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bartrod 7 years ago.
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These are my own preferences and thoughts, not necessarily for everyone though.
1. Geocaches seem to get found more often if they are placed as a *series* of caches, especially if they are numbered. Example: if I were to place 5 caches with the names WGA #1: Picnics, WGA #2: website, WGA #3: campouts, WGA #4: history, & WGA #5: events, they would likely get found twice as much (or more) compared to placing 5 caches with unrelated names/themes. (We actually did a series about the WGA but it was more than five caches)
2. I water-test the containers I use for caches. I put a tissue paper in the cache and hold it down in a bucket of water. If I find that the tissue gets wet, I likely won’t use that container unless it is used as a container in a container. Nobody likes wet soggy log books or log sheets.
3. We like Geocaching HQ’s advice on locations: if you’re going to place a cache in a location just because it’s available, look for a different place. They suggest placing a cache in a location that is worth visiting, or has some historical/cultural significance. Perhaps involving a nice hike or a fun location. For me, there is an exception: if it is the final of a puzzle cache, in which case the reward could be simply solving the puzzle, but even then it’s nice to find a worthy location.
4. We love finding caches, but there is a certain degree of disappointment when finding a cache in the woods that is a micro. With all of that space, it seems like a small or larger is more appropriate. But others may have a different preference.
5. Most of the time when we hide a cache, it is with the hope that it is a favorite-worthy cache experience, but we do not ask for favorites. We try to make them fun or interesting with cache props, or scenic locations. We try to create nice online cache pages with graphics or pictures. Those who ask for favorite votes do not generally get them from us. No pity favorites.
6. If one is not willing and able to do cache maintenance on their caches, or enlist others to do maintenance for them, per geocaching HQ it would be best to not place them. For existing caches, there are some oldies that we would hate to see archived however, so we waffle on this issue. But for our own caches, our standard is that if we can’t maintain them, they will likely get archived by us.
7. I often carry repair stuff, extra log sheets, and even replacement containers to fix other people’s caches if I encounter damaged containers while caching (if I have enough time), but if a cache is missing I generally will NOT replace it. That is the CO’s responsibility, unless arrangements are made ahead of time. Replacing a so-called missing cache with another container may result in there now being two caches at that location because it was there and you simply couldn’t find it.
8. We much prefer geocaches that involve a nice hike through nature, but at times we can still get a thrill finding a guardrail cache or a lamp post cache. But for us we generally place caches in green spaces, even though we live in the city.
9. We try to write nice and entertaining logs as a way of thanking cache owners for placing their caches. Sometimes with pictures uploaded. I’ve heard it said from several geocachers that they would have probably stopped placing caches completely if all they would have gotten was TFTC logs.
10. My better half uses a Garmin GPS about 80-90% of the time when caching. I used to use my Garmin GPSr most of the time, but for the past year or two I’ve used my iPhone about 75% of the time. It can be pretty accurate if you know the finer points of how to use it. However I strongly advise against using a smartphone for coordinates to PLACE caches.
11. When using a smartphone for finding geocaches, pre-loading the intended caches onto the phone’s hard drive via an “offline list” not only avoids using up your data plan and battery power, but it also targets the exact caches you want to find rather than a cluster of caches that you have to sort through. Pretty much any geocaching app has the option of saving the caches to an offline list ahead of time.
12. If smartphone caching for an entire day, bring along a backup external battery with a short charging cable and you’re good to go for an entire day or two of power while caching. They start at $10 and up, can weigh a little as 4 ounces, and can come quite small. I always keep one with me if going on a cache outing that will be several hours or more.
13. We are aware that our way of geocaching and our preferences are not the only way to enjoy the game. Play the game the way you want and have fun!
Ditto 🙂
Oconto...the birthplace of western civilization:)
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