[Team Deejay]

Thanks for the comment, Stokstad. You are exactly correct. With regard to your cache, as we discussed, Groundspeak has given us EXPLICIT instructions to not publish “Support Our Troops” caches. At the time, I made the argument that “Support Our Troops” is so vague as to preclude it from being considered an agenda, but they told me to enforce the guidelines by their rules. So that is what I do.

With regard to the Ten Commandments cache, I can’t really discuss the specifics, but I can say that the cache was published by me, and I would publish it again. There was a specific complaint filed with Groundspeak, who decided the cache name was in violation and instructed me to archive the cache. I, instead, worked with the owner to keep the cache viable. You can talk to refelo if you want more specifics.

And notwithstanding Ken’s objections, the WGA has nothing to say about the Groundspeak guidelines for placing a cache. Groundspeak is a private, for-profit, company and makes decisions which they feel are in their own best interest. Usually these decisions are in the best interest of the game, but sometimes, they are not. The WGA has worked with the governments to add some additional regulations, but the WGA itself has no specific requirements or rules for placing a cache.

[Team Deejay]

I’m thinking a name like “Elm Grove Police Department Vice Squad” might keep the stalkers away…

[Team Deejay]

@PCFrog wrote:

GPSMAP 60CSx
GPSMAP 76CSx

What I don’t get is the 76csx floats and has a larger screen, I know not by much, and comes standard with larger SD card. So why does it sell for less than the 60csx?

The 76 used to be more expensive, but the 60CSx is much more popular with geocachers, so the street price hasn’t dropped as much.

[Team Deejay]

Hmmm, my unfound in 50 miles is only 2562. Could take a while!

[Team Deejay]

@stokstad wrote:

Ok I am one of those “new” people to geocaching. I have only 41 finds and I have hidden 4 with a fifth ready to go out soon. …

With regard to people not taking things from caches, most finds (not most cachers) are made by those of us who regularly head out to find a bunch of caches on a given day. When you are finding a bunch of caches, it is a bit of a pain to worry about keeping track of swag. Additionally, since we should be “trading up or even”, most of us will not have a trade item worth $10 or so (the cost of a DVD), so we don’t trade for something that valuable In fact, I was telling my caching companions on Sunday that I took a lanyard the previous weekend from a cache in Illinois (trading in some custom geocaching buttons I picked up at an event), which was the first time I had EVER taken anything from a geocache other than a geocoin/TB (or garbage removal, of course). I leave stuff all the time, but generally I’m not in it for the swag. Note that this is not true of most geocachers, but it is the old 80/20 rule. 80% of the finds are by 20% of the cachers, and those 20% mostly don’t bother trading.

With regard to caching with children as young as 4, if you use GSAK, EasyGPS, or similar software, it is easy enough to filter out the micro caches from the load to your GPS. That way, any cache you have on the machine will at least have some swag for the kid to find. You might also want to filter out the higher terrain ratings if your child can’t handle the challenge. If you need help getting started using some sort of caching database, drop me a line and I will walk you through the process. Its pretty easy and allows you to easily tailor the geocaching experience to your liking.

[Team Deejay]

Write [email protected] and ask to have your name changed. As long as you don’t abuse this, they will be glad to change your name for you.

[Team Deejay]

I’m only posting to this thread since someone chose to drag my generic “public” disable log into the discussion. This is the type of log I post to caches which develop a problem after they are published. It could be a land access issue that came up, a proximity issue which occurred after a cache was moved, an issue with cache contents (whether or not placed there by the owner), or some sort of other miscellaneous problem, such as an “agenda”. These types of logs are placed so that the discussion of the problem can be done privately by email, so naturally I am not going to comment on why one was placed on any particular cache. If you are curious, you can ask the cache owner. What I do in confidence stays in confidence.

As far as logs go, Groundspeak policy requires that cache owners police the logs of their caches. Primarily this refers to making sure found logs are legitimate, but it also includes preventing the logs on a cache page from becoming a public forum on any particular issue. If you want to debate or argue over any particular topic, it needs to be in a forum or by email, not on a cache page. And, to clarify further, it is not appropriate to use a note log to attack, harass, criticize, or otherwise disparage another player for any reason. If the cache owner asks for a log to be changed or just deletes a log they feel is not appropriate, that is acceptable. It is not acceptable to criticize another player with an additional log. If you want to criticize people, take it offline.

[Team Deejay]

One other advantage to the 76CX over the 60Cx is “waterproofness”. Many people have experienced failure of the 60s when pushing the buttons during a driving rainstorm. (No, we aren’t smart enough to come in out of the rain!) I have not heard of similar failures with the 76s, which are designed as “boating” GPSs, hence the floating and higher level of waterproofing.

[Team Deejay]

Actually, the commercial cache guidelines are addressed rather uniformly worldwide now. Admittedly some slip through, but generally all the reviewers are on the lookout for advertisement on cache pages. The exception would probably be the UK, where it was commonplace to advertise a local pub near a cache location. This practice has since been stopped, much to the irritation of the locals there.

I suspect what you are really referring to is caches located outside businesses, in parking lots and similar places. The reason you don’t see those around here is that either people don’t want to place them or they haven’t obtained permission from the business. If you have a business and want to place a cache on your property, this is acceptable. You still can’t use the cache as an advertisement, but if someone finding the cache happens to buy something, there is nothing we can do about that. My personal feeling is that just placing a cache at a business is advertising, but this is NOT the position of Groundspeak, so these caches are allowed to be placed.

[Team Deejay]

I only hide micros when there are muggle problems preventing a larger container, and usually those are very easy to find. I agree that there are many people out there who hide caches to prove how clever they are, rather than doing it to give back to the game. Of course, that is their choice of how they want to play. There is a reason why geocaching.com provides an Ignore List.

[Team Deejay]

Mine are working.

[Team Deejay]

@gotta run wrote:

Now, if a muggle finds this and decides to mess with it, why leave the container? Or does a cacher just need a rare earth magnet so badly? Just very bizarre.

The problem with this sort of hide (I have one myself) is that it is nearly impossible to search for this type with any sort of stealth. Jay’s hide was the same way, located on a cannon in the middle of muggle central. If someone were to find it, they would almost certainly spent significant time examining, exploring and flat out crawling on that cannon, which certainly is conspicuous.

We have all been caught conducting full cavity searches of lampposts, fence posts, and other objects when we thought we were alone. Once a muggle sees someone access a cache, they will almost certainly investigate on their own after the cacher leaves. Who knows what they will do with it after they find it? This is why I always invite over muggles when they “catch me” searching. Including them reduces (but doesn’t eliminate) the chance they will steal or damage the cache, as they are “part of the secret”.

[Team Deejay]

Now I remember! It was Marc! Of course, after we started talking about where the frustrated puzzle cachers of the Fox Cities would choose to leave him (garbage dump hides, lamppost and guardrail hides and 5 miles hikes marked as one star terrain), I think he thought better of it. (Maybe not?)

[Team Deejay]

The mountains are in eastern Tennessee. Unfortunately, the forums for that organization are not well attended. I posted a note asking for guidance 4 weeks before visiting and received the first response 6 weeks after I posted. Assuming you don’t want to wait, here is the skinny. All of the caches in national park are virtuals or earthcaches, and most of them are worth the trip. Our favorite was the Grotto Falls (GC2C4B). Outside of the park, there were lots of parking lot hides, city park hides, church hides, and cemetery hides. On the Tennessee side, our favorite was Restin’ with Gnats (GCM1QA). Mostly, we would hike to a virtual in the morning, geocache our way through the area in the afternoon, then find a swimming hole for late afternoon. A great way to spend vacation in my book.

[Team Deejay]

Didn’t I read on here that someone planned to have their ashes turned into a travel bug?

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