Should warnings be required (dangerous plant)?

I was caching in NJ over the holiday. I went to a nature trail area that had 4 or 5 caches. The first cache was an easy find. But the second cache was a different story. The caches name is "sting" GC116GQ. I walked to where the coordinates took me and as I was reaching for what I thought might be the cache my hand touched a plant that sent pain jabbing into me. For two days I couldn't make the pain stop. I don't know what the plant is. Maybe if I was a native to the area I would but I'm not. Shouldn't there have been a warning on this cache!!

I avoided the next two caches because that plant was everywhere.:eek:

Absolutely. The kids and I went to a cache on an island that had a warning specifically not to bring kids because of stinging plants. Mom was the only one who got caught up in them but the warning was there and the kids were careful.

Stinging Nettle. There's a lot of it in Maine, too.

Actually, based on the cache name, I don't think the cache should have been approved. Perhaps our local approver could comment...

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Originally Posted by balinda

I was caching in NJ over the holiday. I went to a nature trail area that had 4 or 5 caches. The first cache was an easy find. But the second cache was a different story. The caches name is "sting" GC116GQ. I walked to where the coordinates took me and as I was reaching for what I thought might be the cache my hand touched a plant that sent pain jabbing into me. For two days I couldn't make the pain stop. I don't know what the plant is. Maybe if I was a native to the area I would but I'm not. Shouldn't there have been a warning on this cache!!

I avoided the next two caches because that plant was everywhere.:eek:

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It sounds like WhereAreWe? is right on - as others at that cache have identified it as Nettle in their log.

Wikipedia has some good information about the plant and how it stings - here is the information about the itch - "If stung by a nettle effective anti-itch drugs are available, usually in the form of creams containing antihistaminics or hydrocortisone. Many ineffective folk remedies exist for treating the itching, including horsetail (Equisetopsida spp.), leaf of dock (Rumex spp.), Jewelweed (Impatiens capensis and Impatiens pallida), mud, saliva, baking soda[9], or calamine lotion. These methods can cause short relief only through mechanical stimulation such as rubbing or scratching or by cooling."

Hope this helps.

And it's good to eat, too. :D:D

I think I read crushing the plant renders the pricks unable to hurt you. Regardless, I am a chicken and would stay away.

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Originally Posted by balinda

I was caching in NJ over the holiday.

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And you didn't say "hello?????????????" ;)

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Originally Posted by WhereRWe?

And it's good to eat, too. :D:D

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Where's Eule Gibbons when we need him????:cool:

While I agree it's a nice gesture to give warning when possible, I think for the most part it should be up to the cache finder to be aware of his surroundings and keep a sharp eye out, especially when in an area you are not accustomed to.

The cache mentioned in the opening post was hidden in February, so the cache hider could have been unaware of it's existence when it was hidden. It is also an area where the plant is common enough that the hider felt local cachers would notice it without warning. It could be that the hider didn't want to give the cache location away by mentioning it was hidden near the plants. Obviously, the hider could have edited the page after reading the logs if they so chose.

If cache hiders warned of every danger cache descriptions would be 6 pages long, especially if we considered that there might be visitors to the cache that have no idea of Maine's dangers. Every Maine cache would need a "Watch the ice in Winter" warning; Guard rail caches would need a "Watch out for moving traffic" warning; Light Pole caches would need a "Danger of Electrocution" Warning; Mountain caches would need a "Falling from the top of this mountain could be deadly" warning; Micro caches would need a "Danger of boring cache" warning (I just had to add some humor in there :)).

Anyway, IMO it comes down to personal responsibility. If you are going somewhere where there are likely to be animals or plants or other dangers you are not used to, it is up to you to do some research so you an prevent harm.

So, simply stated, it's nice when cache hiders give warning, but it's safer to be informed.

Just as we were to leave Washington State on our bike trip my friend Gene asked us if we were aware of stinging nettle. I told him I had some in my flower garden at home. Gene said he was aware of the type nettle I was talking about. Gene also said the nettle here was much more severe in it's stinging. He then preceded to take us to a local park and give us a hands on look at the plant. I could see the human hair size stingers all over the plant. Even after all the warnings Gene gave us , I still had to just touch one. Big Big Mistake. My finger ache for days. Just from one little touch, I can't imagine the pain of backing into one of these things with ones pants down. But we were told it happens out west a lot. Causing emergency room treatment.:eek::o

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Originally Posted by brdad

The cache mentioned in the opening post was hidden in February, so the cache hider could have been unaware of it's existence when it was hidden. It is also an area where the plant is common enough that the hider felt local cachers would notice it without warning. It could be that the hider didn't want to give the cache location away by mentioning it was hidden near the plants.

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I disagree. The fact that the cache was named "Sting" means that the cacher knew EXACTLY what plants were in the area, and probably thought it would be a great laugh to see the logs about people getting "stung".

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Originally Posted by WhereRWe?

I disagree. The fact that the cache was named "Sting" means that the cacher knew EXACTLY what plants were in the area, and probably thought it would be a great laugh to see the logs about people getting "stung".

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Ah, you are probably correct there - I totally ignored any correlation between the name of the cache and what it might imply of the cache. But that should be considered a warning in itself - if you are paying attention enough to see the connection - which obviously I wouldn't have been!

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Originally Posted by vicbiker

Just as we were to leave Washington State on our bike trip my friend Gene asked us if we were aware of stinging nettle. I told him I had some in my flower garden at home. Gene said he was aware of the type nettle I was talking about. Gene also said the nettle here was much more severe in it's stinging. He then preceded to take us to a local park and give us a hands on look at the plant. I could see the human hair size stingers all over the plant. Even after all the warnings Gene gave us , I still had to just touch one. Big Big Mistake. My finger ache for days. Just from one little touch, I can't imagine the pain of backing into one of these things with ones pants down. But we were told it happens out west a lot. Causing emergency room treatment.:eek::o

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AWWWWWW . . . my eyes . . . the image seared into my brain of Vic with his pants down getting stung by stinging nettle . . . Awwwwwww . . . I'll never be able to look at him the same way again. ;):D

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Originally Posted by brdad

Ah, you are probably correct there - I totally ignored any correlation between the name of the cache and what it might imply of the cache. But that should be considered a warning in itself - if you are paying attention enough to see the connection - which obviously I wouldn't have been!

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I think Bruce is right . . . the cache hider most likely knew about the nettle (unless there was another reason for the name which is possible . . . possible, but not likely I will admit).

However, I agree with Brdad here . . . this kind of goes back to another thread about folks using some commonsense, exercising some good judgment and being aware of their surroundings and not getting tunnel vision. As Brdad said you shouldn't be expected to have to cover every possible and potential problem (i.e. traffic, danger of falls, danger of frozen airplane poo falling from the sky and hitting you on the head, etc.) in every cache listing . . . if we did that our cache descriptions would sound like "lawyer-ese" (apologies to Dubord).

In Nevada there was plenty of caches near cacti with very long and evil-looking (if a plant can truly look evil) thorns . . . none of these caches had warnings . . . it's just assumed that folks who can see would notice these plants and stay clear of them and be careful around them. Now the "Better Than Walmart" cache however should have had a warning for me . . . something along the lines of "Maine cachers who are not used to walking in the desert should probably avoid walking down steep gravel banks unless they don't mind falling down." ;):D

This said . . . if I was the cache owner and I had several folks reporting problems I personally would add a tag line about a possible "danger." And in fact I have done so . . . on my Harris Mountain cache I discovered a well. At the time that I hid the cache the cover was still intact and appeared to be in good shape . . . however I felt that this fact should be mentioned. At some point I will most likely return and mark the cover with some marking tape as an added safety measure.

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Originally Posted by brdad

if you are paying attention enough to see the connection - which obviously I wouldn't have been!

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Neither would I. But if the cache had been named "Stinging Nettles", or "Poison Ivy", I'm pretty sure I would have looked around. But with a name like "Sting", I would have been thinking about the cache itself, not the surrounding plant life.

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Originally Posted by firefighterjake

However, I agree with Brdad here . . . this kind of goes back to another thread about folks using some commonsense, exercising some good judgment and being aware of their surroundings and not getting tunnel vision.

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Sheesh! Are you telling me that you're NOT like everyone else? That when you're within 20 feet of a cache, you're looking at plants, and not for the traditional pile of sticks? ;);)

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Originally Posted by WhereRWe?

Sheesh! Are you telling me that you're NOT like everyone else? That when you're within 20 feet of a cache, you're looking at plants, and not for the traditional pile of sticks? ;);)

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I'm usually a fairly obtuse individual when it comes to geocaching and in fact with life in general but I still pay attention to things like steep drop-offs, plants with sharp thorns, fast-moving traffic, rabid dogs foaming at the mouth, etc. . . . which is probably why I often don't find the cache right away when I'm solo or often last when I'm in a group (although I can say that I wasn't the one person in New Sweden who was wondering where the cache was when it was hanging directly over his head ;):D).

Of course this could be due to the fact that as an EMT the one thing they drill into your head from Day 1 is to check around and determine if the scene is safe . . . something that a lot of folks forget as I've seen over and over while responding to emergency calls when tunnel vision sets in.

Perhaps, if possible, The cache placer could post a picture of OFFENSIVE things near the cache on the cache page. I don't know what stinging nettle looks like, but it's probabally on my land somewhere.
Opalsns

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Originally Posted by Opalsns

Perhaps, if possible, The cache placer could post a picture of OFFENSIVE things near the cache on the cache page. I don't know what stinging nettle looks like, but it's probabally on my land somewhere.
Opalsns

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That'd be great for the 0.37% of the population that looks at the pictures before hunting a cache.

And then, what one person may find offensive, another may not. Heck, some people would consider seeing another cacher offensive!

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Originally Posted by brdad

That'd be great for the 0.37% of the population that looks at the pictures before hunting a cache.

And then, what one person may find offensive, another may not. Heck, some people would consider seeing another cacher offensive!

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Tee Hee!!!!:o:D;)

Hey,
Let's start an offensive cacher .. er... I mean Offensive cache thread, where we can post pictures of things ( or people) that others should look out for when caching a certain area...

You want offensive? I have had poison now since about May. I really hate caching in long pants with this warm weather. Last week I had to call my doc because the stuff was spreading dangerously close to... well I didn't want to look like a baseball player. (Those guys aren't discreet about scratching!) Now have an Rx lifetime prescription for high test cortizone. Does this mean I'm caching on steroids and some of my caches will have an asterisk after them?:D

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Originally Posted by Opalsns

Hey,
Let's start an offensive cacher .. er... I mean Offensive cache thread, where we can post pictures of things ( or people) that others should look out for when caching a certain area...

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Originally Posted by dubord207

. . . Does this mean I'm caching on steroids and some of my caches will have an asterisk after them?:D

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:D:D:D So far this is the best one-liner of the day.

Poison ivy is funny stuff . . . to my knowledge I've never had it even though I'm outside a lot camping, hiking, geocaching, ATVing, etc. I've heard and believe that some folks are not as susceptible to the stuff . . . whereas other folks are like you and my wife or Jim Porter who seemingly just get a few feet from the stuff and break out in the PI rash.

Who's Jim Porter you may be asking . . . why JP is my neighbor, deputy sheriff and firefighter who has managed to get exposed to poison ivy numerous times while at car accidents (in one accident myself, my wife and Jim were lying in the stuff . . . I had no issues, Jim and my wife broke out in rashes . . . Jim was bad enough that he had to go to the doctor) and then one time in the Spring they were burning some brush and the poison ivy got into the smoke and poor Jim inhaled some of the smoke and ended up with poison ivy in his throat.

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Originally Posted by WhereRWe?

...Perhaps our local approver could comment...

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Sorry I didn't post sooner, but I've been out caching, hiking and kayaking!!

Geocaching, hiking, backpacking, and other outdoor activities involve risk to both persons and property. There are many variables including, but not limited to, weather, fitness level, terrain features and outdoor experience, that must be considered prior to seeking or placing a cache. Be prepared for Your journey and be sure to check the current weather and conditions before heading outdoors. Always exercise common sense and caution. You assume all risks arising in connection with seeking a cache or any other related activity.

I suspect most reviewers would not appreciate anyone mis-leading cachers into a dangerous situation.

Never attempt any cache you are not comfortable with.

I can't believe I am 51 years old and never heard of stinging nettle until this thread and then today I go to Miller walking path cache in Lisbon and get stung by the stuff. Hopefully no one mentions venomous cobras or the like!

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Originally Posted by darterkitfox

I can't believe I am 51 years old and never heard of stinging nettle until this thread and then today I go to Miller walking path cache in Lisbon and get stung by the stuff. Hopefully no one mentions venomous cobras or the like!

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Wow - that is unreal. Did you post the information in the log - "nettle"? ;) I will be looking for this in the future.

http://www.newbeingnutrition.com/images/nettle.jpg

Apparently its good for the prostate. Google Stinging Nettle and see what comes up!

I had never heard of it before either. Though I think I have seen it before. I never really wear shorts a lot when I am tramping around the woods so probably that is why I have never gotten into it. Hell I have been doing trail work for my snowsled club for eight years now and have never gotten into anything like that before. I wouldn't know poison ivy either. Something about "leaves of three stay away from me"....?

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Originally Posted by EvilHomer

Apparently its good for the prostate. Google Stinging Nettle and see what comes up!

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It hurt my arm pretty good but I'll see how close I can get it to my prostate and let you know if it works.

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Originally Posted by darterkitfox

It hurt my arm pretty good but I'll see how close I can get it to my prostate and let you know if it works.

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lol, please don't post any pics of that!!! :eek::rolleyes::D

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Originally Posted by darterkitfox

It hurt my arm pretty good but I'll see how close I can get it to my prostate and let you know if it works.

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:eek::confused::eek::confused::eek::confused::eek:

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Originally Posted by darterkitfox

I can't believe I am 51 years old and never heard of stinging nettle until this thread and then today I go to Miller walking path cache in Lisbon and get stung by the stuff. Hopefully no one mentions venomous cobras or the like!

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That's still better than finding a python in your washing machine.....:eek: