Logging Waymark "Finds"

[+Forest-Ghost]

I just started Waymarking a couple weeks ago and have found a lot of waymarks where the point of interest, building, business, or object in question are missing. So far I have logged these as "visits" or "finds" but others have told me now that this is incorrect. What is the official ruling on logging a waymark find or visit? What counts? Just to add some details. I have found a little over 200 waymarks, and so far for about 30-40% of these, the waymarks object or reference point was clearly gone. I imagine that many of the other waymark sites in our area are also missing as most of them have never been visited by anyone and most the pages appear to be updated prior to 2010.

 

Just to clarify, I am using the term "Visit" and "Find" to mean the same the thing since this is what is counted on the waymark website.

 

There are a plethora of additional logging requirements I have seen which are also very confusing. Here are some of the scenarios:

 

A waymark at a sculpture where the sculpture is totally gone and removed from the park. Do I log that the sculpture is gone, post a picture of the empty ground and then log it as found?

A waymark at a sculpture, where the sculpture is gone but moved to some other part of the park (I've seen these moved anywhere from a couple hundred feet to a mile away). Log a picture of the empty site and then also log a picture of where the sculpture is at the new location? Also add gps coordinates of the new spot and the log as found?

A waymark about a boat ramp where the logging requirements say post a picture of you with your GPS and your boat. This park doesn't have a boat ramp and the closest car access is a mile away. I'm really not sure what to do at this one but will just skip it unless I can get a boat out there since the WMO seems pretty specific about having a boat.

A waymark about a car show where the owner says you can only post a visit during the Easter holiday when the specific car show is happening. Will skip this one unless I can make it to the show.

A waymark about sledding or fireworks at a location. Can you log a find/visit without doing or seeing the assigned activity at this location? (Btw, I have actually done both requirements but I was not officially Waymarking when I was sledding or watching the fireworks at that spot). The tricky part here, is the waymark page just says post a photo from the location. 

A waymark at a fallout shelter which is located inside police headquarters. The waymark page only shows the outside of the building but the description question mentions requiring a picture "inside." Honestly it seems like a really bad idea to go inside a police building to take pictures. I took a picture of the fallout shelter sign outside the building, is this qualification enough to count it as found?

A waymark at a bar where the bar is totally gone and there is a new business there now. Do I take a picture of the new business and log as found?

 

I really wish there were more specifics about what counts and what doesn't count as a find. I was searching around the Waymarking website but couldn't find a clear answer. A general faq about logging requirements would be really nice. 

 

 

 

Edited December 31, 2021 by Forest-Ghost

[+Max and 99]

30 minutes ago, Forest-Ghost said:

I really wish there were more specifics about what counts and what doesn't count as a find. I was searching around the Waymarking website but couldn't find a clear answer. A general faq about logging requirements would be really nice. 

Yes that would be helpful. 

The closest that is available is this (I don't see a waymark visit counted as a find anywhere in there)

https://www.Waymarking.com/help/faq.aspx?f=1

[+Max and 99]

40 minutes ago, Forest-Ghost said:

A waymark at a fallout shelter which is located inside police headquarters. The waymark page only shows the outside of the building but the description question mentions requiring a picture "inside." Honestly it seems like a really bad idea to go inside a police building to take pictures. I took a picture of the fallout shelter sign outside the building, is this qualification enough to count it as found?

I looked up the visit requirements and I would not be doing this either!! Nope. I would take a picture of the fallout sign on the outside of the building and post a find.

 

Edited December 31, 2021 by Max and 99

[+Max and 99]

1 hour ago, Forest-Ghost said:

to the show.

A waymark about sledding or fireworks at a location. Can you log a find/visit without doing or seeing the assigned activity at this location?

It depends on the category. If it's a photo goal category then you're supposed to take a photo of yourself doing the activity. In my opinion 95% of the photos submitted by both the WMO and WM visitor do not follow the requirements. So it depends on what the category is.

____

There are different views on visiting waymarks that are no longer there. Some like to clear the field so that there are no unvisited waymarks in their area. If you do visit a waymark and notice that there is a major change like a different restaurant or the building is no longer there, be sure to note that in the log. It is my personal opinion that if the WMO is not active and doesn't take action then I would use the suggest an edit feature to let the category officers know. They can then edit the title to indicate that it is gone. I've done a lot of scavenger hunts and if you miss visiting even one single waymark on a hundred waymark hunt it's all for nothing! So for those I will visit the waymark and note what is wrong. Unfortunately, if you choose to leave a comment instead of a visit you cannot add a photo as evidence.

Note: just a few weeks after I had waymarked a couple little free libraries someone reported they were gone. How? I could not believe it. However, all of the photos from the person who was visiting my waymarks were taken from the car and you can see the rear view mirror in the pictures. That should have been my clue! Just a couple weeks later they logged again and said they just didn't see it before because it was behind a tree or something like that.

Edited December 31, 2021 by Max and 99

[+Max and 99]

55 minutes ago, Forest-Ghost said:

A waymark about a boat ramp where the logging requirements say post a picture of you with your GPS and your boat. This park doesn't have a boat ramp and the closest car access is a mile away. I'm really not sure what to do at this one but will just skip it unless I can get a boat out there since the WMO seems pretty specific about having a boat.

I'm not seeing that on the visit requirements can you show me an example? I just went to your visit for a boat ramp waymark.

 

[+Forest-Ghost]

Hi Max and 99,

 

Thank you for your reply! I really appreciate you looking at these and for your help. I was looking at the Waymarking FAQ and as you mentioned couldn't see any clear delineation of what does or doesn't count as a visit. The tricky part is that such a large number of waymarks are missing in my area. It feels a little hard to move forward with logging more of these and at this point I don't know if I am supposed to delete my visit on all of the waymarks that were missing. The other tricky part is that with almost all the waymarks, no one else ever found them and I am the very first person logging them so there's no reference point from other players either.  

 

Photo Goals -- I didn't realize this was a thing. How do you know which is a photo goal activity waymark? This waymark (https://www.Waymarking.com/waymarks/WM1815) is about sledding but the only person who posted a photo of sledding was the original WMO - BruceS. Is this one a photo goal activity? I guess I goto the category page and read the goal of that particular category. Almost sounds like the old geocaching adventures.

 

I also logged a find on this waymark: https://www.Waymarking.com/waymarks/wmTJD7_The_Muny_Forest_Park_St_Louis_MO   I assumed because the logging requirement just said post a pic it was okay but I see now the whole point is to post a picture at nighttime. So probably delete this visit since I didn't go at night? 

 

I wasn't sure if you saw this page already but here's the fallout shelter one: https://www.Waymarking.com/waymarks/WM4EW7

 

Boat Ramp one (I didn't log it since I didn't have a boat): https://www.Waymarking.com/waymarks/WMY8JE

 

So just to clarify, you pretty much always log it as a visit if the POI is missing and then just suggest edits on the page? Thanks again!

[+Max and 99]

Every category has its own visit requirements. 

13 minutes ago, Forest-Ghost said:

Photo Goals -- I didn't realize this was a thing. How do you know which is a photo goal activity waymark?

The category is listed just under the waymark title.

 

 

[+Max and 99]

26 minutes ago, Forest-Ghost said:

I also logged a find on this waymark: https://www.Waymarking.com/waymarks/wmTJD7_The_Muny_Forest_Park_St_Louis_MO   I assumed because the logging requirement just said post a pic it was okay but I see now the whole point is to post a picture at nighttime. So probably delete this visit since I didn't go at night? 

That's a Scenic at Night waymark. Unfortunately the visit requirements do not state if the photo must be at night. 

26 minutes ago, Forest-Ghost said:

I wasn't sure if you saw this page already but here's the fallout shelter one: https://www.Waymarking.com/waymarks/WM4EW7

Yes that's the fallout shelter waymark I saw. I personally would just take a picture of the fallout sign on the outside of the building when I logged a visit. The only police building I would feel comfortable taking pictures of inside is the Sedona Arizona PD where the police department welcomes visitors and has an amazing geocache. Otherwise I'm not going to do it! I would log a visit, and if they delete it, just move on, but I don't think they will. 

26 minutes ago, Forest-Ghost said:

Boat Ramp one (I didn't log it since I didn't have a boat): https://www.Waymarking.com/waymarks/WMY8JE

That's actually a canoe/kayak trip waymark, so yes a photo with your boat is required.

 

I'm wondering now if you just went by the coordinates and the default photo which is completely understandable! As with the scenic at night and the canoe trip category, the category title would be a hint as to what is expected. 

26 minutes ago, Forest-Ghost said:

So just to clarify, you pretty much always log it as a visit if the POI is missing and then just suggest edits on the page?

If it's already clear that the waymark is missing I won't go visit it. If it's part of a scavenger hunt then I kind of have to.  But if I find that it's missing when I visit I will include that information in my log. It is just a suggestion that if the WMO doesn't mark it as missing and you're sure it is you can suggest an edit and explain to the category officers what the situation is. As has been stated before here in the forums an officer really shouldn't mark it as missing unless there's some evidence, and in my opinion only after you've given the owner of the waymark time to correct it.

I've had someone report something gone so I changed the title to reflect that. Then later someone else says I don't know why this is marked missing it's right there! 😬

If it's local I can check myself but otherwise I have to rely on what people report in their logs.

Edited December 31, 2021 by Max and 99

[+Forest-Ghost]

Okay thank you for all of your feedback! This is really helpful. I will probably delete the scenic at night one as it sounds like it should be taken at night based upon the category description. To find waymarks I have been using the new Waymarkly IOS app and been searching in the map view to find waymarks. Sounds like this process is different from how most players have historically gone about Waymarking. 

 

Not sure what I will do yet moving forward with Waymarking as I know alot of the stuff in our area is probably missing or changed and I'm not sure it makes sense either to keep logging missing waymarks. I know people make lots of errors when reporting things missing--this frustrates me alot as a geocache owner. But many of the missing waymarks I have found--the POI was undoubtable missing, like an entire building removed or very large sculpture is gone, or the business is no longer the same. Some of these you can do research to see if the POI has been moved, but I'm not sure if that really counts as a find either as it seems that the waymark is about a specific geographical location. 

 

Anyway, thanks again for all of your help. I will keep researching the subject and will post here if I find anything else out. 

 

[+Max and 99]

13 minutes ago, Forest-Ghost said:

Okay thank you for all of your feedback! This is really helpful. I will probably delete the scenic at night one as it sounds like it should be taken at night based upon the category description. To find waymarks I have been using the new Waymarkly IOS app and been searching in the map view to find waymarks. Sounds like this process is different from how most players have historically gone about Waymarking. 

 

Not sure what I will do yet moving forward with Waymarking as I know alot of the stuff in our area is probably missing or changed and I'm not sure it makes sense either to keep logging missing waymarks. I know people make lots of errors when reporting things missing--this frustrates me alot as a geocache owner. But many of the missing waymarks I have found--the POI was undoubtable missing, like an entire building removed or very large sculpture is gone, or the business is no longer the same. Some of these you can do research to see if the POI has been moved, but I'm not sure if that really counts as a find either as it seems that the waymark is about a specific geographical location. 

 

Anyway, thanks again for all of your help. I will keep researching the subject and will post here if I find anything else out. 

 

I'm surprised that you have so many waymarks missing in your area! The only place I see such a large number is at our local zoo they move things around like crazy!

I would not hesitate to let the owner know that the target is missing. It's ok to do that, and especially appreciated if they don't live in the area. 

15 minutes ago, Forest-Ghost said:

To find waymarks I have been using the new Waymarkly IOS app and been searching in the map view to find waymarks.

This is great! That's why the app was just developed. 

[+steveandrhonda]

I appreciated the discussion between Forest Ghost and Max and 99! Very helpful!!!!

[+Max and 99]

Regarding Logging Visits, this forum thread title:

 

Found (no photo)

Found (no photo)

Found (no photo)

Found (no photo)

Found (no photo)

Found (no photo)

Found (no photo)

Found (no photo)

Found (no photo)

Found (no photo)

Found (no photo)

Found (no photo)

 

Attach. A. Photo!

Say more than found.

Please!

[+The Snowdog]

This is as much about the "design" of the Waymarking site as anything else. Say you go to a WM and it's gone. What you would really like to do is leave a comment and a photo - but you can't leave a photo with just a comment - you have to visit if you want the WM owner (and everyone else) to see what's there (or not there) now. Also, there's no way to "ignore" a waymark so if you want to get it off your search results you have to visit. Given the way the site is designed, my view is that it if it's on the site, it can be visited, so that's what I do. I acknowledge that some WM owners are annoyed by this.

[+PISA-caching]

As a WM owner I naturally find it very interesting to learn that one of my WMs has gone. I don't care, if somebody posts a comment (without a photo) or a visit with a photo. For some unknown reasons I have not received any emails telling me about Visits/Comments for monts. So: Best would IMHO be to contact the WM owner by sending him a mail/message. If you are a trustworthy waymarker, I will change the WM to "REMOVED", otherwise I might ask for a proof photo.