Significant Hike

[+briansnat]

The new cache page attributes include a hiking icon to indiciate a "significant hike". The Selector icon generator that many of us used prior to GC.COM's adding the attributes defined that as anything more than .5 mile.

 

I know people who wouldn't think twice about a 12 mile hike, so a "significant hike" to them may mean one thing. Personally, I'd say a significant hike would be anything over 4 or 5 miles and I'm sure there are people here who feel that anything over a half mile is a significant hike.

 

So what do you consider to be a "significant hike", worthy of using the significant hike attribute on the cache page?

Edited March 3, 2005 by briansnat

[+Jennifer&Dean]

I was going to say over 3 miles then I realized I hadn't counted our Bear creek hike as signifigant and it is at 4.8 miles round trip. So I guess I will consider our cutoff to be right about 4-5 miles round trip for a sig. hike.

I would guess that there will be folks using it for 0.5 and greater hikes though. I would probably use it for 2 miles or greater if the hike had a lot of elevation changes (more than 600 ft) or was a strenuous one in some way.

-J

[+sbell111]

I would place the threshold lower. I would say that a 2-mile hike is significant for most cachers. That is not to say that a 6-8 mile hike is extreme, necessarily.

[Stony2008]

I guess it really all depends on the terrain. surley a .5 mile hike wouldnt seem that bad until you found out there was a 600 ft. cliff you had to climb in between. I would say that a significant hike (with fairly ruff terrain) would be about 4-5 miles but thats just my oppinion.

[+Jamie Z]

Obviously this can mean different things to different people.

 

A recent cache I logged, I noted that the 1-mile (each way) hike was "quick and easy," or something like that. The next log after mine said "LOOOOOOOONG hike!" This cache has the "significant hike" attribute. (Although a lot of people admit in their log that they parked illegally on the side of the nearby highway.)

 

I didn't put the "significant hike" attribute on my cache that requires a 2-mile walk along a maintained gravel trail. To me, that's not a hike.

 

To me, it's at least a few miles. Terrain should play a factor, too.

 

At this point, I think its ok to leave the definition of the attribute more-or-less ambiguous, and up to the standards of each individual hider.

 

Jamie

Edited March 2, 2005 by Jamie Z

[+carleenp]

For me I suppose over 3 miles or so. But I suspect that for the average cacher it would be more like over 1-2.

 

.5 seems rather low to me, but I have had local cachers comment on the length of the hike to caches of mine that are about .5-.75 each way.

[Trinity's Crew]

I would consider a two to three mile round trip as significant. Significant enough to indicate it as such on my cache page anyway. I do understand the .5 mile guideline though. Most of the caches I have found have been .2 to .3 miles away from the nearest parking area. I am surprised (pleasantly so) when the caches are placed a mile or more into a park.

 

Edit:spelling

Edited March 2, 2005 by Trinity's Crew

[+Searching_ut]

I pretty much go by hiking time, and would consider significant to be a hike that is moderate to long based on easy being less than 4 hours, moderate 4 to 8, and difficult anything over 8 hours. For planning trail hikes, I use 3mph as average speed for trails adding 30 mins per 1,000 foot of elevation gain. Off trail hikes I compute at 2mph average, again adding 30 mins per 1,000 foot of elevation gain. It's not a perfect system because every area is different, but I've found it works out pretty good for me most of the time. However you determine the time, I'd probably use the mark of "over 4 hours" to class it as significant.

[+Team Perks]

I agree that what makes a hike "significant" is based on a combination of length and terrain. A 2-mile hike with a very gradual elevation gain of 500 feet is going to be much different than a relatively flat 2-mile hike with a sudden elevation gain of 500 feet during the final 1/4 mile.

 

Assuming moderate terrain, I'd probably say 3 miles (one-way) is the lower threshold of what would become a "significant" hike to me.

Edited March 2, 2005 by Team Perks

[+TheAlabamaRambler]

I am fat, 52, crippled and lazy. I cache on crutches and suffer from chronic pain.

 

I regularly cache with older people using canes, overweight folk, families with young kids, people with limited time, etc. To most of us anything over .5 is a significant hike...especially on any kind of rugged terrain.

 

When I started this game there was no cache I would not do; I spent hours crawling, literally, up hills too steep to walk up on crutches, sliding on my butt when the mud was so deep my crutches would sink - it was my personal challenge and path to recovery from years of addiction to pain-killers. Geocaching literally saved my life, and as part of that effort I did all of the hardest caches in Alabama.

 

After a few hundred caches it was no longer a challenge - I KNEW I could do it, so the long hikes became more of a PITA. Finally I achieved peace with the idea that I CAN get any cache I want, regardless of difficulty, but why should I put myself through that?

 

Now I like short walks and easy terrain.

 

That does NOT mean I like easy hides - I love to search for a well-hidden cache, delight in evil micro hides, love well-stocked traditionals in interesting places.

 

Since getting into shape, well, better shape, and discovering I can do any cache, it's become all about the people. I love geocachers! I have had more fun and met more interesting people than I had in the previous 20 years!

 

So do place the difficult ones, enjoy the hike, glory in the outdoors, but please do let me know about how far and rough the walk will be so I can decide if I want to do it!

 

Thanx,

Ed

[+top pin]

I do think the time is the best estimate. Though I would shorten it to 2 hours total time. Thats a lot of time to be steadily walking for anyone and to me that would require a significant designation. Especially for one cache. Flat ground your looking at covering up to 3mph and with elevation even something very steep a mile still could be covered.

 

example.. 1.6 miles from the truck not that far but add in 1850 of elevation. Worthy of a significant hike... Done just under 2 hours but I believe the average person cacher might take more time. I was haulin butt from my fear of the dark.

 

GCA969

[+Mr. Snazz]

Significant: Having or expressing a meaning; meaningful.

meaningful: Having meaning, function, or purpose.

meaning: To have as a consequence; bring about:, To have the importance or value of:, To intend to convey or indicate: , To have as a purpose or an intention...

function: The action for which a person or thing is particularly fitted or employed.

purpose: The object toward which one strives or for which something exists; an aim or a goal.

 

Any hike involving a geocache is significant, in that the hike is meaningful, in that it has purpose.

 

[velma13m]

I would go up to a mile and if it was supposed to be a really good cache then I would go all the way!

[+c88m]

Well for me anything over 2-3 miles is a good long hike 3 + is a significant . I have a cache that is about 2 in and 2 out (GCMTG3) . I do warn people that this is only for the hardy because of the distance .

[Voncachstein]

I think since you have the elevation variable, a way to calculate straight walks and uphill climbs together would be go by how long they take the average person to complete. Significant hike, to me, means something I can't start after school and finish before dark. So like 4 hours total would be significant. Just an opinion.

Edited March 2, 2005 by Voncachstein

[+sept1c_tank]

Any walk that takes 1/2 a day or longer.

[+Ltljon]

 

So what do you consider to be a "significant hike", worthy of using the significant hike attribute on the cache page?

In our area (NC mts), 3+ miles.

[+briansnat]

Significant: Having or expressing a meaning; meaningful.

 

Any hike involving a geocache is significant, in that the hike is meaningful, in that it has purpose.

 

I think it's this definition that they're referring to:

 

Main Entry: sig·nif·i·cant

Function: adjective

2 a : having or likely to have influence or effect : IMPORTANT <a significant piece of legislation>; also : of a noticeably or measurably large amount <a significant number of layoffs> <producing significant profits>

Edited March 2, 2005 by briansnat

[GlacierSki]

Hey I got a question: Why does a significant hike have to be related to length? Why couldn't it mean a hike what will stick out in your brain, or something cool happened, or just somethnig that will make you remember this hike? Thats how I took it. Not the length of the hike, but the impact. I got a couple that I remember quite vividly and I could call those significant hikes.

 

Jim

- GlacierSki

[+wimseyguy]

Hmm, my first thought when someone from NJ asks "What's it to you?" is to get my Jersey on and ask back" nuthin-what's it to you?"

 

Then I reread the original post and gave it some thought.

Over relatively level terrain it would need to be over 2 miles O/W to be significant.

With substantial elevation change that number can drop to under a mile easily.

When we did this cache last summer we read the logs of the previous finders, and the cache page to plan our path. decided to try the shorter, but steeper approach. You can park within .8 miles of the cache, but there is about a 500' elevation gain, and 80% of that in the last 500'! That was a significant hike!

 

I really like Mr. Snazz'z reply though, and am glad to see his wit back in the forums.

 

Oh, and to TAR-Lazy?-I don't think so.....

[+clearpath]

The word 'hike' many times denotes distance as well as an action. Otherwise, one could use words like stroll or walk. If by definition, hike already conjures up images of distance then 'significant hike' to me would mean somewhere in the neighborhood of 10 miles or more. Conversely, if one were to say 'short hike' then I would think in the 1 to 2 mile range. A 'long hike' would mean 3-9 miles.

[+Baxter-MD]

The word 'hike' many times denotes distance as well as an action. Otherwise, one could use words like stroll or walk. If by definition, hike already conjures up images of distance then 'significant hike' to me would mean somewhere in the neighborhood of 10 miles or more. Conversely, if one were to say 'short hike' then I would think in the 1 to 2 mile range. A 'long hike' would mean 3-9 miles.

I think clearpath is on the correct, well, path. In the DC metro area there are not that many caches that require what I would consider a "hike." If there is going to be only one icon for "significant hike" I think the distance should be over two miles round trip. But I would prefer to see multiple "hike" icons. Short hike - 1-2 miles round trip; Long Hike - 3-9 miles round trip; Significant Hike - greater than 9 miles round trip.

[+fly46]

It depends on the distance and terrain. Somewhat on time, but then again, time is relative in regards to terrain and distance.

 

One of the first caches I did was a two mile walk round trip. I wouldn't call it a significant hike, though, because it was all packed trails, mainly level (I doubt the elevation changed by more than 20 feet the whole walk), and I don't believe it took me all that long (well, horrible instance of mud included) here's the cache page & here is my log directly

 

Counting the mud, I was out of there in less than an hour. Not significant.

 

I think the GC thing needs to break down the distance and time things a bit more...

 

I have ligament damage and bad legs/knees, if it makes a difference to your question. (Okay, and the fat and lazy thing, but don't tell anyone)

I think to me, a significant hike would be one that either goes 2-3 miles each way, has steep terrain, or takes more than 2 hours... either way..

 

Sunday's plans are a day of hiking.. Six + miles... That would be a significant hike.

[+Renegade Knight]

I'm in the half a mile or more boat.

 

Edit: Clarification. Half a mile or less and I'll include it on a cache day. Half a mile or more and it becomes a destination cache.

Edited March 3, 2005 by Renegade Knight

[+Polgara]

6-7 hour hike for one cache, or spending a significant amount of time using both your arms and your legs at the same time to conquer the terrain would be significant to me.

 

...and of course there would be a celebratory canteloupe hauled to the cache site!

Edited March 3, 2005 by Polgara

[mufasa1023]

geez.....after doing several caches in one day or a really long multi i would say i walk maybe 8-10 miles ( i always take the 'scenic' route) but im also an avid hiker and backpacker and that distance doesnt phase me

i have a new multi coming out that is a considerable hike i think i might either record the distance as i would walk it myself (knowing all the multi's locations) or compute the distance as the crow flies and then just list it on the website any thoughts on that?

 

also does anyone know of a simple method or website that can calculate distance and bearing between two coordinates? I need it to set up part of my multi....

[Tahosa and Sons]

On the average its about a mile an hour, slower going up and faster going down.

When I do my patrols with the USFS in the summer I average anywhere from 10 to 15 miles in one day. It all depends on where the hike is and how many people I meet on the trail. A lot of times I start to hike around 0600 and usually return anywhere from 4:00 pm. to as late as 8:00 pm.

But when I take some cachers from back east a typical hike is about 8 miles. One should factor in elevation and the slope of the hill. One of my caches is a 4.5 miles one way and that is about 2800 ft. gain. A simple one is about a mile in and 800 ft. up. And I usually carry a fairly heavy pack, not just a water bottle and some trinkets for a trade.

I did a cache yesterday the overall distance wasn't all that bad about 2.5 miles but the last .25 miles to the cache the average slope was around 43°, around 6000 ft. elevation, it was a climb not a hike in the sense of a hike.

[+Confucius' Cat]

I am 50 and in "above average?" fitness. I consider 1 mile each way "significant" and >10 miles round-trip "extreme". (just did one of each last weekend). But still it depends on terrain, how much time I have to spend on the caching expedition and who's with me.

 

To my Wifemate, 1 mile each way in 2.5 terrain is about her limit. Murasaki will stick with me through thick and thin (usually).

 

I have fewer limits when I go alone

[Link & Zelda]

"So what do you consider to be a "significant hike", worthy of using the significant hike attribute on the cache page?"

 

For me personally, the icons mean very little. Less than 5 miles is not significant for me, but for someone else it might be epic. For that reason, on my cache hide, I clearly state the length of the hike, condition of the trail, type of terrain, etc. Rather than using an icon, this gives everyone the "facts" and allows them to decide whether or not to attempt the cache.

[+Ambrosia]

I have a problem with that attribute. I just don't like the word "hike" for the reasons already stated by a lot of people in this thread. What does hike mean? Or significant hike? I live in a fairly outdoor area, so a hike to me means going up high in the mountains with a fairly rough trail, fairly steep, and at least 6-8 miles. On the other hand, I have a cache that is 2 miles or so on a flat dirt trail. I would consider that a stroll.

 

So I propose that there needs to be a couple other attributes. Right now it seems to go from nothing, to "significant hike". There needs to be something in between. But I guess this is the wrong thread for that. It's just something that has bugged me since the attributes came out. Though I'm very happy to have them.

Edited March 3, 2005 by Ambrosia

[+GeoKender]

significant hike to me is anything i have to open my car door for.

[+WRITE SHOP ROBERT]

Just for kicks,

 

A signifigant hike = Any hike where I feel the need to take a hiking stick and a day pack, as illustrated in the icon.

 

Now my real opinion,

 

I think we need to grade hikes and difficulty not on set definitions, but rather on a curve. What is a signifigant hike when I'm tooling around town and taking a break from work is entirely different from when I'm on vacation up in the mountains. I live and cache in a large urban area (SF Bay Area) where there are a lot of medium sized regional parks and open spaces, and I would consider anything over about a mile each way to fit into that icon, (that's about an hour round trip, including the cache find). When I go outside the area I think that could be about 2.5 miles each way and above (which starts to aproach the range of a three hour trip). I usually include the length of a walk when I set the terrain rating.

 

I also think that all the ratings given to a cache should be in relation to the majority of other caches in the area, if 90% ot the nearby caches are in city parks, then this should be taken into account when setting your ratings for that cache in the larger regional park, Etc.

Edited March 3, 2005 by WRITE SHOP ROBERT

[+WRITE SHOP ROBERT]

significant hike to me is anything i have to open my car door for.

I have a cache where you could just roll down the window, unless you're in a monster truck (then you'd have to get out).

 

Before you all get on my case about that kind of cache, there are reasons why it's that way.

 

My first cache!

[+jimmyreno]

To me significant means more than 1 hour to the cache, depends on how much vertical gain there is.

[+Isonzo Karst]

I'd rather just see the actual (estimated) one way distance, and the likelyhood of needing to wade and/or bushwhack. Since there's no universal agreement on "significant." Elevation changes not much of an issue in Florida - other than mining pits and tailings piles.

[+AtoZ]

I would say anything more the a mile yes one mile from your car/motorbike ect... as anything more should take some planning. Now I don't mean taking a week to plan a 2 mile walk in the woods but anything more then a mile over gentle terrain, what you can cover in about 20 minutes people can get themselves into trouble if not prepared. I mean taking coats a little water, first aid kit etc.... You may think me over paranoid but I know to many folks that have got into trouble, myslef included, when they under estimate mother nature.

There have been a few threads on personal responsiblility etc... but the problem is people get fixed on the geocaching aspect and forget they are going into the wood and it couls snow, rain etc... or get dark. So maybe it is wise to say well you may be a little beyond helps immediate reach so be prepared.

cheers

[+AuntieWeasel]

I would think some account has to be made of local averages. Here in built-up Southern New England, it's hard to find a hike that's truly significant. I did one along a six-mile trail loop once, but you could drive to within .25 of it if you wanted to bushwhack. (Yes, yes...I did the six miles).

 

Half a mile seems way too short, though. I'd rule-of-them it at a mile each way, I think.

[+Tiffany's Slaves]

>So what do you consider to be a "significant hike", worthy of using the significant hike attribute on the cache page?

 

So Mr Brian Snat.... How "significant" are your new Maneater caches on Green Pond Mountain?

[+Greymane]

Ok, here is my take on the matter.

 

Significant - My seven year old walks in, but I have to carry him back out.

 

Extreme - My wife has to carry me AND the seven year old back out.

 

[+Phonedave]

So what do you consider to be a "significant hike",  worthy of using the significant hike attribute on the cache page?

 

Flat (or semi-flat) for me under .5 (one way) is a walk, up to lets say 3 to 3.5 miles each way is a "hike" beyond that is a "significant hike"

 

Throw in some elevation changes or rock scrambles and that changes things.

 

Take Do or do not there is no try on the NJ Palisades as an example.

 

If you hike from the Alpine Boat Basin to the cache and back along the shore trail, about 7+ round trip miles I think, to me thats just a hike. Its all pretty flat except the last .2 to the cache.

 

However, if you come down from from Stateline on the Blue/White, and head out over the Giant Stairs and up the Peanut Cascade and loop back, thats a significant hike. Its only about a 5.5 mile loop but down the blue/white is a -500 ft (+/-) change in elevation to the cache, and then back up the Peanut Cascade and the Giant Stairs themselves are a roughly 2 mile rock scramble.

 

-dave

[+briansnat]

>So what do you consider to be a "significant hike", worthy of using the significant hike attribute on the cache page?

 

So Mr Brian Snat.... How "significant" are your new Maneater caches on Green Pond Mountain?

One has the and one doesn't. Which is one of the reasons I started this topic.

[Jeremy]

Unless .5 miles was with an elevation gain of 500ft, I wouldn't call it significant.

[+Cool Librarian]

Like Auntie Weasle said, in these parts there aren't a ton of caches requiring long hikes - so, I think the term becomes relative.

 

I, too, like having the mileage specified on the cache page if it is over .5 each way - not because it's necessarily strenuous, but because I like to put many caches together in a day, and it helps me plan if I know there is a cache or two that may take more than 30 - 45 minutes (which I have calculated is the average amount of time it takes me to complete a cache with a mile or under total hike).

 

The longest caches I have done around here are 4-5 miles total - mostly multis.

[+The Leprechauns]

I just used the "significant hike" attribute on my newest cache, which begins as a puzzle cache, so I thought I needed to warn folks that it wasn't a park and grab. The cache could be on top of a hill near parking, giving finders a nice view of the area after climbing 100 feet and walking .2 miles. But no.... the cache is much farther away than that, about 3/4 miles round trip. The catch is that there's a thorn-covered hillside between you and the cache, and no trails. You plunge 400 feet down a slope that falls faster than a dress on prom night. The first finder said he was bleeding, sang religious hymns, and burned his clothes when he got back home. It took him an hour to get out and back, which I found impressive.

 

Even though it's far shorter than my multi-mile rollercoaster hill caches, I stand by my decision to call that a "significant hike."

 

I think "significant hike" must necessarily vary according to the area and the prevailing terrain. Around here it would be multiple miles and climbing some hills, or special circumstances like what I described.

[cezanne]

So what do you consider to be a "significant hike", worthy of using the significant hike attribute on the cache page?

For me the terrain plays a much more important role than the distance. I would not call a walk of 10 miles along a paved road or a gravel road a hike at all (not even if there is some moderate elevation change). This is a walk or a stroll for me as some others mentioned already in this thread. If the distance amounts only to 0.5 miles, the terrain or the elevation change would need to be very extreme to warrant the term significant hike.

At one of my first visits to the US, I was quite astonished to learn that some people in the US call already a relaxing walk of say 20 minutes a hike.

 

Personally, I would not call any hike which takes less than 2 hours and does not involve at least a moderate gain of elevation, significant.

 

In my opinion, one of the problems of the newly introduced icons is that many of them mean very different things to different people. Another example is the "available during Winter icon".

 

Cezanne

[+Scott Johnson]

Define significant hike? Well that depends if it is just me and the dog, or if my SIGNIFICANT other is along. :-)

[+evergreenhiker!]

Define significant hike? Well that depends if it is just me and the dog, or if my SIGNIFICANT other is along. :-)

LOL!

[+evergreenhiker!]

significant hike is based on various parameters. Distance, elevation gain, rate of elevation gain, tread of trail, weather conditions, physical condition of hiker, and so on.

 

In general, a flat 20 mile hike is not all that significant. A short 3 mile RT hike to Lake Constance is like 3700 ft elevation gain one way!!!!! I'm gonna finally get with it and do the trail after years and years of thinking about it. LOL. That one ies extremely significant.

Edited March 5, 2005 by evergreenhiker!

[+top pin]

can I have the coords a link to a trip report of that evergreen?

 

Thanks

[Three Simple Words]

>So what do you consider to be a "significant hike", worthy of using the significant hike attribute on the cache page?

 

So Mr Brian Snat.... How "significant" are your new Maneater caches on Green Pond Mountain?

One has the and one doesn't. Which is one of the reasons I started this topic.

Both Maneater caches should be listed “significant” in my book…And it’s not just b/c of the distance hiking to the cache…That's my $.02