Have you Ever Been Approached by a Muggle:?:

Camstal · Post by **Camstal** » 24 September 08 3:15 pm

I've heard of people being approached but never heard the full story so if you have any stories about muggles approaching you please send a reply in this post

Thanks,
Camstal

HTML removed from title as it doesnt work in there. <Mod>

Team Wibble · Post by **Team Wibble** » 24 September 08 3:52 pm

I voted yes, but the real answer is "it depends on the situation".

I've been approached by muggles several times, sometimes I've used the "I'm looking for a lost earring/screw off my bike/ball" and sometimes I've done the "I'm doing an insect survey for uni".
If the interest from a muggle is only passing and the area is more public, that's usually the approach I take.

I'll explain what geocaching is if it looks like an excuse isn't going to fly, if the person asking me is an authority figure of sorts (cop, security guard) or if its likely that they're going to be interested in what the deal is and not likely to damage the cache.

An example of when I really felt I had no option but to explain what caching was, was when I arrived at the 6th waypoint on a multi, to find a bushcare group having a BBQ right on GZ. By that point I'd walked about 12km and the 6th waypoint was the last before the final cache. In this instance it wasn't a case of coming back some other time to retry it. I explained the concept, the group liked the idea, and two of the kids present helped me find the waypoint, and then came to the final cache with me too. Given that this group regularly performs maintenance in the park in question it was probably good that they were aware of the cache and (as far as I am aware) the cache is still safe and sound.

SecretSquirrel-BJC · Post by **SecretSquirrel-BJC** » 24 September 08 6:42 pm

I voted yes but as others have said, it all depends.

I have had to tell the Australian Federal Police twice and decided not to tell them two other times. The first time was when I was wandering around in the middle of the Department of Defence at Russell and my gps wouldn't settle to find the clue location. They saw me on the CCTV and decided to come and have a chat with me. I just showed them the listing and one laughed "we know all about you lot" and left me to it. The other time the police again laughed and said "so it is like a good old fashioned car rally" and I said I suppose it is. The other two times I just daftly told them I was just either enjoying the view (in the dark) or checking out the rocks - they just shook their heads in good-humoured disbelief and drove off.

The other night CT and I got sprung by an old bloke searching a park, and I just told him that it was like a car rally and I was searching for a clue. I have used that at least 6 other times.

Perhaps I need to work on my stealth

macandrita · Post by **macandrita** » 24 September 08 7:27 pm

I also voted yes but would only divulge web sites ect to those who showed genuine interest. One case in point involved caching under a bridge near a popular swimming hole. As we wandered around in our beige full length, insect proof and sun resistant outfits, one clasping an electronic device, and
another a conspicuous clipboard, we were approached by a group of young adult muggles who wanted to know if we found the dead body. So rather than incur the impersonating a police officer fines, we devulged our real purpose and were amased by their interest. After locating the container we showed them the contents but did not reveal the actual hiding place. A muggle friend
of mine actually took it up after I told him about it but the inital enthusiasm died fairly quickly. Muggle mum at the tender age of 91 was happy to come along too after we shared with her our new obsession. Work colleges also find it amusing that the boss likes to follow a gps around the bush as a way of switching off on his day off especially when he complains of sore muscles from some mongrel hill climb he did to find some trinket in a container.
Mac

Agent Basil · Post by **Agent Basil** » 24 September 08 8:06 pm

Handy having a camera around your neck. I said I was looking for interesting angles as i was rooting around a fallen over tree.

Udderchaos · Post by **Udderchaos** » 24 September 08 8:31 pm

whats even funnier is approaching a cacher who doesnt know you and asking them what the hell they are doing

never seen someone hide there gps so fast ha ha

big dazza · Post by **big dazza** » 25 September 08 12:31 am

I have explained geocaching to muggles on a couple of occasions but am usually met with vacant expressions and an accusation of being weird, so I usually use the excuse method, studying ants or weeds or something. I once told a bloke I was studying rock formations and he turned out to be a geologist! I remember a time I was chasing a cache in Emerald and there was a couple of kids on pushbikes hanging around but they didn't approach me.Cheers Camstal, hope to get back your way next year.

McAdies · Post by **McAdies** » 25 September 08 9:27 am

We have only had someone ask what we are doing once probably because we don't hang around if there are other people present.

I just said politely "Minding my own business, what are you doing?". She promptly left me alone!

If it was a police officer i think i may explain. We have enough trouble explaining it to the family every time it's mentioned! (You do what? Why?

)

Cheesy pigs · Post by **Cheesy pigs** » 25 September 08 10:20 am

McAdies wrote:...If it was a police officer i think i may explain. We have enough trouble explaining it to the family every time it's mentioned! (You do what? Why? )

What if it was a police officer who was a geocacher, but pretending not to be just so they could mess with your mind?

Mr CP does that...

I also voted 'yes' but it depends on the situation. I usually tell the really persistant ones, or ones with any authority about geocaching. Although I do remember telling a woman about geocaching when I was at a local market, because she tried to buy the geocoins forthferalz and I were showing each other...and showed a lot of interest in the whole idea. I even gave her the website address

angermanagement · Post by **angermanagement** » 25 September 08 10:20 am

A geofriend and I were discussing geocaching, when a muggle friend came up and started listening to us. We told her what geocaching was. But somehow the GCA cache nude up for a smilie was mentioned and now she has this weird idea of having to be nude whilst caching in the bush!!!

<br><br>
We often talk to her now about our caching (and that we do it with clothes on). I think we have now got it to a point were she will come out with us.
<br>

Ksix · Post by **Ksix** » 25 September 08 2:53 pm

The easiest way to stay "muggle-proof" is to go geocaching with the young geokids (if you have them).

The geokids can be climbing on / under / over / through nearly anything and no-one takes any notice of them at all !!!

The only real trick to it, is to make sure you can stop them from screaming out "I found it !!! I found it !!!"

GhostGums · Post by **GhostGums** » 25 September 08 4:05 pm

As Ksix said having kids are the perfect cover. The only time I have been out on my own, had an odd experience. Both the kids were still suffering the aftermath of the flu, so i decided to go out on my own and do a couple in the local neighbourhood. Anyhow one was at a small creek next to a park. I found the cache prettly quickly and was sitting on a log writing in the log. I saw a flash like a small girl go past and never thought much of it. I came out of the bushes and her parents were marching over in my direction, but then stopped, but were obviously suspicious of me. Anyhow when I came out I had GPS in one hand and was writing the clue in my note book, so i figured they stopped because either they thought I was there for a valid reason or the fact that i was twice the size of the dad and he quickly developed an alternate strategy. Anyhow I now only go with the kids as I am sure if they were there nothing would have happened.

Papa Bear_Left · Post by **Papa Bear_Left** » 25 September 08 4:40 pm

I really don't like the whole stealth thing, so I tend to ignore urban micros and the like, and to walk past caches if there's muggles about.

However, if sprung, I've been known to have fun coming up with bogus but plausible stories.
I invented a new species of moth in NZ that I was umm... checking the bark under some bushes for. The muggle who asked me what I was doing was quite interested and kept asking questions, to which I kept making up answers. I think it was fairly self-consistent; at least she seemed satisfied. I pity the first entomologist she comes across, though!

MBL uses a camera to good effect. As a keen photographer, and one probe to taking shots at odd angles and of odd things (for textures, etc.), she can be quite convincing when challenged, and looks quite natural looking in strange places.

Spruce Mooses · Post by **Spruce Mooses** » 25 September 08 9:04 pm

Like others, it's yes depending on circumstances...it all depends on how compromising a position I'm in when we're busted! If we're casually looking, it's a no. If I'm crawling under bushes, then geocaching explains it very well...then people just think I'm weird and walk away. I've actually found that signing the log book openly if we're already busted reassures people we're not hiding drugs without them having to ask.

Once we were outside an enviro friendly tram depot during the commonwealth games so there was extra security on. The guard came up because he had noticed us hanging around (waiting for him to go away)
Not wanting to cause alarm, we politely explained that we were studying sustainable development at Uni and were told to come check this place out. The PDA was just for taking observation notes.

He believed every word and then proceeded to blab on for half an hour.

We couldn't leave without being rude!!

Other times the muggle asking what we were doing knew what we were up to anyway...Like one time in Armadale we were looking for some coords when the shopkeeper across the road yelled out 'They're over here!' and proceeded to tell us that the 'treasure' was hidden 'that way' pointing in the wrong direction...

If · Post by If » 25 September 08 9:25 pm

I doubt there is a cacher out there with more than a hundred finds who hasn't been approached

I count myself as lucky as it has only happened less than half a dozen times

Touch wood.
On those occasions I have amazed even myself with the quick off the cuff replies my detached brain came up with

In a small country town I was checking out a tree in front of someones house when the homeowning muggle suddenly appeared and enquired if I was from the gas company. I can spot a ruse from a mile away and promptly said "No, I'm mapping street coordinates for the Streets Online website"

Nuttin more was said

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