Geocaching Part 2: GPS Marks the Spot
Part 2 of the Geocaching Series
Some describe it as a sport, some as a game, others call it a hobby, but however it is categorized, geocaching is quickly taking Minnesota and the world by storm, digital storm that is. Simply stated, geocaching is a treasure hunt. But instead of the old fashioned paper maps with the X that marks the spot, today’s hunters are using electronic coordinates and a global positioning system otherwise known as a GPS that receives feeds from satellites in the sky. The high-tech process sounds complicated, but really isn’t, and the result is always an adventure.
The scavenger hunter, known as a “cacher” gets the coordinates from on online source (usually geocaching.com) and enters the numbers into a handheld GPS unit. The GPS unit will tell the cacher how far away the “cache” or destination is and in what direction to go. The satellite feeds are constantly updating the GPS so the cacher can quickly navigate towards where the treasure is supposed to be. The treasure is called “swag” and can be almost anything. “I’ve found all sorts of items while geocaching,” comments Diane Anderson of Little Falls, “you can find anything from a small toy or magnet, to a book or collectible coin.”
Some coins are made specifically for geocaching and are called “geocoins” because they are minted with a special code that can be tracked. Other items have a special dog tag that marks them as trackable. These items are called “travel bugs.” When cachers find a travel bug or geocoin it is their duty to help move the item from one cache to another, making sure to first log it online using its special code. The original owners can then keep track of its whereabouts and see online all the places their items go. The site even tabulates the trackable’s mileage the item has traveled from cache to cache and totals it all as it goes.
Some trackables have a very specific purpose—to get to a specific country and home again or “to visit every state in the Continental U.S.”. Some trackables even have the potential to result in monetary treasures, like coupons, certificates, dollar bills or sometimes even greater rewards. “One summer I found a matchbox Jeep with a travel bug tag from Chrysler that I could register online for a drawing to win a real Jeep Liberty” Anderson describes. However, that situation is really rare and the swag typically found tends to be more commonplace. Whatever you take, the rules state you should leave something of equal or greater value.
Cache containers can come in all sizes. “I’ve seen them range from as large as a tackle box to as small as the size of a number two pencil eraser” explains Deb Jacobson who has been caching for about two years. Most of the caches she’s done are classified as “traditional” which means there’s one destination and one physical container. “Virtual caches” will bring you to a specific historic or information site. Instead of searching for a physical container you have to find an answer to a posted question. In order to claim the cache you must first email your answer to the cache owner. “Puzzle caches” require that you first solve a riddle or figure out a puzzle in order to get the numbers that turn into the cache coordinates. “Multi-cache” means there’s more than one stage you have to find before you get to the cache container.
All physical caches must have is a log. In the larger caches this might be a notebook and in the “micro” or “nano” (eraser-sized cache) it might be a small strip of paper wound up tightly. So sometimes swag is limited to what can fit in the container or not included at all. That is why for most cachers, the activity is not really about the swag. Jacobson comments, “It’s usually not about what’s in the cache that excites me as much as the adventure in finding it. I’ve gone places because of geocaching that I never even knew existed.” Anderson adds, “I’ve seen some really pretty places and have had some amazing hikes.
Some caches are harder to find or require more physical prowess to complete while others are handicapped accessible. A rating scale of difficulty for both the terrain and the hide help people know which caches to go after. There’s also a coding system that helps identify such attributes as whether or not it is kid-friendly, can be accessed 24 hours a day, or if it’s doable in the winter. It truly is an activity for all types of people looking for all different types of adventures. It can be an individual sport, something to do with your friends, or for many it’s a family affair.
But no matter the age of the participant, the difficulty of the terrain, the type or size of the cache, the one constant with geocaching is that you must mark your find—not with an X on the spot, but digitally—first with your GPS and then back online at geocaching.com. And if you feel so inclined you can even write a note about your geocaching experience, otherwise a “TFTH” will suffice. And what does TFTH stand for? Plain and simple: “Thanks for the Hunt!”
Photo one: Deb Jacobson revealing one of the swag items found in a cache
Photo two: The “travel bug” tag attached to this item marks it as “trackable”
Photo three: Cache containers come in all sizes, this cache would be considered “small”
Photo four: Diane Anderson signing a cache log after making a find
Stay tuned for the next article in the geocaching series: Geocaching in the Minnesota State Parks.
READER RESPONSES:
Some describe it as a sport, some as a game, others call it a hobby, but however it is categorized, geocaching is quickly taking Minnesota and the world by storm, digital storm that is. Simply stated, geocaching is a treasure hunt. But instead of the old fashioned paper maps with the X that marks the spot, today’s hunters are using electronic coordinates and a global positioning system otherwise known as a GPS that receives feeds from satellites in the sky. The high-tech process sounds complicated, but really isn’t, and the result is always an adventure.
The scavenger hunter, known as a “cacher” gets the coordinates from on online source (usually geocaching.com) and enters the numbers into a handheld GPS unit. The GPS unit will tell the cacher how far away the “cache” or destination is and in what direction to go. The satellite feeds are constantly updating the GPS so the cacher can quickly navigate towards where the treasure is supposed to be. The treasure is called “swag” and can be almost anything. “I’ve found all sorts of items while geocaching,” comments Diane Anderson of Little Falls, “you can find anything from a small toy or magnet, to a book or collectible coin.”
Some coins are made specifically for geocaching and are called “geocoins” because they are minted with a special code that can be tracked. Other items have a special dog tag that marks them as trackable. These items are called “travel bugs.” When cachers find a travel bug or geocoin it is their duty to help move the item from one cache to another, making sure to first log it online using its special code. The original owners can then keep track of its whereabouts and see online all the places their items go. The site even tabulates the trackable’s mileage the item has traveled from cache to cache and totals it all as it goes.Some trackables have a very specific purpose—to get to a specific country and home again or “to visit every state in the Continental U.S.”. Some trackables even have the potential to result in monetary treasures, like coupons, certificates, dollar bills or sometimes even greater rewards. “One summer I found a matchbox Jeep with a travel bug tag from Chrysler that I could register online for a drawing to win a real Jeep Liberty” Anderson describes. However, that situation is really rare and the swag typically found tends to be more commonplace. Whatever you take, the rules state you should leave something of equal or greater value.
Cache containers can come in all sizes. “I’ve seen them range from as large as a tackle box to as small as the size of a number two pencil eraser” explains Deb Jacobson who has been caching for about two years. Most of the caches she’s done are classified as “traditional” which means there’s one destination and one physical container. “Virtual caches” will bring you to a specific historic or information site. Instead of searching for a physical container you have to find an answer to a posted question. In order to claim the cache you must first email your answer to the cache owner. “Puzzle caches” require that you first solve a riddle or figure out a puzzle in order to get the numbers that turn into the cache coordinates. “Multi-cache” means there’s more than one stage you have to find before you get to the cache container.
All physical caches must have is a log. In the larger caches this might be a notebook and in the “micro” or “nano” (eraser-sized cache) it might be a small strip of paper wound up tightly. So sometimes swag is limited to what can fit in the container or not included at all. That is why for most cachers, the activity is not really about the swag. Jacobson comments, “It’s usually not about what’s in the cache that excites me as much as the adventure in finding it. I’ve gone places because of geocaching that I never even knew existed.” Anderson adds, “I’ve seen some really pretty places and have had some amazing hikes.Some caches are harder to find or require more physical prowess to complete while others are handicapped accessible. A rating scale of difficulty for both the terrain and the hide help people know which caches to go after. There’s also a coding system that helps identify such attributes as whether or not it is kid-friendly, can be accessed 24 hours a day, or if it’s doable in the winter. It truly is an activity for all types of people looking for all different types of adventures. It can be an individual sport, something to do with your friends, or for many it’s a family affair.
But no matter the age of the participant, the difficulty of the terrain, the type or size of the cache, the one constant with geocaching is that you must mark your find—not with an X on the spot, but digitally—first with your GPS and then back online at geocaching.com. And if you feel so inclined you can even write a note about your geocaching experience, otherwise a “TFTH” will suffice. And what does TFTH stand for? Plain and simple: “Thanks for the Hunt!”Photo one: Deb Jacobson revealing one of the swag items found in a cache
Photo two: The “travel bug” tag attached to this item marks it as “trackable”
Photo three: Cache containers come in all sizes, this cache would be considered “small”
Photo four: Diane Anderson signing a cache log after making a find
Stay tuned for the next article in the geocaching series: Geocaching in the Minnesota State Parks.
READER RESPONSES:
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