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–4 votes
1.5k views

Maybe venting a little here but...   As long as some of the level requirements changed on the

badges I wish there was a change to the Low Altitude requirements.   

As it stands no one from the United States can get above silver without leaving - not just 

the country - but North America.

Travel to South America can earn gold and travel to Africa can earn Platinum - but any of

the gem stone level requires travel to the middle east (Dead Sea, etc.).

in Feature requests by gcstraggler (170 points)

6 Answers

+12 votes
Does that mean that the requirements for Jasmer should be set so that everyone in Europe should be able to get diamond without leaving their country as well? And could we please have a few APE caches over here as well? Well, no. Geocaching is global. The US is privileged with access to most things. You'll just have to live with the few things that you don't have locally.
by pinkunicorn (Moderator) (194k points)
+10 votes
So? The world doesn't revolve round 'murica.... Try being in Australia, you gotta leave the country to get so many badges up.
by BFMC (3.6k points)
+2 votes

Or see the Netherland. Highest point ist 877 meter. And this in not in the Neterland country itself. It is Mount Scenery on the island Saba

 Highest point in the Netherland country is 322 meter.

It should be as it is. Counting more or less from the highest possible  cache. 

All badges are a challenge - I dont mind if I can't reach it (soon) - like to think how I can get to a cahce fullfilling a Badge level.

by supertwinfan (19.6k points)
+1 vote
It is certainly true that for most of the badges the ease with which you can reach higher levels is highly dependent on were you live. It is like this, geocaching is a global game, but caches are distributed over the globe in an extremely uneven way. Compare a country like Germany where from almost any given co-ordinate you will have hundreds of caches (of almost all types) within a radius of a few kilometers to countries where it is almost impossible to even maintain your daily streak when on holidays there. As has been mentioned, filling your Jasmer grid involves a lot of far travelling for people in Europe, you can’t just get the diamond level of the high altidude badge round the corner, either, etc etc. People living on a coast will have difficulties filling their 360° etc., but okay, it is like it is.

However, while I therefore do not see any problem with the fact that for obtaining diamond level of "The Low Altitude Cacher" you have to go to Israel/Palestine/Jordan, it is a bit awkward that for all practical matters all the gemstone levels of this badge are the same as from ruby upwards you can only get them there. And who would travel there and only search a cache that qualifies for ruby and not go the few kilometers further to also get diamond? Wouldn‘t it make more sense to spread them out more in the beginning of the scale and then e.g. award emerald from -150 and diamond from -400?

Or, to make a complete suggestion: Bronze -1, Silver -5, Gold -10, Platinum -25, Ruby -50, Sapphire -100, Emerald -150, Diamond -400.
by k+gw+a (12.6k points)
for me a reasonable adjustment..
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The Low Altitude Cacher: Bronze -1, Silver -5, Gold -10, Platinum -25, Ruby -50, Sapphire -100, Emerald -150, Diamond -400.
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otherwise I agree, everything cannot be made available to everyone because continents, countries, places... I from Czechia  also don't reach simply for A.P.E or another next...  
Based on the comments I've received I think you're the only one who actually got my point (which I really didn't express very well).  i.e. highest in US = silver.  highest in S. America = gold   highest in Africa = Platinum.  Everything else - Ruby through diamond - middle east.
i.e. why go to the effort of traveling to the Sea of Galilee (-209 meters) to earn ruby - when it is less than 150? to the Dead Sea for diamond?
0 votes
As it stands no one in New Zealand can get above Bronze. And that only due to rounding errors. I DEMAND that diamond be set at -1 meters to be fair for all countries. And while I am about it, due to the expense of air travel ( which, after all, is gcstraggler's argument) geocachers in single coutry islands should automatically be given diamond for number of countries visited and diamond should also be set at one state for pacific island nations and that diamond for altitude set at 800 meters so that Netherlanders can get a fair shot at this.
by the Seagnoid (Expert) (46.3k points)
Actually my comment is NOT about the expense of air travel.  Nor is it a complaint about travel in general.
0 votes
Thanks a lot, dear PGC team, for taking up this suggestion so quickly and changing the requirements for the Low Altitude Badge. (You even overshot the target ... :-)
by k+gw+a (12.6k points)
I understand the changing scale of requirements for "Low altitude cacher" badge. BUT why is the bronze badge from 0 m ???
Let "The High Altitude" also be from 0 m...
...