Caches That Look Like Trashes.

January 6, 2004

ok, call me a cache snob I don't care. I have hidden 3 caches so far and have tried to populate them with some cool things. things that ohters might actually want or could use. I have found 30+ caches now, and most are like trash cans, with stuff I owuldn't let my dog play with. whats the deal? are people in san diego to cheap to go out and buy some small items that are actually of use to someone else, or at least a decent trade of cache?

one person said took cool bottle opener, left penny, exchange rate in SD sux. WTF? is that lame or what? come on. I got out to places and see cool little items all the time and spend a few bucks a week, and I am une,mployed, and leave these thigns in the caches. the only time I don't is when I happen upon anohter cache that looks like trash, and I TN, LN.

why would I trade somethign that I got at disneyland, or a cool collectabel of somethign for a green army man that someones 6 year old chewed on and left for the cache trade?

like I am talking GHETTO, white trash cache.....

if you can afford a freakign GPS, then take the time and invest a little in the game and participate by putting some coolthings in the cache. thats why my ( so far 3) caches are themed. and so far at least a couple of them have had things, not of the theme placed in them. LAME!

read the cache page and it says themed, please participate as such or don't participate at all.

yes I know there are moms that go out with there kids and they want cool things in the cache for the kiddies, thats all fine and stuff, but at least place cool stuff in there when you take cool stuff out. a prime example, is one such cacher known for cachign at night, involved his kids by having them dig out some cool things that were goth or as close to goth as could be. and they traded goods for goods. not trash for goods. I was talking to one other cacher who does more virtual caches because mayeb she is tired of the trash caches she had been finding. she said to me her take on the san diego cache theme was also trash.

if I am goign to spend a few buck on each item in the caches I hide, I would hope that someone would either take osmethign and leave somethign cool, or leave nothing and take nothing.

a penny? a plastic whistle? that someone has already sucked on? a rubber ball? comeone people, get a clue and stop robbing the caches. stop being ghetto.

that is all.

January 6, 2004

Unfortunately, I have to agree. It seems like a lot of recent caches either have cache-trash in them, or are in trashy areas I never would want to go to. Thats why I carry a big pointy stick and pepper spray. I refuse to be intimidated, although, one must know when to back down and assess the risks.

Is it the geo-caching etiquitte that has fallen by the wayside? Or maybe the huge amounts of new cachers who don't know the rules?

JMHO

January 6, 2004

Most caches given time will be filled with trashy items. It's inevitable and it ain't just San Diego.

Personally the trade items aren't why I participate- I love simply finding the caches. I know some people cache with their kids and in order to motivate them to come along there needs to be some decent goodies in the cache. To each his own I guess.

Sometimes I place gift certificates in my caches- generally just for the first finder. Someday I hope a Bill Gates type takes up our hobby and puts a few crisp hundred dollar bills in. For now in SD we've got Gary Samad's Russian Nesting Dolls.

Welcome to the game, Darkman, and I look forward to finding your caches.

January 6, 2004

russian nesting dolls, those dolls inside dollls? hehehe cool, I personally like putting miniture living dead dolls, as my caches are gothic/industrial themed....

yea, I try to put good stuff in there, and I was going to do the gift certs too. and I understand the kids thing too, but there has got to be some give witht he take. I don't go just for the booty, I go for the hunt and the find, but i also like trading cool stuff for cool stuff.

January 17, 2004

Having put good stuff, and soso stuff in my caches, I would like to point out that the point is the hunt, not the booty. What is good, and what is junk is really in the eye of the beholder. A McToy to you might be a McTreasure to a kid.

My favorite stuff to find are the hand made trinkets like beautiful knot left in a cache in the Sacramento area, or "objects 'd cache" like Skrwl's pins.

As to other folks caches, I always try to trade up, always leave it better than I found it. Often I will TNLN for a couple of caches, then leave something really good in the third cache.

Yes some people are jerks. But the choice on how to deal with them is yours. I suggest that you just keep making fun caches, and others will follow your lead

January 17, 2004

yes, I do try to leave better than I found. By trash I am tlaking about, an army man that their 2Yr old chewed on and traded for something really cool. I like to leave cool stuff from disneyland, or somethign goth/industrial,somethign pirate like, and things that a kid would love, IE: treasure. I also like ot leave somethigns for adults that would be like, WOW, I oculd really use that. IE: mini jewelers screwdriver set. maybe to you the reward is the find, but to me, its both, booty and the hunt. I found a really cool pewter octopus in a cache one day to which I still have and have it on my keyring. when I find cool stuff, I always trade cool stuff, when I find trash, I either leave nothing/leave nothing, take nothing/leave something cool. when I go to the gas station they always have impulse stuff at the counter, sometimes I will buy somethign and toss it in my cache box of goodies, for when I go caching or when I make a cache. I also go to drug stores and $.99 stores adn look for deals on thigns thta people could really use.

24.7k · January 17, 2004

It's a universal problem.

but on the bright side. If caches have survived long enough to be traded down, at least cachers got the good stuff and not the maggots who plunder caches.

January 17, 2004

hehehe, this is true....

some of my personal favorite logs are:

took the really cool thing, forgot what we left. (IE: Trash)

TNLN(IE: we really took the cool stuff and left nothing, but said we TN)

Took the cool thing, left a really cool thing.(IE: but when I go to check my cache, wheres the cool thing you said you left?)

TN, Left somethign really cool(IE: took the cool stuff but didn't want to say we did, and left something cool, or trash)

its funny how people do go out to get the cool swag and leave nothing to be traded up. not.

January 17, 2004

A close friend of mine put a cache out here in our area and I was about the the 4th person to sign the log. I noticed that the person logging before me, scribbles an AOL e-mail address at the top of the log that gives you the impression that they have several children. There was no was no statement of anything left or taken. The well known local cachers that were there before us, left some little cars and noted what they took. After a few days, I checked with my friend to see if this person with no nickname had e-mailed her and we realized between us that a lot more really good stuff from the cache was missing. Is it appropriate to e-mail this person with a friendly note inquiring if they are going to log this on line and gently include the fact that you hope they enjoyed the loot they took? I guess you can never be 100% sure WHO took the stuff. Or is it just better to let it go as part of the game? Should we post this persons full e-mail address so other cachers can watch out for his person? We are all new to this and really love the hunt...it is just discouraging for your first cache to be "looted" right off the bat.

Thanks for any comments...

Shoebugs

Arizona

3.1k · January 17, 2004

That happens to every cache. Whenever I go back to my own caches to check them out it's dissapointing to say the least. It's always been this way, every cache goes downhill unless the owner decides to constantly upgrade his own cache.

Forget that I say. Let the cache live it's own life. I've taken to putting out "maxi micros" lately which are average size cache containers with only a logbook inside. This way people can drop off a TB if they want. Other caches I'll put in a few toys for kids. But I've given up putting nice things in caches. It isn't worth the effort any longer.

January 17, 2004

Good quality toys = fine, but if you're an adult with no kids, bring something else.

Dirty toys that you wouldn't let your dog near = poor show, bad cacher

Tradeshows and conferences seem to be good places to get some cool (cheap, free) cache items

January 20, 2004

I live in north county San Diego, but haven't gotten to one of your new caches yet.

I agree that trades should be fair, but you have to live with the downward quality of cache items. In my Ammunition Sgt Cox cache I put a lot of good items for both adults and kids as well as some compilation CDs I had burned. Everything was purchased, and nothing was crappy garage trash. I went back once, and there was only one nice item in the cache someone had left. All my cool stuff was replaced by junk. That's life.

I generally only trade items when my 7 year old is with me. Otherwise when I say TNLN, I mean it. In fact, people know I often leave signature items like Lorenzo's Gold and take nothing at all. The only time I'll remove something is when the cache is ready to explode. The item I take will end up in another cache (unless it's really crappy).

Themes are hard. You have to keep things easy for people. Lorenzo's Gold just requires gold items... anything goldish will do. Even that's hard for some people!

Now, I've seen your caches, and part of the problem may be that people don't know what the heck they're supposed to bring. Gothic can mean a lot of things. Originally "gothic" meant relating to the eastern Germanic tribe called Goths. Then it was generally used as a synonym for the "Western European Medieval" period. A pointed arch (developed by the Arabs actually) used in medieval cathedrals is a "gothic arch" for example. What a lot of people call "Old English" lettering is no such thing; it's actually a medieval script called "Black Letter Gothic" (Old English is a language, not a script).... This terminology for things medieval later came to be applied for a genre of fiction featuring old spooky medieval-like settings. In other words things inspired by early fantasy-horror novels such as Frankenstein and Dracula. "Gothic romances" also developed. Ever seen Dark Shadows? That was a gothic romance soap opera... Then in the late 70s/early 80s a genre of alternative music in the punk vein started featuring spooky or death related imagery. The fans would wear black, put on black polish and makeup, etc. In other words, what people call "goths" now.

Industrial music was originally unrelated to gothic music, although they developed at about the same time. Industrial music was pioneered by people experimenting with sound, especially electronic instruments. It thus has more in common with various forms of electronica. Groups such as Throbbing Gristle (and offshoots Psychic TV and CTI), SPK, Cabaret Voltaire, Kraftwerk, etc. were early industrial artists. Where did the name come from? TGs label was called "Industrial Music." So you can give them credit. In the early days you could imagine author William S. Burroughs in music form.

http://www.brainwashed.com/tg/industrial.html

Do the majority of GPS weilding geeks know what all this stuff is? No... So good luck on your theme. I don't think any of my old vinyl albums will fit in your caches either. <_<

Parsa

January 21, 2004

Groups such as Throbbing Gristle (and offshoots Psychic TV and CTI), SPK, Cabaret Voltaire, Kraftwerk, etc. were early industrial artists.

I don't think any of my old vinyl albums will fit in your caches either.

Parsa

Geez Parsa

And I thought listening to King Crimson and Pink Floyd made me unique!

Dave

January 21, 2004

Originally "gothic" meant relating to the eastern Germanic tribe called Goths. Then it was generally used as a synonym for the "Western European Medieval" period...

Is there any doubt that Parsa is an educator? :rolleyes:

I agree with you on the themes. I wondered about that when I set up my High Fidelity bad music cache. I think I'll steer clear of the themes and just boggle 'em with odd containers. Not necessarily hard, just different.

January 23, 2004

Cache trache problems abound everywhere. Most of the time there is at least one redeeming item in the cache. i sometimes order stuff from the oriental trading company (party supplies). sometimes i package a few things togethter in goodie bags.

i have on occasion "cleaned up" the trash from a cache and replaced it with new stuff i carry in the cache bag. that way the next time a wee one comes along there is something fun for them and a find for the adult.

i also when first placing a cache leave a "prize" for the first to find. i try to link it to the cache inspiration.

i'm going to be placing a "game like" cache soon with special prizes for those who "win" the game. look for it soon

January 29, 2004

I also always try to trade up or atleast even. It isn't always possible. But I do agree that if the toy has been chewed upon, or if it looks as though the kid carried it around for years, then it shouldn't be traded. I use a lot of small items that I buy at dollar stores, or gas stations. But I have also used some of the burger joint toys as well. But the catch is that I take them right out of the package and into my big pack pack that I take out with me. Reason is because when the kids see something that they think is cool, it is usually a toy anyways. So when they take a toy that is old and dirty, (which I usually throw away as soon as we get home!) I put int he brand new toy. or even a small stuffed animal. something of the sort. The only thing that really bothers me in caches that I have seen is this. I find the cache and all that is in it is a shoelace, or a zipper puller.

January 30, 2004

I have to agree so far every one of the AZ urban caches I went to were like that, filled with geo-trash. Then after introducing my Flagstaff friends Team_420 to geocaching, most of the AZ Outback caches are the same also. Nothing kills a group of 6 year olds desire to cache when seeing a bunch of crap after hiking uphill.

I've only placed 4 caches so far and there is no geo-trash in them yet. I do a monthly cache check just for that reason. I'd rather see people sign the log.

Its funny but in 193 countries ther is 89744 caches around the world. As a Archaeologist I think it kinda funny to see people hiding trash all over the planet. I wonder what my collegues will say about this activity in the future.

MHO

Edited January 30, 2004 by Duaut

January 30, 2004

Now, I've seen your caches, and part of the problem may be that people don't know what the heck they're supposed to bring. Gothic can mean a lot of things. Originally "gothic" meant relating to the eastern Germanic tribe called Goths. Then it was generally used as a synonym for the "Western European Medieval" period. A pointed arch (developed by the Arabs actually) used in medieval cathedrals is a "gothic arch" for example. What a lot of people call "Old English" lettering is no such thing; it's actually a medieval script called "Black Letter Gothic" (Old English is a language, not a script).... This terminology for things medieval later came to be applied for a genre of fiction featuring old spooky medieval-like settings. In other words things inspired by early fantasy-horror novels such as Frankenstein and Dracula. "Gothic romances" also developed. Ever seen Dark Shadows? That was a gothic romance soap opera... Then in the late 70s/early 80s a genre of alternative music in the punk vein started featuring spooky or death related imagery. The fans would wear black, put on black polish and makeup, etc. In other words, what people call "goths" now.

all tha stuff works for me too. gothic means gothic, and goths now gothic and so do regular people.

I can understand where your coming form , that why I sometimes say go to hot topic. and get anything....or whatever. some people do try even tho they don't know what goth/industrial is..

January 30, 2004

I think I'll steer clear of the themes and just boggle 'em with odd containers. Not necessarily hard, just different.

that a good idea....

I ahev learned much since my first cahce.

January 30, 2004

I agree with duaut. I have placed one cache that i maintaine all the time.When i go to the cache. I always bring new in the pkg toys and restock the cache.Six dollars at the dollar store buyes alot.I also put alot of things that i make on the computer. stickers, transfers,window clings,calanders,and such. As for trading out on other caches i trade things that i have made a bundled pkg ,wooden coins,sig card,key fobes ,with a email address,that when people take the item to keep they email me. That just makes it that much more fun for me.

January 31, 2004

hehehe. my gorlfriend and I went to the .99 store and then pic n save and she went hog wild. heheheh, ended up wiht a ton of stuff. more than me, and so we were supposed to go whaling watchign tomorrow adn she said she would rather go geo caching. imagine that?

February 2, 2004

hehehe. my gorlfriend and I went to the .99 store and then pic n save and she went hog wild. heheheh, ended up wiht a ton of stuff. more than me, and so we were supposed to go whaling watchign tomorrow adn she said she would rather go geo caching. imagine that?

Sounds like a keeper to me!

Parsa

February 3, 2004

My trade bag is filled with stuff that costs a buck or less. It can be frustrating to end up at a cache where all the stuff is really nice - what can I trade? (It's nice stuff, interesting more or less, just cheap.)

February 3, 2004

well I get stuff there that is neat too, like mini lanterns for light and stuff, I also go to target and get stuff on closeout or on sale, like after xmas....I also go to drug stores and look in the hardware department, and get mini screwdriver sets, also harbor frieght is a good place..... I have cheap stuff thats cool, and i have good stuff too... ike target has hot wheels for $.94, kids love em, and I keep them inthe package, nothing like finding soemthgin new in the package....

4.1k · February 3, 2004

I have to agree so far every one of the AZ urban caches I went to were like that, filled with geo-trash. Then after introducing my Flagstaff friends Team_420 to geocaching, most of the AZ Outback caches are the same also. Nothing kills a group of 6 year olds desire to cache when seeing a bunch of crap after hiking uphill.

Do you mean Team_420 is responsible for the Az outback caches being degraded?

We have found that 'urban' and near 'urban' easy caches are depleted fairly quickly. I don't know anyway to avoid that problem, except to make access more difficult (farther from the city and/or hidden tougher).

It's hard to convince people to trade eqitibly. We read one log where the finder went on about how nice the cache was and what nice items were in it. He then said how he didn't have anything as nice with him so he took a pair of gloves and left a 'Where's George' dollar. Good trade for him!

I'm afraid that is just the way most people are and they will NOT change regardless of how much we preach.

John

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