Geocaching; an outdoor twist on a traditional scavenger hunt
Myranda Davis
Mayhood's Sporting Goods
CHENANGO – The recent trend of Chenango County Rocks reminds me slightly of Geocaching. For those of you who are not familiar with Chenango County Rocks, citizens create paintings on natural rocks and leave them in public locations for others to find. Once a rock is found, it is asked that a photo of the rock is shared on Facebook, and that they relocate the rock in another place for someone else to find.
This activity has resulted in several creative pieces and a fun outdoor activity for families. Geocaching is a very similar activity that involves finding and leaving objects or “treasures” for others, but it can be a more challenging activity.
Traditional geocaching requires the use of a hand-held GPS system to navigate to specific coordinates. Coordinates for various geocaches can be found online at geocaching.com. You can download the coordinates to a hand-held GPS unit and then navigate to the site.
The hand-held GPS will get you close to the exact location. Often times, you will find yourself walking in a fairly small circle once you reach the right spot. When this happens, you should begin looking for a concealed container that has various items or treasures inside. Most boxes or geocaches that I have encountered are ammo boxes since they seal tightly. They can blend in with the natural surroundings better than you might think.
There is a wide variety of container sizes though. Containers can vary from a film canister to a bucket. Most geocaches, when you download them, will give you an idea of what size container you are looking for. Micro caches are less than 100mL and large ones are 20L or more.
Each geocache usually contains a logbook where you should sign in and share your experience. The rule is that if you take something from the geocache, you should leave another item of equal or greater value. You can also log your experience online at geocaching.com. Items that are found at geocaching sites vary greatly. There could be virtually anything in the box, which makes the treasure hunt more interesting.
When leaving a new item to replace one that you have taken, it is suggested that you put it in a clear zippered plastic bag to help protect it.
On occasion you may even find a “trackable” item. These items often have a code on them so that you can look up information about it online (www.geocachingonline/track). Often times, the owner has a goal for that item, such as they are hoping to have their trackable item travel to all 50 states or even internationally. If you find one of these, you should try to aide the owner in their goal and relocate it to another geocaching site and add an entry in the online log for it with its new location. If you do not relocate it you can simply enter online that you discovered the item and provide it’s current location.
Geocaching sites are located all over the world in a very wide variety of settings. Geocaches can be found in cities, along hiking trails, in parks, or even underwater. There are also different types of geocaching. Traditional geocaching involves finding a hidden box as previously described. There are also multi-caches which require you to go to specific coordinates where you may find directions or clues to go to yet another coordinate.
The final location will have a physical container and logbook like the traditional geocache site. Mystery or puzzle geocaches require you to solve a complicated puzzle to find out the coordinates of a geocache. There are earth geocaches too, which take you to a special location. Typically you will receive coordinates as well as educational material about the site. There are numerous other types of geocaches as well for varying interests.
Geocaching can be a fun family activity. I spent my sweet 16th birthday geocaching at Bowman Lake State Park with my friends. A family member created some geocaches for us to find around the lake and put the points into GPS units for us. My friends had never even heard of the activity before but they were immediately excited. We spent the afternoon racing each other to be the first to find a new box.
While this is a great family activity, there are also opportunities for more advanced challenges. All that is needed is a hand held GPS unit. Some phones even have the capability of finding coordinates as well. Simply create an account online, download some points, and get started.
Mayhood's Sporting Goods
CHENANGO – The recent trend of Chenango County Rocks reminds me slightly of Geocaching. For those of you who are not familiar with Chenango County Rocks, citizens create paintings on natural rocks and leave them in public locations for others to find. Once a rock is found, it is asked that a photo of the rock is shared on Facebook, and that they relocate the rock in another place for someone else to find.
This activity has resulted in several creative pieces and a fun outdoor activity for families. Geocaching is a very similar activity that involves finding and leaving objects or “treasures” for others, but it can be a more challenging activity.
Traditional geocaching requires the use of a hand-held GPS system to navigate to specific coordinates. Coordinates for various geocaches can be found online at geocaching.com. You can download the coordinates to a hand-held GPS unit and then navigate to the site.
The hand-held GPS will get you close to the exact location. Often times, you will find yourself walking in a fairly small circle once you reach the right spot. When this happens, you should begin looking for a concealed container that has various items or treasures inside. Most boxes or geocaches that I have encountered are ammo boxes since they seal tightly. They can blend in with the natural surroundings better than you might think.
There is a wide variety of container sizes though. Containers can vary from a film canister to a bucket. Most geocaches, when you download them, will give you an idea of what size container you are looking for. Micro caches are less than 100mL and large ones are 20L or more.
Each geocache usually contains a logbook where you should sign in and share your experience. The rule is that if you take something from the geocache, you should leave another item of equal or greater value. You can also log your experience online at geocaching.com. Items that are found at geocaching sites vary greatly. There could be virtually anything in the box, which makes the treasure hunt more interesting.
When leaving a new item to replace one that you have taken, it is suggested that you put it in a clear zippered plastic bag to help protect it.
On occasion you may even find a “trackable” item. These items often have a code on them so that you can look up information about it online (www.geocachingonline/track). Often times, the owner has a goal for that item, such as they are hoping to have their trackable item travel to all 50 states or even internationally. If you find one of these, you should try to aide the owner in their goal and relocate it to another geocaching site and add an entry in the online log for it with its new location. If you do not relocate it you can simply enter online that you discovered the item and provide it’s current location.
Geocaching sites are located all over the world in a very wide variety of settings. Geocaches can be found in cities, along hiking trails, in parks, or even underwater. There are also different types of geocaching. Traditional geocaching involves finding a hidden box as previously described. There are also multi-caches which require you to go to specific coordinates where you may find directions or clues to go to yet another coordinate.
The final location will have a physical container and logbook like the traditional geocache site. Mystery or puzzle geocaches require you to solve a complicated puzzle to find out the coordinates of a geocache. There are earth geocaches too, which take you to a special location. Typically you will receive coordinates as well as educational material about the site. There are numerous other types of geocaches as well for varying interests.
Geocaching can be a fun family activity. I spent my sweet 16th birthday geocaching at Bowman Lake State Park with my friends. A family member created some geocaches for us to find around the lake and put the points into GPS units for us. My friends had never even heard of the activity before but they were immediately excited. We spent the afternoon racing each other to be the first to find a new box.
While this is a great family activity, there are also opportunities for more advanced challenges. All that is needed is a hand held GPS unit. Some phones even have the capability of finding coordinates as well. Simply create an account online, download some points, and get started.
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