# Geocaching - Discussion Thread



## dixielogs (Dec 14, 2008)

I have seen it mentioned several times, and from my brief glance at Google, it looks interested, so I thought maybe we could start a thread about it and hear from those with experience.


----------



## Chad Winters (Oct 28, 2008)

I have dabbled a little. It can be fun, I took my son out a few times and he liked it. I also did it once while on vacation which was interesting because I ended up in several interesting local spots I would not have found otherwise. www.geocaching.com has several different kinds of caches. Some just take you scenic locations. Others take you to small boxes filled with trinkets for kids (leave one, take one). Others require you to complete a puzzle or riddle. 

For the boxes, the GPS gets you in the general area and then you have to search for the hidden box. Occasionally this will involve weeds, bushes and ticks.


----------



## Cowgirl (Nov 1, 2008)

The things I learn on KB never ceases to amaze me...I've never heard of geocashing...I went to the website and there's a hunt right down the street from me.  My neice is visiting for a week and this is definitely something we will do one day. I'll let you know if we are successful!


----------



## chynared21 (Oct 28, 2008)

Chad Winters said:


> For the boxes, the GPS gets you in the general area and then you have to search for the hidden box. Occasionally this will involve weeds, bushes and ticks.


*And apparantly...poop as we've read 

Hmm, maybe it's something we could try during our week in NC...sounds like fun and who doesn't love a treasure hunt?*


----------



## pomlover2586 (Feb 14, 2009)

This seems like fun- I'm gonna check it out!


----------



## drenee (Nov 11, 2008)

I agree.  I just might have to buy a GPS and try this out this summer.
deb


----------



## Cowgirl (Nov 1, 2008)

I think I can use the Tom Tom I have for my car.  I was able to put in the latitude/longitude numbers so we'll see.  My neice gets here tomorrow so one day this week we'll go out on an adventure.  This can't be as hard as finding the eggs for the egghunt on these boards.


----------



## drenee (Nov 11, 2008)

Cowgirl, let us know how it goes.  
deb


----------



## kim (Nov 20, 2008)

Although I don't do it very often, I've been geocaching since 2002. It was a great way to get my daughter off the couch and doing something outside. It taught her a lot about reading maps, directions, etc. And we had a lot of fun finding the caches.

It's best to use a handheld GPS, but I do know of people who have used the car-mounted types. They just tend to hunt for the ones that are near the road/parking lots.

It's completely free (except for needing a gps), so I think it's definitely worth trying. It has brought me to a lot of neat places/parks that I didn't know existed.

*HINT:* If you are new to geocaching, when you are on the site (www.geocaching.com) look for the size of the cache. When you are just learning about this 'sport' you do not want to start with a micro or small cache. You want to start with a normal sized cache. The micro/small are often harder to find and sometimes hidden by people whose sole purpose is to make it difficult. The normal size is more apt to have the little trinkets and be easier to find and take you to new places.


----------



## drenee (Nov 11, 2008)

So if I'm understanding this correctly, I need to carry some small trinkets with me to replace if I'm going to be taking the trinkets I find?  And the purpose of the trinkets are what exactly?  
Thanks for the tip about the handheld.


----------



## kim (Nov 20, 2008)

drenee said:


> So if I'm understanding this correctly, I need to carry some small trinkets with me to replace if I'm going to be taking the trinkets I find? And the purpose of the trinkets are what exactly?
> Thanks for the tip about the handheld.


Trinkets are completely optional. But the general rule is that if you take something, you should leave something. It's usually stupid stuff - some people leave stickers, action figures, bouncy balls, etc. I try to be a little nicer and leave stuff like compact electrical tape, zipper pull thermometer (great for leaving in the winter), stuff from the Target $1.00 spot. Just make sure it is not food and not something that can rot. And it should be something that can get wet (or be in a ziploc) because this stuff is outside.

There is no real purpose in the trinkets, except to add some fun and maybe give the kids something to look for. I actually think it's fun to get little figures; I got a variety of animals one day.

Sometimes you can find a "travel bug" or a "coin" that is meant to travel from one cache to another. If you find one of these, please only take it if you intend to send it on it's way again.


----------



## drenee (Nov 11, 2008)

Thank you for the tips.  I'm getting excited about giving this a try.


----------



## kim (Nov 20, 2008)

drenee said:


> Thank you for the tips. I'm getting excited about giving this a try.


other hints:
- be inconspicuous. You don't want other people to see what you are doing because they might not know about geocaching and then might wreck/destroy/move the cache
- always try to hide the cache as well or better than how you find it. Everything from melting snow, wind, a playful dog can uncover a cache so try to help out and hide it well when you are done. 
- when hunting, the first place to look is


Spoiler



under a log


. The second place is often


Spoiler



in a hole in the tree.


----------



## Cowgirl (Nov 1, 2008)

I went on YouTube and found some interesting Geocaching 101 video's that had a lot of good tips.  I'll let you know how I make out...


----------



## Mike D. aka jmiked (Oct 28, 2008)

I've been geocaching since early January in and around the Austin area. We have something like 1500 caches in the area within a 20 mile radius). It gets me out of the house and I get some exercise hiking in the greenbelt parks in the city. I didn't know we had greenbelt parks until now. It's great fun and I try to do a caching run at least once a week. I've loaded all the cache locations into my GPSr and keep an eye on it when I'm driving around the city and sometimes stop and go for one when I have the time. You can find the cache coordinates a www.geocaching.com . Just enter your ZIP code. You can then see a list of nearby caches and a map showing them.

A car GPSr will work, but a "geocaching friendly" model handheld is better when you get serious. A Garmin model makes it a bit easier, as it can talk directly to Geocaching.com to download coordinates.

If anyone has any questions, I'll do my best to answer them. I've become addicted.  

My brother and I are currently working on two that are pretty difficult. On one, you have to find 14 caches and get the cards from each and solve a puzzle from the hints on the cards to get to the last site. One of the locations required hiking/climbing up the side of a steep hill (there _was_ a path, of sorts. I was out of breath at the top of this one.

The other is a sequence of 45 locations, you find the first and it redirects you to the second, etc. It was a group effort, not done by one individual. The total distance to go from one cache to the final one is 115 miles. We've been working on this one for a month off and on, and have found the first 6 locations.

Mike


----------



## kim (Nov 20, 2008)

Cowgirl said:


> I went on YouTube and found some interesting Geocaching 101 video's that had a lot of good tips. I'll let you know how I make out...


I can't wait to hear what you think of it


----------



## drenee (Nov 11, 2008)

I'm getting very excited about this.  I love being out of doors, and I think my next purchase is going to have to be a handheld GPS.


----------



## kim (Nov 20, 2008)

drenee said:


> I'm getting very excited about this. I love being out of doors, and I think my next purchase is going to have to be a handheld GPS.


If you haven't used a handheld GPS before, before you buy one I would recommend asking your friends to see if you can find one to borrow first. It might give you an idea if you will actually like one and what to look for when you buy your own.

Garmin and Magellan are the most popular, with Garmin being the most common. Some of that is marketing, it doesn't mean it's any better. In fact my 7 year old Magellan has some great features that my new fancy Garmin doesn't have. Both are good, just read about them and you'll find the one that is right for you.


----------



## Sailor (Nov 1, 2008)

I have been geocaching for about 2 years now, it is fun and frustrating at best.

Biggest tip for you new cachers:

DO NOT TRY TO FIND NANO SIZE!!! You will pull your hair out.

Also, when the clue reads camo, DO NOT ASSUME a military camouflage color...think camouflaged as in WELL HIDDEN!!!

Also, don't place food items in caches.

These are just a few things off the top of my head. The main thing is to make it fun.

-sailor


----------



## chynared21 (Oct 28, 2008)

jmiked said:


> My brother and I are currently working on two that are pretty difficult. On one, you have to find 14 caches and get the cards from each and solve a puzzle from the hints on the cards. One of the locations required hiking/climbing up the side of a steep hill (there _was_ a path, of sorts. I was out of breath at the top of this one.
> 
> The other is a sequence of 45 locations, you find the first and it redirects you to the second, etc. It was a group effort, not done by one individual. The total distance to go from one cache to the next is 115 miles. We've been working on this one for a month off and on, and have found the first 6 locations.
> 
> Mike


*Now that sounds like a fun treasure hunt! You definitely have to keep us up to date on this *


----------



## pomlover2586 (Feb 14, 2009)

One of my friends attempted one of these in Northern CA and ended up lost in the woods for 3 hours.......needless to say if I do any it will be close to home!


----------



## Mike D. aka jmiked (Oct 28, 2008)

pomlover2586 said:


> One of my friends attempted one of these in Northern CA and ended up lost in the woods for 3 hours.......needless to say if I do any it will be close to home!


That's the beauty of the handheld units.... they allow you to backtrack your path if need be. I'm not sure if lost is the word, but I've become disoriented and had to resort to the GPSr and the track back feature once or twice.

Take spare batteries!!

Mike


----------



## kim (Nov 20, 2008)

*iPhone* - There is also an iPhone application for geocaching. If somebody has an iPhone but not a gps, you can still try geocaching.

www.geocaching.com/iphone/default.aspx


----------



## chynared21 (Oct 28, 2008)

kim said:


> *iPhone* - There is also an iPhone application for geocaching. If somebody has an iPhone but not a gps, you can still try geocaching.
> 
> www.geocaching.com/iphone/default.aspx


*Good to know, thanks!*


----------



## drenee (Nov 11, 2008)

Spare batteries...great advice...thanks


----------



## kim (Nov 20, 2008)

jmiked mentioned that he uses the 'track' feature so that he can backtrack and find his way back to his car.  Some GPS units are better at showing you a track than others.  

Another option is to set a waypoint at your car (just capture the location when you start).  Then you can always find your way back to where you started.  I use this option because on my GPS it just happens to be easier.


----------



## Anju  (Nov 8, 2008)

Really sounds like fun, don't think I could get DH to go though.  Looked but couldn't find any close to here, and without a car it might be more difficult to go further afield.  So in the meantime I'll geochach vicariously with y'all until I can find someone to go with.


----------



## Mike D. aka jmiked (Oct 28, 2008)

kim said:


> jmiked mentioned that he uses the 'track' feature so that he can backtrack and find his way back to his car. Some GPS units are better at showing you a track than others.
> 
> Another option is to set a waypoint at your car (just capture the location when you start). Then you can always find your way back to where you started. I use this option because on my GPS it just happens to be easier.


I do both. I set a waypoint and start the tracking feature before I leave the parking area. 

Also, the iPhone works, but I don't think it uses the GPS satellites for location, I believe it uses the cell towers, so if you lose cell phone signal, you lose your ability to tell where you are going. On the other hand the ability to log onto geocaching.com when you are out in the boonies is very helpful.

Mike


----------



## Chad Winters (Oct 28, 2008)

The 3G iPhone has true GPS


----------



## Mike D. aka jmiked (Oct 28, 2008)

Chad Winters said:


> The 3G iPhone has true GPS


That would be a great way to go geocaching, then. I wish I could justify buying an iPhone. I use a cell phone only about once a month.

Mike


----------



## Chad Winters (Oct 28, 2008)

jmiked said:


> That would be a great way to go geocaching, then. I wish I could justify buying an iPhone. I use a cell phone only about once a month.
> 
> Mike


I'd be a little worried about the battery life on the iPhone. Can you turn off the phone part? It can really suck battery life if you get out of the digital coverage area


----------



## Mike D. aka jmiked (Oct 28, 2008)

I don't have one, but I think you can turn off the phone function and the WiFi function and just use the apps that are on it. I have no idea if any of the geocaching apps require either of those functions (requiring the WiFi function would be surprising).

Mike


----------



## DawnOfChaos (Nov 12, 2008)

Oh my.  should not have opened this thread.  I've already started making favorites.


----------



## Cowgirl (Nov 1, 2008)

ok...So my brother who is an engineer, me, and my 7 year old niece tried to find 3 different caches today...and we we 0 for 3.  They were rated very easy and we couldn't find them.  I'm going back tomorrow because I think we were over  thinking them.  stay tuned!!!!


----------



## kim (Nov 20, 2008)

Cowgirl said:


> ok...So my brother who is an engineer, me, and my 7 year old niece tried to find 3 different caches today...and we we 0 for 3. They were rated very easy and we couldn't find them. I'm going back tomorrow because I think we were over thinking them. stay tuned!!!!


The first few will be hard until you get the hang of it and learn about the places people tend to hide them and the types of container people tend to use. Hang in there.

Chances are the 7 year old might be better at finding them than the engineer.

Spoiler Alert: stop reading now if you don't want any hints.

Hints
- check the logs on the www.geocaching.com website. If people before you have found the cache, then it should be there and in good shape. If people before you were not able to find the cache, then maybe it got moved/destroyed or something happened to it.
- check the size of the cache on the www.geocaching.com website. If it's a 'micro' then you are looking for something about the size of a 35mm film canister. If it's 'normal' than it could still be a small tupperware or peanut butter jar size.
- If it's a 'micro' size, you might want to skip that one and start with one that is 'normal' sized.
- If there are any trees around,


Spoiler



look under a log or in a hole in the tree.


- if you are in a parking lot or more urban area, (especially if it's micro) it could be something magnetic stuck to the back or under something. I've seen one of those magnetic spare key holder thingings stuck inside a storm drain. If there's a street lamp,


Spoiler



the base at the bottom often lifts up


.
- it could be painted black or camo so it blends in with it's surroundings.

I wish I could be there to help you


----------



## Cowgirl (Nov 1, 2008)

Thanks for the help Kim...I'm going back today because 2 of them did say they were micro and I didn't notice that...we were looking under brush and stuff for ammo type containers...The 7 year old and I are going back...We are leaving the engineer behind today!!!  People logged in that they were found the day before we were there so I'm assuming I just need to look harder and for the right type of container...stay tuned...


----------



## kim (Nov 20, 2008)

Cowgirl said:


> Thanks for the help Kim...I'm going back today because 2 of them did say they were micro and I didn't notice that...we were looking under brush and stuff for ammo type containers...The 7 year old and I are going back...We are leaving the engineer behind today!!! People logged in that they were found the day before we were there so I'm assuming I just need to look harder and for the right type of container...stay tuned...


I usually stay away from the micro caches, I don't like to have to look that hard. If you get desparate, you can email the person who hid the cache and they might give you some clues.

And remember, things like cloud cover, tree cover, and how good your gps is can affect the accuracy of your reading.

Good Luck!


----------



## kim (Nov 20, 2008)

I haven't had time to look at them yet, but I did notice that Amazon has a few books about Geocaching available on the Kindle. Search for 'geocache' and 'geocaching'.

Personally I wouldn't pay $9 for information I can get on the internet for free, but somebody might be interested.


----------



## dixielogs (Dec 14, 2008)

we went out yesterday for the first time and found  6 caches.  my sister wants to go with us next time.  I love the geocaching app for my iphone.  My daughter has such eagle eyes that she was great to have along


----------



## kim (Nov 20, 2008)

dixielogs said:


> we went out yesterday for the first time and found 6 caches. my sister wants to go with us next time. I love the geocaching app for my iphone. My daughter has such eagle eyes that she was great to have along


Six caches on your first time is pretty impressive.  It sounds like you had fun, hope you enjoyed it!
Did your adventure introduce you to any new places? Did you get some useless trinkets?

Not long ago I found a cache in a nearby park that I've been to a couple times and drive by very often. It's small, there really isn't anything there - until I went cache hunting. The path it took me down went through a wonderful arboretum and followed a beautiful creek. I found the cache and then kept walking for another mile. It was wonderful. Because of geocaching, I found out that little path could transport me into a different world of trees, creek, nature, and peacefulness. I was so amazed that I drive past the place so often and didn't know it existed.


----------



## drenee (Nov 11, 2008)

The sun is shining so brightly and inviting today.  I cannot wait to get started geocaching.  I talked to the prosecutor in my county and a couple of the police officers I work with to get the word out that I would like to borrow someone's handheld GPS to try first.  I will see them again next week.  Hopefully someone will be willing to share for an afternoon.
Thanks guys, for all of the wonderful information.
deb


----------



## kim (Nov 20, 2008)

drenee said:


> The sun is shining so brightly and inviting today. I cannot wait to get started geocaching. I talked to the prosecutor in my county and a couple of the police officers I work with to get the word out that I would like to borrow someone's handheld GPS to try first. I will see them again next week. Hopefully someone will be willing to share for an afternoon.
> Thanks guys, for all of the wonderful information.
> deb


I've heard that some state parks (in Minnesota) will rent a gps unit. An option might be to find a place that rents them. Maybe there is a sporting goods store or outfitter (REI) in your area that rents them.

Don't know if you can find anyplace, it's just an idea.


----------



## drenee (Nov 11, 2008)

Thanks, kim, that's a great idea.
deb


----------



## stormhawk (Apr 29, 2009)

I just started geocaching last week. I've known about it for years, but never got around to doing anything about it, until a friend of mine said she wanted to try it. 

We've looked up a couple possibilities that aren't too far from the other friend's house and we're going to give it a shot. 

I am not terribly woods-wise. Every time I go camping I have to have someone identify poison ivy for me, since I have no idea what that shit looks like (yes I know the rhyme, but it doesn't help since every damn plant out there has leaves of three). I have to assume I'm not very sensitive to it, because on more than one occasion I've had it pointed out to me that I'm sitting in the middle of a large patch of it. I also don't like bugs. Or snakes.

She has a miserable sense of direction, and has gotten lost despite having a GPS unit in her car. She's a retired Naval officer. Thank goodness in her day they didn't let women on ships. In OCS she plotted beautiful courses ... that always went the wrong way.

I should probably arrange for someone to be our safety call ...

On our first time out, we managed to find one! 

Whoo hoo, happy dance, and all that. 

May not have if we hadn't had bunnygirl (one of the babysitees) with us ... she spotted the cache, and earned a dollar bribe as well as one of the items in the cache. She took a bakugon, which is one of the latest cute Japanese fighting monster toys that she knows all about and I never heard of. 

We tried for a second one, were probably within 10 feet of it, but we had to cut the searching short because a thunderstorm was coming in and we JUST made it back to the car in time! 

We'll be going back again to find that one. 

Oh, and my friend, Wrong Way Corrigan? She programs the coordinates into her GPS and says, "Okay, it says go this way. The arrow points this way!" 

"Uh, wrongway?" 

"Yes?"

"The arrow points north. You follow the black line. See that squiggle? That's that big road over there." 

"But the black line goes straight through those trees." 

"And the path right ahead of you curves around and back toward where you want to go." 

Another time she wanted to climb up a 70 degree incline (okay, it was more like a big pile of dirt, but it was hill like) hill to follow the black line when once again, the path curved toward where we wanted to go.

Heaven help me. 

On Thursday I am going to Ricketts Glen with this woman.

I expect that we will get lost in the woods and that I will have to roast and eat her to survive. She understands that because she is the vegetarian and I am not, she's the one who has to get eaten. I may give her a chance to get me to consent to being the meal, but I don't think she'll have any luck at all.

I already told her she has to mark the parking spot with that GPS thingy. Although, it should be pretty straightforward ... we go downhill to leave.


----------



## cmg.sweet (Jul 6, 2010)

Stormhawk, how did it go?  I hope you didn't have to resort to eating the vegetarian!

I've been geocaching for about 3 years now, just bought a new GPS yesterday after wanting to throw my old one at a tree recently.


----------



## swolf (Jun 21, 2010)

My wife and I have been geocaching for over a year now, and we just use the Garmin from our car.  It gets us close, and my eagle-eyed wife usually zeroes in on the cache.  We take along a bag of small plastic critters for exchanges.

There's one micro near our house that we tried, but couldn't find.  It's on a WWII tank that's parked outside of a local community center.  We've been all over it, but still no luck.

Geocaching has taken us to some great places - some near our home that we weren't aware of.  It's best to go in the early spring when the undergrowth isn't so thick.


----------



## PMartelly (May 1, 2011)

My friend that lives in South Korea (he's in the military), was the first person to tell me about geocaching. How cool is it that it's all around the world? As soon as I can get my hands on a handheld, I'm definitely giving it a try.


----------



## Chad Winters (Oct 28, 2008)

The only thing I don't like is the ticks. I think ticks are attracted to geocaches


----------



## swolf (Jun 21, 2010)

Another thing to watch out for is to steer clear of private property.  We were looking for one down in Florida last year, and it was right up against some guy's back yard.  He finally came out and asked us what we were doing.  Very embarassing.

Also, they have a rule where the caches have to be a certain distance apart, but if you plan it right, you can choose a hiking path where you can get several on the same hike.  We have the rails-to-trails around here, and there's geocaches all along it.

And sometimes things change that you're not aware of until you get there.  For example, one cache was just off the parking lot of our local theater, down into the woods by a creek.  A few months ago, they put up an 8-foot high chain link fence around the lot, so now it's a much longer walk to get down in there.


----------



## bnapier (Apr 26, 2010)

My family is pretty involved in it.  If you live in the right place, it can be quite addictive. What makes it more fun is when you start hiding them yourself.  It's really a great family activity: it's free, it gets the younger kids interested in problem-solving, and, for the tougher ones, can be a HUGE challenge to the adults.


----------



## AnnetteL (Jul 14, 2010)

I've always wanted to try this! This may be the nudge I need to actually do it.


----------



## stormhawk (Apr 29, 2009)

cmg.sweet said:


> Stormhawk, how did it go? I hope you didn't have to resort to eating the vegetarian!
> 
> I've been geocaching for about 3 years now, just bought a new GPS yesterday after wanting to throw my old one at a tree recently.


We're in a rain delay ... we ended up watching movies instead. And made a trip to the camping, hiking, and kayaing store during which I saw further evidence of her directional tin-ear.

We were driving back to her house and wanted to avoid traffic on the road we were on, and simply had to scoot over to a parallel road. We turned right, came to a T intersection and she said ... "I should turn right here, shouldn't I?"

"That's back toward Conshhocken, the way we just came."

I should just have let deal with the traffic.

She was my partner in a scavenger hunt.

I let her hold the map, but not read it.

We've been doing this a while.


----------



## Stanford Squirrel (Jul 21, 2011)

One of my favorite activities.  We usually escape ticks or poison ivy, but always get lost a few times.


----------



## Scheherazade (Apr 11, 2009)

I always thought the geocaching hunts where they hide something then you take a photo of it and rehide it and post its coordinates were a lot of fun.  I think the first time I heard about it, years and years ago when GPS was expensive and new, someone had a geocaching site where they had an Eeyore figurine and you could track where it traveled all over the world with pictures.  It was pretty fun all the places it ended up.


----------

