> This whole thing seems like such a non-issue, but i know it is real to
many people.
> Question; should we contact Land Stewards is other parts of the state?
If so, who might I
> contact in the Payson area?  I am pretty new at this, but I will help
if I can.

> Allyn Moore

Allyn, I've been waiting to see if anyone else was going to offer you
any suggestions, and since no one has, I figured I'd reply so you
wouldn't think you were being ignored. Your question is simple, but I
suspect it puts most of us into that "deer in the headlights" freeze.
The reason for that is simple: There is no one who can really give you
an authoritative answer, because there is no one in authority.

We don't have any formal organization, officers, and such. Brian and
Jason, who run this website and list server out of the goodness of their
hearts, sometimes become our "press secretaries" simply because they are
probably the most accessible cachers in the state to the general public.
But I guarantee you we don't pay them enough to do that, and they
probably didn't realize it would become part of their job descriptions
when they decided to put up the site. Other than that, there's no one
making policy for Geocachers in this state, and no one who's been
elected to speak on our behalf. Further, I suspect many if not most of
us like the informality of that anarchy (in the formal, best sense of
the word). There are a few organizations in other states and
metropolitan areas, but I'll bet they number less than a dozen in the
US. 

So the decision of whether to contact Land Stewards in the Payson area
is yours. If you want to pursue it, perhaps an email to Jill McCormick
(jill@mackrackit-companies.com) might provide you with some contacts up
your way. She is the Land Steward with whom Ken ("WhereRWee") has been
corresponding. I just swiped her email address from Ken's earlier
posting.

Steve
Team Tierra Buena

PS (to all): In the aftermath of the "Republic" article, I would have
thought someone else would have raised this question by now: Whether we
want it or not, do we need it? Is it time to start thinking about
forming an "Arizona Geocachers Association"?

(This should generate a posting or two, I would think...)