conflictinbanno Posted October 5, 2015 Share Posted October 5, 2015 Hi All, Me and my girlfriend in the past couple of weeks have started getting into Geocaching, we've stuck to my local area mostly and have just found our 10th Geocache which was yesterday afternoon. I would say we are now, really starting to get into this, it makes my walks with my dog a lot more exciting as we go round hunting for new caches, so I just had a few questions about it all. Firstly we are considering going Premium as there as so many around me that are locked down. Is this as worthwhile as it seems? Secondly, I've noticed in a few of the caches found, there have been little items in there and we've noticed some of the comments state they took something and replaced it with something else, which we are considering joining in with, however we aren't sure what items to use, does this matter? As we were thinking like small kinder egg toys we could leave in them for others to move on to new places. We do mainly just enjoy finding them and logging them but this could make it even more interesting for us. Thirdly, are there any items you'd recommend always bringing with you on a hunt, as I have noticed a few are not as easy to get to so may be worth wearing gloves to avoid nettles for example and obviously a pen/pencil to write on the log and also a torch, but wondered if there was any more that would be recommended. Thanks, Quote Link to comment
+Team Microdot Posted October 5, 2015 Share Posted October 5, 2015 I always carry a notebook and pen for two main reasons: 1. If the logbook in the cache is too wet to sign or is full I can sign and leave a page as proof of my visit which will keep the cache ticking over until the CO manages to respond to the Needs Maintenance log that I'll post alongside my Found It log. 2. I can jot down notes about the journey as I go along - not extensive essays or anything, just little pointers about anything interesting that I saw or that happened so that I can incorporate those things into my logs to make them more interesting to read Quote Link to comment
+Team Microdot Posted October 5, 2015 Share Posted October 5, 2015 (edited) Bear in mind also that Premium membership might gain you access to MORE caches but not necessarily BETTER caches. Fact is that a cache being set as Premium Members Only is no indicator at all as to the quality of the cache or the experience. What you're really paying for with Premium Membership is access to better tools on the website, such as Pocket Queries which are great for transferring the details of thousands of caches onto your device of choice in minutes and for producing lists of caches which match your specific criteria for things such as size, distance from home (or given coordinates, or another cache), type (Traditional, Mystery, Earthcache etc)... Edited October 5, 2015 by Team Microdot Quote Link to comment
Pup Patrol Posted October 5, 2015 Share Posted October 5, 2015 Hi All, Me and my girlfriend in the past couple of weeks have started getting into Geocaching, we've stuck to my local area mostly and have just found our 10th Geocache which was yesterday afternoon. I would say we are now, really starting to get into this, it makes my walks with my dog a lot more exciting as we go round hunting for new caches, so I just had a few questions about it all. Firstly we are considering going Premium as there as so many around me that are locked down. Is this as worthwhile as it seems? I just took a look at the map near one of your finds. "Premium Member Only" caches are very rare in that area. I'm going to guess that you are using your phone with the free GS app. Check out this Help Center article (you don't say which phone platform you are using, so I just chose to link to the iPhone app) 1.3. What’s the Difference Between the Free and Paid Apps, and the Free and Paid Membership? http://support.Groundspeak.com/index.php?pg=kb.page&id=514 Help Center - Apps http://support.Groundspeak.com/index.php?pg=kb.book&id=12 The perks of Premium Membership: http://support.Groundspeak.com/index.php?pg=kb.book&id=5 Secondly, I've noticed in a few of the caches found, there have been little items in there and we've noticed some of the comments state they took something and replaced it with something else, which we are considering joining in with, however we aren't sure what items to use, does this matter? As we were thinking like small kinder egg toys we could leave in them for others to move on to new places. We do mainly just enjoy finding them and logging them but this could make it even more interesting for us. Known as "swag", some folks trade, others don't. There are a couple of threads about what kinds of swag folks trade/keep. Thirdly, are there any items you'd recommend always bringing with you on a hunt, as I have noticed a few are not as easy to get to so may be worth wearing gloves to avoid nettles for example and obviously a pen/pencil to write on the log and also a torch, but wondered if there was any more that would be recommended. I always bring a pen, a mechanical pencil and a fine-point sharpie. Tweezers can come in handy. B. Quote Link to comment
conflictinbanno Posted October 5, 2015 Author Share Posted October 5, 2015 Thank you both. I will definitely look to upgrade my app then! Didn't notice they were two different things! Quote Link to comment
+vw_k Posted October 6, 2015 Share Posted October 6, 2015 Welcome to the hobby If you're thinking of leaving trade items or "swag" just bear in mind that it should be suitable for families and children and nothing that could rot or attract animals. The big no-nos are food, money, sharp impliments like knives or anything not suitable for children. Common examples of good items are things like small toys, keyrings and collectible personalised items like wooden tokens or poker chips with your user name on. As has already been mentioned, there are a few threads on swag and trade items that you can search for on the forum. Quote Link to comment
+niraD Posted October 6, 2015 Share Posted October 6, 2015 The big no-nos are food, money, sharp impliments like knives or anything not suitable for children.Why is money a "big no-no"? Foreign coins and currency are fine. Local coins and currency might be boring, but they're hardly a "big no-no". Quote Link to comment
+Bear and Ragged Posted October 6, 2015 Share Posted October 6, 2015 Thank you both. I will definitely look to upgrade my app then! Didn't notice they were two different things! Be aware!!! Getting the Paid For App, and Premium Membership are two separate things... Getting one, does NOT get the other! The Groundspeak PAID FOR app will show more cache types than the FREE/TRIAL app. (But the user interface is totally different between the two) Quote Link to comment
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