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:( Is it just me or are cache contents sometimes a bit of a downer....ok I'm way up North...Scotland in fact and have been wowed by many of the caches and contents ...and have tried to reciprocate...Howver I have been dismayed by reports (not practical experience) of some cachea being full empty of naff cheepo items. Should we not try to keep the standard of swaps up.

 

I Know I Know its all i the eye of the beholder...but...????

 

Just a thought ! any comments peeps.??

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Don't worry Spiora :( ,as per some recent experiences from around M25, think quantity..not quality!... I've noticed overall though, that the 'poorest' , if that's politically correct, caches seem to be set originally by enthusiastic beginners, and after a short time when the novelty wears off, the cache deteriorates, primarily by not having proper maintainance.

 

Would anyone support a policy of a specific number of caches found, before that/those person(s) are allowed to place a cache?????. Maybe '5' for example?.

 

This might help the quality and standard of caches overall, and perhaps would help eliminate, the here today, gone tommorrow brigade? by showing, at least, a bit of committment to the hobby/sport. Obviousley there would be circumstances which would be exceptional to the general guidelines, e.g. disability, transportation and locality etc. I just wonder what the general feeling is regarding this?

 

Rgds. DD

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I've stopped exchanging items. I sometimes have an item of relative value in the car incase I find something interesting - but most of the time I don't bother anymore.

 

I don't really know why I stopped - but I found that having my car full of McDonalds toys was getting on my nerves... :(

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Would anyone support a policy of a specific number of caches found, before that/those person(s) are allowed to place a cache?????. Maybe '5' for example?.

I think this is a really good idea Dawg. Targets for newbies would ensure a bit of commitment. Even though we have only found 9 so far I would support a policy of having to find at least 10 probably 20 or more before being allowed to list your own cache.

 

This would also afford first time cachers the time to research their first placement properly. Indeed we bought an ammo box when we had only found 3 caches. We have left it in the cupboard under the stairs and are slowly filling it with items.

 

We know where we would like to place it but we keep walking past to see what the muggle traffic is like and how the natural ground cover is changing so that hopefully it will be a succesful cache.

 

The 'target' idea could be developed through the cache types so for instance in order to list a multi you have to have found 10 trads and 5 multis.

 

What do the moderators think?

 

The Hokesters

Edited by The Hokesters
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Well lets ban cheepo toys from McD';s for starters.

 

I try to put something for the kids in my cachhes...but a Mcds aint very gratifying even for a kid.

 

I know the fun is in the finding...but it sure enhances it when the goodies are just that.

 

Quality items e.g. A Frog, (Murrin nabbed it from a cache and its got pride of place in the sitting room now, Torches, compasses , hand warmers, incense burners, lucky wee items. Rocks from particularly interesting places. a golden eagle feather, Iona Marble, A gypsies curse to through at peeps who trash caches...the list is endless. Books. etc etc etc.

 

But please no more McDs trinkets. B):D:)

 

But hey maybe its just me B)

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We always try to put decent items into caches, and yes I agree it is very disappointing to eventually find a cache and it is stocked up with little bits of plastic especially if you have trecked up hill and down dale for miles to find it.

 

Saying that though recently I have gained a lovely stainless steel compact mirror and a brand new leather purse of course we left something of the same sort of value as a courtasy to the cache owner. If more cachers did this perhaps the plastic McD toys etc would eventually fade away.

 

We have not been caching very long, but all our planted caches contained decent swopping items or if not expensive at least useful, saying that though I do agree that there should be some kind of minimum qualifying period for new cachers before planting caches, but saying that if they do say 5 and 5 are stocked with bits of plastic surely they are going to think that this is the norm for stocking their new cache. Shouldn't we lead by example?

 

Joan

:)

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but saying that if they do say 5 and 5 are stocked with bits of plastic surely they are going to think that this is the norm for stocking their new cache. Shouldn't we lead by example?

 

Joan

:)

Good point well made Joan. Perhaps the cache instructions need updating/clarifying?

 

Still think the qualifying targets is a great idea...

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Contents are not important to be posh. I found this out at Easter caching with my grandchildren. A few caches had really nice objects in but what did they choose? A tiny sea shell from one cache. A tiny animal skull from another and a single sword cocktail stick (one of those cheap plastic ones) and a dolls house rusty garden fork. Sigh! They could have chosen lots of other things that to an adult's eyes were a better swop. Just goes to show. Nevertheless I feel I definately traded up those times! It's the finding that counts! Micros are popular and there is only a log book in those!

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after a short time when the novelty wears off, the cache deteriorates, primarily by not having proper maintainance.

Do you suggest the hider should replenish the cache forever so future cachers can continue the trend of profiting?

 

Greedy cachers cause the contents to deteriorate, not the hider. As far as I am concerned all a cache should contain is a logbook and pencil. If people need to acquire swag I would suggest going to This Location.

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As far as I am concerned all a cache should contain is a logbook and pencil.

Each to their own.

At the end of the day its up to the cache owner whether they wish to set a trading cache or not.

If a cache contains trade items at least it gives the option of trading .

An empty cache ( just log book and pencil ) doesn,t give any choice.

We personally trade ( and try to trade up )most of the time but do very occasionally TNLN.

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Ach I just like to think that if someone goes to thje trouble of findingthe cache then tthere should be something worthwhile in it. That doesnt mean monetary value.

items of interest as varied as they may be are the thing. Sometimes its just a wee stone..sometimes its a nice wee piece of driftwood..sometimes its something better. What I suppose I really mean are/is quality items are in the eye of the beholder and cheepo rubbish re McDs stuff shouldnt appear...ITS NOT TRADE. :)

 

if i wanted to trade I'd spend my time on e-bay and not in the hills. B)

 

Anyway rant over...keep the contents interesting and it enhances the find...if not then its a bummer. And if they'reinteresting you don't even have to take anything...just the looking is sometimes sufficient.

 

Hey I even found 20 kilos of CResin once ...but then that was a mistake ....and no I didnt take it or leave a swap. I know another cacher who found a gun????

Bo No I'm going to close now..I've ranted enough.

 

I'll finish with a wee sly dig at all those posey cachers "come to Scotland and cache for real"...well thT IS UNLESS YOU HIT THE NETHERLANDS AND DO THE REAL CACHE THERe.....oops see wee laptops and dark corners B):D:DB)

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... lucky wee items.

.. do you mean those things I saw Maplin selling the other week. Something called "peeball".?

 

Apparently its a little ball which gentlemen are supposed to place in the channel of the urinals, and then by careful using their supersoaker skills, pee it up and down the lane in record time...

 

..or something. I was trying to read the instructions off the side of the box.

 

I'm deadly serious about this. Maplin really do sell a thing called a peeball, and it is for guys to pee on. They are on sale by the till in my local store.

 

The funny thing is, as soon as I saw them I thought "shall I get one to put in a cache?"...

 

...and then you wrote the above in your post. I tell you I nearly wet myself, but I realised that would have been a terrible waste, when so much more fun could have been gained....

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I'm deadly serious about this. Maplin really do sell a thing called a peeball, and it is for guys to pee on. They are on sale by the till in my local store.

 

The funny thing is, as soon as I saw them I thought "shall I get one to put in a cache?"...

 

...and then you wrote the above in your post. I tell you I nearly wet myself, but I realised that would have been a terrible waste, when so much more fun could have been gained....

 

HAHAHAHAHA! B)B):DB)

 

Us women miss out on so much when it comes to the calls of nature.

 

I envy my husband when we're out caching and he gets caught short. He doesn't have to bare his bum to the elements!

 

OK... NOW I bet I get a 10% warning!!!

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Well lets ban cheepo toys from McD';s for starters.

 

But please no more McDs trinkets. B)B)B)

 

But hey maybe its just me :D

It's not just you, but maybe it's just me that likes them, or at least some of them. I have a bit of a collection going here, especially cute furry ones B)

 

So, please don't ban them, or at least not the cute furry ones

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after a short time when the novelty wears off, the cache deteriorates, primarily by not having proper maintainance.

Do you suggest the hider should replenish the cache forever so future cachers can continue the trend of profiting?

 

Greedy cachers cause the contents to deteriorate, not the hider. As far as I am concerned all a cache should contain is a logbook and pencil. If people need to acquire swag I would suggest going to This Location.

As far as I am concerned all a cache should contain is a logbook and pencil. If people need to acquire swag I would suggest going to This Location.

Ah well, time changes us all, I suppose..remember your earlier logs e.g Haleakala Bike Cache and others back in the early days when you swapped!!

 

The problem originally arises from placing within the original cache, a load of real tack, without much thought, even as towards the insipration for the location of the cache site, this subsequently perpetuates itself into a downward spiral and results into a 'sickly' cache.

Personnally I would prefer searching for a locationless cache, rather than find a 'by the road', damp and pinging half empty regular one, with no real point even being there, other than to exist for the short term, self gratification of the owner, saying he/she has placed one!

 

Rgds All, DD

 

Oh, an edit! ..Fortunatley up here in the Northern sticks (Scotland), this doesn't happen to often, thankfully, we huv class cache's here...... AND!.... Mastercard, Visa & Diners are all accepted readily! B) ..but 'Bring yer Boots', GD GC...DD

Edited by DeputyDawg
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the trouble is that kids love the little trinkets and mctoys to trade. also the good chance that any good stuff will be snaffled by someone who then leaves something far less or the whole cache goes missing. bad enough but if it was full of really good stuff then gutting. plus the goodies are only bonus' it's the cache and location that counts most. i'm trying to make some little signature items nothing special but hopefully will mean something when i leave them. we should maybe all do that. gives the kids something to do and feel proud about leaving something that they made and taking something that someone made for them.

 

just my thoughts

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The problem originally arises from placing within the original cache, a load of real tack, without much thought, even as towards the insipration for the location of the cache site, this subsequently perpetuates itself into a downward spiral and results into a 'sickly' cache.

 

I agree with this but not every cache can contain a hoard of treasures. And if you came across a cache containing a 120GB Hard Drive and really wanted it, would you run home to find that old network card, or would you carry something of equal value to trade? At the end of the day, it's a 'cheap' hobby with the only costs being a webconnection, a GPS and petrol.

 

I really don't spend a lot of time worrying about cache contents, as it's about the location and not the 'treasures' to me. I have placed caches that only contain the notebook and pencil, and have no problem with that. I rarely trade items unless they seem useful and carry some items with me in case I do want to trade. But normally I don't bother.

 

Personnally I would prefer searching for a locationless cache, rather than find a 'by the road', damp and pinging half empty regular one, with no real point even being there, other than to exist for the short term, self gratification of the owner, saying he/she has placed one!

 

I think this is a bit unfair to any cache owner - regardless of the contents, many caches are placed in locations that are important to the owner. I co-own a cache containing meaningless tat, but we placed it in one of the most spectacular locations in Ireland and get great feedback from visitors. But nobody has said "was annoyed that it only contained a mobile phone deckchair".

 

I have visited caches placed in housing estates and wondered why someone wanted it there - but I guess what makes me happy makes them happy - and that's the mail from geocaching.com saying that someone found it.

 

By the way, I would rather scale a mountain to find a sopping wet cache at the top than log a locationless cache. It's not the same and it still, and remains a question of the location and the significance thereof, and not the trinkets contained in it.

 

I don't have kids and if I had, I would probably look at this a little differently as they would anticipate the toys, but I think I would explain it to them as a shot in the dark - some caches have lots of good stuff, some have one or two interesting things, and some just have the notebook and pen.

 

Such is life.

It's a bit like searching for the proverbial perfect pint of Guinness, really.

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Well lets ban cheepo toys from McD';s for starters.

 

But please no more McDs trinkets. B)  B)  B)

 

But hey maybe its just me :D

It's not just you, but maybe it's just me that likes them, or at least some of them. I have a bit of a collection going here, especially cute furry ones B)

 

So, please don't ban them, or at least not the cute furry ones

I'm owning up to liking McToys - not all of them, just the 'beanie' type ones.

 

Lisa

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The problem originally arises from placing within the original cache, a load of real tack, without much thought, even as towards the insipration for the location of the cache site, this subsequently perpetuates itself into a downward spiral and results into a 'sickly' cache.

 

I agree with this but not every cache can contain a hoard of treasures. And if you came across a cache containing a 120GB Hard Drive and really wanted it, would you run home to find that old network card, or would you carry something of equal value to trade? At the end of the day, it's a 'cheap' hobby with the only costs being a webconnection, a GPS and petrol.

 

I really don't spend a lot of time worrying about cache contents, as it's about the location and not the 'treasures' to me. I have placed caches that only contain the notebook and pencil, and have no problem with that. I rarely trade items unless they seem useful and carry some items with me in case I do want to trade. But normally I don't bother.

 

Personnally I would prefer searching for a locationless cache, rather than find a 'by the road', damp and pinging half empty regular one, with no real point even being there, other than to exist for the short term, self gratification of the owner, saying he/she has placed one!

 

I think this is a bit unfair to any cache owner - regardless of the contents, many caches are placed in locations that are important to the owner. I co-own a cache containing meaningless tat, but we placed it in one of the most spectacular locations in Ireland and get great feedback from visitors. But nobody has said "was annoyed that it only contained a mobile phone deckchair".

 

I have visited caches placed in housing estates and wondered why someone wanted it there - but I guess what makes me happy makes them happy - and that's the mail from geocaching.com saying that someone found it.

 

By the way, I would rather scale a mountain to find a sopping wet cache at the top than log a locationless cache. It's not the same and it still, and remains a question of the location and the significance thereof, and not the trinkets contained in it.

 

I don't have kids and if I had, I would probably look at this a little differently as they would anticipate the toys, but I think I would explain it to them as a shot in the dark - some caches have lots of good stuff, some have one or two interesting things, and some just have the notebook and pen.

 

Such is life.

It's a bit like searching for the proverbial perfect pint of Guinness, really.

Thanks for the comments and I fully understand what your saying, but back to the original point, whereby a little bit of effort should be put into placing a cache, if not for the contents then at least for the location as you have done.

I co-own a cache containing meaningless tat, but we placed it in one of the most spectacular locations in Ireland and get great feedback from visitors. But nobody has said "was annoyed that it only contained a mobile phone deckchair".

 

All I'm saying is that a little bit of effort is all it takes to make a cache a bit more interesting and if you can't or dont want to place items of a certain interest or value, the location will always make up for this.

 

Rgds DD B)

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Ah well, time changes us all, I suppose..remember your earlier logs e.g Haleakala Bike Cache and others back in the early days when you swapped!!

 

Yes I did exchange and I did for the first 100 caches maybe. Time does change us all. I'm not saying caches shouldn't contain swag but my new ones don't any longer.l I grew tired of every single one of my caches having their contents reduced to crap in a couple of months. I am not going to go back out and replenish them for the next round of greedy cachers that come by.

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you should see Craigsbar's living room - he's got a bucket full of trinkets just for geocaching. His logs usually read "left red thing" as some just defy description

Oh but I have!

 

And he's seen mine. (before he posts here in protest...)

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Gies a break troops lets just make it interesting...I repeat Value doesnt come into it.....! Its the interest...and If i find a cache way out yonder I dont want to find(although some might a MCD trinket) Hey give me a rock from the top of a mountain or a rock fro the bottom of the sea or a wee bit of a F14 engine or a fossilised tadpoles tail who care s but please no tat.

 

ok rant over !!! Each toi his own.....and me??? Well I'm off kayaking to place a cache where nobody that doesnt have a boat or a bit of gumption will find,!

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you should see Craigsbar's living room - he's got a bucket full of trinkets just for geocaching. His logs usually read "left red thing" as some just defy description

Oh but I have!

 

And he's seen mine. (before he posts here in protest...)

I think I'll have to tip him off about this... :unsure: - unless you already have

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Its quite strange how the whole trading thing works. in our experience on or two trade downs can make the cache look just full of tat.

 

When we start a cache its usually filled with Books, CDs, videos & some smaller toys for the kids. If people swap a book for an opal fruit wrapper then its not long before the cache looks empty. But sometimes you can't give stuff away - we have had a Radiohead

 

Its swings and roundabouts really as I have noticed that some of our caches that wern't that full when we planted them are now bursting at the seams others have needed quite severe maintenance. I think our worst is Sherlock7 as noone knows what to swap for the commerative keepsake.

 

Chris

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you should see Craigsbar's living room - he's got a bucket full of trinkets just for geocaching. His logs usually read "left red thing" as some just defy description

Oh but I have!

 

And he's seen mine. (before he posts here in protest...)

I think I'll have to tip him off about this... :D - unless you already have

Hmmm, OK Folks... Here goes...

 

I only Rarely place McD' tat in Caches. The 'Bucket' that K23 refers to is in fact a 2l tupperware type pot. And it contains mainly Team CraigsBar & AmJay Cache badges! Other than that my normal deposit is either a usefull toy. Current favourite are pocket size Disney Jigsaw puzzles (Which are also in the 'Bucket') or PC components.. Network cards, ATI Radeons and CD Burners that I have come accross whilst Breaking down or upgrading PC's for people.

 

They all work and someone *Might* find a use for them!

 

As for MCL's lounge, that is nearly a walk in Geocache, The co-ordinates are...........

 

Regards

 

Craig

:D

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I grew tired of every single one of my caches having their contents reduced to crap in a couple of months. I am not going to go back out and replenish them for the next round of greedy cachers that come by.

Maybe you should have placed your caches in Scotland!! :D

Despite being branded tight fisted, we do generally do, like for like swaps. The few caches that I have hidden have all kept the same standard of items that they started with. I have only came across a few caches that have not had much in them.

When I do a TNLN it is because there has been nothing in the cache that has interested me. Only yesterday I found 9 well stocked caches but I only swapped with a few of them.

Also the only place that I have came across McD's items have been the few I have done in England. I'm not quite sure if that means something :D he he

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Well, it's hardly likely to find those rare collectables in scotland is it, after all, there's only 3 outlets for them :D

 

Recently I've been doing as lot of TNLCing (is that a new word?) as I always leave my calling card in caches large enough to take it. and I'm working on a micro version. This isn't because the trades aren't up to it, it's because I've been travelling light to save time, and only carry a handful of good trades incase I find something I really want (those McD's toys) I used to trade regardless and then use the uninteresting stuff to trade again. I recently found an item I had traded 6 months ago, in a cache 35 miles away.

 

To comment on the slightly off topic subject of placement, as several have said, it's all subjective. I'd like to mention though that there are a lot of Geocachers out there who are not able to climb mountains or even walk .5 mile to the cache site. those people enjoy short range caches.

 

I for one really like finding something in plain sight that nobody else knows about. for this reason, Urban caches are one of my favourites (the challenge is in the parking). I recently did the University Challenge series in Oxford, most of which are hidden at the side of the pavement, but completely invisible to muggles.

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Guess there isn’t a one solution fits all to this one ......some themed caches like WHW day4.... Bogle Glen ; WHW day 1 Dumgoyach and South African Representative Cache.[scotland] by Colin ..had clearly been given a lot of thought (and expense) in stocking them …..

 

Others are an assortment of trinkets..which is great …there must even be a wee bit of room for the dreaded M ( does this get me a warning ?) toys ……

 

Hope for the best and expect the worst ..and you will never be disappointed …..

 

Think I’m joining the TNLN brigade …though I try to bolster caches where the contents seem “poor” .

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Whoops - got distracted ....

CD in a cache for over 2 Year

 

is what I ment to say :)

Don't worry, you are in good company in the distraction stakes.

 

Why else would Craig have written above "Other than that my normal deposit is either a useful toy." (I did the spelling correction myself)

 

As for my lounge being a walk-in geocache, well that used to be the case, but then I made the cardinal error of getting Mother in, and, well, the phrase "Took Everything Left Nothing" springs to mind..

 

...although there *is* a small logbook down behind the sofa....

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