PQ and GEO Tours

[+G/O Spiders]

I am seeing more and more Geo Tours being created by communities to help tourism. I would like to create a pockeet query so that I can have it on my phone or GSP device. How do I create a pocket query for an already existing Geo Tour? For example I saw the ad for Jack Trail Geo Tour in TN on the Geocaching website. I could dowload a GPX file, but I would rather have it as a pocket query.

Edited June 11, 2015 by G/O Spiders

[+ChileHead]

You can download a GPX file of a geotour from here:

https://www.geocaching.com/play/geotours

 

Select the tour, then select the download option.

 

Here's the tour you mentioned:

https://www.geocaching.com/play/geotours/jack-trail

 

Edit: Sorry, I see you already found the gpx file. How do you think a PQ would be different?

Edited June 11, 2015 by ChileHead

[+Walts Hunting]

I'm guessing he doesn't know that a PQ is nothing but a standard gpx file but probably does now

[+Isonzo Karst]

If I wanted to design a PQ for those caches, I'd go the Jack Trail page https://www.geocaching.com/play/geotours/jack-trail

and select a cache near the center of the group from the map, say JTGT - Bedford - Power Plant Greenway, GC5C8Z8.

 

Now on my PQ page, I'd ask for 69 caches, in Tennessee, from GC GC5C8Z8 that HAVE the Geotour attribute; it's the suitcase, the last attribute in the array.

 

This results in 68 caches, so either one of the Jack Trail caches is archived, or one of them does NOT have the GeoTour attribute set. I'd say one of them does not have attribute set.

 

Simply downloading the gpx from the GeoTour page is better than a Pocket Query. It will return all caches, including those where someone forgot to add the GeoTour attribute. But that's the "how to" on PQ design for a GeoTour.

[+G/O Spiders]

Thank you for the step by step. It cleared up some questions. My next question is this. I know the c:geo app works well for downloading and storing gpx files for geocaching, but can the Geocaching app perform this function as well?

[+Walts Hunting]

It will download PQs and doesn't violate the TOU of the website like the one you use.

[+G/O Spiders]

Actual my main app for Geo Caching has been the Geocaching website/app ever since i started geocaching. I had installed the other app because a family member uses it. The reason why I had asked the orginal question was do to the fact that i knew that a pocket query and a gpx filed contained the same information, but without creating a PQ I could not get the information to my geocaching app. I did discover that when I dowloaded the gpx file on my Galaxy Note 4 that the c:geo app recongnized the file. Thank you all for the info.

[Pup Patrol]

Help Center → Apps → Geocaching with Android

3.9. Using Pocket Queries in Android

http://support.Groundspeak.com/index.php?pg=kb.page&id=461

 

B.

[+Walts Hunting]

I think what he wants to do is load a gpx file to the app that is not a PQ and the Pup's reference just deals with PQs. I haven't used it in awhile and I just looked. I thought there used to be a "Scan SD Card" or something like that that would allow it to read a GPX file but can't find it now. Maybe I am confusing it with a different one I used.

 

So is there a way to load a non PQ gpx file into the app?

[+Wet Pancake Touring Club]

You cannot create a PQ for a specific GeoTour. (As noted, you can download the GPX, which is version 1.0, not the newer 1.0.1, for the GeoTour from the GeoTour page.) However, I have spent a bit of time working with Groundspeak on getting the GeoTour attribute set on every cache that is a member of the GeoTour. There are a few exceptions, I don't think EarthCaches will accept the attribute. But as of two months ago, the attribute was set on at least 98% of the GeoTour caches.

 

I have a recurring PQ that searches for caches published in the past week with the GeoTour attribute.

 

Skye.

[+G/O Spiders]

You cannot create a PQ for a specific GeoTour. (As noted, you can download the GPX, which is version 1.0, not the newer 1.0.1, for the GeoTour from the GeoTour page.) However, I have spent a bit of time working with Groundspeak on getting the GeoTour attribute set on every cache that is a member of the GeoTour. There are a few exceptions, I don't think EarthCaches will accept the attribute. But as of two months ago, the attribute was set on at least 98% of the GeoTour caches.

 

I have a recurring PQ that searches for caches published in the past week with the GeoTour attribute.

 

Skye.

[+G/O Spiders]

Skye,

 

I found the Pensacola tour had a pq set for it and I have that one being sentry to me. I would think that a large number of geocacher's are using the apps to find caches and to me it would be great from a marketing side that a community could create a tour and it would be easily downloaded in a pq for the geo app. Please keep me informed on your progress on this matter.

[+Wet Pancake Touring Club]

My role in getting the GeoTour attribute set was minor. I downloaded every GPX file for every GeoTour into GSAK, refreshed the caches, then filtered for caches without the attribute. I then e-mailed Groundspeak, and they took care of setting the attribute. During that process, they also also discovered and fixed the API. On certain types of caches, the attribute was not being passed. I've done this several times, and will probably continue it on an irregular basis. My reason for doing this is I wanted to be notified when new GeoTours came available in my area.

 

The GeoTour GPX files are deliberately version 1.0. This matches what a non-premium member is used to. I don't know what Groundspeak's feelings will be regarding PQ's, as those are a premium member option. I that you also post your suggestion over in the GeoTour Forum.

 

Skye.