User:Ekorren

36 / m / 48,9

Currently offline, waiting for replacement

2009-03-26

This morning my computer decided to end its lifespan. I checked a number of possibilities and it's probably the mainboard or processor. A new computer or spare parts to get it running again are not in sight anywhere, so it may be quite some time until I can do any serious work done including taking part here. I'll try to hit an internet cafe from time to time, and some geohashers have my phone number. Also, I can read email from the mobile phone, but not reply.

2009-03-28: Update

• Got an offer I can't refuse but may take a few more days until I can pick it up (and some time more to get it running).
• Trying to go hashing anyway ;)
• Internetcafe is only a few minutes by bike and affordable for a quick "check the most urgent things"
• I hate Micro$oft (but the Internetcafe uses their crap).

Introduction

Warning: May contain nuts.

Ekorren - that's the european brown squirrel, scientifically sciurus vulgaris. Jumps around, collects various stuff, hides things and never finds all of it again.

I found the link to geohashing on some geocaching forum. Ok, I thought, so there's something even more crazy, so let's try it ;) Then I read all of the past XKCD comics and suddenly felt at home. Given that my list of regularily read webcomics is all but short there's really no excuse that I didn't find XKCD earlier.

For a spontanous expedition bicycle will be the only reasonable mode of transport for me, so I'm somehow restricted to the nearer surroundings of my home coordinates which are roughly N 48°31' E 9°3', as well as weather-restricted. Though, the first geohash I visited was far away from home...

Statistics

	successful	failed
Expeditions total	25	2
- saturday 4 pm	4
Graticules	5
- virgin graticules	3
Countries	3
- virgin countries	1
Expeditions by type of transport:
- foot	1
- bike	16	2 (+1**)
- public transport	8
Reasons for failure:
- No access		1 (+1*)
- Transportation failure		0 (+1**)
- 24px Mother nature		1

* Plan B failed: Turned into MNB on second approach.

** Plan B worked: Reached the hash by public transport instead.

Past Expeditions

Date	Grat.	Transport		Comments
2008-10-28	49 6			On a meadow near Fentange, south of Luxembourg. Virgin graticule and virgin country.
2008-11-15	48 9			Near Kusterdingen, on a field. Saturday 4 pm, but didn't meet anyone as nick_mz was late and I didn't expect anyone to come.
2008-11-18	48 9			Reutlingen, on a cycle path between Ohmenhausen and the city centre. Déjà vu geohash and probably the only expedition worldwide on that date.
2008-11-19	48 9			Wannweil, at Gärtnerei Hespeler.
2008-11-22	48 9			Tübingen, Rammert forest, near Hofgut Eck. A XKCD'ish snowman (no eyes!) was built and I met nick_mz.
2008-11-26	48 8			Pforzheim, in front of the slaughterhouse. Met Danatar.
2008-11-29	48 9		30px	Sonnenbühl-Genkingen, Öschenbachtal. Ice and slope is a bad combination.
2008-12-12	48 9		30px	St. Johann-Würtingen, with a lot of snow getting in my way.
2008-12-15	48 9			Hattenhofen, failed due to fenced area, and there was noone I could ask to be let in.
2008-12-17	48 9			Reutlingen, and once more too much ice and snow
2008-12-27	48 9			Dettenhausen, in the Schönbuch forest
2009-01-02	49 10			Satteldorf-Gröningen, in a strange tree plantation
2009-01-03	48 8			Rottenburg am Neckar
2009-01-04	48 8			Rottenburg-Ergenzingen
2009-01-07	48 9			Pliezhausen-Rübgarten, in the Schönbuch forest
2009-01-10	48 8			Muggensturm
2009-01-12	48 8			Lauterbourg (France), a long walk with Ilpadre
2009-01-26	48 9			Metzingen, another forest
2009-01-28	48 8			Rottenburg-Bieringen
2009-02-13	48 8			Horb-Hohenberg, approach by bike failed because of torn tyre
				second approach by train and bus succeeded
2009-02-22	51 10			Otterstedt, near a minor road between some unexpected water. Met Danatar, Dawidi, Hans, Thomcat and Tomcat.
2009-03-01	48 8			Hechingen-Weilheim, not an easy approach
2009-03-08	48 8		30px	Schönbuch near Ammerbuch-Breitenholz, game reserve area and the wrong kind of snow.
2009-03-14	48 9			Tübingen-Pfrondorf, walked all the way and back
2009-03-19	48 9			Sonnenbühl-Erpfingen, got stuck in snow again and had problems to get back.
2009-03-22	48 8			Deckenpfronn, in a forest. No snow!
2009-03-24	48 9			Dettenhausen

How I use the symbols in this table

Achievements

Ekorren earned the Public transport geohash achievement by reaching the (49, 6) geohash on 2008-10-28 via rail and bus.

Ekorren earned the Land geohash achievement by reaching the (49, 6) geohash on 2008-10-28.

Ekorren earned the Hash collision honorable mention by discovering the geocache GC11ZMH ca. 600 m from the (49, 6) geohash on 2008-10-28.

Ekorren earned the Bicycle geohash achievement by cycling to the (48, 9) geohash on 2008-11-15.

Ekorren earned the Last Man standing achievement by being the the only hasher world-wide to go on a geohashing expedition on 2008-11-18.

Ekorren earned the Consecutive geohash achievement by reaching 2 consecutive hash points starting on 2008-11-18.

Ekorren and Nick_mz earned the Snowman Geohash Achievement by building a snowman at the (48, 9) geohash on 2008-11-22.

Ekorren almost earned the Meet-up achievement by meeting Nick_mz, but without photographic proof, at the (48, 9) geohash on 2008-11-22.

Ekorren earned the Meet-up achievement by meeting Danatar at the (48, 8) geohash on 2008-11-26.

Ekorren earned the Frozen Geohash Achievement by reaching the (48, 9) geohash on 2008-12-12 while the temperature was around -3. This was the third sub zero hash where he couldn't bring an accurate thermometre, but this time it didn't get above zero the whole day anywhere in the area...

Ekorren earned the No trespassing consolation prize by almost reaching the (48, 9) geohash on 2008-12-15.

Ekorren earned the No Batteries Geohash Achievement by reaching the (48, 8) geohash on 2009-01-03.

Ekorren earned the Regional geohashing achievement by reaching a hash point in all 2 graticules belonging to Landkreis Tübingen.

Ekorren earned the Consecutive geohash achievement by reaching 3 consecutive hash points starting on 2009-01-02.

Ekorren earned the Border geohash achievement by crossing the Germany-France border on 2009-01-12 to reach the (48, 8) geohash.

Ekorren earned the Reverse regional achievement by reaching hash points in all 2 regions of the Pforzheim, Germany (48, 8) graticule.

Ekorren earned the Walk geohash Achievement by reaching the (48, 9) geohash on 2009-03-14 on foot, travelling a distance of 16 km.

Ekorren achieved level 2 of the Minesweeper Geohash achievement by visiting coordinates in Stuttgart, Germany and 2 of the surrounding graticules.

Ekorren earned the xkcd Nullaturion achievement by attending 4 Saturday meetups.

For the following achievements the rules had to be stretched a bit, usually because of insufficient proof. I put the ribbons here anyway but don't insist on counting them, and will definitely try to replace them.

Ekorren knows he earned the Déjà Vu Geohash Achievement by reaching the (48, 9) geohash on 2008-11-18, and previously on several occasions, but the proof is a bit weak.

I can't decide whether 2008-11-29_48_9 and 2008-12-12_48_9 qualify for a MNIMB. They were both made difficult by snow, ice, and a terrain that provides generally no easy trails. After careful examination I came to the conclusion that they beat some of the existing MNIMB hashes but are themselves still beaten by quite a number of others which leave me humble and in awe. I'll take the ribbon for now.

Tools

I run another of those online hashing tools, built to contain everything important on a glance and work on virtually every device not entirely uncapable of browsing. See here.

GPS for sale

2009-02-07: I just ordered myself a replacement for the old first generation Garmin Etrex (yellow) which I had in use on my expeditions so far. It's neither a new or a very good one, nor does it look like new (after all, it is an outdoor model), but it was sufficient to decide for a spot, track a way (with a few precautions), and also find most of the caches I searched with it yet.

Postage is affordable to everywhere. About the price, that still needs some research. To be honest, these things are sold on ebay for more than they are IMHO worth, and I need the money, so the price I would get there is kind of a guideline - minus the fees, of course. On the other hand, unlike the average ebay seller, I'm willing to share experiences and advice how to get the most out of it, and possibly throw in a piece of rebuilt electronic scrap that happens to work as a serial data cable if you don't feel like building that yourself. These cables cost a fortune alone if you buy them from Garmin.

Please contact me by mail if interested. --Ekorren 23:18, 7 February 2009 (UTC)