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Ignoring Power Trails.


Jake81499

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For those who don't do Power Trails and are tired of them messing up our PQs and and APIs here is a short list of methods of adding them to your ignore list. The reason I'm posting this it because we've asked many times for some method of adding them to the PQ creation pages such as a PT attribute. Nothing has been done to help make the PTs less of a problem. I'd agree that the short PT might not be so much of a problem, anything under 25 caches, but these things are getting into the thousands in length. It's turned into abuse in many cases. If you do a State API download in Nevada for example, you may only get PTs as a result. One caching group in that state has literally thousands of caches, all power trails.

 

I'm sure I'll get flamed to death in writing this and I might make a mistake or two. Keep in mind, everyone has a different way to geocache, no two individuals do it the same way and the other guys way is always the wrong way.

 

GSAK is needed to efficiently add the offending PTs to you ignore list. That's the program most of us use. But I've been told about a couple others and I won't go into those.

 

You've downloaded 10 PQs containing 1000 caches each in a 500 mile circle because you're leaving on vacation in 15 minutes. You check the database on a map and see that since you created the PQs last week, 10, 1000 cache PTs have been created and that's all you got was those 10 PTs.

 

While that's an unlikely scenario, it has happened to me. An area I was gong to suddenly had a PT and a GeoArt added which shrunk my circle down to nothing. I had to use a States API to fix the problem because it was too late to create another PQ and I'd already done my 10 for that day.

 

To use the ignore function in GSAK, first locate and select the caches you wish to ignore.

 

Then click Search in the GSAK top tool bar and click User Flag Set. That will display only the selected caches to ignore in a filter.

 

Click on Geocaching.com Access,

 

Click on Add To Bookmark List, The ignore list should come up.

 

Now check All In Current Filter then click ADD.

 

The offending caches are now in your ignore list on Geocaching.com and won't be added to your PQs again. The problem with this is, people are continually adding to their PTs making them longer and longer so you have to check often and add additional PT segments to you list.

 

That brings us to the macro. CacheSeries. THIS IS NOT A FIX so BE CAREFUL how you use it.

 

CacheSeries picks up the caches in a series by comparing the first characters and the last characters of the cache name. It is easy to use but it is far from perfect. DO NOT just select everything the macro finds and add it all to the ignore list. Example; if you add 'Welcome To' to the ignore list you've just ignored every 'Welcome To' this town or that town in your current GSAK database. There are many other examples of this. Some people use the same name for many of their caches whether they are PTs or not. An example of that would be Mondou in the Denver/Fort Collins Area. In Mondou's case, it's difficult to tell the PT from the regular cache. These might need to be selected manually when you detect a power cache. So, when using the Macro CacheSeries, make sure to check the caches series on a map before you ignore it or you may be ignoring a lot of legitimate caches.

 

FYI, I have currently 1237 'Welcome To' caches and 598 'Mondoa' caches in my preload database. But I have ignored well over 1000 Mondou caches which were PTs. I have over 20,000 caches in my ignore list, all Power Trails and a few GeoArt.

 

That's enough for now. There are many cures to the PT problem, An attribute would be the best and most suggested, expanding the PQ and API limits are second on the list. You can currently download 6,000 and 10,000 caches using the States API which is helpful. Hopefully sometime soon we will get what we need. Flame on.

Edited by Jake81499
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I guess I'm lucky that I live in an area that doesn't have that big of an issue.

 

We have one that I call a semi-power trail. It is located along the Erie Canal so you can't drive to each cache. Its all foot power.

 

Short trails, 25 or less aren't a problem. Sometimes they follow the traditional cache methodology and take you to some interesting places. When the numbers reach into the hundreds it just becomes ridicules. We need an attribute pretty bad but it doesn't seem to be coming anytime soon.

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Those people that do power caches think they are doing a service to the geocaching society. They couldn't be more wrong. One boring cache after another. Nothing special about them other than a graduating number. They are a menace.

 

So what you enjoy is the right way and what others enjoy is wrong? Well I don't like your name or profile picture. You should be forced to change them to something I agree with :ph34r:

 

You may not like them, but some do. What's wrong with that?

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Those people that do power caches think they are doing a service to the geocaching society. They couldn't be more wrong. One boring cache after another. Nothing special about them other than a graduating number. They are a menace.

 

So what you enjoy is the right way and what others enjoy is wrong? Well I don't like your name or profile picture. You should be forced to change them to something I agree with :ph34r:

 

You may not like them, but some do. What's wrong with that?

 

So you had to make it personal? I was talking in general. Child like response.

 

If you like redundancy and monotony more power to you.

 

I wasn't asking anyone to change anything. It would be nice if there was a cache type for series style caches so we could filter it out.

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Here's a list of the power trails I've ignored so far. I don't ignore EVERY cache in the trail I usually save two or three for unknown reasons. The total number of caches ignored for these is 20,017.

 

<-AC & DC-> .. #xxx

Blowout Trail xxx

Joseph's Dream xxxx

#xxxx Highway To H.E.L.L

#xxx-E.T

xxx-Route 66

xx Esterlins Detour

xx – How Many Caches To Brookings?

Xx Run Wild Horses Run

xxx Owyhee Uplands Byway

xx-California 50 State Star

x - ?snikoorB ot sehcac ynam woH

x - BBT: LPC

x - Grand Valley Loop

x - Pooh Diving

x - Run From The Border (N)

x - Run From The Border (S)

x - Runway View

x – Take Me To Church

x – BBT: (assorted names)

x – Glacial Valley Loop

x – Side Street

xxxBT'15 (assorted names)

ACME xxx

Aurora xxx

Balanced Thunderbird Cache #xxx

BAM – xxx

BBTSxxx – Thanks

Blackwood Canyon Power Trail #xxx

Blowout Trail xxx

BLT #xxx

Cx – Going to Sica Trail

Cache Container Test Field – (assorted names)

Deer and Antelope Play xx

Desert Creatures (assorted names)

Do these roads seem a 'little alien' (#xx) to you?

Eagle Eye xxx

Eaglexxx

Elexxx – (assorted names) – Element Series

Escape From Reality – xxx

Ferntucky 500 #xxx

Flipboard Freeway Trail #xxx

Fork It #xx

Freedom Trail #xxx

GBR Trail #xxx

GC Trail #xxx

Ghost Rail to ATL #xxx

Highway To H.E.L.L (assorted names)

Highway To Heaven #xxx

Langell Valley Rd #xxx

Lets Go Tubing #xxx

M-xx

Mahna Mahna #xxx

N2NFRxx

NAA - (assorted names)

NoRuCo No. xx

Oh I Wish I Was In Dixie xxx

Oklahoma Land Run (assorted names)

ORNxxx – TS Oh Really Now?

Paradise Lost xxx

Pole Dancing – xxx

Preston Ridge Trail #xx

Ptxxx (assorted Names)

Roadrunner Fun Facts #xxx

Rosebank Road Mini Power Trail #xx

Rumours xxx

Russellville Run #xxx

Solene's Trail #xxx

Something Fun #xxx

Tahoe Tessie Egg Trail #xxx

Team Bad-xxx

That's HOT xxx

The Connector xxx

The Millennium Power Trail #xxx

Tin Van Alley (assorted names)

TOGA Trail #xxx

Tour of the Buckskins xxx

Tower Of Power xxx

Trail That Never Ends xxx

TS Princess Of The Desert xxx

View Of The Grasslands #xxx

Wxxxx – Lone Star Trail

Waiting For Max #xxx

Walk About – xxx

Wheeler Gauntlet #xxx

When Two World Collide Part 1 - xxxx

Where Bigfoot Walks xx-xx

WildRidexxx

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Those people that do power caches think they are doing a service to the geocaching society. They couldn't be more wrong. One boring cache after another. Nothing special about them other than a graduating number. They are a menace.

 

So what you enjoy is the right way and what others enjoy is wrong? Well I don't like your name or profile picture. You should be forced to change them to something I agree with :ph34r:

 

You may not like them, but some do. What's wrong with that?

 

Nothing wrong with that, We've asked for an attribute over and over again so we can opt out or power caches and we haven't received it. So we have to take measures to ignore them. I have no intention of going out and chasing power caches and I don't want them to pollute my PQs and APIs. It's been an ongoing problem. There are legitimate arguments on both sides.

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@Jake

 

It's really sad to see what you and others have to do to get a pq that you can work with. I fortunately don't have too much of a problem where I live, but I side with you and the others.

 

What is even more sad is that you and all the others that want either an attribute or cache type for power trails and geo "art", are paying members. It appears that Groundspeak doesn't listen to the people that pay their bills.

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What is even more sad is that you and all the others that want either an attribute or cache type for power trails and geo "art", are paying members. It appears that Groundspeak doesn't listen to the people that pay their bills.

Sorry, but with a tiny percentage of cachers ever entering the forums, you know that how?

For all anyone knows, for every person griping about power trails, roadside carp, and geoart (I'm one, by the way), there may be fifty who email HQ how much they love 'em. :)

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What is even more sad is that you and all the others that want either an attribute or cache type for power trails and geo "art", are paying members. It appears that Groundspeak doesn't listen to the people that pay their bills.

Sorry, but with a tiny percentage of cachers ever entering the forums, you know that how?

For all anyone knows, for every person griping about power trails, roadside carp, and geoart (I'm one, by the way), there may be fifty who email HQ how much they love 'em. :)

 

Even some of the people who set power trails have asked for an attribute. Sooner or later we'll get one. I'm not in a unique situation where I have 417 PQs that I run in a cycle. And I've watched my PQ circles get smaller and smaller. Not only because of PTs but just because of more popularity of the hobby. Every time the PT problem gets brought up, more and more people get on the band wagon to say something about them. Sooner or later the geofathers will have to add an attribute. It should have been done long ago. Since I've been caching the number of attributes allowed has doubled at least. A PT attribute is much needed and the result of adding one is neither for nor against PTs. It's just an identifying feature.

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What is even more sad is that you and all the others that want either an attribute or cache type for power trails and geo "art", are paying members. It appears that Groundspeak doesn't listen to the people that pay their bills.

Sorry, but with a tiny percentage of cachers ever entering the forums, you know that how?

For all anyone knows, for every person griping about power trails, roadside carp, and geoart (I'm one, by the way), there may be fifty who email HQ how much they love 'em. :)

 

You are right, but how many of those people that pay, lurk and just say nothing because they know it won't do any good? If a few that complain have a valid point, Groundspeak should at least acknowledge them. How many more are there that say nothing but still believe something should be done? The squeaky wheel gets the grease. At least that's the way it should be.

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Those people that do power caches think they are doing a service to the geocaching society. They couldn't be more wrong. One boring cache after another. Nothing special about them other than a graduating number. They are a menace.

 

So what you enjoy is the right way and what others enjoy is wrong? Well I don't like your name or profile picture. You should be forced to change them to something I agree with :ph34r:

 

You may not like them, but some do. What's wrong with that?

 

Nothing wrong with that, We've asked for an attribute over and over again so we can opt out or power caches and we haven't received it. So we have to take measures to ignore them. I have no intention of going out and chasing power caches and I don't want them to pollute my PQs and APIs. It's been an ongoing problem. There are legitimate arguments on both sides.

I've always said that one of the reasons geocaching is fun is that there is something for everyone. Many people like power trails and at first glance, they sound fine. The problem is that they cause problems for people who aren't interested in them. It is definitely tough keeping them out of pocket queries and other searches. It irritates me somewhat that we can filter for just about anything out there but not for power trails.

 

The main argument i've heard against making them their own cache type, or for adding an attribute, is that it would be hard to come up with a consensus on what constitutes a power trail. Imo, Groundspeak should step up, make the call, and get this headache behind us. No doubt some people would be offended by GS's definition of a PT but just like many of their other unpopular business decisions, people would get over it.

 

At the very least, why not provide an attribute? I'd think that most PTCOs would use them because they know that a lot of people would filter for them. Those of us who aren't looking for numbers could filter them out. Not a perfect remedy but it would certainly help!

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What is even more sad is that you and all the others that want either an attribute or cache type for power trails and geo "art", are paying members. It appears that Groundspeak doesn't listen to the people that pay their bills.

Sorry, but with a tiny percentage of cachers ever entering the forums, you know that how?

For all anyone knows, for every person griping about power trails, roadside carp, and geoart (I'm one, by the way), there may be fifty who email HQ how much they love 'em. :)

 

You are right, but how many of those people that pay, lurk and just say nothing because they know it won't do any good? If a few that complain have a valid point, Groundspeak should at least acknowledge them. How many more are there that say nothing but still believe something should be done? The squeaky wheel gets the grease. At least that's the way it should be.

 

That's very true. I've talked to people who had an issue that I couldn't help them with, not only in geocaching but in other areas. I've asked them to post the question on a forum and they won't because it becomes 'Flame City'. You can look at almost any post in these forums and find several flames, smart remarks like the 'thank you' listed above. Just ignore them.

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Those people that do power caches think they are doing a service to the geocaching society. They couldn't be more wrong. One boring cache after another. Nothing special about them other than a graduating number. They are a menace.

 

So what you enjoy is the right way and what others enjoy is wrong? Well I don't like your name or profile picture. You should be forced to change them to something I agree with :ph34r:

 

You may not like them, but some do. What's wrong with that?

 

Nothing wrong with that, We've asked for an attribute over and over again so we can opt out or power caches and we haven't received it. So we have to take measures to ignore them. I have no intention of going out and chasing power caches and I don't want them to pollute my PQs and APIs. It's been an ongoing problem. There are legitimate arguments on both sides.

I've always said that one of the reasons geocaching is fun is that there is something for everyone. Many people like power trails and at first glance, they sound fine. The problem is that they cause problems for people who aren't interested in them. It is definitely tough keeping them out of pocket queries and other searches. It irritates me somewhat that we can filter for just about anything out there but not for power trails.

 

The main argument i've heard against making them their own cache type, or for adding an attribute, is that it would be hard to come up with a consensus on what constitutes a power trail. Imo, Groundspeak should step up, make the call, and get this headache behind us. No doubt some people would be offended by GS's definition of a PT but just like many of their other unpopular business decisions, people would get over it.

 

At the very least, why not provide an attribute? I'd think that most PTCOs would use them because they know that a lot of people would filter for them. Those of us who aren't looking for numbers could filter them out. Not a perfect remedy but it would certainly help!

 

The attribute would be the very best method, rules wouldn't really have to be written. People see the attribute and many would add it when they create the cache. Many would be very happy to add it. Some would not be happy to add it. In that case peer pressure would have to come into play. But in all it would cut down on the clutter in the PQs and that's what we are shooting for.

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[...]

For all anyone knows, for every person griping about power trails, roadside carp, and geoart (I'm one, by the way), there may be fifty who email HQ how much they love 'em. :)

 

Right. That's why both parties will have an advantage from this "IsSerialCache" attribute. A perfect win win situation.

 

hans

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[...]

For all anyone knows, for every person griping about power trails, roadside carp, and geoart (I'm one, by the way), there may be fifty who email HQ how much they love 'em. :)

 

Right. That's why both parties will have an advantage from this "IsSerialCache" attribute. A perfect win win situation.

 

hans

 

I'll look at it and let you know what I think. Hope it's good.

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[...]

For all anyone knows, for every person griping about power trails, roadside carp, and geoart (I'm one, by the way), there may be fifty who email HQ how much they love 'em. :)

 

Right. That's why both parties will have an advantage from this "IsSerialCache" attribute. A perfect win win situation.

 

hans

 

Didn't see it in the attributes. Is that something they are adding?

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The squeaky wheel gets the grease. At least that's the way it should be.

Groundspeak does not follow this model. For the most part, development seems to be driven by the desires of those at GSHQ. If the squeaky wheel drove development, Virtuals would be back, we'd have a way to deal with missing trackables, we'd have a fully-functional smartphone app, etc.

 

That's why both parties will have an advantage from this "IsSerialCache" attribute. A perfect win win situation.

Didn't see it in the attributes. Is that something they are adding?

I believe HHL is just referring to the proposed power trail attribute we're discussing.

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Additional PTs added to the ignore list.

 

TS xxxx

IWLTxx

TSxxxx

TSDxx-Delux

WAFxxx - TS East Waller Road

Churchill-xxx

Tesla xxx

J and J - xx

Team Bad-xxx

Freedom Trail-xxx

When Two Worlds Collide Part 2 - xxx

Rocky Road-xxx

Slaw xx

TS Princess of the Desert xxx

Is that the 80 or the 95? #xxx

Plinko xxx

Highway To Heaven - xxx

Sink Lake xxx

 

For and additional 2617 caches added to the ignore list. Note, these are all set by the same group. In Nevada around the Reno area, PQs are useless because of abuse of the PT. That's 2617 caches in Power Trails that I had not previously ignored in a 100 mile radius of Reno Nevada.

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Let's stop with the gratuitous thread bumps to post the names of power trails. It adds nothing to the discussion. Thanks.

 

I disagree. They may help others who are also discusted with the abuse of power trails find and ignore them. I'll just edit the last one from here on out.

Edited by Jake81499
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I forgot to add in the original post how to filter caches by an individual.

 

It seems a handful of people think the only way to set caches is in a PT. If you find one of these individuals or teams just click on Search in GSAK, Filter, and type their name/handle in the 'Placed By' block. Finally click on Go.

 

This should bring up all the caches by that person or team. In the last batch of PT's that I ignored, that particular name/handle has thousands of caches attached to it. Some of those are not PTs so I had to check the filter and remove those that weren't part of a PT. I also saved some very short PTs that really don't take up a ton of space in a PQ. I personally don't want to ignore every cache a person sets just because most of their caches are PTs so I do check on a map and read through the filter. I also keep a handful of caches from each PT but seldom more than 5 or 10. In the case of the group above, I may end up just ignoring everything because they are continuously adding to existing PT's and continuously setting new PT's. It may just be easier to ignore everything they do.

 

Anyhow, once you have a filter of caches by an individual that you want to ignore then just follow the ignore procedures in the original post.

 

An attribute would save us a lot of trouble but we don't have one yet. There is a GeoTour attribute which could possibly be used for PT's but it doesn't seem to be.

Edited by Jake81499
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There is a GeoTour attribute which could possibly be used for PT's but it doesn't seem to be.

 

The only thing that a GeoTour has in common with a PT is that it is a group of caches based upon a common theme.

 

Most GeoTours have a relatively small number of caches (though there are exceptions).

 

GeoTours are all about taking you to interesting locations. The locations for caches in a power trail are almost always determine by the proximity to the nearest cache.

 

 

 

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For those who don't do Power Trails and are tired of them messing up our PQs and and APIs here is a short list of methods of adding them to your ignore list. The reason I'm posting this it because we've asked many times for some method of adding them to the PQ creation pages such as a PT attribute. Nothing has been done to help make the PTs less of a problem. I'd agree that the short PT might not be so much of a problem, anything under 25 caches, but these things are getting into the thousands in length. It's turned into abuse in many cases. If you do a State API download in Nevada for example, you may only get PTs as a result. One caching group in that state has literally thousands of caches, all power trails.

 

I'm sure I'll get flamed to death in writing this and I might make a mistake or two. Keep in mind, everyone has a different way to geocache, no two individuals do it the same way and the other guys way is always the wrong way.

 

GSAK is needed to efficiently add the offending PTs to you ignore list. That's the program most of us use. But I've been told about a couple others and I won't go into those.

 

You've downloaded 10 PQs containing 1000 caches each in a 500 mile circle because you're leaving on vacation in 15 minutes. You check the database on a map and see that since you created the PQs last week, 10, 1000 cache PTs have been created and that's all you got was those 10 PTs.

 

While that's an unlikely scenario, it has happened to me. An area I was gong to suddenly had a PT and a GeoArt added which shrunk my circle down to nothing. I had to use a States API to fix the problem because it was too late to create another PQ and I'd already done my 10 for that day.

 

To use the ignore function in GSAK, first locate and select the caches you wish to ignore.

 

Then click Search in the GSAK top tool bar and click User Flag Set. That will display only the selected caches to ignore in a filter.

 

Click on Geocaching.com Access,

 

Click on Add To Bookmark List, The ignore list should come up.

 

Now check All In Current Filter then click ADD.

 

The offending caches are now in your ignore list on Geocaching.com and won't be added to your PQs again. The problem with this is, people are continually adding to their PTs making them longer and longer so you have to check often and add additional PT segments to you list.

 

That brings us to the macro. CacheSeries. THIS IS NOT A FIX so BE CAREFUL how you use it.

 

CacheSeries picks up the caches in a series by comparing the first characters and the last characters of the cache name. It is easy to use but it is far from perfect. DO NOT just select everything the macro finds and add it all to the ignore list. Example; if you add 'Welcome To' to the ignore list you've just ignored every 'Welcome To' this town or that town in your current GSAK database. There are many other examples of this. Some people use the same name for many of their caches whether they are PTs or not. An example of that would be Mondou in the Denver/Fort Collins Area. In Mondou's case, it's difficult to tell the PT from the regular cache. These might need to be selected manually when you detect a power cache. So, when using the Macro CacheSeries, make sure to check the caches series on a map before you ignore it or you may be ignoring a lot of legitimate caches.

 

FYI, I have currently 1237 'Welcome To' caches and 598 'Mondoa' caches in my preload database. But I have ignored well over 1000 Mondou caches which were PTs. I have over 20,000 caches in my ignore list, all Power Trails and a few GeoArt.

 

That's enough for now. There are many cures to the PT problem, An attribute would be the best and most suggested, expanding the PQ and API limits are second on the list. You can currently download 6,000 and 10,000 caches using the States API which is helpful. Hopefully sometime soon we will get what we need. Flame on.

 

What are Power Trails anyways?

Link to comment

For those who don't do Power Trails and are tired of them messing up our PQs and and APIs here is a short list of methods of adding them to your ignore list. The reason I'm posting this it because we've asked many times for some method of adding them to the PQ creation pages such as a PT attribute. Nothing has been done to help make the PTs less of a problem. I'd agree that the short PT might not be so much of a problem, anything under 25 caches, but these things are getting into the thousands in length. It's turned into abuse in many cases. If you do a State API download in Nevada for example, you may only get PTs as a result. One caching group in that state has literally thousands of caches, all power trails.

 

I'm sure I'll get flamed to death in writing this and I might make a mistake or two. Keep in mind, everyone has a different way to geocache, no two individuals do it the same way and the other guys way is always the wrong way.

 

GSAK is needed to efficiently add the offending PTs to you ignore list. That's the program most of us use. But I've been told about a couple others and I won't go into those.

 

You've downloaded 10 PQs containing 1000 caches each in a 500 mile circle because you're leaving on vacation in 15 minutes. You check the database on a map and see that since you created the PQs last week, 10, 1000 cache PTs have been created and that's all you got was those 10 PTs.

 

While that's an unlikely scenario, it has happened to me. An area I was gong to suddenly had a PT and a GeoArt added which shrunk my circle down to nothing. I had to use a States API to fix the problem because it was too late to create another PQ and I'd already done my 10 for that day.

 

To use the ignore function in GSAK, first locate and select the caches you wish to ignore.

 

Then click Search in the GSAK top tool bar and click User Flag Set. That will display only the selected caches to ignore in a filter.

 

Click on Geocaching.com Access,

 

Click on Add To Bookmark List, The ignore list should come up.

 

Now check All In Current Filter then click ADD.

 

The offending caches are now in your ignore list on Geocaching.com and won't be added to your PQs again. The problem with this is, people are continually adding to their PTs making them longer and longer so you have to check often and add additional PT segments to you list.

 

That brings us to the macro. CacheSeries. THIS IS NOT A FIX so BE CAREFUL how you use it.

 

CacheSeries picks up the caches in a series by comparing the first characters and the last characters of the cache name. It is easy to use but it is far from perfect. DO NOT just select everything the macro finds and add it all to the ignore list. Example; if you add 'Welcome To' to the ignore list you've just ignored every 'Welcome To' this town or that town in your current GSAK database. There are many other examples of this. Some people use the same name for many of their caches whether they are PTs or not. An example of that would be Mondou in the Denver/Fort Collins Area. In Mondou's case, it's difficult to tell the PT from the regular cache. These might need to be selected manually when you detect a power cache. So, when using the Macro CacheSeries, make sure to check the caches series on a map before you ignore it or you may be ignoring a lot of legitimate caches.

 

FYI, I have currently 1237 'Welcome To' caches and 598 'Mondoa' caches in my preload database. But I have ignored well over 1000 Mondou caches which were PTs. I have over 20,000 caches in my ignore list, all Power Trails and a few GeoArt.

 

That's enough for now. There are many cures to the PT problem, An attribute would be the best and most suggested, expanding the PQ and API limits are second on the list. You can currently download 6,000 and 10,000 caches using the States API which is helpful. Hopefully sometime soon we will get what we need. Flame on.

 

What are Power Trails anyways?

 

Long string of caches, usually the minimum allowable distance apart (528'), consisting of dozens or even hundreds of similar caches. It's called that since folks like to make a long day of it, grabbing as many caches as they can in a day. The consensus seems to be they are there strictly for numbers-oriented folks...or folks looking to get a quick boost in their find numbers.

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Power trails are extended groups of caches, usually placed very close to each other. They often have a common cache name like the ones I listed above and they are usually numbered. Power trails may run from just a few caches in a string to thousands of caches in a string. They are either placed by a single individual or a group of people. I'm finding that power trails are often extended week after week, additional caches added to an existing power trail. You'll normally find them along a trail or roadway but the definition should also cover GeoArt which is often in the middle of nowhere. The aparent sole purpose of a power trail is to give a cacher numbers, the more caches he finds the more numbers he has, and he's somehow impressed with himself. Power trails make this easy for the numbers chasers. If you read the logs of a power trail and compare them to an online log you may find that they are often heaven for the armchair cacher. That's the person who never has to leave the comfort of his home to log hundreds of caches.

Edited by Jake81499
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Let's stop with the gratuitous thread bumps to post the names of power trails. It adds nothing to the discussion. Thanks.

I disagree. They may help others who are also discusted with the abuse of power trails find and ignore them. I'll just edit the last one from here on out.

FYI, you can only edit posts for something like 48 hours (or it might be only 24 hours).

 

The "How Do I...?" section of the forums doesn't seem like the best place to document power trails. Maybe set up a Google Doc or some kind of free wiki?

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Some people also enjoy power trails because it gives something to do on a long hike; like individual caches can (but not always) take people to great locations, sometimes powertrails make people aware of great hiking trails.

 

I agree, some power trails are fun, like you say on a long hike. But they are being abused seriously. If you want a good example, look at Nevada. I usually don't ignore short trails of 10 or 15.

Edited by Jake81499
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Some people also enjoy power trails because it gives something to do on a long hike; like individual caches can (but not always) take people to great locations, sometimes powertrails make people aware of great hiking trails.

 

I agree, some power trails are fun, like you say on a long hike. But they are being abused seriously. If you want a good example, look at Nevada. I usually don't ignore short trails of 10 or 15.

Yep, I did the 2400 cache ET series with 3 friends in 3 days ;) Amazing experience, very fun, very testing for endurance and focus. Don't regret it at all.

 

That said, I don't rely solely on PQs to search for caches. We have many many powertrails - hiking and roadside and river - in southern Ontario. I stopped relying on <1000 cache center-point PQs long ago in favour of placeddate range PQs for the whole province. If in a new area, I tend to rely on Geosphere and searching by map location, making lots of adjustments to dodge a PT through an area if I so desire. But the API is flexible enough spacially that it's never really concerned me too much.

 

Which is not to say it's not a valid concern for people who do rely on PQs. Just offering my input :)

Edited by thebruce0
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Some people also enjoy power trails because it gives something to do on a long hike; like individual caches can (but not always) take people to great locations, sometimes powertrails make people aware of great hiking trails.

 

I agree, some power trails are fun, like you say on a long hike. But they are being abused seriously. If you want a good example, look at Nevada. I usually don't ignore short trails of 10 or 15.

Yep, I did the 2400 cache ET series with 3 friends in 3 days ;) Amazing experience, very fun, very testing for endurance and focus. Don't regret it at all.

 

That said, I don't rely solely on PQs to search for caches. We have many many powertrails - hiking and roadside and river - in southern Ontario. I stopped relying on <1000 cache center-point PQs long ago in favour of placeddate range PQs for the whole province. If in a new area, I tend to rely on Geosphere and searching by map location, making lots of adjustments to dodge a PT through an area if I so desire. But the API is flexible enough spacially that it's never really concerned me too much.

 

Which is not to say it's not a valid concern for people who do rely on PQs. Just offering my input :)

 

We just need an attribute is all and the people who set them need to use it. After that, no complaints. I love using the API and PQs together. It keeps the boredom down and my GPS full.

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Those people that do power caches think they are doing a service to the geocaching society. They couldn't be more wrong. One boring cache after another. Nothing special about them other than a graduating number. They are a menace.

 

If it's a series of caches, then thats one thing, but if it's putting a cache someplace just to put a cache, then yes it is a menace. I am looking forward to powertrails but only the ones that are series. if its just. Hi, Hi2, ...H300. Then yeah that's ANNOYING!

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Some people also enjoy power trails because it gives something to do on a long hike; like individual caches can (but not always) take people to great locations, sometimes powertrails make people aware of great hiking trails.

 

I agree, some power trails are fun, like you say on a long hike. But they are being abused seriously. If you want a good example, look at Nevada. I usually don't ignore short trails of 10 or 15.

Yep, I did the 2400 cache ET series with 3 friends in 3 days ;) Amazing experience, very fun, very testing for endurance and focus. Don't regret it at all.

 

That said, I don't rely solely on PQs to search for caches. We have many many powertrails - hiking and roadside and river - in southern Ontario. I stopped relying on <1000 cache center-point PQs long ago in favour of placeddate range PQs for the whole province. If in a new area, I tend to rely on Geosphere and searching by map location, making lots of adjustments to dodge a PT through an area if I so desire. But the API is flexible enough spacially that it's never really concerned me too much.

 

Which is not to say it's not a valid concern for people who do rely on PQs. Just offering my input :)

 

We just need an attribute is all and the people who set them need to use it. After that, no complaints. I love using the API and PQs together. It keeps the boredom down and my GPS full.

 

Even if there was an attribute the owners might not set it. Some attributes are misleading too like "park n grab" is an attribute on a cache that takes a few minutes to find and you gotta walk to it, rather than park next to it and know its exact location.

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Some people also enjoy power trails because it gives something to do on a long hike; like individual caches can (but not always) take people to great locations, sometimes powertrails make people aware of great hiking trails.

 

Indeed.

 

I don't do power trails as an endurance test. I did the Bataan Memorial Death March for that.

 

However, I did have to do a lot of training hikes to build my way up to being able to do a 26.2 ruck march. And without 5,000 other hikers around to keep me company, it would have gotten a little boring, were it not for the power trails that I did on foot during my training hikes, which got up to 20 miles. So, while I am normally not a power trail fan, they have their moments.

 

I would definitely vote for a power trail attribute, though. That way, I could opt in when I wanted to hit one and opt out when I did not.

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Some people also enjoy power trails because it gives something to do on a long hike; like individual caches can (but not always) take people to great locations, sometimes powertrails make people aware of great hiking trails.

 

I agree, some power trails are fun, like you say on a long hike. But they are being abused seriously. If you want a good example, look at Nevada. I usually don't ignore short trails of 10 or 15.

Yep, I did the 2400 cache ET series with 3 friends in 3 days ;) Amazing experience, very fun, very testing for endurance and focus. Don't regret it at all.

 

That said, I don't rely solely on PQs to search for caches. We have many many powertrails - hiking and roadside and river - in southern Ontario. I stopped relying on <1000 cache center-point PQs long ago in favour of placeddate range PQs for the whole province. If in a new area, I tend to rely on Geosphere and searching by map location, making lots of adjustments to dodge a PT through an area if I so desire. But the API is flexible enough spacially that it's never really concerned me too much.

 

Which is not to say it's not a valid concern for people who do rely on PQs. Just offering my input :)

 

We just need an attribute is all and the people who set them need to use it. After that, no complaints. I love using the API and PQs together. It keeps the boredom down and my GPS full.

 

Even if there was an attribute the owners might not set it. Some attributes are misleading too like "park n grab" is an attribute on a cache that takes a few minutes to find and you gotta walk to it, rather than park next to it and know its exact location.

 

Peer Pressure. That's what we need. There's a ton of abuse in the attribute section already. Look at the power trails around Nevada and some other places. Desert caches with the Scuba Gear attribute set? It's wrong. But the number of people that do set the PT attribute would release some of the pressure off the rest of us who see most of the PT's as an abuse. If they refuse to set the PT attribute, then just ignore every cache set by the person setting them.

Edited by Jake81499
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As a reminder, the subject of this thread is methods for ignoring power trails. This is the "How do I....?" forum, whose purpose is to provide basic answers to basic questions about Geocaching.com website functionality.

 

There is another thread open for general discussions about the pros and cons of power trails. The Geocaching Topics forum is best suited for such conversations.

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There is another thread open for general discussions about the pros and cons of power trails. The Geocaching Topics forum is best suited for such conversations.
And there is another thread open for discussions about the pros and cons of a new attribute for power trails. The Bug Reports and Feature Discussions > Website forum is best suited for such conversations.

 

There are many threads concerning the ups and downs of power caches in every section of these forums. When your talking about a sore subject in any venue the Whys and Why Nots tend to pop up.

Edited by Jake81499
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I'm adding this because its part of the ignoring power cache fiasco. I'm sure I'll get flamed by the usual group of flamers.

 

The States API doesn't seem to use the ignore list. There's no way I've found to make the API recognize the ignore list. So each time you run the states API you will get the caches you've already ignored back into your GSAK database. Adding the caches to the GSAK ignore list helps somewhat but it shrinks your API download. The API downloads the ignored power trails but GSAK blocks them, so if there's 500 caches in the power trail you've ignored using the GSAK ignore, the API will be still try and download 6000 or 10000 caches but the end result will be 500 short. It'd probably best to just not use the States API if you are ignoring large numbers of caches.

 

Also, I may have hit the limit on the ignore stored on the website. I can't seem to add to it any more. 29065. Will keep trying. I hope I'm wrong because that will mean I'm stuck a lot of power caches screwing up my pocket queries. Would be nice if the higher ups heard us.

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