Letterboxing Code of Conduct

Letterboxing has no central governing body to establish an official set of rules, but guidelines and protocols have been established to help keep the peace and order—as with any hobby with thousands of participating members. Some guidelines and protocols have even become so sacred that they have morphed into rules, though no method exists to enforce them. In a nutshell, letterboxing does have rules, guidelines, and protocols and those that choose to break them tend to find themselves on the outs with the community and possibly the law. You must also keep in mind that anytime a letterbox is placed in federal, state or private land there are rules that you must follow. Here are the letterboxing guidelines:

Leave No Trace

Leave No Trace principles are a set of guidelines for outdoor etiquette in order to minimize the impact we have on our environment. It is a basic principle of leaving things as you find them. It is important for letterboxers to follow this philosophy so they don’t start developing a reputation for damaging environmentally sensitive areas and possibly being banned from areas. For more information on Leave No Trace check this site.

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Care must be taken in both planting and finding letterboxes. While planting a letterbox avoid hiding a letterbox far off the trail where others will trample vegetation, flowers, or otherwise cause damage. Use natural hiding places for your letterbox instead of digging holes or moving large rocks. Letterboxes should be placed in publicly accessible areas yet stay out of sight of anyone not looking for them. Consider what different seasons may mean to the box. In winter will leaves falling off the tree expose the box or will spring runoff cover the box in water?

While looking for a letterbox, remember to leave the area just as you found it. If you look under a rock, replace the rock back where you found it. Don’t pull out plants or rip up the ground looking for a letterbox. Avoid trampling vegetation while searching for the letterbox. And sometimes—if a letterbox is poorly located—your best option might be to let the box go. A well-placed letterbox should not require any damage to the surrounding area to get. It’s not worth damaging the area to get the box. Even better, if you discover such a letterbox, you should notify the owner of the box suggesting that the letterbox be moved to a better location or the clues removed so others don’t damage the environment.

Safety: Part 1

The safety of you and other letterboxers is of upmost importance. While hiding letterboxes, avoid unsafe areas such along a cliff edge or high in a tree that requires climbing to acquire it. That’s not to say you cannot hide letterboxes halfway up a cliff that requires rock-climbing skills to acquire—but make sure your clue explains that the letterbox is intended for experienced rock climbers only. Make sure that whenever you place a box in an area that requires more than just basic skills, be sure to put as much information in the clue so the hunters of boxes can determine if they’re able to get to it.

If you are looking for a letterbox, know and respect your limits. Do some research before you go: Know how long and difficult of a hike the letterbox requires. Know the weather forecast. Learn from rangers the local trail conditions. And if you ever find yourself in a dangerous place, turn back and let the search go. No letterbox is worth the danger of getting injured!

If you are lucky enough to see wildlife, do not approach or disturb it. Do not feed the animals—even if it is small, cute, and apparently harmless. No wild animal is truly harmless. As with anytime you are involved in outdoor activities, keep an eye out for poisonous plants, like ivy or sumac. Dress for protection against ticks and snakes. Be aware and prepared for changing weather conditions. This isn’t a complete list of things that may harm you, but just to remind you to be prepared. Of course, we can’t prepare for everything and as humans we tend to find new ways to hurt ourselves.

This doesn’t mean that letterboxing is an inherently dangerous, its not. Just know your experience level outdoors and don’t push for letterboxes that exceed your skill level. Most outdoor accidents are preventable. Use caution when reaching into holes and recognize potential hazards before you become a victim of them! Keep in mind also that there will probably be other people in the area so be sure to lock your car and be aware of your surroundings. With a few precautions and common sense, letterboxing is a safe and healthy activity. Stay aware of your surroundings, know the potential dangers, and use your common sense.

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Security

The world today leads to security concerns being at unprecedented levels. Whether you are planting letterboxes or hiding them, consider the security ramifications of what you are doing—especially in urban locations.

Searching for letterboxes may look like ‘suspicious activity’ to someone that doesn’t know what you are doing. Which may cause authorities to question what you’re doing. The best solution for this is to not look suspicious. Get creative. Drop your water bottle and as you crouch to get it, get the box. Have a partner create a distraction away from you so that you can get the box without being seen. The possibilities are endless. If someone questions you, the best option is to tell the truth and maybe get a new person who wants to letterbox. But if you feel they may not be receptive to that just say you’re on a scavenger hunt, most people understand that. The best policy, of course, is to search for a letterbox when there’s nobody around to see you doing it, and that should be your goal. But when you can’t, then be prepared if someone questions you.

If you are planting a letterbox, paying attention to security concerns is even more important. ‘Suspicious boxes’ have been reported to the authorities and met their demise by being destroyed or thrown away. Take measures to ensure your letterbox is not mistaken for something more sinister. Use small containers such as film-canisters that are less likely to be mistaken for something dangerous. Or use clear containers so people can see the contents from the outside and be assured there is nothing suspicious inside. Label the outside of your letterbox explaining what it is and provide contact information. Even with all those precautions, common sense dictates that you do not hide letterboxes where security is tight, such as in airports or near well-known national landmarks (Empire State Building, Golden Gate Bridge, Statue of Liberty, and so on). Use common sense and put in a safe place.

Respect

Respect laws, rules, property rights and copyrights whenever you conduct letterboxing activities. Most of these are common sense and common courtesy, but ultimately, it all comes down to respecting others. Here are some things to keep in mind:

-Do not publish clues or stamp images that are not your own unless you have the owner’s permission. This is plain common courtesy.

-Don’t provide solutions to clues, especially on the community sites. The person who hides the box put a lot of effort into not only hiding the box but also writing the clue. It also ruins it for those who love the challenge of figuring out the clue.

-Do not plant letterboxes near other people’s existing letterboxes without permission. Also, do not use someone else’s letterbox as a starting point in your clue for your own box without permission. This is called poaching. Not only is it lazy, but it can cause environmental problems with more traffic looking for the boxes.

-Don’t put letterboxes in stone walls or other places where people could destroy existing structures. And yes, there are some people who don’t follow the Leave No Trace guideline.

-When placing a letterbox be sure to follow the rules of the property where you are placing the letterbox. Whether it is private or public property, federal or state lands be sure to know what is allowed.

-Don’t put anything in the box, don’t move the box to another location, or tamper with the box in anyway. Also be sure to rehide the box in a way that it stays protected.

These are some of the ways you can respect not only letterboxing but the environment. For more ways, click here.

Letterboxing with Dogs

Letterboxing with dogs has many benefits such as protection against bad people that otherwise might do you harm or just for companionship when nobody else is available to letterbox with you. When you’re letterboxing with your dog (or if you have another type of pet that can walk or hike with you) if you follow basic guidelines that you would whenever you are out walking or hiking with them then you will be fine. A few basics are keeping them on a leash, unless area is a leash-free area. You don’t want your dog to dig in the area, run around in areas off limits, or bother others in any way. Make sure you pick up after your dog. Be sure that your dog will not harm another person, so if seeing lots of people in an area will cause them to growl or snip at someone, it’s best to keep them home. And of course, if the area doesn’t allow pets, then leave them home.

Conclusion

Mostly everything we’ve talked about are things that you should consider anytime you are venturing somewhere new. Always be prepared by researching the area you are going to travel. Know what you will need with you to keep you safe and comfortable. Always follow Leave No Trace. Of course, some things apply to only letterboxing, but it really comes down to being prepared, using common sense and being respectful of others and the land. If you follow basic guidelines whenever you are traveling, you will have an enjoyable, fun trip filled with memories!

We hope to help people not only plan their adventures but keep them safe with knowledge and tips we have learned in our experiences and research. If letterboxing sounds like something you would like to do you can find lots of information on these websites: Atlas Quest or Letterboxing North America. We hope to encourage people to find their adventures and go have fun!

By Greg and Peggy

We are two people who love to travel, thrift and play slot machines. We love going to new places, especially if there is a casino! We just want to share our adventures with people and hope to inspire them to explore and have fun!

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