[Az-Geocaching] Defense of more geocaches in the backcountry
Ken Akerman
listserv@azgeocaching.com
Thu, 2 Oct 2003 12:07:02 -0700 (PDT)
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friared1@yahoo.com wrote:
This is uncalled for. It's just as bad as getting allhot and bothered about saying 'most' geocachers feel this way or that.
Are you saying that there are enough geocaches out there now that we don't NEED to place anymore? If so, the game will die an early death. The game is about placing and finding caches. Once you've found all of the ones in your local area, you have to expand your area, or more caches NEED to be placed.
I agree with the above comments. I enjoy outdoor activities such as hiking and mountaineering, and exploring backcountry areas such as mountains, forests, and deserts either on foot, mountain bike, or in my SUV. That's one of the reasons why I started doing geocaching - it provides me with a great way to organize my outdoor recreational and travel activities throughout Arizona and other places, and to travel to and explore many scenic and beautiful places that I otherwise wouldn't have any other reason to visit.
I seek all types of caches - urban, rural, puzzle, micro, backcountry, virtual, locationless, etc. - and believe that all versions of geocaching should continue to grow and thrive. Diversified geocaching attracts more adherents to the sport and improves its long-term success. However, my favorite geocaches are in the scenic rural and backcountry areas that require some planning and effort (either mechanical and/or physical) to reach, such as the caches in the deserts and mountains in the vicinity of small cities like Wickenburg, Prescott, Payson, Sedona, and Flagstaff, placed by active geocache hiders like Lincoln, Trisha (Lightning) and Dan (Vstar), puz-zel, and PANDA77.
This is where I believe the heart of geocaching should be. Consider an analogy in mountaineering. While basic mountaineering skills begin with simple hiking and cover walk-ups of small mountains like Squaw Peak and Camelback, the true heart of mountaineering includes all of the technical skills, backcountry experience, and memorable ascents of the challenging routes and the major mountain peaks of the world. Relatively few of us will ever ascend a world-class mountain like Denali or Everest, and many of us are not even interested in trying; however, can't I state that challenging myself to complete an ascent of a big mountain like Denali will be more satisfying and more memorable to me than a quick and easy ascent of Squaw Peak?
Ken Akerman (a.k.a. Highpointer)
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<DIV><FONT face=Verdana size=1><A href="http://us.f211.mail.yahoo.com/ym/Compose?To=friared1@yahoo.com" target=_blank>friared1@yahoo.com</A> wrote:</FONT></DIV>
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<DIV><EM>This is uncalled for. It's just as bad as getting allhot and bothered about saying 'most' geocachers feel this way or that.</EM><EM><BR></DIV></EM>
<DIV><EM>Are you saying that there are enough geocaches out there now that we don't NEED to place anymore? If so, the game will die an early death. The game is about placing and finding caches. Once you've found all of the ones in your local area, you have to expand your area, or more caches NEED to be placed.</EM> </DIV>
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<DIV>I agree with the above comments. I enjoy outdoor activities such as hiking and mountaineering, and exploring backcountry areas such as mountains, forests, and deserts either on foot, mountain bike, or in my SUV. That's one of the reasons why I started doing geocaching - it provides me with a great way to organize my outdoor recreational and travel activities throughout Arizona and other places, and to travel to and explore many scenic and beautiful places that I otherwise wouldn't have any other reason to visit.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>I seek all types of caches - urban, rural, puzzle, micro, backcountry, virtual, locationless, etc. - and believe that all versions of geocaching should continue to grow and thrive. Diversified geocaching attracts more adherents to the sport and improves its long-term success. However, my favorite geocaches are in the scenic rural and backcountry areas that require some planning and effort (either mechanical and/or physical) to reach, such as the caches in the deserts and mountains in the vicinity of small cities like Wickenburg, Prescott, Payson, Sedona, and Flagstaff, placed by active geocache hiders like Lincoln, Trisha (Lightning) and Dan (Vstar), puz-zel, and PANDA77.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>This is where I believe the heart of geocaching should be. Consider an analogy in mountaineering. While basic mountaineering skills begin with simple hiking and cover walk-ups of small mountains like Squaw Peak and Camelback, the true heart of mountaineering includes all of the technical skills, backcountry experience, and memorable ascents of the challenging routes and the major mountain peaks of the world. Relatively few of us will ever ascend a world-class mountain like Denali or Everest, and many of us are not even interested in trying; however, can't I state that challenging myself to complete an ascent of a big mountain like Denali will be more satisfying and more memorable to me than a quick and easy ascent of Squaw Peak?</DIV>
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<DIV><STRONG>Ken Akerman</STRONG> (a.k.a. <STRONG><EM>Highpointer</EM></STRONG>)</DIV></DIV></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></DIV>
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