Just curious...

[+J-dawg_the_Pirate]

So I am pretty new. Last night my SO and I found one that was hidden in a way that would have required "tools of the trade" to retrieve it from a hole in a telephone pole. We didn't have "tools of the trade" but we could see the pill size container. We logged the cache as found. My SO noted such in her log entry, and she got this in email:

 

"We see that you are a fairly new cacher and we welcome you to the world of geocaching, but we do have to remind you that you really shouldn't claim a cache unless you sign the log!"

 

Is this really a thing? I haven't signed the log on most of my "finds", mostly because I am an IT geek and I shun the use of paper and pencil. I know it doesn't really matter, this is for personal fun only but is it poor etiquette to claim a cache without signing the log? What about the ones I found where the log was soaking wet and I couldn't sign (I noted such in my log entry online)?

 

Maybe it is because I am new, but with all the online tools the hobby has today I kind of see signing the log as a "oh how cute" tradition.

 

Thoughts?

[+T.D.M.22]

No it really doesn't matter. But if you don't sign the log then the cache owner can delete your online found it log. Now if that doesn't bother oh then keep on, but if it does, we'll you'll just have to sign it then.

[+Chief301]

It's not just an "oh how cute" tradition, it is the only way for the cache owner to verify with certainty that you did in fact find their cache and have it in hand. There are very few "hard and fast" rules in this game but the requirement to sign the log is one of them. A CO may rightfully delete your online log if you have not signed the log.

 

In the case of the cache you "found", if a tool of the trade is required to retrieve the cache, and this was the intent of the hider, then that was meant to be part of the challenge. If you did not meet the challenge you are not entitled to claim the find.

 

Let's consider some other examples....a cache is hidden high in a tree. The owner intended for you to have to climb the tree to retrieve it......It is part of the challenge. You did not feel comfortable or safe climbing the tree, although you could see the container. Challenge not met=no find.

 

Conversely, if the CO intended for you to climb the tree to retrieve the cache but you are clever enough to devise some other method to retrieve it (maybe you know a friend who owns a cherry picker truck, for example 😊), and you did retrieve the container, sign the log, and return it to its hiding place, then the CO would technically have to let your find stand.....because you did sign the log, even though you used an alternate method of retrieval to what the CO expected. So it works both ways.

 

Maybe it's a puzzle cache where you have to solve a puzzle to get the combination to a lock to open the cache. You did not solve the puzzle so you did not know the combination, although you found the container. Challenge not met = no find.

 

I could give many other examples but you get the general idea.

 

Now, if the log sheet is so soaked that you truly can't sign it, or the container is rusted shut and you can't open it (I found one like that last weekend), well, that clearly was not intended to be part of the challenge. In that case I would take a picture to prove that I did find it and log the find. Most owners will let a found log stand under those circumstances.

 

The reason this rule persists is that there are some dishonest people out there who log finds on caches they never even tried to find. I had to delete a find on one of my caches by a guy who signed up the day before and promptly logged finds on several continents, in several different countries, and dozens of states in the US on the same day. Obviously fake, so I deleted his log (but I did check the log sheet first to confirm it, unlikely as it was)

Edited August 9, 2013 by Chief301

[+Derb522002]

I had a cache that someone sign and I was not sure if it really was cacher. I went to my cache and checked to see if they really had visited the cache. They had and I did not delete their log. I also had a person say they sign my and other caches in 1 day all over the state and I deleted the log. When checking on my cache I like to look at the log book to see what people wrote. When visiting a cache I like to look to see who signed the log and if they put any comments in the log book. If a log book is wet and I cant sign it you might leave a piece of paper in the cache with your name. Also log it when you log the cache on line. I think if you can sign the log in the cache do it.

[Pup Patrol]

So I am pretty new. Last night my SO and I found one that was hidden in a way that would have required "tools of the trade" to retrieve it from a hole in a telephone pole. We didn't have "tools of the trade" but we could see the pill size container. We logged the cache as found. My SO noted such in her log entry, and she got this in email:

 

"We see that you are a fairly new cacher and we welcome you to the world of geocaching, but we do have to remind you that you really shouldn't claim a cache unless you sign the log!"

 

Is this really a thing? I haven't signed the log on most of my "finds", mostly because I am an IT geek and I shun the use of paper and pencil. I know it doesn't really matter, this is for personal fun only but is it poor etiquette to claim a cache without signing the log? What about the ones I found where the log was soaking wet and I couldn't sign (I noted such in my log entry online)?

 

Maybe it is because I am new, but with all the online tools the hobby has today I kind of see signing the log as a "oh how cute" tradition.

 

Thoughts?

 

Signing the log book or scroll is the most basic thing to do in geocaching.

 

Geocaching 101

http://www.geocaching.com/guide/

 

How is the game played?

 

7. Sign the logbook and return the geocache to its original location.

8. Share your geocaching stories and photos online.

 

What are the rules of geocaching?

 

1. If you take something from the geocache (or "cache"), leave something of equal or greater value.

2. Write about your find in the cache logbook.

3. Log your experience at www.geocaching.com.

 

How do I find the cache and what should I do once I've found it?

 

When you find the cache, sign the logbook and return it to the cache. You can take an item from the cache if you like - just make sure to leave something of equal or greater value in its place. When you are finished, put the cache back exactly as you found it, even if you think you see a better spot for it. Finally, visit the cache page to log your find and share your experience with others.

 

 

B.

[+J-dawg_the_Pirate]

How many CO's actually check the log vs online "found it" logs? I live in northern Colorado and the majority of the ones I have found so far have been placed by a guy who has over 1000 caches that he is the CO of.

 

But I am the new guy here, and I mean no disrespect. I will live with my "found it!" getting deleted if I forgot to bring a pencil or didn't sign the log for whatever reason I have. It's still fun.

 

Thanks all!

[+TriciaG]

I would say that the majority of CO's don't compare the paper log with the online one. The die-hards that post here in the forum? A greater majority of them will.

 

When I first started, I didn't sign the logs of the 10 caches I found in one day. They were legitimate finds - I opened 'em all and everything - but I had planned on returning to each cache and officially signing them during an event I had set up. The event never happened; ergo, no signed logs. Fortunately, either the CO's don't care or they never noticed.

[+suchanana]

aaaarrgghhh J-Dawg the Pirate, der mite b a few less smileys doon it yur way, but long as it's still fun...matey, methinks when yur cachin' in my neck-of-woods, i 'preeesh-ee-ate it to see yur mark on the log...

 

btw- my logsheets are write-when-wet paper and they dry quickly just waving 'em in the air for a few seconds...

[+J-dawg_the_Pirate]

aaaarrgghhh J-Dawg the Pirate, der mite b a few less smileys doon it yur way, but long as it's still fun...matey, methinks when yur cachin' in my neck-of-woods, i 'preeesh-ee-ate it to see yur mark on the log...

 

btw- my logsheets are write-when-wet paper and they dry quickly just waving 'em in the air for a few seconds...

 

Funny enough I do my online log entries in pirate speak if it is large enough to warrant a trade, I am thinking about getting a pirate stamp for logs. Here is my favorite so far:

 

Ahoy there! Your treasure has been found by J-Dawg_the_Pirate! This log captures a tale that happened with two different connected geocaches, so I am posting it to both. It started when I found "L's Treasure Box". Me being a Pirate I figured I would do some plundering, but the Box was being guarded by "Prickly Pete, the Old Prospector" from the movie Toy Story 2. Normally J-Dawg-the-Pirate takes no prisoners, so Pete was about to walk the plank. But then he told me he knew where there was a pirate doubloon, and he would take me to it if I would spare his life. So I made him my prisoner! I left a plastic clip with a magnet on it in the box so the weight would be the same, learned that trick from one Indiana Jones, I did!

So Pete led me to "M's Treasure Box" and low and behold the scalawag was true to his word! I took the golden pirate doubloon and left Pete shakin in his boots! It was a good day for a Pirate, a good day indeed!

[+Chief301]

I think very few owners will justify their online logs vs. the signed logsheet as a matter of routine....only as a check if there is some clear discrepancy, such as the one I cited earlier about the guy who logged hundreds of finds all over the world on the same day. Unless there is some reason for me to doubt a legitimate find, I don't go confirm every log. In fact, I've even noticed on maintenance visits that there are some signatures appearing on the paper log who never logged the find online. I don't really understand that but to each his own, I guess.

[+redants]

How many CO's actually check the log vs online "found it" logs? I live in northern Colorado and the majority of the ones I have found so far have been placed by a guy who has over 1000 caches that he is the CO of.

 

But I am the new guy here, and I mean no disrespect. I will live with my "found it!" getting deleted if I forgot to bring a pencil or didn't sign the log for whatever reason I have. It's still fun.

 

Thanks all!

We've got a guy in my area who owns a staggering 2000 caches! And they're almost all crap!

[+weezul_gg]

This is an interesting question though. In our age of smartphones, it's easy enough to prove that I've found a cache (take a photo of it in my hand, for example) as an alternative to physically signing. However, if it's a "special" item, this might be a spoiler.

 

As a new geocacher, I've done this a couple of times (picked up a nano and said, "oh cool!", and logged it without signing). This got me to thinking about Geo-etiquette, so I searched and found this thread. I will of course sign from now on, but wonder if an electronic signature might be equivalent.

[+ngrrfan]

I {snip} wonder if an electronic signature might be equivalent.

IMHO... No.

[+The_Incredibles_]

Yes, you're supposed to sign the logbook. I don't think cache owners care as much if it's just a normal hide and you forgot your pen or the log was soaked. However, this sounds like a special hide which is meant to be retrieved with special tools. So you should do it as intended.

Edited August 12, 2013 by The_Incredibles_

[+Mockingbird559]

caching without a pencil?

[+Harry Dolphin]

As Pup Patrol notes in his (or her) incessant citations of the guidelines: Sign the log. Replace the cache. Log your find on-line. Get smiley. If you do not sign the log, a CO following the guidelines can delete your find. In your case, where you did not retrieve the cache and sign the log, your claim of a find is bogus. That is not a find. COs should delete bogus 'finds'. (Pup Patrol: Got the listing for that?) I saw a very nice cache about twenty feet up a tree. I was unable to retrieve the cache and sign the log. (Or maybe a few of those.) I proudly logged my DNF. I did not retrieve the cache and sign the log. DOH! That's a DNF. I do not understand why you think you should be able to log a find on a cache that you were unable to retrieve and sign the log. Is there something that I am missing here? Retrieve cache. Sign log. Log your find on-line. That's pretty simple? Isn't it?

Remind me again why you think that you should be able to log a find on a cache where you did not retrieve the cache and sign the log??

[Pup Patrol]

http://www.geocaching.com/about/guidelines.aspx

 

2. Geocache Maintenance

 

Owner is responsible for geocache listing maintenance.

 

As the owner of your cache listing, your responsibility includes quality control of all posts to the cache listing. Delete any logs that appear to be bogus, counterfeit, off-topic or otherwise inappropriate.

 

Help Center → Hiding a Geocache → Geocache Ownership: A Long-Term Relationship

 

3.9. Log Deletion

 

http://support.Groundspeak.com/index.php?pg=kb.page&id=204

 

 

 

B.