A prerequisite (for most geocaching websites) to place a new cache is to make sure permission is obtained from the landowner or land manager. Geocaching.com says, "By submitting a cache listing, you assure us that you have adequate permission to hide your cache in the selected location."

Adequate permission, I’m sure, is widely interpreted. Do you need permission to geocache in a secluded wooded section of your town park? Is there a sign that specifically forbids geocaching? If there’s not, is it okay to assume that permission is implied?

Maybe the sign says "Please stay on the trail". Does that include geocachers? And birders? And just how far off the trail can you go to hide a cache?

Some will explain that always obtaining permission helps to build good public relations with land managers. Others say that’s just not practical and it’s public land, and they will do as they please (if there is no specific regulation governing geocaching like there is on land maintained by the U.S. National Park Service or U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service).

I tend to subscribe to the second, pro-rights group. But not 100%, because that’s not practical either. For instance: You have a tiny little neighborhood association park with a number of houses crowded around it. Is it okay to just waltz in and invite a lot of (weird people) geocachers to come prowling at all hours?

What about the time I decided to place a cache in the woods at the edge of an historic graveyard and church? I had, many times before, visited that rural spot while bicycling in the country. I had even met the pastor a few times. He seemed like a nice guy and I was sure that, in itself, would be adequate permission.

It was consideration that led me to him the day I went to hide the cache. I asked him for permission. Gratefully, he explained in depth the recent history of attempted vandalism on the property. About three months later, the church was badly damaged by an arsonist’s fire. About six months after that, the historic structure was burnt to the ground (the cache was never placed).

So, asking permission (where you probably wouldn’t need to) is not all bad. But how do we determine when to seek permission or not? I refuse to ask permission to hide a cache deep into a state forest or park that has not issued a specific policy on geocaching. I consider my actions to be no different than hunters and hikers in the same areas who are not told specifically to stay on the trail, so they don’t.

Consideration of how your actions may affect others is a great way to help yourself understand when to ask permission. A good guideline for when to ask for permission would be to ask yourself the question, "I wonder if I need permission to hide a cache here?"