Goodbye Geocaching ET Highway
Well after a long time the ET highway was archived today.
The statement placed on caches...
This cache is being archived after a request from The Nevada Department of Transportation. The Cache Owner, Clay4&whtwolfden, has received additional information and is responsible for physically removing the container from the location. The same applies for all other caches in this series. Drive safely.
Several Reviewers and Lackeys have teamed up to take all the necessary steps to archive the series and so you will see different usernames taking action on this series of many caches.
Groundspeak thanks everyone for their cooperation.
Sorry for anyone that had plans to go down for the cache run. I have heard a number of people state they had tickets this spring/summer to fly into the are to actual search for the caches. I saw the note earlier today when reviewers from around the world were asked to help archive the huge series.
I have heard a number of reasons in the forums. No shoulders on roads, people driving through the brush on the sides of the road and not on the road, and people stopping on the road to run for the caches. Apparently there have been a number of close calls and accidents, and others just foolishly ignoring the world around them when placing the caches.
Some thoughts if you decide to do something to avoid issues.
- Make sure you have permission. One cache may not be an issue, event fifty. But once you place 400, 500, 1000 caches there will be an impact. some looking for numbers in a one hour period will completely ignore the environment to do it in a hurry.
- Place them where people can park, and not on blind turns, where there is no shoulder, etc. If you have to go to 800 feet or 1000 feet instead of 550' please do so.
- From a reviewer perspective, remember that your GPS may say 530' from the last one, but the GPS error at the start and at the end may mean you are 470'. Ask the many that place power trails on walking/driving trails, I will ask them to move it if you are closer than 528'.
- Avoid High Voltage power lines. Those were an issue somewhere else. The power corridor is no places for people driving around. Makes the tower owners nervous.
I have heard of plans here in Utah, and in other places. Contact your reviewers up front. Let them know what you are planning. They can help you get it going and point out possible issues beforehand.
I have done a few here in Utah (200ish), and I am cured. Of course with the right friends a drive is always fun, and the long runs are more that I am interested in now. Of course I say that every year.
Other trails are out there.
Here in Utah the Mcguiver/Shakespear/Sienfield road is around by Utah Lake (300 caches I think)
Musical highway down by Cedar City (200 caches about)
Kokepelli southwest of St. George a hiking pattern in the desert 100+ caches
Heart of the Desert north of I-70 west of Salina
Scout Series just south of Payson Utah 60-70 caches (hiking)
And a number of smaller runs.
From the forums... second hand from the cache owner.
If you haven't heard...we had to archive all 1021 ET caches as of today (1 March). I am afraid it is WAY our of our hands. Groundspeak pulled the plug on the caches due to Nevada Department Of Transportation filed a law suit through the Nevada General Attorney's office. There is nothing we can do.... So sorry for the bad news...it happened fast! A close call with a snow plow was what finally pushed NDOT over the edge
We are both disappointed, but understand the seriousness of a law suit, something NO ONE wanted.