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The Bugline is a crushed limestone trail (like most of the state trails.) While you could take a wheelchair on it, it would definitely be more work than a paved trail. The Glacial Drumlin Trail is paved from Waukesha to around Dousman, and lots of caches are on it. I don’t believe many of the caches are wheelchair accessible, however. This is, unfortunately, the norm for caches along bike trails. Because the traffic is so high, the cache need to be quite a ways off trail to avoid muggling.
“Just don’t run too fast. We are still working out the bugs on this targeting system…”
I keep hoping that someone who actually uses a Windows Mobile device will respond. It isn’t very popular because it is a) more expensive than a cheap Palm device from Ebay and b) not as modern as an iphone, Blackberry, Droid, or other smartphone device, which as basically supplanted the PDAs for more tech-happy users. That said, here are the basics.
Most people use a program called Cachemate on their Windows Mobile device to display cache pages. Essentially, this is a little database for your PDA, which stores all the information about a cache (description, size, hint, terrain, etc.) and displays it for you through a series of menus. You can go HERE to get a copy. Note that it costs the princely sum of $8.
Once you have installed the program into your PDA, you next need to get a pocket query file from geocaching.com, download it into your “My Documents” folder (on your PDA, not your PC), and then IMPORT it into Cachemate by using the IMPORT button on the toolbar. Once you have done this, you can use your PDA to display information about caches.
If this seems too complicated (and it can be way more complicated than this, if you want it to be), your best bet is to get a smartphone and run one of the popular apps which actually work “on the fly” (no transferring of files required.) Any smartphone with GPS-like functionality should work.
The reality is that most business owners don’t want people messing with their lampposts. A significant number of people have told me that, after seeking permission, the property owners allow them to place a cache in a tree or bush, but not in a lamppost. From what I have heard, the general thought is that anyone lifting a lamppost skirt is a potential vandal (loosening bolts, cutting or stealing wires, etc.) and they would just as soon not have to filter out the baddies from a steady stream of cachers. Some also have concerns about electrical safety, although that seems to be a smaller group. Just be sure to get permission so that they don’t create a law enforcement incident the first time they see someone searching.
15 is Idaho Vandals. Tough one!
10 is Florida Atlantic Owls. 7 is Louisiana-Monroe Warhawks. 13 is definitely Oklahoma State.
Actually, the easiest approach is probably to make a macro to add the attributes in a log, which can be included in the GPX download. I was looking at this this morning. Doesn’t look too tough to achieve. You could also theoretically add them to the cache description, but that would require that you lock the cache after adding to prevent reloads from erasing them.
After some correspondence with Groundspeak, here is what happened. During the last site update, they added another entry at the bottom of your Account Details, called “GPX version”. If you want the attributes, you change this to 1.0.1. If you don’t, you leave it at 1.0. Apparently they reset everyone to 1.0 when they added the setting.
To get to this setting,
1. Log on to gc.com.
2. Hit the “Your Profile” button on the upper left.
3. Scroll down and hit the View your Account Details on the lower right.
4. Scroll to the bottom where you will see a box labeled “Your Preferences”. Click the change button in the upper right part of the box.
5. Go to the bottom to find the GPX version setting. Set it as you like, then hit the Save Changes button.All your FUTURE pocket queries will use the selected version. Note that this does not apply to any PQs already generated and ready for download.
This would probably work but it isn’t the best approach. The solar cell on those lights is very small and probably isn’t enough to keep you in batteries (rechargeable generally drain faster than nonrechargeables as they are lower voltage and often lower capacity). You can, however, find a solar battery charger that you can put on our dash or backpack for around $15. I suppose you dissect a bunch of lights and hookup the cells in series, but why bother? If you want to do an electrical project, just buy the cells and wire it up. Otherwise, the premade chargers aren’t all that much money, and you can use it right away.
Actually the newest version of GSAK now handles attributes in the PQ files. Unfortunately, it looks like Groundspeak removed them from the PQs. Oops!
Todd, the picnic is only on Saturday. Looks like about a 2 hour drive for you, so unless you are going to stay overnight “just because”, you should be back home before the traffic hits.
While I suspect the “concerned citizen” is overstating the situation, it is a perception we need to overcome. I suspect this person called the cops when he saw “weirdos in camouflage” wandering around his neighborhood park poking around in bushes and trees. Put yourself in the position where you know nothing about geocaching. Now, you begin to see people stop by a guardrail near your home, poke around in it, remove something, manipulate it, and then replace it. What would you think was going on? Most people will guess drugs and call the cops, without risking investigating it themselves. This is why we discourage people from hiding caches at their homes. Unless your neighbors are aware of the cache or located miles away, you are destined for a visit from the police.
So, what can we do? As a first step, try to be open about what you are doing when hiding caches and seeking caches. There is no need to try to emulate a spy, sneaking around in the shadows. Share your fun with the neighbors (and other park users) and get them involved in the hunt. Exchange swag for little ones and put them on guard duty. Are there some bad apples who will take the cache anyway? Sure, but even that is better than getting it blown up by the bomb squad.
When you hide caches, it is best to avoid residential areas. The idea of this game is to get people into the forests, prairies, mountains, and marshes. We have lots of beautiful places to showcase with our caches that are NOT in someone’s backyard. Please try to take advantage of these. Your finders will love you for it.
/rant mode off
You might be interested in knowing that LAME stands for LAME Ain’t an MP3 Encoder. (Yeah, I know a recursive acronym. Very techy!) This is somewhat ironic as LAME is, specifically, an MP3 encoder.
You guys must have missed the “Fun with Muggles” chapter of the geocaching course. My experience is that as long as you aren’t in the middle of a large group activity, like a sporting event, muggles can be trusted with the cache location, as long as they are brought in on the secret by you. Let them help you find the cache, and show them the cache if find it. For little ones, exchange some swag for them. Then give them instructions that they are to guard the cache from outsiders. Most people like it when you give them trust and responsibility.
My favorite case was hunting “Hissy Fit” in the Pewaukee area. As we were heading for the final, we noticed some 10 year old boys sitting in a tree maybe 30 feet off the ground. We waved to them, and continued on. As we got to ground zero, they yelled at us, asking if we were “looking for that thing”. “Why yes”, we replied, “did you take it?” They both jumped out of their perch and ran down to us. One looked kind of sheepish and said “Not exactly….we buried it!” So we had them dig it up for us. After logging in, we told them not to bury it again, but if they saw anyone else looking for it, they should chase them away waving their toy tomahawks. I was really looking forward to some interesting logs, but the owner moved the final, thwarting our evil plans. Booo!
If you are on the fence for placing a night cache, Renee and I went out Saturday and “preset” location for the first 8 night caches in a family friendly area. When you check in Friday night, we will give you the coordinates and you can go place your cache at that location.
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