How to Benchmark Series

[+elrojo14]

I have set up three Geocaches to talk about Benchmarking. I even made benchmarks for containers (you can get a better look at what I did at this cache.. Let me know if there is anything you think I should add to any of the three. I will make some more containers and plant some Benchmark UnChallenges to continue the trail along that dirt road they are on. 

 

HtBMS 1: Benchmarking Basics - KCC PBCC

 

HtBMS 2: Benchmarking Sites & Apps - KCC PBCC

 

HtBMS 3: Benchmarking Advanced Tips - KCC PBCC

[Bill93]

You might get more traffic if they weren't premium caches.

[+Goldenwattle]

Benchmark sound like trigs. Are they? I find them in Australia and NZ with GPS. There is a site where we log them.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Triangulation_station

[+cerberus1]

3 hours ago, Bill93 said:

You might get more traffic if they weren't premium caches.

Agreed.

I don't log in the next time I'm visiting the forums,  JIC  cache links presented are pmos.

 - That "keeping off the audit" thing....   

So far,  there's only one forum regular we've noticed who mentions if they're pmo before the link.

[Bill93]

6 hours ago, Goldenwattle said:

Benchmark sound like trigs. Are they? I find them in Australia and NZ with GPS. There is a site where we log them.

The list available here is a snapshot from about 2000 of the United States National Geodetic Survey list of elevation bench marks, triangulation stations, and intersection stations.  In the British-influenced world, trig points correspond to our triangulation stations, and I'm not sure whether they carry elevations.

[+Goldenwattle]

3 hours ago, Bill93 said:

The list available here is a snapshot from about 2000 of the United States National Geodetic Survey list of elevation bench marks, triangulation stations, and intersection stations.  In the British-influenced world, trig points correspond to our triangulation stations, and I'm not sure whether they carry elevations.

Thank you for the explanation. However, trigs are not only in the " British-influenced world" The examples in the link I gave showed trigs in Spain and Japan too.

 

In Australia we also log CORS ( Continuously Operating Reference Station), as part of logging trigs.

[ArtMan]

I think it's a matter of nomenclature. An artifact or mark that denotes a place where the latitude and longitude and/or elevation has been precisely measured to a high degree of accuracy. In Commonwealth countries and some others they are known as trig points. (I assume that derives from the trigonometry traditionally used to derive the locations marked and then to identify locations derived from the trig points.) In the United States and some others the elevation marks are identified as bench marks (two words.) Here at geocaching.com, we tend to lump together marks that represent both horizontal position and elevation as benchmarks (one word), which probably causes actual professional surveyors to wince. 

 

I've been doing benchmarks here for nearly two decades, but I'm not a professional, so please feel free to correct me.

 

~ArtMan~

[+elrojo14]

On 5/29/2019 at 7:00 AM, Bill93 said:

You might get more traffic if they weren't premium caches.

If you aren't willing to put down the money, then the risk of you messing with the caches is too great. All my caches are premium now and I am fine with non-premium members missing out. 

 

Thank you everyone else for reminding me there is a huge world out there that has no USGS benchmarks. I live in an Americancentric world! 

[68-eldo]

13 hours ago, elrojo14 said:

If you aren't willing to put down the money, then the risk of you messing with the caches is too great. All my caches are premium now and I am fine with non-premium members missing out. 

 

Thank you everyone else for reminding me there is a huge world out there that has no USGS benchmarks. I live in an Americancentric world! 

Wow, what a snob,  first one to go on my ignore list.

[+Michaelcycle]

The good news is that survey makers and intersection stations are still open to everyone!

[Bill93]

20 hours ago, elrojo14 said:

Thank you everyone else for reminding me there is a huge world out there that has no USGS benchmarks. I live in an Americancentric world! 

As, unfortunately, do most in the USA.

 

I think you mean NGS, not USGS, since the list here came from NGS and contains their marks along with a very small fraction of the USGS monuments in the country.

[+elrojo14]

On 6/4/2019 at 11:46 PM, 68-eldo said:

Wow, what a snob,  first one to go on my ignore list.

I was your first? Nice!!! 

 

On 6/5/2019 at 6:29 AM, Bill93 said:

As, unfortunately, do most in the USA.

 

I think you mean NGS, not USGS, since the list here came from NGS and contains their marks along with a very small fraction of the USGS monuments in the country.

Yeah you are probably right!

https://www.usgs.gov/faqs/how-can-i-find-survey-benchmark-and-triangulation-station-information

[+HunterandSamuel]

On 6/4/2019 at 1:07 PM, elrojo14 said:

If you aren't willing to put down the money, then the risk of you messing with the caches is too great. All my caches are premium now and I am fine with non-premium members missing out. 

We made most of our caches premiums except for a few P&Gs. Recommended by the CO whose locations we took over because his caches kept getting stolen. A lot of effort and money went into some of our hides. This may be off topic on this thread but we found a benchmark (a medal plate in the ground) in front of a town hall. You had to lift up the plate to find the cache and log.  Muggles galore and a very uncomfortable feeling, especially when the plate said ""unlawful to disturb". 

[vulture1957]

On 6/4/2019 at 12:07 PM, elrojo14 said:

If you aren't willing to put down the money, then the risk of you messing with the caches is too great. All my caches are premium now and I am fine with non-premium members missing out. 

 

Thank you everyone else for reminding me there is a huge world out there that has no USGS benchmarks. I live in an Americancentric world! 

but he's making something to get people into benchmarking. Beginners. So you think beginners are going to pony up Premium Membership to SEE if they like it?