Jump to content

Who Do You Blame?


Guest Chris Juricich

Recommended Posts

Guest Chris Juricich

OK, I'm not pointing fingers here. I'm a geocacher, untried and true. I've failed to find two caches now (boo hoo!) but here's how my inner dialogue runs...

 

"dadgum them! Don't they know that tree cover screws with accuracy or even any reception at all? Why did they plant this UNDER A HUGE SPREADING OAK TREE?"

 

Then a voice of reason says, "Now, Chris, geocaching is as much the tech end as well as pure observations and a bit of psychology. Face it-- you've failed to find it-- don't blame the cacher!"

 

Aagghh. I hate not finding it. I was involved in a puzzle multi-cache today which had four stages. Got the first two, but the third involved some simple math. Did I do the math wrong to dope out the rest of the coordinates? Aaaghh.

 

And lastly, a question: if a longitude reads like this:

 

W 122 3. 519

 

With that unit '3'-- is that supposed to be '03.' or could it be '30.' ????

 

[This message has been edited by Chris Juricich (edited 05 August 2001).]

Link to comment
Guest makaio

I'm of the opinion that a good cache placer takes into consideration the amount of clear sky overhead and/or the number of available satellites from which to get a decent reading. Not to say that caches placed in areas with obscured access to the sky are bad, but that those that aren't are better. For instance, a cache I recently hunted, was at the base of a waterfall which was surrounded on three sides by walls at least 100 feet tall. The tree cover was very dense in the open end of the canyon. Basically, satellite reception was non-existent. Apart from the beauty of the area, this was a lousy place for a cache. It should have simply been entered as a VC. If a cache is placed in such an area, hopefully the placer provdes enough visual clues to assist the hunter.

 

Regarding the coordinate values, when in doubt, pad to the left (ie, 3.519 would read 03.519)

Link to comment
Guest NightTide

I once had those same feelings but it just showed me that I was relying to much on technology. That said, I have gone after one cache were the people did not record the Lat/Lon exactly the way it was displayed on their GPS. The difference was one side of a river or the other. Cache hiders must be aware of this as well as cache seekers.

Link to comment
Guest EyezOfTheWorld

If someone places a cache below a HUGE SPREADING OAK TREE or in a box canyon with 100 foot walls and they were able to get coordinates, I'd say there's no problem with where the cache was placed (assuming their coordinates are correct and I would assume so unless I have reason to believe there was an error and I can prove it.)

 

Wouldn't this just be tough luck on the hunters part?

Link to comment
Guest WaylandersMA

I like caches that are under heavy growth. It adds to the challenge. You nead a compass and at least two places near the site that are visible to the satellites.

 

Walk away from the undergrowth (or spreading oak tree) into the clear until you get a good satellite lock. Wait a few minutes for it to settle down. Read the compass bearing off GPS and transfer to your compass. It is really helpful to have one that has a sight. The cache lives on that bearing. Read the distance also to get a rough idea where on the line it is.

Now go to another clear area in another direction, say 90 degrees from the first. Let the signal lock and shoot another bearing.

Where those two lines cross under the oak tree is ground zero.

 

Paul

Link to comment
Guest Prime Suspect

quote:
Originally posted by Chris Juricich:

"dadgum them! Don't they know that tree cover screws with accuracy or even any reception at all? Why did they plant this UNDER A HUGE SPREADING OAK TREE?"


 

Remember that the tree cover can change radically throughout the year. A cache that's easy to find in winter may be next to impossible in the summer.

Link to comment
Guest gstrong1

Do some research before purchasing a GPS.With some units, tree cover is not a problem. And as Prime Suspect stated, caches placed in the winter or early spring may be much more problematic in the summer & fall.

 

------------------

Gary "Gimpy" Strong

Rochester,NY

Link to comment
Guest jbwcpa

or and I can prove it.)


 

My very first hunt with two of my kids was a complete failure. The terrain was worse than we were led to expect and we never did find the cache. The reason: Cacher left the wrong coordinates (confirmed and corrected by cacher.) Talk about leaving a bad taste in your mouth!

 

Yeah, the cacher may get a reading, but what if his accuracy is really low because of a lack of acquisitions. I'd even check my coordinates against a topo map to make sure they were correct.

Link to comment
Guest gstrong1

This has happened to me on a few multi waypoint caches.The cache owners either made minor errors in the directions for computing the next waypoint or directions were very vague or could be interpretted differently. I've spent hours wandering around because of a petty mathematical mistakes. I don't do many multis any more.

 

------------------

Gary "Gimpy" Strong

Rochester,NY

Link to comment

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
×
×
  • Create New...