Maine caching

[Team2hunt]

The team has only cached in 9 states, Maine to Florida. We have less than 200 finds, yet we know a good cache when we see one. We rececntly took a "work related" trip to a neighboring state to the south. It begins with R. I'm trying to be nice. Suffice to say, the experience left me with, " these had to be just for the numbers". I now know why we say, " Maine, the way caching should be". Thanks to ALL who have hid and maintained the best caches we have done. Anyone travelling to Maine, will certainly leave this state with some great stories and an appreciation for our geocaching. Yes we too have a few micros. Just try to find them.

[WhereRWe?]

The team has only cached in 9 states, Maine to Florida. We have less than 200 finds, yet we know a good cache when we see one. We rececntly took a "work related" trip to a neighboring state to the south. It begins with R. I'm trying to be nice. Suffice to say, the experience left me with, " these had to be just for the numbers". I now know why we say, " Maine, the way caching should be". Thanks to ALL who have hid and maintained the best caches we have done. Anyone travelling to Maine, will certainly leave this state with some great stories and an appreciation for our geocaching. Yes we too have a few micros. Just try to find them.

I'm well known for my rabid dislike of micros, but I have to say in reflection that the dreaded film canister is probably a good sign of a lousy cache. Micros certainly have a place, and it seems in my experience that any micro that IS NOT a film can is usually pretty good.

[TwoMaineiacs]

Wait until you see the first stage of Forest Nymph's new cache in Bowdoinham. It is a biggish micro and you will be amazed at the time and creativity. So far most of the micros we have seen have been parts of multi caches with just coordinates or clues to the next phase. Cannot image a place where most of your caches are key boxes on lamp posts. I think we would lose interest pretty fast.

Anne

[attroll]

The team has only cached in 9 states, Maine to Florida. We have less than 200 finds, yet we know a good cache when we see one. We rececntly took a "work related" trip to a neighboring state to the south. It begins with R. I'm trying to be nice. Suffice to say, the experience left me with, " these had to be just for the numbers". I now know why we say, " Maine, the way caching should be". Thanks to ALL who have hid and maintained the best caches we have done. Anyone travelling to Maine, will certainly leave this state with some great stories and an appreciation for our geocaching. Yes we too have a few micros. Just try to find them.

I hate to say this. But it is only a matter of time before we start seeing caches like that in the state of Maine. In fact there are a few now that were place by some out of staters that are in it for the number (I will not say an names). But the few that we see are far out numbered by the good ones. I wish we could set some rules for how caches are placed in Maine. But that can not happen. If we did then only the ones that wanted to go by the rules we set would and we would have no control over the others.

[parmachenee]

We just returned from Colorado and found many good, interesting caches. But there were also a couple of the "under the light post" micro caches too. They are becoming more frequent everywhere unfortunately. I also just returned from a trip to Aroostook County and found that micros and regular caches are about 50/50...at least the caches we did. There were many we didn't get to that looked to be regular caches. None of the micros were film canisters and some were in very challenging locations. I just didn't expect to see so many in such a rural area. I can say that because I'm from P.I.

[Slate]

I wish we could set some rules for how caches are placed in Maine. But that can not happen.

I totally agree with that. Although gpsfun seems to do a good job approving caches, it would be nice if there was some local input on what caches are being approved. It would be great it there were a way for Maine geocachers to work with gpsfun on the approval process, maybe including a local geocacher visit site prior to approval. it just doesn't make a lot of sense to me to have someone from Georgia, who is probably unfamiliar with the area, making the final decisions.

[WhereRWe?]

I totally agree with that. Although [size=2][font=Verdana]gpsfun seems to do a good job approving caches, it would be nice if there was some local input on what caches are being approved. It would be great it there were a way for Maine geocachers to work with gpsfun on the approval process, maybe including a local geocacher visit site prior to approval. it just doesn't make a lot of sense to me to have someone from Georgia, who is probably unfamiliar with the area, making the final decisions.

Actually, GPSFun is from New England, and he visited us at the last event.

He seems to know what he's doing - basing his decisions on the geocaching.com rules and not on local preferences. Makes it fair...

[Haffy]

I think GPSFun is very fair and after talking with him at the last event he seems to be very knowlegeable and follows the GC.com guidelines to a T. In fact on a couple of occasions and one just recently I emailed him about my concern on a cache that was questionable as to it being on private property and he immediately placed it on the disable list to get clarification from the owners as to it's location. It is still disabled so I assume the owners did not persue it any further. This is one instance where geocaching can give others the wrong impression and will make it harder in the future to place caches.

[Trezurs*-R-*Fun]

....maybe including a local geocacher visit site prior to approval

I think having GPSFUN who is familiar with Maine and yet lives "away" is about the most objective way to have our caches approved. If we start requiring a visual inspection, we would lose that.

Personally I very much approve of the way GC.com handles the approval process.

[tat]

GPSFUN is applying the rules set by GC.com. The rules are very basic and do little to prevent "lame" caches.

I'm just glad there are dull places for dull people to live, so that they don't have to live here!

I just came back from Montana and Wyoming. I only got a few caches in a week, but the ones I did find were all interesting places that I'd love to go back to.