When placing a new geocache....

[Delta-9]

How long do you let your GPSr sit still to get a good reading before marking the waypoint and writing the coordinates on the cache container?

 

I am wondering if people try and get accuracy under 10 feet (if you have WAAS on your GPSr) or you just take the coordinates with a 30-40 feet accuracy reading?

 

I am placing a cache or two over the thanksgiving break in the Elk County, PA area and was just wondering what the norm was.

 

Thanks

 

d9

[umc]

The first cache I placed I let my GPSr sit for over an hour but I think 10 minutes or so would be just fine. While my GPSr was sitting there I took readings every so often then averaged them at the end of the time.

 

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Not so sure, Somewhat new Owner Of a Garmin GPS V Received on 10-03-02

[Dinoprophet]

As an extra sanity check, after scouting an area and getting coordinates, I like to put the coords into lostoutdoors.com. It might not tell you if you're correct down to 1/1000 of a minute, but you can make sure you're not off by 40 feet or something ridiculous. Not always applicable, but it's worked for me on my hides so far.

 

Mein Vater war ein Wandersmann, und ich hab' auch im Blut.

[Delta-9]

quote:

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Originally posted by Dinoprophet:

As an extra sanity check, after scouting an area and getting coordinates, I like to put the coords into lostoutdoors.com. .... Not always applicable, but it's worked for me on my hides so far.

 

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Thanks for the idea and I will check it out once we get back to a computer, however... I don't think it will work too well in this situation as the locations we are thinking about are in the middle of the woods.

[Rubbertoe]

I usually wait long enough until the reading is between 15-25 feet accuracy. I have WAAS on my Vista, but I don't use it regularly.

 

The NEW Toe Pages

[+Criminal]

My last hide, Galloping Gertie II, The Wrath of Gertie i was getting a six foot error circle. But for most, 15 feet is my cut-off, higher and I'll walk around for a better signal.

[+Jamie Z]

Although I haven't actually hidden any caches (groan) I have scouted a couple of locations. What I (will) do is collect readings during each scouting trip, and then manually average the results.

 

What I'm trying to do is minimize the "bad-geometry" error by taking multiple readings over a period of time.

 

Jamie

[+cachew nut]

I have gotten some good comments on the accuracy of my caches, this is how I do it. When I find the right hiding spot I will set my Gps down for about 7 minutes or so, by this time I will see that the numbers are nice and stable, not changing anymore. At that point I will swing the Gps in an arc to take in out of averaging, and set it down for exactly fifteen minutes. Take the reading after the fifteen minutes are up. Probably overkill, but very accurate.

[+Mudfrog]

Like most of you, i do the averaging thing first off. But then i like to walk a couple of hundred feet away from the cache, turn off the GPSr, then back on to see if it brings me back to within a few feet of the location. I also try to do this once again at a different time on a different day. If its off any of those times, lots of tree cover can cause this, then i will average and mark those as good coordinates.

[+briansnat]

I used to take about 10 readings and average them. Now I just make sure I have a good lock and accuracy within 24 feet, mark a single waypoint and that's it. I rarely get complaints about my coordinates, so I guess it's OK that way. In fact the cache I get the most complaints about, is one that I took over 10 readings to arrive at an average.

 

"You can't make a man by standing a sheep on its hind legs, but by standing a flock of sheep in that position, you can make a crowd of men" -Max Beerbohm

[+The Cheeseheads]

I like to scout out cache locations without the cache in hand. When I find a good one, I'll let the unit stabilize for a few minutes, then mark the waypoint.

 

I go back to the car to get the cache, then see how close the GPSr gets me to my spot. As long as I'm within 20 feet or so, then that's close enough for Geocaching!

 

If I'm way off, then I'll do a little work to adjust the coordinated until I get them closer.

 

- - - - -

Wisconsin Geocaching Association

[Delta-9]

quote:

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Originally posted by cachew nut:

At that point I will swing the Gps in an arc to take in out of averaging, and set it down for exactly fifteen minutes. Take the reading after the fifteen minutes are up.

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I appreciate the replies from everyone, thank you!

 

Cachew, when you say you swing it in an arc are you saying you actually swing your GPS like a pendulum by the lanyard?

[+headmj]

This is my proces with my Magellan Meridian. I set the GPSr on the cache location and let it average for 10 minutes. This is usually good enough and is within about 10 feet in the woods. If I am having a bad sattelite day i will come back on another day and check it out.

[+cachew nut]

quote:

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Originally posted by Delta-9:

Cachew, when you say you swing it in an arc are you saying you actually swing your GPS like a pendulum by the lanyard?

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No, no lanyard. Since I'm pretty much standing still, if I'm holding the GPS and swing it around, it essentially is in an arc.

 

Why do I do this? When I get to a location, my GPS automatically goes into averaging when I stop moving. I also have WAAS enabled. So I let it sit about 7 minutes or so until everything is nice and settled down.

 

This is when I take it out of averaging, and let it average again for fifteen minutes. My thinking is by starting with some stable readings, I won't be averaging any readings from when the numbers may still have been jumping around, the moment I stopped walking.

[+Web-ling]

Generally, I take 2-3 readings when I initially scout the cache site, letting the accuracy get as good as the conditions at the site will allow, then walking away, waiting a few minutes, then returning for another reading.

 

I go home and plug the average of the readings into lostoutdoors.com to verify that they're at least close. Lostoutdoors will usually get almost as close as my little yellow Etrex, and in heavy tree cover or other interference, sometimes is actually closer.

 

When I return with the container, I take another reading. If there is a significant difference between this reading and the others I've taken, I'll wait another day or so, and get a third set of readings. I average everything together, throwing out any extremes.

 

[+Planet]

The Bryno and I have been doing this all wrong! We go somewhere, pick a hiding spot, stick the cache in it and take a reading. Bam! Done. We've had no real problems or complaints so far.

 

Now, I have a question. Thebryno says the Garmin works best if you're moving. You're all saying you let it sit for 15 minutes or so. Does a GPSr work more accurately sitting still or moving? I really need to know, because I'd like to be right on something. Thanks for any input there.

 

Cache you later,

Planet

 

Never underestimate the power of stupid people in large groups.

[+wray_clan]

No, really. As of the current moment, we've planted 3. For two of them, we tried to get the coords right on. For one, we simply approached the cache various times & averaged the coords. They were dead-on. For another, we just held the GPS right over the cache. The LAST one, though, there weren't that many places to look, so we took 3 or 4 coords from about 10-15 feet away, & averaged them. As for accuracy, we wait till its usually 12-20 feet.