I just couldn't help myself...

A little geocaching GPS humour:

A Proud Papa

It took awhile but I finally got the Geocache "Placing" bug. I recently placed two new caches, making my total placed caches four. This, combined with the emergence of spring, has spurred a flurry of activity in my area. Both have been found around 15 times. Pretty good considering the crappy weather we've had recently.

But I've figured out what makes placing caches so fun for me. The logs! My first solo cache was floating around in my head for awhile and I finally took the plunge. I got my cache (micro) ready and got my GPS and I was off. I spent only maybe a half hour or so looking for the best possible spot which unfortunately was hard to come by since all the major branches in the area were cut down and the hook for my cache to hang with was too small. At last I spotted a place (at the time I thought I was settling, now I realize it was perfect) and got my coordinates (I also double checked them).

After submitting it and having it go live I waited to see the response it would get. So far it's been really positive! Most saying they enjoyed the cache or that the coordinates were dead on. And that means a lot coming from cachers who have almost 4000 finds! Both my new caches have people who submitted pictures and someone also used my cache for their 100th cache milestone!

It's a strange feeling of pride. Like the caches are my children and I'm the proud father or something. Placing your own caches is a rewarding experience for sure. And to me it emphasizes that if your going to be placing caches, do it right!

(Also, try to be nice in your logs ;) )

Geocache Season has Begun!

At "Hockey Cache In Canada - Gretzky #99 (Revisited)"

Today is the first day of spring, but geocaching is already in full swing. Sharon12 and I kicked the season off in Brantford on March 2nd, grabbing excellent caches such as the first half of Coach's Crew Sails the 7 C's and March Madness! both of which 13coach13 helped create. I also finished the requirements for an Alphabet Soup, I just need to go get it!

After that was a small drought thanks to a winter "last hurrah" snow/rain storm. But I still managed to grab a few caches, including an early March FTF (which was certainly interesting), a birthday cache and introducing geocaching to someone while on a date! I was also busy publishing two caches which have thus far received very positive responses! 

Sharon12 at the Battlefield Falls Cache

Smith's Knoll Battlefield Cemetery

Finally it was the 15th and my first (in season) geocaching event of the year. Sharon12 unfortunately had to work that night but that didn't stop us from using the morning to grab some amazing caches in the Stoney Creek area of Hamilton. Of course Hamilton being the "City of Waterfalls" we got an amazing view of the Battlefield Falls. Cache of the day for us would have to go to A Tropical Drink by the legendary Blue Quasar.

One of our favs

After that I went to Brantford alone for the event and to do some caches. My first cache had unfortunate incident that had me spreading profanity non-stop. Luckily I've survived so far, but this does nothing to ease my concerns regarding the Event Curse. I mean, serious personal injury? What's left? Only broken bones and death! Anyway the cache turned out to be an FTF for me so it evens out. I got a few more caches including a my first letterbox of the year. The event itself was great, I heard a couple good stories and had a good meal. 

This Saturday was GHMGC's (Golden Horseshoe Monthly Geocaching Club) meet up in Burlington/Oakville. It was my first non-event meeting of multiple cachers and caching as a large group. It certainly made for an interesting time. After a few caches me and Sharon12 split apart from the group to get some of the most interesting caches (we were on a limited time schedule) including my first Earthcache of the year. We trooper'd through from 9 till 2:30 with no drinks or food to finish the Big Smiley Series!

Beautiful day to go caching

Overall an excellent way to celebrate my first GEOCACHE B-DAY! There is no debate that geocaching has profoundly changed my life (for the better). The people, places and things that geocaching has brought me to are unimaginable and I can't wait for more!

And its definitely not over yet, on the 30th I have another event that Sharon12 will be attending with me. And after that I'm looking into the future for possibly going to a couple CITO events, the Spring Fling mega event in Barrie and the Geobash mega event in New York!

Happy caching!

Idea for 11/11/11 Event

UPDATE: Not happening because of Remembrance Day I guess, maybe 12/12/12

Last year for 10/10/10 Groundspeak held a "event" where all cachers were encouraged to log at least one cache that day in an attempt to set a record for most caches. Cachers were promised a new Souvenir. It succeeded and thousands participated. For the Groundspeak this must have been exciting, however for your average cacher the results were only shown through given statistics and the Lost & Found video.

So what can Groundspeak do for 11/11/11 that can top 10/10/10? What about getting everyone to log the SAME cache in one day. My suggestion: A one day only Locationless Cache. "WHAT!?" I hear people crying out in agony. Locationless Cache is the only cache type that would work in this instance, any other cache requires a specific spot, severely limiting your numbers.

Locationless Caches were "Grandfathered" (retired so to speak) several years ago for good reason. They don't really require you to go to a location. But this is exactly why a Locationless Cache would work in this case. The fact that they're Grandfathered is incentive for the thousands of cachers who don't have access to them!

I think that in light of how well 10/10/10 did, it proves that the Geocaching community can get the word out. I think it would take a tiny bit of work on Groundspeaks for this to succeed. Let's make this happen!

The FTF Code of Honor

Inspired by a topic thread on the geocaching.com forums I wrote up a quick FTF Code of Honor, FTF etiquette whatever you want to call it.

1. If two or more geocachers arrive at the GZ at the same time then out of respect the FTF should be shared. Regardless of who spots the cache first. 
2. To claim FTF the cache must be found and signed by a geocacher after the cache is published
    2.1 Beta-Testers or anyone given coordinates or information before a cache is published cannot get the FTF. COs providing a Geocacher with information not given on the Geocache Page is also forbidden.
    2.2 Exception: A Geocacher or muggle finds the cache inadvertently prior to publication and can claim FTF
    2.3 Exception: Event caches or caches placed at events and later published. See Rule 4.
    2.4 Exception: An Earthcache may be considered an FTF as soon as:
                                 A. The requirements are met.
                                 B. An online log is posted.
                           An Earthcache FTF may be revoked by the CO if conditions are not met.
3. No laws or attribute rules set by the CO shall be broken in the pursuit of an FTF. Examples: Running red lights, caching at night when told not to. If any attribute rules are broken by an "FTF hound" then it automatically moves onto the next eligible finder. See Rule 5.
4. Event cache FTFs are left up to the CO
5. Confrontation and debate is to be avoided, do not ask for FTF confirmation from a CO. If you believe you have claim to an FTF for whatever reason, mark it in whatever program you use as such and move on. See Rule 6.
6. FTFs are not an official part of Geocaching, relax and have fun.

Anyone else got anything that should be added?

Guide to Posting Geocaches

1. Scout the location
1.  Use GIS maps (many counties have them) or whatever you can find to figure out who owns the property
1. If private then make the request to the owner, have information like this Official Guide (pdf)
2. If public (like a park) then make an attempt to find out if they have a policy on geocache and try to find a way to contact the park manager.
2.  Go to the location yourself. 
1. Identify things that may be hazardous to cachers this could include roads, railways, a lamp post with wires sticking out, a minefield, who knows? 
2. Identify problems the cache itself may cause. This could be harm to the environment, muggle threats or issues the police may have with it.
3. If its a park, find out if there are certain open hours.
4. Consider the terrain rating. One spot may be better if it's accessible to those with disabilities or children. 
2. Make the hide
1. The right container
1. Your first concern is making sure you have the right container. A general rule of thumb is the farther the walk, the bigger the container. 
2. Make sure you container doesn't look dangerous. This means "pipebomb" containers are right out.
3. If it is a size small, regular or large, be sure to have some "swag" in the container
   
4. It's optional but many have a prize for the FTF (may be a gift card or geocoin)
2. The Spot
1. Make sure the hide isn't obvious, not only to keep muggles from finding it, but to give cachers some challenge
3. Get the coordinates
1. DO NOT USE GOOGLE MAPS OR ANY OTHER ONLINE MAP SYSTEM
2. Use your GPS to find the coordinates for a cache. Walk towards the cache from different directions and note whether or not the coordinates are right.
3. Note any issues with your GPS (the signal lose strength in the area?)
4. Also grab the coordinates of any parking lots or trail entrances in the are
3. Posting the hide
1. Cache Type: This is pretty simple...
• Traditional cache is where you simply have coordinates to find the cache
• Multi-Cache is a cache where there are multiple stages to find a cache.
• Puzzle Caches are caches which require you to figure out the coordinates from a puzzle.
• Events, Letterboxes, Wherigos and Earthcaches have their own guides later
1. Terrain/Difficulty use the information you got while scouting the area with the system provided
2. Short description this is a brief description of the cache, include its location, description of the container and any other must know information (how to get to the cache for example). If you don't have coordinates for a parking lot, recommend the nearest legal street parking here too.
3. Long description this can be as long as you want, you can put an interesting story or the history of the area here. What you put in the cache would also be perfect here.
4. Hints There are a couple factors that come into play here:
1. How easy is your cache?
2. Is the GPS signal strong in the cache area? If your cache is at the bottom of a canyon with a weak signal and is well hidden, for the love of god you better tell me exactly where that cache is in the hint
5. Note to Reviewer The saying goes "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure" in other words save yourself some hassle and explain your cache to the reviewer. Example: "My cache is a standard micro in a park" or "This cache is behind a business I have the owners permission"
6. Above all else make it look professional. It should be easy to read, contain no spelling mistakes and have proper grammar.  My first thought when looking at your cache should not be "Did a three year old write this?"
7. Submit the cache
4. Activation
1. We're almost there! View your cache listing
1. Add your waypoints this includes your parking information or trail head information
2. Attributes. Totally under utilized feature. You have 10 attributes that you can place on your cache.
1. First mark any Equipment needed to get the cache (boats, climbing gear, etc.) and Hazards such as cliffs, animals or thorns!
2. Second mark any Conditions, especially availability at night, hike distance, winter availability and whether its appropriate for children.
3. 3rd is Permissions this is important for people with dogs or bikers
4. Finally add Facilities. This can be important for people who are planning trips and may want to make a stop in your area.
3. Give it a once over, are the coordinates right? Is spelling right? Is all the information there?
5. Enable the listing! You're done! Just make sure you read the logs and maintain the cache!