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Read Thread: Finders not signing into logbook?

Re: Finders not signing into logbook?
Board: Letterbox Chatter
Reply to: #817742 by Kelsung
Nov 30, 2013 7:48pm
Thread (disabled) Board
Why, Kelsung! I almost didn't recognize you! Love the new signature stamp! But I'll miss your old one too... :)
Re: Finders not signing into logbook?
Board: Letterbox Chatter
Reply to: #817748 by Early Risers
Nov 30, 2013 8:12pm
Thread (disabled) Board
What I find odd, is that they took the time and trouble to establish an AQ account and log the finds but didn't sign the logbook...? Weird.
Re: Finders not signing into logbook?
Board: Letterbox Chatter
Reply to: #817787 by Granny Butterfly
Nov 30, 2013 8:21pm
Thread (disabled) Board
Were they all in fairly close proximity to each other? Otherwise it seems unlikely they were followed from box to box....

I agree that re-hiding in a slightly different spot sounds like a good idea.
Re: Finders not signing into logbook?
Board: Letterbox Chatter
Reply to: #817934 by 3Daydreamers
Dec 1, 2013 12:27am
Thread (disabled) Board
I've gotten so many compliments on it today! SweetSarah13 carved it for me, but I'll still use the old one in smaller logbooks. I have an album of sigs.

K
Re: Finders not signing into logbook?
Board: Letterbox Chatter
Reply to: #817913 by Kirbert
Dec 1, 2013 8:29am
Thread (disabled) Board
if you didn't stamp in, you didn't find the box.

While I mostly agree with this, I don't entirely. I have found boxes where the log is too waterlogged to sign.
Re: Finders not signing into logbook?
Board: Letterbox Chatter
Reply to: #817913 by Kirbert
Dec 1, 2013 10:33am
Thread (disabled) Board
Frankly, I think if the owner checks on the box and documents the sig stamps in the log book, he should be able to log onto AQ and delete any finds for which there's no sig stamp in the log book

We recently checked on 2 of our boxes and compared the list of AQ finders to the logbook. Each box had an AQ "finder" with no corresponding stamp in the logbook. We posted a note about it in the comment field since we couldn't delete the find. We found it interesting...I don't think we have ever forgotten to stamp a logbook but I guess it could happen. Both of these boxes were in very unique and remote areas and I just can't imagine someone not wanting their sig stamp in the logbook.
Re: Finders not signing into logbook?
Board: Letterbox Chatter
Reply to: #818091 by Lovebirds-NC
Dec 1, 2013 11:32am
Thread (disabled) Board
I just can't imagine someone not wanting their sig stamp in the logbook.

There are some people who just have no interest in signing logbooks. It happens. *nodding*

-- Ryan
Re: Finders not signing into logbook?
Board: Letterbox Chatter
Reply to: #818091 by Lovebirds-NC
Dec 1, 2013 11:33am
Thread (disabled) Board
Each box had an AQ "finder" with no corresponding stamp in the logbook.

I would expect stamps in each logbook for separate series. I've got a series of twelve boxes, each with their own logbooks. I don't expect people to stamp each one. I'm planning another series about that log but it will only have two or three logbooks.
Re: Finders not signing into logbook?
Board: Letterbox Chatter
Reply to: #818105 by Oberon_Kenobi
Dec 1, 2013 11:42am
Thread (disabled) Board
I've got a series of twelve boxes, each with their own logbooks.

Doh!
Re: Finders not signing into logbook?
Board: Letterbox Chatter
Reply to: #818105 by Oberon_Kenobi
Dec 1, 2013 11:50am
Thread (disabled) Board
I've got a series of twelve boxes, each with their own logbooks. I don't expect people to stamp each one.

The boxes I referred to were single boxes, not part of a series.
Re: Finders not signing into logbook?
Board: Letterbox Chatter
Reply to: #818105 by Oberon_Kenobi
Dec 1, 2013 1:34pm
Thread (disabled) Board
I've got a series of twelve boxes, each with their own logbooks. I don't expect people to stamp each one. I'm planning another series about that log but it will only have two or three logbooks.

Is it a regional thing to include logbooks for each box in a series? Here in the Northeast, I usually encounter multiple logbooks only in the following situations:

  • It's a very old series. Back in the day, each box in a series often had its own logbook.
  • The series was planted by newbies. In this case, each box often contains a store-bought stamp and a cheap notebook.
  • It's a series with numerous boxes containing stamps carved by different people. The stamp carvers often send a logbook to the planter along with the stamp, so the planter includes it in the box. (I planted some series like this for Live and Breathe XV.)
  • It's a series with many (20+) boxes. The planter often includes 2 or 3 logbooks, especially if the series can be split into separate hikes.

Other than the series types I listed, most series I find contain only one logbook. I think this is because most of the letterboxers I know prefer to stamp into only one logbook, especially when letterboxing in cold weather!

Rocklun
Re: Finders not signing into logbook?
Board: Letterbox Chatter
Reply to: #818140 by Rocklun
Dec 1, 2013 1:42pm
Thread (disabled) Board
Is it a regional thing to include logbooks for each box in a series?

Not here in Georgia, at any rate. And I agree with all of your reasons. I used to put a couple of logbooks if a series is 6 boxes or longer, but lately I've only been doing one, usually at the end. There's less chance of a mushy box disaster that way!
Re: Finders not signing into logbook?
Board: Letterbox Chatter
Reply to: #817982 by Kelsung
Dec 1, 2013 5:45pm
Thread (disabled) Board
Wow! You've come a long way baby! ;)
Re: Finders not signing into logbook?
Board: Letterbox Chatter
Reply to: #818140 by Rocklun
Dec 1, 2013 7:55pm
Thread (disabled) Board
Is it a regional thing to include logbooks for each box in a series?

I've only done a few series and they've all had a log book in each box. They were series of three boxes though.

The idea with my twelve box series was that I would place one per month and only 3 - 5 boxes would be available at a time. I did that for the first two years, but now I leave them all out year round. They are hand-carved stamps with home-made log books. The log books are simple, but I figured I'd keep with one log book per box. That's why I did one log book per box.

In the series I'm planning it will also be about a dozen boxes over about a mile. Some people don't seem to do such a long series in one trip. That's why I'm planning about three log books.
Re: Finders not signing into logbook?
Board: Letterbox Chatter
Reply to: #818198 by Oberon_Kenobi
Dec 2, 2013 4:45am
Thread (disabled) Board
The idea with my twelve box series was that I would place one per month and only 3 - 5 boxes would be available at a time. I did that for the first two years, but now I leave them all out year round. They are hand-carved stamps with home-made log books. The log books are simple, but I figured I'd keep with one log book per box. That's why I did one log book per box.

Ah, that makes sense! :^)

In the series I'm planning it will also be about a dozen boxes over about a mile. Some people don't seem to do such a long series in one trip.

I'm curious as to what you mean by "such a long series." Is it that people don't want to find so many boxes in such a short distance, or that people consider a mile to be a long distance to walk? Won't they have to walk the whole mile eventually to get to the farthest box? I'm wondering if this is a regional thing, as my area has a lot of series with many boxes in a short distance, and people typically complete the series in a single visit.
Re: Finders not signing into logbook?
Board: Letterbox Chatter
Reply to: #818104 by Green Tortuga
Dec 2, 2013 5:46am
Thread (disabled) Board
Ugh... I didn't want to confess this but... before someone VERY SPECIAL made me a sig stamp, the first time I found a letterbox I didn't have any kind of stamp. Another time, I found a box and went to sign the log and the dang pen wouldn't work. No sig stamp, no signed trailname... was ashamed that I was soooo unprepared that I didn't log a find. I had planned on going back but life saw fit to prevent it. Perhaps the finders being new didn't know that you could sign the log with a trailname without having a stamp or the dang pen wouldn't work. Remember "us" newbies have a need for mentorship not tormentorship. I am not making excuses for the way the letterbox was treated, that's just disrespectful even for a muggle.

The voices in my head are very strict with me!

~Stormie~ aka DustySandStorm
Re: Finders not signing into logbook?
Board: Letterbox Chatter
Reply to: #818214 by Rocklun
Dec 2, 2013 6:34am
Thread (disabled) Board
I only have experience with my twelve-box series in the distance aspect. It also may have been because it was August and in mostly open (little tree cover). That was why some people said they did only half of the series and said they'd come back to finish later. It is 1.2 miles if it is done in order. It can be shorter (about .8 miles) if it is done out of order AND you know the shortcut back.
Re: Finders not signing into logbook?
Board: Letterbox Chatter
Reply to: #817913 by Kirbert
Dec 2, 2013 7:35am
Thread (disabled) Board
if you didn't stamp in, you didn't find the box.

I feel the sentiment, but having found several soggy/moldy logbooks, I have decided for my own health that it was best not to actually "stamp" in a few times (see below). I replace logbooks with temporary ones if I have them in my pack and usually explain that in the comments section when logging finds. But I'm not always prepared with temporary replacements.

I have also lost my siggy stamp twice while out on the trails. The first time was at an event and, unfortunately, it was never located by myself or other LBers out on the trails. The second time was in a big park with many muggles about. Chances are, it was picked up and tossed without a second thought :( Both times, I didn't realize the missing siggy stamp until I got to the next logbook. By that time, it was too late --- even backtracking couldn't locate them. So I ended up writing in the logbooks or not "stamping" in at all.

- Kham (who's highly allergic to black mold and clearly needs deeper pockets for holding onto siggy stamps - d'oh)
Re: Finders not signing into logbook?
Board: Letterbox Chatter
Reply to: #818231 by Oberon_Kenobi
Dec 2, 2013 7:37am
Thread (disabled) Board
It is 1.2 miles if it is done in order. It can be shorter (about .8 miles) if it is done out of order AND you know the shortcut back.

I am just curious if there's a reason your order is the longer way? I once did a series that was probably a mile and a half if you went in order. If you didn't go in order, it was probably a total of a half mile. I would have gone out of order if there was a way but the boxes each had the clue for the next box so there was no way to do the shorter distance. When I emailed the owner asking about it, his answer was basically that he wanted to put a higher distance attribute on the box but there was no reason pertinent to the clues that he walked you back and forth all day. This was frustrating for me because since each box held the clue to the next, he was forcing me to be less stealthy by walking from one end of the park to the other back and forth. So why would you knowingly take someone the longer route? If there's a reason pertinent to the clues, then ok but I hope you aren't doing the same thing that was done to me. Eventually, I stopped hunting for his boxes because his planting style continued to frustrate me (it wasn't just that series that frustrated me) and it just wasn't worth it.
Re: Finders not signing into logbook?
Board: Letterbox Chatter
Reply to: #818231 by Oberon_Kenobi
Dec 2, 2013 11:35am
Thread (disabled) Board
It also may have been because it was August and in mostly open (little tree cover). That was why some people said they did only half of the series and said they'd come back to finish later.

I don't think I'd want to hike a mile if it was 100F and the sun was beating down on me, either!! Yikes!
Re: Finders not signing into logbook?
Board: Letterbox Chatter
Reply to: #818240 by Khameleon
Dec 2, 2013 9:24pm
Thread (disabled) Board
clearly needs deeper pockets for holding onto siggy stamps

I keep mine in a snack bag. I learned that by temporarily misplacing some travel bugs (geocaching hitchhikers). Now I keep all of the small things that I don't want to lose in a SEALED plastic bag. (If it is not currently being used, it is in the bag.). If the bag gets dropped in is easier to spot than the bare small item. This has actually helped a few times. I also keep the snack bag in a larger bag when traveling.
Re: Finders not signing into logbook?
Board: Letterbox Chatter
Reply to: #818241 by Dizzy
Dec 2, 2013 9:58pm
Thread (disabled) Board
I am just curious if there's a reason your order is the longer way?

The series was originally meant to be out with only 3-5 boxes at a time. Because of this, all of the clues except one are given from the parking lot. After the first two years of doing this I decided that this year when I put the boxes out I'd leave them there. They were all out by October this year.

January is closest to the parking lot, about 100 feet away. They get progressively further away with July being the furthest away at .63 miles from the parking lot. Then the boxes get closer. I did it this way so that the winter boxes are closest to the parking lot. If you want to get the boxes in order then you go out and back. The boxes aren't far off the trail. It is all a paved trail, except for the last 0.2 miles which is a dirt road.

The given route also avoids the disc golf course. The shortcut would take you past the "hole" for the 18th hole, right in the target zone. The shortcut also takes you on a route that may be dry to drenched, depending on time of year. I may plant on this trail, but with appropriate warnings about the condition of the trail.

I learned a lot from doing the series this way. I wouldn't do another series this same way, but I'm leaving this one the way I originally laid it out.
Re: Finders not signing into logbook?
Board: Letterbox Chatter
Reply to: #818263 by Rocklun
Dec 2, 2013 10:25pm
Thread (disabled) Board
I don't think I'd want to hike a mile if it was 100F and the sun was beating down on me, either!! Yikes!

I think that is why the series wasn't completed by those people. We had the largest event that I've ever been to (about 50 people) in August 2012 in Ogden, Utah. That's why they were looking for it in about 100 F temperatures. Though March, April, May and August are in wooded areas so you get shade in the middle of your trip.

Out of the 10 letterboxers that looked for a box in this series in July or August, only 4 went out to the July (furthest) box then.

I did place each one of those boxes in the month that they represent, so I've done that walk in those temperatures. Admittedly, I was hiding them but that meant that I had to spend more time at each box (looking for a hiding place) than someone seeking it.

I don't know of any similar boxes (with little shade and over a mile hike) in this area. I expect that there are such boxes in states further south so they would be hotter in the summer.
Re: Finders not signing into logbook?
Board: Letterbox Chatter
Reply to: #818351 by Oberon_Kenobi
Dec 3, 2013 4:15am
Thread (disabled) Board
The series was originally meant to be out with only 3-5 boxes at a time.

After the first two years of doing this I decided that this year when I put the boxes out I'd leave them there.

I wouldn't do another series this same way, but I'm leaving this one the way I originally laid it out.

Ok it makes sense to keep them where they were but since you've already changed the manner of the finds, wouldn't it make sense to change the manner of clues? Since you've been out there so many times, it should be easy to rewrite clues so they go in order rather than
all of the clues except one are given from the parking lot.

I'm sure more people would be willing to go after more boxes in one trip if they weren't spending half the time just trying to figure out where they are in relation to the clues. Truly, some people may actually go back to the parking lot each time because it's just too confusing to try to figure out which box is next. I can't imagine trying to juggle 12 boxes from the same starting point and be able to do them in order unless it was on a trail I already hiked every day or at least every week. And the people that hike that trail every day or every week have already found those boxes (they were probably the first).

I'm only trying to offer another view because it sounded to me in your other post that you wanted more people to find the boxes in one trip or even at all. I could have misunderstood your meaning.
Re: Finders not signing into logbook?
Board: Letterbox Chatter
Reply to: #818360 by Dizzy
Dec 3, 2013 6:33am
Thread (disabled) Board
Yes, it would probably be better to rewrite the clues as you suggested. I've considered it since I changed that they are all available all year round. I'm still thinking that I want to give them in month order.

Also, there are two other boxes available from that trailhead. Mine starts at the trailhead but doesn't end there. The other two boxes are not far (0.1 miles each) from my December box. Do you think I should mention that or just let them figure it out?
Re: Finders not signing into logbook?
Board: Letterbox Chatter
Reply to: #818371 by Oberon_Kenobi
Dec 3, 2013 7:33am
Thread (disabled) Board
I never mention other boxes in my clues, even if they are owned/plated by me. If, for whatever reason, the status of those other boxes changes, I would need to go into these clues and make a note of that or perhaps even delete the reference. If a box is not part of a series I do not mention it at all. Let the finders do their homework and discover the other boxes on their own.
Re: Finders not signing into logbook?
Board: Letterbox Chatter
Reply to: #818371 by Oberon_Kenobi
Dec 3, 2013 12:19pm
Thread (disabled) Board
Also, there are two other boxes available from that trailhead. Mine starts at the trailhead but doesn't end there. The other two boxes are not far (0.1 miles each) from my December box. Do you think I should mention that or just let them figure it out?

Since the other boxes aren't in the same series it is entirely up to you. Personally, I think it's a nice touch if someone mentions other boxes on the same trail but ONLY if the boxes are yours OR if the box owner(s) have given permission to mention.

I have 2 series that are planted on the same trail. The boxes all go together but I just couldn't get them planted all at once so I planted the first 2 boxes then added the next 3 boxes on their own series. In my clues, I state that the best order is to get 1 box from the first series, then do the other series, then get the last box from the first series. People seem grateful that I've told them the best order because like yours, this is a super-hot trail in the summer. And there's no water at this conservation center.
Re: Finders not signing into logbook?
Board: Letterbox Chatter
Reply to: #818057 by 55 Steps
Dec 3, 2013 2:07pm
Thread (disabled) Board
Okay, I have a question. I just recently signed my dad up on AQ. He's getting a sig stamp, logbook, ink pads, markers, etc. for his birthday/Christmas. My dad went letterboxing with me back in August and he most definitely 'found' five of the seven we were looking for. (We were successful on all seven.) Since he didn't have a sig stamp at the time nor was member of AQ but was absolutely present and participating in the search and find, does he get to count those as finds, even though he doesn't have the image to prove it? How does that work?
Re: Finders not signing into logbook?
Board: Letterbox Chatter
Reply to: #818435 by thndrkttn
Dec 3, 2013 2:30pm
Thread (disabled) Board
It's up to him.
Re: Finders not signing into logbook?
Board: Letterbox Chatter
Reply to: #818435 by thndrkttn
Dec 3, 2013 4:25pm
Thread (disabled) Board
I found a handful of letterboxes over the course of the 2-3 years before I joined AQ. A friend, who dabbled in letterboxing at the time, told me about LBNA and we found a few boxes that way. She printed the clues and did all the legwork --- so just like your dad, I came along for the hunt. I didn't really get hooked on the hobby until I moved to the East Coast though. And that's when I signed up for AQ.

Funny enough, it didn't dawn on me until last year that I could probably log those first few original finds on AQ and see how many other people have enjoyed those boxes too. So I dug out my very first logbook and reminisced over my first bout of LBing -- including all the scrapes, bruises, and feelings of being completely and utterly lost in the woods :P

Several of the boxes were crosslisted between LBNA and AQ, so it wasn't a problem to log the find -- just make sure to change the date to the actual date that you found the box. One or two boxes had gone missing over the years since I had found them, but it was neat to see that a few were still alive and doing well. A few of the boxes were not listed on AQ, which is also fine. Not every box needs to be logged. But if you really want to log unlisted boxes at some point, you'll have to either enroll in a Premium Membership or wait for a Hat Day.

- Kham