How do I launch a new trackable using the code from one that has been missing for years; or, the person who supposedly has it in their possession refuses to answer queries?

[+peedieduchess]

I want to launch 4 new trackables. I made a start with the first one by changing its name, photo, mission etc. However I cannot work out how to get it back into my inventory so that I can place it in a new cache. The 'drop down' menu of possible actions has: 'move to last location' or 'recaculate distance' or 'lock'. Its very frustrating, surely this must be possible? One of the 4 that I want to resuse has been missing for NINE years! Any help would be appreciated to get 4 new trackables started on their journey.

Regards,

Peedieduchess

[+kunarion]

Make a Grab log.  This returns it to your Inventory.

 

 

 

Here are some tips on returning a Trackable item to play:  

 

Edited April 10 by kunarion

[+peedieduchess]

Yay! thank you Kunarion, I've been tearing my hair out. I didn't think to look at the 'log' option at all,

 

many thanks,

 

Peedieduchess

[Darwin473]

I'm a big fan of proxies, I have multiple posts on how to make proxies by etching aluminium, or by making wood coins (that one didn't work out too good) and acrylic proxy geocoins (last way longer than wood).

 

However, one of the reasons I stopped geocaching was due to being discouraged by people discarding proxies. Several of my proxies were a bit of aluminium with the code and "proxy travel bug" stamped - which I would argue are more durable than actual TB's, which are printed and can potentially rub off. I have one of mine with a comment "Found a travel bug proxy in the cache and removed from circulation. FEEDBACK TO CO: If you wish to hang onto your trackable and not share your trackable with others, please don't circulate a proxy."

 

Considering GC don't have an official policy on proxies, but travel bugs come with a copy tag to send out if the original goes missing, then I disagree with other players discarding my proxies. I can understand low-effort ones (such as a laminated bit of paper which easily falls apart), but I try to make all my proxies to be quite durable, so they last as long as possible. Having said that, half the fun for me was working out ways to make durable proxies cheaply. If a non-fan of proxies chucks mine out, I just need to go make another.

[+cerberus1]

Darwin473"s proxies are awesome, and I can't see someone turning one of them away.  Very cool !

We've never found any like that.  Most we've found were laminated (and not well...) pieces of paper with the code on it and that's about it.

I've also personally pitched dozens of illegible, laminated "proxies" crumpled at the bottom of caches with other paper trash...

[+CAVinoGal]

On 4/27/2024 at 8:26 PM, Darwin473 said:

I have one of mine with a comment "Found a travel bug proxy in the cache and removed from circulation. FEEDBACK TO CO: If you wish to hang onto your trackable and not share your trackable with others, please don't circulate a proxy."

 

IMHO, this is just plain RUDE - the TB belongs to the one who is listed as the owner, and no one has the right to "remove from circulation" a TB, proxy or otherwise, that they have found.  Just leave it where you found it if you don't want to be bothered with passing it along!!!  Besides, here are multiple reasons for putting out a proxy.  To assume the proxy is bacause owner just didn't want to share the original is pretty presumptuous and often wrong.

 

My son (also a geocacher, with 10 + years more than me and way more finds than me!) has a laser engraving tool, and a bag full of dogtags, and he can create/recreate tags.  Recently I came across a geocoin (proxy, the copytag).  I looked up the original geocoin, and a dogtag proxy was created to be closer to the original geocoin.  It's left my hands and is now traveling ... https://coord.info/TB36H1X

 

Proxies are out there for all kinds of reasons and sometimes the original turns up and things can get confusing.  Or someone releases a new proxy if no movement is seen for a year, so now there are several out there (this happens!).  Hubby picked up one trackable, tried to log it but someone else had found another proxy and is moving it around....so although he has the TB # in his hands, it's showing somewhere else, and the cache page details several proxies that have been released.  No way to fix that....if he grabs it and moves it, someone else who ALSO has a proxy can do the same.  In this case, too many proxies with the same TB # are out there.  That is a case for waiting until you are pretty sure the TB is missing, OR you have the original back in your hands after many years and release the proxy to keep it traveling, while hanging on to the original.  Through a series of amazing coincidences, I have been able to make arrangements to get a TB back to its original owner, and a proxy tag has been etched by my son to go out in its place.  I see nothing wrong with putting out a proxy in this case!

 

Anyway, all this to say to Darwin473 that I'm sorry you had yours removed from circulation; your proxies are not just laminated paper copies (I've seen those and move them along anyway) and are worthy of being moved along!!  Don't let this deter you from continuing to enjoy this hobby....

On 4/27/2024 at 8:26 PM, Darwin473 said:

However, one of the reasons I stopped geocaching was due to being discouraged by people discarding proxies.

 

[+cerberus1]

On 4/29/2024 at 8:17 PM, CAVinoGal said:

IMHO, this is just plain RUDE - the TB belongs to the one who is listed as the owner, and no one has the right to "remove from circulation" a TB, proxy or otherwise, that they have found.  Just leave it where you found it if you don't want to be bothered with passing it along!!!  

If legible, and anywhere close to what you describe, I agree.  We've never found proxies like your awesome examples.  

What we often find are illegible, crumbled, piece of paper with a soaked science project in-between two pieces of laminate.

It's junk, just like most other damp paper pulp in the bottom of a cache, and I pitch it with all the other carp (gum wrappers, twigs, sand...),