[Az-Geocaching] One exception to "signing the log" rule

[Team Tierra Buena]

> I do think it is essential to sign the log book/sheet at the 
> cache location, with one exception: It is VERY important that 
> a non-cacher does not see you retrieving or replacing the 
> cache.

Ensuring that a cache and your activities are not detected by civilians
must be among a cacher's highest priorities. But I respectfully disagree
with Mike that this situation is an exception to "finding = logging".

Particularly with urban caches, retrieving, logging, and replacing
without arousing suspicions among the Muggles is part of the challenge.
If the presence of others prevents you from getting to the cache, how do
you know you would have found it if you *had* gotten to it? It's not a
great leap of logic to go from "I was in the area and couldn't get to
it, but I'll count it" to "I was in the area and I couldn't see it, but
I'll count it".

We once had someone log a find on one of our caches. The online entry
read something like, "There were a lot of people around, so I eyeballed
the cache area." I emailed him and asked him to change his log entry to
a note and explained why I thought it shouldn't count. He did change it,
and later went back and actually found it. But not all cache owners
would do this. As I said in my original message on this thread, there
aren't a lot of rules to this game. If you're comfortable with Mike's
exception, invoke it when you need it and log it as a find. If it's one
of ours, though, you'll probably hear from us about it.

One last point: Karl, I do "feel your pain". Our team has felt it
firsthand on several occasions. And I don't personally have a problem
with posting notes in these circumstances. But IMO, they ain't Finds. 

Steve
Team Tierra Buena