Hiding my first cache

[homeboy_ohmboy]

So I'm hiding my first cache and have read the guidelines as well as watched a ton of YouTube videos. Are there any other tips or tricks you can share with me? 

[+lee737]

Unless it is in a deep, dusty cave - assume water will get into it, so take steps to protect the logsheet.....

Check your coordinates carefully, preferably average them across more than one visit to GZ, then check again on the map to make sure it looks ok.

[+niraD]

1 hour ago, homeboy_ohmboy said:

So I'm hiding my first cache and have read the guidelines as well as watched a ton of YouTube videos. Are there any other tips or tricks you can share with me? 

If you don't trust your coordinates, then test them.
 
Enter your coordinates into your device, and then approach the cache location from at least 100ft/30m away. The arrow should point right at the cache location as you approach. Repeat the process, approaching the cache location from various directions, from at least 100ft/30m away each time. No matter which direction you approach from, the arrow should point right at the cache location.
 
If it doesn't, then adjust your coordinates until it does.
 
Bonus points for repeating the test on another day when the GPS satellites are in a different configuration.
 
Also, the Help Center article How to Get Accurate Coordinates should prove useful.
 

[homeboy_ohmboy]

4 minutes ago, niraD said:

If you don't trust your coordinates, then test them.
 
Enter your coordinates into your device, and then approach the cache location from at least 100ft/30m away. The arrow should point right at the cache location as you approach. Repeat the process, approaching the cache location from various directions, from at least 100ft/30m away each time. No matter which direction you approach from, the arrow should point right at the cache location.
 
If it doesn't, then adjust your coordinates until it does.
 
Bonus points for repeating the test on another day when the GPS satellites are in a different configuration.
 
Also, the Help Center article How to Get Accurate Coordinates should prove useful.
 

So far I've tested cords on 3 different cellphones and they seem good.  The other question I had is about how long does it take to get a new cache approved? 

[+barefootjeff]

6 minutes ago, homeboy_ohmboy said:

So far I've tested cords on 3 different cellphones and they seem good.  The other question I had is about how long does it take to get a new cache approved? 

 

From the Help Centre:

 

Quote

A local reviewer checks your cache page against our guidelines and regional policies, but does not visit the physical location of your cache. Typically, review begins within 7 days of the date that you submit your cache. But reviews may take longer in the week before or after holidays and large geocaching events.

 

[+lee737]

And then, and this might be the most important (which most new hiders rarely seem to do) - watch the logs, and be ready to react to initial problems - bad coordinates, wet log, private property/access concerns, obviously bad D:T ratings or cache size etc etc..... 

[homeboy_ohmboy]

33 minutes ago, lee737 said:

And then, and this might be the most important (which most new hiders rarely seem to do) - watch the logs, and be ready to react to initial problems - bad coordinates, wet log, private property/access concerns, obviously bad D:T ratings or cache size etc etc..... 

Without giving too much away, my first one is close to my house so I will be able to maintain it pretty good

 

[+Max and 99]

2 hours ago, homeboy_ohmboy said:

So I'm hiding my first cache and have read the guidelines as well as watched a ton of YouTube videos. Are there any other tips or tricks you can share with me? 

Have you checked for saturation issues with other geocaches? The Reviewer can do this for you if there are a lot of non-traditionals near you.

 

https://www.geocaching.com/help/index.php?pg=kb.chapter&id=22&pgid=199

Good luck with your first hide.

Edited October 20, 2022 by Max and 99

[+CAVinoGal]

1 hour ago, homeboy_ohmboy said:

The other question I had is about how long does it take to get a new cache approved?

It's dependent on several things.  If there are permission or proximity issues, it may take longer.  We've had caches approved within an hour at times - must have showed up in the Reviewer's queue as he/she was sitting at the computer!!  Others have taken longer when we had to do more work to get it approved (our write up violated commercial guidelines in one casse; another was too close to a puzzle final).  In any case, the Reviewer's initial response should be within 7 days - I've found it to be usually within 24 hours in our area.  If all is good, it's simply approved and published without any further action on my part.  Otherwise, I hear from the Reviewer and we work together to get it published.

[homeboy_ohmboy]

5 minutes ago, Max and 99 said:

Have you checked for saturation issues with other geocaches? The Reviewer can do this for you if there are a lot of non-traditionals near you.

 

https://www.geocaching.com/help/index.php?pg=kb.chapter&id=22&pgid=199

Good luck with your first hide.

without giving away too much, this is the general area that my first one is being placed in. There are not many at all within a few miles.

[+Max and 99]

15 minutes ago, homeboy_ohmboy said:

without giving away too much, this is the general area that my first one is being placed in. There are not many at all within a few miles.

Very good news!

 

Excluding the big geoart to the east, you only have a few possible conflicts with the two nearby puzzles and one nearby multicache, so I hope it all works out!

Edited October 20, 2022 by Max and 99

[Keystone]

I saw at least three issues with your cache, so it may take longer than a day or two for the initial review.  Reviewers strive to meet the service level goal of providing an initial review within seven days, and it's usually much faster than that.

[homeboy_ohmboy]

6 minutes ago, Keystone said:

I saw at least three issues with your cache, so it may take longer than a day or two for the initial review.  Reviewers strive to meet the service level goal of providing an initial review within seven days, and it's usually much faster than that.

If it's okay I sent you an email to get more information on how to fix my issues

[homeboy_ohmboy]

29 minutes ago, homeboy_ohmboy said:

without giving away too much, this is the general area that my first one is being placed in. There are not many at all within a few miles.

So I guess my next question would be if I'm placing mine in the red area I have marked off that should be far enough away from the others that are in the red circles? After double checking, it looks like I'm exactly 1 mile from the closest cache 

Edited October 20, 2022 by homeboy_ohmboy

[+barefootjeff]

16 minutes ago, homeboy_ohmboy said:

So I guess my next question would be if I'm placing mine in the red area I have marked off that should be far enough away from the others that are in the red circles? After double checking, it looks like I'm exactly 1 mile from the closest cache 

 

Just be aware that the planning map doesn't show hidden physical waypoints and finals of multi and mystery caches. If there are some of those in your area, it might be worth requesting a coordinates check from your reviewer (see this page in the Help Centre for details on how to do this). I got caught out recently in an area that looked almost devoid of caches on the map but there was a puzzle that I'd solved and found seven years ago with its listed coordinates a couple of kilometres away, but its final was almost right on top of where I wanted to put my cache.

[homeboy_ohmboy]

15 minutes ago, barefootjeff said:

 

Just be aware that the planning map doesn't show hidden physical waypoints and finals of multi and mystery caches. If there are some of those in your area, it might be worth requesting a coordinates check from your reviewer (see this page in the Help Centre for details on how to do this). I got caught out recently in an area that looked almost devoid of caches on the map but there was a puzzle that I'd solved and found seven years ago with its listed coordinates a couple of kilometres away, but its final was almost right on top of where I wanted to put my cache.

Shooting you a email/message if that's cool. 

 

[Keystone]

4 hours ago, homeboy_ohmboy said:

If it's okay I sent you an email to get more information on how to fix my issues

 

My prior post was in response to your question about how long it takes for a cache to be published.  Often, caches that have issues will take a bit longer, and as a forum moderator I wanted to set that expectation within this discussion.  The review itself, however, will come from your friendly local Reviewer.  We don't stray out of bounds to review caches in other Reviewers' territories, unless asked.  Your Reviewer may raise two issues and not the third one that I would have asked you about, or they might ask about four issues because I missed one.  So, wait to hear from them.  One hint:  cache saturation is not an issue at the location you selected.

[homeboy_ohmboy]

31 minutes ago, Keystone said:

 

My prior post was in response to your question about how long it takes for a cache to be published.  Often, caches that have issues will take a bit longer, and as a forum moderator I wanted to set that expectation within this discussion.  The review itself, however, will come from your friendly local Reviewer.  We don't stray out of bounds to review caches in other Reviewers' territories, unless asked.  Your Reviewer may raise two issues and not the third one that I would have asked you about, or they might ask about four issues because I missed one.  So, wait to hear from them.  One hint:  cache saturation is not an issue at the location you selected.

Thanks! 

[homeboy_ohmboy]

Well this is adding up to be harder than I expected. I have went back-and-forth with the reviewer editing it 3 or 4 times already. I think. I thought I was doing everything correctly but  I was sadly mistaken. Hopefully we'll this last time is a charm and once the reviewer gets to check it hopefully it will be published

[+NanCycle]

36 minutes ago, homeboy_ohmboy said:

Well this is adding up to be harder than I expected. I have went back-and-forth with the reviewer editing it 3 or 4 times already. I think. I thought I was doing everything correctly but  I was sadly mistaken. Hopefully we'll this last time is a charm and once the reviewer gets to check it hopefully it will be published

Kudos for your perseverance and positive attitude.  Good luck!

[Keystone]

40 minutes ago, homeboy_ohmboy said:

Well this is adding up to be harder than I expected. I have went back-and-forth with the reviewer editing it 3 or 4 times already. I think. I thought I was doing everything correctly but  I was sadly mistaken. Hopefully we'll this last time is a charm and once the reviewer gets to check it hopefully it will be published

Sure enough, your Reviewer asked you the same questions I would have asked you if you lived in Ohio or Pennsylvania.  You've done a good job of responding effectively to the feedback.  Keep in mind that, as experienced geocachers and reviewers, we've seen hundreds of caches just like yours.  The suggestions, and the Geocache Hiding Guidelines, are designed to reflect what's been learned from past experience.  Hopefully, the result will be a better geocaching experience for everyone once your cache is published.

[homeboy_ohmboy]

1 hour ago, NanCycle said:

Kudos for your perseverance and positive attitude.  Good luck!

Thanks. I intend or at least my plan is to hide a lot more in the future so the more questions I ask and the more I can figure it out now. It will help me out in the long run not that I'm going to snitch on anybody, but my original spot was at the base of my mailbox. My reviewer told me that was not allowed mailboxes are technically USPS property. I've done at least seven finds that were at the base of a mailbox. LOL that's kind of where I got the idea from but it's no biggie hopefully I can make it through this time 

 

1 hour ago, Keystone said:

Sure enough, your Reviewer asked you the same questions I would have asked you if you lived in Ohio or Pennsylvania.  You've done a good job of responding effectively to the feedback.  Keep in mind that, as experienced geocachers and reviewers, we've seen hundreds of caches just like yours.  The suggestions, and the Geocache Hiding Guidelines, are designed to reflect what's been learned from past experience.  Hopefully, the result will be a better geocaching experience for everyone once your cache is published.

This one I really wanted to make super easy so that it would be kid friendly. Especially being that it is directly out front of my house

[+lee737]

1 hour ago, homeboy_ohmboy said:

mailboxes are technically USPS property.

Does USPS maintain/repair/replace your letterbox when needed, at its expense??

[+lee737]

1 hour ago, homeboy_ohmboy said:

Especially being that it is directly out front of my house

We've found a handful of front-yard caches (they aren't really a popular thing here) - to be honest I've always felt a bit uneasy, poking around in front yards, especially when the hint isn't super explicit. If I didn't have my young kids with me, I doubt I'd look for them.....

[homeboy_ohmboy]

8 minutes ago, lee737 said:

Does USPS maintain/repair/replace your letterbox when needed, at its expense??

Nope, actually this is a box we purchased and installed when we bought the house because it didn't have one 

[homeboy_ohmboy]

8 minutes ago, lee737 said:

We've found a handful of front-yard caches (they aren't really a popular thing here) - to be honest I've always felt a bit uneasy, poking around in front yards, especially when the hint isn't super explicit. If I didn't have my young kids with me, I doubt I'd look for them.....

I was hoping with all this information it would put my fellow hunters at ease.about locating in front of a home 

[+lee737]

11 minutes ago, homeboy_ohmboy said:

I was hoping with all this information it would put my fellow hunters at ease.about locating in front of a home 

 

That would certainly help, some hiders aren't as helpful!

[+NanCycle]

17 minutes ago, lee737 said:

We've found a handful of front-yard caches (they aren't really a popular thing here) - to be honest I've always felt a bit uneasy, poking around in front yards, especially when the hint isn't super explicit. If I didn't have my young kids with me, I doubt I'd look for them.....

I generally won't do front yard caches based on coordinates alone; too often coordinates are off far enough to put the seeker in the neighbor's yard.  There is one in a town nearby that says the cache is by the flamingoes and you'd think that would be sufficiently explicit, but the neighbors have flamingoes also.  

[+barefootjeff]

1 hour ago, lee737 said:

We've found a handful of front-yard caches (they aren't really a popular thing here) - to be honest I've always felt a bit uneasy, poking around in front yards, especially when the hint isn't super explicit. If I didn't have my young kids with me, I doubt I'd look for them.....

 

I think I've only ever done the one and that had a pretty explicit hint and was accessible from the footpath without having to actually enter the yard, but even so I still felt uncomfortable doing it. There was one not far from home where the satellite image showed it close to the boundary between two houses, so a fifty-fifty chance of ending up in the wrong yard, and many of the logs mentioned aggressive-sounding dogs so I avoided doing it and I see it's thankfully now been archived. I much prefer caches out in bushland where there are no inquisitive neighbours watching.

[homeboy_ohmboy]

Looks like my hide was published maybe about an hour ago and already had its 1st to find!. As. As I stated I wanted this one to be super easy so hopefully so hopefully it is a pretty popular 1 in the area

 

https://coord.info/GCA15AC

[+lee737]

Nice to see some new players get FTF too, even with the spoilers!

 

[homeboy_ohmboy]

1 minute ago, lee737 said:

Nice to see some new players get FTF too, even with the spoilers!

 

Well,   The description is so long with all of the swayler's because because all that information is that information is what the reviewer requested. My 1st description was only a very few lines but you lying but it took me 4 or 5 submissions before it got approved. I really did not want to have that many spoilers But all that information was added at the request of the reviewer.

[homeboy_ohmboy]

Honestly I think the new players are partly due to my neighborhood being pretty small and I actually posted in the App called next door for the neighborhood  asking if anyone else did geocaching did geocaching because I was looking to link up with other people. So I'm assuming some people followed my wink and signed up and noticed right away once my hide was approved

[+hzoi]

On 10/21/2022 at 3:59 PM, lee737 said:

On 10/21/2022 at 2:36 PM, homeboy_ohmboy said:

mailboxes are technically USPS property.

Does USPS maintain/repair/replace your letterbox when needed, at its expense??

 

Mailboxes purchased by individuals are not technically US, or USPS, property.

 

However, if a mailbox is being used to send or receive mail, then it is subject to federal law and only to be used exclusively for sending and receiving mail. (Owners may put on a separate receptacle for newspapers - that's about it.)

 

At the end of the day, these restrictions amount to pretty much the same thing as far as reviewers are concerned, hence, the simplified response.