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4.11. Additional Waypoints
[updated 17 October 2012]
Additional Waypoints are used to provide parking coordinates, reference points, places where a question is answered as part of cache design, and the stages and final location of caches with multiple physical locations.
Staged cache types, Mystery, Multi-cache, Wherigo, and Letterbox hybrids all require that a Final waypoint be entered as the cache report form is filled in. Sometimes these caches will not have a final location different from the listing coordinates, in that case, just re-enter the listing coordinates.
Using the "Waypoints" tool
Log in to your account on Geocaching.com and display your cache page. In the Navigation section at the top right of the cache page, click on the Waypoints link. This takes you to the Waypoints collection page.
Choose a waypoint type - Final Location, Stages of a Multicache, Parking Area, Question to Answer, or Trailhead. Under Quick Entry, if you click on Parking, the numbers, or Final, the waypoints fields will automatically fill, and there will be coordinates loaded in the coordinate boxes. Those coordinates will be the current listing numbers, you must edit them! You may over-write the automatically generated text if you wish.
- Only places where you have placed something physical should be coded as "Stages of a Multicache" or "Final Location". These locations must be 528 feet away from a physical stage of any other cache.
- Virtual waypoints should be coded as "question to answer" or "reference point" -- in which case the virtual waypoints can be closer than 528 feet from another cache and do not block other physical placements.
- For a puzzle/mystery cache or a multi-cache, make an entry for each physical stage and for the final cache location.
- For any cache, you may add coordinates for the parking, a trailhead or a reference point.
- You can use the Quick Entry to automatically fill in the fields for Stages of a Multi-cache up to stage 9. For additional stages, you will have to type in the boxes manually.
- If your waypoint type is Question to Answer or Reference point, and you select that from the pull-down menu, you will have to manually fill in the text fields. Remember that the pre-loaded coordinates are the current listing coordinates and need to be edited.
There are three choices for how the waypoint will display.
- Show all information for this waypoint, including coordinates. This should be chosen for parking waypoints, trailheads, and in those cases where the geocacher is being sent to a location to gather information or to answer a question that may be required to determine another stage or final location.
- Show the details of this waypoint but hide the coordinates. Use this perhaps to indicate how many stages a multicache has, without giving anything away.
- Hide this waypoint from view except by the owner or administrator. This should be chosen for intermediate stages of a multicache or a mystery/puzzle cache, as well as for the final cache location. NOTE: as cache owner, you will see the hidden waypoints shown on the cache page. The coordinates of hidden waypoints will be replaced with ???. No one else sees hidden stages on the cache page. You can see the actual coordinates from the waypoints link.
When you're finished adding all the waypoint information, press the "Create Waypoint" button. Do not press the "Archive Waypoint" button, that will make the waypoint disappear!
To delete or edt a waypoint, return to the Waypoints Collection page. Delete: to the right of the waypoint is a gray garbage can Icon. Clicking on that icon will bring up Pop up box, "Are you sure you want to remove this waypoint?" Click Okay, and the Waypoints collection page will reload, with the waypoint gone. You can also click the box to the left of the waypoints, and then "Bulk Remove" to delete one waypoint, or several at a time. Edit: to the right of the waypoint is a pencil icon, clicking on that will load the waypoint. You can then overwrite any of the waypoint fields. Scroll to the bottom of the page and click "Submit Changes".
Many thanks to Volunteer Cache Reviewers gpsfun for initially developing these instructions and to Prime Reviewer for developing Quick Entry.