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I'm a recent GeoCaching fanatic and almost every cache I've been to is full of nothing but rotting, old, dirty, chewed on, disgusting toys. No one in their right mind is going to want any of that junk. The dollar store may atleast have some neat little trinkets that are NEW that would go great in a cache... I mean, if we can afford a $500 GPS unit, we can certainly splerge and get something nice for under $1. :rolleyes:

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It is an old saying here...it's not what is in the cache, but the hunt. I agree that people should trade better than what they do, but I've long given up the idea that it might happen.

 

So my advice is to enjoy the hunt and the time you spend out doors. The greatest prize or swag you will ever find is nature right in front of your eyes or sharing the time with your family or friends.

 

El Diablo

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Really, the "Treasure Hunt" line is just that, a line. Not a bad thing but not exactly TRUE to the sport (game, whatever). It is not about treasure, never was as far as I can tell. The spirit of the hunt, I believe, is what keeps cachers caching. Thank God for that. We have all gotten frustrated with poor trades and lame caches. I know my expectations have shifted from cool swag to cool hunts. Thats really it for us, finding caches in great locations or that have are great challenges. This is a great game (sport, whatever) that we are happy and proud to be a part of.

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Well, now wait a minute. The trades are good - for the first few months in the life of the cache. Then after a while, it just gets a little bad. I'm sure that everyone here has found a cache, found something in it that they really liked, and the best trade item with them wasn't quite trading up, but they made the trade anyway. After all, it was close and it was only one time.... Of course if five cachers do it only one time in a cache...

 

Of course, if you don't like the stuff in a cache, you could always decide that it's your job to make it better and take out all the crap and put in good stuff.

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Well, like I said, never be afraid to help the sport and get rid of the junk.

My belief is that if I get to a cache and all that's in it is crap, I'll take out anything broken, stained, etc, that noone's going to want and put in a bunch of good stuff. My geocaching bag consists of no less than 10 trade items at all times - just in case.

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I'm a recent GeoCaching fanatic and almost every cache I've been to is full of nothing but rotting, old, dirty, chewed on, disgusting toys.

Are they still filled with that when you leave the cache?

If the answer is "Yes" then that's the reason why.

 

Increase the swag level on the caches you visit and it will spread itself out over time. Complain and it will only get worse.

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When this subject comes up, we often hear the "its all in the hunt" crowd and thats fine for them. But we have to have to realized that many people geocache with their young children, who are hoping to find a "treasure". Also, most newbies are expecting to encounter more than empty candy wrappers and a few toy soldiers, half chewn by the family dog. I remember the disappointed look on my 4 year old nephew's face when he opened a cache that, to be polite, had slim pickin's. Please consider this when trading and stocking your caches..

Edited by briansnat
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I'm a recent GeoCaching fanatic and almost every cache I've been to is full of nothing but rotting, old, dirty, chewed on, disgusting toys. No one in their right mind is going to want any of that junk. The dollar store may atleast have some neat little trinkets that are NEW that would go great in a cache... I mean, if we can afford a $500 GPS unit, we can certainly splerge and get something nice for under $1. :rolleyes:

Considering what we spend to go caching (gas, GPSr, food (snacks), etc.) one has to wonder at the "advice" of going to the $1 dollar and buying trinkets for UNDER a $1 and then complaining about the quality of the cache.

 

Perhaps we should suggest to new cachers that they carry some swag that has a value of $3 to $10, for when they find a nice cache.

 

We have placed several caches where the cheapest item was about $5 and the best trade item was about $12.

 

One person signed the log "TNLN because we didn't anything nice enough with us to trade".

 

 

Just another of my opinions.

 

John

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I'm a recent GeoCaching fanatic and almost every cache I've been to is full of nothing but rotting, old, dirty, chewed on, disgusting toys. No one in their right mind is going to want any of that junk. The dollar store may atleast have some neat little trinkets that are NEW that would go great in a cache... I mean, if we can afford a $500 GPS unit, we can certainly splerge and get something nice for under $1. :rolleyes:

Another newbie crying that there wasn't anything good in a cache.

 

Well if you need really good things, go shopping. The majority of caches start out great and then a few greedy cachers later it's junk.

 

This sort of thing has me wanting to just place micros or caches with nothing in them. Then the downgraders are forced to go shopping.

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Maybe this is a good time to again offer up the idea of both non-trading caches and self-depleating caches.

 

The non-trading caches will be no big deal for those of us who are in it for the hunt. Nothing to trade, no change of someone putting in contraband or undesirable items, etc.

 

Self-depleating caches will help by letting people take something without putting junk back in. Some of us would most likely put in decent items anyway to preserve the cache a little longer. This saves the cache from notions like trading something for a stick, pine cone, a seashell in a cache on the beach, or a whole host of other "fun" trade items.

 

I'm curious. Are these crappy used toy caches the "family friendly" type? Are the toys getting put in because a parent is encouraging a child to find something of their own to trade? If so, there are a couple of things to consider.

 

Parents are encouraging a sense of fairplay. The child thinks the toy is worth something to trade, so they should actually get kudos for that.

 

Another point is there is a lack of public/group education. Ever hear the commercials for Toys for Tots and similar charities? The call is for "new and unwrapped toys." The reason is, I'm thinking anyway, is the generousity of children would inundate the groups with the type of toys we see in crappy caches.

 

So, maybe it's time to change and rethink the whole trading thing? Or just a new mantra?

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I'm a recent GeoCaching fanatic and almost every cache I've been to is full of nothing but rotting, old, dirty, chewed on, disgusting toys. No one in their right mind is going to want any of that junk. The dollar store may atleast have some neat little trinkets that are NEW that would go great in a cache... I mean, if we can afford a $500 GPS unit, we can certainly splerge and get something nice for under $1. :rolleyes:

For the most part we don't take anything but bugs but if we do it's only to have something for the next cache. We've never kept a trade item for personal use. I have five caches ready to go in the back of my truck. All smaller sized rubbermaids with just a log book. The smaller sized rubbermaids can be hidden in more places and since most people are in it for the hunt I think the more caches they have to hunt is better than fewer caches with junk in them. Truth be told that if your into caching for cool swag you aint gonna find it often.

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Considering what we spend to go caching (gas, GPSr, food (snacks), etc.) one has to wonder at the "advice" of going to the $1 dollar and buying trinkets for UNDER a $1 and then complaining about the quality of the cache.

 

While I agree with this I will share what happened to me yesterday. It was finally warm enough to take my 6 year old daughter with me to go caching. When we found the first cache I was nervous about whether she would find anything worthwile to take. The cache was very well stocked but you know what she wanted to take? A dollar store pack of 3 little nail polish bottles! :rolleyes:

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The cache was very well stocked but you know what she wanted to take? A dollar store pack of 3 little nail polish bottles! :rolleyes:

I think that says it all right there. One person's trash is another's treasure. That isn't to say traders should take the best and leave only crap but the value of the goodie is subjective to the finder.

 

I used to trade items from cache to cache because it gave me a goal to keep locating them. Now, I trade only if there is something worthwhile to me to hold onto for a small while before I "give" it back to the sport. I'll leave something behind if it is a worthwhile hunt. Again, these "worthwhile" values are subjective to me and me only.

 

I've evolved from having to trade anything to trading only if I can add something better sometimes leaving an item and not taking. I have evolved more for the hunt now, as well as the scenery, the exercise, and most importantly, the comraderie of other cachers. That in and of itself is the most valued treasure of all (to me).

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It is about the hunt. However even knowing there is a 99% chance the cache will have nothing worth trading for, that 1% chance has me looking and hoping every time. It's like checking your mail. It's allways bills, but every now and then...

 

Sometimes even if I don't want to trade I'll leave something new, or just trade up. Mostly though it's TNLNSL.

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Whenever this topic comes up, it seems as if the people who are advocating the McToys in caches are generally parents who take their kids caching. Those of us who don't have kids aren't too excited to find every cache we visit filled with the same selection of broken toys and "things only a child could love."

 

SOMEONE must like the good stuff, or caches would be filled with it.

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It is about the hunt. However even knowing there is a 99% chance the cache will have nothing worth trading for, that 1% chance has me looking and hoping every time. It's like checking your mail. It's allways bills, but every now and then...

 

I knew if I read this whole post there'd be a really nicely written comment... Thanks RK.. :rolleyes:

 

You know. The first cache I ever went to, I don't even have a clue what I took from it (odd, because I know what I got from number 2 and 3)... The third cache though, had an obviously used Hello Kitty clip on thing... Hello Kitty's outfit was dirty (from use, not the cache, you could tell) and the other contents of the cache were not bad - there was a cd in there among other things. But for me, being a Hello Kitty fan, that was just really cool to me being able to find that - used or not.

 

So yeah, it's relative. I would have enjoyed the CD. I would have enjoyed other things in the cache. I certainly didn't have to take anything from it. And I most definately would have liked to have found HK brand new... But, you know, I'm going to get her dirty eventually anyway, right? I'm fairly certain that if I clip her to my caching bag that she'll be dirty by fall, so finding her like that just saved me the effort.

 

 

 

Of course, if we scrounge and roll pennies and everything else to get a $500 gpsr, perhaps we can no longer afford the dollar store?

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Considering what we spend to go caching (gas, GPSr, food (snacks), etc.) one has to wonder at the "advice" of going to the $1 dollar and buying trinkets for UNDER a $1 and then complaining about the quality of the cache.

 

While I agree with this I will share what happened to me yesterday. It was finally warm enough to take my 6 year old daughter with me to go caching. When we found the first cache I was nervous about whether she would find anything worthwile to take. The cache was very well stocked but you know what she wanted to take? A dollar store pack of 3 little nail polish bottles! :P

I believed you missed the point I was trying make. Adults spent money on geocaching equipment and the extras that go along with caching. They then (the adults not the kids) tell others to go to the dollar store to buy the swag (great deals for under a dollar!). These same adults turn around and complain because the caches do not have anything of "Value" in them. I've never heard a kid complain about cache quality.

 

I thought that was a bit ironic to complain about the condition of the cache when you tell others to buy the cheapest stuff the can find and use it for swag.

 

I agree the "value" is in the eye of the beholder, but why buy a 79 cent compass that can't even point north when for $3 - $5 you can get one that will last for years?

 

My opinion is "Don't tell others to go cheap on their swag and then complain because the cache is not up to your expectations"!

 

John

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I take my kids along with me caching. They love to see what's in the cache. In the beginning, we just did the TNLNSL. Now, since the kids are into it more, we went to the local Wal-Mart and bought some swag. They will trade with brand new, unused (in the package, if it will fit in the cache) toys. We have done 10 caches and only traded one or two times. We are having fun finding them though!

 

For our first and tenth, we left GeoCoins...

 

This sport rocks! If you want to trade, trade up. If you don't want to trade, enjoy the hunt...

 

I must be lucky, for the most part, the swag in the caches we have seen, is all good stuff. The only things that seem to show some wear, are the TB's (to be expected)...

 

Just my n00b .02!

 

Steve

Edited by cedrones
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I'm a recent GeoCaching fanatic and almost every cache I've been to is full of nothing but rotting, old, dirty, chewed on, disgusting toys.

Are they still filled with that when you leave the cache?

If the answer is "Yes" then that's the reason why.

 

Increase the swag level on the caches you visit and it will spread itself out over time. Complain and it will only get worse.

Crappy swag is the reason I carry new stuff. Its kinda cool to take moldy, dirty McToys and pre-chewed gum home, while leaving flashlights, bandanas and 'biners.

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I always have new swag. And not the mctoy variety. True I get most of it on clearance and it costs 2 or 3 bucks a piece but its worth it. I cache w/ my 7 yr old son most of the time and he has wanted to use some of his toys as trade items. Legos, plastic animals, toy soldiers etc. If they are like new condition I'll tell him he can. I think it does teach him a bit about sacrifice and the "value" of sharing etc. But no we've never left anything I'd feel the least bit ashamed of letting the world see.. for that matter most of our swag has a sticker that says from team Red Clover somewhere on it.

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Are there ever any adult-themed or adult-only caches?

 

I don't necessarily mean caches filled with condoms and copies of Penthouse, but caches that have only non-toy items that adults would find interesting and/or useful.

Yes.

Place a cache where no kid should go and there's no reason to fill it with kid's toys.

1.5/1.5 = probably will be visited by small children.

4.5/4.5 = probably won't be.

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I have seen many caches that were themed in such a way as to avoid toys.. One was a postcard cache, a homemade craft cache etc. Some of the more difficult T caches are often more adult oriented simply because the trail (ha what trail) would be difficult for kids. In the beginning for me (back in the dark ages 2 mo ago) alot of our swag would be child oriented just because it was w/ my son and I really didnt know what to expect. Now I always leave at least one piece that is adult. Usually several. Trade even, Trade the cache up or dont trade is my motto. *though I will remove trash etc even if I have no trade items

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I went from and avid trader to a tnlnsl, and now have turned another corner. I made sig items after being inspired by some of the ones in these forums. I am taking the nastiest , dirtiest, brokenest, put rubber gloves on before handlingest items I can find in a cache and disposing of them, replacing them with my sig item. While it may not be the most expensive item, it does have a unique value all to itself.

 

On a seperate note: inexpensive does not always mean cheap. After a recent trip to the Coleman outlet, these are some of the items I got to stock some caches I'm preparing to hide:

 

insect repplelent bands

rain ponchos

glow in the dark beer (i mean bevarage) cozys - these come in very handy while camping

replacement buckle sliders for packs

waterproof matches

backpacker salt & pepper shakers

 

Each item was on clearance for $1.50 or less. Spend more time shopping smart, and less time buying crap. Yes, they were a few pennies more than the items at the $1 store, or the free one with your kids happy meal, but they are things that campers / hikers / cachers may actually want.

 

I don't have children, and have no problem with children caching with their parents. However please, please, please, if I want a happy meal toy, I will go to the arches, not the caches. Having some items geared towards children is great, it keeps them interested in the sport, and gets them outside and into nature. But the people who actually pay for the GPS may like to find something worth trading for also!

 

ps - no offense meant to the $1 stores, I bought my log books there, and sometimes they do have some neat things.

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I recently made a sig item as well. Red Clover keyfob (made w/ shrinky dinks) w/ a skeleton key on the keychain.. now these keys arent new.. they may have rust, spotting dents etc .. does it make it trash no.. its all about perspective. But yeah I've run across the skanky cache a time or two. While it is disapointing its not going to stop me from caching. I love the hunt, the out doors, the exercise. But I really love the sig items that are unusual :lol:

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Considering what we spend to go caching (gas, GPSr, food (snacks), etc.) one has to wonder at the "advice" of going to the $1 dollar and buying trinkets for UNDER a $1 and then complaining about the quality of the cache.

 

While I agree with this I will share what happened to me yesterday. It was finally warm enough to take my 6 year old daughter with me to go caching. When we found the first cache I was nervous about whether she would find anything worthwile to take. The cache was very well stocked but you know what she wanted to take? A dollar store pack of 3 little nail polish bottles! :lol:

I believed you missed the point I was trying make. Adults spent money on geocaching equipment and the extras that go along with caching. They then (the adults not the kids) tell others to go to the dollar store to buy the swag (great deals for under a dollar!). These same adults turn around and complain because the caches do not have anything of "Value" in them. I've never heard a kid complain about cache quality.

 

I thought that was a bit ironic to complain about the condition of the cache when you tell others to buy the cheapest stuff the can find and use it for swag.

 

I agree the "value" is in the eye of the beholder, but why buy a 79 cent compass that can't even point north when for $3 - $5 you can get one that will last for years?

 

My opinion is "Don't tell others to go cheap on their swag and then complain because the cache is not up to your expectations"!

 

John

Nope, didn't miss your point I said that I agreed with you. I should elaborate. The first cache that we went to clearly stated that it was a cache for kids. She took the little bottles of nail polish and I left some rubber balls and matchbox cars. She wanted to do another cache but the closest one was a level three cache but we did it anyways. At that cache there was a mixture kids stuff and adult stuff. She wanted some colored rocks that someone left and I left a new tape measure. At caches that are clearly for kids I leave kids stuff. At the harder caches that more adults will hit without thier kids I try to leave more adult stuff. :lol:

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