Fixed it up before I knew better....

[+Malemotives]

Hi all,

I am a newbie. Wet behind the ears but ready to tackle Geocaching. And I have 2 finds in this my first week. One of them provided me with a double dose of something's not right.

 

The Cache I found was not the Cache I set out to find.... sort of. I knew there were three Caches, on my map, that were fairly close together. I picked out two of them and set off on the hunt.... but let me digress just a moment:

 

While I had heard of Geocaching, I never paid it much mind until recently. Embarking on a HEAVY exercise program, in preparation for a 60 Ruck, I put a Fitbit on my wrist and stood at my front door ready for a challenging walk. Having downloading a couple of Geocaching programs to my iPhone earlier in the day, I stood there looking at a map that suggested a cache was somewhere near the end of my street.... a Cul de Sac. So I walked down to the end, where the CPS told me I was still 500 feet shy. That would put it beyond the yard of the last house on the corner.... and that is what turned me on to Geocaching. Because now, instead of the .3 mile walk to the end of the street, I would have to find a way around; and that way around would turn that short walk into a 3 mile trek.

 

So, I returned home and did some planning for the next morning's walk. I select 2 of the 3 nearby opportunities. Each was remarkable in its own way, and each was place by different parties. Each gave a clear description on its container. My first target was initially hidden, or placed, back in 2004. I could find no log files on recent finds.

 

Anyway, I started up my Geocache App, open the compass and started out to locate Cache#1. Some 3.6 miles later, my App started beeping and said I was within 50 feet. Taking in the boundaries of the area, I peeked into the bushes and found the container as described in Cache #1. Upon opening the container, I discovered..., first that it had been sometime since the CO had maintained the Cache. The container was badly cracked on the bottom and the contents was water logged and mostly destroyed. While there was no log book, I was able to read a couple of notes put in plastic bags that showed evidence of the last find being back on August 30, 2014.... a short 4 months ago. Now, here's the kicker: The container was the container as described in Cache #1. But, the content, albeit they were mostly destroyed, was evidence that it was actually the contents of Cache #2. It was clear that the last 3 finds pointed to this same container with the destroyed contents of Cache #2. I thought it kind of strange, and wondered if CO #2 found the nearby Cache #1 and thought it was abandoned and decided to use the container for hos Cache (#2). Clearly, there was no evidence of CO #1 having returned in sometime. I thought it all very strange and I wondered how many more "Newbies" would find this Cache and be disappointed, as I was.

 

So, without giving it much thought, I provided maintenance to the Cache: Repaired and cleaned the container, put the damaged contents in a sealed baggy, left a sealed note as to my findings in another baggy and left a new log book, pencil, and placed a sealed card, along the lines of what CO #2 initially stated he had put in the container, although much more valuable and protected. No doubt the next visitor, be it the CO or a Geocacher, will be pleased with the find.

 

After returning home I muddled over what I had done and started reading more about Geocaching... learning that I should not have fixed up the Cache. Alas, damage done, but now I no better.

 

I haven't found a way to contact the CO, but I did post this info on the Online Cache log, in hope that the CO would read it. If he does, and checks the Cache, he will find my email in the log in the event he wishes to contact me.

 

Since then, I have visited four more Cache sites, without finding a Cache. That doesn't mean they are not there, but it did leave me wondering why those Caches were put in places where obvious City maintenance was likely, more often than not, causing Caches to be picked up and discarded.

 

I'm going to continue my reading and schedule searches during my hikes, and I may even decide to eventually place a couple of Caches of my own.

[+redsox_mark]

In spite of what you will see on this forum from some geocachers, many cache owners appreciate the kind of help you gave (Repaired and cleaned the container, put the damaged contents in a sealed baggy, left a sealed note as to my findings in another baggy and left a new log book, pencil, and placed a sealed card). So don't feel bad, you didn't do anything wrong.

 

As for the confusion about cache 1 vs 2; yes sometimes containers get reused. Sometimes, with older caches (if they are multi stage ones) there are two hidden close enough together to cause confusion.

[+Chief301]

There are differing schools of thought regarding performing maintenance on someone else's cache. Depends on the situation. If I know that the owner is still an active cacher and had had activity on his account recently, and assuming I have the supplies with me to do so, I don't see a problem with doing a minor patch job, replace a wet or full log sheet, etc. in addition to my Found It log I would also log a Needs Maintenance to let the CO know his cache needs attention.

 

However, if the CO is obviously not in the game anymore, and if NM's have already been posted and ignored, I wouldn't waste my time fixing it up....I'd post a Needs Archive, which gets the local reviewer's attention and starts the archival process, since it seems clear that the CO has no intention of doing the maintenance.

 

I encountered a couple of issues along these lines this weekend. One cache, a micro, had a cracked lid and was full of water, and the log sheet was a ball of mush. Since I had some spare log sheets and baggies, I replaced the log, dried out the container as best I could, and patched up the lid with some duct tape. Only took me a few minutes and was an easy fix so I didn't mind doing it. But I also posted a NM log to let the CO know that my patch job would probably be OK for a while but the container really should be replaced.

 

The same day I also found two Regular sized caches in a park, by an owner who appears to be inactive for several years now. However, despite the fact that the owner was MIA, the caches were in very good shape (due to the containers being real bona fide ammo cans)...so even though the owner is inactive, there's no reason those caches shouldn't remain in play.

[+J Grouchy]

Looking at your finds, and in the case of your first log, the CO looks to have abandoned the game almost five years ago.

 

Last Visit: Saturday, 06 February 2010

 

In the second logged cache, it looks like the CO has never found a cache and the last time they logged into GC.com was a year and a half ago.

 

Honestly, I'd probably post an NA log in both cases. It's only a matter of time before they both are dead anyway.

[+L0ne.R]

Looking at your finds, and in the case of your first log, the CO looks to have abandoned the game almost five years ago.

 

Last Visit: Saturday, 06 February 2010

 

In the second logged cache, it looks like the CO has never found a cache and the last time they logged into GC.com was a year and a half ago.

 

Honestly, I'd probably post an NA log in both cases. It's only a matter of time before they both are dead anyway.

 

Noticed that too. And the Send Email field says: "The "send message" feature is disabled because this user is currently inactive."

That's one thing that I like to do - check the cache owners profile. A long abandoned cache damaged cache needs archiving.

 

[4wheelin_fool]

Doing maintenance on a cache is a great thing to do for the owner or next finder, so your initial instincts are correct. However, the situation changes quickly if you discover that a very high percentage of the caches in an area need repair, then at that point doing maintenance is not recommended, and likely to take up more time and effort that you are willing to do, as fixing them will only promote more of the same. Replacing a cache without finding the original is even worse, and especially if the owner is not aware. So feel free to clean out and dry that interesting or ancient every hide now and then, but please don't make it your side hobby.