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Missing Travel Bugs


Mitchell 07

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Hello Everybody. I am new to this forum so the answer may already be out there but I can't find it:

I purchased a Travel Bug in october 2015 and put a kiwi on it and released it into one of my caches. It stayed there for a while until someone found the cache. Logged the TB correctly. I waited a few weeks to see what happened to my TB... But Nothing so I messaged the person who logged the TB... with no reply. I waited a month until I marked the TB as missing. Messaging the person several times. Its now been almost half a year with nothing from the person. Is there anything else I can do? Any help would be amazing thanks!!!

 

Wee Wee The Kiwi

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Hello Everybody. I am new to this forum so the answer may already be out there but I can't find it:

I purchased a Travel Bug in october 2015 and put a kiwi on it and released it into one of my caches. It stayed there for a while until someone found the cache. Logged the TB correctly. I waited a few weeks to see what happened to my TB... But Nothing so I messaged the person who logged the TB... with no reply. I waited a month until I marked the TB as missing. Messaging the person several times. Its now been almost half a year with nothing from the person. Is there anything else I can do? Any help would be amazing thanks!!!

 

Wee Wee The Kiwi

It would seem your TB fell victim to a one month wonder cacher. Really the only thing you can do is wait and see if this person picks up geocaching again someday, but as of now they haven't been active since October of last year. It's the risk all TB's take when released in the "wild".

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This is of the many reasons I chuckle when someone remarks how premium members have a bit more knowlege/investment in the hobby. :)

One-month premium member "may" have two of three trackables found.

 

I know of more than a few people who remarked (afterwards) that they wished they didn't contact the person holding their trackable "numerous" times...

 

Possible that at some time a person who may have your trackable will get back into the hobby, or simply drop it in another cache (to get rid of it).

Good luck.

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Yeah welcome to the wonderful world of missing TB's. I sent out two years ago and both now are missing. One traveled overseas and 30,000 mile on it but was muggled in vegas. The other one has now been bitten by the one month cacher twice. I did the initial two to see how it went. After they have come up missing I decided I would just stick with these two.

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What do you recommend -- anyone -- for a person who picks up the TB (yours) from your own cache and acknowledges this in the log note but then doesn't "retrieve" it officially? I contacted the person thinking they might need help to do this -- no response. Seems to me that this is sort of more like theft than getting out of the hobby... I've lost quite a few TBs for only being a geocacher for 16 months. It is not pretty...

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Not a whole lot you can do. For me I decided that I would test my original 2 and as many times as they have come up missing I decided I would not put out any more. When I first released it several years ago the same thing happened but this time no one logged it. It disappeared for 6 month's then all of the sudden showed up in a cache in west Virginia. The person, an seasoned cacher, forgot to log it on both ends and it was not until someone picked it up we found out where it was. Recently I relaunched this TB at the Ovarian cancer walk which is the theme of the TB. Someone grabbed it and said they would take it to florida and release it. Been 5 month's since that and nothing. It is a rookie cacher this time so I don't know what to say. This TB is honor of my deceased sister who battle ovarian cancer for 3 years. I am not saying that things have not happened and I have held a TB longer than maybe I should of but I would always respond to an inquiry from the owner and have always move it on when I had the chance. I have a couple I picked up at MOGA 2016 saturday and we have some trips planned this summer so we will move them on then. I also try to find well established caches to put them in which may take a little longer so that there is less chance for them to be muggled.

Edited by Team_Searchgeo
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I've released 17 trackables of which 5 are still active, yet I keep doing it. I find the joy of watching them travel outweighs the risk of them going missing. Each person has to decide for themselves if it's worth it.

 

All you can do is send an e-mail or two and move on.

Edited by justintim1999
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Hello Everybody. I am new to this forum so the answer may already be out there but I can't find it:

I purchased a Travel Bug in october 2015 and put a kiwi on it and released it into one of my caches. It stayed there for a while until someone found the cache. Logged the TB correctly. I waited a few weeks to see what happened to my TB... But Nothing so I messaged the person who logged the TB... with no reply. I waited a month until I marked the TB as missing. Messaging the person several times. Its now been almost half a year with nothing from the person. Is there anything else I can do? Any help would be amazing thanks!!!

 

Wee Wee The Kiwi

 

Other than contacting them, there really isn't anything you can do.

 

You're gonna have to write it off, of just wait.

 

I've had travelers missing for around 10 years now. You tend to get over it.

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I just messaged the holder of one of my TB's. It's been in their possession for over six months and they dip it in several caches a week but still won't drop it. Frustrating for sure. I await a reply to see if they'll actually drop it off or not...

I have several TB's out in the same situation. I simply look at as they're keeping me updated as to its whereabouts. As none of my tb's have any specific goals, I don't mind this at all and I actually appreciated it.

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I just messaged the holder of one of my TB's. It's been in their possession for over six months and they dip it in several caches a week but still won't drop it. Frustrating for sure. I await a reply to see if they'll actually drop it off or not...

I have several TB's out in the same situation. I simply look at as they're keeping me updated as to its whereabouts. As none of my tb's have any specific goals, I don't mind this at all and I actually appreciated it.

Pics included?

Otherwise, you really don't know that they even have it anymore. :)

We've seen some supposedly lugging around a dozen or better cache-to-cache.

The size of some, I find that hard to believe. Just logging codes.

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I just messaged the holder of one of my TB's. It's been in their possession for over six months and they dip it in several caches a week but still won't drop it. Frustrating for sure. I await a reply to see if they'll actually drop it off or not...

I have several TB's out in the same situation. I simply look at as they're keeping me updated as to its whereabouts. As none of my tb's have any specific goals, I don't mind this at all and I actually appreciated it.

Pics included?

Otherwise, you really don't know that they even have it anymore. :)

We've seen some supposedly lugging around a dozen or better cache-to-cache.

The size of some, I find that hard to believe. Just logging codes.

I wish, posting pics of TB's is a rare thing. Perhaps I'm deluding myself but I still appreciate it.

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Newbie ( hiiiii).

Found enough caches to move on to next level.

Searched for travel bugs in my area so that I could find one happy to be dropped in Spain next week.

Went to 4, all bugless. What's the etiquette here? I mentioned it ( nicely) in my found note but am mildly annoyed at the cache holders ( all different, most definitely active) for not marking the bugs as missing. Is it the cache holder's responsibility?

It's not massive, just that I went out of my way to these particular caches because they had bugs listed that wanted to travel outside uk.

Thanks for any clarification X

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Newbie ( hiiiii).

Found enough caches to move on to next level.

Searched for travel bugs in my area so that I could find one happy to be dropped in Spain next week.

Went to 4, all bugless. What's the etiquette here? I mentioned it ( nicely) in my found note but am mildly annoyed at the cache holders ( all different, most definitely active) for not marking the bugs as missing. Is it the cache holder's responsibility?

It's not massive, just that I went out of my way to these particular caches because they had bugs listed that wanted to travel outside uk.

Thanks for any clarification X

The cache owner can't force people to log TBs properly. The taker must log the TB, so get the word out. The people who did not take the TB, even Cache Owners, can't tell what the takers' plan is, and there are many cachers who wait months or years before making their log.

 

Make a cache note about the specific TBs that are missing, and how well you searched. Remember that many TBs may look very different from when they were first released, and the current version may be in the debris at the bottom. If you like, go to the TB's page and also make a decent log. The CO or the TO may "mark missing", but there's no requirement, and I don't usually advise it. Insist that every Taker makes the proper logs.

 

And read logs before going out of your way to collect TBs. Otherwise, you may find that someone else got there before you. :ph34r:

Edited by kunarion
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Newbie ( hiiiii).

Found enough caches to move on to next level.

Searched for travel bugs in my area so that I could find one happy to be dropped in Spain next week.

Went to 4, all bugless. What's the etiquette here?

 

I mentioned it ( nicely) in my found note but am mildly annoyed at the cache holders ( all different, most definitely active) for not marking the bugs as missing. Is it the cache holder's responsibility?

 

It's not massive, just that I went out of my way to these particular caches because they had bugs listed that wanted to travel outside uk.

Thanks for any clarification X

 

Worth posting a NOTE log on the TBs page as well.

TB owner doesnt get the log from the cache, but will see the note on the TBs page.

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Newbie ( hiiiii).

Found enough caches to move on to next level.

Searched for travel bugs in my area so that I could find one happy to be dropped in Spain next week.

Went to 4, all bugless. What's the etiquette here? I mentioned it ( nicely) in my found note but am mildly annoyed at the cache holders ( all different, most definitely active) for not marking the bugs as missing. Is it the cache holder's responsibility?

It's not massive, just that I went out of my way to these particular caches because they had bugs listed that wanted to travel outside uk.

Thanks for any clarification X

Curious, what's the "next level"?

As a cache owner, I won't take another's word on missing trackables any longer.

Can't tell you how many times we've found things stuck to the sides/top, mixed in with swag (and simply missed), or just the tag laying at the bottom from someone who thought the item attached was so cute it's now swag.

I'll mark 'em missing when I do maintenance.

Mostly ammo cans now, that could be some time. :)

The trackable's owner could be notified too...

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Thanks for the advice. Will contac ( missing) t travel bug owners to advise.

None were in the caches ( nothing with a trackable number), I checked.

Appreciate the responses, still finding my way around here.

 

P.s by "next level" I meant something other than just finding and logging a cache, being proactive. X

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I just messaged the holder of one of my TB's. It's been in their possession for over six months and they dip it in several caches a week but still won't drop it. Frustrating for sure. I await a reply to see if they'll actually drop it off or not...

I have several TB's out in the same situation. I simply look at as they're keeping me updated as to its whereabouts. As none of my tb's have any specific goals, I don't mind this at all and I actually appreciated it.

 

Mine has a specific goal very deliberately spelled out with a link to the intended cache destination in the description. The cacher holding it took it from the cache I released it in and has been holding it hostage ever since... SMH

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I just messaged the holder of one of my TB's. It's been in their possession for over six months and they dip it in several caches a week but still won't drop it. Frustrating for sure. I await a reply to see if they'll actually drop it off or not...

here's another variation: someone picked up a nice geocoin of mine and now just lets people "discover" it at events, as if it belongs to them.

another one picked up one of my bugs and actually wrote, "I promise to keep it safe and see that it visits a lot of caches."

I'm about to de-activate them both so that they can't be logged anymore

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