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Advice For Placing A Multi..


despot&smitten

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We are thinking of placing our first multi-cache. We had in mind something urban, and pretty much linear. Meaning that when you found the first one, you would continue more or less in the same direction, rather than criss-crossing back and forth accross the whole city. We were thinking of something nice, and amusing - not necessarily challenging and difficult. Sort of a walking tour of town hightlighting nice places to visit along the way. Since its a multi, the plan is to leave high-calibre treasure in the final cache. We could use some advice though. Not sure whether or not the final cache should be part of the "nice enjoyable walking tour" or if it should be a somewhat remote location. I can see plusses and minuses either way - but I'm a big fan of getting people out of their cars and moving their legs when it comes to caching. Any thoughts would be much appreciated. Thanks.

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Its really a matter of personal taste. However, since this is an urban multi, the chance of one or more of the stages getting muggled is significantly greater. When selecting both the location and container for the final, you have to keep muggles in mind. If its a popular area, you want to make the container small enough to ensure its stays safe. If the final is hidden in a more remote location, a larger container would do nicely.

 

Its a good idea to scope out the area during peak times. This way, you can get the best idea of how, and where to hide it.

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You could make the first few legs in a sort of a circle, then send the seekers off to a more remote location in the car. That way, a person could park the car, do the "walking tour," return to the car and drive to the cache hidden in a nice, safe place. Just be sure to mention the plan in the cache description, if that's what you decide to do.

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I have a similar multi-cache called Main Street Meander where the first few steps take you on a 15-20 minute walking tour of Main Street picking up final cache coordinates, starting and ending at the same point so that you can then drive to a nearby park to find the physical cache. (Whew -- long sentence! :rolleyes: )

 

I also have multis requiring much longer drives (15-20 miles) and more effort, both physical and mental. (Dead Ends, Bridges of Jackson County (North), Tour de Jackson County (North))

 

Both types seem to work, though I expect less traffic on the short multi (when compared to a traditional), and even less traffic on the long multi. To each their own!

 

N.B. The above are not shameless plugs, but are provided as examples to new cache placers. Seriously!

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i haven't done very many multi-caches, and i have done 0 'true' urban multi-caches. However, that is just due to the fact that I haven't been geocaching for very long! i plan on trying some in SF very soon. Anyways, i can tell you what i would find interesting in a multicache.

1-start with an easy, well-known area for the first part.

2-somewhere in the middle make a huge leap, one that requires dedication to overcome. This will give a greater sense of satisfaction when it is completed.

3-as the caches progress, take them to more and more remote spots.

 

I could go on, but i think those are things i would do if i was placing an urban multi-cache. just my 2 cents...! GOOD LUCK! :rolleyes:

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My personal preference is for multis that can be done entirely on foot and that eventually loop back to somewhere near the parking area. The final doesn't necessarily need to be in a more remote location as long as it's hidden well.

 

If the final (or any of the legs, for that matter) isn't in a remote location, you could give a hint in the previous stage that will provide the seekers with a pretty good idea of where to look. The point is, it would be best to not have to search high and low in a muggle-rich area. The challenge could be in the stealth that's required to grab the cache, take it back to the car to sign the log, and replace it without giving away what you're doing to any passers-by.

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I'd suggest trying to find a theme, or story, which pulls all of your stages together, and making the last site the best example of the theme, or the end of the story. (That's what I did in my urban multi, and it does give the experience a certain completeness.)

 

If you're going to make cachers travel for the final stage, a couple of things:

- I cache entirely by public transport, and I suspect there are other urban cachers who do the same. So after finding all the coords, I'd have to figure out how to get to the final stop. That would certainly break the flow, and if there wasn't any way to get to the final stage without a car, I would be pretty burned up.

- Whether or not there is a way to get to the final stage without a car, be sure to mention that the last stage is a distance away, so cachers can allow the time and generally be prepared for the trip.

 

Go for it, though - urban multis rock! (we have four in Edinburgh now, or is it five?)

Edited by evilrooster
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One thing is to try a walk thru all stages using your GPS to navigate. This way you'll pick up on any problems before planting. You could spot a better location for one of the stages, I did this with my multi, and ended up changing one of the locations.

Even better is to get another cacher to try it out before it's posted, and follow behind with your mouth shut and a notepad. I had my mother and two friends (not actually cachers, but game for a go) try mine out, and ended up finding a much better location for one of the stages when they got lost! I also revised the notes, and found a spot where GPS signals seem to "bounce" off buildings, pointing them in completely the wrong direction.

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I agree that virtual intermediate steps is the way to go - fewer things to go wrong. While a nice prize is fine, many people are happy just to go through all the stages. And instead of trying to keep tings necessarily to a straight line, why not find some intermediate stages that relate to each other and express a theme? My own Classical Cache does that as does Frecky's Architecture and Design Adventure in Seattle (actually, more a single stage with additional virtuals, but you can see how it might work).

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