Travel Bugs not being logged

[+J&J Team Yukon]

Is it me or is everyone noticing more and more TBs not being logged out of caches? Just got back from vacay in N.M. and probably 98% of caches we found that was supposed to have TBs in them had none. I did put out a TB and it will probably come up missing. What is the deal anyway?

Edited February 17, 2013 by scubagirl1

[+BlueDeuce]

Yes, I have noticed.

[+wmpastor]

The missing TB problem grows because owners don't mark them missing, even when told they're not in the cache & asked by the CO to mark them missing. Result? Caches have lists of phantom TB's.

[+AZPaleo]

I'm fairly new to GC, but before I got started I read all about finds, hides and TB's on the GC website before going out for my first find. I think so many newbies don't bother reading the guidelines, etc. There are also some apps for your phone in addition to Groundspeaks that people get and never bother logging finds etc just go out and look for the cache, but don't truly understand the game.

[+kunarion]

The missing TB problem grows because owners don't mark them missing, even when told they're not in the cache & asked by the CO to mark them missing. Result? Caches have lists of phantom TB's.

When some thief steals my coin, it really helps if I promptly mark it missing. Why can't everyone get with the program?

[+6NoisyHikers]

The missing TB problem grows because owners don't mark them missing, even when told they're not in the cache & asked by the CO to mark them missing. Result? Caches have lists of phantom TB's.

 

Actually, cache owners can mark TBs missing to correct their inventory. But, as you said, a lot of trackable owners AND cache owners don't do this.

[+kunarion]

There are also some apps for your phone in addition to Groundspeaks that people get and never bother logging finds etc just go out and look for the cache, but don't truly understand the game.

That's an issue. But most of the time, it's actual Geocachers not making proper logs. If you take anything at all, log that (although if you leave some nice Swag or sig item, the paper log is fine for that tidbit, particularly if it's very cool). I have several kinds of signature items that I thought people would like, and see zero logs about them being taken. Nobody takes nor likes any of it?! So I stop placing them and work on another idea. Then someone at an Event will see me and say “I sure do love your [*** Sig Items]!”

 

[+J Grouchy]

I wonder if the app and site could force the user to say whether a trackable was collected before being allowed to submit the log. As it is, the user sort of has to go through a separate step to log a trackable...but if there was a box or menu pull-down that needed to be marked or selected before the log can be submitted, perhaps that would at least eliminate the problem from honest cachers. As for those that actually DO steal the trackables...well, not much to be done about that. Nature of the game....

[+kunarion]

I wonder if the app and site could force the user to say whether a trackable was collected before being allowed to submit the log.

That gets tricky when the Trackable is listed in a place other than where it was found (was it dropped just a few minutes ago? Did the previous guy make a log mistake? Is it even a Trackable -- one of the kind that has worn off numbers or whatever), and now there's unscrambling to do, but you're in the process of making a Cache log. If the App blocks a Cache log until the Trackable log is correct, it gets complicated fast. But, yes, some kind of nudge about the Trackable log might be good.

 

I also think that most cachers don't "steal" Trackables. They are extremely lax about logging. Or notes or updates or anything -- there's a huge issue about consideration for others who are wondering what's going on with their Trackable. The kids get the Trackables which go into a drawer or storage or lawn or whatever. And often, a Trackable is in a backpack or on the floor of the car, and is "lost" for a while. People don't want to admit they "lost" it (even temporarily), due to the wrath of the Owner (some are pretty wrathy about it).

Edited February 17, 2013 by kunarion

[+BlueDeuce]

The missing TB problem grows because owners don't mark them missing, even when told they're not in the cache & asked by the CO to mark them missing. Result? Caches have lists of phantom TB's.

 

Removing missing bugs from caches would lead people to believe that bugs really don't go missing that often.

[+kunarion]

The missing TB problem grows because owners don't mark them missing, even when told they're not in the cache & asked by the CO to mark them missing. Result? Caches have lists of phantom TB's.

 

Removing missing bugs from caches would lead people to believe that bugs really don't go missing that often.

+1

 

It should be the decision of the Trackable Owner, since it's the last remaining shred of their Trackable. They can leave it in view forever if they want to. I'd think the CO would want a clean-looking cache inventory, but they may have their own reasons for leaving the list as is. One person who could set it straight is the person who is holding the Trackable (or who lost it and needs to fess up). That's the one who should be making an appropriate log. Then the TO can decide if and when they want to re-release.

[+BlueDeuce]

The missing TB problem grows because owners don't mark them missing, even when told they're not in the cache & asked by the CO to mark them missing. Result? Caches have lists of phantom TB's.

 

Removing missing bugs from caches would lead people to believe that bugs really don't go missing that often.

+1

 

It should be the decision of the Trackable Owner, since it's the last remaining shred of their Trackable. They can leave it in view forever if they want to. I'd think the CO would want a clean-looking cache inventory, but they may have their own reasons for leaving the list as is. One person who could set it straight is the person who is holding the Trackable (or who lost it and needs to fess up). That's the one who should be making an appropriate log. Then the TO can decide if and when they want to re-release.

 

Not my point at all. If gc.com want people to purchase their travel items they need to develop site support for maintenance. Leaving it to the impassioned few is not the best approach.

Edited February 17, 2013 by BlueDeuce

[+kunarion]

The missing TB problem grows because owners don't mark them missing, even when told they're not in the cache & asked by the CO to mark them missing. Result? Caches have lists of phantom TB's.

 

Removing missing bugs from caches would lead people to believe that bugs really don't go missing that often.

+1

 

It should be the decision of the Trackable Owner, since it's the last remaining shred of their Trackable. They can leave it in view forever if they want to. I'd think the CO would want a clean-looking cache inventory, but they may have their own reasons for leaving the list as is. One person who could set it straight is the person who is holding the Trackable (or who lost it and needs to fess up). That's the one who should be making an appropriate log. Then the TO can decide if and when they want to re-release.

 

Not my point at all.

Well, it's an excellent point, whoever made it!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[+BlueDeuce]

Stop it.

[+Cowgirl Jo]

I started Geocaching in 2010 started with 21 trackables. Jan 2012 none of them were traveling. All gone...probable kept by cachers.

I was heart broken and replaced all with PROXIES. Adding to my expense, plus I like to dress all tags with a swag. Only ONE Cacher would help me get the trackable back in the AREA where they bit the dust at.

Is this like the sock monster (washing machine) we have a TRACKABLE MONSTER. I try to put out a tag in every geocach I find....(I don't do a lot of caching) But it has gotten expensive when the tags all disappear!!!

 

Maybe I should have canceled them and just started over.....

Edited February 18, 2013 by Cowgirl Jo

[+Harry Dolphin]

The missing TB problem grows because owners don't mark them missing, even when told they're not in the cache & asked by the CO to mark them missing. Result? Caches have lists of phantom TB's.

 

Removing missing bugs from caches would lead people to believe that bugs really don't go missing that often.

+1

 

It should be the decision of the Trackable Owner, since it's the last remaining shred of their Trackable. They can leave it in view forever if they want to. I'd think the CO would want a clean-looking cache inventory, but they may have their own reasons for leaving the list as is. One person who could set it straight is the person who is holding the Trackable (or who lost it and needs to fess up). That's the one who should be making an appropriate log. Then the TO can decide if and when they want to re-release.

 

Not my point at all. If gc.com want people to purchase their travel items they need to develop site support for maintenance. Leaving it to the impassioned few is not the best approach.

 

That should be a normal approach to a problem with one of the major money-makers. One would think.

[+desmognathus]

One positive about not clearing the TB inventory of a cache is that it can serve as a warning. If I see a cache with 6 bugs in inventory, but none in the can, then I'm not very likely to drop a bug there.

[+6NoisyHikers]

One positive about not clearing the TB inventory of a cache is that it can serve as a warning. If I see a cache with 6 bugs in inventory, but none in the can, then I'm not very likely to drop a bug there.

 

That is an interesting point. We have a cache in our area that seems to be a trackable black hole. TBs go in and some of them are never seen again. (My theory is that the cache is part of the standard scouting/guiding badge requirements and that the little children then show their friends who stop by every once in a while and clean it out.) I would never place a TB in there, but that is because I've taken the time to research the history of the cache. If there weren't nine missing trackables in it, it might not have been so apparent.

[+Bushwalker53]

A lot of caches have TB's in them that aren't meant to be there, or are meant to have a TB in them but when you get to GZ they aren't in the cache. Quite a few of mine have just gone missing in to thin air after not being logged, there were two TB's in one of my caches, they both just vanished into thin air for about 2 to 3 months, after the owners were almost certain that they were gone for good I checked on the TB page and there was a log roughly along these lines. "Found this lovely little TB under my car seat, which reminds me that I need to log the cache that I picked it up from" I mean seriously, who picks up a TB, doesn't log it, and then loses it in their car for 3 months, then finds it and logs it. It stressed out so many people and if that guy didn't check under his car seat every few months they would probably still be there to this day. I think people should be more responsible and careful with TB's because they do cost money you know!

[+Gitchee-Gummee]

That is an interesting point. We have a cache in our area that seems to be a trackable black hole. TBs go in and some of them are never seen again. (My theory is that the cache is part of the standard scouting/guiding badge requirements and that the little children then show their friends who stop by every once in a while and clean it out.) I would never place a TB in there, but that is because I've taken the time to research the history of the cache. If there weren't nine missing trackables in it, it might not have been so apparent.

Precisely why I would never put a trackable into a cache placed by scout/pack/den.

 

Yes I know, it's bad to think scouts would be that way, but.....

[+6NoisyHikers]

It's a toss-up, really. You want to place a trackable in a cache that has some traffic so it will move along, but the high-traffic caches are the ones most frequented by newbies, appies and muggles.

[+StarBrand]

I generally don't mark anything missing out of my caches until I either get 2 or more logs on different days mentioning the item is gone or I can verify it myself. I also wait about 2 weeks even after verifying just to let whoever took it a chance to log it properly. Sadly - my method leads to some unhappy folks going by inventory alone.

[+J&J Team Yukon]

I wonder if the app and site could force the user to say whether a trackable was collected before being allowed to submit the log.

That gets tricky when the Trackable is listed in a place other than where it was found (was it dropped just a few minutes ago? Did the previous guy make a log mistake? Is it even a Trackable -- one of the kind that has worn off numbers or whatever), and now there's unscrambling to do, but you're in the process of making a Cache log. If the App blocks a Cache log until the Trackable log is correct, it gets complicated fast. But, yes, some kind of nudge about the Trackable log might be good.

 

I also think that most cachers don't "steal" Trackables. They are extremely lax about logging. Or notes or updates or anything -- there's a huge issue about consideration for others who are wondering what's going on with their Trackable. The kids get the Trackables which go into a drawer or storage or lawn or whatever. And often, a Trackable is in a backpack or on the floor of the car, and is "lost" for a while. People don't want to admit they "lost" it (even temporarily), due to the wrath of the Owner (some are pretty wrathy about it).

[+J&J Team Yukon]

Well, guess I am very anal about logging the trackables I find. that is the first thing i do. Our little G-Son "lost" a TB right off the bat. Have not logged it missing, just hoping it will show up.

[+J&J Team Yukon]

I have read all the post, the reasons TBs are missing and I think some missing is from carelessness but I am starting to believe there are cachers out there that are actually collecting TBs. It's not enough to have them logged on their sight, they want to actually have possession of them. Like others have said, I will never leave a TB in a cache that have TBs missing.

[+sparklefingers]

I have read all the post, the reasons TBs are missing and I think some missing is from carelessness but I am starting to believe there are cachers out there that are actually collecting TBs. It's not enough to have them logged on their sight, they want to actually have possession of them. Like others have said, I will never leave a TB in a cache that have TBs missing.

 

I think you're right with people collecting them. i don't understand why they would think it's okay though. its part of a game they enjoy why take it, they're just killing that part of the game.

 

I had a travel bug i quite liked, i didn't keep it though what i did was look on ebay for what was connected to it and purchased that. i now have a little reminder of that travel bug on my charm bracelet.

 

That being said i'd rather have a horder cacher then some of the other reasons TBs go missing. i just had one melted after it was placed in its first cache by what i assume is kids.

The cache is gone and all that i found was some melted plastic that looked like my travel bug. so i have emailed the CO to check on the cache and replace and to ask him not to mark it missing.

 

I have made a proxy (I know you're suppose to wait a year but its been 5 months in that cache and it looked like it was melted months ago) i didn't want it to die in it's first cache so my plan is to remove it from the cache and place in another that is visited more often by nice people and not kids recking it (as it was recked and replaced just before i found it)

 

personally i like the travel bugs bit of the game most. i like seeing missions and what the travel bug is but it really gets me down when i get to a cache to find that theres been a travel bug missing from that cache for 6 months.

[+J&J Team Yukon]

One of the things I have started doing is emailing the last person that had the bug or that logged the a find for the cache and asked if there was any TBs in the cache. It would also help others to state in their log if there were any TBs or not.

[+sparklefingers]

One of the things I have started doing is emailing the last person that had the bug or that logged the a find for the cache and asked if there was any TBs in the cache. It would also help others to state in their log if there were any TBs or not.

 

see i thought that was a requirement anyway. i always note if there isn't a travel bug in the cache unless i didn't see if there was meant to be one in the cache (which has happened) i also leave in my log a little note if i have dropped one off. i then watch the travel bug until its picked up again. once its been logged by someone else i feel it's their responsibility from there to take care of it.

[+Eartha]

It's all about us educating the people we introduce to the game. And making sure they pass this education along and so on. Not everyone knows how to navigate a website. Some people need to be hand held through the process. If we can't show them what to properly, we should at least tell them not to move trackables until they learn how.

Edited February 20, 2013 by Eartha
typo

[+BlueDeuce]

It's all about us educating the people we introduce to the game. And making sure they pass this education along and so on. Not everyone knows how to navigate a website. Some people need to be hand held through the process. If we can't show them what to properly, we should at least tell them not to move trackables until they learn how.

 

I don't disagree but we've what done over the years isn't enough.

 

And if gc.com promoted a grass-root effort it still wouldn't work. It has to be site supported.

[+J&J Team Yukon]

This is very ironic because we put some TBs out for our little G-sons and they love following them. One came up missing so i contacted the last person that had it. This is what I got back from him.

 

Sorry it took me a few days to get back to you. I don't show the TB in my inventory. I remember dropping it in a cache but I did not put it in the cache it shows it is in. I usually use my phone to log any caches that I drop a TB in. I only drop a TB in one cache at a time do I doubt I dropped it in the one it said I did. I have looked for it in my home and car and cannot find it. I'll have to go through my caches to see if I can remember where I left it.

 

This is way TBs go missing!

[+kunarion]

This is very ironic because we put some TBs out for our little G-sons and they love following them. One came up missing so i contacted the last person that had it. This is what I got back from him.

 

Sorry it took me a few days to get back to you. I don't show the TB in my inventory. I remember dropping it in a cache but I did not put it in the cache it shows it is in. I usually use my phone to log any caches that I drop a TB in. I only drop a TB in one cache at a time do I doubt I dropped it in the one it said I did. I have looked for it in my home and car and cannot find it. I'll have to go through my caches to see if I can remember where I left it.

 

This is way TBs go missing!

When a Trackable is lost, misplaced, or logged incorrectly, a Note on the Trackable page is preferable to waiting around for the Trackable Owner to ask what happened. Otherwise, the Owner doen't even know if the Trackable has gone missing, nor what the status is. This creates a whole lot more work for the TO when deciding when to re-release.

 

I have various electronic ways to manage caching and Trackables, but when I'm moving Trackables, I use a pad of paper to chart out exactly which was picked up and dropped when & where. It can get extremely complicated to move several TBs among several caches, since most of them aren't listed properly, and others are missing.

 

I've never understood how people can use a “phone” only, never checking the Geocaching.com site with a PC web browser to see if things actually got logged correctly. Or maybe “the phone” is simply an easy thing to blame problems on.

Edited February 22, 2013 by kunarion

[Bon Echo]

Personally I am already to give up on owning Trackables altogether. this year for Christmas I bought 4 hamster travel tags and 4 small stuffed hamsters, 3 for my little girls and 1 for my wife. then I set up a TB race and also a facebook page so we can all track along with the hamsters. I came up with a whole set of "awards' to keep if fun. see for yourself http://coord.info/TB4RPRY. the goal was to have the TB's start out jan 1st 2013 and race for the year and hopefully we could get them back just before the end of the year (although in truth we knew that it would be unlikely that we would ever see them again)

I gave the TBs to the girls for Christmas and on Jan 1st we attended an event http://coord.info/GC429MB, made an announcement about the TBs and gave them to the first 3 geocachers who approached us to get one.

we were so excited, the TBs were out and we were all set to watch their progress. that's where the fun ended. Two of the cachers logged the TBs that day and haven’t done anything with them since (nearly 8 weeks have passed). the third has not even bothered to log the TB as being "picked up". I have tried to contact two of the cachers a few times and have not had a single response. I even posted a note to the page of a TB owned by one of the cachers in question but still never received a response. yes I understand its winter and yes I can see that these cachers have not been out caching since the event (or only a few times) - so why did they bother to take the TB's. I am not impressed, this is poor poor poor geocaching ettiqute IMO. My girls don’t even ask about their TBs anymore, that’s the sad part. $40 in tags and stuffed hamsters for nothing. will be the last TBs I ever buy. And I think there is a flaw in the system when people can sign up for an account but cannot be reached 9or make it so they cannot be reached) or will not respond to an email. Why bother even having accounts then? Not much accountability is there?

[+kunarion]

40 in tags and stuffed hamsters for nothing.

 

I hope you'll consider "re-releasing" the tags later (usually a year after they've been completely lost track of, but that's up to you). A laminated card with the Tracking Number gets it back in play. Even just a cut-out heavy cardboard "hamster" colored by each kid, with some text printed & the Tracking Number could be perfect.

 

If you've given up on "Travelers" completely, make T-shirts (hand-colored) for your wife & kids, and use those Tracking Numbers. Or they could be hats or bags or most anything. Make them discoverable Trackables. It's best to leave any previous logs as-is (some cachers likely moved them properly), but you can change most everything else on the Trackable's page for the re-released item.

Edited February 22, 2013 by kunarion

[Bon Echo]

40 in tags and stuffed hamsters for nothing.

 

I hope you'll consider "re-releasing" the tags later (usually a year after they've been completely lost track of, but that's up to you). A laminated card with the Tracking Number gets it back in play. Even just a cut-out heavy cardboard "hamster" colored by each kid, with some text printed & the Tracking Number could be perfect.

 

If you've given up on "Travelers" completely, make T-shirts (hand-colored) for your wife & kids, and use those Tracking Numbers. Or they could be hats or bags or most anything. Make them discoverable Trackables. It's best to leave any previous logs as-is (some cachers likely moved them properly), but you can change most everything else on the Trackable's page for the re-released item.

 

Thanks for your reply, In retrospect I wish gave each kid a tag to carry with them in a fashion like what you suggsted, then when they decide to go out caching with me they could rack up some miles and then they would be the hamsters in the race. I guess I have an idea for next christmas.

I'll leave these TBs as is for now and wait to see what will happen in the spring, yes it is a cold winter here and that is probably why they have not been moving. It's the lack of communication from those holding the TBs that I find most disheartening.

[+BlueDeuce]

this year for Christmas I bought 4 hamster travel tags and 4 small stuffed hamsters

 

Not that I can promise anything with my approach but I stay away from cute tags and icon candy type travelers. Standard plain travel bugs are less collectable and easier to replace.

[+Team Shiney]

I would not blame all missing TB's on new cachers. I had a TB vanish when placed in a 1000 Finds challenge cache. You would think such experianced folks would know how to handle our travelers. No such luck. 71 miles and it was gone. What the solution is I don't no.

 

Then again I have one that is traveling all over Switzerland. 8-)

 

Steven

[+kunarion]

I'll leave these TBs as is for now and wait to see what will happen in the spring, yes it is a cold winter here and that is probably why they have not been moving. It's the lack of communication from those holding the TBs that I find most disheartening.

People don't like to admit misplacing Trackables, partly due to the over-reaction of the Owners when they do. I wish they'd fess up anyway.

 

I mentioned one of my TBs (a generalized question, no URL or anything) here in this Forum, and the next day, the current holder drove 60 miles in a blinding snowstorm to drop it off! That's service!

 

One of my "lost" TBs turned up 18 months later. Most of mine have pretty much died now. But TBs reappear like magic all the time. The current holder may be... less than responsible... but his children might have a glimmer of a moral compass, see the item on a shelf one day, and get it back into the game.

Edited February 23, 2013 by kunarion

[+ThrillZeekerz]

I'm new to Caching but one thing I have noticed is for the most part if its a premium cache and TB's are listed then they are usually there. I will not drop a TB in a free cache as I call it because I believe a lot of the people who visit have nothing invested in the game. They can get the free app and go find them and unless they log it on the full site you would never know they were there unless you read the log and then there is nothing to tie the name to.I started with the free app that would only show the three closest caches after I set up an account and would write down the information and log them on the full site when I got home but quickly upgraded to the $10 app but decided in doing that to invest in becoming a Premium member. I have decided that when I purchase some TB's part of their instruction is to be only placed in premium caches whether its right or wrong.

[+ramblingduck]

I would like to see a "TB graveyard" in the cache inventory, with TBs that went missing from that cache listed much like archived caches are still shown on the map. This way we don't have to sift through the logs to check if a TB listed in the inventory is really still there and it would be a good warning not to drop TBs in a cache if their graveyard is well-populated.

[hoteltwo]

I wonder sometimes if CO's don't mark TB's as missing in their caches because it keeps people coming to their caches. I have emailed active CO's about caches with a large number of TB's in the cache inventory but the cache is empty of TB'. I ask them to mark the missing TB's as missing. No replies, no marking as missing, nada.

[+kunarion]

I wonder sometimes if CO's don't mark TB's as missing in their caches because it keeps people coming to their caches. I have emailed active CO's about caches with a large number of TB's in the cache inventory but the cache is empty of TB'. I ask them to mark the missing TB's as missing. No replies, no marking as missing, nada.

Make a log note that you saw no Trackables, to help the next cacher. I'm concerned how caches with Trackables listed are enticing to people. There's such importance placed on erasing the Inventory once Trackables are taken, not much thought for the Trackable's disappearance.