Can't Retrieve Travel Bug from Cache? (Resolved: Original TB owner put it in his 'collection', scrambling the bug)

[GoldyRoses]

Hello! I'm a semi-new geocacher. I geocached a lot a few years ago one summer with a friend, but I'm now on my own account with only 12 finds so far. I found my first Travel Bug yesterday! The problem is, I'm not sure if there's an error in the system, or I'm not knowledgeable enough to know how to properly "pick it up."

 

I've read the "HOW TO LOG A TRAVEL BUG OR GEOCOIN" post. That post says that when you log your find at geocaching.com/track, there should be several log options: "Retrieve it from "Cache Name"", "Grab it from somewhere else", "Write note", and "Discovered it."

 

My only options when logging the bug was "Write note" and "Discovered it" when logging the find. I used "Discovered it" just because that was the closest option available. My profile shows I've discovered the trackable, but of course since I didn't have the option to choose "retrieve it from 'cache name'", I'm not able to drop it into other caches when I try to log new findings for other caches. This was expected, but I hoped trying one of my two options might do something, but of course it didn't.

 

The trackable didn't even show up on the cache's profile under "trackables" when I first found the cache and I was sitting next to the cache, either.

 

The only other log for the Travel Bug on geocaching.com/track is showing the original owner listing it as dropped into the cache where I retrieved it. Do I need to contact support?

 

Edited October 17, 2022 by GoldyRoses
marked thread as resolved

[+kunarion]

That TB Owner has very nicely scrambled that TB. 

 

Notice it was removed from play on 9/6/2022.  By moving a TB into a Collection, it can't be logged except "Discover" and "Note".

 

Next the TB Owner put it into a cache (on 9/17/2022?).  But it can't be logged in and out of caches.  It's in the Owner's Collection, "Out Of Play".

 

You can still physically place it into a cache if you like.  Make a Discover or Note log, state which cache you placed it in, wash your hands of it and walk away.  Done!  

To restore the thing to play, the TB Owner would first need to Move it out of the Collection, then the current person who has the TB may Grab it from wherever it is, and then Drop it into the cache.  It's a mess, but it can be unscrambled.  The moral of the story is, don't mess with Collectible/Collection unless you absolutely need to.  If you don't know what Collectible/Collection is for, you don't need it.

 

Edited October 16, 2022 by kunarion

[+Jayeffel]

Apparently the cache owner wants to participate but does not know what to do. On the TB there will be a tracking number, what does that show when you enter that number under Trackables?

 

If the TB is has been activated I would recommend trying this, go the Trackable info and try Grabbing it. If that works it will in your possession for you to pass on, be sure when you do that you show the proper function. 

 

I see as I type this a more experienced coacher responded also. thanks for checking.

Edited October 19, 2022 by Jayeffel
Spelling

[GoldyRoses]

5 minutes ago, kunarion said:

That TB Owner has very nicely scrambled that TB. 

 

Notice it was removed from play on 9/6/2022.  By moving a TB into a Collection, it can't be logged except "Discover" and "Note".

 

Next the TB Owner put it into a cache (on 9/17/2022?).  But it can't be logged in and out of caches.  It's in the Owner's Collection, "Out Of Play".

 

You can still physically place it into a cache if you like.  Make a Discover or Note log, state which cache you placed it in, wash your hands of it and walk away.  Done!  

To restore the thing to play, the TB Owner would first need to Move it out of the Collection, then the current person who has the TB may Grab it from wherever it is, and then Drop it into the cache.  It's a mess, but it can be unscrambled.  The moral of the story is, don't mess with Collectible/Collection unless you absolutely need to.  If you don't know what Collectible/Collection is for, you don't need it.

 

 

Thank you so much! I've been banging my head against a wall trying to figure out how to pick up this travel bug for the past 24 hours, assuming I'm just too new to understand it! This explains everything. I'll contact the original owner and ask him to move it out of his collection so I can properly pick it up and send the tag on its way. I'm planning on traveling a very long distance soon and thought it'd be so cool if its first travel distance will be something very big!

Thanks again! I can now sleep lol.

[+cerberus1]

2 hours ago, kunarion said:

  The moral of the story is, don't mess with Collectible/Collection unless you absolutely need to.  If you don't know what Collectible/Collection is for, you don't need it.

 

Yep.      Don't know where folks get the urge to push buttons, but seems if they see it doesn't do any harm at that time, they leave it that way.

The default is "Not Collectible" now.  If you're putting it in a cache, and want people to move it around... Leave it as-is.

[+lee737]

On 10/17/2022 at 3:06 AM, kunarion said:

You can still physically place it into a cache if you like.  Make a Discover or Note log, state which cache you placed it in, wash your hands of it and walk away.  Done! 

There's a TB like this going around here.... that's what I did!

[+Goldenwattle]

I found one like that once. It annoyed me and I think I might have dumped it in 'any' cache. Normally I am more particular and careful where I place TBs.

[+lee737]

3 minutes ago, Goldenwattle said:

I found one like that once. It annoyed me and I think I might have dumped it in 'any' cache. Normally I am more particular and careful where I place TBs.

it might have been the same one we found...

 

[GoldyRoses]

An update to what's happening with the Travel Bug:

I contacted the original owner, who quickly took it out of his collection! I was able to grab the bug from him. I just tested it out and I'm now able to digitally place it into other caches for others to pick up! The Bug will now be able to track how many miles its traveled and show where it's been on maps! Success!! I'm still waiting until I'm a few hundred miles away before I drop it into the next cache, which will happen soon, so this story has a happy ending!

[+kunarion]

10 hours ago, Goldenwattle said:

I found one like that once. It annoyed me and I think I might have dumped it in 'any' cache. Normally I am more particular and careful where I place TBs.

 

I guess if a TB Owner needs to stop the bah-zillion “Took It To” logs from someone, the TO might resort to The Collection. It's in limbo anyway (do we believe a Taker dutifully drags that huge bag of captured TBs to every cache? There's no evidence that he even has the TB anymore), might as well make the logs a little quieter.

 

But if one desires to receive no logs, just “Lock” the TB. It's much easier to do. These plans are not how a traveling TB is normally set up, so helpful info in the Description would be nice. In a perfect world, a TB would not vanish due to a setting. Plus all of mine were set up just fine, yet where are they? 

 

My cacher card is one of the unusual cases. It's one of hundreds of others made that year, and each pack is all copies with identical Tracking Codes. I get Discover logs like “Discovering the whole set, thanks for making a card”. I set mine to Discover-only, in the Collection before I place the first one. I may sort of retire it at some point, Lock it and put the info into my Description. It may still be logged, but I'd need to unlock when someone wants to make an actual log about my card.

 

 

Edited October 20, 2022 by kunarion