If You Mess Up, 'fess Up!

[+briansnat]

I found a micro of mine today with the cap missing. I guess it was dropped into the water below its hiding spot. Somebody tried to remedy it by placing the logbook and bottom of the cylinder in a prescription bottle and returning the whole thing to the hole. This made the cache extremely obvious to the casual observer (big white cap sticking out of a rock wall) and the tight fit made it almost impossible to extract the container from the hidey hole.

 

I received a few complaints recently and couldn't imagine why people had a problem with it until I went to check on it. Now if whomever lost the cap had simply mentioned that fact in the log, I would have been out there to replace it immediately. No big deal, its not like I would have bit the guy's head off or anything.

 

I wonder how many "plundered" caches are actually the work of a geocacher who accidently dropped the cache into the drink, or off a cliff or somehow destroyed the container and was afraid to admit it.

 

If you screw up, admit it. I'm sure the owner would like to know and isn't going to kill you. I know I'd feel better if I knew that my cache went missing because there is a fumblefingered geocacher out there, rather than a low-life cache thief.

[+Robespierre]

I know I'd prefer a chance to hurry on out and set it right.

[+horsegeeks]

We like to try for FTFs and are quite often the ones that "troubleshoot" a cache. We've pushed them too far up, broken the container etc (not very often but still possible). We've tried to contact the owner as soon as possible to help them remedy the situation and we having been hit or humiliated because of our "troubleshooting". It just gets the situation fixed and ready for the next cacher.

[+Team Perks]

If I break the cache and can't repair it to its ORIGINAL condition on my own, I absolutely let the owner know. There's no shame in admitting you dropped the cache in the lake...The worst that's ever been done to me is some friendly ribbing.

[+carleenp]

Once I was lying on my stomach under a bridge in the snow replacing a film canister when the lid went flying and I couldn't find it. I searched and searched and was beginning to think I would have to drive over to Target and beg a film canister with lid from the photo department when I finally found the lid on a beam under the bridge. Had I not found it, I would have replaced the lid with an identical one or contacted the owner. I also still mentioned the whole thing in my cache log.

Edited September 15, 2004 by carleenp

[+tirediron]

Seems like a fairly basic thing to do to me....

[+lilbluyze]

It's better to fess up than to have the next finder be disappointed. Even to let the owner know so they can fix it. If you can fix it do it. But, still let the owner know. There's not a Geocaching Police that's going to arrest you if you goof up.

 

Everyone should know there is a risk with such things in every cache.

Lilbluyze

[+Night Stalker]

RK and I recently found a local cache that had not been re-hidden correctly. We knew this because it was in plain sight. The problem was that we didn't really know how it should have been hidden either so we took the cache and notified the owner. He picked it up that night and re-hid it. I think sometimes this is better then trying to re-hide a cache.

[+geojeeper74]

If you screw up, admit it. I'm sure the owner would like to know and isn't going to kill you. I know I'd feel better if I knew that my cache went missing because there is a fumblefingered geocacher out there, rather than a low-life cache thief.

 

Ok, ok, ok, I admit it. I'm sorry, I really needed that film canister lid.

[+WaldenRun]

I wonder how many "plundered" caches are actually the work of a geocacher who accidently dropped the cache into the drink, or off a cliff  or somehow destroyed the container and was afraid to admit it. 

Quality cachers fess up.

 

-WR

Edited September 16, 2004 by WaldenRun

[+haggaeus]

I absolutely agree: not only the owner is notified of the problem, but the cache accident logs are usually an amusing read (after everything is back in order). Many months after this log, people were telling me at events: "Oh and we have found 'Where's the Trail' last weekend, that's the one you dropped off the cliff, right?"

[+SixDogTeam]

If people won't even log DNF's , how you gonna get them to admit to breaking things?

[+TotemLake]

I haven't lost any caches yet, but the fear of this cache being muggled after I rehid it caused me to write this log. Unfortunately, it seems it was muggled a month and a few finds later. There was a homeless person residing in the area too that caused me to do a DNF the day before.

Edited September 16, 2004 by TotemLake

[+caderoux]

I think I messed up a cache without even knowing it - this cache was awesome, but I think I accidentally over tightened it (PVC sewage cleanout plug x 2 encased in concrete).

 

http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_detai...f3-308b32f5b83f

[+The Blind Acorn]

I accidentally dropped a rock on top of one man's container when I was hiding it back. I walked back to my car, dumped out a cache I had made up, took the container back and replaced his cache. I felt horrible!!!

 

http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_detai...04-70790217703a

 

Several times, I've left pencils, new ziplocs, cleaned up containers etc. It's just something I think we should do for one another.