Any ideas?

[+Itosukai]

Good Day all !

 

My home town is having its Centennial in a few months and I am helping to inject a geocaching flavor into the event.

 

A scavenger (information only) hunt is planned for the weekend with people who write all the correct answers on their clue sheet being entered into a prize draw.

My addition is to have interested people find GPS positions hiding additional information that is to be entered onto the clue sheet. Those who get all the standard info entered plus the geo centric info entered will be eligible for the "cache prize" of a FTF pin, a pathtag, and a cache hide kit.

 

My home town is a hamlet of only 3 x 4 blocks in size. I have already hidden two caches in town but don't want to use them as info holders as they are in areas that will be very high traffic areas that weekend.

 

My idea was to create an Event cache, with the location being an historical site with an info sign holding the first bit of clue sheet info. For the second cache/site, can I create a temporary cache that I can archive later so it would be ok if a multitude of people see others "finding it" as it will be gone after the Centennial? Or ... use one of the caches just outside of town that cachers will be out of sight when they obtain the info?

 

The organizers love the idea but would like to see two sites to gather info from (geo-logically speaking).

 

Any ideas would be great!

 

The hamlet is Craigmyle, Alberta, Canada and the two established caches are "Coming Together" and "Praying Together".

 

Thanks for your ideas, help, insights.

Edited March 7, 2015 by Itosukai

[Keystone]

An event cache is a gathering of geocachers for the purpose of socializing. I don't see in your description where that will be happening.

 

Temporary caches, like for a one-day festival, are not published on Geocaching.com. See the "Cache Permanence" section of the listing guidelines.

 

I'd recommend creating a GPS version of the scavenger hunt privately, and distributing lists of coordinates/clues to participants.

[+Itosukai]

Just had a talk with one of the main organizers and we have come up with this.

Using GPS co-ordinates, "hunters" would be directed to a physical site that we would pose a question to the seeker, of which the answer can only be found using the co-ordinates and the site/building/geographical feature found.

To highlight and interest others to join geocaching we would promote it even though it isn't through geocaching.com specifically. The co-ords. will be on the clue sheet if anyone (non-cacher and cacher alike) has a GPS and would like to participate in that aspect of the Scavenger Hunt. The prize for those including geo located info is geared towards interesting non-cachers in geocaching and delighting established cachers.

 

Thanks Keystone for leading my brain in a different direction ! Any more thoughts from anyone is welcome.

[+and1969]

Any more thoughts from anyone is welcome.

 

Having read your posts and that of Keystone, I'd suggest creating an event cache and registering it on geocaching.com, that way people can register a cache find. It would have to be attractive to existing cachers as well as newcomers.

 

The event needs to have a specific objective, but permissible objectives and permissible time-scales are listed in the rules for event caches. Do a search for event caches - not necessarily just those in Canada - and that will give you an idea of what people are doing within the guidelines. I am going to an event in south Wales (the original one, not the one in Australia ) and there are about 6 events over the weekend, for various associated activities.

 

There is nothing to stop you setting a puzzle cache as well, and it would have the benefit of attracting existing cachers before and after your town's centenary, as well as giving to the visitors to your centennial event, another cache to go for at the same time.

Edited March 8, 2015 by and1969

[+Itosukai]

Thanks. I was wondering about an event cache as we have a two hour period (lunch time) where a meet and greet could happen.

Also thinking about a virtual cache. People could pose in front of our town welcome sign and post it for the smilie. It is across the community centre area from my traditional cache though, about 200 feet from each other.

 

Well darn, just read that Virtual caches are no longer accepted. Ah well.

Edited March 8, 2015 by Itosukai

[Pup Patrol]

Thanks. I was wondering about an event cache as we have a two hour period (lunch time) where a meet and greet could happen.

Also thinking about a virtual cache. People could pose in front of our town welcome sign and post it for the smilie. It is across the community centre area from my traditional cache though, about 200 feet from each other.

 

Well darn, just read that Virtual caches are no longer accepted. Ah well.

 

It helps to read the Guidelines over and over again. All that blue text = links to click for more information.

 

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

 

Also, check out the Help Center.

 

http://support.Groundspeak.com//index.php

 

Help Center → Hiding a Geocache

 

http://support.Groundspeak.com//index.php?pg=kb.book&id=19

 

 

B.

Edited March 8, 2015 by Pup Patrol

[+TriciaG]

I think that an event cache might not pass muster because of this guideline:

An Event Cache should not be set up for the purpose of gathering geocachers for a geocache search. If an event is already organized outside of the geocaching community or it will happen without a Geocaching.com listing, it is likely not an Event Cache. Examples include concerts, fairs, sporting and scouting events.

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

 

[+Itosukai]

Well, with help from all of you in this thread, and reading the blue links over and over again, we have come up with this idea.

 

We will make a Puzzle cache that takes the visitor to a few places in town where they will acquire bits of info. That info will lead them to the final site where their last piece of data will complete the puzzle. They enter this final answer on the scavenger hunt form to enable their chances to win an extra special prize.

 

This way, we only have to fit one more cache in our small town, but still take them to more than one place here. Thanks for the help !

[+Walts Hunting]

Did you miss the part about having to have a physical cache that people must find and sign. Also the puzzle solution has to lead to the final coordinates.

[+Itosukai]

Did you miss the part about having to have a physical cache that people must find and sign. Also the puzzle solution has to lead to the final coordinates.

 

Sorry about that, no I didn't miss that part, but I will further clarify.

 

Part 1. On scavenger hunt sheet, a question to which you must find the answer, leads you to a spot with more questions/answers

Part 2. After 3 questions/answers, that last Q/A site gives you co-ords to "final site" where a physical container resides. When you sign log, you will see the final small bit of data needed on your scavenger hunt sheet.

Part 3. With the 3 Q/A's and the final data bit written down, you are eligible to be entered to win the geo additional prize.

 

Note: After the Centennial is over, all information will still be available to future geocachers throughout our town on historical signs. This will still lead you to the "final coordinates/physical cache".

[+Ben0w]

Wouldn't that be a Multi with the puzzle attribute?

 

Please think about the concept, it seems to me that there is internet access required while being outside? That is not generally the case, still true with a lot of people!

[+Itosukai]

The first two places theyneed to go are info boards. They fill in the required info. This then leads them to another site with more info. This second info board gives them co-ords/ address to physical cache.

Not multi as only one physical cache. No internet as info boards provide info. Co-ords are entered into GPSr or for those without/only a smart phone app. they have a physical address provided. It is then up to them to figure out cache container location.

[+T.D.M.22]

Still considered a multi because you have to go somewhere to get info to find the final. It doesn't matter if that info is a date on a sign placed by the city or written on the lid of a lock and lock placed by you.

[+Itosukai]

Still considered a multi because you have to go somewhere to get info to find the final. It doesn't matter if that info is a date on a sign placed by the city or written on the lid of a lock and lock placed by you.

 

So I don't need to have physical Caches for all in a Multi? Hmmmm, so my idea should still work, I'll just call it a multi-cache then, instead of a Puzzle. Must say I'm not quite as hyped at having a geocache flavor to our scavenger (info only) hunt as I was. But thanks all.

[+Walts Hunting]

You must have a physical container for all caches except EarthCaches and Wherigo.

[+niraD]

There is some regional variation. Around here, I am used to multi-stage caches where you simply collect information from existing signs/plaques/monuments being listed as multi-caches. But when I visited Massachusetts a few years ago, caches like that were routinely listed as mystery/puzzle caches.

 

Here is a local multi-cache that sounds similar to what you want (except for the bonus afterwards): Downtown Campbell Walking Tour

 

Note that there is only one physical stage: the final cache location. All the other stages are virtual stages, where information is gathered from existing objects.

[+Itosukai]

There is some regional variation. Around here, I am used to multi-stage caches where you simply collect information from existing signs/plaques/monuments being listed as multi-caches. But when I visited Massachusetts a few years ago, caches like that were routinely listed as mystery/puzzle caches.

 

Here is a local multi-cache that sounds similar to what you want (except for the bonus afterwards): Downtown Campbell Walking Tour

 

Note that there is only one physical stage: the final cache location. All the other stages are virtual stages, where information is gathered from existing objects.

 

I took a look at the Campbell Tour Multi and that is exactly what I would like to do. Of course it would only have 2 or 3 at most stages before the final physical cache. I will be using information that can still be obtained from various signs around town. This way, it can still be done after our Centennial celebration.

 

Thank you Darin for pointing me in this direction !!