Sunday, January 31, 2010

Not much to say

Didn't do a whole lot geocaching this week. I'm also not ready debut my geo-reputation article, so...*crickets*


It seems like I say this a lot lately: I grabbed one lousy cache this week. It was newly posted, but before I even got in the car I knew I didn't have a chance at FTF. This was confirmed when I arrived at the cache location to find three other cars. I got to meet Old Scouter Dad, Emerald Cowgirl, and thinairmagic. Mljungquist arrived at the same time we did, and EyeoftheSeeker was already there.


I've come to the conclusion that FTFs just aren't worth the trouble. I have one under my belt and I won't deny that I did a booty-shaking happy-dance when I found it. But in retrospect, it's way more fun to find a difficult cache than to be the first to find an easy one. I don't know how it is in other areas, but here in Central Florida, most new caches are found within 30 minutes. In order to get an FTF, you really have to see the new-cache email the minute it arrives, sprint to the car, and then hope the cache is less than 5 miles away. For me, those stars rarely align. I'm not saying there aren't some bragging rights to be had...but I certainly don't feel like any less of a geocacher for not having a bunch of FTFs.


By far, the best part about the FTF pursuit is running into other cachers. Tonight I was reminded of how geocaching brings people together (you can wipe the tear, I'll wait). Having met my fair share of geocachers, I've found that we are a diverse group. All we really have in common is geocaching, yet, there is no shortage of conversation. I challenge you to find a geocacher without a story to share.


As I approach my first anniversary of being a geocacher, I think it's time I start going to events. There's a get-together at a Sanford restaurant in two weeks that I might attend, and a CITO later in the month. As you may have seen in the Groundspeak weekly email, April 24th & 25th is the official Cache In Trash Out weekend, so I expect to see lots of those pop up. Hey, it's the least we can do.


Speaking of stories, the first issue of FTF Geocacher is in the mail. Even an anti-ftf-er like myself can appreciate it.

1 comment:

  1. I agree that the best part of FTF's is meeting other cachers. I get them but rarely rush to get them. The last one I got I didn't even know I was FTF until I signed the log.

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