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Discouraged Newbie


goldfishy

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;) I recently discovered the wonderful world of geocaching. Within minutes, I was hooked! However, as I delved deeper into details, such as reading others entries and comparing notes and tallies, I am quickly getting discouraged. For example, a brand new cache popped up early in the morning, to which I promptly was extremely enthusiastic of possibly being the FTF. Although the difficulty and terrain ratings weren't that high, I've struggled to no end. Another geocacher beat me to it. In addition, I found out that another cache I have been struggling with EVEN MORE was also just found by this cacher! I happened to look up their logs of caches found, and see that they have very high averages of finds per day! I also saw that they were FTF on a lot of all the new ones. Cachers like this discourage me greatly, and seem to spoil it for all involved. I'm sure there are diehards out there, but it seems really brutal for all us newbies. I take it there is no regulation of this type of stuff? How was it when you first started? What do you do to get past a pile of 'no finds' (aside from just trying other locations)?
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;)  I recently discovered the wonderful world of geocaching.  Within minutes, I was hooked!  However, as I delved deeper into details, such as reading others entries and comparing notes and tallies, I am quickly getting discouraged.  For example, a brand new cache popped up early in the morning, to which I promptly was extremely enthusiastic of possibly being the FTF.  Although the difficulty and terrain ratings weren't that high, I've struggled to no end.  Another geocacher beat me to it.  In addition, I found out that another cache I have been struggling with EVEN MORE was also just found by this cacher!  I happened to look up their logs of caches found, and see that they have very high averages of finds per day!  I also saw that they were FTF on a lot of all the new ones.  Cachers like this discourage me greatly, and seem to spoil it for all involved.  I'm sure there are diehards out there, but it seems really brutal for all us newbies.  I take it there is no regulation of this type of stuff?  How was it when you first started?  What do you do to get past a pile of 'no finds' (aside from just trying other locations)?

You have 3 finds at the time of my writing this. All are difficulty level 3. you might want to start on some 1's. Its like learning to crawl before you walk or run. You might be setting your sights too high to start.

 

As for the FTF. If it's something you want bad enough you have to get out there and work for it. The old saying, "The early bird gets the worm" applies. just keep trying and you will get the hang of this.

Edited by CO Admin
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I know this may sound harsh, but... if first you don't suceed try, try again. After you get some finds under your belt you will learn where and how to look for a cache when you arrive at the area where it is located. There are a lot of us that like to try to be FTF and we enjoy the friendly competition. I feel sure that if you stick with the sport/hobby you will soon find yourself engaging in this friendly competition. Happy caching!

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HANG IN THERE!!!

 

<insert my best Yoda voice> More caches you must find before a Jedi you would be hmmmmm. </yoda voice>

 

Yes, like the purple pony guy said, find a few more and your spider senses will grow.

 

Don't sweat the FTF's. I know alllll the FTF junkies in my area. They are great people and you can learn from them. It's all the more fun when you beat one to the punch.

 

Sn :);) gans

Edited by Snoogans
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My advice to you is to not judge your hunt by others'. FTF's are great, but still only log you one find.

 

As far as the die-hards, I spent 6 hours hiding a four-part cache, and a die-hard here went out at 10pm in 30 degree drizzlin weather and found all four in 40 minutes. Kinda makes ya go "Sheesh!" But then again, I added to the enjoyment of others.

 

Getting past the "no finds" just takes practice and patience. ;) The first two I searched for were DNF's and someone found one of them the same day I searched. The other was missing, so I didn't do too bad.

 

Just have fun and only try to beat yourself :)

 

SS

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Hang in there. It may seem unfair that an experienced cacher is grabbing up FTFs and finding caches easier than you, but don't worry. Once you do some more caches you will begin to develop subtle skills that will make all the difference.

 

You will get better at perceiving signs of where a cache is hidden. You will learn to search patiently and notice thing you wouldn't have before.

 

I got a lesson not too long ago about how much I had learned when I took a newbie out caching. Of the half dozen caches we did he had trouble with all but one of them.(even though none of them were over 2 for difficulty)

 

I had no trouble with any of them, and spent much of the time patiently waiting for him even when I knew where the cache was.

 

Give it time, you'll catch on, and be thrilled when you get your first FTF. ;)

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Well, like the purple pony said, you need to start out simple. You don't enter the Indy 500 the week you pass your driver's exam.

Besides, don't worry about the other cachers. The great thing about geocaching is it's really just between you and the cache. You aren't competing with anyone but yourself. Most cachers, after enough finds ( I would say around 30-50) start developing what we call "the force". It's really just your skills at recognizing potential hiding spots gets better. Eventually, you will come to know your local hiders better, and see each one has a certain "style" hiding caches. You'll know that Joe usually hides his caches in tree stumps, and Billy hides them in the rocks. Stuff like that. Good luck, and just have fun.

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Just try to take it at your own pace. Don't try to keep up with these "die hard" cachers. Some cachers are retired and are able to dedicate a whole 'lotta time to it, whereas others. like students or those of us with full time jobs or families, have to manage our time better.

 

And yes, it is somewhat of a thrill to find a "virgin" cache, but even if you're not a FTF, the cache is still there waiting for you to find it. And that's just as fun in my book. I go for the fun of the hunt and being outside. Although, I will admit, my first week of caching I went a little overboard. ;)

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The whole "I'm first! I'm first!" thing never really has come into my view (except for once when I and another cacher planned an amphibious assault on a cache that had never been found in the year or so it had been there, but that one was 6.5 miles from the nearest shoreline). I really don't care how many finds a cache has. In fact, if it's had a few finds (or more), it's might even be more interesting, but at least I may be able to trade up more easily. ;)

 

As far as getting in a slump goes, there are two common ways to get out of one. The first way is to just keep going until it passes, and the second way is to hit an event cache (or even just a group of cachers) and go find some together. While it may not be what the competitive types believe in, it certainly seems to bring the fun back to the front.

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Being FTF is part timing and part skill. Skill comes with time. Timing means being willing to go even if it is dark or going at five in the morning if that is what it takes to be FTF. Remember that other cacher WILL have a day some day when he is too busy to get out.

 

Remember Luke that a Jedi master is not made in a day.

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This is not a competition, forget about what the other cachers are up to. FTF is a bonus, but if you want it you need to make it happen by just being ready to go at a moments notice. You'll get one. You are your only competition in this game. Relax and try some easier ones. ;) Oh yeah..Welcome

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As I have been FTF a few times, sure it is nice to get there first. But it isn't a real concern, though.

 

What is really discouraging is hunting for a cache endlessly, soon to be a FTF only to find out that it is missing ;) ...

 

...and see that it was found later that day 550 FEET AWAY from your looking spot.

 

Bug spray:$3.00

 

New hiking stick:$50.00

 

Realizing that you had a bad grid, since you were one digit off on you cords and leaving the cache descrip in the truck on a 1/1..... Priceless!

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GIVE UP NOW! J/K!

I can totally relate to the "No Finds." I went out on New Year's Eve Day and found a few but I went to one cache site without reading up like I should and found a padlock on the cache. Went home read up and found out it was a multi-cache. Did my homework, went back and still didn't get the padlock to open! I guess I didn't do the homewrok to well...

 

That is the beauty of geocaching. Besides being fun, it can really teach a person patience and to be prepared. Best of luck to on the "FTF!" I am sure you will get one soon!

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GIVE UP NOW! J/K!

I can totally relate to the "No Finds." I went out on New Year's Eve Day and found a few but I went to one cache site without reading up like I should and found a padlock on the cache. Went home read up and found out it was a multi-cache. Did my homework, went back and still didn't get the padlock to open! I guess I didn't do the homewrok to well...

 

That is the beauty of geocaching. Besides being fun, it can really teach a person patience and to be prepared. Best of luck to on the "FTF!" I am sure you will get one soon!

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It is a compitition ...

It is?? To each their own I guess. Don’t get me wrong - there’s nothing wrong with healthy competition, but I have never considered Geocaching as a competition, and I hope I never do. I find Geocaching personally challenging, but I hope that my personal conquests don’t negatively impact on the enjoyment that other cachers like Goldfishy get from it.

 

My advice to Goldfishy, is to read the logs of caches and select only the ones that look like they are going to be a real adventure to a neat area you have never been to before. Preferably one that includes a good hike. You certainly won’t be able to collect a dozen of these in a day! - maybe 2 - 3 tops. Pack a lunch. Look forward to arriving at a destination. If the cache hider recommends a particular route take it even if it looks longer - its probably the most scenic. When you get to the cache area, enjoy it and have a good look around. If you find the cache, spend some time reading the logbook and having a good look at the interesting signature items. If you don’t find it - no big deal. Sit down on a nice rock and eat your lunch while enjoying the view. Take a deep breath, let it out, and you will find yourself saying “Yes - this is what Geocaching is all about”.

 

And oh yeah, don’t be turned off by difficulty 3, 4 & 5's - I would way rather be the first to log a "Did Not Find" on a really enjoyable cache hunt, than boast about being FTF on a lame 1/1 hidden in a ditch behind a warehouse.

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If you want to beat the FTF guy, do not go caching at the break of dawn, use a flashlight instead. If you do it right you can then enjoy the dual pleasures of dawn breaking and the FTF guy coming up the hill as you relax from a couple hundred feet away.

 

And if you aren't willing to go out in the rain at 3 am with a flashlight then don't get upset that someone else did.

 

As I read the first post, it seemed like the only person making this sport unfun for you is you. Why would anyone need to be the FTF and have a row of success in order to enjoy what should be a nice walk in the woods followed by a short treasure hunt? Who are you competing against and why do you consider it unfair if they beat you because they're more experienced?

 

By the way, here's what FTF really means sometimes:

FTF that the co-ordinates were off by a mile.

FTF that the cache is on private property.

FTF that the cache can be seen from the side of the road/trail and is begging for a muggling.

FTF that you need to go back to the car and bring a logbook and a pencil in order to be able to log the cache.

 

Remember: There are no signiture items for the FTF.

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As others have said, just finding caches is a good start. You should not be discouraged by others getting a FTF that you're after. There's as much competition as you like in caching. We have the following competition in our caching:

 

1. Personal best. We got exactly 100 caches in our first year. This year we're going for another 100. This is harder because we've used up all the local ones.

 

2. Locally there are a few people in very healthy competition for first finds. There are no great prizes in the caches for FTF in our area, but I think we've all done things like taking an afternoon off work to try for a FTF. At one, a team were about 2 minutes behind us, but didn't make themselves known. The first we knew was when photos of us were posted on the cache page!

 

3. Placing caches, we always want to place the very best we can. That could be for the challenge or a good location. This, again, is a personal goal. We recently placed a 5/5 which required a couple of weeks of research, equipment purchasing and a group to place. The first finder just walked up and got it - easy as anything. We could have been disheartened by that, but instead it made a nice log to lull even more people into thinking it's as easy as it seems from the info sheet.

 

4. We're slowly increasing our fitness, and don't only go for a couple of 1 or 2-terrain caches now. We're happy to try, maybe, 5 caches in a day, or a couple of 3 or 4-terrain caches.

 

5. Sarah and I always have a very small bet, in the region of 5p (4 cents) on who will be FTF on the caches we place.

 

Get a few finds. Get used to caching and using the GPS. When you happen to notice a new cache, if it's convenient to do so, and you feel like it, drop everything and go get it. Don't worry if you're not first - but you might be!

 

Cheers,

 

Stu

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I agree with Seneca. It's not a competition. If you want to play it like it is then go ahead. To each his own.

 

I have a couple of FTFs and they don't mean squat to me. Do what Seneca said. Pick a couple that look interesting and intrigue you. Those are the ones you will remember most. Enjoy the day. Enjoy the spot. Enjoy the find.

 

Welcome to the fun.

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Don't let it stress you out. FTF usually just means that you saw the page first and could run right out. As everyone has said, its not really a competition. Let Let the FTFanatics get out there and find it first. Let them struggle through any problems with the cache.

 

Finding the caches does get better with experience. Although, I still occasionally get stumped by easy ones on occasion. When I get in a rut, I just go back to basics. Here's a really old thread related to how people find the cache once they are at ground zero.

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Okay, by now you've heard it all...

I must agree that you should be patient...

However !

There is always the option of posting your own site and as soon as it's verified, you can sneak out and dislocate it and when the FTF'er is looking for it, stand there and make fun of him/her...

(Just kidding...)

:huh:

Seriously though, have fun and son't take yourself too seriously.

My two cents...

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Just enjoy, enjoy and enjoy.

I'm retired, have all the time in the world and feel great to find any cache. I have been known to be as high as 10th. to find, how's that for laughs.

Ignore all you read and only half of what you hear, just get out and search.

Good luck and great to have you in the fold.

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Newbie to newbie advice here.

 

I started just under a month ago and at this writing have 21 finds. These are all from 1 to 3.5 rating. Here's some suggestions to keep going.

 

First, have fun and try not to be discouraged. Easier said than done, but if you don't make the find, take in the scenery.

 

Hook up with an experienced cacher in your area and ask them to take you to a park with a large number of caches of all levels. I connected with mrkablooey and it has made all the difference in the world.

 

When you do caches on your own, don't go for the hard ones. Stick to the 1 or 2 star caches. Build up some confidence to be able to tackle the harder ones.

 

Take someone with you. 2 sets of eyes are better than 1. Try to get a friend, co-worker or family member interested. Make sure you take a print out with you. Look for it and if you get stuck, decrypt the clues. Re-read the name and any notes. In my area, the name is usually a clue on it's own. I've noticed that the caches hidden by any 1 particular cacher tend to have similarities. This isn't always the case, but many times it is.

 

Last piece of advice. Have fun. That's the whole point of the game. If you don't have fun, there's no point in doing it.

 

Hope this helps.

 

F_M

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goldfishy,

 

If you regard geocaching as a competition, and from your post you most definitely do, then as a beginner you should expect to have your head handed to you by more experienced players for quite a long while.

 

As a moderately experienced (226 finds) player, I find some of the competitive aspects of geocaching fun, but not the be all and end all of the game. I know I'll probably never catch up to the four digit people, let alone the few who have passed 2,000. I know I'll probably never get FTF on caches that are approved at midnight, because I know there are people who will be out there in the middle of the night. There are puzzle cachers whose caches I usually have no clue how to even start solving, while others snap them up immediately. If I had to be a "champion" to be happy in this game, I would be very discouraged, indeed. Don't be. It isn't worth it.

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Remember, Geocaching is just the thrill of the hunt and going to places you might not otherwise go if you were not Geocaching.

 

Being FTF is cool, but you are still just finding a cache. I have over 70 finds, but only 1 FTF. That FTF was an extremely remote cache in the Central Sierra’s of California (it invovled driving over a one lane 10,000 foot mountain pass for 12 miles).

 

Being a FTF in an urban area is really difficult.

Every area seems to have those FTF specialists Geoachers. In the San Diego area, I discovered that to beat those people (and be FTF) you have to read the search logs around 4 AM when it’s posted and immediately go out.

 

So if you really want a FTF, get a little more experience then go after one of those remote backcountry caches. Like: Gramps Nap This cache was hidden in September 2002. No one has even tried to go after it. It is just outside the boundaries of Sequoia National Park (in Central California). It involves a 3 mile hike (from the trail head where you park your car) and there is about 1000 feet of elevation gain. Though this area is likely not accessible during the winter months.

Edited by Bobkat92
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My 9th or 10th find was my first (and only) FTF. I saw it on the weekly watch list of new caches, and decided to go try for it. I went out a few days after it was placed, and actually got the FTF. I was surprised, but pleased, also. It wouldn't have bothered me if I wasn't FTF, except that I was saving a travel bug to release in my first FTF. I knew it would come sooner or later. I still only have a dozen or so finds, and still am doing it just for the hunt and to get out of the house from time to time. Hang in there, it'll come to you, but don't judge your entire geocaching experience by the abundance or lack of FTF's. Just get out and enjoy yourself! :(

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So if you really want a FTF, get a little more experience then go after one of those remote backcountry caches.  Like: Gramps Nap  This cache was hidden in September 2002.  No one has even tried to go after it.  It is just outside the boundaries of Sequoia National Park (in Central California).  It involves a 3 mile hike (from the trail head where  you park your car) and there is about 1000 feet of elevation gain.  Though this area is likely not accessible during the winter months.

Here's another that nobody has gone after. Been there since July 2003

 

The Pines On S.I.

 

It's in the middle of the Chesapeake Bay.

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I was a FTF on a new cache but the person who found it AFTER me logged into her computer first and put herself down as a FTF! I know she was after me because I saw her!!! So not only do you have to be the FTF, you have to have your portable wireless laptop with you so you can beat them at login! Hee hee! -BK

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Hi I would just like to say that I am new too. I started on the first of January! That day i typed my postal code into the computer and it showed me loads of caches within 40miles. I just read a few and chose what looked like an easy one. I went out in the bitter cold to find it and when I did I was dead chuffed and to top it all off when I logged it I was a FTF .......but hey I am hooked and have now found three caches. One great thing bout not being first is you get to read the logbook and that can be fun. Keep going and you will get a FTF even though I personally don't care if a hundred people find it before me...LOL.....happy caching.......Bifter

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Hi I would just like to say that I am new too. I started on the first of January! That day i typed my postal code into the computer and it showed me loads of caches within 40miles. I just read a few and chose what looked like an easy one. I went out in the bitter cold to find it and when I did I was dead chuffed and to top it all off when I logged it I was a FTF .......but hey I am hooked and have now found three caches. One great thing bout not being first is you get to read the logbook and that can be fun. Keep going and you will get a FTF even though I personally don't care if a hundred people find it before me...LOL.....happy caching.......Bifter

Reading the log books is interesting.....very good point of view, bifter! :(

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I was a FTF on a new cache but the person who found it AFTER me logged into her computer first and put herself down as a FTF! I know she was after me because I saw her!!! So not only do you have to be the FTF, you have to have your portable wireless laptop with you so you can beat them at login! Hee hee! -BK

Did she actually write that she was FTF in her online log? If so, that's just wrong!

 

In my area, the first person to log online will say who actually found it first. This way there are no hard feelings due to the real FTF not logging in quick enough. Maybe this was the first of a half dozen caches they visited. They shouldn't lose the FTF honor just because someone else visited one cache and went home right away.

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For example, a brand new cache popped up early in the morning, to which I promptly was extremely enthusiastic of possibly being the FTF. Although the difficulty and terrain ratings weren't that high, I've struggled to no end. Another geocacher beat me to it. In addition, I found out that another cache I have been struggling with EVEN MORE was also just found by this cacher! I happened to look up their logs of caches found, and see that they have very high averages of finds per day!

struggled to no end? beat you to it?

 

Your posts makes it sound like you actually tried to be FTF on a new cache. Where's your found log? You just started about a week ago, and of the three you have found, they were all placed months ago.

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