Favorite Dnf Story?

[+Sgt Stitches]

I've just started reading the forums lately and have seen stories of people's favorite finds... one of my favorite geocaching hunts resulted in a DNF... after a total of three attempts over two days.

 

95 Feet under DNF log

 

It turns out the cache was embedded in over 8 inches of ice that had formed in the winter months after the cache had been placed in the summer. I found this out after writing to the cache owner who verified that it was indeed buried in the ice. Turns out this one should have been a 5 star (Need Ice Ax to access cache!)..

 

Anyway, does anyone else have a favorite DNF story?

 

Here is my favorite DNF: (Use the log link above to see the actual pictures... they're pretty cool)

 

WARNING: PHOTOS CONTAIN SPOILERS!!! That is, if you can actually post a spoiler for a DNF

This is actually a DNF for both Feb 14 and Feb 15! We tried three times for this one over the weekend.

 

This was the first time that I really didn't mind not finding the cache simply because the search was worth more than the find! By far our most spetacular DNF!

 

I would have rated this cache at least a 3d/3t. GPS is useless anywhere within 700 ft of cache. Terrain... well at least in winter ice skates are more appropriate than hiking boots. I'll post a picture so you can see what I mean.

 

First attempt was pretty typical. I was pretty sure what the location would be like, but followed GPS to posted coordinates to be sure (We were skiing at Donner Ski Ranch on Friday anyway). Confirmed that the cache would not be found the normal way. Walked around in the snow and discovered the eastern approach to the cache. Tried this approach, but the floor was covered in ice... slippery ice... thin ice.... and I had no idea how deep it might be. So I did what I normally do... stepped out on the ice to see what would happen! Just about fell over with first step. I could tell there was another approach... maybe a quarter of a mile away. Maybe that way would be safer. So I called Lt Happy Camper to meet me and Cpl Kiwi, Cpl Coconut, and Sgt Tiki below the hill to the eastern entrance. We sledded down to the road where Lt Happy Camper picked us up.

 

Second attempt: Drove back up hill to Donner Ski Ranch and searched for western entrance. Found it fairly easily, though it was farther than I had originally estimated. This entrance was covered in huge ice waterfalls and icicles. Here, ice was less slippery, at least for the first 400 feet. Continued search all the while oohing and ahhhing. Followed almost all the way to eastern end without finding the cache. Since marking both approaches, I knew the cache should have been about halfway in.

 

Gave up, but took lots of pictures. I will post some of the better ones.

 

Third attempt: Came back the next day after purchasing new batteries and 100 feet of rope to measure distance into cave. (Me, obsess about a cache? Nooooooo.) Holding the rope with Cpl Kiwi and leapfrogging one another, we measured 800 feet, then laid the rope down to mark the 800 to 900 foot area. According to the coordinates, this should be where the cache was. Again, beautiful icicles, but no cache.

 

Time spent searching: 2.5 hours.

Rope: $7

Batteries: $9

Time with family looking for a cache in a spectacular setting: Priceless.

[bodolad]

I was searching for a 1/1 rated Micro about 10 weeks ago.

I couldn't find the cache, but I started exploring under a bridge

nearby, where I used to play as a child. Just reminiscing.

 

I slipped and broke my ankle! On a 1/1 cache!

 

So I USED to be the only person in Lincoln, NE who didn't have a

cellphone, but now my wife has bought me one and makes me take

it whenever I go caching.

 

UPDATE: Off the crutches/out of the 'boot'/back to caching/happy ending!

[+Trekks]

Well, this could be a DNF, and technically I guess it was, but we actually managed to log it....we were looking for a cache on the side of a hill and found many beer cans. Eventually we did find the cache, nowhere near where it was supposed to be and totally empty. It had been muggled (probably by the beer drinking litterbugs). The container - 5 gallon white bucket - was the container listed in the cache description. We technically found it, but no logbook, so couldn't log it. We went on our way to do more caches, came down off the hill and drove into town. We started on our walk to the entrance to a wetlands area. We had to park down the street from the entrance and walk to get to it. As we were walking, my husband looked down.....there was the logbook from the muggled cache. So, we signed it and mailed it back to the owner. First time I have found a cache and the logbook miles away from each other.

[+The Skirted Cacher]

Ahh...mine was yesterday....a spur of the moment thing. You can read it here:

 

Bonnet's Revenge

 

The next log is the FTF for that cache

[+DavidMac]

Here's my entry. It wasn't just the actual hunt as much as it was my unsuccessful attempts to get on the site and find a nearby cache to search for- I was traveling and was separated from the internet. All that work, and still a no-find on a 1/1 full-sized cache! and I never really got those mud stains out of those pants...

[+bitbrain]

I think that maybe my favorite DNF was on the second day of hunting for Hello! This Is The Operator Speaking. My daughter and I had a great adventure that day.

[+Sissy-n-CR]

My favorite DNF was Bradley's Bottom. Months later we turned it into a find. Here are the logs:

 

November 16, 2003 by Sissy-n-CR (532 found)

WOW! What a great place! We had one heck of an adventure, and never came more than 100' close to the cache!

We decided to do some extreme caching while in the area for a geocachers meet (in Spartanburg, SC). I picked out this one. I wrote down the waypoint and left the rest to CR. He did not realize the cache is actually in NC, so when he loaded up the GPS and the palm, he missed it. We realized what had happened on the way to Spartanburg, so we popped into a library when we got there and printed the pages out.

 

Now, I had glanced at the site, and CR had never seen it, so we missed the very helpful pictures posted by the last cachers. We located the parking easily, and crossed the mentioned stream. There is a very nice picture of an eye where the unprotected waterfall sign should be, so we knew that couldn't be the right trail. We went down a trail to the overlook and down another trail that led to a rock chimney. We went to the end of the main trail and saw a way down. We ended up sliding most of the way down on our butts.

 

When we reached the bottom, we found a sortof place to cross, so we did and then went upstream. We couldn't get closer than 500' feet from the cache, so we crossed again there (I am a chicken, so I took off my shoes, socks and jeans and waded at this crossing, but CR just hopped across.) We got directly across from the cache and saw no safe place to cross. We were blocked by a rock wall from getting any closer to the falls. So we went downstream and upstream and were thoroughly thwarted. We found a place where a hammock and firering were set up, so we stopped to eat lunch. Rather than cross the stream twice to get back, we bear-hugged the side of the hill above the escarpments and found the trail.

 

When we got to where we had slid down, we realized there wasn't much to hold onto for the climb back up, so we went about 100' further to an area with a lot of small saplings and underbrush. We climbed back up, sometimes on our hands and knees, lunging for the next sapling to pull up with.

 

We finally reached the main trail, and met a man who was out with his dog. This freindly fellow explained that the 'eye' trail leads to the base of the falls, and said there was a rope. He also told us we could ford the stream fairly easily at the base.

 

We decided to save that hike for another day, as we had already spent 6 hours and did not want to run out of daylight while at the bottom.

 

I must say, this was the absolute best time I have ever had caching. It was so much fun and such an adventure, that I don't even mind not getting the cache!

 

And then:

 

December 25, 2003 by Sissy-n-CR (532 found)

Merry Christmas to us!

This was CR's Christmas present to me. A return trip to our most favorite cache. This time we did it the right way and had success.

We arrived at the parking area at 7:42am. Air temp a cool 25 degrees. We were dressed appropriately in layers and gloves. We were even carrying spare socks and I had a towel, because I knew from last time that I was more than likely going to get my feet wet.

 

Upon reaching the first creek fording, CR hopped across with no problem (again). I, on the other hand, am a big Sissy, and could only think about falling into the freezing water and breaking bones. After being cajoled by CR and having him offer all sorts of incentives, including a piggy back ride across, I gave up and took off the shoes and socks, rolled up the jeans and long johns, and quickly splashed across.

 

THAT WATER WAS COLD!!!

 

My toes did not regain their feeling until we reached the eye sign. We went down the right trail, being careful in the icy areas. Lots of icicles where usually there is just a wet seep. The rope was frozen stiff. I had packed in our rope ladder against CR's advise, but we were both glad to have it at the rock. The rock face was icy in many spots, and having something easier to grab onto was a help. Sorry guys, we packed it back out.

 

Once at the bottom, It took us a few minutes to figure out the best way to cross. Wading was not an option, as there was no shallow place to cross, and the water was moving at a pretty good clip. CR, being part mountain goat, found the best crossing and encouraged me across. I made it, but only by blocking the sight of all that rushing water between the two rocks I was trying to traverse. Scary stuff, if you ask me.

 

Once across, the rest was cake. Found cache at 9:44am. Took a travel pack of tissue and the Crumpbug TB, left 'Alive', an appropriate book registered at Bookcrossing.com.

 

The trek out went a little faster than the trek in, but I still waded across the last crossing. Boy, that car heater felt good on my toes!

 

We are going back to that general area for a week next month. I cannot wait!

 

Sissy

[+nfa]

My favorite dnf to date occurred in Utah, while visiting for a friend's wedding.

 

Hurrah Pass is the name of the cache, and it is in the back of beyond outside of Moab.

 

I drove my rental car up roads that would scare many jeeps, and walked the rest of the way. The meat of the search took place under the noon-day sun on August 3 of this year...the temp in town only reached 93 that day, down by the river, but in hurrah pass, it was a lot hotter. I lost about a gallon of water in the half-hour I looked, and then admitted, at least for this visit, defeat.

 

When I stumbled back down to my car and cranked the AC, I determined to drive on the rim if need be, rather than walk back to town if the soft-looking tire got any flatter (it didn't). The underside of the car acquired some new shapes during this outing, and that funky-fine red-rock dust got into and over everything, but I made it back down into Moab, drank a mess of gatorade, and spent the rest of the weekend drinking with friends, old and new.

 

nfa

 

ps - I found 16 caches during my visit to Utah, and drank too much 3.2 beer

[+art begotti]

link!

keep in mind, i'm a pretty new cacher. but seriously... climbing fences? i didnt know i could climb fences...

 

especially in sandals...

[+drat19]

This one just happened to me this past week (see Aug 24-26 logs):

 

http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_detai...&log=y&decrypt=

 

-Dave R.