Ancient sites: Gateway to another world?

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Mr Hamhead M
Mr Hamhead Aug 20, 2006 08:34:00
Replying to moss

I recently discovered a geocachers site on the internet...being curious I spent some time looking around it and trying to decipher where in my area these things were hidden.

I came away with several trains of thought.

1) Is it not good that it gets people, especially the young, away from the TV and computer and out into the countryside?

2) It is littering the countryside and also encourageing groups of people to go off rights of way into fields and woodland where it is only a matter of time before some landowner gets upset and throws a wobbley so stopping those of us who wander off course occasionally from doing so.

3) The positioning of some of these caches were just plain dangerous! The planter actually says this in his instruction! How long before someone is hurt and who will take the blame?

I had other thoughts but you don't need to know them now...

Geocaching looks to be letterboxing for the 21st century..but at least letterboxing is done with a compass. But both "hobbies" can bring small scale destruction of the countryside, if you have ever walked around dartmoor looking for letterboxes you will know how many are hidden in cracks in rocks hidden behind handfulls of moss freshly "picked".

Perhaps instead of just destroying the cache we should leave a card stating why we have done it and suggest that in the future they hide them in thier back gardens...and see how they like having thier weekend BBQs spoilt by strange familys turning up digging up the flower bed?

Mr H

R rocknicker
rocknicker Aug 20, 2006 08:49:41
Replying to Mr Hamhead

Mr Hamhead wrote:
Perhaps instead of just destroying the cache we should leave a card stating why we have done it and suggest that in the future they hide them in thier back gardens...and see how they like having thier weekend BBQs spoilt by strange familys turning up digging up the flower bed?

Mr H

Some of them have actually done this, or as near to it as possible as one of the "rules" says that it should be publicly accessible. I remember one person having one in the field at the back of his house, so he could be entertained by the antics of people trying to find the boxful of shit.

This is another interesting thing- the National Trust and some local councils have an agreement between one of the factions (and there are a few warring types) that allows this to go onto their land as long as certain rules are followed. This is impossible to police so lots of forum discussions are about respecting rules so that the practise is still allowed.

Don't forget there have been BBC programmes actively encouraging this so-called "sport" and when TMA-types have ptrotested on the website or through email we (OK me) got accused of having "our own agenda". NO SHIT!!