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Parking Garage Cache


cmhall9

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Although it sounds like a lame cache (I don't know, maybe you could find somewhere cool to place it, but I doubt it in a parking garage), it is allowed as long as you have permission from the Parking Garage owner.

 

What powers of perception you must have to even have the slightest inkling as to how lame this cache will be from the information given.

 

I've seen caches that weren't on the top level of a garage as you describe. And they don't tell you which floor it is on. It usually involves some stair climbing. Fun stuff.

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Although it sounds like a lame cache (I don't know, maybe you could find somewhere cool to place it, but I doubt it in a parking garage), it is allowed as long as you have permission from the Parking Garage owner.

 

I fail to see how it would be lame. It's definitely different.

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Although it sounds like a lame cache (I don't know, maybe you could find somewhere cool to place it, but I doubt it in a parking garage), it is allowed as long as you have permission from the Parking Garage owner.

 

What powers of perception you must have to even have the slightest inkling as to how lame this cache will be from the information given.

 

I've seen caches that weren't on the top level of a garage as you describe. And they don't tell you which floor it is on. It usually involves some stair climbing. Fun stuff.

 

We have a several public parking garages in town. I was thinking top level to allow the GPS to get an accurate reading and fewer people park on the top level.

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Although it sounds like a lame cache (I don't know, maybe you could find somewhere cool to place it, but I doubt it in a parking garage), it is allowed as long as you have permission from the Parking Garage owner.

 

What powers of perception you must have to even have the slightest inkling as to how lame this cache will be from the information given.

 

I've seen caches that weren't on the top level of a garage as you describe. And they don't tell you which floor it is on. It usually involves some stair climbing. Fun stuff.

 

There's one in a parking garage in my town. The garage has 9 levels. There is a really clever hint, that once you understand what it means, will tell you what level the cache is on.

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Although it sounds like a lame cache (I don't know, maybe you could find somewhere cool to place it, but I doubt it in a parking garage), it is allowed as long as you have permission from the Parking Garage owner.

 

I fail to see how it would be lame. It's definitely different.

 

It is no different than the thousands of micros that are already in stairwells, different floors of parking structures or in lamp post skirts.

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I've found a lot of them, and there were none that I felt comfortable with. Yes, it can be done (assuming you work out the permission issues) and yes, it has been done (most likely without working out the permission issues) but I really don't know if it should be done. At the very least, you should know that it is hardly a unique idea, if that is what you were hoping to hear.

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I've found a lot of them, and there were none that I felt comfortable with. Yes, it can be done (assuming you work out the permission issues) and yes, it has been done (most likely without working out the permission issues) but I really don't know if it should be done. At the very least, you should know that it is hardly a unique idea, if that is what you were hoping to hear.

 

After reading the post, your right about it not being unique. I've placed 10 caches and I try to make each one unique/different if possible.

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Although it sounds like a lame cache (I don't know, maybe you could find somewhere cool to place it, but I doubt it in a parking garage), it is allowed as long as you have permission from the Parking Garage owner.

 

What powers of perception you must have to even have the slightest inkling as to how lame this cache will be from the information given.

Like I said, maybe he could make it cool. But "parking garage" doesn't exactly scream "cool, exciting place" to me.

This is what I mean:

 

 

It is no different than the thousands of micros that are already in stairwells, different floors of parking structures or in lamp post skirts.

 

you should know that it is hardly a unique idea

 

 

After reading the post, your right about it not being unique.

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Although it sounds like a lame cache (I don't know, maybe you could find somewhere cool to place it, but I doubt it in a parking garage), it is allowed as long as you have permission from the Parking Garage owner.

 

What powers of perception you must have to even have the slightest inkling as to how lame this cache will be from the information given.

Like I said, maybe he could make it cool. But "parking garage" doesn't exactly scream "cool, exciting place" to me.

This is what I mean:

 

 

It is no different than the thousands of micros that are already in stairwells, different floors of parking structures or in lamp post skirts.

 

you should know that it is hardly a unique idea

 

 

After reading the post, your right about it not being unique.

 

Cool. Like I said:

 

What powers of perception you must have to even have the slightest inkling as to how lame this cache will be from the information given.

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There is one in our area that is fun challenge in more ways than one. It is on the second level and this can only be determined by being there and comparing the view to the picture included with the cache page. The building is made of reinforced concrete and steel but you can still get sats when standing next to the side walls since it is open air. The best part is that the first level is predominantly occupied by the Sheriff's Court Services vehicles and reserved spots for transport and Deputies attending court as witnesses. Plus the US Marshal Service has spaces reserved for them on the first level also because the District Federal Building is across the street.

 

For some cachers this may seem like too much LE action to be skulking around a dark parking garage sticking your hand in unusual places. But, there always are Sundays where it becomes a challenge for your geo-instinct and way to hone your geo-skills.

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Cool. Like I said:

 

What powers of perception you must have to even have the slightest inkling as to how lame this cache will be from the information given.

The "parking garage" part kind of gave it away. The OP could have used a more interesting euphemism, such as Designated Static Vehicle Storage Environment.

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Although it sounds like a lame cache (I don't know, maybe you could find somewhere cool to place it, but I doubt it in a parking garage), it is allowed as long as you have permission from the Parking Garage owner.

 

I fail to see how it would be lame. It's definitely different.

 

It is no different than the thousands of micros that are already in stairwells, different floors of parking structures or in lamp post skirts.

Yeah and all those ammo cans in stumps are no different than the many that are already in stumps, or under a bush.

 

I don't understand this attitude that every cache has to be unique in someway or has to be in a "unique" location. It seems that some people clearly have a bias when it comes to locations. The may feel that any tree in the woods is a unique location, yet they lump every parking lot or parking structure together and say if you found a cache in one, the next one is lame and boring.

 

I think I can remember parking structures better than some locations in the woods where I have found caches. And I know there have been several that surprised me - a clever hide, a great view from the roof, a puzzle to figure out which floor it was on (or the one that was hidden in the elevator). I prefer a cache in the woods - but I understand not everyone does.

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It seems that some people clearly have a bias when it comes to locations.

Whodathunkit? There are folks who prefer the ever changing beauty of Momma Nature over endless acres of concrete. That is dang near one of them epiphany thingys! :lol:

 

Back on topic:

...a parking garage...

What is it you want to accomplish? If you are looking to create a truly unique cache, I think we've pretty much ruled that out. But that doesn't mean your idea needs to die a lonely death. Multi level garages offer a challenge that most buildings don't allow. Specifically, you can send one person to the top to mark the general area of ground zero, and send others scampering to other levels to find the cache. Because the structures are mostly open, folks up top can communicate with folks down below. Plus, most parking garages offer gobs of metal bits poking out, perfect for holding a magnetic match safe. If all you want is an urban challenge, a parking garage might be perfect.

Edited by Clan Riffster
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You could do a really funny/annoying multi in a parking garage.

 

Stage 1 is on the top floor. You open it and it says: "Same spot 2 floors down" or perhaps just list the altitude AND coords of the stage or something like that.

You could do that a couple times or be nice and have the second stage lead to a final cache NOT in the garage.

 

There is a parking garage in Austin that has an AWESOME view at the top.

*scratches chin...*

 

EDIT: I took too much time to type this! great minds think alike!

Edited by d+n.s
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We have a several public parking garages in town. I was thinking top level to allow the GPS to get an accurate reading and fewer people park on the top level.

 

You also usually get the best view from there. One of my first finds was a cache like that. I don't think I'd go after a parking garage cache just for the cache, but if there's a nice urban view from the top, that'd help make it a good cache location.

 

On the other hand if the description left it unclear which level of the garage it was on, making it necessary to search all the levels, I'd skip it.

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I've heard enough stories from people who have hunted the caches in our local parking garages about being hassled by security to realize many of them don't get hidden with permission.

 

Not saying that would be the case with your cache in particular, but if I see a cache in a parking garage it goes straight to my Ignore list.

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The view from the top of a parking garage in some areas can be pretty impressive because it may be one of the tallest buildings in the area.

 

That said, as others have noted permission is probably a bigger deal here than most other parking lot caches since garages for whatever reason often have security, be it guards or cameras.

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Yeah and all those ammo cans in stumps are no different than the many that are already in stumps, or under a bush.

 

I was thinking the same thing, and I'm glad someone said it.

 

I've found so many small lock and locks in tree roots that I have to wonder what's unique about them?

 

Granted, I'm not complaining, and I enjoy finding anything I can find (seriously, I'm not even kidding; a ziploc bag with a micro log is still fun for me), but to knock urban caches in urban structures while promoting the same old lock and lock in a tree root or ammo can under a rock... I mean, at this point, how many "unique" caches are there, really? You remember the unique ones, don't you? That should tell you something.

 

I completely agree that there is a sort of bias here toward parks and forests, and that's understandable, but just because a walk in the woods is great (and it is) doesn't mean a fun urban sweep and picking up a few micros isn't, either. I like seeing my map turn to smileys. I've been circling out from my homebase and grabbing everything in the area and I'm having a great time doing it, even though some of the containers are just film canisters with logs. Hell, sometimes the fun is trying to grab the dadgum thing without being "spotted," and that's the part I enjoy the most!

 

Just relaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaax. Breeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeathe. It'll be okay if there's a cache in a garage. Really. It will.biggrin.gif

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Yeah and all those ammo cans in stumps are no different than the many that are already in stumps, or under a bush.

 

I was thinking the same thing, and I'm glad someone said it.

 

I've found so many small lock and locks in tree roots that I have to wonder what's unique about them?

 

Granted, I'm not complaining, and I enjoy finding anything I can find (seriously, I'm not even kidding; a ziploc bag with a micro log is still fun for me), but to knock urban caches in urban structures while promoting the same old lock and lock in a tree root or ammo can under a rock... I mean, at this point, how many "unique" caches are there, really? You remember the unique ones, don't you? That should tell you something.

 

I completely agree that there is a sort of bias here toward parks and forests, and that's understandable, but just because a walk in the woods is great (and it is) doesn't mean a fun urban sweep and picking up a few micros isn't, either. I like seeing my map turn to smileys. I've been circling out from my homebase and grabbing everything in the area and I'm having a great time doing it, even though some of the containers are just film canisters with logs. Hell, sometimes the fun is trying to grab the dadgum thing without being "spotted," and that's the part I enjoy the most!

 

Just relaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaax. Breeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeathe. It'll be okay if there's a cache in a garage. Really. It will.biggrin.gif

 

Absolutely agree!

 

Another point is that urban caches are good for people who travel a lot. When I'm in some other city for business and find myself with a spare hour or two, it's nice to grab a few caches while there.

 

The same old point that people have made on these forums 1000s of times holds true. If you don't like cache style X, DON'T GO THERE!!! That doesn't mean others don't like them.

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But ammo cans are placed (generally) someplace where you can have a view or in nature. Not so in a parking garage.

 

And as many cachers here have noted, sometimes garages are the tallest buildings in an area and have pretty awesome views of their surroundings, so the "there's no view there" argument is moot. As for being in Nature, so? Not everything beautiful has dirt and trees around it.

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The same old point that people have made on these forums 1000s of times holds true. If you don't like cache style X, DON'T GO THERE!!! That doesn't mean others don't like them.

 

That's just crazy talk. If I don't like a cache, I want it smited from the earth!! No one shall seek LPC's. NO ONE I SAY! tongue.gif

 

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But ammo cans are placed (generally) someplace where you can have a view or in nature. Not so in a parking garage.

 

And as many cachers here have noted, sometimes garages are the tallest buildings in an area and have pretty awesome views of their surroundings, so the "there's no view there" argument is moot. As for being in Nature, so? Not everything beautiful has dirt and trees around it.

I suspect the lines often being drawn in these threads are between people who live in "fun" cities and people who live in "ugly" cities. For me it's all about location. A parking garage might be a decent location if it's next to something cool or has a nice view.

I think the urban find I have found have been the most unique ones.

One was a peephole on a business. Another was a fake drain outside a prominent building. Another told you the history of an important local venue that used to stand there and had been replaced. There is even a great series that marks the favorite little hidden secrets of local cachers. Being new around here, those caches have taken me to so many wonderful spots I never knew about.

I love going on 8 mile hikes. I really do!

But there is nothing inherently awful about spending time exploring Austin.

 

Heck, when I was in Seattle, several urban caches took me to places that I only would have learned about from the locals. Lots of caches like that here.

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Parking deck hides... I hate em!

 

I got an email notification of a new cache placement one day while I was at work. Went to the web page, looked at it in Google maps, and realized it was right outside my office.

 

Went out to look... as far as I could tell, the coordinates were in the second lane of a five-lane wide, one-way, state highway. I figured if the coordinates were accurate, it was probably under the highway... we have several local CO's who like to put stuff in the storm drains.

 

I emailed the CO, asking if it was underground (or, alternately, on the street light hanging over the road). Mentioned that it was ok to tell me, as in either case, there was no way I was going after it.

 

He immediately posted corrected coordinates on the cache page. Now the coordinates are pointing to the corner of a parking deck. The same deck in which I park my car every day. So out I go again. I start at the top and work my way down. All six floors. Nope, I don't find it. But I do find a couple of other cachers who are looking for it.

 

On the second pass through the floors we are greeted by a security guard. I show him my employee ID. I tell him that we're playing a game, my friend hid something for us and we're trying to find it. He goes away. We fail to find it, though.

 

The next day someone makes the FTF. Encouraged, I go look again. Found it! It's a magnetic nano, painted the same gray as the beams that hold up the garage, and stuck to one in the corner. I sign the log, and log online.

 

Now, keep in mind that my employer owns the parking deck. I know for sure that they would not grant permission for a cache on this property. And there are security cameras all over the parking deck. I figured it was just a matter of time. (I still feel sort of guilty over not placing an NA log myself.)

 

I put it on my watch list. About a dozen people found it over the next six months. And then three cachers found it, and got a visit from security. After they wrote it up in their logs, the CO disabled it. His note said he was going to "check up on it, they seem to have changed their tune since I placed it."

 

After it sat disabled for a while, the reviewer archived it. Hmm, I wonder if the container is still there?

 

That's the last parking deck cache I've ever found... and the last I will ever find.

Edited by GeoGeeBee
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I like the idea of a cache like this. It's different than the ones in a dead tree, or under a lampost skirt. Go for it man. Don't care what other people think about the cache location, because in the end there will be still people who search for it either for the numbers or to be the first to find. Good luck on the cache!

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But ammo cans are placed (generally) someplace where you can have a view or in nature. Not so in a parking garage.

So you like vanilla ice cream. Don't complain that I like chocolate [or Neapolitan ;)] :mmraspberry:

 

Clearly some people enjoy getting out of the usual urban environment in a nice park or woods. They prefer caches in these spots to ones in parking structures or at bus stops. But you have to accept that other people may not care for a walk in the woods. Some people find an urban setting just as deserving of a cache as any natural setting. Instead of seeing a deer or an owl, perhaps they enjoy people watching. Instead of seeing a waterfall or a tall redwood tree, they enjoy window shopping or looking at skyscrapers. Instead of a view of acres of tress from the top of the mountain, they enjoy the cityscape from the top of the parking garage. It's simply a matter of personal tastes. One is not better than the other.

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To the OP,

You know one of the many things I love about this game?

 

YOU as cache owner get to decide where YOU want to place your cache so long as it meets the guidelines; permission, safety, etc., etc.

 

FWIW, there is a parking garage cache in a town not too far away that has solar panels on it and a cache. To my knowledge, no other cache like it around for many miles.

 

When placing/finding a cache, the question I usually ask is "Why did you bring me here?"

For the particular parking ramp cache, it was to look at the solar panels.

In addition, it was near to a college campus.

Many of the students had no idea it was so close!

 

If you want to place the cache and you are satisfied with it, I'd say go for it!

 

Happy Caching! - hawkeyetob

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To the OP,

You know one of the many things I love about this game?

 

YOU as cache owner get to decide where YOU want to place your cache so long as it meets the guidelines; permission, safety, etc., etc.

 

FWIW, there is a parking garage cache in a town not too far away that has solar panels on it and a cache. To my knowledge, no other cache like it around for many miles.

 

When placing/finding a cache, the question I usually ask is "Why did you bring me here?"

For the particular parking ramp cache, it was to look at the solar panels.

In addition, it was near to a college campus.

Many of the students had no idea it was so close!

 

If you want to place the cache and you are satisfied with it, I'd say go for it!

 

Happy Caching! - hawkeyetob

Love this

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