Are TOTTs Necessary?
Are TOTTs Necessary?
I come across some caches that I haven't been able to find that indicate requires TOTT. What exactly are TOTT and do you need them? The only ones I've done are the birdhouses one where I use a long paint roller so that's obviously necessary. I did a nano size one that said it requires TOTT but it was a small ass magnet sized thing and I just found it using my eyes.
TLDR; What are TOTTs and do I need to buy TOTTs to do caches?
Depends on the area you're caching in. Noone's forcong you to buy anything. But some areas there's lots of caches requiring specific techniques. Depends hugely on hiders in thst specific region.
Sounds good. I just wonder if there are cases where one would want to buy TOTT to make the find easier, and how much easier that would even make it.
Well, I don't know exactly what is included in the term tools of the trade, but a retractable ladder has certainly made some finds easier for me. Sometimes you can also encounter nanos inside a small crevice where a tweezer might come in handy. I've even used a rubber boat to get to some island caches. I would say, get a feel for the area first, then buy tools afterwards.
Any area I've cached, there have always been plently of caches that don't require a TOTT -- so no, you don't need one, but it might come in handy, depending on what you want to find.
Around where I live, probably the most common TOTT is a long pole to get caches down from trees. Don't exchange this for a ladder -- a lot of the caches are up in thin spindly trees growing on uneven ground. They're designed for you to get them with a pole, with both feet on the ground. You can buy golf ball retrievers for not too much money at a sporting goods store, these usually work well.
Other TOTTs I've seen are batteries for gadget caches or a UV flashlight. If you read the cache page, you should be able to get a sense of what you need. But every so often, a cache owner will get creative and make you use something you've never thought of before ;)