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Distance of Cache?


RockyMountainHi

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1.Distance shown is from the zip code you searched (which may or may not be the center of town) or from your home coordinates if you supplied them.

2.Unless the hider explicitly describes the length of the hike in the cache description, there's no way of knowing how long the hike is. Maybe you could guess the distance based on the terrain rating.

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quote:
Originally posted by nostafa:

Thanks for the info all. Just my 2 cents, it would be great if the listings advised of the approximate length of the hike.


 

A lot of cachers do include the length of the hike, though that sort of requires that they assume you'll be parking in a particular place (or that they're going to tell you where to park). Some cachers think that finding your own access point is part of the fun, or intentionally make it part of the challenge. We've driven to within 500 feet of some caches advertised as a mile-long walk, as well; there's often more than one way to approach a cache. (And then there's the one where we were flat-out told where to park, and tromped along a dry streambed for ages and ages, and then came out... onto a road. The placer just thought the long walk was more scenic. Grr.)

 

Anyway, there are a lot of variables involved, but I'm happy to have any information the cache placer wants to provide.

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The distance you see listed is "as the crow flies" which is a straight line distance to the cache. Your mileage will vary depending on the actual route you take to get there.

 

You mileage also varies depending on how you look up caches in your area. If you are searching by zip code, chances are that it is giving you mileage from either the Post Office, the center of town or possibly even your town city hall. You will get a better estimate of mileage if you search from your home coordinates, but again it is as the crow flies, mileage driving varies on the route YOU take to get there.

 

Kar

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i agree with sbell, i think it's worthwhile to use a topographic map. either 'soft or hard'.

 

i like having a topographic map on my GPS -- i can get a better guess of where to park, and an estimation of how much of a vertical rise/drop there is and how long i have to walk.

 

in a way, it's more satisfying than knowing it's a 2.2 mile walk from the website, cause it's your own research that's provided you an idea of what the trip will be like.

 

*cha ching* tosses $.02 in.

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quote:
Originally posted by nostafa:

it would be great if the listings advised of the approximate length of the hike. Would help greatly in planning the cache. For instance it would be beneficial to know if the cacher is in for a 2 mile hike or a 10 mile hike.


 

Yep, I'd like to see this on the cache page as well, along with an option to include other things, such as parking coords and an indication as to whether the cache is wheelchair/stroller accessible. Maybe when the new site goes online, we'll see some of these features... icon_smile.gif

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Another thing missing when you see that distance is how much of a verticle climb you are in for. One of the first caches Renegade Knight and I did in S.E. Idaho was rated as an easy cache and was only .75 miles from our starting point. It took us half a day because it included a 1300' rise in elevation. Turns out the person rating this cache assumed everyone had a 4 wheel drive. icon_eek.gif

 

Lost? Keep going. You're making good time anyway!!

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