[GeoStL] Re: Abandoned Caches
- From: Glenn <GLNash@xxxxxxxxxx>
- To: geocaching@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Mon, 28 Dec 2009 20:51:55 -0600
-
On Dec 28, 2009, at 6:30 PM, Hobbit Taz wrote:
> What concerns me more is when a cache is there but in dis-repair and is
> eventually archived by the reviewer; who goes out and retrieves the "Trash"
> Maybe there should be an "Archived but needs picked up" type or status so
> groups like SLAGA can have a CITO to retrieve.
big snips...
=============
And it is right here that I had my a$$ handed to me a few times.
I used to have folks go out and rescue the abandoned trash. After all, it
would be irresponsible to leave it.
Remember that Groundspeak is just one of many listing services. It does not
happen much around here but many caches are cross listed on a couple different
sites. If I just determine that a cache is no longer listable on GC.com it may
still be listed on terracaching.com, or navicache, or opencaching ect. If I
make a container disappear just because it does not meet our needs any more, I
may have just removed a game piece from someone else's game. Now a navicacher
goes out and finds nothing except a note that I have their bag of trash in the
trunk of my car. You can be sure that I WILL (cause I have already) get a
NASTY note asking me just who am I to go out and pick up anyones caches,
especially ones from another game I have nothing to do with? After a couple
of those notes it became clear that I, as a cacher, have absolutely no rights
at all messing around with someone else's game piece even if I do think it is
junk. Even junk is someone else's private property. Ultimately it is the
cache owners responsibility to take care of their stuff and pick up their
trash. I know that there are many folks here that are all about private
property rights, no trespassing and all that. Well, an archived cache is still
someone else's private property and may still be part of another game. I am
quite sure that if we found out that some rouge letterboxer was going out
picking up geocaches because they were not part of HIS game, we would be 27
kinds of hopping mad and rightly so.
My personal opinion may or may not be represented in any of the above comments.
On a different topic, here is your public service announcement for this
evening. I believe that as geocachers we should practice cache in - trash
out. I pick up trash in the woods all the time. I suggest others pick up trash
too. It makes for a clean environment and all that sort of thing. After all,
it would be irresponsible to leave it.
========
Topic 3: "Perhaps SLAGA could set something up to deal with distressed or
archived caches"
On the surface that sounds like a dandy idea. A local club SHOULD be able to
set minimum quality standards and control the quality of the local caches.
Sounds reasonable. Who better to control the quality of local caches but the
locals? I like it.
Long time ago I was consulting with local group on getting things set up for
their new club out East someplace. Everything was good and my work was done.
THEN someone decided that as a group there should be a quality cache committee
and a group that would help rescue caches that were in trouble. Fix them up,
repair missing waypoints and stuff like that. Well heck, THAT sounds like a
good idea. I suggested that as a group, they stay out of the cache quality
and repair business.
They set up a committee anyway that would keep an eye on the logs from the area
and if they started to see that a cache was getting a lot of no finds and the
owner was not responding they would make a list of distressed caches and maybe
go out and check on it. Fix a logbook, put a little duct tape on a broken
container easy stuff. That is the kind of thing that we all did on every cache
as we visited them (back in the days of old). Every cacher carried extra
supplies and kept things nice and tidy for the next finder. What could
possibly be wrong with that? I still like it. Their plan was well
intentioned and well thought out but went VERY badly for all involved. Owners
of caches too offense to their caches being listed on the "bad cache list".
They took offense that some self appointed cache Nazis were "going around
determining the quality of local caches". After all, how dare them to judge MY
caches. It got very nasty and really fractured the club and turned friends
into enemies.
As a group I would again suggest that we not (officially) get into the cache
pickup and repair business.
glenn
Glenn
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