Aladar123 plays geocaching

These two series are so close on the map so I decided to create one page for them. Patrick O'Brian Tribute & De Schelp De schelp starts  here . The Patrick O'Brian Tribute starts  here .

This serie on the map shows up as a wooden shoe. It really fits into the Netherlands, there are many who still wears those wooden shoes, they say they are comfortable and warm on the coldes day of the year. Klompje This serie you find  here. To find final coordinates on this serie, the task is a simple, only takes some time or if you have Linux or Mac computer in a terminal you can use this simple line with the correct coordinates in place of the underlines: echo "N__°__.___ e004°__.___" |tr A 1 | tr B 2 | tr C 3 | tr D 4 |tr E 5 | tr F 6 | tr G 7 |tr H 8 | tr I 9

When you find some time on a weekend but not a full day, more like two hours, the best to go for a short trail that can be don ein that time including the time to get there. On a sunny evening you can also do these. My first pick we just finished see here: Good-Bye 2016 done Just like this trail many of them have similar hides all along the way, it is more of a get some nice statistics and to get out to the air. The unfortunate with this trail is that is it next to a busy highway, but it was still fun in the cold weather. Nice scenery Muggle free trail More scenery And finally an image of what you are looking for on this trail: A PET preform as a hide Almost forgot  here starts  the trail.

It is always cool to see some nice set of caches on the map that draw something. I decided to collect some, and if possible I'll also visit them to turn the images over to smileys. The first one is close to where I currently live. It is the logo of the city Delft. D// You can find the first cache  here. All caches are misteries, you need to see the map, it is so crouded in the Netherlands that it is hard find any bigger area where you can draw anything with traditionals. This is a premium serie, so if you are not yet a premium member you might not see it at all. Some hint for the beginners or those who got stuck: if you use google you can upload an image and it can find it on other pages. (you might want to cut the part of a bigger image when you need help)

How often you visit a cache and it has no pen in it? Most of the cases it is a micro cache, a film canister or similar and cache owners say they cannot find one that fits. On the other hand when you find one which has a nice and tiny pen in it, it can be fun, so here is a way to make one, simply using a refill. Plastic pen refill with red gel I found this online cheap, and comes in 20 piece lots, you have the option to choose from red, black and blue. All you need to do is: look at it in front of some light so you'll see how far it is filled up with gel cut close to that at one end measure the lenght you need cut from that end as well pull out the head push it into the new body And here you go you have a tiny pen: It fits perfectly into a plastic vial, a film canister or any micros.

When it comes to logbooks, log sheets, log rolls, it is sometimes gets boring if you see all the same ones in the caches. This made me start thinking, when you have a small plastic jar, that is round what should you put in as a log? When I say small I mean it is like less than an inch. So most would roll up some paper and there you go. I was thinking more out of the box, and came up with an idea, let's make it different, so here is a solution: Looks different, and needs some extra work, these are many hexagons next to each others, and can be folded into one nice and easy to fit into our round bottle. The way I created it was not the easiest way, but at the end what it is that counts. So all you need is a piece of paper, a silhouette cutter and you are set. The image is after the pattern was cut and I removed the extra paper from the cutting mat. At this stage it looks nice, but let me show you how it comes off the cutting mat. Looks messy, after trying to lay it o...

When it comes to the smaller caches most people find them boring after a while, so I was thinking why not make it a more memorable to find. First I just created sheets; small sheets and used a stapler to keep them together. Yes, this I could have ordered somewhere, so let's add some to it, so I added the instructions on the first few pages, did not do it double sided as with some printers at this size that could not be the best outcome. Ok, now we have some text printed in the logbook, so I decided not just staple them but to saw them, here you go: Some pictures to show how the pages look like inside: So the tools and materials you need for this one: Paper to cut into small sheets, and of course print the text on some of them, but please try to do it before you cut, saves tons of headache. Some really strong thread , I use some polyester, that is strong for sure. A needle , this should also be strong as you need to push it through the holes you'll prepare. ...

The fun in geocaching when you start hiding is that you not only start to see where a hide could fit, but what you could convert to a cahce. Unfortunate but true to most geocachers the safest is to hide a smaller container, that is where I started, and below are some ideas how to do it with vials used in centrifigures. Vials Just to summarize the ones you see on the image above. The top two are non twist cap and the easiest to get damaged and log would get wet. I stopped using these. The bottom two on the right are also none twist cap ones, I use them (not only as I ordered a bag of 100) they are easy to handle, and close tight after multiple use. The two on the left bottom are the latest I found online have twist cap, I use just started using them, mainly with magnets to better keep them in position. So here are a few ways of getting them a magnet: The vial and a magnet Magnet glued to the bottom of the fial, keep it in mind that this will stick to the object with the ...

When it comes to magentic containers, it is always more fun to create one. You can collect any small containers, or bigger ones and convert them to a geocache, just by using a magnet and finding a proper location for it. The geocache ready to hide If you see the yellowish color on the bottom, it is the glue I used got some of the magnet dissolved. It is fine, better than the elements rusting the magnet, and also that side will be invisible as that will stick to some metal. Here are the ingredients used: I like to make non-standard logbooks as they look more fun, and makes it more memorable when you find it. To create the one on the picture I use a silhuette cutter to cut them out. It is possible to create any size, so I always adjust it to the container, using the most space. Magnet glued on once and then twice The way I prefer to stick the magnet is, that first I use a glue that sticks really good on the plastic and the magnet as well, then I just use a glue tha...

Today I prepared another cache for a hide in a tree, this time it is a pill capsule camouflaged and a spider is added. This is how it looks when finished: Ready to go Out in the wild, hanging in the tree And this is the pill capsule I used: Of course I removed the keyholder ring and added some wire to hang it in the tree. I started to have so many keyholder rings that I might come up a hide to use them all up.

It is always a big question where and how to hide a cache? It is hard to guess which place will be safe, if it is in your confort zone, you can observ the location you might make the best guess. If you are hiding your first few caches, you'll most probably do exactly as I do, camouflage as good as you can, find such a spot where you do not expect anyone to hang around. As part of the game you also want to show people some places where there is something to see, and most people would just drive by daily and not even notice. The below cache is one of those, I walked the area for locations, as it is a serie where someone can just cycle around I needed it to be close enough to a bicycle lane. I walked, it was cold, dark and snow was falling, ideal for xmas, but not yet xmas. So here is how the cache looks like after I finished it: A camouflaged plastic box to hang up in a tree. As my first question would be what is it made out of here is a picture of the box as untouched: ...

Xmas is around the corner, so 'Sinterklaas' as they call him here in the Netherlands stopped by and got me two new trackables. Here they are: My xmas bugs So far no goals for them, but as this is my first page on trackables, let me tell some about what they are. In the bigger caches you can swap small treasure out, I will never forget how much fun it was to find the first of those big caches with many to swap. Amongst the swappables you will find items with the text "Track me on geocaching.com" or "Please log me on www.geocaching.com", those are the trackables. If you take one out COs prefer that you put on in in exchange, but the most important is that you go online and register that you picked it up from the cache. I personally prefer to log all visited caches for each bugs I carry, the reason is that the owners can see they are moving around with me. As soon as I drop them I register it as well. Some of the bugs have defined goals and the owners e...

When you hide a geocache you run into the question of what to put into your cache. Amongst many items there is one which is a must, a logbook. You can find ones online, order, pay, place in your cache. Yeah... that's easy... but if you want your cache to be more unique you can create your own logbook. It is always more fun for me to find a cache where the logbook also has something to remember. Another reason that could lead you to create your own logbooks is to keep your cost low on your hide;especially if you have many to maintain. Let me show you some of my logbook, how I made them and for some of them you can also download the template you can customize and print for yourself. Let's start with the smallest and go towards biggers. Nano cache logrolls: The nano caches you can buy starts with the small magnetic containers that has lots of potentials, they fit anywhere. The size of the logbook - let's call it a logroll - is 7mm wide and as it needs to be rolled u...

Pill capsules come in all different shape, size and color. They are originally designed to hold pills and be on your keyring. As they are designed for pills they are waterproof, so ideal to convert to geocaches. I use them all over the places, they can be hanging on a fishing line into a trafic sign's pipe. They can be camouflaged to be in a tree, or between rocks, or anything. Just be creative with them. Due to their sizes the most common is to have log rolls in them, if you plan to put a small pen/pencil in the log will be a lot shorter, so you'll need to maintain more often. Some more ideas on how to camouflage them: The one in the middle is just covered in camouflaging tape, which is available in different colors for different areas, mostly used by hunters and hiker. I also used stone paint to cover some of them just as an experiment, no need to worry about the twistline and the rubber, over time they will loose some paint anyways. Not to mention muggles ...

In many countries PET preforms; also called petlings are a really popular hiding material. They are strong, waterproof, durable. Small enough to easily hide at almost any place, and big enough to have an easy to handle log book or log roll. Unfortunately many don't take the time to properly camouflage their cache. On this page I'll share some of my own way of hiding a petling. With or as a plant or flower: As you can see on the above picture this is two simple one and a non camouflaged petling. The middle is just some artificial grass piece glued on the cap of the petling, one of my early caches, not the most beautiful, but better then simply sticking a petling into a hole. The one on the right is a small plastic plant I found in one of the local cheap stores for a few cents, it was originally in a small cube shaped container, which I also converted into another cache (see below). With or as an animal: See the one in the middle? I foudn that sticky blac...

Some say these should not be used, others find them evil... I just say if you don't like them just skip any where they set the size to smallest possible or check the description and logs that suggest it is a nano when size set to others. The most important for beginners to remember to have a pen with you when you search for one of these, they for sure cannot hold a pen. Magnetic nanos These are really common containers. Available in many different colors, and if not in the one you like, just get the cheapest and paint it the color you wanted. Before anyone asks why did I put them on the picture so apart, their magnets kept on pulling them togehter :). There are two different version available on the market, one where the magnet is outside on the bottom, and one where the magnet is inside. I prefer the later one, I met many out on the playground where the magnet just dissappeared and the nano was not at the place any longer. Plastic nanos Some nanos ar...