Normal for distance to change? Using iPhone

[+nikkijaygee]

Hi -- I am new and while I enjoy what I've done so far, I'm kind of bad at geocaching! I am using my iPhone and the Groundspeak app. Is it normal for the distance in the compass to change while I'm navigating? Like, at an allegedly beginner one, I thought i'd get close, but then it would point me 20 or 40 feet in a different direction. Then I get there, and it bounces me somewhere else again. Is that normal? Would using something other than a smartphone help by being more accurate? Or do I just need to learn to be patient and look far and wide? (last one probably has something to do with it, but I'm working on it!)

 

Thanks in advance!

[+ngrrfan]

Hi -- I am new and while I enjoy what I've done so far, I'm kind of bad at geocaching! I am using my iPhone and the Groundspeak app. Is it normal for the distance in the compass to change while I'm navigating? Like, at an allegedly beginner one, I thought i'd get close, but then it would point me 20 or 40 feet in a different direction. Then I get there, and it bounces me somewhere else again. Is that normal? Would using something other than a smartphone help by being more accurate? Or do I just need to learn to be patient and look far and wide? (last one probably has something to do with it, but I'm working on it!)

 

Thanks in advance!

Once you get within 20 feet, start looking and stop looking at the compass. Just head in the direction the compass points and use your eyes to see that doesn't look right.

 

BTW... if you are using the iPhone 3, it isn't the best for finding. Mine gets me to within 50 feet and that is about it. I'll take a GPSr any day.

[+Love Cachers]

My wife & I boh use iPhone 5 and it is supposed to be accurate up to 16' most of the time but if there are electric wires around sometimes it will bounce like that. We have also had problems on cloudy days. It is best to do as ngrrfan suggest and start developing your "geo-sense" and not rely on gadgets. As I am looking for a cache I am asking myself, "Where would I place a cache? What looks out of place or looks different?".

[Blue Square Thing]

Hi -- I am new and while I enjoy what I've done so far, I'm kind of bad at geocaching! I am using my iPhone and the Groundspeak app. Is it normal for the distance in the compass to change while I'm navigating? Like, at an allegedly beginner one, I thought i'd get close, but then it would point me 20 or 40 feet in a different direction. Then I get there, and it bounces me somewhere else again. Is that normal? Would using something other than a smartphone help by being more accurate? Or do I just need to learn to be patient and look far and wide? (last one probably has something to do with it, but I'm working on it!)

 

Thanks in advance!

Yes, that seems pretty normal, especially with the current version of the app and especially under tree cover or anywhere where there's a more restricted view of the sky. Check out the accuracy - when it's at 5 metres I find it's generally pretty sound to give a good general area,

 

I don't use it very much, but it does seem to bounce around a bit at times certainly. At other times it will be perfect - from what I understand from reading logs this seems to happen with other GPS devices as well. Most of the time I don't use GPS at all though so I can help less on this - I imagine lots of people will tell you to spend money on a "proper" GPS device though; I might tend to wait till you get to 50 or so finds - it's more likely to be that you don't know what to look for yet and it's this which is causing problems. I assume you're trying to look for larger caches (small or bigger) and for fairly easy ones?

 

In general when I do use a phone it's not bad though. Knowing what to look for and where it might be hidden are far more useful.

[DannyCaffeine]

My friend has a smartphone (Not sure what kind) and I have a garmin etrex. His is almost spot on with my GPS while my other friend's pantech phone is about 10 off from my garmin. If you have a friend with a hiking GPS I would search with them to test it out.

 

If someone above has not mentioned before the GPS knows where you are by how you move through coordinate points so it does not always know which way you are facing when standing still. I would recommend getting a real compass for this reason. You can get some on Amazon for about 5$ a peice. Most compasses are fine as long as they don't have air bubbles or cracks so don't worry about getting a high end one.

Edited September 1, 2013 by DannyCaffeine

[AKA Pete]

While new to geocaching I've spent a good time in the woods going from point to point.

 

As others have noted above all GPS devices have some minimum accuracy that can vary based on signal strength or leaf cover.

 

If you try and walk right up to the cache - right when you get near it the heading and distance will start to jump around - "6 feet this way, no, no 8 feet that way, I mean 5 feet this-a-way". You then start focusing on the GPS not the ground.

 

The next time you find a cache set it on the ground and walk off about 60 or 70 feet, turn around and follow it back to the cache site. As you get to around 20 feet stop and look at the device and where the container is. That is your "cruise into" spot.

 

The next cache you come to at 20 feet note the distance & direction and cruise into the right spot and then start looking.

 

I think that is a feeling that's developed better and better the more you do it with many here almost eyeballing the cache at that distance.

 

And sometimes the shortest distance between two points is not a straight line.