What Not to Hide in a Geocache ?

That’s the topic that Andy Smith and Dave Debaere address in this edition of Geocaching World / Geosnippits Reboot.

Dave and Head Hard Hat spent a weekend searching for different types of geocaches – and this episode details their adventures in the cache finding process. Geocaching is integrated into all sorts of factual or fantasy activities, due to the inventive and creative efforts of geocachine enthusiasts.

You will most probably find geocaches that are in need of repair. Andy Smith shows how a community friendly geocacher can do their part to keep caches in good shape for the enjoyment of all.

Andy Head Hard Hat Smith and co-host Dave Debaeremaeker and the Hangout talk about  the GPS Receiver – moving up the tech food chain in the Geocaching hobby.

Andy Head Hard Hat Smith and co-host Dave Debaeremaeker and the Hangout talk about Muggles – the non-geocachers that can have impact on the hobby, positive and negative.

Andy Head Hard Hat Smith is in the process of re-vamping his entire back catalog of Geocaching tutorials. In this episode, Andy starts at the beginning and shows what’s to be found inside a sample geocache, and why the hobby has appeal to all sorts of adventure seekers and family members.

Andy Head Hard Hat initiates a new version of the program, built around a Google hangout with fellow Geocachers.

After two years of production with RVNN.TV from our studios, it now makes more sense to have Andy act as host for the show directly from his home in North Carolina.

RVNN.TV will rebroadcast the show, with permission from Andy Smith. They are also available on YouTube .

HeadHardHat shows us how to winterize your geocache: the cold weather is upon us!

Winter Geocaching Habits

• Question:
• When going out into cold and humid weather. The best way to protect yourself best is to do something called layering. What is layering?
• Answer at bottom of show notes.

HeadHardHat’s G+ Geocaching Community

• It has everything a geocacher can want as far as being a community hotspot. There are videos, links to web and blog pages, media information, geocaching discussions and more.

How to winterize a geocache and is it necessary at all?

• To keep a level playing field here lets assume we are talking about geocaching areas where you receive extended periods of snow and below freezing temps. The states like North Carolina (not including the mountains) we normally get a day of snowfall on the ground before it melts. The small ponds MAY get a slushy layer of ice in the coldest week of our winter but that is about it.
• Things to consider:
• If you have ever watched my GeoSnippits geocaching video: What NOT to Hide as a Geocache you will see that cold can be a definite factor when hiding a geocache. One of the key points that was brought up in the discussion is that you have to plan the worst weather conditions for your geocaching hide. In other words it might be sunny and 80 degrees out right now but does your geocaching site get 144 inches of snow in the winter? Is your hide on the ground and potentially can be trapped and/or crushed in ice? In the more spring temps can it be floating in water or washed away in flood? These are very important things to consider when placing your hide.
• Cold can do strange things to plastic. I lived most of my life in Michigan so I know all about harsh cold. One of the things my brothers and I did during winter was to take plastic army men and place them in a battle scene on a make shift snow mountain. Then we would take our BB guns and shoot from a distance. In the summer you could shoot the plastic warriors a bunch of times with minimal damage. In the winter they would shatter as if made from glass. Why? The cold made the plastic hard and brittle. Now imagine what happens with your plastic geocache when somebody jabs it with their walking pole. Yep, the lid shatters as if it was shot by a bullet.
• So my suggestion for people who live in the colder climates. Forget about using cheap plastic containers for one. They are not waterproof to begin with and the winters will leave you a pile of busted goo by spring time. The more heavy duty and waterproof the geocache the better. I would also suggest putting your geocaches up higher if possible. People are less likely to stick them with a walking pole or to get crushed by the ice.
• Final Thoughts
• Some things that you may want to consider about your geocaches during winter. Several geocachers mentioned that they change out pens during the winter months to pencils. Why? Apparently the ink can actually freeze breaking the pen. When spring comes you have a nice inky mess in your geocache when it finally melts.
• If you hide your geocache during spring and summer months, remember the foliage that so nicely hid your geocache may now be completely gone leaving your hide wide open. You may want to check your geocaches around this time of the year for not only this scenario but for regular maintenance as well.
• So depending on your geocaching hide conditions you may want to now consider doing a quick fly by to check on them. Making sure that they survive a winter full of geocaching goodness can save you a bunch of grief and other geocachers finding a cache full of waterlogged goo.

Winter Geocaching: Be Safe Out There

• It’s winter time out and that means cold weather for many of us. Depending on the climate you may find a great many challenges when geocaching during this time of year. So before you head out into the frozen tundra you might want to consider a few safety measures to keep your adventures fun for both you and your family.
• Urban Geocaching – Watch them roads
• Now depending on how you geocache in general presents certain challenges during the winter months. For example, if you are urban geocaching and you want to get a fair number of finds in a trip you will be driving from one geocache to the next relatively quickly. Not speeding per say but a lot of starts and stops. If the roads are slippery or snow covered you are going to want to make sure your car tires and breaks are in good working order. Be aware that there are usually a lot of muggles out there and you need that extra distance to stop in time. Also just getting in and out of the geocache-mobile can be a possible hazard so watch your step. Always be mindful of what could happen if your transportation suddenly runs down. Do you have blankets for everyone just in case?
• Geocaching on the Open Roads
• As much as we geocachers take for granted our vehicles while geocaching some real consideration and planning needs to be done if you are going into areas where there are not that many people around. Some areas are prone to snow drifts and can cause you to get trapped miles from the nearest help. Let’s face it, a lot of us don’t even think twice going into extreme conditions when the weather is nice. When you are playing with the dangers of winter it is a whole other ball game. So please be sure you have all the necessary items in your car to keep you and your family dry, warm and nourished if something unexpected happens. Remember that all too handy cell phone may not have signal as you go further away from cities and towns. Get stuck and you may be looking at a long walk back. Did you remember your boots?
• Winter in the Woods
• So the roads are pretty good today and you decide to do some geocaching in the woods. The scenery is amazing and you plan on spending quality time outdoors all day. Sounds great and quite frankly I wish I was there with you but did you consider what to do if something unfortunate happens? A simple 2-3 mile hike in the summer may be no big deal but in the harshness of winter an injury or getting lost could be tragic. Unexpected storms could happen with you miles from the car or a twisted ankle at the wrong time can become life threatening so go with the number one rule of geocaching, “be prepared”. Okay I know it’s the Boy Scout motto but it is a dang good one and needs to be followed…

Here are a few suggestions that are pretty much common sense but it is always good to prepare for the worst:

• When geocaching in more secluded areas you should:
• Try not to geocache alone.
• Allow time to get back before bad weather or darkness is upon you.
• Let someone know where you went geocaching in case you don’t report back.
• Dress for winter. Just because it is sunny and nice out now doesn’t mean it will change.
• Carry an emergency day pack including:
• Dry clothes (especially socks)
• Water
• Matches
• Flashlight
• Map and Compass (GPS batteries can go weak in cold weather)
• Energy Bars
• Day Shell – If you are really on a hike and get snowed in.
• Geocaching is a fun and exciting game, sport, obsession for the whole family. It is up to us to take that few extra moments to make sure that we and our loved ones are safe while out there. The last thing we want is to get frostbite or worse while looking for our treasures. Being prepared for what might happen will help us most when it does happen.
• Be safe out there!
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Answer:

• The best way to dress for cold weather is to layer clothing. Clothing creates air space that absorbs body heat. Wear several light garments instead of one heavy one to trap air next to the body, increasing insulation. Multiple thin layers trap air both within and between the layers, creating a comfortable environment next to the skin.

HeadHardHat asked the question, and you have answered: 2012’s Geocaching Holiday Wish List!

2012 Holiday Wish List

Contest Question

• What date is the December Solstice in 2012?
• Answer at the bottom of show notes.

Holiday Wish List Poll on Blog:

• Time 30 (62%)
• Geocoins/Pathtags 16 (33%)
• More Quality Hides 15 (31%)
• Geocaching Gizmos 13 (27%)
• Gas Card for Cachemobile 12 (25%)
• Geocache Containers 12 (25%)
• Outdoor Clothes 8 (16%)
• Geocaching Mentor 7 (14%)
• GPSr 7 (14%)
• Rechargeable Batteries 4 (8%)
• Geocaching Smartphone Apps 2 (4%)
• Annual Park Pass 2 (4%)

2012 Christmas Geocaching Holiday List

• 6 – AA Rechargeable Batteries
• 3 – Time
• 2 – Gas Card
• 2 – Ram Mount for Bike
• Gizmos and Tools:
• Telescopic mirror
• Space pens
• Head lamp
• Write in Rain Notepads
• Pocket Recorder
• GPSr Units:
• Oregon 450
• Delorme PN-60
• Clothes:
• Hats
• Winter pants
• Geocaching Gloves
• Snowshoes and Socks
• Geocaches:
• Ammo Cans
• Nanos
• Swag:
• Swag in General
• Personal Tokens as swag
• Misc:
• Photo Book of the last years adventures
• Nice Weather
• TB Window Sticker
• Travel Bug Tags
• Renew Premium Membership
• Moun10bike Geocoin

Past Year’s Holiday Wish List Episodes:

• 2011 Holiday Wish List
• HeadHardHat’s Award Winning Blog
• Geocaching World has a board on RVNN’s Pinterest
• Circle us on G+
• Give us a Thumbs up on Facebook
• Follow us on Twitter
• RVNN is now on the Roku AND Boxee!

#GEOC on Twitter to send questions or comments to HeadHardHat!

Answer:

• December 21, 2012
• The Southern solstice on the earth occurs in December according to the Gregorian calendar. Common are December 21 and December 22. It is therefore also known as December solstice in Western culture.
• In the Southern hemisphere it is the summer solstice, in the Northern hemisphere it is the winter solstice.

In the past we’ve discussed how to hide a geocache. In this episode, we discuss how NOT to hide a geocache.

How NOT to Hide a Cache

Contest Question

• In a geocaching hint or description what does GRC mean?
• Answer at the bottom of show notes.

How NOT To Hide A Geocache

• What does that mean?
• Think of it as teaching by reverse logic. Sometimes people understand by an obvious example which makes them say “well duh”.
• For example, How NOT to Hide a geocache:
• Hiding a PVC pipe with wires hanging out near a heavy muggle location or
• Placing a geocache in a National Park without permission or
• Using a cheap Glad container to hide a geocache in a swamp.
• There are tons of example of what geocachers have found and thought to themselves. That is NOT how you hide a geocache. That is what we are looking for tonight.
• We asked the same question to our viewers out in the social network and here are some of the insights our fellow geocachers chimed in on.

Twitter:

• @sseegars: @HeadHardHat I once came upon a cache that was placed on a guardrail in a curve on a very busy road in NC. I thought that was ridiculous.
• @MooseOnTheTable: @HeadHardHat I once found a length of pipe, capped at both ends, underneath a major bridge, near a water treatment plant …

Facebook:

• Bob Strempek: You have to start with a container to make a hide, thats the first step and usually the first failure. No food take out containers or gladware, failure!
• AndynElaine: Geocaching Getting FTF on a cache when the area needs a team of fifty doing cito !! The CO must have moved crap to place the cache !! Not what caching is about Why bring me here ??
• Bob Strempek: yea the line “this place needed a cache” ugh…
• Victoria Davis: Finding caches in places that are clearly unsafe, for example, a cache I found located on an off ramp. Not too smart. Jeopardizes the game and the safety of players.
• Mark D’Elton: Inaccurately describing the size of the container. I found a classic this morning. A “large micro”. Approx 300ml in size. What the ….????
• HHH note: 300 ml is 10.144 US fluid ounces or a medium sized lock n lock.
• Kathy Seedorff: You might think that it’s easy to find, but you know where to look. Think about what a person who may not know what container it is will look like to everyone around them while they’re looking for your cache. Stealth frequently (esp since 9/11) looks suspicious. A kids park might = pedophile.
• Bob Strempek: don’t scrimp on string on shore geocaches, oh and the water tight containers are nice to use to…from the NJ Shore!
• Jamie Mutt Williams: How about when permits expire the cache owner renews the permit
• Bob Strempek: Permit? where do you need permits
• Jamie Mutt Williams: Up here, in some of Five River MetroParks they have a permit system, and to think of it, Indiana DNR have requested the same concept
• Bob Strempek: Interesting, are they relatively easy to obtain? I can see sensitive park areas, marshland, endangered plants, etc..benefiting from the policy. But the added red tape in NJ would be a bureaucratic pain.
• Jamie Mutt Williams: It can be a painstaking task of getting them sometimes. If I may link to the [documention] (http://metroparks.org/GetOutside/geocaching.aspx) I’ve got a couple caches that I’m planning on placing in one of the parks.
• Geocaching-Five Rivers MetroParks

Google Plus:

• Jeff Stoehler: We have a cacher in our area who thought it would be a good idea to hide a geocache in the bushes behind a Bar (Pub, Tavern, drinking establishment whatever you want to call it). The area has become littered with all kinds of garbage including condoms, needles, and other yukky stuff. The logs show that cachers are afraid to enter the area and there are loads of DNF’s logged. Just because you see a clump of trees or bushes, it doesn’t mean there should be a cache there. This particular cache is definitely not a family friendly place.
• I sent an email to the CO to let him know the cache needs attention, and he pretty much told me to mind my own business.
• Dave DeBaeremaeker: +Jeff Stoehler touched on this a bit, but I would enforce it – don’t hide things in places strewn with dangerous litter – One could theoretically CITO it first, but given the proximity to the bar, it is likely going to require a CITO again soon after – it is a losing battle.
• I have archived a cache because the area I placed it in became a hobo hangout. They seemed nice enough during the day, but I didn’t want to risk an innocent cacher tripping over a sleeping hobo while night caching. I didn’t want the fallout of what could happen on my conscience, so I removed the cache.
• Also, if you are going to hide a cache, be willing to listen to feedback from the community. As a general rule, since they are many brains and you are one, they are likely to see things that you may not. “Mind your own business” is never an acceptable response to constructive criticism about your cache. You don’t always have to agree that the feedback is correct, but it should at least be listened to.

Some other things to avoid:

• Hiding Pipe Caches
• Pretty much anywhere, but definitely away from infrastructure and public places. If the pipe looks like plumbing or conduit it can be ok – if it looks like a pipe bomb with caps on both ends, you can be sure someone will mistake it as such. Surprisingly, plumbing bits tend to make non-waterproof caches anyway (think of the reasons why plumbers cost $80/hr, and the folly of expecting that level of care from every cacher that finds your cache…)
• Hiding caches in places that will get worn down over time, like decorative rock walls, or ornamental shrubs. Although there are some very careful cachers out there, you can ensure that there are enough that do not exercise the level of care required to reassemble a rock wall properly, or to not damage shrubs while grubbing through them.
• Don’t hide poor containers and expect the community of cachers to maintain it for you. If you place it, expect to maintain it. You can lessen your maintenance requirements by selecting durable containers, and taking the advice of this show about how not to hide caches
• Louis Caplan: Sticking a piece of paper in a plastic bag, and putting the bag in a crook of a downed branch. No, it wasn’t a missing container, the FTF found the bag/paper.
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#GEOC on Twitter to send questions or comments to HeadHardHat!

Answer:

• GRC – (GuardRail Cache) used in the description on where a cache may be hidden-via the Geocaching Wiki.

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Geocachers and Campers need the right tools. Geocachers just need more. . .

What’s In Your Geocaching Pack

• I’ll never forget going to my first event and while mingling around I ran into just one of the nicest geocaching couples you ever want to meet. They were elderly though you couldn’t tell it by the sparkle in their eyes or the pep in their conversation. We talked about everything geocaching and for me at the time I had less than one hundred finds and you could just tell they were in the tens of thousands. He must have known how fascinated I was and without missing a beat he pulled out a plastic fork from the virtual toolchest in his breast pocket.
  “Know what this is for?”, he asked with a big grin. “This little gizmo is the best for getting those sharp burs out of your clothes without getting poked.”
  “What a great idea”, said I. I know in Maryland there is a very sharp bur that grows all over the place, planting into your shoes, socks and pants. If you even try to gently pull them out you immediately get pierced with sharp needles. What a simple yet effective answer to a problem I had delt quite painfully with for a while. How many other home made what-cha-ma-callits were out there there and could be shared with other geocacher?
• Turned out to be GEO13 who currently is ranked 11th in the world. With over 39,499 finds.
• Dave DeBaeremaeker:
• High power flashlight. The cheap low power ones’ just don’t cut it.
• Extra socks
• Diapers – if caching with a toddler/infant
• Pens – lots of em. A sharpie also helps for those hard to sign logs.
• A towel. Always know where your towel is to be a real hoopy frood.
• I also carry a carabiner… handy for tying up the geo-dog when you are in an area where she has to be on the leash, but you need to drop the leash to do a hunt.
• Bug spray designed for tick repulsion! very important
• I also normally keep some sort of snack – jerky or granola bars – never know when you get hungry on the trails, and that stuff keeps for a while so I can store it longer term without issue.
• Rope… bring rope, always helps
• Gloves
• Hiking stick has been employed as a long distance pokey device.
• Pliers on my leatherman has been used many many (many!) times as tweezers or just a fing-longer.
• A boat a couple time
• Water. For those pesky “fill this tube with water” caches.
• Beverly Edwards
• Love my 3watt cree flashlight and my Log Roller for those nasty nano logs. A fork or ice pick is useful when a cache is in a recess as there is NO WAY I am going to stick my hand in a hole here in TEXAS.Contest Question
  • When obtaining data for a GPSr unit or geocaching application. What file format is currently used?
  • Answer at the bottom of show notes.

HHH’s Recommendations

• Letherman: A multitool chock full of handy options that fit quite nicely in any geocachers pocket or pouch.
• Tweezers
• A space pen.
• Battery Case
• A Utility Mirror
• Head Lamp Light: 30” telescoping magnet
• 2” ‘snake’ mirror (so-named for more’n 1 reason!!)
• Pickle/Olive Grabber
• Golf Ball Retriever
• Rope Ladder
• A Red Uniball Powertank pressurized pen – for signing logs.
• Ball of string and a few paperclips.
• Swiss Army kife with tweezers and toothpick.
• Backup GPS unit
• Duck Tape
• Sample subpoenas:
• They give me a reason for skulking around places that are not ordinarily skulked around. I can explain that I am looking for so-and-so. After that, people generally leave me alone … and when they don’t I ask their name as I look through my stack of subpoenas.
• Bandanas:
• One for use as a cover-up to hide the GPSr or cache container from muggle eyes, makeshift water bottle carrier, cache location/trail marker, container and swag dryer, dirt remover, and many, many other uses one doesn’t know until you need it. The second, hopefully clean, to stem the flow of blood. Stuff happens.
• Extention pole grabbers you use to hang Christmas lights
• 6 foot length of string with neodymium magnet on end for those rare occasions where a magnetic cache has fallen to earth and isnt retrievable bare handed.
• CellSensor EMF Detection Meter – made to detect cell phone radiation and electromagnetic fields but can be used to locate those tiny little magnetic nanos.
• A roll of wrapping or packing tape The tape works great for grabbing the ticks off my clothes, and I can count how many I nabbed at the end of the hike.
• A pair of buckskin gloves.
• A clipboard to “look official” so as to ward off muggle attention. That sounded good but I use something a little smaller and more convenient. It’s a small spiral bound pocket notebook. You can flip it open and lay the GPS over or under it if need be. It cammos the GPS hand well.
• Package of diaper wipes. It’s great when you get plant sap on your hands and other things
• An orange vest and a hard hat just in case I need to look even more ‘official’ than just the clipboard.
• Mechanix brand gloves when reaching into nooks and crannies, and when climbing (coral outcroppings are sharp).
• Ziplock bags, and used plastic grocery bags for trash and such.

Answer to Contest Question: GPX files

• GPX, or GPS eXchange Format is an XML Schema designed as a common GPS data format for software applications.
• HeadHardHat’s Award Winning Blog
• Geocaching World has a board on RVNN’s Pinterest
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#GEOC on Twitter to send questions or comments to HeadHardHat!

Guest cacher, Dave “DeBaere” DeBaeremaeker Guest Cacher “DeBaere”

Contest Question

• When was the first geocache placed in Canada?
• Answer

Guest Cacher, Dave “DeBaere” DeBaeremaeker

• Name and where do you live?
• Dave DeBaeremaeker, from Canada, now living in North Carolina.
• What’s your geocaching alias?
• DeBaere
• How long have you been geocaching?
• I started in July of 2008.
• Number of finds?
• 1,779 (as of 10.16.12)
• What got you interested in geocaching?
• I was working in Belgium for 4 months, and a co-worker suggested geocaching, so we did. I found my first 5 caches in Belgium.
• Where have you geocached?
• Belgium, Ireland, all over the US, Ontario and Quebec.
• Are there any big differences, likes/dislikes?
• The caches in Canada are more historical. Cache descriptions haven’t been as dense in other areas. Silicon Valley caches are clever and you’ll find a lot of puzzle caches. The east coast is a mix of everything. It’s nice to see the differences as you travel around.
• What type of geocaches do you like to find? Woods/Urban?
• Anyplace that takes me somewhere new and interesting. Ideally, it’d be outdoors and in the wilderness.
• Future Geocaching Goals
• I have a few. I’ve been keeping them low, since I just welcomed a new daughter. Match my find count from last year, which is 2 finds a day. I’ve been able to keep up with it, so far!
• Dave travels a lot geocaching with other geocachers. Do you geocache with your family?
• Favorite HeadHardHat quote from Dave:“Integrate geocaching into your every day life.”
• Favorite Geocaching Story?
• I have many! I could fill up the whole show, but one that was interesting in California a couple weeks ago. I went to find a cache about 2 blocks away from the Google headquarters. As I was opening the cache, there were a couple of people walking towards
• What’s been your most difficult find?

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• What’s your favorite hide and why?
• • Geocaching with other geocachers?

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#GEOC on Twitter to send questions or comments to HeadHardHat!