I was one of the visitors to the Lake Pleasant cache after the physical
cache was removed. It was a virtual cache when I visited it. While not
specifically looking, I didn't notice any ATV tracks, trash, or destruction
of the area. It was just another normal desert setting, among a cholla
forest. I parked around .35 (?) miles away on an established 4WD trail (not
a narrow ATV trail). I did see a narrow foot trail going in the direction of
the cache, but ended up following game trails. This petroglyph is shown on
the Topo maps. I even met an ATV rider nearby who had visited the site
before. He told me of a better location nearby.

I don't know what the place looked like before my visit. But it didn't look
"trashed" or destroyed to me.

Larry Farquhar
Team "Wyle E"
www.happy-wanderers.com



-----Original Message-----
From: Jim Scotti [mailto:jscotti@jupiter.lpl.Arizona.EDU] 
Sent: Thursday, August 08, 2002 11:01 AM
To: listserv@azgeocaching.com
Subject: Re: [Az-Geocaching] Over reaction


I agree completely with Scott's sentiment and won't be making any of my
geocaches members only.  If any of my geocaches are a problem with managers
of the land I have placed them on, I would hope they would contact me (as
one actually did when he found one of my caches near a trail that he wanted
to close - he was happy to have a cache in the area, but just not at that
location and the cache was subsequently replaced about a quarter mile away
from the original site as a new cache).  It looks like the article has
generated at least one new member to this list already (welcome aboard!) as
well as an "anti-member".

I was also thinking of placing an "anniversary cache" soon.  My first cache
find was made on August 18 of last year.  I just haven't figured out where
it will go yet.  Of course, I did not place a cache on my wedding
anniversary a couple months back....

It's really too bad that the Republic article was so poorly researched and
so obviously negligent in its accusations.  It was good to hear from one of
the few visitors to the geocache in question and supports what I think is a
common feeling amoungst our group that it was not a geocacher who trashed
the area and destroyed the site.  I haven't met a bad geocacher yet, though
of course, there must be the occasional bad apple in such a large and
diverse group.

Jim.