Hello! I'm new here and have a small question

[moltenowl]

Hello, I recently found out about geocaching from a travel magazine of the Caribbean. I'm from Puerto Rico and I was delighted to see that the activity existed in Puerto Rico and that it had an active community.

 

Today I set about looking for my first geocache and couldn't find it. I'll keep looking anyways as it's in a spot I pass daily.

 

I have one question though... Do you have any tips for new geocachers? I was at a lost on what to look for and how. I knew I was in the correct spot but I was unsure of what to seek out. It was a nano cache. I'm not asking where to find them, but just some general tips and tricks for finding caches.

 

:-) Thank you.

[+Mudfrog]

A nano cache is very small, most are smaller than 1/2 inch (a bit over a cm) in diameter. From my experience, most are magnetic which may give a good idea of where it's hidden. But being so small, even then they can be a booger to find.

 

As far as being in the right spot, you most likely are but there are settings on your gpsr that could be throwing you off. For now, it might be good to look for a larger cache with low difficulty and terrain ratings. Larger is usually easier because there are fewer places they can be hidden in. What helps me is to put myself in the hider's shoes and ask,,, where might i hide the cache. It isn't 100% but it does work a lot of the time.

[+niraD]

A common recommendation for beginners is to stick with small size, regular size, and large size caches. Until you're more experienced, avoid micro size caches, some of which are smaller than most beginners can imagine (sometimes called "nanos"). Save those for later, after you have some experience.

 

Also, stick with caches that have a difficulty rating of no more than 2 stars . Save the more difficult ones for later. You may also want to choose caches with easy terrain ratings. (The difficulty rating tells you how hard it is to find the cache once you get there. The terrain rating tells you how hard it is to get there.) And it is often best to start with traditional caches, which will be at the published coordinates. Multi-caches or mystery/puzzle caches or other cache types can require more work just to figure out where the container is located.

 

Under ideal conditions, a consumer GPSr will be accurate to about 3m (10ft). That applies both to your device, and to the cache owner’s device, so you may find the container 5-6m (16-20ft) from ground zero under ideal conditions. Under less than ideal conditions, both GPSr readings can be much less accurate. Once you get within that distance of ground zero, put your device away and look around for places where a container could be hidden.

 

Where would you hide something? Do you notice anything unusual? Is anything too new, too old, too organized (e.g., UPS: an Unnatural Pile of Sticks/Stones), too symmetrical, not quite the right color or shape, etc.? Don’t look only on the ground; the cache may be knee-level, waist-level, eye-level, or overhead. How might the container be secured in place? With magnets? With a hook? With string? With fishing line? With something else? Does anything move when you touch it? (Be careful when touching things though.)

 

Go ahead and read the cache's additional hints (if provided), and read the past logs and look at any photos in the cache's image gallery. They may help you understand what you're looking for, and how/where it may be hidden. It may also help to look at some of the cache containers available online. For example, check out the cache containers sold by Groundspeak. Also, take a look at the Pictures - Cool Cache Containers (CCC's) thread in the forums, and check out some geocaching videos on YouTube.

[+Sherminator18]

A common recommendation for beginners is to stick with small size, regular size, and large size caches. Until you're more experienced, avoid micro size caches, some of which are smaller than most beginners can imagine (sometimes called "nanos"). Save those for later, after you have some experience.

 

Also, stick with caches that have a difficulty rating of no more than 2 stars . Save the more difficult ones for later. You may also want to choose caches with easy terrain ratings. (The difficulty rating tells you how hard it is to find the cache once you get there. The terrain rating tells you how hard it is to get there.) And it is often best to start with traditional caches, which will be at the published coordinates. Multi-caches or mystery/puzzle caches or other cache types can require more work just to figure out where the container is located.

 

Under ideal conditions, a consumer GPSr will be accurate to about 3m (10ft). That applies both to your device, and to the cache owner’s device, so you may find the container 5-6m (16-20ft) from ground zero under ideal conditions. Under less than ideal conditions, both GPSr readings can be much less accurate. Once you get within that distance of ground zero, put your device away and look around for places where a container could be hidden.

 

Where would you hide something? Do you notice anything unusual? Is anything too new, too old, too organized (e.g., UPS: an Unnatural Pile of Sticks/Stones), too symmetrical, not quite the right color or shape, etc.? Don’t look only on the ground; the cache may be knee-level, waist-level, eye-level, or overhead. How might the container be secured in place? With magnets? With a hook? With string? With fishing line? With something else? Does anything move when you touch it? (Be careful when touching things though.)

 

Go ahead and read the cache's additional hints (if provided), and read the past logs and look at any photos in the cache's image gallery. They may help you understand what you're looking for, and how/where it may be hidden. It may also help to look at some of the cache containers available online. For example, check out the cache containers sold by Groundspeak. Also, take a look at the Pictures - Cool Cache Containers (CCC's) thread in the forums, and check out some geocaching videos on YouTube.

 

I agree with niraD. Stick with containers that are a size small or larger and Difficulty/Terrain ratings of 2/2 or less, just until you get the hang of it. I also always like to think "where would I hide the cache here?". You start to notice patterns once you've found a few dozen caches. Good luck!

[+justintim1999]

Keep trying all kinds of cache hides. The more you find the better your Geosense will become. Before you know It hiding spots will start to jump out at you. I don't know anyone who was born with a great Geosense. It's something you develop over time. Keep trying, don't be afraid to post a DNF (Did Not Find) and enjoy the journey and the feeling you get when you look in that one last spot and.... Ah Ha!

Edited May 24, 2016 by justintim1999

[+Pond Bird]

Keep trying all kinds of cache hides. The more you find the better your Geosense will become. Before you know It hiding spots will start to jump out at you. I don't know anyone who was born with a great Geosense. It's something you develop over time. Keep trying, don't be afraid to post a DNF (Did Not Find) and enjoy the journey and the feeling you get when you look in that one last spot and.... Ah Ha!

 

Theres a filter that highlights caches that are "Beginner friendly" - start with those and then as you develop more insight on the hiding spots then go for the more difficult ones.