How do I upload caches I've hidden?

[+smcaldwe]

I want to hide my own geocache but I can't find any info on how I upload the coordinates to the site so that people can hunt for it. How do I do it? Can I do it from my iPhone when I place the cache?

Thanks

[+Gitchee-Gummee]

With a day of membership under your belt, have you had taken the time to read it all: http://support.Groundspeak.com/index.php ?

 

Not trying to be rude, but there is a lot to it.

 

Not sure if you can do it from your phone for sure, but I don't think so. You may (not) enjoy reading this thread: http://forums.Groundspeak.com/GC/index.php?showtopic=307133&st=0&p=5202578&fromsearch=1entry5202578

[+Chief301]

There is a lot more to cache ownership than dropping a container and uploading the coordinates from your iPhone. Please, PLEASE, read the link that Gitchee-Gummee posted....then read it again. There's a very good reason that Groundspeak didn't design that function into the app. You really need to PLAN a hide, not just place it. You need to plan on maintaining and caring for that cache long term, not just plant it and forget about it.

[+smcaldwe]

Yes I can see that using the iPhone app is a really bad idea. The reason I would like to upload my own locally is that my 8 yr old has some difficulties with perception and awareness. I think this would be such an amazing help to her and healthy fun too. I want to hide them in safe places where we can guide her without showing her exactly where it's hiden. So accuracy is key.

I just can't find anything telling me how to enter the cache onto the system. I can see, how it's reviewed, where to hide but not the basics of having it recognised.

 

Greatful for any pointers

[Pup Patrol]

I just can't find anything telling me how to enter the cache onto the system. I can see, how it's reviewed, where to hide but not the basics of having it recognised.

 

Greatful for any pointers

 

Take the time to read the Guidelines, please.

 

Help Center → Geocaching → Review Process: Hiding a Geocache

 

4.1. Guidelines for Hiding a Geocache

 

http://support.Groundspeak.com/index.php?pg=kb.page&id=78

 

I would think that finding some caches yourself first would be more helpful. You don't say where you are, so we don't know what caches are already in existence. Why you feel the need to place caches for your daughter is not clear to me, when I don't know if your local area is saturated with easy caches or not.

 

If you don't have any experience finding caches, I'm not sure how easy it will be for you to "guide" her. Plenty of first-time hunters have been on the forums lamenting not being able to find caches when they've dragged their kids out there.

 

 

B.

Edited February 10, 2013 by Pup Patrol

[+whh0]

Thousands of lovely safe caches out there already for you to go and find. Until you find a few you have no idea on what makes a good/bad hide or a good/bad cache container. Would suggest you go out on your own first and find some caches, then when you find ones which meet your criteria take your daughter back to those locations.

[+smcaldwe]

Yes, we have a good number of caches in our area and they are great for us and her sister. We have been out with her to find caches which were marked as easy on simple terrain. As i mentioned earlier she has difficulty with awareness and perception. Meaning that she has great difficulty looking for things and being able to find them. Her specialist advised us to try something like this for her and once she improved we could archive the cache and advance her to the ones which normal people and average ability children of her age find easy. This is not your standard child looking for your standard item. We were told that the geocache community were a very friendly bunch who would enjoy helping a girl like her to catch up with her peers. We just need to know the basics of how to upload our own hide please? I have read the guide lines and taken on board the comments in the replies posted which were very helpful. All i need now is the bit about how i upload them. We are in the Penarth, south Wales area.

[+The Blorenges]

Yes, we have a good number of caches in our area and they are great for us and her sister. We have been out with her to find caches which were marked as easy on simple terrain. As i mentioned earlier she has difficulty with awareness and perception. Meaning that she has great difficulty looking for things and being able to find them. Her specialist advised us to try something like this for her and once she improved we could archive the cache and advance her to the ones which normal people and average ability children of her age find easy. This is not your standard child looking for your standard item. We were told that the geocache community were a very friendly bunch who would enjoy helping a girl like her to catch up with her peers. We just need to know the basics of how to upload our own hide please? I have read the guide lines and taken on board the comments in the replies posted which were very helpful. All i need now is the bit about how i upload them. We are in the Penarth, south Wales area.

 

It sounds to me as though what you want to do is set up some practice caches that your daughter can try hunting for - You can do that without actually having the caches listed on this site. It would probably be better to do this for yourselves privately to start with because you could place a few small hidden treasure boxes much closer together within your local area - geocaches listed on this site must be a minimum of 528ft apart from all other physical caches.

 

When it comes to creating a "real" cache to be listed on geocaching.com you will need to get permission and comply with all the guidelines for this site. This is the form where you need to fill in all the details:

 

Cache submission form

 

If you use facebook, there's a very active group you might like to join: South Wales geocachers

 

 

MrsB

[+Semper Questio]

You still need to go find some caches to better understand this game because when you learn how to place and list caches, and those caches go live, they will be available to everyone, not just you and your kids.

 

Also, you need to spend some time on the site, learning about caching and how to do the basics. Listing a cache is not just a mater of "uploading the coordinates". Checkout these areas for info if you have not done so already..

 

The Geocaching section of the Help Center

 

Geocaching 101

 

Hiding Your First Geocache

 

Everything you need to know and do is there, including links to the required submission pages and a whole lot more.

 

And keep in mind that if you feel you need to do something special for your kids that the site's guidelines will not permit, you don't HAVE to list any hide here. You can do it all on your own just for your kids.

[+smcaldwe]

Yes, we have a good number of caches in our area and they are great for us and her sister. We have been out with her to find caches which were marked as easy on simple terrain. As i mentioned earlier she has difficulty with awareness and perception. Meaning that she has great difficulty looking for things and being able to find them. Her specialist advised us to try something like this for her and once she improved we could archive the cache and advance her to the ones which normal people and average ability children of her age find easy. This is not your standard child looking for your standard item. We were told that the geocache community were a very friendly bunch who would enjoy helping a girl like her to catch up with her peers. We just need to know the basics of how to upload our own hide please? I have read the guide lines and taken on board the comments in the replies posted which were very helpful. All i need now is the bit about how i upload them. We are in the Penarth, south Wales area.

 

It sounds to me as though what you want to do is set up some practice caches that your daughter can try hunting for - You can do that without actually having the caches listed on this site. It would probably be better to do this for yourselves privately to start with because you could place a few small hidden treasure boxes much closer together within your local area - geocaches listed on this site must be a minimum of 528ft apart from all other physical caches.

 

When it comes to creating a "real" cache to be listed on geocaching.com you will need to get permission and comply with all the guidelines for this site. This is the form where you need to fill in all the details:

 

Cache submission form

 

If you use facebook, there's a very active group you might like to join: South Wales geocachers

 

Thank you very much! we will try this.

 

MrsB

[+smcaldwe]

You still need to go find some caches to better understand this game because when you learn how to place and list caches, and those caches go live, they will be available to everyone, not just you and your kids.

 

Also, you need to spend some time on the site, learning about caching and how to do the basics. Listing a cache is not just a mater of "uploading the coordinates". Checkout these areas for info if you have not done so already..

 

The Geocaching section of the Help Center

 

Geocaching 101

 

Hiding Your First Geocache

 

Everything you need to know and do is there, including links to the required submission pages and a whole lot more.

 

And keep in mind that if you feel you need to do something special for your kids that the site's guidelines will not permit, you don't HAVE to list any hide here. You can do it all on your own just for your kids.

 

Thanks for your help, we have been hunting Geocaches for a few days so we are rather new to the whole thing. Her sister finds it enjoyable and finds plenty, but she struggles and is just getting frustrated. We don't want her to lose interest as this could really help her. I am aware that anything we upload will be available to the whole community and we will respect the rules. The existing ones may be easy but if they're too easy for most people, they don't have to look for them. as far as I can tell people choose which ones to go after, plus they are easily archived once she has the hang of following directions and searching for things related to coordinates. really appreciate everyone's help on here

[+Bear and Ragged]

The existing ones may be easy but if they're too easy for most people, they don't have to look for them. as far as I can tell people choose which ones to go after, plus they are easily archived once she has the hang of following directions and searching for things related to coordinates.

 

If they are listed and published, cachers WILL look for them! Even if the are "Too easy"

 

And, read the guidelines, a published cache should be available for at least 3 months...

So there's no set it, she finds it, you archive it. (Reviewers will take a lot of convincing to publish any more of your caches, if they don't meet the permanence part of the guidelines.

 

Well worth looking at setting you own -personal caches- for her to practice with.

Now, the question is: What GPS, phone/phone app do you use, so we can point out ways for you to find out and load coordinates for her to find her caches!

Edited February 10, 2013 by Bear and Ragged

[+The Blorenges]

Please note that when you hide a "real" geocache and have it published to this site you should consider it to be permanently in place for at least 3 months and you'll need to maintain it as necessary - They are not meant to be "easily archived".

 

MrsB

[+Chief301]

Thank you for explaining a little better the situation with your daughter...I think we see the angle you're going for here.

 

I agree with some of the other posters here, you might want to hide some "private" caches out in safe locations, and just give your daughter the coordinates. Or you could perhaps even create a cache listing, including coordinates, with a description, size, difficulty/terrain ratings etc., but just not submit it for publication. Then direct your daughter to that "unactivated" cache page, or print it out for her, and work from that. It would be an actual GC.com cache listing, just not published.

 

I suppose some would say that's not a good idea, cluttering up the server with a cache listing that you don't intend to submit for review....but I'm also sure there are thousands of cache pages that were also never submitted for review, just out of loss of interest or some other reason. At least yours would be with a good reason.

 

You can hide a cache using an iPhone (although some would object to that as well) IPhones 3GS and later have a decent GPS on board....you can obtain accurate coordinates if you take the necessary care. For example, NO cache should be placed based on a single, momentary GPS reading (this applies to smart phones AND handheld GPSr's). For maximum accuracy, coordinates should be obtained using the average of several readings, preferably taken on a few different days and at different times of day (see why they don't want to make it TOO easy to hide a cache?)

 

I hid my first cache with an iPhone and have received no complaints about the coordinates. I used an app called Perfect Mark to do the averaging automatically. Like I said, a simple "Mark Waypoint" won't do for cache placement.

 

Of course, you could also submit a cache for publication but just make it a really easy one. Just because it's designed to be easy enough for a kid to find doesn't mean cachers won't go find it.

[+smcaldwe]

Thanks Chief301. I think you can see exactly what I'm trying to do. I'll spend a bit more time reviewing the guidelines, searching for more caches before I do anything but we're very excited.

[+niraD]

Her sister finds it enjoyable and finds plenty, but she struggles and is just getting frustrated. We don't want her to lose interest as this could really help her.

FWIW, there is no law that says only one person can find each cache. Many groups play three musketeers style, where the first person to spot the cache declares victory for the entire group. But some of us enjoy playing huckle buckle beanstalk style, where each person in the group gets a chance to find the cache on their own before the position is revealed. Edited February 11, 2013 by niraD