Wetlands

[+BPACH]

I was searching for a cache today and was kind of disturbed by what I found. The coordinates for the cache indicated that it was under a bridge/board walk thing. This bridge was through wetlands. There was no trail to the area. What I did find was a small trail that obviuosly was made by geocachers. In some spots it looked like a small herd of elephants was bedded down. Is hiding caches in areas like this a normal occurance? I can see where actions like this will gradually reduce the areas where we are allowed to hunt.

 

Team BPACH..We dont know where we are going, but we know where we are.

[BassoonPilot]

I'm a little confused about what a bridge is doing out in the middle of nowhere with apparently no access to it ... does it serve no purpose? (It would be helpful if you provided a link to the cache page.)

 

Are you certain the path you followed wasn't a deer (or other animal) path?

 

To answer the query, I've done many caches that were mainly bushwhacks. Most could be accomplished by hiking the "path of least resistance," which should also have the least impact on the environment.

 

There have also been caches where I had to find my way through long stretches of extremely dense reeds or tall grasses. Yes, I made my own path ... nature will quickly obliterate all trace of it. (I always feel very good about a "First-to-Find" after a long bushwhack like this when the next cacher's log indicates they were surprised to open the logbook and find a signature, because they spotted no evidence that anyone else had been through the area.)

 

Most swamp caches are also of the "find your own way" variety. Great fun!

 

Geocachers should try to make as little impact as they can, and they should remove as many traces as their adventure as possible. "Social paths" sometimes do develop to caches, and when we notice them, we should inform the cache owner via e-mail or our cache page log. The responsible cache owner will look into the situation and move the cache or modify the instructions as necessary.

[DisQuoi]

I don't follow. There's a bridge/boardwalk in the middle of a wetland and no trail leading to it? Please link the cache to this thread ... I'd like to see this for myself.

[+majicman]

quote:

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Originally posted by BPACH:

I was searching for a cache today and was kind of disturbed by what I found. The coordinates for the cache indicated that it was under a bridge/board walk thing. This bridge was through wetlands. There was no trail to the area. What I did find was a small trail that obviuosly was made by geocachers. In some spots it looked like a small herd of elephants was bedded down. Is hiding caches in areas like this a normal occurance? I can see where actions like this will gradually reduce the areas where we are allowed to hunt.

 

Team BPACH..We dont know where we are going, but we know where we are.

---

 

I have a similar situation. Out in the middle of a inpenetrable forrest (here in central Oklahoma) is a beautiful and pristeen grassy meadow. Right in the middle of this meadow is a huge duckway. Hidden beside the duckway, with a fairly obvious geocaching "social path" is a very popular cache.

 

I have thought about e-mailing the owner about the social trail, but, it is really a beautiful site and I think that everyone should have their attention drawn to the duckway...

 

--majicman

 

(Always trade UP in both quantity and quality and Geocaches will be both self-sustaining and self-improving!)

[+georgeandmary]

I used to get worked up about trampled grass paths created by geocachers... then I started noticing large areas of completely flattened grasses that were 100 times bigger than anything cachers could do. Some one should make a law preventing those deer from doing that.

 

george

 

Remember: Half the people you meet are below average.

[+Rich in NEPA]

Ummm ... about three and a half pounds. (badda-bing!)

 

quote:

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Originally posted by majicman:

Right in the middle of this meadow is a huge duckway.

---

Couldn't resist. Cheers ...

 

~Rich in NEPA~

 

 

=== A man with a GPS receiver knows where he is; a man with two GPS receivers is never sure. ===

[+majicman]

quote:

---

Originally posted by Rich in NEPA:

_Ummm ... about three and a half pounds._ (badda-bing!)

 

quote:

---

Originally posted by majicman:

Right in the middle of this meadow is a huge duckway.

---

Couldn't resist. Cheers ...

 

_~Rich in NEPA~_

 

---

 

Darn, you knew that one!!!

 

--majicman

 

(Always trade UP in both quantity and quality and Geocaches will be both self-sustaining and self-improving!)

[+briansnat]

I have a cache in a swamp. Some finders made comments about the paths made by Geocachers through the tall grass and the negative impact on the enviroment. I checked it out and moved the cache, not because the paths had a negative impact (they were no different from the ubiquitious deer paths in the area) but because the paths made the cache too easy to find.

 

About 6 weeks ago the entire meadow was burned by the county park commission. They do this every few years to keep the meadow, a meadow.

 

The grass is coming back already, which is proof that nature is quite resiliant

[+TresOkies]

quote:

---

Originally posted by Rich in NEPA:

_Ummm ... about three and a half pounds._ (badda-bing!)

 

quote:

---

Originally posted by majicman:

Right in the middle of this meadow is a huge duckway.

---

Couldn't resist. Cheers ...

---

 

Yeah, could you see that coming? Impenetrable forest??? The only thing impenetrable in Oklahoma is the heads of Baptists. [rim-shot]

 

Looks like the original poster was refering to

http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.asp?ID=25224

The stashers are Rusty and Libby who are well known. If their cache presented a problem to the area, I'm sure they would fix it if they are able.

 

I find myself occasionally mailing cache owners when I find a really obvious social trail just to let them know. Knowing firsthand how cattle and other herd animals can leave serious damaging trails, I'm concerned that we might do damage to sensitive areas. On the other hand, I'm also amazed at how our grasslands recover year after year when put to the torch after harvest. Mother nature is a tough chick but I try to keep from taxing the ecosystem when I can. (How's that for fence-straddling?)

 

-E

 

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