Best lamp for Geocaching

[dmmd01]

Hi, I go geocaching every available moment and am in need of a good headlamp for this activity. Night caches require that I navigate trails and look for markers that may be 500 ft apart. Of course I also need to be seeing the ground in front of me. I want something that is very bright, lightweight (no neck kinks please), waterproof, and rechargable (new batteries are a pain). I haven't seen a headlamp over $200, so price isn't really an issue. I don't know/understand the difference between LED, Luxeon, Halogen, 1 watt, 3 watt, etc... so let's keep it simple: which is best?

 

[PhantomPhoton]

Unfortunately, the short answer is a headlamp like that doesn't exist to my knowledge; mainly the waterproof part; without buying an overpriced specialty headlamp. The only thing that comes to mind is a stenlight.

The most expensive headlamp I personally own is a Black Diamond Solaris. They're on sale at sierratradingpost.com still I think. However they are definitely not worth the retail price. I was quite disappointed in mine for the cost. At the STP price I'd consider it an okay deal.
The good part is that the solaris is a rechargible light that has incan and a bank of 4 5mm leds (small ones that give off an angry blue light).
The bad news is the light isn't very rugged, and definitely not dunkable. The battery pack is also large and stuck to the back of the headstrap.


LED headlamp technology is wayyyyyyy behind. Like 3 years behind technology wise. Most headlamps are abysmal in output and runtimes. (mostly due to cheap 3AAA battery packs )
In order to get a half way decent LED headlamp you have to mod your own at the moment.


LEDs, a quick rundown.
Lumileds is a company owned by Phillips. They make the Luxeon brand LEDs... Luxeon I, III, V, K2, and Rebel.
Cree is a company that makes the popular XRE LEDs, you'll often see Crees referred to by their bin. (P4, Q2, Q5, R2, etc.)
Seoul Semiconductor is a company that uses the Cree die and coats it with their own phosphor process. SSC P4 U-bin LEDs are commonly used in modding headlamps.
These are the current major players in power LEDs. Luxeon I, III, and V and some K2s are old technology that has been surpassed by Cree and SSC. Luxeon I's (1-watt rated) and Luxeon III's (3-watt rated) are what are found in virtually every production headlamp along with 5mm LEDs.
Watts simply refers to how much power an LED eats up. Two years ago watts meant something, but nowadays it means almost nothing. It became a marketing gimmick to those who are unenlightened. So ignore watts for the time being.
You have much to read about and learn. :welcome:
Try asking LED questions in the LED forum after you've read up a bit more.

Hope this helps.

 

[Daekar]

Hi, I go geocaching every available moment and am in need of a good headlamp for this activity. Night caches require that I navigate trails and look for markers that may be 500 ft apart. Of course I also need to be seeing the ground in front of me. I want something that is very bright, lightweight (no neck kinks please), waterproof, and rechargable (new batteries are a pain). I haven't seen a headlamp over $200, so price isn't really an issue. I don't know/understand the difference between LED, Luxeon, Halogen, 1 watt, 3 watt, etc... so let's keep it simple: which is best?

May I ask a few questions?

1) What is geocaching? Is color rendering/spectral distribution important for this? If it is, LEDs may not give you what you want - Incans still rule the color-spectrum roost at the cost of inefficiency.
2) What do you define as "lightweight"..? I would say that my PT Apex (4AA) is lightweight, but not compared to my Zebralight. I've never gotten a neck-kink from my Apex and it's the most capable and versatile headlamp I know of.
3) How waterproof? Do you want to go swimming with it, or do you need to keep out the rain?
4) How important is runtime at this "very bright" setting? Do you need to have the very bright setting on all night without a battery change, or will you mostly use less light and the high mode for brief spotting only?

The more information you can give us, the more we can help you! :wave:

 

[Lightmania]

Geocaching is hunting with GPS for the small treasures in boxes hidden by normal people. Those normal people then posted the lat/long approximation location online at www.geocaching.com

Then other normal people look up the lat/long and download it to their GPS and go after those hidden treasures. Often of the time, the treasures hidden are simply small containers with a bunch of small items such as pencils, coins, keychain lights, little toys, etc. Once those caches are found, he/she can take one item and leave behind an item and sometime there's a log book to leave comments in. This is the common type of cache as there are other different kind of caches to go after. Then those normal people go back home and post the result of their hunts at the said website.

There are geocaches sites ALL over US and a lot more around the world. I've done a few caches myself (mostly the local ones) and it's a huge load of fun.

I don't go at night, though. At least, not around here anyway (not exactly friendly at night). So I don't know if color rendering is important enough. If I ever go out at night for geocaching, I'll probably use either my HDS U60 or ROP 2C LE, heheh.

www.geocaching.com

Good luck on your hunt, dmmd01!

 

[mountainpenguin]

Princeton tec Apex or apex Pro with a Mod will do for most of what you want its not that much less bright than a sten 1m waterproof so unless your swimming for caches itl be fine. For distance spotting you might want an additional mega bright light

 

[spinkid]

I always go with my trusy MYO XP (now modded with a better led). I love this light for geocaching. Started geocaching with a small 3AAA PT incan light and to me a decent LED is better a getting a reflection if the cache isn't entirely hidden. My last cache was done in Upstate NY where I was for training and I used my MYO XP, and an original T4 (Trios) for the distance trail spotting. This was also done with a NUVI 350 as my personal GPS was at home. Night caching is the only way I go, I find daytime a bit boring unless my kids feel like going.

 

[funkymonkey1111]

Geocaching is hunting with GPS for the small treasures in boxes hidden by normal people. Those normal people hid the treasures have posted the lat/long approximation location online at www.geocaching.com

Then other normal people look up the lat/long and download it to their GPS and go after those hidden treasures. Often of the time, the treasures hidden are simply small containers with a bunch of small items such as pencils, coins, keychain lights, little toys, etc. Once those caches are found, he/she can take one item and leave behind an item and sometime there's a log book to leave comments in. This is the common type of cache as there are other different kind of caches to go after. Then those normal people go back home and post the result of their hunts at the said website.

There are geocaches sites ALL over US and a lot more around the worlds. I've done a few caches myself (mostly the local ones) and its a huge load of fun.

I don't go at nights, though. At least, not around here anyway (not exactly friendly at nights). So I don't know if color rendering is important enough. If I ever go out at night for geocaching, I'll probably use either my HDS U60 or ROP 2C LE, heheh.

www.geocaching.com

Good luck on your hunt, dmmd01!

is the use of "normal" here to be tongue-in-cheek? i know some geocachers, and "normal" isn't a word that comes to mind when i think of them....

 

[chris_m]

I haven't seen a headlamp over $200, so price isn't really an issue.

Here you are then http://www.asutsitrail.com/servlet/the-69/Lupine-Wilma-X-380/Detail


If that is within budget, then that's your answer. Otherwise http://www.outdoorgb.com/p/silva_478_lightweight_headlamp/

 

[Lightmania]

is the use of "normal" here to be tongue-in-cheek? i know some geocachers, and "normal" isn't a word that comes to mind when i think of them....

Heheh, yeah, sorta. There are bound to be some colorful characters these days but I meant it as it is. If I wasn't into GPS, I might find geocaching odd if I didn't know what it was. After all, this is a sport where people hiding things for other people to find.

It's not that far different from us and our flashlight obsessions. Most of us are normal everyday folks but to many outside, it's weird to them. (until the power goes out! )

Its all in good humor!

 

[Lightmania]

Oh, dmmd01, just curious, what lights have you been using for your night geocaching?

 

[angelofwar]

Here's some waterproof one's...and they work fine with rechargeable batteries...I've had mine for many years, with no complaints...I used to take it caving through some Ice-caves in Iceland, and it survived...plus all the smart features help...the throw's not the best, and it's not the most stylish, but this is the best for peripheal and "area lighting", and built with performance under extreme conditions, in mind.

http://www.foxfury.com/products/signature_series/outdoor/index.htm

 

[vader]

Princeton tec Apex or apex Pro with a Mod will do for most of what you want its not that much less bright than a sten 1m waterproof so unless your swimming for caches itl be fine. For distance spotting you might want an additional mega bright light

+1 on that. I have had the Apex for years now and It works great for Geocaching. It has a bright spotlight for looking into the little cracks for micros, and it has a great area light for general hiking and getting around.

 

[GrnXnham]

We are geocachers, also. (2000+ finds).

We night cache quite often and I find that my Princeton Tec Apex headlamp is perfect for night caching and finding glint/fire tacks. It blows away 90% of the other headlamps out there.

Happy caching!

 

[Chronos]

I do a lot of hiking and geocaching at night. I haven't yet found a great headlamp for geocaching. I prefer multi-level floody beams. We keep the beams on low unless something goes "bump" in the night (we've come across fresh animal remains, a few bobcats, coyotes, and a bear). We are usually on trails (we prefer trails vs. urban caching), so floody beams help illuminate the paths and trails. Throwy beams do little in the outback. We also bring along flashlights (of course, I bring more than one ) as I find them indespensible for foraging through undergrowth when looking for the cache.

Summary: I prefer a floody, multi-level headlamps. I always use LED headlamps. I also strongly recommend bringing along a couple good flashlights.

Hope that helps! Geocaching in the dark is a blast!:twothumbs

 

[2ManyLights]

... a headlamp like that doesn't exist to my knowledge; mainly the waterproof part; without buying an overpriced specialty headlamp.

I thought a lot of the PT headlamps were waterproof. My early incan PT HLs were. (ie vortec 2AA)

After reading these posts, I may have to go back and re-visit the Apex. I remember it being big. It felt like I had a lunchbox on my head.

 

[vader]

I thought a lot of the PT headlamps were waterproof. My early incan PT HLs were. (ie vortec 2AA)

After reading these posts, I may have to go back and re-visit the Apex. I remember it being big. It felt like I had a lunchbox on my head.

If I am right the Apex is waterproof to 3 feet.

They make a couple of different models of the PT Apex. One has 4-AA one has 8-AA and one runs on 2 CR123's. The last one is by far the lightest weight and the most comfortable. Here is the link.

https://www.brightguy.com/products/Princeton_Tec_APEX_PRO.php

IMO the best headlight out there for the price.

 

[Fireman78]

Hello fellow geocacher! I use a Petzl MYO XP for all my caching adventures. It's a great all purpose headlamp. BTW- my geocaching title is also Fireman78- whats yours? BTW- everyone else here is the geocaching page- http://www.geocaching.com/

 

[a4d]

Wow these seems like alot of fun. I've never heard of this before but when i go home for christmas me and my cousin are going to try a few places. Yes i have a Handheld GPS. Sorry can't help you with the light though but thanks for introducing this to me.

 

[Coop]

Another fellow geocacher here :wave: Unfortunately I have a serious lack of time to go caching, so not many finds yet. When I go geocaching in the dark (usually after working the lateshift or nightshifts in wintertime) I use the Petzl E+Lite in combination with a handheld light. The choice of handheld depends on the situation a bit. Incan when its foggy or long distance spotting is needed, or LED when runtime is needed.

I'm planning to get a PT Apex tho, still the best headlamp, without spending an insane ammount of money.

 

[DevL]

Dont listen to the comments about color rendition. Modern LEDs provide excellent color rendition. If you dont have a fit because things are lit differently by regular light bulbs at home and the flourescents at your office you wont care about color rendition with modern, high output LEDs vs incan bulb lights.

Get a Zebralight and use Fenix L2D RB100 as a ahndlheld for throw. If you want it all on your head get a L1D body as well and strap that to the side of your Zerbalight headband. You will only need to run rechargable AA's for your lights and possibly only 1 AA for each light.

These are waterproof which some other reccomendations are not.