Jump to content

collecting countries


terratin

Recommended Posts

Is that 7 different caches types in each of 7 different countries?

 

Yes.

 

Not to mention, in many of those countries there probably aren't 7 different caches types in the entire country.

 

As events do count for most of the challenges, I'd say that at least in most European countries (of course not in the Vatican) where you have found caches the answer is yes.

 

We'll I don't live in Europe and when I have traveled there I've only visited as most, two countries during a visit. I've managed to transit through one other a couple of times but barely enough time to get out of the airport. Also, less than half of the countries in which I've found a cache are in Europe. The rest are in Asia (6 countries) and Africa (4), and the U.S. A 7 difference cache types in 7 countries really caters to those that live in Europe (and is probably challenges of that type are in Europe).

Link to comment

I was in England last week and I noticed some challenges that require one to have found a certain number of cache types in a certain number of countries, e.g. 5 cache types in each of 5 countries.

The more challenging type of challenge with respect to diversity appears to me that one

http://www.geocaching.com/geocache/GC56H69_9733-soup-challenge-bonus

 

Depends on your caching style. I like the fact that events not to count for this challenge. To me it doesn't seem more challenging as I qualify for this one (only 4 virtuals and 1 EC from outside Austria are 'necessary' for me within the 53 caches).

 

Whereas 5/6/7/8 types in 5/6/7/8 countries seems far away despite having cached in 15 countries even if events count for the challenge.

 

If you visit Mega-Events you typically can collect 10 different cache-types including all event-types. There are more than a few Austrians that travel not only to Austrian Mega-Events, but also travel to Germany, Switzerland, UK, Czech Republic and Slovakia for Mega-Events or even Gigas. Gives 10 in 6 (including events).

 

Of course such challenges cater mostly to european cachers. If you live and travel around Africa and Asia you won't qualify even with 50 countries visited. And there aren't too many countries in all of North America. ;)

 

In a local forum a cacher talked about the x in x challenges and noticed that US-Americans with 50 times more 'found it' than himself often even won't qualify for 3 in 3. But there is also a big difference in what cache-types get hidden and looked after in differnt regions.

Link to comment

I was in England last week and I noticed some challenges that require one to have found a certain number of cache types in a certain number of countries, e.g. 5 cache types in each of 5 countries.

The more challenging type of challenge with respect to diversity appears to me that one

http://www.geocachin...challenge-bonus

 

Depends on your caching style. I like the fact that events not to count for this challenge. To me it doesn't seem more challenging as I qualify for this one (only 4 virtuals and 1 EC from outside Austria are 'necessary' for me within the 53 caches).

 

Whereas 5/6/7/8 types in 5/6/7/8 countries seems far away despite having cached in 15 countries even if events count for the challenge.

 

If you visit Mega-Events you typically can collect 10 different cache-types including all event-types. There are more than a few Austrians that travel not only to Austrian Mega-Events, but also travel to Germany, Switzerland, UK, Czech Republic and Slovakia for Mega-Events or even Gigas. Gives 10 in 6 (including events).

 

Of course such challenges cater mostly to european cachers. If you live and travel around Africa and Asia you won't qualify even with 50 countries visited. And there aren't too many countries in all of North America. ;)

 

In a local forum a cacher talked about the x in x challenges and noticed that US-Americans with 50 times more 'found it' than himself often even won't qualify for 3 in 3. But there is also a big difference in what cache-types get hidden and looked after in differnt regions.

 

I live in the U.S. so all of that other countries in which I've found a cache are pretty far away. The closest is in Costa Rica (yes, I haven't found a cache in Mexico or Canada) and the next closest was in Barcelona (almost 3900 miles from where I live).

 

I don't tend to find a lot of caches and have never attended a Mega event (nor do I really have a desire to do so) so I doubt I'll ever qualify for even a 5 in 5 challenge. I did manage to get five different types during a 22 hour layover in Switzerland though.

 

South Africa certainly has enough caches to get at least 5 types (I know they have tried to have at least one mega event as well) but there may only be a couple of other countries with at up to 5 different types. I know that Nairobi, Kenya has traditionals, unknowns, multis, and earthcache and has had events. If one adds Asia and includes Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, and Turkey, I could see how it would be possible to get 5 in 5 just from African and Asian countries.

Link to comment

I was in England last week and I noticed some challenges that require one to have found a certain number of cache types in a certain number of countries, e.g. 5 cache types in each of 5 countries.

 

That's not too uncommon in Europe. In Vienna there are at least challenges for x caches types in x countries for x=3,4,5 and 6.

In London you can end up with 8 on a day without an event and 9 with an event.

 

The more challenging type of challenge with respect to diversity appears to me that one

http://www.geocaching.com/geocache/GC56H69_9733-soup-challenge-bonus

 

I checked my stats and I would qualify for up to 4x4 in countries. I was surprised to have so many.

 

The challenge you describe is not uncommon in the States; for me, it is a lot easier than the one with more countries involved. Just goes to show how geography can make a huge difference!

Link to comment

 

Is that 7 different caches types in each of 7 different countries? Although I've cached in 21 different countries I typically don't have more than a few hours when I'm there that I can spend geocaching so I suspect that I'll never complete this challenge. Not to mention, in many of those countries there probably aren't 7 different caches types in the entire country.

 

Yes it is. This is the challenge cache (there may be others as well) Global Challenge: 7 Types in 7 Countries

 

It is hard. I have 6 types in Australia, and I am sure I could have found a 7th there, but wasn't aware of this challenge when I was there. I didn't "try" for the 6 types there, that just happened.

 

For Wherigos, I've done them in 4 countries (UK, USA, Czech Republic, Hungary). In Czech and Hungary there was an English version. There is another challenge specific to Wherigos, where you need to have found a Wherigo in 5 countries (amongst other things) I ♥ Wherigos Challenge

 

The one place I wanted to do a Wherigo but was blocked due to language was Dusseldorf, Germany. I'm sure there are dual language ones in Germany, and maybe even in the Dusseldorf area. But the ones which were near the city center (where I go - no pun intended) were German only, and not simple ones. I did go to an event in Germany and met a cacher who offered to help me.. so next time maybe.

 

The other thing in Germany I noticed is the Letterbox Hybrids were all complex ones, using clues - so they were hard to do without good German as well. They weren't simply trads with a stamp in the box.

Link to comment

I was in England last week and I noticed some challenges that require one to have found a certain number of cache types in a certain number of countries, e.g. 5 cache types in each of 5 countries.

The more challenging type of challenge with respect to diversity appears to me that one

http://www.geocaching.com/geocache/GC56H69_9733-soup-challenge-bonus

 

Depends on your caching style. I like the fact that events not to count for this challenge. To me it doesn't seem more challenging as I qualify for this one (only 4 virtuals and 1 EC from outside Austria are 'necessary' for me within the 53 caches).

 

I did not make any experiments with caching data. I expected it to be harder when events do not enter the play than having 4 cache types in 4 countries for European cachers. However I need to admit that I misunderstood the challenge and thought that one has to fulfill all the soup challenge requirements for one challenge cache (I did not look at the description as it is PM-only).

 

Anyway, I only fulfill the 2 (not sure as the checker has an issue), 2.5 and 3* ones and fail for the 1, 1.5, 3.5, 4, 4.5 and 5 ones and taking into account that I thought that all requirements have to be met in one shot (cache), this made me make my statement about the alleged difficulty of the soup challenge (in the way I understood it).

 

If I had any ambition for such challenges, even 5 in 5 would be easy for me while the other one is undoable for me.

It depends what caching style means. If it includes to log also caches that are beyond one's own abilities, then of course the challenge will become much easier.

Otherwise only those who can cope with all T and D ratings and have a sufficient variety of cache types available also in the higher D/T segment will not end

up with serious obstacles.

 

 

Whereas 5/6/7/8 types in 5/6/7/8 countries seems far away despite having cached in 15 countries even if events count for the challenge.

 

5 in 5 is not that far away for you (in the Austrian x in x caches events do count). Two short day trips to Slovenia and Slovakia or Hungary (only 2 types missing each) or a visit to Venice (only 1 for Italy missing) for example and you are done,

The question is just is it worth the effort to log a micro in Vienna?

 

Cezanne

Edited by cezanne
Link to comment

I was in England last week and I noticed some challenges that require one to have found a certain number of cache types in a certain number of countries, e.g. 5 cache types in each of 5 countries.

The more challenging type of challenge with respect to diversity appears to me that one

http://www.geocaching.com/geocache/GC56H69_9733-soup-challenge-bonus

 

Depends on your caching style. I like the fact that events not to count for this challenge. To me it doesn't seem more challenging as I qualify for this one (only 4 virtuals and 1 EC from outside Austria are 'necessary' for me within the 53 caches).

 

However I need to admit that I misunderstood the challenge and thought that one has to fulfill all the soup challenge requirements for one challenge cache (I did not look at the description as it is PM-only).

 

It is about fulfilling all the soup challenge requirements, e.g. 8 (different cache-types without events) T1 or 8 D1, 7 T1.5 or 7 D1.5, ... 5 T4.5 or 5 D4.5, 4 T5 or 4 D5, in total 53.

 

It depends what caching style means. If it includes to log also caches that are beyond one's own abilities, then of course the challenge will become much easier.

Otherwise only those who can cope with all T and D ratings and have a sufficient variety of cache types available also in the higher D/T segment will not end

up with serious obstacles.

 

Cope with T OR D. If you don't do high T, you have to find enough caches with matching D and vice versa. Which is difficult in smaller regions at least until the locals discover this type of challenge. ;)

If you don't go for the less frequent cache-types it is very difficult, Traditional+Multi+?+Earthcache is only 4 types.

If you don't travel it might get difficult for the necessary webcams and virtuals unless you live where this types are still common.

If you don't own a device capable of playing wherigos, you need another approach.

If Letterbox Hybrid is unknown where you live/cache (not in Austria) - difficult.

 

5 in 5 is not that far away for you (in the Austrian x in x caches events do count). Two short day trips to Slovenia and Slovakia or Hungary (only 2 types missing each) or a visit to Venice (only 1 for Italy missing) for example and you are done. The question is just is it worth the effort to log a micro in Vienna?

 

No. Unless I go there for reasons other than a challenge cache. And I mostly cache abroad only when I'm going there anyway for vacation or sightseeing.

And on topic, unfortunately no new country in sight soon.

Link to comment

We ligged a 6 types in 6 countriescquite recently, in Copenhagen but had to work hard for it. It involved picking up a rwally crappy letterbox in Bienna we'd otherwise skipped. Still a funchallenge! But 6 types on a day insixcountries sounds ridiculous imo. It's rather a 'my stats are bigger than your stats' challenge. We once found 8 on a day in Paris, without event and I could have done 9 at a mega in Denmark, but decided to skip a few my friends were doing that day to do 9 with Mr. terratin together.

Link to comment

It is about fulfilling all the soup challenge requirements, e.g. 8 (different cache-types without events) T1 or 8 D1, 7 T1.5 or 7 D1.5, ... 5 T4.5 or 5 D4.5, 4 T5 or 4 D5, in total 53.

 

Yes, but I thought that you need to fulfill all these for one challenge cache and not separately for the various star levels levels. Until today I did not get that there are separate soup challenges for the various levels.

 

Cope with T OR D. If you don't do high T, you have to find enough caches with matching D and vice versa. Which is difficult in smaller regions at least until the locals discover this type of challenge. ;)

 

Even if it is only T OR D (originally I thought both), I only fulfill the requirements for 2, 2.5 and 3 and no other (of course without having spent any effort on the task - I have not even known about it until a few days ago). In any case, I would need to invest much more additional effort than for 4 in 4 or 5 in 5 and I'm not even sure if I'd manage to do it at all without external help which I do not tolerate. I still think that 4 in 4 and 5 in 5 are easier for the average cacher in Europe than fulfilling all soup challenges because one can focus on easy caches and does not need to deal with extreme ones at all.

Link to comment

The question is just is it worth the effort to log a micro in Vienna?

 

No. Unless I go there for reasons other than a challenge cache. And I mostly cache abroad only when I'm going there anyway for vacation or sightseeing.

And on topic, unfortunately no new country in sight soon.

 

It would be worth it to me too because I've never been to Vienna and, on topic as well, I've never found a cache in Austria. I thought I might have a good opportunity when planning my last trip. I was even going to schedule a day and a half layover in Vienna on the way home but then the trip (to Kenya and Uganda) got postponed. A colleague was supposed to go to Ethiopia at the same time but he cancelled at the last minuted and I was asked to take his place. I booked my flights on a Wednesday and left the U.S. Friday evening. The only real viable option at that point was a layover in Dubai, but at least I was able to add UAE to my countries list. Although it's not yet scheduled I suspect that I'll going to Kenya and Uganda some time after the end of the year and that would give me two more countries and 6 total countries in Africa.

 

 

Link to comment

I too just come back from Buenos Aires - everything perfect, and I was able to succeed in finding caches both in BA and in Colonia, Uruguay. I took the ferry to there (it cost me around 60 dollars) and I could do the EC. Lots of photologs both in BA and in Colonia unfortunately... people cheats and cheats... :( :(

 

Anyway I really had some fun :) These were my 16th and 17th countries, respectively!

 

Arnàutil in Casa Rosada, Buenos Aires, with its cache:

 

2qnpb0k.jpg

Link to comment

Congrats! Yes, those photologs... On one hand I'd love to post NAs on those when preparing a vacation as they really annoy me, but I'm not the cache police and thus we usually ignore those. If we accidentally try to find one of those (not reading previous logs properly) and log a DNF we mught send a NA behind if the cache is gone for a while and has a NM log already. Just did that in Bangkok but it's more of exception.

Link to comment

Congrats! Yes, those photologs... On one hand I'd love to post NAs on those when preparing a vacation as they really annoy me, but I'm not the cache police and thus we usually ignore those. If we accidentally try to find one of those (not reading previous logs properly) and log a DNF we mught send a NA behind if the cache is gone for a while and has a NM log already. Just did that in Bangkok but it's more of exception.

 

I am probably a little more on the fence with photo logs. In some cases, it's obvious that the CO is never going to replace that cache and is probably hoping that someone will leave a throwdown. In others, especially in tourist destinations, I think that COs recognize that many if not most geocachers visiting the spot are not from the area and might not ever visit the area again. If the cache goes missing, there might be dozens of tourist that would visit before they have time to go out and replace the container, and are accepting photologs *temporarily* as an act of good will to those that got to GZ. In that case, the cache might need maintenance, but as long as the CO does get to it in a reasonable timeframe, it shouldn't warrant a NA.

 

I encountered a cache in Singapore where the CO allowed photologs while the container was missing. As it turned out, GZ was actually a very good spot for photo opportunities and worth stopping at to take some pictures even if a cache had never been placed there.

 

 

Link to comment

I encountered a cache in Singapore where the CO allowed photologs while the container was missing. As it turned out, GZ was actually a very good spot for photo opportunities and worth stopping at to take some pictures even if a cache had never been placed there.

 

In that case I would take pictures and log a DNF on the cache.

Link to comment

I encountered a cache in Singapore where the CO allowed photologs while the container was missing. As it turned out, GZ was actually a very good spot for photo opportunities and worth stopping at to take some pictures even if a cache had never been placed there.

 

In that case I would take pictures and log a DNF on the cache.

 

I wasn't trying to suggest whether one should log a Found it or a DNF. I was just suggesting that in some cases that the CO may just be trying to extend a courtesy towards other geocacher that happened to be in their area at a time when a container and log sheet was not available. Personally, I think that fostering a sense of community and courtesy towards others geocachers is more important than worrying about whether or not some claims a find on a cache when they only took a photo.

Link to comment

I'm with funnynose here and rather think allowing photologs is laziness or bad planning: Cache placed during vacation and no proper maintenance plan. I'd rather see less caches in a country than many with no maintenance.

 

I totally understand that position. When I was in Costa Rica I saw that there were 3 caches within a mile or so of the hotel I was staying in. The next closest were several miles away. When I looked at the logs on those 3 it was obvious that they were missing (two of them hadn't had legitimate find logs in two years) and were not being maintained. In the scenario I was describing they were not vacation caches and the CO did try to do frequent maintenance. In an area with lots of tourists caches go missing and just like anywhere else the COs of those caches have real lives that might make it difficult to check on the cache on a daily or even weekly basis. During the time the cache is missing there may be quite a few geocachers that may want to try and find it and it may be their only opportunity to do so. In that case, I don't think that a CO *temporarily* allowing a photo log is doing so out of laziness or bad planning, and it only doing so as a courtesy to cache finders.

 

To me, one of the most attractive aspects of the game is the sense of community. In my geocaching utopia, geocachers place caches for the enjoyment of others, and those that find them properly thank cache owner for doing so. Sometimes a strict adherence to the details (you must sign the log sheet in order to get credit for the find) gets in the way of fostering the community aspect of the game.

 

 

Link to comment

To me, one of the most attractive aspects of the game is the sense of community. In my geocaching utopia, geocachers place caches for the enjoyment of others, and those that find them properly thank cache owner for doing so. Sometimes a strict adherence to the details (you must sign the log sheet in order to get credit for the find) gets in the way of fostering the community aspect of the game.

 

For me a find log has nothing to do at all with a sense of community. "Found it" means that I found the cache, it is a not a reward for having visited the location.

 

I'm a fan of virtual caches (containerless caches), but I'm strictly against logs for caches with a container when there is no container to be found.

 

I rather would like to see the return of virtuals at least under specific conditions while at the same time being more strict about photo logs.

 

There are locations where caches never survive for long and I find the situation around caches like this one

http://www.geocaching.com/geocache/GCXXDB_saint-stephen?guid=28d74ca8-4560-40d8-bc93-21cca01424f1

absolutely inacceptable (no, it is not a vacation cache) - the cache is inactive more often than active and in certain periods

photo logs are very common (fortunately the situation is a bit better right now than it used to be).

 

Such locations would much be better handled by virtual caches and then all those tourist cachers who just come to claim a find at

a certain location can be happy without compromising the basic principle of caches with a container.

Link to comment

To me, one of the most attractive aspects of the game is the sense of community. In my geocaching utopia, geocachers place caches for the enjoyment of others, and those that find them properly thank cache owner for doing so. Sometimes a strict adherence to the details (you must sign the log sheet in order to get credit for the find) gets in the way of fostering the community aspect of the game.

 

For me a find log has nothing to do at all with a sense of community. "Found it" means that I found the cache, it is a not a reward for having visited the location.

 

To me, fostering a sense of community has nothing to do with rewards. "Found it" is just a log type. It's what one adds to that log that can make a difference. Writing a proper thank you is just the courteous thing to do just as a CO putting effort into a cache placement or managing their cache in a manner that provides the most enjoyment for those that might try to find it is a courtesy that *shouldn't" need to be legislated in the form of a guideline. Posting just a found it log as a method of indicating one has found the cache is no more than obligatory bookkeeping in order to get credit for the find.

 

 

I'm a fan of virtual caches (containerless caches), but I'm strictly against logs for caches with a container when there is no container to be found.

 

I rather would like to see the return of virtuals at least under specific conditions while at the same time being more strict about photo logs.

 

I agree that many of these places would be better served with a virtual cache but we don't have that option anymore. I'm less in favor in a strict adherence to logging practices as I think it only creates drama between players. There are certainly guidelines that I think we should follow where not doing so has the potential for hurting the game, but if a CO wants to allow someone to post a photo log I just don't see how that is hurting anyone, and I see it more as extending a courtesy to a fellow player and, to me, that is more important than worrying about how some people log their experience.

 

Link to comment

To me, fostering a sense of community has nothing to do with rewards.

 

Neither for me, but

 

"Found it" is just a log type. It's what one adds to that log that can make a difference.

 

I'm sorry, but for me it's completely absurd to log "found it" if the container is missing for a cache with a container.

 

Writing a proper thank you is just the courteous thing to do just as a CO putting effort into a cache placement or managing their cache in a manner that provides the most enjoyment for those that might try to find it is a courtesy that *shouldn't" need to be legislated in the form of a guideline.

 

I did not say anything against writing a proper thank you (that's not an issue of the log type).

 

Posting just a found it log as a method of indicating one has found the cache is no more than obligatory bookkeeping in order to get credit for the find.

 

When I wrote reward I meant what you refer to as "getting credit". From my point of view found it logs are statements about having found the cache for me and not any form of getting a reward, a credit, a point or whatever.

 

For example, if someone offers me to log a find for a cache that went missing and which involved a 10 hours hike, I would thank the cache owner for his kind offer, but definitely decline it as it seems completely absurd to me to write found it log.

 

 

I agree that many of these places would be better served with a virtual cache but we don't have that option anymore.

 

I find it just amazing that among those who are against the return of virtuals (and who are not reviewers) there are many who are quite positive about photo logs for temporarily unavailable caches under certain circumstances.

 

I'm less in favor in a strict adherence to logging practices as I think it only creates drama between players. There are certainly guidelines that I think we should follow where not doing so has the potential for hurting the game, but if a CO wants to allow someone to post a photo log I just don't see how that is hurting anyone, and I see it more as extending a courtesy to a fellow player and, to me, that is more important than worrying about how some people log their experience.

 

It is hurting those who never ever would want to write a found it log in such cases as as long the option photo log exists there is not much pressure to take care of the situation, both on the individual cache level and on the general level of geocaching at certain locations.

 

 

Cezanne

Link to comment

2014 was a busy year for me I found caches in:

 

Kenya

South Africa

Lesotho

Swaziland

Belgium

Slovakia

Poland

Taiwan

Japan

 

Plus US States

Louisiana

Alabama

Mississippi

Arizona

 

On tap for 2015 I have planned

Laos (the city I'm visiting Vientiane only has 3 caches in it. One of them being fotologged)

India

Maybe Nepal

Hong Kong

Link to comment

2014 was a busy year for me I found caches in:

 

Kenya

South Africa

Lesotho

Swaziland

Belgium

Slovakia

Poland

Taiwan

Japan

 

Plus US States

Louisiana

Alabama

Mississippi

Arizona

 

On tap for 2015 I have planned

Laos (the city I'm visiting Vientiane only has 3 caches in it. One of them being fotologged)

India

Maybe Nepal

Hong Kong

 

Hey, there is still a month left in 2014...why wait?

 

We added the Netherlands, Belgium and Jamaica to our list of countries cached (only Jamaica was new for countries visited)

We decided to stay domestic for the first time in years for my birthday so we were able to add South Dakota and Wyoming to US states cached.

We might add a couple of states before the year is over.

As for 2015, we haven't been to Scandinavia. Maybe if we find a good bike tour...

Link to comment

2014 was a busy year for me I found caches in:

 

Kenya

South Africa

Lesotho

Swaziland

Belgium

Slovakia

Poland

Taiwan

Japan

 

Plus US States

Louisiana

Alabama

Mississippi

Arizona

 

On tap for 2015 I have planned

Laos (the city I'm visiting Vientiane only has 3 caches in it. One of them being fotologged)

India

Maybe Nepal

Hong Kong

 

Lovely!

 

This year we cached in (new country in bold)

Denmark

Qatar

Germany

Malta

Bahrain

France

Austria

Slovakia

Maldives

Oman

Ethiopia

Cambodia

Thailand (just logged the last cache of this trip :lol:)

 

We have no travel plans for December.

Not sure yet what to do next year. Main vacation will most certainly be in a SE Asian country we've not visited yet, maybe Vietnam or Indonesia. We have a trip planned to Germany and Netherlands and I'll most likely travel to Denmark a few times. My training next year might bring me to Scotland (still not a country :( ) and Spain, or maybe Malaysia. We'll see...

Link to comment

In case you haven't heard of it yet: http://www.geocaching.com/blog/2014/12/croatia-souvenir/

 

Thanks Groundspeak! :)

 

edit: the most interesting part is this: "We hope to have Souvenirs for every country at some point in the future! -Janelle, Community Manager"

 

Mrs. terratin

Interesting. I've mentioned before that my grandfather came to the U.S. from Croatia. My birthday is on December 22, the day the souvenir is coming out. B) Now, I just have to get myself over there. :ph34r:

Link to comment

In case you haven't heard of it yet: http://www.geocachin...oatia-souvenir/

 

Thanks Groundspeak! :)

 

edit: the most interesting part is this: "We hope to have Souvenirs for every country at some point in the future! -Janelle, Community Manager"

 

Mrs. terratin

Interesting. I've mentioned before that my grandfather came to the U.S. from Croatia. My birthday is on December 22, the day the souvenir is coming out. B) Now, I just have to get myself over there. :ph34r:

 

I wonder why they chose Croatia before adding souvenirs for countries like Italy, Belgium or Mexico.

 

My wife is Croatian but so far I've never visited the country. I'd love to go there sometime though. My sister-n-law and her family went last year and took lots of pictures so I've seen just how gorgeous it is.

 

I'm glad that they finally listened to all those that have been asking for more Country/Regional based souvenirs. Thanks Groundspeak!

 

Link to comment

Can very highly recommend Croatia- I've spent about two weeks of my life there total, twice on the Dalmatian coast (once post geocaching, so I am excited for that souvenir! and for Italy). Like others, I hope they introduce some non-European ones too, but meh, not why I collect countries. ;)

 

Busy here these days with work (submitting my first first author paper on Monday! yay!) but counting down to traveling to the USA soon. Visiting three states, but have already been to all three, but they're all places I love so who cares? B) Am eyeing geocaches in all locations, so that'll be fun either way.

 

Still planning for Israel/Jordan/Palestine in spring. The issue there is finding the week to do it, as I was told to avoid Passover/Easter like the plague (Israel shuts down that time of year), and they're trying to do the first Dutch Mega event on March 14. And I was hoping to go in March, but the best week to do it would mean missing the mega and I've never been to one! :( Sigh...

 

Also was thinking of going to Morocco over Easter break (we get the Friday and the Monday off here- yep, I'm planning ahead!)- fly in/out of Marrakech, spend two nights out in the desert. I've heard too many horror stories of solo travel as a woman in Morocco to want to devote an extensive trip there, plus I reckon if I like it I can always return. Other options for Easter were Malta or Cyprus, but I don't think they're beach destinations yet in early April so I may save them for later.

 

Alas I've cleared out my radius of easy countries for weekend trips from the Netherlands, and instead have friends to visit now in ones I've already been to, so we'll see how weekend trips go. ;)

 

Btw FunnyNose, if you go to Luang Prabang in Laos check out my Earthcache nearby- it's in an amazing place! Lots of people who log it remark how they wouldn't have gone out there if it wasn't for the cache and are thankful it's there. :)

 

As a final note, photo logs- I don't do them myself, but when traveling in 3rd world countries I will often keep a spare micro and/or nano cache in my bag (as often in logs it's obvious that the container is no longer there and the CO wants it replaced). Yeah you can argue one shouldn't do throwdowns, but sometimes we're talking about literally the only geocache for hundreds of miles! And I think extraordinary circumstances allow those measures.

 

Btw, it does remind me tho, the craziest example I ever found like that was a cache that was the only one in Xi'an, right by the terra-cotta warriors. Read in the logs and then confirmed that the cache was behind a giant no trespassing sign, but people were still logging it by either going behind the sign or posting a photo from the sidewalk nearby. Both sound like a real smart idea, eh?! So that one I got archived because I don't care if it's the only one in the area, it was a setup for a bad situation.

Link to comment

Reading all of your posts is truly inspiring! I absolutely love traveling and geocaching while doing so; it has taken me to some amazing locations. Just last year when my ship visited Darwin, Australia, a Shipmate indicated he had always wanted to visit the termite mounds nearby. After discovering there were caches in the vicinity, the coordinates enabled us to find our way and have a terrific adventure. I fully acknowledge I would have missed out on so many sites and interesting sights had it not been for geocaching; I will always be incredibly grateful for this hobby/game/activity. I did not begin caching until 2008; I wish I had discovered it sooner while living in England and traveling extensively around Europe. I would consider my "got away" story to be Brazil; my ex introduced the idea of geocaching exactly one week after we returned from Carnaval in Rio de Janiero. Perhaps I'll have the opportunity to visit again. Until then, my plans for the coming a year are to continue caching around Japan and possibly a trip to Norway this spring. I would love to venture to New Caledonia and work on their new geotrail. Otherwise I daydream about walking the "Camino de Santiago" after retiring and hopefully discovering a few geocaches along the way. To all, may you have a wonderful 2015!

 

And a thankful shout-out to "NYPaddleCacher" for directing me to this forum.

Edited by Traveler_on_a_Whim
Link to comment

I will also go on tour in late January. Most likely zone is Baltic countries, which would be a pack of 4 new countries for me :rolleyes: (landing in Helsinki, ferry, renting a car to discover Estonia-Latvia-Lithuania). We'll see if this goes through.

 

I have closed this year with a few caches in southern France. In total, I've cached in 6 new countries (Mexico, Turkey, Austria, Liechtenstein, Argentina and Uruguay) for a total of 17. Keep going!

Link to comment

I will also go on tour in late January. Most likely zone is Baltic countries, which would be a pack of 4 new countries for me :rolleyes: (landing in Helsinki, ferry, renting a car to discover Estonia-Latvia-Lithuania). We'll see if this goes through.

 

I have closed this year with a few caches in southern France. In total, I've cached in 6 new countries (Mexico, Turkey, Austria, Liechtenstein, Argentina and Uruguay) for a total of 17. Keep going!

 

I only had one new country this year (UAE) but I added finds in Ethiopia, Costa Rica, and of course the U.S. (where I live). I picked up a couple of new U.S. states (Washington, Texas) and cached in 6 states total. I have only had 36 finds all year.

 

I have nothing firm planned for next year but several possibilities. There's a fairly good chance I'll go to Kenya for a week or so in the early spring which might possibly include a visit to Uganda. I've been doing a fair amount of work with a couple of universities in China so the is a possibility of a trip there. I'd only get a new country if I can schedule in a layover somewhere like Hong Kong or Seoul. I have also doing some work for an organization in the UK and although they haven't requested it, if I could spend a couple of days there working with their developers face-to-face it would significantly expedite the project they're working on. The UK would be a new country for me. I am sure I'd have a lot more countries in Europe if I lived there because any country that I visit there requires a flight across the pond.

Link to comment

So I learned something cool recently for country collectors, and that is there is a way to visit Russia visa free! Specifically, there's a loophole whereby if you intend to only go to St Petersburg for less than 72 hours (ie 3 days/ 2 nights) you are allowed to do so if you take the overnight ferry there/back from Helsinki or Tallinn. Technically you need to do a tour, but a tour can involve just taking the ferry company's bus downtown, so... might do that one later this year! Heaven knows the price is cheap enough these days for Russia. :)

 

Also, interestingly, I may pick up Gibraltar before the end of the month. Cold and dreary in Holland but it's sunny and high 60s in Malaga, and in January the roundtrip flight+ hostel bunk would set me back €120 for the weekend, so I think that one is gonna happen. And if already there, gee, I gotta make the trek down the Costa del Sol for country #35, right? B)

Link to comment

China has something similar. If you're in Hong Kong or Macau, you can pop over into mainland China on a 5-day visa-on-arrival. It depends on your nationality (sorry, no Americans), and still costs a bit of money, and it's fussy to figure out and confirm the details, but for most people it's possible. Many people pop over to Shenzhen from HK for shopping day-trips. I went there for a couple of days to look around (and find some China caches of course) before ferrying onward to Macau.

Link to comment

So I learned something cool recently for country collectors, and that is there is a way to visit Russia visa free! Specifically, there's a loophole whereby if you intend to only go to St Petersburg for less than 72 hours (ie 3 days/ 2 nights) you are allowed to do so if you take the overnight ferry there/back from Helsinki or Tallinn. Technically you need to do a tour, but a tour can involve just taking the ferry company's bus downtown, so... might do that one later this year! Heaven knows the price is cheap enough these days for Russia. :)

 

 

That's good to know, although I'd feel a little uncomfortable about being in Russia on a loophole. How long does the ferry from Helsinki to St. Petersburg take? I might have to think about it the next time I fly to Europe. Schedule a couple of days layover in Helsinki, take the ferry to St. Petersburg and back, then continue to my final destination in Europe. When I've looked at various itineraries to Europe from the U.S. a layover in Moscow often shows up as one of the more economical options. One the other hand, it requires flying on Aeroflot.

 

I know St. Petersburg is supposed to be pretty spectacular but if I'm going to Russia I'd kind of like to have an opportunity to meet CJ and he is in Moscow.

 

 

Link to comment

In the uncomfortable-loopholes department, I understand that if you visit Iguazu Falls from the Argentina side, it's possible to "sneak" into Brazil to see the falls from that side too. Without a visa, that is, Brazil is really nosey and expensive with their visas. I've seen nothing written down that says this is legal, but some people do it. Probably because, as I understand it, locals get free passage within X distance of the border.

 

I had the chance, but not the nerve.

 

...but I did once sneak over the invisible line into a foreign country - a fairly uptight one - where there were no officials in sight, and even snacked on the vegetation in one of that country's national parks before making one last gesture of respect, then wandering back. I made sure to turn off the GPS' track logging feature beforehand.

Edited by Viajero Perdido
Link to comment

Would like to visit St Petersburg and pick up some caches there (and tick off Russia on the map) when a couple of us will be in Europe later in the year, but it's about a 15 hour ferry apparently each way between Helsinki and St Petersburg, all for what would be for us a one day visit. Certainly appreciate the heads up on this 'no visa' option - will continue to look into it. We were thinking of nipping across the border at Narva to grab a cache, but the visa cost and potential border hassle might be a bit much.

 

In terms of grabbing countries, I plan to cache in about 30 countries this year of which nearly 20 will be new, and will bring me to about 55 total... That's the plan anyway... :)

Link to comment

Would like to visit St Petersburg and pick up some caches there (and tick off Russia on the map) when a couple of us will be in Europe later in the year, but it's about a 15 hour ferry apparently each way between Helsinki and St Petersburg, all for what would be for us a one day visit. Certainly appreciate the heads up on this 'no visa' option - will continue to look into it. We were thinking of nipping across the border at Narva to grab a cache, but the visa cost and potential border hassle might be a bit much.

 

In terms of grabbing countries, I plan to cache in about 30 countries this year of which nearly 20 will be new, and will bring me to about 55 total... That's the plan anyway... :)

 

wow! that's a lot!

 

Right now I'm planning a trip with my gf for late January to Budapest and Vienna, with a more than probable stop in Bratislava to grab also Slovakia. I've been to these countries and places before I geocached, so now is a good time to go back :) that would be two more countries for me, since I already have Slovakia.

 

PS. The cost of the tickets from Barcelona to Budapest in the dates 21-28 January is... EUR 55 (two-way). Amazing!

Link to comment

 

PS. The cost of the tickets from Barcelona to Budapest in the dates 21-28 January is... EUR 55 (two-way). Amazing!

 

Flights are very cheap right now. I can fly from JFK to Copenhagen, R/T for $429. It's only $460 r/t to moscow. I paid more than that last years for a r/t flight from NY to Austin, Texas.

 

A couple of business related trips came up last week, and confidence level on actually going to them is high. Although still in the U.S. my boss told me that he wants me to attend and present at a workshop out in Portland, Oregon in March. I know finding caches in another part of the country might not seem like much for those in Europe but Portland is over 2200 miles from New York, over twice as far as it is from Barcelona to Budapest. Plus, I have not yet cached in Oregon and can find the Original Stash plaque and the very old GC12 and GC16.

 

The other trip is actually closer but could mean a new country. There's a conference/workshop that I have been told by my bosses boss that I ought to attend in Ottawa, Canada. It's only about a 4.5 hours drive but since I started geocaching in 2007 I haven't crossed the border into Canada. I've been to about 24 other countries, but not the one nearest me.

Link to comment

Ottawa is a great caching town. If you go, see if they still do the weekly "Geo-Mob" breakfast thing on Saturdays. Breakfast is followed, naturally, with caching. Great people.

 

I used to house-sit in Ottawa. For the price of a plane ticket, I'd get a free house, cats, car, and the opportunity to cache my brains out. I spent a lot of time on the trails in Gatineau Park, just outside town on the Quebec side. At one point the park evicted the best caches, but some remain.

 

Welcome to my playground. B)

 

PS, I think you're right about the cheap flights. I saw Hong Kong for about half the usual rate, which seems rare for a long-haul. So I'm going back! I only covered about half the trails, and barely any of the dim sum restaurants I wanted to on the first trip. It's another great place to cache your brains out, especially if you like 'em old-skool, in the bush where stealth isn't necessary.

Edited by Viajero Perdido
Link to comment

In the uncomfortable-loopholes department, I understand that if you visit Iguazu Falls from the Argentina side, it's possible to "sneak" into Brazil to see the falls from that side too. Without a visa, that is, Brazil is really nosey and expensive with their visas. I've seen nothing written down that says this is legal, but some people do it. Probably because, as I understand it, locals get free passage within X distance of the border.

 

I had the chance, but not the nerve.

 

...but I did once sneak over the invisible line into a foreign country - a fairly uptight one - where there were no officials in sight, and even snacked on the vegetation in one of that country's national parks before making one last gesture of respect, then wandering back. I made sure to turn off the GPS' track logging feature beforehand.

I've "snuck" into countries twice - once by boat, and once I just stepped over the (visible) line. Both were quick, just to do it. So silly, such a rebel. :laughing:

Link to comment

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
×
×
  • Create New...