Obtaining permits to place caches

[MicheleInAlabama]

Hi everyone,

 

I'm new to geocaching -- the kids really love the idea and can't wait to get started!

 

I have a question about placing caches in county parks. I see where one of my state parks requires a permit to place one, but my county parks' website says nothing about geocaching. Should I alert them, or is it okay to place boxes in parks and on the side of public roads without a permit?

 

What about near public schools?

 

Thanks.

Edited November 13, 2012 by MicheleInAlabama

[+popokiiti]

Welcome to fun! The first thing you should do is find a few caches, then read the section on hiding a geocache. You have to be sure that you are not placing a geocache too close to another, have the required permission if necessary, and the cache has to be approved by a geocaching reviewer. Bear in mind that you have a responsibility to maintain any caches you place, and archive and remove them if you leave the game.

As I said, please read (and reread) the guidelines and hiding your first geocache to help you. As far as your county parks go, try and contact the governing body.

To find those first caches, choose ones that are 1 difficulty and 1 terrain, regular size and have fun! Any other questions, please ask.

[+maxx borchovski]

I would be wary of placing a cache near a school. Think about the situation where you were spotted loitering near a school and the police are called. Firstly you would need to prove your innocence and secondly how would it sound if the story made the local news?

[+BAMBOOZLE]

Schools are off limits ( except college campuses ).....the county parks and public places should be fine.

[+kunarion]

I have a question about placing caches in county parks. I see where one of my state parks requires a permit to place one, but my county parks' website says nothing about geocaching. Should I alert them, or is it okay to place boxes in parks and on the side of public roads without a permit?

I've hidden my caches in county parks. To get permission, I brought a printed satellite map of my selected hiding spot, the unactivated cache page, and some info about Geocaching to the parks office. Turns out the parks manager is a Geocacher! The office maintains maps of Geocaches in the parks, so they need all the info about cache hides.

 

Parks are prime places for Geocaches, so around here, there were caches years ago. They also got “muggled”, the Cache Owner got tired of fixing them and they got archived. And now there's a spot that looks perfect, and maybe it will be OK for a while. If you have an active cache club in your area, ask around. One of my hides was at a previously archived cache, but that was due to a fallen tree. So it was still a good spot as a different kind of hide.

 

The parks people are always changing things. Sometimes that means your cache gets wiped out. Any renovations take precedence. Hide your containers where they're safest from that. You should first find a variety of caches to understand what works, and what was great about the finds you enjoyed most. Then hide one of those.

 

And if you have a choice of hiding at a guard rail, or within a nice park, pick the park. You can have a decent sized container, and make a fun hide out of it.

[+ngrrfan]

And if you have a choice of hiding at a guard rail, or within a nice park, pick the park. You can have a decent sized container, and make a fun hide out of it.

Bolding mine.

 

Not necessarily true, In our city parks only micros are allowed (disregarding Earth or virtuals). In some of our city parks no container types are allowed.

 

My advice is to check with your city parks department and see if they have a policy regarding geocaches. Just go in and ask if they do, if they don't say "Thank you" and leave.

[+kunarion]

In our city parks only micros are allowed (disregarding Earth or virtuals). In some of our city parks no container types are allowed.

Good point. In my town the several of the "city parks" are small (once a house lot), and could at most support one cache, a micro. The changes in city government make it tough to "get permission", since everything changes with the next batch of politicians.

 

Here, most of the county parks are ball fields with forested areas. That works out great. But I didn't intend to imply that every park everywhere is perfect for caches, but that parks are a great place to hide them if allowed, and worth asking about. In the topic of "getting permission", first go get permission.

[+hzoi]

I'm guessing from your user name that you're somewhere in Alabama. I know that none of the counties around Montgomery have geocaching policies per se. I don't see any finds on your profile, so since I'm not sure where you're at I couldn't say what the policies are around you. Alabama State Parks do have a geocaching permit system, you need to work with the individual park staff and submit your permits through them. As far as county parks, I would look around at parks in your area, contact the owners of caches in your area, and see what their experience was like getting permission.

 

Also, it's not a requirement, but you might want to go find some geocaches before you start hiding your own so you can get a feel for what works and what kind of caches you want to hide.

 

Looking forward to seeing what you hide out there!

[+alien55]

The rules differ from one location to the next. I live in PA and close to NJ. PA state parks require a permit and payment of a $25 fee to place a cache. Furthermore, the permit is only good for 3 years, after which it must be renewed. This explains why there aren't that many caches in PA state parks. On the other hand, NJ state parks don't require a permit or fee. Up until recently, caches could be placed in our county parks without having to get permission. However, the situation is now under review and placement of new caches has been prohibited until they come up with a new policy.

[+Sol seaker]

Please find some caches before jumping into hiding them. There is so much to learn about the game and so much to know that can only be learned by finding them.

After a while you'll find out what makes a "good hide" and a "bad hide", and so, so many other things.

 

Some people think it's good to find 100 before jumping into hiding them. That gives you an idea of how much there is to learn here that can only be learned with experience.

 

Look for some caches with many favorite points. That will give you some ideas of a good hide, much sooner than later.

[+niraD]

There is so much to learn about the game and so much to know that can only be learned by finding them.

And there's more to learn that can be learned only by owning and maintaining caches. That's why it can be a good idea to get into cache ownership slowly: hide a cache, learn from the experience, hide a better cache, learn more, hide an even better cache, etc.