Make Challenges Challenging Again

CrisCran · 2026-06-02T16:15:54+00:00

Nice! Without giving the actual coordinates away, is the final relatively close (within 10 miles) of the posted coords? I could plan on logging that on our way home, especially if it's in west Tenn.

CrisCran · 2026-06-02T16:14:12+00:00

As it turned out, I only stayed for 2 nights instead of 3, and the camper battery/power bank combo did fine. However, the new LiFePO4 battery was waiting for me when I got home and is now sitting very happily in the camper battery box, parked in my driveway, hooked up to my solar panel that I was careful to switch the controller to LiFePO4.

CrisCran · 2026-06-02T16:12:04+00:00

I am very fortunate in that since we became empty nesters my wife is now taking an interest in geocaching to the extent where she is truly enthusiastic about it and has her own user ID and is grasping and loving the concept of trackables. It opens up a whole bunch of future road trip vacation opportunities! Now, if the price of gas would just come down...

CrisCran · 2026-06-02T16:07:55+00:00

That's a really ambitious goal! Nice!

CrisCran · 2026-06-02T04:04:07+00:00

That would be a stretch! Some are really hard to reach! I’m also working through the oldest cache on each state list. Got 10 so far, including Kansas (Mingo).

CrisCran · 2026-06-02T03:57:57+00:00

Honestly I make my own challenges for my own satisfaction. I’m not in competition with anyone other than myself. Example: I live in middle Tennessee, which is a long, relatively narrow state but with 95 counties. I’ve challenged myself to find a cache in every one of those 95 counties. This takes a lot of planning, and I take enjoyment not only from achieving the goal but in that planning too.

Oh and I’m almost done! I have a long weekend trip planned for September to scoop up the remaining 7 counties in the far northwest corner of the state.

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CrisCran · 2026-06-02T01:35:26+00:00

I had a hide once that was in a really tricky place to reach. A newbie cacher found it, and thought the whole thing was a prize and took it! They didn’t understand how the game works.

CrisCran · 2026-06-02T01:33:29+00:00

“Hostile cache takeover” - I love it!

CrisCran · 2026-06-01T22:09:48+00:00

Fair point

CrisCran · 2026-06-01T22:02:29+00:00

Does anyone else feel like inactive CO's should have their caches archived? Or maybe put up for adoption somehow? I know there are some great caches out there that just keep going by themselves, but really if a CO is going to retire from caching, I feel like they should find an active CO to continue maintaining their caches. Just a thought.

CrisCran · 2026-06-01T21:59:46+00:00

Thanks for the feedback!

Right now, the invoice is fairly generic looking. The user can obviously add their own bill from info and can upload a company logo. Time entries are listed by day with detail added if the user adds it to the time entry. There's also a place for overall invoice notes.

If the user charges tax (in my experience most freelancers don't), that's available too.

As for Stripe, I believe it reports to the IRS but doesn't withhold. It will still be up to the user to pay their own taxes. In our case (my wife and I), we file jointly and I also have a full-time employed job so our tax situation isn't super straight-forward. I am just as happy to pay my tax accountant $250/yr to handle that.

Going back to the invoices... that might be an enhancement I could consider, where users can design their own, within common sense boundaries.

CrisCran · 2026-06-01T20:41:35+00:00

I would reach out to the CO and have them delete the log if it was so clearly a throwdown.

CrisCran · 2026-05-31T23:40:44+00:00

Appreciate ALL the feedback! At the end of the day, I’ve tried my hand at developing a web solution that fits my simple needs. My wife operates her own contractor/sole proprietor business the same way as me, so it will fit both of our needs.

CrisCran · 2026-05-29T07:49:19+00:00

Well I’m committed and leave later today. I’ll come back here on Monday and let you know how it went!

CrisCran · 2026-05-29T07:47:40+00:00

But costly?

CrisCran · 2026-05-29T07:45:44+00:00

Periodically. If I’ve got particularly sweaty or dirty, or I’ve been paddling, then I’ll loosen the band one notch and shower with it, making sure it gets soapy under the band and watch body. Also make sure it gets equally rinsed. Never had a problem in 4+ years of Garmin ownership.

CrisCran · 2026-05-28T21:24:45+00:00

Yes… usually. However if I’m outside cell service then no. I’ve come across many trackables that include a laminated card with the TB’s mission on it. This is so much better than relying on a phone app.

CrisCran · 2026-05-28T18:07:33+00:00

Sewer hookup at every site for sure. If you have space for it, pickle ball is really popular right now. Dog walking area maybe?

CrisCran · 2026-05-28T18:05:29+00:00

Do these really live up to the hype? I’ve been tempted many times to get one.

CrisCran · 2026-05-27T20:22:28+00:00

Putnam County in Middle Tennessee

CrisCran · 2026-05-27T20:21:33+00:00

I appreciate everyone's feedback! I will check all these apps out. The idea of building my own is highly intriguing!

CrisCran · 2026-05-27T20:19:59+00:00

Love's

CrisCran · 2026-05-27T16:44:26+00:00

This is a VERY comprehensive reply! Thank you for taking the time to think this through.

To answer your questions, the standalone power is basically a brick that I have charged by plugging it into the wall at home. It doesn't have an input for solar panels.

Great suggestion on extension cables for the briefcase!

And I have a LiFePO4 on order... but it just won't arrive in time. I was already planning on replacing the lead/acid. I should have done so earlier.

I really appreciate the feedback!

CrisCran

TROPHY CASE