Little White Lies

[Broncoholics]

There has been plenty of times I really didn't have a great time finding a cache, but I said in my log I did. There has been times I have fallen in the mud, twisted my ankle, got stuck with a thorn, lost stuff, got the truck stuck, etc. etc. etc., and still said, I had a great time. I always tell about the good times, never the bad.

I was just wondering if anybody else tells little white lies.

 

Upinyachit

[bnolan]

Falling in the mud, twisting an ankle, being scratched by thorns, losing things and getting the truck stuck is exactly the kind of adventure I am looking for when I go hunting for a cache.

 

I am most disappointed when I get out of the car, walk 100 yards on a paved path and find the cache without even having to kneel in the dirt.

Edited November 26, 2003 by bnolan

[+CO Admin]

The greatest lies are the ones you tell yourself

[+JMBella]

fallen in the mud, twisted my ankle, got stuck with a thorn, lost stuff, got the truck stuck, etc. etc.

 

I'd be lying if I said I didn't have a great time if one or more of those things happened. Those are usually my favorite caches. Log: Had to jump off a 50 foot cliff, got a compound fracture to my fibula, Duct taped it up, found the cache, got attacked by wolves on my way out, finally got back only to find my car had been towed away, crawled 15 miles to a house on a hill, the owner cased me with a shotgun, ran into the street got hit by a bus, grabbed the bumper to let it drag me to a hotel where I 1st found a computer to log my find then called 911. WOOOHOOO! Thats what I call geocaching, yea!

TNLNSL.

Edited November 26, 2003 by J&MBella

[+Mr.Benchmark]

Yes, I tell little white lies sometimes. I never complain that I didn't enjoy the cache. Not all the caches I've done have been stellar. A couple have been kind of dull. A couple have involved a pointlessly long walk, or been overly complicated, or both. I don't feel like I should tell the cache owner "I hated this one!" because others might well enjoy it, and they did go to the effort to place it.

 

I only complain if I feel there were issues with the cache such as a seriously incorrect terrain rating or pointless hazards on a low diff/terrain cache. (Stuff that could get a new player in trouble - on high terrain / high diff. caches I figure you better know what you are doing anyway, so all's fair.) Also, I only complain about these things if they aren't mentioned on the cache page - if you got fair warning about a hazard, that's all you can really expect. You can deal with it or not at that point - it's your choice and your problem. This is rare though. Usually I just blow it off and figure whatever I didn't like was in fact my problem.

[+briansnat]

Falling in the mud, twisting an ankle, being scratched by thorns, losing things and getting the truck stuck is exactly the kind of adventure I am looking for when I go hunting for a cache.

 

You beat me to it! Same here.

[+DustyJacket]

If I come home clean, it wasn't a good caching trip.

[+Mr.Benchmark]

fallen in the mud, twisted my ankle, got stuck with a thorn, lost stuff, got the truck stuck, etc. etc.

 

I'd be lying if I said I didn't have a great time if one or more of those things happened. Those are usually my favorite caches. Log: Had to jump off a 50 foot cliff, got a compound fracture to my fibula, ...

I don't get it. I see this attitude a lot and it puzzles me. I've done a few caches now where I've had odd things happen to me during the cache, or where I did something really foolish and made my task a whole lot harder than it needed to be. I've gotten a couple of funny stories from these experiences - but I can't exactly use the word "fun" to describe the experience. I do sometimes have fun telling about them afterwards, though. Is that the part you enjoy about these experiences?

 

But I don't go out caching thinking "boy, I hope I can find a way to make that 10 minute park-n-grab take an hour because I decide to park illegally and then bushwack a shortcut straight through the thorns so that I can start out 400 feet closer to the cache."

[+JMBella]

Don't get me wrong I like a quick bag and dash as much as the next guy (assuming the next guy likes them), and no, I would not go out of my way to make a 1/1 a 5/5. All I'm saying is i like a challenge/adventure. Obviously I was exaggerating in my last post but I would love to do a cache where I had to repel down a cliff, or whatever. My point is if there is a sense of danger, I like that. Actually being in a situation where I'm really challenged, physically or mentally. I like to stretch the envelope as they say. Of coarse my envelope is not the same as someone that likes to climb 250' cliffs with no equipment or skis off of 150' foot cliffs. I haven't logged the hours doing those things so there not in the realm of possibly. I know my limits, and I enjoy seeing how far I can stretch those limits without seriously hurting myself. Then there are those who are smarter than I and stay safely inside their envelope. To each their own.

Edited November 26, 2003 by J&MBella

[+briansnat]

I don't get it. I see this attitude a lot and it puzzles me. I've done a few caches now where I've had odd things happen to me during the cache, or where I did something really foolish and made my task a whole lot harder than it needed to be. I've gotten a couple of funny stories from these experiences - but I can't exactly use the word "fun"...

 

You're right, you don't get it.

[+JMBella]

I don't get it. I see this attitude a lot and it puzzles me. I've done a few caches now where I've had odd things happen to me during the cache, or where I did something really foolish and made my task a whole lot harder than it needed to be. I've gotten a couple of funny stories from these experiences - but I can't exactly use the word "fun"...

 

You're right, you don't get it.

Wow, it would have been so much easier just to right that.

[+bons]

I suspect that ingeocaching, as in so many things, the ones where you triumphed are the ones you remember.

[+JMBella]

I can't remember anything. Too many bumps on the head.

[+Team BlackZ]

Some caches i have found have been easy and some a little harder. I am a newbie, but I enjoy every one of them. I just like getting out, walking and searching using the gps. I also like to bushwhack to, even if i don't have to.

[+Mr.Benchmark]

Thanks, so much for your answer. I understand. I think that's a great attitude. I asked because I've heard otherwise very intelligent people say things that sounded foolhardy to me.

[+Mr.Benchmark]

QUOTE ( @ --)

You're right, you don%2 Thanks for confirming this.

[+OzGuff]

The white lies I tell are of this variety: "Yes dear, I won't go geocaching by myself anymore" and "No dear, I haven't been geocaching since last weekend, when I took the kids out" and "Absolutely not! The mud on my dress pants is from when I stopped to help a little old lady with a flat tire. And she was ugly!"

 

OzGuff

[+TEAM 360]

Little white lie on the cache page:

 

Easy to get to. Level 1 difficulty. NOT in the nearby cave.

 

The truth:

 

Edited November 26, 2003 by TEAM 360

[+RJFerret]

This being geocaching, I tell camo-colored lies, not white lies.

 

Just kidding!

 

No, I'm brutally honest in real life and in cache logs. There's another local cacher who is as well, and I appreciate that feedback more than the others (as I know what's being said).

 

Regarding a puzzle cache involving a cypher, "I don't want to think on my weekends." Sure, my response could have been 'so do other caches'. Instead I've made more creative caches that people have raved about.

 

I consider cache logs the 'thank you' to the owner for all the effort in the placement. Since I've spent hours upon hours and sometimes multiple days (night cache) setting up caches, I think they are deserving of honesty.

 

In addition, future seekers will appreciate it as well!

 

But then, that's my personality type, others will pervert my straight-forward sentiments into full-blown insults. Unfortunately there's nothing I can do about that unless they email me. Which has happened and had a very happy result (and resulted in a minor positive change to the cache!)

 

I think the biggest lie of all is not posting 'not founds'. I think it's silly some don't want to see the frown, but it harms the owners (they don't know it might've been plundered) and future seekers (who might be searching for something non-existant).

 

If you don't like the frown, at least post a note. It's the same difference.. It's not like there's a tally anywhere.

 

On the adventure element, check out my profile--I've listed my most adventurous experiences there and they were a BLAST!

 

(For those who "don't get it", don't bother! {grin})

 

Enjoy,

 

Randy

[+MrPeabody]

I'd have to agree that while I like to zip up and find the occasional cache, I also really cherish the ones that I struggled through in order to finally get to the cache location.

 

Even the few Not Founds I have had have been adventures that I wouldn't have taken had I decided not to take up Geocaching.

 

When I am thrashing through the forest with purpose, I feel like a kid again.

 

I like that.

[+RobertM]

There has been plenty of times I really didn't have a great time finding a cache, but I said in my log I did. There has been times I have fallen in the mud, twisted my ankle, got stuck with a thorn, lost stuff, got the truck stuck, etc. etc. etc., and still said, I had a great time. I always tell about the good times, never the bad.

I was just wondering if anybody else tells little white lies.

 

Upinyachit

Something tells me I wouldn't want to go caching with you. ;-)

[Cholo]

There has been plenty of times I really didn't have a great time finding a cache, but I said in my log I did. There has been times I have fallen in the mud, twisted my ankle, got stuck with a thorn, lost stuff, got the truck stuck, etc. etc. etc., and still said, I had a great time. I always tell about the good times, never the bad.

I was just wondering if anybody else tells little white lies.

 

Upinyachit

Aw, man....sounds like you had a great time! I thought this was about treaties...now there's some real white lies.

[bug and snake]

White lies..... Hmmmmm.....

OK, when I go out with my mistress, all I have to do on the way home is get loads of mud on my shoes and clothes. Then, when I get in at all hours of the morning, I tell my wife I have been with a woman. She, seeing the muck and mire, says, 'Yeah, yeah, yeah..... You have been caching again, I know what YOU are about.....'

Is that what you mean?

[+9Key]

I probably say more with my lack of a log than in my logs for Finds or NFs.

 

Cachers that post an obtuse puzzle cache won't see me log their cache since I don't enjoy those. Same thing with multi-stage virtuals. What's the point?

 

I will, however, post a comment about a terrain goof. Why won't folks use Clay Jar's rating system?

[+robert]

I tend to go by the "if you don't have anything nice to say" rule when logging. but I do try to give as much detail of the find as possible. if I fell, I'll say so. if I got stuck in the briars, I'll say so. it's part of the fun.

[+Bloencustoms]

Usually, the more I enjoy a cache, the more descriptive my logs are. I generally thank the owner for placing the cache, even if the experience was less than fantasitic. I don't feel like it's a white lie to do so. I am thanking them for the effort involved in the placement. I will, however, leave out negative comments about the experience if the cacher is relatively new, or they have just begun to place caches for the first time. While some could argue that this does nothing to help them learn how to place fun interesting caches, my reasoning is that I don't want them to become discouraged because they are new. Many of us learn best through our own experiences, and have an early cache placement that in retrospect could have been better. But the kind logs of fellow cachers encourage you to continue to play, and give incentive to place ever better caches.

If the cacher has been around for a while, my logs might include any negative experiences I had while finding the cache, but they still deserve to be thanked for taking the time to place it, no matter what kind of time I had finding the thing.

[+Divine]

Cachers that post an obtuse puzzle cache won't see me log their cache since I don't enjoy those. Same thing with multi-stage virtuals. What's the point?

For example, in this cache the point was to give a nice sightseeing walk in one of the most beautiful places in the city. (It's from the time of not-so-strict virtual rules; they probably could have found a place for a container too near the final spot.)

 

I don't care much about the virtuals either, though. Just wanted to point out that there can be a point in even multi-stages.

Edited November 26, 2003 by Divine

[Broncoholics]

The greatest lies are the ones you tell yourself

 

Hmmmmm..... I don't get it

 

Upinyachit

[+TotemLake]

I'm surprised with all of this convincing going on, nobody has commented there are different strokes for different folks.

 

If you aren't enjoying the hobby, then stop doing it. You can then stop whining about telling "little white lies" and feeling guilty about it.

 

I can't say I go out looking to hurt myself or to get my car stuck in the mud, but if these things do happen to me, I look at the bigger picture and consider it part of the adventure. Otherwise, I would consign myself to the tamer caches on hard paths and never venture out to test and stretch my skills.

 

If adapting to the challenges and overcoming them isn't your idea of adventure... then do like the doc said... quit hitting yourself there and the pain will stop.

Edited November 26, 2003 by TotemLake

[+carleenp]

If you look at my logs on this cache and this cache you will see that I had plenty of bad luck at those caches, yet completely enjoyed myself. In fact after marring my car at the first one, and my friend and I getting slightly injured at the next, we hiked another mile or so to a third, where we were injured some more. The thing is, the hikes were so fun, and the situations amusing, that it was in all honestly one of best caching days I have ever had.

 

Anyway, I don't lie in the logs. But if I didn't care for a cache as much, all I might write is "thanks for the cache."

[kerouac]

I guess we all have lied in our posting that we had a great time and thanks for the hide but truthfully, my daughter kicks, screams and asks me to hold her if we have to walk further than 1/2 mile round trip. I usually post that we had a wonderful time despite having two or three "I'm tired's, or can you hold me". I would also like to say that I think that it is nice to get her out of the house and both do something together that we enjoy. I think back to when I was 5 years old, I wish there was such a thing as geocaching and my Dad would take me. Kids these days are just too darn spoiled, too many things have distorted the way that they think. I have Replay TV and my daughter does not realize that when she watches TV in her room she has to watch comercials, Imagine that. I did not even have a TV in my room as a child and I am still alive. Enough of my ranting!! I will drag her geocaching with me because I know deep down that she loves the hunt and I will continue to post "We had a fantastic time, thanks for the hunt"!

[+DustyJacket]

I don't lie in the logs.

If it was a so-so then I log thanks for the cache.

Usually I log my tale.

 

And sometimes I complain if I didn't like the cache, even though it may be unwarranted. Like this recent log where I accidentally did a "micro in the woods" cache which I dislike.

 

http://www.geocaching.com/seek/log.aspx?LU...bf-d7b9f3b746f8

[+Huntnlady]

Nope, I don't lie on the logs, without giving out spoilers I tell it like it is. If its not much of a cach you won't see much comment out of me. If the cache creates a story, then write one about it. Read some of Oregone's logs and learn how to write creatively.

 

Don't complain, it got you out of the house, didn't it?

[+Mark 42]

True stories are best, whether they have a happy ending or a

broken ankle and a DNF.

 

I did delete anaccount of a dog-owner attack from my cache description

to avoid scring off people who might think that it is a dag and bunghole

infested area (I haven't seen the Bunghole with the Doberman since the

day I scouted the territory befor placing the cache).

[Broncoholics]

If you aren't enjoying the hobby, then stop doing it. You can then stop whining about telling "little white lies" and feeling guilty about it.

 

First of all, know one said we didn't enjoy the hobby, and we are by no means whining about it, therefore there is no guilt. The thread was started in order to hear of other's tales.

 

You must have some tale to tell??

 

Duane

Upinyachit

[+SixDogTeam]

I always tell it like it is. I even rate the cache A,B, C in my logs. And 99% of my finds and no finds have been a great time, no matter what stoopid things I might do to hurt myself, or make it more difficult. Most cache sites take you to a beautiful or interesting place that you're glad you went to, no matter how hard is was. But I don't appreciate the caches that are hidden in a stinking toxic waste dump swamp full of trash, guarded by inpenetrable stickers... and I let them know it-- and believe me, I've been to them. What were they thinking?

[+Stump]

I think the biggest lie of all is not posting 'not founds'.  I think it's silly some don't want to see the frown, but it harms the owners (they don't know it might've been plundered) and future seekers (who might be searching for something non-existant).

I agree. I think it's so frustrating to see cache after cache where people post finds that say they found it on the third or fourth time but there's no DNFs. They should let the cache owner know that they looked for it and couldn't find it. Maybe the difficulty is too low or it needs a hint or it's been plundered or moved.

 

I'm hesitant to go to one cache near my Dad's because it hasn't been found in a while. Not sure if it's because people are looking and not finding and it's probably plundered or whether they just aren't looking.

 

Of course, with that said, I won't report multiple DNFs on a cache until I find or propose it be archived. I don't want to scare people off who don't notice it's the same moron that can't find this cache not a bunch of different people.

[+TotemLake]

If you aren't enjoying the hobby, then stop doing it. You can then stop whining about telling "little white lies" and feeling guilty about it.

 

First of all, know one said we didn't enjoy the hobby, and we are by no means whining about it, therefore there is no guilt. The thread was started in order to hear of other's tales.

 

You must have some tale to tell??

 

Duane

Upinyachit

Funny you should ask. I had a cache hunt that was my worst and best day ever. When I reached the end of the hike and sat in my jeep and rehydrated myself and my trusty dog, Snickers! with my remaining water and gatorade, I was able to honestly say that it was fun without any recriminations.

 

Start here, then continue here, with the final page here.

 

I should add, the two big toes were seriously bruised, one of the toenails have already fallen off, the other one is working its way to falling off any day now.

 

One other comment: Your original post combined telling little white lies about the cache being fun when the caches weren't so fun. Let me put it to you this way... Why lie about it? How can a cache be improved upon if the owner doesn't receive good info?

Edited November 27, 2003 by TotemLake

[mufasa1023]

well....as ive mentioned in another post about a birdhouse cache...it was by far the hardest ive ever done and its only been around for 8 monthes or so and has recieved something like 70 visits....when i cannot find something im very proud to tell the hider "you got me....jerk"

[+The Daniel Boone Gang]

Little white lies.... hmmm

 

I suppose we have told a few. We've recorded "thanks for the cache" a few times when I really wanted to record "I wish I never came to this forsaken pit".

 

I think the fun part of those caches comes a few hours later when you're home recording your comments online and you have to laugh about it.

 

I remember one in particular - we had trouble locating a decent starting point into the wooded area and a group of us started in at a point that looked like a path. About 50 meters in it became the bushwack adventure from hell. We drove a couple hours to get there, etc. so there was no turning back, and we forged ahead, cursing all the way.

 

My buddy (a "it's no fun unless we're bleeding" type of guy) says "we're about an 1.5km from the cache site". His girlfriend says "And then what do we do - live there?"

 

I was laughing so hard I almost fell over. Several wounds later, we found the cache site and hunt was fantastic as the area rocks were throwing us off. We were able to triagulate on the cache and found it after an hour of searching the site.

 

I guess the bottom line is this - when we recorded comments in the log "thanks for the cache" I was lying. Hours later when I recorded comments online and said it was great fun - I wasn't.

Edited November 27, 2003 by The Daniel Boone Gang

[Cholo]

 

About 50 meters in it became .

 

"we're about an 1.5km from the cache site".

This is slightly related to the topic, and has been brought up in the discussion area.

 

I have nothing against the metric system. The quoted post seems like one good example to have the location of the poster put under the user name or avatar, as was done before the big change. I didn't see the maple leaf at first glance, but the name Daniel Boone stuck in my mind. While reading the post, the use of meters and kms caught me off guard. Why would Daniel Boone use meters? If I had seen Hamilton, On or some other reference to the great white north, it wouldn't have fazed me one bit. The location feature gives a little hint on the perspective of the author of the post. I think Jeremy is looking into re-inserting this feature. As Dan'l once said, "I've never been lost, just momentarily discombobulated"....or something like that.

[+Brian - Team A.I.]

If I have an 'adventure' on a cache, I don't embellish it. If I took a fall off a rock I thought was stable and bust something up, I tell it. If I buried my pickup in dirt, I'd talk about that too. While embarassing, it doesn't make sense to turn it into a work of fiction, and may very well save someone else the embarassment of injury later on so they end up taking more precautions.

[+Perrin]

Personally I prefer hearing the truth about one of my caches. If some one fell and broke a leg I want to know why so I can change things if need be. Now if they just broke their leg cuz they were a bone head that's different.

 

I'll usually try to tell the owner what I think about the cache. If it sucked, then it sucked, there's no getting around that. And if you don't say it sucked then it will continue to suck for the next person who comes along.

[+Alan2]

I alwaqys at least say Tks on my posts even if the cache was a bummer. After all the guy went through the trouble of placing it. Often, in an urban area where I lve, there aren't too many great places to begin with and often these areas are not so pristine - lots of trash, even at my caches. What are you going to do?

 

You can always email the hider directly. There's no point embarassing him with a public post unless there's a safety issue that should mentioned.

[jimmy689]

I haven't been at this long enough to get hurt. The worst thing that has happened to me is not marking where I parked on my gps. I walked a half mile past my truck before emerging from the woods. No big deal and a lesson learned.

J.D.

[+The Daniel Boone Gang]

I have to agree with Alan2. Nobody goes through the effort of placing a cache with the clear intent on making it a bummer. It may be the first cache they've placed, and it would be rude to come down on them for trying their best.

 

After a few cache hunts, I wanted to put out my own cache. I have to admit, the location turned out to be not so great. After a couple weeks (after gaining more experience), I realized that the cache had to be moved.

 

People will figure it out soon enough, and if they care, they'll fix it themself.

 

In our area, there aren't a ton of caches and usually within 1 or 2 days of a new cache being posted, the 7 or 8 heavy duty cachers in the area have already visited - people with 500+ finds. They're comments are always positive because they're just glad to see someone giving them a new cache to visit.

 

Occationally I've commented that the cache box seems pretty cleaned out - but that's not a criticism of the cache creator - more like a "head's up" message.

[Broncoholics]

I love the mods when they close a topic........

[Broncoholics]

I think "dboggny" likes me very much and would like to go caching together.

[+Webfoot]

I am most disappointed when I get out of the car, walk 100 yards on a paved path and find the cache without even having to kneel in the dirt.

I have to agree with you on this one. I like those half mile to mile hikes into the woods, crawling under branches and through thick brush as opposed to what you described.

[+Webfoot]

Some caches i have found have been easy and some a little harder. I am a newbie, but I enjoy every one of them. I just like getting out, walking and searching using the gps. I also like to bushwhack to, even if i don't have to.

And when I considered myself a newbie, I like the easier caches. Warming me up for the more difficult ones I suppose. Of course, then what do I do but go on a two and half miler, one way, for my second cache experience.

 

And my fourth or fifth cache was a three and a half miler with five stream crossings. My son had loads of fun with that one, once he decided it was easier just to wade across as opposed to try and stay dry.