Tribe.net. Local Connections DeAnna http://geocaching.tribe.net/thread/502759a2-a966-4118-92b6-e0a56ef325e1#3d8299a4-7295-4722-a8d5-a797a8d3db6b 2006-12-17T17:57:48Z 2006-12-17T17:57:48Z

Congratulations. I found it pretty easy to be discouraged when I first started geocaching. I would go out and search for three or four and be lucky to come up with one or two some times. I almost quit at one point, it just didn't seem worth it. Now, I can say that I rarely DNF. When I do, it is because I am not in the mood and don't devote the time (or I am not enjoying the hunt in that particular place, the nature of the hide usually requires more than 1 visit, it is missing or there is something wrong about the coords or description. I saw a piece of advice that said until you have 100 caches under your belt, don't try anything with a difficulty of more than 1.5. While I didn't follow the advice, I think that it is good. I also think that reading all of the logs very carefully to begin with helps. Know how many folks have posted DNF on it, remember many many more have DNF and just didn't post. You will also see people post whether the place was worth a visit and whether the hunt was fun or crappy. It is also a good lesson to know that some just aren't good hides and not even worth going for. Either the coords are off, or you will feel like you shouldn't be there, etc, etc. Over time you will likely figure out the kinds of hides that you enjoy and also the style of the hiders in your area. Have FUN!!

DeAnna 2006-12-17T17:57:48Z $item.owner.firstName http://geocaching.tribe.net/thread/502759a2-a966-4118-92b6-e0a56ef325e1#31b64bbc-b6c4-414f-b9f0-c054f3c929ef 2006-12-17T16:26:43Z 2006-12-17T16:26:43Z

My wife and I found our first cache today. We tried two other ones before hand and had no luck. The first one I am pretty sure someone took it. All the hints and such told me pretty much where it was. The second one was a pain. The person provided two GPS coordinates. Saying something like, oh if the first one doesn't work, try this one. <sigh> But the third one was the charm. My wife was getting tired, but she perked up almost instantly when I saw the hint of the cache. It was great. A huge thrill. Needless to say, we will be going back to find more.

$item.owner.firstName 2006-12-17T16:26:43Z flaneuse http://geocaching.tribe.net/thread/502759a2-a966-4118-92b6-e0a56ef325e1#80690bf4-a5ea-406c-bb78-a55eed7cfa6b 2006-04-30T17:39:04Z 2006-04-30T17:39:04Z

It took me about two years, but I finally went on my first cache outing ever, to a local site at Stewart Park at the base of Cayuga Lake here in upstate NY. My friend "Tofu Shake" helped me get oriented, so to speak. Once we were close the potential locations seemed endless--to me--but Tofu Shake's experienced eye spotted an anomaly in the landscape. I left a ceramic animal, one of those Wade collectibles from Red Rose tea. Now I'm eager to go out again...

flaneuse 2006-04-30T17:39:04Z