Multi-stage cache hunt questions

[Guest floatch]

Hey everyone... My name is Floatch, and I'm planning a multi-stage hunt in northwest Indiana. I like the "adventure" aspect of the hunt more than the "prize" aspect. I want to know everyone's opinion on exactly how many legs would be fun, and how many I could include before it becomes too much trouble. I plan to post only the first location, and then put each new leg's coords in the next cache. How far apart should each leg be? How many legs? I just want some input before I put this together. The only anticipated problem is that if one cache gets relocated or destroyed, the whole thing is screwed up. Let me know what you think!

[Guest Quinnow]

Thats the whole fun part about it.

You can add as many as you wish. To me the more the better, just be creative and keep it Interesting for others. A local cacher from my area placed one that is a six part cache hunt. I did it and it took me a tad over three hours to complete, the whole thing was within 1.5 miles total.

It's listed on this site in two parts due to the text size, but to get an idea what the whole thing looks like on a single page take a look at this link...

http://www.navicache.com/featuredcache.html

So, sit down a few and I am certain that idea's will start to brew in your head that will make your cache a great one!

 

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Quinn Stone

Rochester, NY.14616

www.Navicache.com

[Guest Quinnow]

Thats the whole fun part about it.

You can add as many as you wish. To me the more the better, just be creative and keep it Interesting for others. A local cacher from my area placed one that is a six part cache hunt. I did it and it took me a tad over three hours to complete, the whole thing was within 1.5 miles total.

It's listed on this site in two parts due to the text size, but to get an idea what the whole thing looks like on a single page take a look at this link...

http://www.navicache.com/featuredcache.html

So, sit down a few and I am certain that idea's will start to brew in your head that will make your cache a great one!

 

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Quinn Stone

Rochester, NY.14616

www.Navicache.com

[Guest cleenjeep]

I just placed a three part multi cache and nobody has visited it yet. In any case, you should place as many as you feel you need. Dont make it so many that it becomes tedious after a while, and you need to keep them guessing. I made some containers, and some were out in the open. You might want to make part of it a puzzle, like deriving the coordinates from addresses or something like that. Before you put it up on the site, consider having someone around you run through it for you first. I couldnt find anyone at the time, so I just had my GF do it for me. She managed, and had a good time too..

Michael

 

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Webmaster and List Admin for Southern Michigan Rockcrawlers

Personal Site is Cleenjeep's Site

[Guest Alex]

I set a five stage multi-cache just like the one you are planning (Scott Creek - Australia). I thought it would take about 2 hours, but one found all five in about one hour while others have returned on a second day to complete the series.

Like yours, I only published the first cache coordinates, it contained the coordinates for the next etc. In one stash I included a piece of equipment to assist finding the next cache with instructions to return it after for the next people to use - so far everyone has done so.

The trail has been broken by plunderers twice, which is a bummer for the unfortunate seekers. I am now fairly confident that all are now hidden well out of sight/off the beaten track so hopefully this wont happen again. I did publish my mobile phone number so that a seeker who cant find a cache can call me to determine if one has been plundered or what, I can also give them the co-ords of the next in the chain so they can carry on.

[Guest makaio]

.com/seek/cache_details.asp?ID=2203" TARGET=_blank>http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.asp?ID=2203

 

I was afraid it might take too long or be to many waypoints, but I've talked to multiple people who've either found it or are still searching about lessening the number of waypoints and all of them suggested I leave it as is. They all said it's very fun and locating the cache is/would be that much more satisfying. It's been logged once and it took this person about 3-4 hours.

[Guest Markwell]

Hey floatch!

 

If you want you can check out my multi-stage cache - http://www.Geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.asp?ID=2177 - which was a three stage. The Geo-Picnic, which you already know about, will eventually be converted to a six stage.

 

I guess my feeling on the number of stages would be to vary the number and have that impact the difficulty level. A two stage stash my only be a level 2, a twelve stage might be difficulty level 5. When I originally planned the cache above, I was going to use two more waypoints, but they didn't have something in common to "link" them together, so I weeded the two lesser ones out.

 

So I guess the answer is "whatever floats your boat." Someone will always be willing to find your cache. Just place it and have fun.

[Guest JasonW]

Has anyone else thought about a multipart cache on the following basis ??

 

Cache A - contains the Latitude of Cache C

Cache B - contains the Longitude of Cache C

 

Caches A & B are both also traditional caches, and Cache C is the multi - obviously it could be expanded by giving only part of the Lat/Long in Caches A & B.

 

I'm thinking of doing one/three on this basis.

 

Jason

[Guest floatch]

I like that last idea... maybe I'll try that as well. I like the idea of giving clues instead of hard coordinates too... I suppose it will be fun either way, so I'll be sure to post it as soon as possible. Thanks for all the info folks!

[Guest rusty]

I've been thinking about putting out about four individually listed caches that each contain a riddled clue for a fifth location. They would cover about a 100 mile path accross the state. People could find any individual one and stop or they could try to get them all. I wouldn't expect someone to just drive from one to the other but more likely to spread it out over a period of time as they happened to be in the area. Does that sound like too much area to cover? I would want each one to stand on it's own as a fun hunt. Just looking for a little input, I'd like to try doing it sometime in June.

 

Rusty...

[Guest kimbeattie]

When an idea's time has come, it can't be stopped! I too am in the process of planning four caches each of which will have part of the coordinates for the fifth cache. This gets complicated because I want to reference the three other partial coordinate caches in each of the four caches, which means I really have to have the coords of all five caches before I place any of them! Whew!

 

Each of the four caches will stand on their own as "traditional" caches, only each will have part of the fifth "secret" cache coords.

 

Can a cache be listed on Geocaching.com without coords? If not, I guess the secret cache won't be "published" and visitors will not be able to log it.

[Guest Iron Chef]

quote:

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Originally posted by kimbeattie:

When an idea's time has come, it can't be stopped! I too am in the process of planning four caches each of which will have part of the coordinates for the fifth cache. This gets complicated because I want to reference the three other partial coordinate caches in each of the four caches, which means I really have to have the coords of all five caches before I place any of them! Whew!

 

Each of the four caches will stand on their own as "traditional" caches, only each will have part of the fifth "secret" cache coords.

 

Can a cache be listed on Geocaching.com without coords? If not, I guess the secret cache won't be "published" and visitors will not be able to log it.

---

 

As far as I can tell a cache can't be listed without coords, but what I did was take the location of one of my clues and make that the official coordinate for the multi-cache. This way people know the general area that the cache is located in (just make sure that you explain that in the text part so that people don't get confused at all). Check out how I did things with "The Strawberry Cascade" at http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.asp?ID=2503

 

And I would have to say that a well made multi-cache is a hell of a lot more fun than a regular cache if some real thought has been put into it. Congrats to everyone here who is making the game more interesting!

 

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-Iron Chef

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agefive.com/geocache/

"But a big booming voice from the sky is exactly what you have found..."

-Contact

[Guest Prime Suspect]

Something along the same line is the cache GC911 www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.asp?ID=2321

 

The lat/lon on the page take you to an area that will provide the answers to the 4 clues on the cache page. Solve the clues, plug the answers into the blank spaces at the bottom, and you have lat/lon of the actual cache.

[Guest Team JackQuest]

I placed my first multi-stage (3 stages)cache a little while back. http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.asp?ID=2348

 

Planning and placement were more fun than the hunt. Basically start with the last and work your way back. It was basic find stage 1 cache, it contains coord for stage 2 cache, stage 2 cache has coords for final treasure. I like the idea of partial coords for another stage. Just might have to try that one next. I'm planning another multistage right now.

 

Total distance as the crow flies is about 5 miles between 1 and 3. It is not linear but a diehard could hike it thru, I imagine. It has yet to be found so I'm anxiuos for the feedback.

 

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TEAM JackQuest

Jack & Cyber

www.jackquest.com

Base Camp N 40° 20.268' W 75° 37.969' (WGS84)

[Guest Silver]

I just finished a multistage puzzle cache here in Seattle. It took me a little over two weeks to finish it, working on weekends and spare time. I had to e-mail the cache owner for hints before I found it. (Where is that first clue? Doh!)

 

I enjoyed it as much as I did the very first cache I found! I think the multistage and puzzle caches are a lot of fun - more so than the 1/1 caches placed with families in mind. But I enjoy finding those too!

 

Silver