Told Any Big Whoppers?

[+Laserman]

5. (Hold GPS to your ear): "Where are you guys? I've been waiting here for 30 minutes. I thought we were supposed to meet here and go for our walk! Oh, you're on the way? Okay, I will wait for you at the park bench (rock, trail, whatever)."

What happens when your 'walking partner' calls on the real cell phone in your jacket pocket. Do you answer it also and have two conversations?

[+Imajika]

5. (Hold GPS to your ear): "Where are you guys? I've been waiting here for 30 minutes. I thought we were supposed to meet here and go for our walk! Oh, you're on the way? Okay, I will wait for you at the park bench (rock, trail, whatever)."

What happens when your 'walking partner' calls on the real cell phone in your jacket pocket. Do you answer it also and have two conversations?

Cell phone is usually off when I cache actually. I have it in case I need to make an emergency call but I keep it off. Don't want to be disturbed while I am hunting for a cache.

[+cmpalmer]

Here is a good story for you.

 

THIS IS A REAL JOB

 

A friend of mine graduated with a degree in biology and his first job after college was doing an environmental impact study on pesticide use. This sounds interesting, huh? His job was to put on heavy clothing and waders and walk around in Florida woods and swamps (oh, excuse me, wetland areas) with a GPS and a clipboard and *count dead animals*.

 

So I figure my cover story would be, "I am doing an environmental impact study -- seen any dead things?"

[+wimseyguy]

While looking for a micro-multi stage under a greenway bridge I told some kids I was the structural inspector.

 

Turning the tables:

I actually had some muggles help me find a micro the other day. They were playing volleyball in the park while I attempted to seek it unnoticed. I was about to give up when one of them wandered over the the very well hidden container and said"Are you one of those people looking for this?" (there have been a lot of DNF's on this one.) He had observed the owner placing the cache and then 'taking measurements' in several directions. he thought it was some sort of radio transmitter.

I signed the log so I guess I 'found' the cache.

[+Wacka]

I usually explain geocaching to anyone asking. This weekend I was in a park with people playing basketball and tennis within 60 ft. Feeling conspicuous I looked in several bushes where I knew the cache wasn't. On the spot I thought up a story that I was doing a survey of field mice in the area and that there were new high-tech mousetraps in the bushes. My GPSr would be a detector that would get a signal if it was tripped! luckily, no one asked what I was doing.

[+TheNomad]

I was caching in a park somewhere in the San Jose area. The entrance to the park has these HUGE powerlines running through it. Just massive. Anyway, when I was about 6' from the cache, I saw it - and started to reach for it when - BAM - two kids (14ish and 18ish) with a dog walked right up to me and asked me what I was doing. My answer?

 

"I'm measuring electromagnetic frequencies in this area to see if they are high enough to hurt small animals."

 

They beat a hasty retreat.

[+Prairie Dog]

Helps if you have a camera with you, but tell them you're scouting a location to film a mayonaise commercial.

People will just be like "oh."

[+WhipArtist]

How about something approximating the truth? "I'm taking part in a scavenger hunt of sorts."

 

While hunting an urban micro recently, I realized you could walk around semi-aimlessly for a long time if you looked like you were talking on your cel phone. I spent about 20 minutes in a parking lot holding my phone to my ear, staring at the GPS, wandering in circles, poking around in bushes, etc., and nobody said a word to me.

[+joefrog]

Just today, I was (unsucessfully) looking for a micro in the local botanical gardens. One fellow asked what I was doing (I was squatting by a run-off at the time), and I said "I'm looking for evidence that the salamaders are out already." He nodded, and walked on...

 

[+GHOTI123]

Being the new Geocacher that I am, I was going to ask this very question. Just want to bump this up to get some more funny ideas. I was going to tell adults the truth, and make up stuff for any kids that wonder by. I have only done geos at night when no one was around so I have not encountered anyone yet. I told a cop buddy of mine that if he sees people walking around looking for something holding a GPS that this is what they are looking for so he wont go bother them if they look semi normal.