vb:literal>

Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast
Results 1 to 10 of 18

Thread: Five Star Rating

Hybrid View

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Jul 2006
    Location
    Eustis, Maine
    Posts
    378

    Default Five Star Rating

    I'm putting out a Flagstaff Lake Cache trail series. The first one requires a boat in the summer. If the lake is low enough you can walk to it in the fall. And in the winter you can walk or snowmobile to it. I can also swim to it but then I'm a good swimmer, I wouldn't recommend doing that in general. I hate to lose cachers!

    The second in the series I say requires a boat but it's a 10 minute paddle if you put in at the right place. However, KG walked to it! Took her 3 hours round trip but she did it, along the shoreline.

    The third I don't think even KG could walk to although I suppose it's possible. At least you could when the lake is frozen. Where's there's a will there probably is a way.

    Do I need to give all three a five star rating because you "need" a boat? Somewhere I read if it requires a boat, then it's got to be 5 star. However, the difficulty is different on all three of these. Help?
    "There is nothing- absolutely nothing- half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats". Wind In the Willows

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Jun 2004
    Location
    Brewer, Maine
    Posts
    1,832

    Default

    On my caches, I've figured that most people are doing them when there is no ice on the lakes. Having said that, I've done many that I walked to. If you assume that the majority of cachers are getting the cache in the spring/summer/fall seasons, I would think that a 5 rating would be accurate.
    Many caches can vary in difficulty. If you place a cache under heavy tree cover and someone finds it in early spring when there are no leaves, the difficulty goes down. I would say rate for the conditions that most people would experience when finding the cache.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Dec 2004
    Location
    Maine
    Posts
    1,972

    Default Difficulty/Terrain

    It's the terrain rating that needs to be a 5.

    Due to the fact that " specialized " equipment is needed. That could be a boat, or even climbing
    ropes.

    Here's the link: http://www.clayjar.com/gcrs/index.php
    Why not live life like it is your last day....instead of pretending to be a member of the Peter Pan Club and believing you will be around forever.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Jul 2006
    Location
    Eustis, Maine
    Posts
    378

    Wink

    Quote Originally Posted by Team2hunt View Post
    It's the terrain rating that needs to be a 5.

    Due to the fact that " specialized " equipment is needed. That could be a boat, or even climbing
    ropes.

    Here's the link: http://www.clayjar.com/gcrs/index.php
    Thanks for the link. I was referring to the terrain rating. Maybe I'm just so used to kayaking I don't think of it as "difficult". I took two people from Ohio out today to find Cache Trail # 1 and # 2. It took 30 seconds to teach them how to paddle and they bucked a strong head wind coming back with no problems. But "5" it is! I'm changing my ratings now.

    PS Anyone that's coming up this way, I have five kayaks and can teach you how to use them.
    "There is nothing- absolutely nothing- half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats". Wind In the Willows

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Jun 2004
    Location
    Bangor, ME
    Posts
    6,343

    Default

    IMO, a boat should not be special equipment. At least not a boat that an average person could use with no more instruction that it takes to run a bicycle. If the cache was 300 miles into the ocean, that might be different.

    However, The GCRS as T2H cited was decided upon a long time ago and cache hiders should adhere to those standards. So, it's a 5 terrain!
    DNFTT! DNFTT! DNFTT!

    "The funniest thing about this particular signature is that by the time you realize it doesn't say anything it's to late to stop reading it..."

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Jun 2004
    Location
    Brewer, Maine
    Posts
    1,832

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by brdad View Post
    IMO, a boat should not be special equipment.
    When you get to a shoreline and the cache is 300' away and you don't have a boat, it IS special equipment! Very special. One of the difficulties of island caches far from home is lugging the kayak. I'm very at home in a canoe or kayak, but if I don't have it with me, I gotta wait for the water to ice over to get the cache

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Jul 2006
    Location
    Eustis, Maine
    Posts
    378

    Default Island Caches

    Quote Originally Posted by Team2hunt View Post
    It's the terrain rating that needs to be a 5.

    Due to the fact that " specialized " equipment is needed. That could be a boat, or even climbing
    ropes.

    Here's the link: http://www.clayjar.com/gcrs/index.php
    So if a 5 minute kayak trip requires a 5 star rating, how come those on islands like North Haven don't? There you have to check ferry schedules, pay for a ticket, take the boat out, find the cache and catch the ferry before it leaves for the day. I was checking out some Stonington caches and several were way out on islands but they didn't have a 5 star rating. Just wondering.....
    "There is nothing- absolutely nothing- half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats". Wind In the Willows

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Jun 2004
    Location
    Bangor, ME
    Posts
    6,343

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by kayaking loon View Post
    So if a 5 minute kayak trip requires a 5 star rating, how come those on islands like North Haven don't? There you have to check ferry schedules, pay for a ticket, take the boat out, find the cache and catch the ferry before it leaves for the day. I was checking out some Stonington caches and several were way out on islands but they didn't have a 5 star rating. Just wondering.....
    Going by the GCRS, they should be a 5 terrain. I don't necessarily agree, but that's the way it is. According to that theory, all Austrailian caches should be a 5 terrain, too!

    The ratings are subjective, and no one regulates their accuracy. At least using the GCRS, there is a minimal degree of standardization.
    DNFTT! DNFTT! DNFTT!

    "The funniest thing about this particular signature is that by the time you realize it doesn't say anything it's to late to stop reading it..."

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Jul 2005
    Location
    Unity, Maine
    Posts
    3,874

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Sudonim View Post
    On my caches, I've figured that most people are doing them when there is no ice on the lakes. Having said that, I've done many that I walked to. If you assume that the majority of cachers are getting the cache in the spring/summer/fall seasons, I would think that a 5 rating would be accurate.
    Many caches can vary in difficulty. If you place a cache under heavy tree cover and someone finds it in early spring when there are no leaves, the difficulty goes down. I would say rate for the conditions that most people would experience when finding the cache.
    I'm going with Andy on this one in regards to the terrain rating . . . I figure most sane people do most of their caching in the summer, spring or fall . . . and yes I am kidding. As such, they would need specialized equipment . . . i.e. some type of boat . . . I consider specialized equipment anything an average geocacher would not normally pack along for a geocaching attempt (i.e. most geocachers would pack a GPSr, batteries, boots, their car has a spare tire, etc.) . . . but most don't routinely haul around a kayak (and some would have to borrow one if they do not own one themselves), bring along climbing rope, ice crampons, diving equipment, spelunking gear, etc.
    "Courage is not the absence of fear, but the realization that there is something more important than fear."

    "Death is only one of many ways to die."

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Jun 2004
    Location
    Brewer,ME
    Posts
    2,611

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by firefighterjake View Post
    . . . but most don't routinely haul around a kayak (and some would have to borrow one if they do not own one themselves), bring along climbing rope, ice crampons, diving equipment, spelunking gear, etc.
    I'll guess I'm an overachiever
    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails Click image for larger version. 

Name:	100_1528.JPG 
Views:	148 
Size:	1.80 MB 
ID:	313  
    Happy Trails!



Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •