Dead Caches

[+Former Hawkeye]

I live in an area where the last activity(Eastern South Dakota) was a DNF, and that was years ago.  Most people know that the hider is not active in our game, so people just skip over those caches.

Is there any way for these caches to be removed, short of me having to visit each site and log a DNF and owner attention.   I do not want to spend gas money on a wild "goose" chase.

Thanks!

[+niraD]

14 minutes ago, Former Hawkeye said:

I live in an area where the last activity(Eastern South Dakota) was a DNF, and that was years ago.  Most people know that the hider is not active in our game, so people just skip over those caches.

Is there any way for these caches to be removed,

See the Help Center article When a cache needs maintenance.

 

14 minutes ago, Former Hawkeye said:

short of me having to visit each site and log a DNF and owner attention.   I do not want to spend gas money on a wild "goose" chase.

Thanks!

For a newer system, see the Help Center article Geocache Health Score. But that depends on cache seekers posting logs too.

[+JL_HSTRE]

How many caches are we talking about? How many DNFs on each cache? By how experienced of a seeker(s)? Do the DNFs offer any indication of why the cache might be gone (ex: area had a fire, tree fell down, flood, rockslide) or evidence that the container is gone (ex: hint is very clear, attachment without a container, impression in ground from an ammo can)?

[+Lee_Bo]

We all get emails when someone finds our cache, doesn't find it, needs maintenance, etc.  If several DNF's were logged without the owner doing anything, then log it as "needs archived" and get the reviewer involved.  The cache will become disabled for 30 days and then if the owner doesn't do anything, it gets archived.  At which point you can replace it as yours.

[+MNTA]

On 3/5/2024 at 6:25 AM, Former Hawkeye said:

Most people know that the hider is not active in our game, so people just skip over those caches.

 

This is the problem with community maintenance and why I believe GS is forcing better cache maintenance into the game.

 

As a traveling cacher with limited time to cache it is really frustrating to me to roll up on a cache then search then read the logs and go crap DNF/OAR logs to follow. I missed out on a new state because of this scenario, had time for one cache just not two.  I don't know which ones are a probablem and which aren't without looking at the logs. My view is that if it is listed it should be maintained and findable (though that last part may be my issue  ).

 

You could try contacting your reviewer and see what they say. Personally I'd visit them while in the area give them a look and then file the DNF/OAR Some may be fine. Though would be preferable for the reviewer to intercede on obvious problem caches.

 

[+Former Hawkeye]

Thanks for your input.  I think I will try contacting the CO with a message which geocaching can see too..  I will ask the CO to archive any caches "they" have no intention of doing the needed maintenance.  Then after 30 days I will ask the area reviewer to comment.  I really would like to see these frustrating listings go away.  I do travel the I-29 interstate since I have relatives in the Fargo/Moorhead area and it would be nice to have real caches to do, as I pass through South Dakota.

[+thanman2]

Looks like you may be referring to room104, who vomited out 9000+ caches and hasn't been active since 2017. Given the sheer quantity of potential clean-up involved in a series of power trails I would *definitely* enlist the help of a reviewer. I believe there may even be a precedent for Groundspeak doing bulk archiving of orphaned power trails.

[+Goldenwattle]

4 hours ago, thanman2 said:

who vomited out 9000+ caches

That is a problem. 9000 piles of rotting plastic (I'm guessing) litter left behind. It would be better if the next finder could be asked to please pick up all the litter, then make a NA and explain the cache remains have been removed, rather than archive and leave litter behind (unless it's known that each and every one to be archived is no longer there. Burnt away in a bushfire, etc). The last finder and litter remover can log, even if nothing to sign. That would make geocaching a more responsible game.

[+cerberus1]

12 hours ago, Goldenwattle said:

 ... That would make geocaching a more responsible game.

Similar I think...  I found two last week (pencil cases with a ziplock as the "waterproofing") and knowing the CO read logs, mentioned that both were soaked in my Found It log.  A couple hours later both were archived (with no mention of picking them up).

They were on the far end of my walking right now (as per the doc...) so I'm not sure when I can go check to see if they're there.

A CO that used left-in-the-wild ammo cans would walk with me when she knew an archived leftover can was probably nearby.

She stopped when I asked that we picked up any plastics as well...

[+Goldenwattle]

3 hours ago, cerberus1 said:

mentioned that both were soaked in my Found It log.  A couple hours later both were archived (with no mention of picking them up).

That's happened after one of my logs too. Later I went and picked the plastic waste up myself after and mentioned it in a log. On a later outing I found another cache in bad condition by the same CO, so took the waste with me, and mentioned as this will likely be archived and just left here to rot, I have removed the waste to avoid this. It was archived, and the CO couldn't be bothered with the waste.

Edited March 14 by Goldenwattle