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Friday is the anniversary of the 1953 summit of Mount Everest by beekeeper Edmund Hillary. Quite a feat indeed, but a stretch for a daytripper from the Philadelphia region.
Escaping the mundane is a part of what makes day tripping so attractive. You can saddle-up, get the troops buckled in and head off for wherever your chosen destination is. What if I could offer you a fun and interactive way to spend time together outdoors, hunting down hidden items in all sorts of locations, with little cost?
I can almost see the head scratchers from here, and others are nodding.
What could it be? Geocaching. It's like a high tech scavenger hunt using a GPS device.
Caches (the hidden containers) are usually waterproof containers that hold any number of items.
You may find pens, coins, poems, notebooks, pictures, lottery tickets, sometimes even a certificate for something free if you are the first to find a certain cache. They may also contain travel bugs, geocoins and any number of interesting things.
(AP Photo/Mike Groll)
There is almost always a logbook, for you and your group if you choose to operate that way (as many families do) to sign.
The geocaching website has tons of good info on it, and will get you up and running in no time flat. There are contests, events, and gatherings for geocachers too. Once you have created a profile (free!) just start looking for a site to search. It can be near or as far away as you like. Read through the website, and get a good feel for how to do this, it isn't difficult.
Once you have chosen a cache to hunt then load the coordinates into your GPS. If you have a Garmin or DeLorme unit
there is a way to load them right from the geocaching website. Other types, you can usually find a "coordinates" tab somewhere in the menu. Look for it, I bet it's there. Another good tip a geocacher gave me was to print the cache notes and take them along. There are clues in the notes.
This is a very fun way to spend time, especially with children. My family and I defer to this often when we are stuck between daytrip ideas, or just feel like doing it. Geocaching takes you out into the woods at times, but pay attention to the descriptions of the different caches. A baseball cap, or hat may be in order to avoid ticks. Considering footwear, hiking boots might not be a bad idea. Also check each other for ticks after any trip in the woods. There are difficulty, and terrain categories. I suggest going with a very easy one at first.
There are some basic acronyms to learn for logbook signing, and after your quest and you get back to your computer log your find on the website too. It's really easy.
Check out my podcast, at podtalker.com.
It explains this activity in a little more detail. I have a player right on the site, just press the play button on Episode 6.
Go forth and explore the great outdoors. Let your geo-senses kick in!
Did you know that there are over 700,000 listed geocaches worldwide?
One is probably very close to you. Enjoy.
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