Missing Letter Box Hybrids When Running a Caches Along a Route Query with All Cache Types Selected

[+Sam539]

Hi, I ran a PQ today, of a route I'm planning on traveling, and I noticed that no Letterbox Hybrids were returned in the preview search. I uploaded the PQ onto my GPS and there are indeed no Hybrids on there.

 

This route passes right over a series completely of Hybrids (GC369XP...), and should pull up one Hybrid near Sheffield Train Station (GC5BVEG).

 

The details of my PQ are below:

 

The Search is a route from Leeds to Sheffield(UK)

5km search radius

301 Caches on either side

Any Cache Type

Any Container Type

I Haven't Found

Is Enabled

Placed Any Time

(No attribute selections)

Download .gpx format

Include Name in Query

 

Thanks,

 

Sam

[Moun10Bike]

I'm not sure how many caches you have found along that corridor, but what you are likely running into is the cap on the number of caches returned, not an issue with LBHs being dropped. Even if I bump up the cap on the numbers of results returned from 301 to 1000, the query is maxed out with those criteria. This means that numerous caches will be excluded by the query when run. You are best off bumping up the cap, narrowing down the width of the query, and then further adjusting until the number if results in the preview is just below the cap. This will insure that you are getting all of the caches in that swath.

[+Sam539]

Hi Moun10Bike,

 

Unless I've fundamentally misunderstood how the route PQ works, this shouldn't be the case. If you look at the series mentioned, it straddles the M1, which is part of the route. My search is returning caches from up to 2km away of types traditional, unknown, multi and so on. The way I understood this search working is that the nearest caches will be selected first of all types, and it would work its way gradually outwards till either the length or the number has maxed. In which case the letterboxes ~100m off route should be returned over traditionals and multis ~2000m off route. If you look on the map view you should see that the series should be returned even if I stick the constraints down to 300m and first 100, it really is that close to the route. (I have picked up a fair few caches along that corridor for what it is worth.) Thanks, Sam.

[Moun10Bike]

The search does *not* start with the caches closest to the route and work outward from there. As I explained, you will need to trim down your search criteria so the returned results are fewer than the PQ cap if you want to be sure to get all of the caches in the search area.

[+Bear and Ragged]

The way I understood this search working is that the nearest caches will be selected first of all types, and it would work its way gradually outwards till either the length or the number has maxed.

 

I seem to remember this situation being discussed previously (may have been on another forum?).

 

If there are more caches than the PQ is set for, the search is not 'nearest out' but seems to work by date placed... (I think newer caches are omitted. Are the Letterbox ones newer?)

 

The search also seems to be biased towards one end of the route in this situation...

 

This is from 'a while ago' and may have been fixed, but I doubt it!

 

Follow the suggestion by Moun10Bike.

[+T.D.M.22]

If you don't include trads or mysteries, you should get LBH caches. Which means you PQ can't pull all the available caches and happens to exclude LBH. If there are no LBH in that result, then there truly a problem(assuming the number of multis, virts, events, and earth caches don't come out to more than the PQ is set for. But then you can also eliminate one or two of those as well.

[+NYPaddleCacher]

The search does *not* start with the caches closest to the route and work outward from there. As I explained, you will need to trim down your search criteria so the returned results are fewer than the PQ cap if you want to be sure to get all of the caches in the search area.

 

Of course, you could also create a second PQ that uses the same route but only includes LBH caches. A useful feature would be that if a PQ would return more caches that the cap that it displays a message indicating that the cap has been reached.

Edited October 18, 2014 by NYPaddleCacher

[+Sam539]

Thanks for all the replay guys. I've had a play based on what Moun10Bike said and this was indeed the case. I'd assumed how the search worked incorrectly. I assumed it wad like a standard PQ in that it prioritised the nearest. I shall make sure from now on I'm returning a few caches less than the maximum number in my search to get them all. In the end I did just put the letterboxes on manually, but there's a chance I had others missing as well. You live and learn.