Night Caching

[+Jasons01]

I have found the majority of my caches after dark as I think it is easier do to there being fewer muggles.  I was wondering if anybody else does night caching as well.  Have you found it easier after dark, or during the day?  How can you be more discrete during the day with a lot of muggles around?

[+Max and 99]

9 minutes ago, 1nosaj said:

I have found the majority of my caches after dark as I think it is easier do to there being fewer muggles.  I was wondering if anybody else does night caching as well.  Have you found it easier after dark, or during the day?  How can you be more discrete during the day with a lot of muggles around?

We've gone after a lot of FTF late at night and encounter way more cops than in the daytime! 

[+Jasons01]

Fortunately, I have not encountered any cops... knock on wood... What do you say to the cops?  Also, how do you find out if anyone has found a cache yet?

[+Goldenwattle]

37 minutes ago, 1nosaj said:

I have found the majority of my caches after dark as I think it is easier do to there being fewer muggles.  I was wondering if anybody else does night caching as well.  Have you found it easier after dark, or during the day?  How can you be more discrete during the day with a lot of muggles around?

I doubt you will still be finding most of your caches after dark, when you have found a few hundred, or thousand. Try places, out in the country for instance, where there are less muggles. Happy caching .

Mostly it would only be an attempted FTF, or a dedicated night cache, that would have me out caching after dark.

Edited September 6, 2018 by Goldenwattle

[+Lynx Humble]

Except for night cache I don't geocache after dark unless a special reason (a challenge/FTF) because its harder to find the cache even with a good flashlight and also turning around a tree (or anything) with a flashlight raise a lot more suspicion from muggle and the probability they call the cops are much higher than during daylight.

[+MNTA]

7 hours ago, Jasons01 said:

Fortunately, I have not encountered any cops... knock on wood... What do you say to the cops?  Also, how do you find out if anyone has found a cache yet?

 

You tell them exactly what you are up to. Show them the app. What ever they want. Luckily never been spotted at night, but during the day out in SW Idaho caching one of the challenge trails he was just making sure I was not broken down and in need of help rather than being suspicious. We then found the cache together. Lot of fun wish I had posted a picture. 

[+Team Christiansen]

8 hours ago, Jasons01 said:

What do you say to the cops? 

 

1 hour ago, MNTA said:

You tell them exactly what you are up to.

Exactly -- it doesn't pay to be evasive with or lie to law enforcement.

[+cerberus1]

8 hours ago, Jasons01 said:

I have found the majority of my caches after dark as I think it is easier do to there being fewer muggles.  I was wondering if anybody else does night caching as well.  Have you found it easier after dark, or during the day?  How can you be more discrete during the day with a lot of muggles around?

 

Guess it depends a lot on areas you live.

We go for "night caches" that were designed to be found at night.  

All so far, have been in game lands, where some species are allowed to be hunted at night.

We haven't gone  "caching-after-dark" in areas other-than game lands after a caching crew in our area decided all their finding would only be done at night,  that beer was a good replacement for water, and had "the police interfere with their cache totals" in sobriety checks, overnighters in the hoosegow, and bail cash.

 

Retired from the job, I can say a solo person loitering and prowling at night should be stopped time-to-time.

I haven't been "discreet" in this odd hobby since starting.  Going to a cache like you belong there is an option.

[+Max and 99]

9 hours ago, Jasons01 said:

Fortunately, I have not encountered any cops... knock on wood... What do you say to the cops?  Also, how do you find out if anyone has found a cache yet?

If I can't outrun them and therefore get questioned, I tell them the truth. Some believe me, some don't. 

[+niraD]

9 hours ago, Jasons01 said:

I was wondering if anybody else does night caching as well.  Have you found it easier after dark, or during the day?

Well, night caches (those specifically designed to be done at night) are certainly easier after dark. Sometimes other caches are easier in the dark, just because the camouflage is more effective in natural sunlight than in the artificial light of a flashlight. But a lot of the parks and open spaces around here are closed at night, so night caching (like other nighttime uses) is illegal there.

 

10 hours ago, Jasons01 said:

How can you be more discrete during the day with a lot of muggles around?

I often pick up litter (CITO). No one pays attention to you when you're picking up litter.

 

If there are a lot of people around, then the cache container just goes into the litter bag. After picking up a little more litter, I sit down to take a break, and sign the log. Then I replace the cache container after I resume picking up litter. On my way out, I drop the bag of litter in a trash can and I'm done.

[+sasquatchlover]

I work 3rd shift so I spend a lot of my lunch breaks hunting caches after 2am by myself.

 

I havnt ran into any trouble yet besides someone cleaning a restaurant late night wondering why I was in the parking lot. No cop issues but I try to be discreet.

 

Most of the time I'm out in the countryside roads in the pitch black of night or walking through some woods. I havnt got spooked yet besides running into some big sticky webs from big ol plump looking spiders! I pay attention to this a lot now and have discovered different types of light sources show webs up differently.

It also gets very quiet out there but I generally feel safe in the blanket of night.

 

Sometimes I think a cache would of been easier to find in the day but not always. It's not too much of a hinder to be in the dark for me..... sometimes it's a help as you have mentioned.....less muggles.

 

 

 

 

[Gabeman26]

I seldom cache at night, usually well lit areas like PNG's. 

Theres no way I'd go to desolate areas at night. 

-More chance to find wild animals b/c they prowl at night.
-Can't see the ground, you can trip or run into something.

-Wouldn't feel safe. I'd have to bring a rifle with me but then that makes other people feel unsafe.

[+EggsTheBest]

I prefer to cache in daylight. It's easier, safer and often much quicker. You also look a lot less suspicious. 

[+bflentje]

Anytime and anywhere for me.

[+dprovan]

I don't do it very often, but I do enjoy caching at night. The first time was just after I started caching. I went out without a flashlight and still had a good time and found most of the caches I looked for. Ironically, I skipped a multicache because I figured it would be too hard at night only to discover later that it was a true night cache, so it was the one cache I should have looked for.

 

(Off topic, but actual night caches are definitely my favorite kind of cache.)

 

I don't consider muggles a factor. If anything, muggles are a bigger problem at night because in the rare cases when they see you poking around, they'll be sure you're up to no good. In my normal caching during the day, I just act like I know what I'm doing and I don't think the muggles notice very often, and even when they notice, they're unlikely to investigate after I've left. In times when it's unavoidable for a muggle to notice me -- "Do you mind if I look under your butt at the bench you're sitting on?" -- I just explain geocaching to them and show them the container after I find it. So far, that's always turned out to be a positive experience.