Missing caches - a theory

[Attila]

Given the increased number of cachers today. And assuming that the average find/placed ratio is approx 10/1. That means that the available caches are being hit MUCH more than new caches are placed, and hit rates are increasing.

 

My point. How many cachers are retrieving the container, finding someone else nearby (another cacher?) and taking the container from the area to return it later when the coast is clear? It has to have happened. Even in my sparce section of the world, I have often missed previous cachers by minutes. Just an idea, but it will happen more as caching activity increases.

[+sbell111]

Since caches are being found more often, there is greater risk of a 'mundane' spying the transaction.

 

Also, the more cachers there are, the more bad apples there will be...

[+briansnat]

Nice theory. I have heard of this happening. But unfortunatley I think 99% of they time, they are simply stolen by some miscreants

 

"Life is a daring adventure, or it is nothing" - Helen Keller

[+LarsThorwald]

I think there's some overthinking here. In my experience (sad as it is), the caches were just taken/trashed/s**t in by people with nothing better to do... and a GPS!

 

Charlie

 

"One should never begin a journey by heading in the wrong direction."

[+Web-ling]

quote:

---

Originally posted by LarsThorwald:

I think there's some overthinking here. In my experience (sad as it is), the caches were just taken/trashed/s**t in by people with nothing better to do... and a GPS!

 

Charlie

 

"One should never begin a journey by heading in the wrong direction."

---

At least from my experience, most of them are simply stumbled on by non-cachers and stolen. I've had several caches come up missing, and there has been no evidence of someone with a GPSr being involved.

 

[Salvo]

Personally when I find one, I might move to the nearest flat open spot to check out the contents without risking injury to myself or to -gasp- lose an item out of the cache.

 

Once I thought briefly about bringing a cache back to my truck (about 300yds) to get a more (and extra) suitable items out of my cache stores for the cache site. But I thought better against it and just went and got the extra items and came back.

 

It probably has happened out there somewhere on micros where a pen or pencil wasn't in the cache, or upon finding a micro's logsheet full going back to get a spare logsheet ...thinking it'll only take a minute...

 

It's gotten these days that I always pack a micro logsheet with me, so many micro caches seem to always have full logs these days with more and more cachers these days. (I'm NOT complaining)

[Salvo]

Personally when I find one, I might move to the nearest flat open spot to check out the contents without risking injury to myself or to -gasp- lose an item out of the cache.

 

Once I thought briefly about bringing a cache back to my truck (about 300yds) to get a more (and extra) suitable items out of my cache stores for the cache site. But I thought better against it and just went and got the extra items and came back.

 

It probably has happened out there somewhere on micros where a pen or pencil wasn't in the cache, or upon finding a micro's logsheet full going back to get a spare logsheet ...thinking it'll only take a minute...

 

It's gotten these days that I always pack a micro logsheet with me, so many micro caches seem to always have full logs these days with more and more cachers these days. (I'm NOT complaining)