Paperless Caching

[BSA534]

Do you do paperless caching? I highly recommend it!

Here's how I do it:

Equipment: Garmin 60CSx & Palm TX

Software: Geocaching Swiss Army Knife (GSAK)
Cachemate

Premium membership to geocaching.com

I have several pocket queries set up:
The closest 500 caches from my home coordinates
The closest 500 caches from my home coordinates (-my finds)
500 caches with Searcy as centerpoint
500 caches with Ashdown as centerpoint

These cover the areas I regularly geocache.

These all run at various times each week. I download the file into GSAK.

When I get ready to go out caching I load GSAK and set the centerpoint near where I'm going, usually about halfway. I set the filter to limit the caches to 100 miles and any other options I want until I get the total number of caches down to less than 1000 (thats what my GPSr holds). I double check it using a plug in for GSAK called "My Google Maps Export" that shows me a circle on google maps where my loaded caches are. That way I know if where I'm going is covered.

I download the caches to my GPSr & export a Cachemate file for my palm. After I sync everything up I am ready to go caching.

As I locate a cache I want to find, we look it up in the PDA. It has the description and the last few logs and of course, the hints. Once we make the find we mark it in the PDA.

At the end of the day I export all of the found logs to memos in the PDA and when I sync it with my computer it copies them and I'm able to use the logs to help mark the caches found on the website.

After I log a cache on the website, I download a GSX file for that cache and update GSAK. Then after I'm finished logging I run the Generate & Upload Stats macro which creates a really nice stat page and uploads it to my profile automatically.

Thats how I do it... How do you do it?

[Gaddiel]

Equipment: Garmin eTrex Legend, Magellan SporTrak Pro, AT&T 8525 Phone/PocketPC, TomTom ONE

Software: Geocaching Swiss Army Knife (GSAK) & GPXSonar

Premium membership to geocaching.com

Similar to BSA534, I have several pocket queries set up:
470 caches with Conway as centerpoint
470 caches with Searcy as centerpoint
470 caches with London as centerpoint
470 caches with Arkedelphia as centerpoint
470 caches with Jonesboro as centerpoint

A DOS batch file renames the zipped GPX files to meaningful names and then copies them to my phone (GPXSonar can read the zip files directly, so I'm done with this part...)

Next, I open GSAK and creat one large database of all caches from all of my GPX files. Then I copy them to my TomTom. This (usually) allows us to navigate to the general area of the cache using the TomTom.

Also, it requires some extra steps, but sometimes we also use Microsoft Streets & Trips for route planning. If you add all of the caches you want to do for the day, it will plan the most efficient route to take.

Haven't really explored logging from the field yet...

Wayne

[ShadowCachers]

Do you do paperless caching? I highly recommend it!

Here's how I do it:

Equipment: Garmin 60CSx & IPOD

Software: Geocaching Swiss Army Knife (GSAK)
with IPOD Note macro
You can locate the macro from GSAK website under macro section.
Premium membership to geocaching.com

I have several pocket queries set up:
The closest 500 caches from my home coordinates
The closest 500 caches from my home coordinates without my finds.
500 caches with Heber Springs as centerpoint
500 caches with Hot Springs as centerpoint

These cover the areas I regularly geocache.

I download the file into GSAK. Then I plug my IPOD into computer and run the Macro called IPOD note. What ever database you have open it will load all the Caches, Cache logs and hints into the note section of your IPOD. It will name the file automaticly to Geocaches, so if you want to load more then one database you will need to goto your my computer icon and select your IPOD, then select Notes and change the geocaching file to whatever you want. Then run your next database.

I use the IPOD at last resort while caching. If I'm truely stuck and need a boost (HINT) I will then search the cache logs on the IPOD or the hint.

Everything else is pretty much the same as above.

Thats how I do it... How do you do it?

OK. I guess that BSA534 knows how I do it, since he has been caching with us. I am pretty old school so to say.

We just keep a laptop with us in the truck running GSAK. I use the GPS and Gsak to keep track of the finds. I run a query before we go in a particular direction just to make sure we are up to date.

This all may change though as I now have a new Iphone. I tried to get the macros to use GSAK notes on the ipod part of the phone, but they will not work on a touch screen ipod, so... That is still in the works.

The iphone was pretty handy this weekend for looking at the webpage and all the logs for particular caches. Nothing like the internet out in the countryside of Glenwood to keep you from DNFing a cache.

[majii]

Do you do paperless caching? I highly recommend it!

Here's how I do it:

Equipment: Garmin 60CSx & IPOD

Software: Geocaching Swiss Army Knife (GSAK)
with IPOD Note macro
You can locate the macro from GSAK website under macro section.
Premium membership to geocaching.com

I have several pocket queries set up:
The closest 500 caches from my home coordinates
The closest 500 caches from my home coordinates without my finds.
500 caches with Heber Springs as centerpoint
500 caches with Hot Springs as centerpoint

These cover the areas I regularly geocache.

I download the file into GSAK. Then I plug my IPOD into computer and run the Macro called IPOD note. What ever database you have open it will load all the Caches, Cache logs and hints into the note section of your IPOD. It will name the file automaticly to Geocaches, so if you want to load more then one database you will need to goto your my computer icon and select your IPOD, then select Notes and change the geocaching file to whatever you want. Then run your next database.

I use the IPOD at last resort while caching. If I'm truely stuck and need a boost (HINT) I will then search the cache logs on the IPOD or the hint.

Everything else is pretty much the same as above.

Thats how I do it... How do you do it?

Thanks for this information. I didn't know I could use my iPod for geocaching. Previously most of my paperless caching was done with only my GPSr, which contains the name, difficulty, terrain, and the first 30 characters of the hint. Having the description, the full hint, and the last 5 logs will be helpful...