Archiving... away they go.

The past few years that I have been a reviewer there is one thing that seems to cause me a fair amount of problems when I run across them.  Once and a while someone places a cache and I a little flag goes up in my review process.  It seems that two, three or even a decade ago someone decided to place a cache, and never actually got it listed.  My problem is what to do with the two caches?

Often I go with the oldest cache at the spot. If Bob placed a cache there in 2012 to list and is still working on it, I want him to be able to complete it.  However, in many instances once a year or two pass there is little chance that he will ever get around to publishing it.

Often I will put the new cache on hold, try and contact the other cacher and give them a chance to respond. Here is one discussion I had

Me: Are you planning on listing cache GCold? There is another cache that want to be published in that park?

Cacher: Yes I have not worked on it in 4 years but I want to finish it sometime.

Me:  When do you think you will get to it? 

Cacher:  I don't know, a few months, maybe next year.  Just hold the spot for me.

Do I hold a cache locaion for a year or two or three, for an owner that never seems to get around to it?

That does not mention that many of these caches were never submitted for review, or they were submitted and denied. Sometimes the cache owner is active and other times not.

Often if they are older and they show no progress I just archive them when I find them. If someone is trying to hold a location to block other caches (and example: around geo-art), with no intent to publish them I just ignore them.  A cache page with no intent to publish will never reserve a location.

In other areas the problem has become horrible.  In Europe with their limited area and lots of cachers, they are finding old abandoned caches and the waypoints blocking a large number.

This last week Groundspeak archived 131,000 caches that were sitting around for over a year. How did they determine if there were no changes?  No reviewer notes and no cache pages edits in that one year time span. So if you just let it sit, it went away, with a nice note that your reviewer will unarchive it if you need it.

Trackables

Some got caught up that people were using trackable storage.  First you can still log trackables in and out of an archived cache.  So you can continue to do so if you wish.  I would recomend that you make them into a collection.  In that respect you can move them and show them, and people can only discover your trackables.  They do not appear in your list when you go from cache to cache, so they do not clutter up your screen like if you are carrying them around.

Summary

If you were working on something contact your reviewer.  It can be unarchived. I had one that way.  I started it a year ago, made some changes.  Then got ready to list it and it was archived.  Let your reviewer know and you can keep going.  Remember, if your cache can be archived in a while for the same issue, so keep trying to make progress on it.  I know I might get grumpy if every year I am unarchiving the same cache because someone never gets around to doing anything.

Hopefully this will help. It will speed up reviewing in some areas, and make your experience better.

Enjoy all.

Kids on the Playground

I have not written in a while, and perhaps I should be starting back writing something all cheerful and full of joy, but not today.

I have seen a number of people that just seem to cause problems this summer.  Sometimes they are in the forums, other times I see them on Facebook, and another time I ran into them at a Mega event.  I wonder if we are back in elementary school and playing. 

If you remember those days there were kids playing on all the playground equipment, taking turns and enjoying themselves.  There were rules to the playground, and usually there was a teacher or two that policed the area and made sure there were no problems, and there were always problems.  Some kid was throwing rocks, another was pushing people off equipment so he could play, his buddies tended would muscle onto something or badger the other kids so they had something to themselves.  

For some reason I have seen an increase of that this year, and it is disheartening to me, and makes me upset.

There are a few groups out there that some people target as the problem.  I don’t see it that way.  I have some great friends that are members of those groups, and they are great cachers.  They make caching fun for others.  Like every group there are people who cause problems.

Stealing caches, multiple logs on cache pages or trackables,  getting mad because you broke the rules and got caught, what the hell is this grade school?  I assume we are all adults, but perhaps mentally that is not the case for everyone. Do you feel that being a bully is a good thing.  Happily I am not in charge of Groundspeak or I would just shut your account down and walk away. 

I should say I have seen a number of people push the boundaries.  Most of them take it in stride when the cache is archived, or I tell them it cannot be published.   I have gotten thanks you emails for letting me know, people have apologized at events for lying to me to get a cache published, and sometimes a grumbly email stating they thought I was wrong.  Those people I can understand and respect.  I have no issue with people going to appeals.  If I am wrong Groundspeak lets me know, I try and learn from that and move on.  Just like cachers, I am not infallible.   I try to stay up on what Groundspeak wants so that I can be the most effective and helpful to people.

Yet I see those people who are entitled.  You know the ones that say public property is mine, I can do what I want there.  This is my webpage and cache, I can do whatever I want. 

Earlier this year a cacher complained to me that someone wanted to log with a video feed their event.  They did not feel that was appropriate, and told them no.  They got an angry email back.  Face it, you were not there, you were not at the cache location, if the cache owner wants to delete your log, suck it up and be a man (or woman) and move on with your life.  It is not the end of the world.

You can dislike micros, and you can dislike lamp post hides.  Take the time to drive past, and ignore them.  What are you a five year old that takes all of them to destroy?  I got an email of a pile of caches they found by the side of the road, someone had stolen them all, then pulled over, and dumped them in a pile and drove off.  Can you step back and see how childish that is?   Personally, I hate caches that were placed with no intention for them to ever be found.  You know the ones, the 20 stage multi trip, many mile multicache, or the puzzle that requires an advanced degree in mathematics, linguistics, mental telepathy, and/or rocket science.  I ignore them.  I don’t acknowledge their existence.  In the winter I give them a glance, but not seriously.  What do they hurt?

Then I see a few people and their friends that decide to harass new cachers, cachers they don’t like, or that made them angry.  These people are the bullies in the playground.  If you can’t grow up, get the hell out.  I have dealt with a few in the forums,  and I see other instances in the community.  I don’t have time for your drama, but you do make me decide to not help you, not give you advice, or just not care when something bad happens.

Well my rant could go on, but perhaps it is time for me to just shut up.  I will look forward to the hate mail.  I seem to get some whenever I post something like this, but it makes me feel good to vent.  Perhaps someone will listen, perhaps not.

Now that is over…

Anyone want to go caching?

Update on 2013-11-08 18:09 by firennice

Earthcache Mega Event Countdown

We are within three weeks now.  So we are getting close.

The courses are linging up, dinner is planned, kids area running, volunteer positions almost filled, friday night event about ready to be announced.  It seems like all is running smooth.  Hopefully disaster will be avoided, but it looks good at the moment. 

A number of things are planned, and people have planned other events that weekend as well.

Friday morning at Starbucks

Preregistration - Friday night at a nearby park - Just got the reservation so will be up soon

Flash Mob

Saturday morning CITO

Main Event

• 9 am welcome remarks
• 10 -12  workshops
• 12 - 1:30 Lunch break
• 1:30 - 3:30 workshops
• Dinner

Nothing on sunday... how odd.

So there is where we are at the moment.

Welcome to Punk Rock Girl

Well, slowly as time goes on we are getting busier and busier.  The reviewing of caches is far more difficult now than when I started.  I would guess that 90% of all caches were listed then.  There were few conflicts, unless you were in the Provo/Springville/Spanish Fork area. 

Times have changed.  If you are placing a cache along the Wasach Front, or St George area, you are hunting for an open spot.  It is harder to squeeze your cache in with the traditionals, multis, and puzzles that have crammed themselves into the valleys.  Now more work has to be done to let people know there is something nearby.  There are a lot more youth caching with their phones, and placing caches.  So we watch the submissions to make sure there may not be problems.

Along with that I am helping with Earthcaches, though not a huge part of my time the combination is filling my caching review time. Not to mention a child hitting her teenage years.  So I am getting busier and busier.

So I now find myself sharing the time with a new reviewer.  I welcome Punk Rock Girl to the state.  Many of you that have your notifications on have noticed her publishing caches.  As I have been very busy with my scout camp, family camps, a funerals, family obligations and other issues we have not seen much of her publishing.  Just a few here and there.  I apologise to her and hope to spend more time answering her questions, and you can hope to see more of her publishing in the next month.  I am exited that we have two dedicated reviewers for Utah.   Red Hiker has jumped in a few times from reviwing in California to keep me going when I was overwealmed, and I thank him and his time and work.

At the present time Punk Rock Girl has chosen to hide in the shadows and observe.  Who is she?  She is keeping that quiet at the moment, and I will respect her privacy.  Don't ask me her name, and I won't tell you.  However I do appreciate the time and effort placed. 

Either of us can help you with your problems.  If she is not comfortable with some caches she may throw them at me, or might tackle them.  We do want to let you know we are both here to help.

Update to the Oldest Caches Page

Well I updated the list on the Oldest Caches page.  It has been a while and I thought it was time to finally fix it.

There were a few errors that I needed to correct, and I fixed some of the links that were wrong.  No duobt I broke a few links in the process.

There was one addition to the list GC5F - Yuba City was a cache that I forgot to have on the first (and second, and third) time around.

We lost three caches in the last few years from the list.  

• GCB6 - Yellow River
• GC77 - Germanys 1st
• GC10E - Cone Mountain

Attrition struck and they faded away.

There are two that are not on the list.  Most agree as to my reasons.  GC4D in Sweden, and GC6A were long archived, and not findable for long periods, so I left them off the list.  Basically they get an honorable mention for being able to get them unarchived, but they were not active.  Were I to have a Jasmer challenge, I would not count them, but that is just me.

Thanks for the help, those that have looked over the list.

View Year 2000 of Geocaching in a larger map