Msnbc Article

[Mr. TSP]

I liked The Article. They did a pretty good job. Didn't mention "burying" caches or "Black Boxes" Probably the best article I've seen yet. Do you agree?

[+zoltig]

I do agree!

Love this part:

One cache named "Ghar" (found at coordinates N 34° 34.921 E 069° 19.454) has a five-star difficulty rating for terrain. That's because it's under some rocks at the base of a flagpole, in Bagram, Afghanistan. The accompanying note warns: "Areas off path may be mined."

[+BigHank]

It was a good article....of course, I hate to see 'caching becoming so publicly known... I enjoyed it more when we were "under the radar."

[Keystone]

Not a bad article, but by no means the best one ever written about geocaching. Better articles usually include more quotes from people who go out geocaching, like the Parade magazine piece.

 

The one paragraph that made me choke a bit as a cache reviewer was this one:

 

The basic outline is this: One person creates a geocache by putting some trinkets and a logbook into a container, often a metal ammunition box, which they hide in a public place such as a park, highway overpass or wilderness area.

 

Highway overpasses are off-limits. See the Geocache Listing Guidelines. An inordinate percentage of bomb scares come from caches hidden in this manner.

 

"Wilderness area" may have been meant generically as a "remote area" but the term has a very specific meaning under United States land management law. Geocaches are not permitted in many designated wilderness areas within U.S. National Forests, for example.

[+Mopar]

THis one caught my eye:

Virtual caches: Coordinates lead seekers not to treasures, but to a point of interest, like a historical site or interesting view.

But an interesting view is pretty specifically NOT allowed as a virtual cache.

[+Markwell]

Keystone didn't choke on this one?

 

Virtual caches: Coordinates lead seekers not to treasures, but to a point of interest, like a historical site or interesting view.

 

when the guidelines say:

 

A trail is a trail, a beach is a beach, a view is a view; but a trail/beach/view is NOT a virtual cache.

 

((snip))

 

Signs, memorials, tombstones or historical markers are among the items that are generally too common to qualify as virtual caches.

 

Of course, those are just the guidelines for this site.

[+Markwell]

As my son would say: "Jinx - You owe me a soda"

[+fly46]

It was a good article....of course, I hate to see 'caching becoming so publicly known... I enjoyed it more when we were "under the radar."

Actually, I think you want the public educated. How many bomb scares come because somebody saw something and it looked bad because they didn't know what was going on?

[+horsegeeks]

THis one caught my eye:

Virtual caches: Coordinates lead seekers not to treasures, but to a point of interest, like a historical site or interesting view.

But an interesting view is pretty specifically NOT allowed as a virtual cache.

Unfortunately true

[+Mopar]

THis one caught my eye:

Virtual caches: Coordinates lead seekers not to treasures, but to a point of interest, like a historical site or interesting view.

But an interesting view is pretty specifically NOT allowed as a virtual cache.

Unfortunately true

Unfortunate? Naw. I'm here to geocache. If I was just looking for how to find a nice view, there are dozens of other websites (many I belong to) and thousands of books listing them aready, usually in a much easier format to use for that purpose then a geocaching listing is.

[+Halden]

Probably the best article I have read so far.

[+PC Painter]

You know...it's true that the article was a LITTLE off in it's descriptions of where and what can be a cache...but you have to remember that the article was likely written by someone who has never gone geocaching, and is likely a good deal less hooked on it, than we are. I'd venture to say that the writer had barely heard of geocaching, before writing the article.

 

So, the little errors are no big deal, since the article was so very positive about our sport. I think more good was done, compared to very little harm. Anyone reading that article that might want to start geocaching, would certainly come to this website, and quickly learn that they can't do freeway overpass caches, or "great view!" caches. At this point, they came to the website, and it's doubtful they'd leave, just because of that.

[+Planet]

I couldn't read it, some big ad kept flying all over the page getting in the way. That makes me close the window right away, it's so annoying.

 

ok, went back and tried again, and got rid of the flying ad (man I hate those!)

 

Good article, shame about the errors, but all in all a nice article.

Edited December 21, 2004 by Planet

[+sept1c_tank]

...David Ulmer hid a cache near Portland, Ore., posted the coordinates on a bulletin board of GPS users and challenged them to find it. Now, four and a half years later, Ulmer is dubbed the "grandfather of geocaching."

So who is the father of geocaching?

[+Kitch]

I don't really care for the photo.....considering the background.

 

could be worse....like a parking lot.

[+mornin'glory]

i thought the article was great! way to go nicki(jeepers2)!!! not to speak for nicki, but--the author had been following a very bad article in the springfield news-leader & contacted nick to do another article. she went caching & got hooked on it. i'll get the link to the other article later(no time right now). unless someone beats me to it! compared to the other article this one is gold!

[+Spencersb]

GPSrs are getting "more easy to use"

 

My 9 year old's English teacher would love that one!

Edited December 21, 2004 by Spencersb

[+sTeamTraen]

GPSrs are getting "more easy to use"

 

My 9 year old's English teacher would love that one!

Presumably s/he would prefer "easy-to-usier"

[+Camo-crazed]

the seeker takes a trinket from the cache, adds an item of his or her own -- and records the experience in the logbook that stays in the cache.

but you actually try to write only a little in the physical logbook to conserve space and write about your adventure on site.

 

Merry Christmas

[+Team Cotati]

I for one would like to see the person who wrote that very nice and quite flattering article on the 'sport' of geocaching, write another article comprised of the rants in here.

 

Amazing stuff.