Were you asked before, what are you doing? Or told you look suspicious while geocaching?

[Norageo]

I am new to geocaching. In one of my attempts to find a geocache and in which I actually find my first geocache, someone came and asked me.. can I ask you what are you doing? She then said, you looked suspicious that's why I asked you.

I guess I am more surprised that many people are not asked this question, more than me being surprised to get that question myself.

Did anyone feel they looked suspicious or was even asked that question?

 

Thx

[+T.D.M.22]

I am new to geocaching. In one of my attempts to find a geocache and in which I actually find my first geocache, someone came and asked me.. can I ask you what are you doing? She then said, you looked suspicious that's why I asked you.

I guess I am more surprised that many people are not asked this question, more than me being surprised to get that question myself.

Did anyone feel they looked suspicious or was even asked that question?

 

Thx

 

I've been asked a couple times. How to deal with it? If it's police always tell the truth-they may even be cachers and you're asking for trouble if you lie(they'll think if you lie about geocaching, what else are you hiding?)

 

Other people-it depends. If I get the feeling they're good people, I'll tell the truth. If they seem like bad people, or are angry, or something, I probably won't tell them. I don't want to put the cache in danger of being taken. With these people, I say just leave, after all you don't have to find every cache.

[Norageo]

Thanks for sharing your experience.

Luckily, it was someone who knows and does geocaching but she wanted to make sure we weren't doing anything suspicious!

 

I am new to geocaching. In one of my attempts to find a geocache and in which I actually find my first geocache, someone came and asked me.. can I ask you what are you doing? She then said, you looked suspicious that's why I asked you.

I guess I am more surprised that many people are not asked this question, more than me being surprised to get that question myself.

Did anyone feel they looked suspicious or was even asked that question?

 

Thx

 

I've been asked a couple times. How to deal with it? If it's police always tell the truth-they may even be cachers and you're asking for trouble if you lie(they'll think if you lie about geocaching, what else are you hiding?)

 

Other people-it depends. If I get the feeling they're good people, I'll tell the truth. If they seem like bad people, or are angry, or something, I probably won't tell them. I don't want to put the cache in danger of being taken. With these people, I say just leave, after all you don't have to find every cache.

[+K13]

I have always just told the truth.... "I dropped my keys" ;-)

Edited October 12, 2014 by K13

[+wmpastor]

Also, trying to look "innocent" can make you look more suspicious unless you're an actor. Make a quick judgment about the scene and go get it. I got one recently near homes. Who knows who was looking out the window? If I had been glancing around, it would have given me no info about the muggles, but would have made me seem very suspicious. I walked directly to where I was going, looked around for a minute, slipped the cache into my papers in a quick motion, sat down in the car to sign the log, and put it back with my papers still in my hand. Anyone who saw me must have thought i was some kind of inspector.

[+kunarion]

Did anyone feel they looked suspicious or was even asked that question?

People often don't notice. They can be staring right at you and not even be paying attention. But I do get a little uneasy when someone's in an idling car at a park, sitting there staring, while I'm needing to do some cache maintenance . Or, especially if someone arrives just before I return the container to its spot ("huh, that guy left a mysterious package, must be nothing to worry about" ).

Edited October 12, 2014 by kunarion

[+BAMBOOZLE]

I am new to geocaching. In one of my attempts to find a geocache and in which I actually find my first geocache, someone came and asked me.. can I ask you what are you doing? She then said, you looked suspicious that's why I asked you.

I guess I am more surprised that many people are not asked this question, more than me being surprised to get that question myself.

Did anyone feel they looked suspicious or was even asked that question?

 

Thx

 

I've been asked a couple times. How to deal with it? If it's police always tell the truth-they may even be cachers and you're asking for trouble if you lie(they'll think if you lie about geocaching, what else are you hiding?)

 

Other people-it depends. If I get the feeling they're good people, I'll tell the truth. If they seem like bad people, or are angry, or something, I probably won't tell them. I don't want to put the cache in danger of being taken. With these people, I say just leave, after all you don't have to find every cache.

 

I agree. What always works is to say I'm just walking about and learning to use a GPS unit. " But it seems like you're looking for something ".....I thought I saw a spider ( snake ) and I wanted to see what kind it was.

[+kunarion]

What always works is to say I'm just walking about and learning to use a GPS unit. " But it seems like you're looking for something ".....I thought I saw a spider ( snake ) and I wanted to see what kind it was.

One time a couple on bikes asked what we were looking for in the rocks. I replied "a huge colorful snake", and those people left in a hurry.

 

But usually people don't ask me, they just stare, not even the least bit interested.

 

With the cops, they're asking because I'm occupying the cop's favorite hiding spot where he takes a leetle break. So I say the magic word "Geocaching" and everything's fine, even if he only vaguely knows what "Geocaching" is. If you're in a spot where the public can come and go freely, the cops are asking only out of curiosity, since your activity is so baffling (you're walking around and around a tree or whatever). An exception is if they're hunting an escaped criminal, so be sure to tell them you're Geocaching. Often, criminals don't escape to go Geocaching.

Edited October 12, 2014 by kunarion

[+zannieandjazzy]

Well, I try not to wear a striped shirt and balaclava. That helps with the looking less suspicious bit.

 

I've only been asked twice, both times I said I was on a treasure hunt, which is sort of true but doesn't give the game away.

 

Generally I have my dog with me, so that helps because if a muggle approaches while I'm scrambling around on the ground, I turn it into cuddling the dog. Having said that, I abandoned a potential find today because there were loads of people around.

[+SageTracey]

I was asked once by cops and was honest, even showed them the cache. No problems.

Another time, my husband and I were clearly looking for something when a woman approached us. She knew what we were doing and looking for and gave us a little hint that pointed us in the right direction.

 

Otherwise it's just a case of being inconspicuous - such as this weekend when I lay on the floor in a picnic shelter while my husband sat on the seat and I gave him verbal directions to move his hand until he found the cache. There was a kids' birthday party going on outside but all they saw was this cyclist lying on the floor doing her stretches.

[amuse-Goose]

I've been asked - honesty's the best policy. My response is usually "It's like a treasure hunt", and then I tell whomever to go to the official site if they're still confused/never heard of it.

 

It seems I luck out in looking suspicious thanks to "Resting Bitch Face". Appears I'm angry - or maybe on a power walk - bowel irregularity.. Whatever the problem, best to keep quiet and mind your own. (BUT I'M ACTUALLY REALLY NICE!)

Edited October 14, 2014 by amuse-Goose

[+wmpastor]

 

...

 

Otherwise it's just a case of being inconspicuous - such as this weekend when I lay on the floor in a picnic shelter while my husband sat on the seat and I gave him verbal directions to move his hand until he found the cache. There was a kids' birthday party going on outside but all they saw was this cyclist lying on the floor doing her stretches.

Extremely shrewd! Many cachers could learn from you. Some are oblivious to muggles, and some don't realize that anything that has the slightest appearance of stealth is extremely suspicious. The only true stealth is conduct that does not appear the least bit stealthy.

[+WRASTRO]

I have been asked more than a few times over the years and I always ask if the person has ever heard of Geocaching. If not, I tell them it is a techy game of hide and seek and start telling them about GPS and latitude and Longitude and online listings. And they usually walk away shaking their heads. For police or security I always tell them I am Geocaching and go from there. I have never had a bad experience using this strategy in 10+ years.

 

Try to lie or bluff and you will get people suspicious.

 

 

[+samuel123abc]

Hello,

 

I have never been asked what I was doing or anything like that. I have had people staring at me like jerks but I always seem kind of dumb and innocent walking around with my GPS unit and looking for the cache.

[+sholomar]

I stayed parked too long along a roadside while placing my exit 157 cache and a local snapped a picture of my plate with his phone while driving by. I sped up to him... got his plate and moved on. My swag bag was getting cluttered it needed organizing. Fortunately I have not had the cops track me down or anything thus I have not had the need to repay this person a visit.

Edited October 17, 2014 by sholomar

[Andronicus]

I have been asked a few times. Two or three times by police, once by Military Police, a few times by residance, once by local kids, and once by a kayaker .

 

Like others mentioned, don't lie to the police. Others, maybe, depends. The kayaker, I told the truth that I was looking for a survey marker. He replied "survey markers are boring". That may work as a good lie for nosy neighbours.

[daniela_lotta]

Generally I have my dog with me, so that helps because if a muggle approaches while I'm scrambling around on the ground, I turn it into cuddling the dog.

 

I experienced once that walking 2 dogs while geocaching made us even more suspicious. My mum and I were climbing up a little hill towards GZ while my dad stayed on the path with the dogs. The two dogs really (and I mean really!!) didn't like us to be in the woods and were howling. (It was very slippery and in the end I did slip. I'd better have listened to the dogs and left the cache alone. ;-) ) Funny thing is, when two hikers passed by, they were just saying 'oh, you're doing geocaching' and moved on.

[+NYPaddleCacher]

Generally I have my dog with me, so that helps because if a muggle approaches while I'm scrambling around on the ground, I turn it into cuddling the dog.

 

I experienced once that walking 2 dogs while geocaching made us even more suspicious. My mum and I were climbing up a little hill towards GZ while my dad stayed on the path with the dogs. The two dogs really (and I mean really!!) didn't like us to be in the woods and were howling. (It was very slippery and in the end I did slip. I'd better have listened to the dogs and left the cache alone. ;-) ) Funny thing is, when two hikers passed by, they were just saying 'oh, you're doing geocaching' and moved on.

 

I was geocaching in Monterey, Cal. a few years and was just walking down a sidewalk about half way in between a couple of caches that were 1/4 of a mile apart. I had my GPS on a lanyard around my neck but was basically just walking down the sidewalk. As a couple of people passed me, coming from the other direction (they were not holding a GPS) one of theme said "geocaching?" I guess geosense not only allows you to find the location where a cache might be hidden but also helps identify other geocachers.

 

 

[+s1ipmatt]

I'm new to this so I don't have much experience. However I was trying to find one at a busy road side. Id wait for gaps in the traffic before id look around in the hedge etc. Then a white van pulled up beside me and the guy put down the window. I thought he was going to ask me for directions, but before I said anything he shouted "its in there mate!" I couldn't believe he knew what I was doing. oh well he told me the answer but he was a nice guy.

[4wheelin_fool]

If you say you lost something, they may offer to help. Just tell them you are geocaching, and if they don't know what that is then tell them. Most people will not muggle a cache, unless it's an ammo box and it's young kids who are curious. If you don't feel like explaining it, just say if they find a backpack containing porn, whiskey, and ammo to leave it alone, as it belongs to a zombie shapeshifter who has been stalking you for seven years, and at that point they will usually leave quickly. If not just keep repeating the same phrases over and over while raising your voice.

[Tir19 & GreenTerra]

I always carry the 'Lets Go Geocaching' flier with me (from Geocaching University)and if they seem at all interested, they get a verbal introduction to the hobby. Maybe one solid convert, a few maybe's and two who seemed very anxious to leave.

[+WarNinjas]

I was once far out on a trail with really no one around. I was in the crazy thicket of bushes and I look over and seen someone hiking and he gave me kind of a crazy look. Then about a hour later I had found a ammo can and had it on the trail open with stuff out and he popped out of no where asking what I was doing. I had nothing else to say but geocaching. Then he said. OH I have heard of that and went on his way!