Geocaching - A Beginners Guide

Ok, we go camping to get away, to unplug, to reconnect with nature, and now I talk about geocaching?

Well, please bear with me. Geocaching is different. While it involved electronics, it's not a couch potato activity and you are unlikely to be reaching into a bag of potato chips while geocaching. Geocache is the latest outdoor craze to hit treasure hunting enthusiasts across the world. It's a natural camping activity because you are out there already.

To enjoy the sport, you need to be familiar with using a global positioning unit (GPS).

You see, in thousands of locations worldwide(!), people have hidden small containers in which they’ve put a logbook or notepad, plus a few trinkets such as small toys, fridge magnets, key rings, bumper stickers etc. The co-ordinates of these locations are then recorded online so that geocachers anywhere on the globe can download the information into their gps units and go out and search for them. Seems simple? Not quite. Caches can be tucked away in some very obscure hiding places while gps units are only accurate to around 7 metres. But that's why it's so much fun! You may have to comb through a heavily wooded area or rock strewn stream. Beginning to sound a little like camping fun?

Then there's the prize. Some friends spent 2 hours, in a California redwood forest on a hot sunny day, scrambling up trails and rocks, searching for what turned out to be an Altoids tin tucked into a hole in a tree. By the whooping and hollering that went on, you'd think they found buried treasure. But no matter, they found it, that's what counts. It is protocol to leave something behind for the next person to find. Take a day from your camping trip, and try geocaching.

Here’s a few steps to get you started.

• Log onto the geocaching website – www.geocaching.com – and get familiar with the sport.
• Start with caches near where you live, start with easy ones (avoid terrain and difficult access).
• Never move a cache, and if you search for one and find it damaged or can’t find it at all, let the cache owner know.
• If you take something from a cache, always leave something behind.

Enjoy geocaching. It’s great fun and will get the whole family out into the outdoors whatever the weather. Who knows, it might be the most memorable highlight of your camping trip.

Article Source: Geocaching - A Beginner's Guide by Heather Bayer.

If you live in the Ontario area, check out Heather's geocaching info site. As a geocaching enthusiast she has researched the best sites for learning more about this fascinating hobby.

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