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Park ranger took cache?


Guest tnunnery

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Guest tnunnery

Greetings! I read the logs for the Rock and Roll cache (N 35° 13.702 W 081° 16.861) regarding the confiscation by a park ranger (after he took a few items himself!). Does anyone have any other info? How did he find/hear about it?

 

What is the consensus about getting park ranger "approval": ask for permission first or forgiveness later?

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Guest Seldom Seen John

I spoke to Ranger Ron on Thursday, April 26th about Geocaching & the removal of the cache site. The Red Rock cache was placed in the enviornmentally sensitive area of a very narrow canyon which part of the Whiting Ranch Wilderness Park. He stated that the head ranger did remove the cache & that no further caches would be allowed in this wilderness area. The current rules are you must stay on roads and/or trails only. No cross country travel is permitted and/or shortcuts.

My home is about 5 miles from this Whiting Ranch Wilderness Park in Lake Forest, CA, & I also love Geocaching. When the park was opened about 10-12 years ago we used to see deer herds of 20 or more, bobcats, fox & an abundance of wildlife. Yesterday, during my Sunday hike, I saw no deer, one rabbit, one snake, several lizards, & several ravens.

 

The ranger asked for people to respect not going off the roads & trails because this is a wilderness area. He pointed out the many new trails the mountain bikers had added to the park to increase their own enjoyment. This has caused extensive damage & erosion that was not present when the park was dedicated. He also mentioned that only leashed "Service Dogs" are allowed in the park. I have a service dog due to a handicap.

 

I don't know if the maker of the cache contacted the Park Ranger for permission before placing the cache. It probably would be a good practice to make contact in the future in any public park.

 

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

Seldom Seen John

In Sunny Lake Forest, CA

jwmaclean@mindspring.com

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Guest Seldom Seen John

Park Ranger at Whiting Ranch Wilderness Cache regarding your cache.

 

Lake Forest-Whiting Ranch Wilderness Park

P.O. Box 156,Trabuco Canyon CA 92678

(949) 589-4729

 

Over 1,500 acres of deeply forested canyons, scenic rock formations and grassy rolling hills are enriched by intermittent streams and trails to create an ideal open-air opportunity for hikers, mountain bikers and equestrians. The park's interpretive center features a trail rest stop, cultural and natural history exhibits and park information.

 

Hope this helps.

 

Seldom Seen John

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Guest Tango

The Rock and Roll cache is in North Carolina. Here's what the ranger had to say in the log after he found it:

 

"Hello everyone! I happen to be the ranger that removed this cache. Unfortunately, no one contacted us about placing it as specified in the info about placing caches on public lands. I have to admit I see the fun in this activity as it took me two tries to find it. As Outlander indicated the area where this was, was dangerous and ecologically sensitive. There are herd paths in the area now, and I suspect some (but not all) are from people trying to located this cache. I would be willing to talk to someone about viable alternatives in the park if anyone is interested. Call the park office 704 853-5375."

 

Many of the rangers around this part of the country are laid back and a bit like Andy of Mayberry. Unfortunately, a few are more Barney-like and one can only hope that they only have one bullet that they are required to keep in a shirt pocket.

 

This particular ranger is more than likely an "Andy". He's offered his assistance to help find a better, less sensitive location for the cache, so even though he confiscated it, I'm for giving him the benefit of a doubt that he'd like to work with us.

 

The whole scenario does have a way of making a case for portions of this site being available on a paid-subscription basis.

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Guest Silver

quote:
Originally posted by Tango:

The whole scenario does have a way of making a case for portions of this site being available on a paid-subscription basis.


 

What part of the scenario do you think warrants that? I think Jeremy is doing a great job running the board and web site. What extra information do you think would need to be included in a pay-to-play section? I think part of the appeal of the game is that it is free to participate and everyone is helping each other.

 

What extra features would you have people pay for? Super prize caches? Super secret caches? I think that goes counter to what Jeremy set up geocaching.com to be about.

 

Of course, nothing stops someone else from starting up their own pay-to-play site. I just don't know how many people would join it. I wouldn't.

 

Silver

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Guest Tango

I never mentioned anything about "extra" features. Please read the section of my post that you quoted. I used the words, "portions of this site".

 

The element of the scenario that I believe makes the case for "portions of this site" being subscription-based is the fact that anyone with a computer can freely access the coordinates and clues for cache locations. That includes park rangers and other would-be confiscators.

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Guest botrytisfree

I have a few comments to make about this topic. First, I must say that we were very disappointed about the recent cache removals in our area. About the "Rock and Roll" Cache: My wife and I found this cache a while back. We enjoyed the trip, and it is one of our favoritre caches we have found. I can see where it might have been a LITTLE bit dangerous, but its not like we needed repelling equipment or anything to get to it. But, I can see the Ranger's viewpoint. We are about to leave for our honeymoon, but when we return, I will contact him to discuss his viable alternatives (if no one else beats me to it). I don't want him to think we are unwilling to play if we have to follow the proper channels.

Next, about the "On top of old Stoney" cache. Regretfully, we were unable to make the trip to this cache before it met its demise. I believe this cache was also placed in a State Park. I am not familiar with the area, if it is dangerous or not. It seems to me, though, that this ranger is more of a "Barney" type personality. Badge in one hand, park rules and regulations in the other. Maybe I am wrong, and he, too, would be willing to discuss other options with us, but I suspect not.

 

So, to extend my post, and go a little off topic, I would like to ask this question: What is the problem? Sure, we bring a few people out into the woods. Sure, we make a few small trails. Sure, we leave a little pile of trinkets hidden somewhere in the outdoors. O.K. Personally, I think that is what the woods and parks are for. Why, do you think, is nearly half of our population is obese? Because too many of them are sitting at home on the couch watching the outdoors through some little square piece of glass. I was at the park the other day, and there was some kind of orienteering competition going on. It looked fun to me, but there were people crashing through the woods everywhere. Can someone tell me how this is better for the environment than geocaching. Also, how about hunters? The number of Geocachers out there is like a grain of sand on the beach compared to the number of gun-toting, trail leaving, deer killing hunters out there (Actually, I am a hunter, also. I'm just trying to make a point).

 

By the way, our own cache is pretty heavily traveled, and another cache has popped up nearby. So, we will probably relocate it when we get back from our trip. About 20 groups of people have visited this cache, and a small (about 10 foot) trail has begun to develop near the fallen tree it is hidden under. Also by the way, we (botrytisfree and Erwinia) just got married this week-end, and are going to Kauai, Hawaii for our honeymoon. There is a geocache in Kauai, and I hope it is still there when we get there. Not confiscated by some regulation quoting park ranger. So, until we get back, Happy geocaching!! Sorry for the long post, but once I got started I couldn't stop.

 

Botrytisfree and Erwinia

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