New Geocacher

[+Jasons01]

Hi guys,

 

I am new to this game.  Several months ago someone told me about Geocaching, but I never looked into it for whatever reason until now.  August 26, 2018 was when I found my first two caches, and then I found three more the next day.  (I know there is a cache within 300 feet of my house, but I cannot find it; it is very frustrating).  Anyway,   I was wanting to get some tips and tricks, and maybe even go geocaching with others to get a better idea as to how all this works.  I got a 3-month premium membership to try it all out.

 

Thanks.

[+Max and 99]

1 hour ago, 1nosaj said:

Hi guys,

 

I am new to this game.  Several months ago someone told me about Geocaching, but I never looked into it for whatever reason until now.  August 26, 2018 was when I found my first two caches, and then I found three more the next day.  (I know there is a cache within 300 feet of my house, but I cannot find it; it is very frustrating).  Anyway,   I was wanting to get some tips and tricks, and maybe even go geocaching with others to get a better idea as to how all this works.  I got a 3-month premium membership to try it all out.

 

Thanks.

Welcome!

You're kinda close to the new Utah-Oklahoma geocache, in Layton. Go find it! ?

 

For the cache you couldn't find, did you log a DNF? Is it a traditional or a puzzle?  Was there a hint on the page? All things to consider. 

Edit: I found your DNF log. It's a traditional. Have you contacted the owner to ask for help?

Edited August 28, 2018 by Max and 99

[+Max and 99]

If you read the logs on the cache page they provide some very good clues!! Very helpful clues! ?

[+cerberus1]

If you haven't looked around much, there's Geocaching 101, and the Help Center to get a better idea how this all works. 

[+justintim1999]

I'd love to go caching with ya but I live in Massachusetts.  By the time I get to Utah you'll be a seasoned veteran.

 

Have fun and be safe.  

[+Team Christiansen]

9 hours ago, 1nosaj said:

Hi guys,

 

I am new to this game.  Several months ago someone told me about Geocaching, but I never looked into it for whatever reason until now.  August 26, 2018 was when I found my first two caches, and then I found three more the next day.  (I know there is a cache within 300 feet of my house, but I cannot find it; it is very frustrating).  Anyway,   I was wanting to get some tips and tricks, and maybe even go geocaching with others to get a better idea as to how all this works.  I got a 3-month premium membership to try it all out.

 

Thanks.

In addition to the tips you may find in these forums, and the links that @cerberus1 provided, the best thing you can do is to go to an event and talk with other cachers. There is an event,  2nd Annual USU Botanical Center CITO, just 11 miles north of you in 3 1/2 weeks. There will be several very-experienced cachers in attendance, all of whom will be very happy to discuss tips and tricks with you. Some may even offer to take you caching with them. I happen to know the event host. He is a pretty cool guy.

 

By the way, I previously tried to find the cache you DNFed and failed a couple times. After the cache owner checked on it and said it was still there, I was encouraged to try again. I finally found it, thought it was quite clever, and even gave it a favorite point. You will have to read my May 12, 2018, Found it log. That is the best I can offer without giving it away. 

[+niraD]

A common recommendation for beginners is to stick with small size, regular size, and large size caches. Until you're more experienced, avoid micro size caches, some of which are smaller than most beginners can imagine (sometimes called "nanos"). Save those for later, after you have some experience.

 

Also, stick with caches that have a difficulty rating of no more than 2 stars . Save the more difficult ones for later. You may also want to choose caches with easy terrain ratings. (The difficulty rating tells you how hard it is to find the cache once you get there. The terrain rating tells you how hard it is to get there.) And it is often best to start with traditional caches, which will be at the published coordinates. Multi-caches or mystery/puzzle caches or other cache types can require more work just to figure out where the container is located.

 

Under ideal conditions, a consumer GPSr will be accurate to about 3m (10ft). That applies both to your device, and to the cache owner’s device, so you may find the container 5-6m (16-20ft) from ground zero under ideal conditions. Under less than ideal conditions, both GPSr readings can be much less accurate. Once you get within that distance of ground zero, put your device away and look around for places where a container could be hidden.

 

Where would you hide something? Do you notice anything unusual? Is anything too new, too old, too organized (e.g., UPS: an Unnatural Pile of Sticks/Stones), too symmetrical, not quite the right color or shape, etc.? Don’t look only on the ground; the cache may be knee-level, waist-level, eye-level, or overhead. How might the container be secured in place? With magnets? With a hook? With string? With fishing line? With something else? Does anything move when you touch it? (Be careful when touching things though.)

 

Go ahead and read the cache's additional hints (if provided), and read the past logs and look at any photos in the cache's image gallery. They may help you understand what you're looking for, and how/where it may be hidden. It may also help to look at some of the cache containers available online. For example, check out the cache containers sold by Groundspeak. Also, take a look at the Pictures - Cool Cache Containers (CCC's) thread in the forums, and check out some geocaching videos on YouTube.
 

[+Max and 99]

14 hours ago, 1nosaj said:

Hi guys,

 

I am new to this game.  Several months ago someone told me about Geocaching, but I never looked into it for whatever reason until now.  August 26, 2018 was when I found my first two caches, and then I found three more the next day.  (I know there is a cache within 300 feet of my house, but I cannot find it; it is very frustrating).  Anyway,   I was wanting to get some tips and tricks, and maybe even go geocaching with others to get a better idea as to how all this works.  I got a 3-month premium membership to try it all out.

 

Thanks.

We eagerly await to hear you successfully found the cache! Please keep us posted.

[+Jasons01]

I'll let you know if I find that cache, but it might be awhile as I had gone back and still have not found it.  The one I can't find near my house is the most frustrating though... come on!  It's right there!

[+Max and 99]

8 minutes ago, 1nosaj said:

I'll let you know if I find that cache, but it might be awhile as I had gone back and still have not found it.  The one I can't find near my house is the most frustrating though... come on!  It's right there!

You're killing me!  Haha.  The least you could do is send me a photo of GZ when you go back.

[+Team Christiansen]

All I can say is that the cache container initially looks like it belongs. But after thinking about it, you will say to yourself, "wait a minute, there is no reason for this to be here." Best example I can give (and this is not it) is walking a trail far away from civilization and you see a sprinkler head planted in the ground next to a tree. The sprinkler is installed in the ground properly looking the way it would look anywhere else in town, but then you realize, nobody would be or even could be watering out here.

[+Max and 99]

Oh snap!  Now you HAVE to find it. No excuse at all. Haha.

[+Jasons01]

The cache is 

GC7V31P

 Pole Vault 1

This is the one near my house.  I am up to seven finds, and this one should have been the first--and easiest to find.

[+Max and 99]

5 minutes ago, 1nosaj said:

The cache is 

GC7V31P

 Pole Vault 1

This is the one near my house.  I am up to seven finds, and this one should have been the first--and easiest to find.

I had put it on my watch list yesterday.

[+Jasons01]

What do you mean you put it on your watch list?  What is a watch list?

[+Jasons01]

On 8/28/2018 at 1:44 AM, Max and 99 said:

You're kinda close to the new Utah-Oklahoma geocache, in Layton. Go find it! ?

 

 

What is the Utah-Oklahoma geocache in Layton?  What is significant about it?

[+Max and 99]

1 minute ago, 1nosaj said:

What is the Utah-Oklahoma geocache in Layton?  What is significant about it?

I'm the partner with that cache, so I have an interest in the area.

GC7P829

[+Jasons01]

Ah, I see.  Well, when I am in that area I will go find it.  I live in Bountiful and take public transportation.

[+Jasons01]

Is it possible someone could meet me someplace and perhaps show me show me how to use some of the features on this website?  Maybe even go look for some caches with me?  I would like to hide one or send out a trackable, but I cannot afford to buy the necessary items at this time.

[+Max and 99]

16 minutes ago, 1nosaj said:

Is it possible someone could meet me someplace and perhaps show me show me how to use some of the features on this website?  Maybe even go look for some caches with me?  I would like to hide one or send out a trackable, but I cannot afford to buy the necessary items at this time.

I would if I didn't live over 1100 miles from you.

[+K13]

The cache in question is called a 'Pole Cache' in the description, and from one of the logs " I love pole caches and this one was my height. "  Google street view shows me a light pole at the cache coordinates. Concentrate your search somewhere between 4 and 6 feet from the ground. Look for things that don't look like they belong on a power pole.

[+Max and 99]

1nosaj,

If it makes you feel better, I think my record of trips to find a simple cache was 6.  It just takes experience to find things that aren't obvious when you're new. 

[+Jasons01]

Yeah! I finally found that pesky cache!  And, it may have given me a hint as to where another cache is which I also have not been able to find.

[+Max and 99]

4 minutes ago, 1nosaj said:

Yeah! I finally found that pesky cache!  And, it may have given me a hint as to where another cache is which I also have not been able to find.

Woooooooohooooooooo!

I saw your DNF then a few minutes later your Found It.

[+Jasons01]

Yep.  That is my tenth cache!  Check out my stats if you can.  (I am not sure if others can view them).  I was looking in all the wrong places for that Pole vault 1 cache.

[+Max and 99]

9 minutes ago, 1nosaj said:

Yep.  That is my tenth cache!  Check out my stats if you can.  (I am not sure if others can view them).  I was looking in all the wrong places for that Pole vault 1 cache.

I bet it was in the last place you looked. 

[+Max and 99]

10 minutes ago, 1nosaj said:

Yep.  That is my tenth cache!  Check out my stats if you can.  (I am not sure if others can view them).  I was looking in all the wrong places for that Pole vault 1 cache.

 

1nosaj finds the most caches in August and usually on Wednesday. LOL

[+Jasons01]

Hey, not funny.  I am still figuring the website out.  If we are able to log in with our Facebook account, then can our Facebook friends view our geocaching activities and stats?

 

I was also wondering if this website has a chatroom.  It would be nice to talk to other geocachers.

[+K13]

6 hours ago, 1nosaj said:

Hey, not funny.  I am still figuring the website out.  If we are able to log in with our Facebook account, then can our Facebook friends view our geocaching activities and stats?

 

I was also wondering if this website has a chatroom.  It would be nice to talk to other geocachers.

 

These Forums are as close as we get to a GS chatroom. Look for Events in your local area, you can meet some nice geocachers at an event.

[+Max and 99]

8 hours ago, 1nosaj said:

Hey, not funny.  I am still figuring the website out.  If we are able to log in with our Facebook account, then can our Facebook friends view our geocaching activities and stats?

 

I was also wondering if this website has a chatroom.  It would be nice to talk to other geocachers.

 

You are talking to other geocachers!

 

I do not use Facebook. Or any other social media. This is the closest you'll get to chatting with me.

[+Lynx Humble]

8 hours ago, 1nosaj said:

Hey, not funny.  I am still figuring the website out.  If we are able to log in with our Facebook account, then can our Facebook friends view our geocaching activities and stats?

 

I was also wondering if this website has a chatroom.  It would be nice to talk to other geocachers.

Not only Facebook friend can see yours stats but everyone by clicking on your name in this forum or by "Find another player" in the website. So I could tell you that you have found 9 trad and 1 virtual for example.

 

The message center on the website and the "Message this owner" on a cache page are ways to contact a specific geocacher.

[+Team Christiansen]

18 hours ago, 1nosaj said:

The cache is 

GC7V31P

 Pole Vault 1

This is the one near my house.  I am up to seven finds, and this one should have been the first--and easiest to find.

Oh, sorry about that. I was assuming you were talking about https://coord.info/GC21CC7 MATADOR - OLE! That's the one to which my "out of place" comments referred. I live about 10 miles north of you and my finds and hides are mostly focused between Farmington and Hill Air Force Base. I haven't looked for Pole Vault 1, yet, but I have found a lot from that cache owner who has placed a lot of caches recently, mostly around where he lives, not far from me.

 

On FaceBook, you will find UTAG, Utah Association of Geocachers. It is a closed group of 623 members. You can become one simply by asking. Also, down in your neck of the woods are donwx and BARNOBLE, two great old boys, who have gone out geocaching together every Tuesday for the last several years (and would likely enjoy you tagging along), as well as petersog and NoBigDipper.

PM me any time you have a question, since I am not far.

[+Team Christiansen]

17 hours ago, K13 said:

The cache in question is called a 'Pole Cache' in the description, and from one of the logs " I love pole caches and this one was my height. "  Google street view shows me a light pole at the cache coordinates. Concentrate your search somewhere between 4 and 6 feet from the ground. Look for things that don't look like they belong on a power pole.

Or even fence posts. Anything that is a pole (sort of).

[+cerberus1]

3 hours ago, Max and 99 said:

I do not use Facebook. Or any other social media. This is the closest you'll get to chatting with me.

 

Yep. My profile the only "sharing" too. 

[+Jasons01]

https://coord.info/GC21CC7 MATADOR  is another cache I have had difficulty finding as well.  I have been there a couple of times and have not found it yet.

Edited August 30, 2018 by 1nosaj

[+K13]

43 minutes ago, 1nosaj said:

https://coord.info/GC21CC7 MATADOR  is another cache I have had difficulty finding as well.  I have been there a couple of times and have not found it yet.

 

That one is a 3-1/2 Difficulty, so it may take several attempts (and maybe more experience seeing different types of containers and hide styles) before you have that aha! moment.  Good luck and don't get discouraged.

 

Maybe look for other caches placed by that owner, to get an idea of how he hides them.