phishychick Posted September 14, 2004 Share Posted September 14, 2004 Hi, I am a letterboxer and I know nothing about Geocaching except that a Geocacher took the stamp and inkpad out of my letterbox the other day. This bums me out. I really want my stamp back; I carved it and it was time consuming to do. They left a note identifying themselves as "Greenebbs" but didn't leave any contact info. They did leave a pen and a scratch pad behind, but I have no interest in these items. Does anyone know "Greenebbs"? If anyone can help I would greatly appreciate it. Thanks- Phishychick Quote Link to comment
+El Diablo Posted September 14, 2004 Share Posted September 14, 2004 (edited) Try writing to contact@Groundspeak.com Maybe they can help you contact the person. I'm sure whoever it is didn't realize they had found a letterbox. I found the person by doing a search and sent them an email. El Diablo Edited September 14, 2004 by El Diablo Quote Link to comment
+Team DEMP Posted September 14, 2004 Share Posted September 14, 2004 Try contacting them off their profile page - http://www.geocaching.com/profile/?guid=30...9c-0c3bf333a292 Quote Link to comment
phishychick Posted September 14, 2004 Author Share Posted September 14, 2004 Thank you for your help. I found the member list page and sent an email; hopefully we will resolve this. The outside of the letterbox says "this is a letterbox! this is not trash!" all over it, so there's really no mistaking it. Quote Link to comment
+TandGG Posted September 14, 2004 Share Posted September 14, 2004 Okay I'm showing my stupidity. What is a letterbox? Quote Link to comment
+El Diablo Posted September 14, 2004 Share Posted September 14, 2004 Okay I'm showing my stupidity. What is a letterbox? Do a Google. It's a lot like caching, but has been around for ever. El Diablo Quote Link to comment
+Team DEMP Posted September 14, 2004 Share Posted September 14, 2004 Okay I'm showing my stupidity. What is a letterbox? http://www.letterboxing.org/ Quote Link to comment
+smullis Posted September 14, 2004 Share Posted September 14, 2004 Atlasquest.com is an alternate (not as inclusive) site that allows you to post your finds. Letterboxing.org is like the geocaching.com of letterboxing, but they haven't included a mechanism to post finds yet. Quote Link to comment
Agent N. Posted September 14, 2004 Share Posted September 14, 2004 (edited) Okay I'm showing my stupidity. What is a letterbox? just think geocacheing in the medievil ages you use rubber stamps and you don't take the stamps just stamp it in your logbook Edited September 14, 2004 by Agent N. Quote Link to comment
phishychick Posted September 14, 2004 Author Share Posted September 14, 2004 Okay, I emailed Greenebbs and he says he left the stamp right where it was and that someone else must've taken it. Am I pretty much SOL at this point? Is there any way I can put out an APB for my stamp? If Geocaching is about taking things and leaving them elsewhere, it would stand to reason that it will turn up somewhere else, but I guess it could end up anywhere. Please, if anyone comes across a stamp of the Brunswick-Topsham Bridge (it's like an erector-set type of bridge) along with a square green inkpad, contact me. Also, if there is a way to "flag" an item, let me know. I appreciate the help. (By the way, I am in Brunswick, ME) Quote Link to comment
+Sputnik 57 Posted September 14, 2004 Share Posted September 14, 2004 Phishy At the top to this thread, click on "Track this topic." The site will send you an e-mail whenever someone posts to this thread. Sorry about your stamp. I hope you find it. Quote Link to comment
+Thot Posted September 14, 2004 Share Posted September 14, 2004 Okay, I emailed Greenebbs and he says he left the stamp right where it was and that someone else must've taken it. Am I pretty much SOL at this point? Is there any way I can put out an APB for my stamp? I don’t think so.. Someone should know better than I, but I think only a small percent of geocachers post to these forums regularly enough to see your message and I don't think there's any other way to send a general message. If Geocaching is about taking things and leaving them elsewhere, it would stand to reason that it will turn up somewhere else, but I guess it could end up anywhere. A cardinal rule of geocaching is you must sign the log. Greenebbs signed your log, but didn’t take the stamp. This suggests to me it wasn’t a geocachers who took your stamp. Quote Link to comment
+briansnat Posted September 14, 2004 Share Posted September 14, 2004 Okay, I emailed Greenebbs and he says he left the stamp right where it was and that someone else must've taken it. Am I pretty much SOL at this point? Is there any way I can put out an APB for my stamp? If Geocaching is about taking things and leaving them elsewhere, it would stand to reason that it will turn up somewhere else, but I guess it could end up anywhere. Please, if anyone comes across a stamp of the Brunswick-Topsham Bridge (it's like an erector-set type of bridge) along with a square green inkpad, contact me. Also, if there is a way to "flag" an item, let me know. I appreciate the help. (By the way, I am in Brunswick, ME) I assume there is a geocache near your letterbox and your box is being mistaken for the cache. Find out which cache it is (a zipcode search might help) and see who logged the cache online. You can then e-mail each person and ask. You can also try the New England forum here. That's a shot in the dark, as a small percentage of geocachers visit the forums. Quote Link to comment
virgo91967 Posted September 14, 2004 Share Posted September 14, 2004 (edited) Then there IS the distinct possiblity that a non caching, non-letterboxing individual did accidentallycome across your LB. happens all thetime to geocachers. I have learned never to underestimate the power of the curiousity of those not in the know, especially kids. I say Kids, becasue adults are seldom curious enough to go distrubing something that somone else may have pu there on purpose and and adulty would most definitly NOT have taken anything from it. I hope you find your stamp, It must be a real adventure to find one you like . BTW, my leterbox 'kit' dissappeared on me too. however I am pretty certain it is somewhere in the depths of my caching closet Edited September 14, 2004 by virgo91967 Quote Link to comment
+AuntieWeasel Posted September 14, 2004 Share Posted September 14, 2004 Hm. Yes. The user you mentioned has been around a while and is fairly active. I'll go with the folks who say it was probably an accidental find by a non-geocacher. By the way, I'm so sorry. Losing something laboriously hand-made is a serious bummer. Quote Link to comment
phishychick Posted September 14, 2004 Author Share Posted September 14, 2004 Thank you Sputnik and Briansnat for the advice. Turns out there is a cache nearby so I emailed one of the folks who recently visited the area. The reason I think it might be a geocacher who found the stamp is because a pen and a scratch pad were left behind and I understand that geocaching involves taking things and leaving other things instead- seems odd that someone who stumbled upon a box would leave something behind rather than just taking what they found. If it was a store-bought stamp I really wouldn't care- I don't care about the inkpad. Thanks for the good wishes. Quote Link to comment
+fly46 Posted September 14, 2004 Share Posted September 14, 2004 The reason I think it might be a geocacher who found the stamp is because a pen and a scratch pad were left behind and I understand that geocaching involves taking things and leaving other things instead- seems odd that someone who stumbled upon a box would leave something behind rather than just taking what they found. Have you checked your log/stamp book, or was that taken, too? Maybe it will say something in there from a non-letterboxer? You said there is a cache nearby, I agree - send a message to anyone on that cache page who logged the cache and ask if any of them found the box by mistake. Perhaps whoever it was didn't know that they found a letterbox (no matter how well marked you have something, someone will come along and not pay attention) and thought it was a cache. I'm sorry that this happened. Cachers are - 90% of the time - really really good people. Quote Link to comment
phishychick Posted September 14, 2004 Author Share Posted September 14, 2004 Yes, the logbook was still there. Greenebbs left a sticker in the book so I contacted him since that was the last name written. He said he saw the stamp but left it where he found it. On the next page someone wrote "we took a stamp and inkpad and left a pen and scratch pad" but that was it- no signature or contact info (which was why I contacted Greenebbs- I thought maybe he was with the person who wrote the note). I wouldn't have even known that the stamp was missing but I got an email from a couple of letterboxers who live in CT- they gave me the heads up that they found my box but the stamp was gone. Quote Link to comment
+briansnat Posted September 14, 2004 Share Posted September 14, 2004 Yes, the logbook was still there. Greenebbs left a sticker in the book so I contacted him since that was the last name written. He said he saw the stamp but left it where he found it. On the next page someone wrote "we took a stamp and inkpad and left a pen and scratch pad" but that was it- no signature or contact info (which was why I contacted Greenebbs- I thought maybe he was with the person who wrote the note). I wouldn't have even known that the stamp was missing but I got an email from a couple of letterboxers who live in CT- they gave me the heads up that they found my box but the stamp was gone. It might be a good idea to put a big note inside saying This is not the Geocach you bozo! I found a letterbox not far from one of my caches and noticed some logs from geocachers. I taped a note saying "this is not the geocache" to the log book. Quote Link to comment
Agent N. Posted September 14, 2004 Share Posted September 14, 2004 On the next page someone wrote "we took a stamp and inkpad and left a pen and scratch pad" but that was it- no signature or contact info what a bummer maybe you could try some of the other caches around that area and comepare the note to the other sigs in the log of the cache maybe he found those caches and left contact info? Quote Link to comment
+D & K Posted September 14, 2004 Share Posted September 14, 2004 Did they date the log book? If so we can all help by searching caches in the area of your letter box and then we can look for "finds" with the same date and try to narrow it down. Someone probably posted a find and stated that they took those items. Quote Link to comment
+Search1128 Posted September 14, 2004 Share Posted September 14, 2004 See if there are any geocaches nearby to the letterbox. Then check the geocaching online pages to see if anyone posted their find to what they thought was the geocache (when it was in reality your letterbox). Quote Link to comment
phishychick Posted September 14, 2004 Author Share Posted September 14, 2004 First of all, I want to thank everyone who has responded. You have all been very kind and helpful when you could've easily just said, "well, tough luck!" I appreciate it. I posted on the New England forum as Briansnat suggested as well but have yet to get any responses. They didn't date the log book, but it must've happened recently because I got an email from some letterboxers on September 9th saying that they found my box but the stamp and inkpad were gone and the scratch pad and pen had been left behind. Quote Link to comment
+Tsegi Mike and Desert Viking Posted September 15, 2004 Share Posted September 15, 2004 Is there an organization for the geocachers in that area? Perhaps you can enlist their help in locating your stamp. I wish you luck in finding it again. I will take care in my area (Arizona) not to accidentally take a letterbox stamp if I run across one. Quote Link to comment
+Thot Posted September 15, 2004 Share Posted September 15, 2004 someone wrote "we took a stamp and inkpad and left a pen and scratch pad" That's new information and I agree it points toward a geocacher. Quote Link to comment
+D & K Posted September 15, 2004 Share Posted September 15, 2004 Phishychick, email that guy again and ask him which cache he was looking for when he found yours. Then we can just look that cache up, look through the logs and see who says they "took rubber stamp and pad" Quote Link to comment
+BOOTZOO-CREW Posted September 15, 2004 Share Posted September 15, 2004 Gosh I am so sorry to hear about this. I understand what you mean about the stamp. I did 4 of them before I finally settled on 2 that resembled any kind of stamp. I am almost ready to go do my first LB. I sure hope you find yours. Keep me posted on whats happening. I was reading evryones post about it and the ideas on how to find seem good. I actually live in Ca so when I start LB I will keeep a eye out just in case the person traveled this way. Why anyone would do this is beyond me. I think it was accidental but one never knows. Take care and good luck M Quote Link to comment
phishychick Posted September 16, 2004 Author Share Posted September 16, 2004 D & K- that is an excellent idea, I'm going to do that now. Thanks to everyone for the help and good wishes. Quote Link to comment
+bopala Posted September 16, 2004 Share Posted September 16, 2004 this is very dramatic, i seriously hope the stamp and pad finds its way home Quote Link to comment
phishychick Posted September 16, 2004 Author Share Posted September 16, 2004 Someone on the New England forum suggested that I log a note on the page for the "Mills of Yesterday and Today" cache- perhaps this is what they were looking for when they found my letterbox instead. Hopefully this will point me in the right direction! Quote Link to comment
+briansnat Posted September 16, 2004 Share Posted September 16, 2004 Someone on the New England forum suggested that I log a note on the page for the "Mills of Yesterday and Today" cache- perhaps this is what they were looking for when they found my letterbox instead. Hopefully this will point me in the right direction! The person who took it will probably only notice your note if they have the cache on their watchlist. You're probably better off e-mailing the last half dozen finders..or anybody who found it about the time your stamp went missing. Quote Link to comment
funhog_Lb Posted September 16, 2004 Share Posted September 16, 2004 Cross your fingers... here in the Pacific Northwest a well-known letterboxer, dvn2rckr, had one of her stamps go missing. Luckily it had the name of the letterbox carved on it and a kindly geocacher came across it in a cache a hundred miles from it's original home. The cacher recognized what it was, searched the LbNA site for the letterbox, contacted the owner and reuinted them! I have lost letterbox stamps, too and know how rotten it is. I recently contacted the owners of all caches near one of my boxes. They were glad to put a note in their listings warning folks not to mistake the two. Good Luck on finding your lost treasure.... Funhog Quote Link to comment
phishychick Posted September 17, 2004 Author Share Posted September 17, 2004 Unfortunately there are only two people listed who found that cache around the time my stamp went missing; I have emailed both of them and neither of them have it. What a smart idea- to carve the letterbox name into the back of a stamp. Wish I'd thought of that! Lesson learned. Funhog_Lb: that's another smart idea I'll have to remember in the future- contacting the neighboring caches just to give people a heads up. Quote Link to comment
+New England n00b Posted September 17, 2004 Share Posted September 17, 2004 phishychick, I am very sorry this has happened to you. Some people just honestly don't know any better. IT stinks that you lost such a personal item like that. I have not re-read the entire thread yet, but may I suggest in addition to the Letterbox name on teh back of the stamp, you also carve "NOT A TRADE ITEM - PLEASE DO NOT REMOVE" or something similar? Hopefully then the letterbox-ignorant will not take it. Again, sorry for your loss Quote Link to comment
+Damenace Posted September 17, 2004 Share Posted September 17, 2004 (edited) If you click on his profile you will see that he has not even logged a "Letterbox Hybrid" this would further confirm that there may be a cache near by that is getting mixed up with your letterbox. Edited September 17, 2004 by Damenace Quote Link to comment
+D & K Posted September 17, 2004 Share Posted September 17, 2004 I sure hope that these people are being honest and really didn't take your stamp. I have a feeling that one of them is fibbing to save embarassment....I hope I'm wrong.... This is a very small trail and stops at just two people............ Quote Link to comment
+Alan2 Posted September 17, 2004 Share Posted September 17, 2004 If its was traded item, it could wind up in other caches down the road. If you post a message on the New England forum, maybe one of the members might run into it later. Quote Link to comment
+New England n00b Posted September 17, 2004 Share Posted September 17, 2004 I sure hope that these people are being honest and really didn't take your stamp. I have a feeling that one of them is fibbing to save embarassment....I hope I'm wrong.... This is a very small trail and stops at just two people............ To be fair, there are those that cache and do not even sign the log. But here's hoping the stamp returns mysteriously anyway. Quote Link to comment
phishychick Posted September 17, 2004 Author Share Posted September 17, 2004 In the future I will make sure to write "this is NOT a geocache/trade item" somewhere in my letterbox. I had never even heard of geocaching before this incident, but now that I know I'll take extra care. I wrote all over the top of the box "this is a letterbox! this is not trash!" so I figured that would be enough...someone mentioned earlier that sometimes it doesn't matter how many signs you leave behind, sometimes people don't read what's written. It makes sense to write it directly on the stamp itself. I am getting the feeling that whoever found the stamp probably doesn't come onto this site very often (and may not ever post on the message boards). This thread (along with the thread on the New England forum) has been going strong for several days now and everyone has been really cool and supportive. Right now my best hope is that the stamp will somehow be traded to someone who has read about this whole incident. New England n00b- the stamp is of the Brunswick-Topsham Bridge, which spans the Androscoggin River connecting Brunswick to Topsham. I will try to find a link to a photo of what the bridge looks like and post it here. It's kind of like an erector-set type of bridge (the stamp has a lot of little triangles carved out of it to give the image of criss-crossing beams). The bridge is green and so is the inkpad I left in the box, but sometimes letterboxers will use their own inkpads so I'm not sure if the predominant color left behind on the actual stamp is still green. It's a rectangular stamp, just a piece of Mastercarve (it's not mounted on wood or any type of backing- in fact, the back looks pretty carved up because I cut a thick piece of Mastercarve in two to make a thinner stamp). Okay, here is the site where I got the photo of the bridge from (I printed the photo and carved the stamp from that- I left out the building in the background and just focused on the bridge; the bottom of the stamp hints at rocks/water). By the way, many thanks to whoever "bitchypoo" is- it's a great photo. When you go to the site, scroll down through the other vacation photos- I believe it's the 17th one on the page. www.bitchypoo.com/2001/July/05.html Quote Link to comment
phishychick Posted September 17, 2004 Author Share Posted September 17, 2004 sorry you'll have to cut and paste it- I'm not sure how to make it a workable link! Quote Link to comment
+Kfam Posted September 18, 2004 Share Posted September 18, 2004 (edited) phishychick, I'm surprised that no one has extended an invitation for you to join us in our hobby. You seem pretty cool yourself and I'm sure that you would be an excellent geocacher. Our hobbies aren't really that different, I think you might enjoy a cache or two! Best wishes in your stamp recovery effort. Cool bridge, by the way! Edited September 18, 2004 by Kfam Quote Link to comment
LoriDarlin Posted September 21, 2004 Share Posted September 21, 2004 PhishyChick ~ So sorry to hear about your missing stamp. I can relate. I am both letterboxer and geocacher too. I have had a tiger I carved go missing as well. It was in a combined letterbox/geocache hybrid. However, I think it was muggles (non cachers or LB'ers) that took it. I have another one that has done just fine close by our home. I have written on the Box LETTERBOX & GEOCACHE and on the back of the stamp it says PLEASE DO NOT TAKE and that seems to work just fine. Everyone comes and goes thru it and its fine. Best of luck retrieving what would seems like a tedious stamp to carve. ~ Lori Darlin in both worlds Quote Link to comment
+Team Teebow Posted September 22, 2004 Share Posted September 22, 2004 Well now that I found some time to catch up on things, I see I have a slight issue here. I have emailed phishychick to let her know if the stamp shows up in any of our other caches we'll snag it. I'll also spread the APB (all points bulletin) to all of the other cachers I know. Team Teebow Quote Link to comment
phishychick Posted September 24, 2004 Author Share Posted September 24, 2004 Thank you Kfam for posting the photo (and for the invite)! Perhaps I will try my hand at Geocaching sometime. Also, thank you to Team Teebow for keeping your eyes peeled and for spreading the word. Thanks to all for your help and good wishes! Quote Link to comment
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