Cache Difficulty

[+CompuCash]

I have gone to about 20 caches in the last few weeks. I stashed my own today.

 

The last two caches I went to this afterernoon had what I would call badly underrated terrain postings. On one, the last log entry said he'd slid all the way down the hill and would pick stickers for a week. It was very steep and slippery - sure there is another way in and I left a hint in my found log - but even the 'other way in' was not all that easy either.

 

Another one was a very long walk - good half mile and it was mostly up hill - good wide trail (as in dirt road type) but steep hills that took all of the caterpiller tracter that made the trail to scrape it down.

 

Super nice views from both sites and of course the second one was downhill all the way - but as you hikers know - going down hill is really hard on the body also.

 

Just wondering if ther are any guide lines some where that could help this beginner with rating my own stashes.

Edited June 27, 2004 by CompuCash

[SunshineSnuz]

Hi Compucash!

 

I think this might be what you are looking for: Clayjars cache rating

 

It's just a "guide" but if everyone tried to follow it, perhaps it would lead to more consistent ratings.

 

Good Luck!!

[+Mopar]

When you submit your new cache, you will get to the part where it asks what you want the rating to be. When you see that part, it will link to the Geocache Rating System. It will ask you a bunch of questions, and spit out something that's probably close. It will also show you the definitions of all the ratings at that time, to give you a chance to tweak it if need be. The ratings are:

Difficulty rating

* Easy. In plain sight or can be found in a few minutes of searching. 

 

** Average. The average cache hunter would be able to find this in less than 30 minutes of hunting. 

 

*** Challenging. An experienced cache hunter will find this challenging, and it could take up a good portion of an afternoon. 

 

**** Difficult. A real challenge for the experienced cache hunter - may require special skills or knowledge, or in-depth preparation to find. May require multiple days / trips to complete. 

 

***** Extreme. A serious mental or physical challenge. Requires specialized knowledge, skills, or equipment to find cache. 

 

Terrain rating

* Handicapped accessible. (Terrain is likely to be paved, is relatively flat, and less than a 1/2 mile hike is required.) 

 

** Suitable for small children. (Terrain is generally along marked trails, there are no steep elevation changes or heavy overgrowth. Less than a 2 mile hike required.) 

 

*** Not suitable for small children. (The average adult or older child should be OK depending on physical condition. Terrain is likely off-trail. May have one or more of the following: some overgrowth, some steep elevation changes, or more than a 2 mile hike.) 

 

**** Experienced outdoor enthusiasts only. (Terrain is probably off-trail. Will have one or more of the following: very heavy overgrowth, very steep elevation (requiring use of hands), or more than a 10 mile hike. May require an overnight stay.) 

 

***** Requires specialized equipment and knowledge or experience, (boat, 4WD, rock climbing, SCUBA, etc) or is otherwise extremely difficult. 

One thing to keep in mind; terrain is how hard it is to get to the cache area, and difficulty is how hard it is to find the cache once you get there.

[+CompuCash]

thanks for the link -

 

while I had seen it once a few days ago I did not get into it deeply.

 

as I a guide I can accept it - maybe I'm just out of shape -

 

and looking back my personal idea of my own cache is pretty close -

 

will keep this in mind and from this the ones I mentioned were under rated - should be 3 for terrain for steep elevation changes.

 

Like you said - wish more would use it -

 

greetings - had a fun day and thanks to all - 7 for 7 not bad for second time out. Love this game !

Edited June 27, 2004 by CompuCash

[Tahosa and Sons]

I'll use the clayjar system to get started then add a half to a full star for the terrain just because CO can be quite mountanious. A typical 4 star terrain on my caches is about a 8 to 10 mile round trip hike. And one goes over 3000 ft. up the hill so that is about a 4.5 T

 

For the difficulty level I'll stay as close to the Clayjar system as possible.