This is the AQ mail I received just today about a series I planted at a Florida State Park last weekend.

Hello Geometry Junkie:

It has come to the park systems attention that individuals are utilizing state parks as an area to hide letterboxes (not unlike Geocaching). We are delighted that you are using our park as part of your treasure hunt; the park system though, has requested that we contact the person who has placed the letterboxes in the park. This is an initial contact to coordinate with you as the individual who has placed the letterboxes in our park. Please contact me at . . .

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"We are delighted that you are using our park as part of your treasure hunt;"

How did they find out? Because the objective is to make sure they don't find out, so we need to know what to do differently.

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"the park system though, has requested that we contact the person who has placed the letterboxes in the park. This is an initial contact to coordinate with you as the individual who has placed the letterboxes in our park. Please contact me at . . ."

Their "initial contact" will be followed by a polite request to fill out an application for a permit. The permit will make it clear that you are responsible for everything including the weather if you sign on the dotted line. After sending in the application, you'll wait two months to get that permit. Then you'll have to go visit your box (no biggie, you've already signed up to visit it monthly anyway) and apply the permit. Any boxes found without permits will get tossed -- which makes one wonder why it wasn't tossed during those two months you were waiting for the permit!

Come join us on the dark side! Plant your boxes where the park authorities will never find them, and list the clues where the park authorities will never find them!

-- Kirbert

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requested that we contact the person who has placed the letterboxes in the park.

Might we ask the name of your box that they found? I'd like to review your clues.

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Come join us on the dark side! Plant your boxes where the park authorities will never find them, and list the clues where the park authorities will never find them!

Be careful of the Dark Side...and plant with stealth as you please.

Your humble servant,
OBJuan

As far as I know, they did not find the box(es). If they had, they would have contacted me on my regular e-mail. I put my yahoo address in every one of my boxes.

I think this person did an AQ or LBNA search and found the boxes listed there. She registered with AQ yesterday and contacted me through AQ.

When I got the e-mail, I altered the listing. I added an F-count of 10, and I took the name of the park out of the listing. They boxes are called "Swamp Thangs." The park is in White Springs, Florida.

Geometry Junkie
Mandy

I saw this....

I have started taking the same types of precautions....small F count, no spelled out place names, etc.

Small things, but it helps.

Jenni P McD

Our boxes that were seized had the listed county, and a description of the park, but no proper name. But it wouldn't have taken much to figure out which one they were in, and this was by design. We have arranged for these boxes to be picked up and retired, as we are not in the area. If we were, we certainly would reconsider alternatives.

MM/123Family

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I think this person did an AQ or LBNA search and found the boxes listed there. She registered with AQ yesterday and contacted me through AQ.

When I got the e-mail, I altered the listing. I added an F-count of 10, and I took the name of the park out of the listing. They boxes are called "Swamp Thangs." The park is in White Springs, Florida.

Ahhh ok. Thanks. That's really what I was wondering anyway. Things not to do in the clues to help avoid boxing being found. No offense meant by that though.

Thanks for sharing!
Tee

I wanted to let y'all know that everything seems to have worked out with my boxes at a Florida State Park. I finally got in touch with the lady who AQ-mailed me. She received an e-mail from Tallahassee and had to find out the location of the boxes. She said that she had to make sure they weren't in a "sensitive area." She also stated that the boxes would be removed before a prescribed burn and replanted afterward. I told her which trail the boxes were on, and she said that they were in a recreational area, and that was fine. The lady was extremely nice. There was no talk of confiscation or permits.

A Very Pleased,
Geometry Junkie
Mandy

That's really cool! Glad it worked out so well.

JPMcD

The dark side isn't so bad. I just rewrote all my clues recently. I'm actually enjoying having all my clues in one document file. :o)

Three Hearts