Canadian customs seized all of the trackables for further Inspection as they found them to be suspicious..

[+Wildeaue]

Today I´d got a message about one of my TB: "Your trackable, along with a handful of others I was taking with me on a trekking trip in Canada. Canadian customs seized all of the trackables for further Inspection as they found them to be suspicious.. despite me showing and explaining geocaching to them. I have contacted them several times seeking return of the items with no luck"

Has anyone heard that? I have often brought TB´s and Coins across the ocean to release them again on the American continent.

Is it now a problem to bring travellars over a borderline?

What does the comunity say about this?

Regards, Wildeaue

[+Max and 99]

16 minutes ago, Wildeaue said:

Today I´d got a message about one of my TB: "Your trackable, along with a handful of others I was taking with me on a trekking trip in Canada. Canadian customs seized all of the trackables for further Inspection as they found them to be suspicious.. despite me showing and explaining geocaching to them. I have contacted them several times seeking return of the items with no luck"

Has anyone heard that? I have often brought TB´s and Coins across the ocean to release them again on the American continent.

Is it now a problem to bring travellars over a borderline?

What does the comunity say about this?

Regards, Wildeaue

Oh wow, I had not heard of this happening. Yikes!

[+Hügh]

I've had to explain Geocaching crossing into the U.S., but generally the border guards already know the answer and are just trying to fill time.

 

I don't think I've ever been asked more than two questions coming back ("any shopping? any guns?", and just once "you know this expires in three months?") but otherwise I've never had trouble. (Then again, I am Canadian, so the guards are pretty neutral.)

 

Of course, entering via air from Europe might lead to a different experience.

 

It does seem strange, but it is their prerogative. It may just be a handful of new staff who are being exceptionally vigilant. Who knows.

 

Edited February 26, 2023 by Hügh

[+MtnGoat50]

5 hours ago, Wildeaue said:

What does the comunity say about this?

Where did this happen? Where was the cacher coming from? 

 

I live in the pacific northwest and often (at least before covid) crossed the border to British Columbia. Around here all the Canadian border guards I"ve met know about caching. I even had one recommend caches to find and provide some great local knowledge on how to approach a cache. I also have a couple of good caching friends that work for Canadian customs.  That said you never know who  you're going to get. 

[+CCFwasG]

This is so so so odd. I have Nexus and cross by land a LOT and in the past year also by air 4x. Trackables would not need to be declared and I cannot see any reason they would ever be deemed suspicious! That said, with every single border agent I have ever met = the definition of "YMMV". Every one is different and they don't even all interpret rules the same. I've never had to explain geocaching but I've never been searched (not even when I crossed in a VW camper with flowers all over it and full of stuff!). And they only ask about food, firearms, etc. The only explanation I can see is "YMMV" with an over-eager border person or a newbie. That or the person lost the TB and is afraid to say - after all, who treks in winter? I guess they could be snowshoeing or similar, but I can't see combining caching with major snow activities. Maybe I'm just not Canadian-knowledgeable enough. :-) 

[+CCFwasG]

1 minute ago, MtnGoat50 said:

That said you never know who  you're going to get. 

 

I was typing basically the same thing, same time. :-) Great minds etc.

[+Wildeaue]

It was the first time that I heard about. I´d never Problem with it. Every Year I travel to the States and bring Travellars from Europe to America and others to Europe back.

No Custumers lost any words to Trackebles.

Wildeaue

[+kunarion]

1 minute ago, Wildeaue said:

It was the first time that I heard about. I´d never Problem with it. Every Year I travel to the States and bring Travellars from Europe to America and others to Europe back.

No Custumers lost any words to Trackebles.

Wildeaue

 

There can be some rather odd items attached to TBs.  But I wouldn't expect all of them to need to be confiscated.

 

When you write, be sure to tell the Customs People that when they take Trackables, they are expected to make an appropriate online log for each one.   

[+Wildeaue]

I´d check the Cacher, his Nickname is "Stovoke". He´s Member since 2016, but his last Log in a cahce was in Decemeber 2019. I don´t know, what I have to believe.

Wildeaue

[+kunarion]

21 minutes ago, Wildeaue said:

I´d check the Cacher, his Nickname is "Stovoke". He´s Member since 2016, but his last Log in a cahce was in Decemeber 2019. I don´t know, what I have to believe.

Wildeaue

 

Cachers who forever carry around a sack of other people's TBs do tend to create the most preposterous fascinating stories about the sad fate of all of the TBs. 

[+Wildeaue]

I´d send Sovoke a message and ask him for the Date and the Borderstation.

Now i´m still waiting for an answer

[+thebruce0]

Perhaps someone thought there was a lot of value in the tags and that alone, regardless of what you say you were intending to do with them, was enough of a flag for the agent. That's unfortunate. Personally I might keep calling back to talk to someone about them, and hope to speak to a higher up who sympathizes and can find a way to let go of what is effectively other people's property... *shrug*

[+Goldenwattle]

I have never had a problem, but there are some trackables I don't like to take overseas. Those with soft toys. They could be stuffed with anything.

[+cerberus1]

10 hours ago, Wildeaue said:

I´d check the Cacher, his Nickname is "Stovoke". He´s Member since 2016, but his last Log in a cahce was in Decemeber 2019. I don´t know, what I have to believe.

 

Curious how you got that info.  Thanks.  I go on that page, and it's all locked out...That "privacy" thing...Know what I mean?

If true, this is one of the things that bugs me about this privacy bit.  Can't tell when/how stealing other's property got started.

When "Stats" were able to be hidden, it was pretty much a given that people with multiple finds on one cache (or logging their own found every time they did maintenance...) didn't want others finding out after asking in these forums, "why do my numbers not match up?" and see they're padding numbers. 

But now if privacy setting used, you can't tell who might be stealing your property, and this "privacy" even protects them.

Edited February 26, 2023 by cerberus1

[+Goldenwattle]

5 hours ago, cerberus1 said:

That "privacy" thing

Is an 'iffy' thing, which is very negative for the game. 

[+hzoi]

When I was living and caching in Germany, I would occasionally send geocoins through the mail. Even though the military post office was US mail, I had to use customs forms.

 

The first time I did, I described that the contents were "geocoins" and immediately got questions. What kind of coins are these? Is this currency? How much is it worth?

 

I explained what they were and was advised to call them something else - "tokens" or "medallions" or "game pieces" instead. So that's how I described them ever since, no issues.

 

I've gone through many an airport security checkpoint and customs screening with a bag of trackables. I don't think I've ever been questioned, though probably the most I ever had was nine or ten, because I try not to pick up too many at a time. If I was ever asked, I'd call 'em game pieces or keychains. 

 

I write all that to basically say, it's possible that they got a customs agent who wasn't familiar with geocaching, they called 'em "coins," and that sparked the issue. Without word from the cacher in question, though, it's hard to say.

[+cerberus1]

1 hour ago, hzoi said:

The first time I did, I described that the contents were "geocoins" and immediately got questions. What kind of coins are these? Is this currency? How much is it worth?

 

I explained what they were and was advised to call them something else - "tokens" or "medallions" or "game pieces" instead. So that's how I described them ever since, no issues.

 

Yep.  I've sent out trackables (some were to folks asking if they could swipe a sig coin) to a few countries.

The most recent was a Jack Links promotional trackable to Australia. 

I tell the Postmaster they're "Geocaching game pieces" and have never had an issue.    

[+CCFwasG]

On 2/26/2023 at 12:45 AM, Wildeaue said:

I´d check the Cacher, his Nickname is "Stovoke". He´s Member since 2016, but his last Log in a cahce was in Decemeber 2019. I don´t know, what I have to believe.

Wildeaue

 

Considering this and considering that the cacher's account was since locked down... I'd say they have lost or I guess stolen/kept the trackables and they are feeding you a line of baloney about Canadian customs. Just my personal take on reading this... no way to really know, sadly. 

I've given up on even hoping that TBs keep moving and don't disappear. I keep with me the good ones and haven't launched one in years. I like to pick up and move them but almost never ever drop in a non-premium cache. And after watching two really cool TBs that I moved across the US for a friend go missing (after one was picked up by a CO from a busy high FP cache and stashed in a "traveling" TB hotel for months without moving - what the heck?!?!) I have stopped watching any and try not to care what happens.... I do my best to protect them but I'd say the rate at which TBs I have watched or owned over the years go missing... maybe 75-80% of the time. Hence it's very exciting when I find trackables that have been on the move for years - that's LUCK!

If I could invent a new TB it would have a GPS tag (I'm not techie, not sure of the term) embedded the way you can tag a pet - so you know where to find it! :-)