guitar picks, polished rocks, inspirational cards, poker chips, party favors, yo-yo, playing cards, action figures and mini cars). I might cheek out Goodwill for a bunch of Hot Wheels. Those might be fun to leave in caches.

[+YaYa&PaPa]

When I am caching with my grandchildren I come ready for them to trade kid friendly swag.

But when it is just me I like to try to add swag adults would like. i like any suggestions?

[+niraD]

But when it is just me I like to try to add swag adults would like. i like any suggestions?

The only things I trade for are personal signature items left by other geocachers.

[+Bubbles&Bonkers]

But when it is just me I like to try to add swag adults would like. i like any suggestions?

The only things I trade for are personal signature items left by other geocachers.

 

Ditto on the signature items. I RARELY see those though. Sad face.

[+Understandblue]

I haven't seen any signature items yet but I know a lot of people in my area drop them so hopefully soon.

 

I was astonished today to find a lighter in a cache. Not exactly kid friendly. We removed it and left a travel bug and a hand painted egg. I'd rather see an empty ammo can than a lighter and a business card, for sure.

 

That being said I've seen some beautiful handmade items and some really fun toys too.

[+L0ne.R]

But when it is just me I like to try to add swag adults would like. i like any suggestions?

The only things I trade for are personal signature items left by other geocachers.

 

Ditto on the signature items. I RARELY see those though. Sad face.

 

I like handcrafted items and signature items - especially handcrafted signature items. Every few months I find something cool. I even keep a blog of the fun items I find in caches (see my signature lines below). It adds an extra fun dimension to geocaching for me.

Edited October 17, 2012 by L0ne R

[+Understandblue]

I like handcrafted items and signature items - especially handcrafted signature items. I even keep a blog of the fun items I find in caches (see my signature lines below). It adds an extra fun dimension to geocaching for me.

 

LOVE

Edited October 17, 2012 by Understandblue

[+ras_oscar]

I will trade for pathtags or wooden nickles/poker chips if they have the name of a cacher on them. I drop personal signature items (poker chips) when I cache far from my home coords. Its not really about the swag. If that was my reason for caching I would have stopped long ago.

[+Mick McPhee]

For Adult tradeables I find polished rocks and McPhee jewels work pretty well. McPhee jewels are the globs of colored glass that are sold in Dollar stores for putting in vases to hold candles or artificial flowers. Kids seem to like them as well.

[+AneMae]

There are no "rules" take what you want, leave what you want- survival of the fittest and all. (Darwin 1860ish)

 

I found a meteorite while caching -NWA869- it is sitting on my mantle now- one of the best pieces of "swag" I ever got with ,the ammonites someone left for me.

 

I have also left high end electronics in caches that somehow ended up in Cuba for some family with a pressing medical issue. Oh the stories I could tell!