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Am I allowed to hide a Geocache in a cactus?


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2 minutes ago, BarrickBebb said:

I'm trying to hide my first Geocache in the hole of a cactus, but I was wondering if I'm allowed to hide one in a plant in the first place.

 

Sure, you can do that. I've found lots of caches hidden in woodpecker holes in trees. Just keep the following in mind:

  • Caches need to be environmentally-friendly. Consider whether cachers retrieving and rehiding the container is eventually going to damage the cactus.
  • Consider whether you're really such an evil person that you would make finders retrieve a container from inside a cactus :laughing:
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9 minutes ago, fuzziebear3 said:

I think the plant aspect is okay, but do you really want people to get poked by a cactus? 

 

Have you read the guidelines?

 

Your bigger issues are always going to be permission, and proximity to other geocaches. 

It's pretty hard to prick yourself where the Geocache would be located, there aren't any spikes near the hole.

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23 minutes ago, BarrickBebb said:

It's pretty hard to prick yourself where the Geocache would be located, there aren't any spikes near the hole.

Remember just because it's obvious where it is to you, it doesn't mean it's obvious to people going in blind. And even if it is obvious, we all have those days when we miss the obvious and spend twenty minutes poking around in thorns/ivy/etc.

 

I would say think about why you are hiding it there?

 

High D/T cache? If so could well be good choice.

 

Something interesting about the cactus? If so fair enough, whole point of being a CO, you hide things in areas you find interesting.

 

However, if it's hiding it simply so cachers think they will get pricked, I would say leave a very good hint or consider if it's a good place. We could all hide caches where, for instance, people are likely to step on dog poo, however for lower D/T caches I think putting gratuitous hazards in the way is somewhat strange, especially as lower D/T caches are likely to attract young families.

 

Ultimately the decision is yours though. You own the cache. You're investing your time, energy and money into creating and maintaining the cache. Ultimately the cache should be something you would like to find first, and something you think others would like to find second. Personally I would rather find your planned cache than nano. You can't please all the cachers all the time :)

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1 hour ago, BarrickBebb said:

I'm trying to hide my first Geocache in the hole of a cactus, but I was wondering if I'm allowed to hide one in a plant in the first place.

Are you sure it's not being used? Several species of birds and owls make their homes inside cactus.

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53 minutes ago, daddybeth said:

I would say think about why you are hiding it there?

 

High D/T cache? If so could well be good choice.

 

Something interesting about the cactus? If so fair enough, whole point of being a CO, you hide things in areas you find interesting.

 

However, if it's hiding it simply so cachers think they will get pricked, I would say leave a very good hint or consider if it's a good place. We could all hide caches where, for instance, people are likely to step on dog poo, however for lower D/T caches I think putting gratuitous hazards in the way is somewhat strange, especially as lower D/T caches are likely to attract young families.

 

Yes, if finders have to do something unpleasant to reach the cache, there has to be reward for that beyond just a +1 smiley. I have a cache (a T4) that requires a fair bit of climbing and bush-bashing through thick scrub to reach, but the view at GZ is pretty stunning and, judging from the logs and its 72% FPs, most finders think it's worth all the effort and scratches. By contrast, there's a T3.5 cache up north that has a similar amount of climbing and thick scrub just to reach a disintegrating plastic box stuck under a nondescript bush in the middle of it. "Scathing" is probably a good description of many of its logs.

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I've found a cache in the hollow at the base of a giant Saguaro cactus (in Arizona) - not a fun place to search, and those spikes HURT!  The cache is findable and retrievable without getting hurt, but that's only once you know where it is...

6 hours ago, daddybeth said:

Remember just because it's obvious where it is to you, it doesn't mean it's obvious to people going in blind.

The up side?  It's probably not going to be found by muggles!

 

 

39 minutes ago, Ambrosia said:

While living in Tennessee, I've found two caches placed on or in poison ivy. Like, one of them was hanging from the vine. Pretty astonishing. I'd probably rather find one in a cactus. Although I'm not sensitive to poison ivy, my husband is very allergic.

I'm sensitive to Poison Oak, which grows in abundance along the hiking trails and neighborhoods where I live.  I'm amazed at some of the hides at the base of trees and in brush that is covered with PO.  Granted, it may not have been there when the cache was hidden, but once the CO knows about it (and it's often mentioned in logs) it seems they would move it or change the hide so you don't need to get near it.  If I see PO near where I am searching, I'll back off and let others search, or just write a note and move on. Dealing with days of rash and itch is not worth a smilie, in my book!

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OP,  more people than not these days want easy peasy so don't worry about the negativity you're seeing here about thorns and such. If you like the idea and/or you want the cache to be challenging, then go for it. Just make sure the cactus is in an area that geocaches are allowed and that it's alright for people to come in contact with the cactus. The hole should already be in place (it's not ok to make the hole yourself). Contact the property owner/land manager/city if you have any doubts are questions.  

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2 hours ago, Ambrosia said:

While living in Tennessee, I've found two caches placed on or in poison ivy. Like, one of them was hanging from the vine. Pretty astonishing. I'd probably rather find one in a cactus. Although I'm not sensitive to poison ivy, my husband is very allergic.

That so wrong, as that expects that everyone knows what poison ivy looks like. As a non-American (who has visited the USA several times and cached there), I wouldn't have a clue what it looks like. I was careful around ivy looking plants though. That would be like me placing a cache among the leaves of a stinging tree here. That I would give a 5T for, but still that expects that foreigners and even all Australians would recognise stinging tree, as it doesn't grow everywhere. I could only recognise it because I lived where it grew, and I kept a good distance from it. I would never place a cache on such a dangerous plant. Caches shouldn't be put anywhere near dangerous plants, as some people react more to them then others, and some people die.

 

https://theconversation.com/the-worst-kind-of-pain-you-can-imagine-what-its-like-to-be-stung-by-a-stinging-tree-103220

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9 hours ago, daddybeth said:

Remember just because it's obvious where it is to you, it doesn't mean it's obvious to people going in blind. And even if it is obvious, we all have those days when we miss the obvious and spend twenty minutes poking around in thorns/ivy/etc.

Very good point. Yes many COs don't appear to recognise that. (Not saying this is the case here.)

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11 minutes ago, Goldenwattle said:

That so wrong, as that expects that everyone knows what poison ivy looks like. As a non-American (who has visited the USA several times and cached there), I wouldn't have a clue what it looks like. I was careful around ivy looking plants though. That would be like me placing a cache among the leaves of a stinging tree here. That I would give a 5T for, but still that expects that foreigners and even all Australians would recognise stinging tree, as it doesn't grow everywhere. I could only recognise it because I lived where it grew, and I kept a good distance from it. I would never place a cache on such a dangerous plant. Caches shouldn't be put anywhere near dangerous plants, as some people react more to them then others, and some people die.

in Queensland is one I would not like t

https://theconversation.com/the-worst-kind-of-pain-you-can-imagine-what-its-like-to-be-stung-by-a-stinging-tree-103220

That's a new one on me, I've never heard of it.

The wait-a-while palm  in Queensland, although not poisonous,  is one I would not want to come across while caching. Sometimes called a lawyer vine/palm. Once it gets its hooks into you.........

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58 minutes ago, colleda said:

That's a new one on me, I've never heard of it.

 

I read about it recently in a bushwalking magazine. They called it the suicide tree because some of its victims take their own life because of the unrelenting pain of its stings. I think I'll stick to the beaches when I go to Queensland.

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6 minutes ago, barefootjeff said:

 

I read about it recently in a bushwalking magazine. They called it the suicide tree because some of its victims take their own life because of the unrelenting pain of its stings. I think I'll stick to the beaches when I go to Queensland.

I used to live in northern NSW and we had it in the forests. Very common. I can remember on a school excursion to the forest a couple of the boys jousting with a twigs with a stinging tree leaf on the end of each of them. It appears holding the twigs is okay; it's only the leaves, but I personally never tested this. Silly, silly kids! The pain could last for months...or worse.

Just put on shoes :lol: to avoid leaf litter and don't touch furry leaves leaves with insect damage. I used to go bare footed a lot growing up, but not in the rainforest.

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18 hours ago, BarrickBebb said:

I'm trying to hide my first Geocache in the hole of a cactus, but I was wondering if I'm allowed to hide one in a plant in the first place.

 

Sounds good.   When you ask the property owner for permission, they'd be the one to let you know if allowed or not.   :)

As 31BMSG said, please be sure you aren't displacing some critter.  Thanks.

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18 minutes ago, cerberus1 said:

please be sure you aren't displacing some critter.  Thanks.

 

+1

 

Some of the most muggled caches I've found were in cute little cubby holes.  Were.  The animal residents are very defensive of their home and they move that container out of there.

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On 1/3/2020 at 3:22 PM, The A-Team said:
  • Caches need to be environmentally-friendly. Consider whether cachers retrieving and rehiding the container is eventually going to damage the cactus.
  • Consider whether you're really such an evil person that you would make finders retrieve a container from inside a cactus :laughing:

 

good grief. 

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