February 2022 - Don't be a Packrat!

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February 2022 - Don't be a Packrat!

Design notes from the artist:  Chris Mackey

As we're heading into a new year and a new caching season, making resolutions, and examining how we do things, it seems like a great time to address a pervasive problem in caching... Travelers that are traveling.  Far too often a Geocoin, a Travelbug(R) or a Trackable is picked up with good intentions, but disappears without continuing on its mission.  Sometimes people just need a little reminder to move it along.  The first time I saw Lemon Fresh Dog's Caught Red Handed geocoin, I burst out laughing at how direct, simple, and humorous the design was in accomplishing that reminder.  It's a great way to keep a coin doing what geocoins are meant to do... rack up miles and smiles!

While daydreaming and sketching on ideas for new geocoins, I was musing over animals that are known cachers with a reputation for hiding goodies.  Probably the most iconic is the Packrat, who is notorious for hiding away bits of shiny whenever and wherever they can.  The more I thought about it though, I also realized they don't share those treasures with others, but simply hoard them away as part of their midden nest.  Not unlike some of our caching bags that can become a black hole for trackables and swag.  I was reminded of this when doing my annual bag clean-out a couple of years ago when I found a small trackable tag that had fallen to the bottom and lain there un-discovered and unmoved.  I did manage to get it back in circulation quickly, but afterward I decided that any trackable I picked up should go in a dedicated pocket to be checked regularly to avoid doing it again.  Which of course I did because the next time I found one in my car's center console within a year.  

We love to cache and we love trackables, but sometimes we all need a little reminder to avoid becoming a proverbial packrat.  This is a great time of year to go through our gear, vehicles, coats, swagbags and anywhere else we might have put a trackable so we can get them back to racking up miles and smiles.  Hopefully, this coin will give a gentle nudge to put a trackable back into the wild and maybe move this one along, too.