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Geocache Containers

August 25, 2011 By 3 Comments

Geocache Containers

While most geocache containers are standard tupperware or ammo cans, occasionally you will come across a container that is ingenious and distinctive.  The best geocaching caches are disguised to look like something else or to blend into their surroundings.

In urban areas, making the cache blend into the background is very important.  You want to make sure that those walking by don’t spot anything out of the ordinary so they will leave it alone.  Tiny caches like nanos and micros work good in an urban locale.  Micros are typically the size of a 35 mm film canister.  Nanos are even smaller – with reference to the size of your fingertip.  Nano and micro caches are popular choices in urban settings due to lack of other hiding places that would sustain a larger cache.   Because these caches can be located almost anywhere due to their size, they can be exceedingly tough to find even without any camouflage on the container.

Nano caches are typically magnetic which makes them just right for hiding beneath benches or on fences.  They can easily be mistaken for a bolt.  The typical muggle (non-geocacher) most likely won’t detect anything out of the ordinary.  Some of the best nano caches are hidden in plain sight and can baffle even seasoned geocachers.

Nonetheless, you aren’t just restricted to nano caches in urban areas.  Adding magnets to a simple electrical outlet cover and painting it to correspond with the background is a simple way to hide a cache in plain sight on utility boxes.  Of course this type of cache won’t have room for trading items, but it will hold a baggie with a log when the plate is in place.

If you want to hide a micro in an area that has a fence, look for loose fence post caps. You can easily affix a micro container to the inside of  the cap that will hang down into the fence post.

A hollowed out book makes an outstanding cache for hiding in a library or bookstore. Of course you must make sure you have the owner or manger’s permisson first.

Some crafty geocachers disguise their urban caches to look like junk.  A cache hidden in a stinky old shoe and hidden in an area with rubble will have other cachers scratching their heads. Crafty geocachers have also fashioned caches from old cans and  bottles.

If you are hiding your cache in a wooded area, it is still worthwhile to disguise your container in some way so it stands out less.  Interesting geocache containers are a lot more fun to recover than basic Tupperware.  The camouflage can be as simple as gluing some leaves, twigs, and moss to the top of your container.

Contemplate duplicating things you find in nature for your geocache containers.  You can acquire low-cost bird’s nests at craft stores and conceal them up in a tree.  The one downside is that a bird might decide it looks like a good home! If you intend to hide a cache in a rocky area, consider those hide-a-key rocks.  If you require a larger cache, you can purchase a plaster mold and make your own rock cache.  .

If you are looking to up the difficulty rating a bit, one ingenious idea is to drill out the end of a small log and insert a 35 mm film canister into the hole.  Then hide your cache in the woods along with fallen limbs.

When it comes to geocache containers, you truly are limited only by your imagination.  If you don’t possess the tools or know-how to make your own, you can search eBay or Amazon"" for geocache containers.  Regardless of whether you make up your own or buy one, a creative container can make the difference between a so-so cache and one that gets people excited about visiting your caches.

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Geocaching With Kids

August 23, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Geocaching With Kids

Geocaching with kids can be a pleasurable adventure for families. It helps children learn to appreciate nature while they are getting some much-needed exercise.  Nearly all kids will cringe at the thought of going on a hike.  Yet  if you take them geocaching, they don’t mind all the walking. In fact, they are eager to do it.  In addition, children love the idea of a treasure hunt.

Here are 15 tips for geocaching with kids to help guarantee your entire family has a great time.

  1. Let your kids decide on their own signature name to use to sign the logbooks in the caches they find.  If they are old enough, let them join geocaching.com and create their own account so they will be able to log their own finds.
  2. If possible, get your kids their own GPS.  There are low-priced units like the Geomate Jr  that are perfect for children.  If you have to share one, make sure your kids take turns navigating to the cache.
  3. When searching for caches to hunt for, pay special attention to difficulty and terrain ratings on the cache descriptions to rule out the ones that may be too difficult for your kids to finish.  Also make sure to check for hints.  Take a minute to glance at the earlier logs to make sure the cache has been found recently.  Geocaching is no fun for kids if they can’t recover the cache because it was too difficult or the cache is missing.
  4. While micro caches can be enjoyable due to the challenge of finding something so small, kids possibly won’t like them as much for the reason that they don’t have room for trading items.  When geocaching with kids, it’s best to pick out regular size caches to guarantee your children get the most enjoyment.
  5. Instruct kids to be discrete when searching for geocaches.  Muggles, (non-geocachers) can be suspicious of your activities if they are {not familiar with|unaware of|unacquainted with the game of geocaching.  Instruct your children to be subtle around other people when searching for the cache.  Stick to caches located in parks and wooded areas.
  6. Bear in mind that kids tend to walk slower and tire more easily than adults.  You may not have a chance to get to every cache that you had planned to visit. Try hunting for those a different day.
  7. Let every child pack a small backpack with trade items to take along on your geocaching hunts.  If each child has their own trade items, there is less likely to be any bickering, which makes for a more enjoyable experience for everyone.  Good SWAG items are Happy Meal toy, bouncy balls, sticker sheets, and small toys that you find at the dollar store.  Be sure that all your trade items are in well-sealed plastic bags in case the cache becomes wet.
  8. Make sure to bring along a water bottle for everybody in the family.  Since geocaching typically involves a lot of hiking, you want to guarantee that everyone has an adequate amount of water to drink.   It is critical to stay hydrated, even on cooler days.   It is a good idea to purchase a reusable water bottle for all family members for use each time you go out geocaching.  A carabineer clip is useful to attach the water bottles to backpacks, especially if the lids get tired of hauling theirs around.
  9. Bring a snack along for everyone.  Long hikes can burn up a lot of calories.  Having a healthy snack along the way can give everyone the energy to keep going.  Granola bars and fresh fruit are some good choices.
  10. Carry a small first aid kit with you. Hand sanitizer and tweezers are a valuable addition.   Scratches and scrapes are inevitable when you are out geocaching with kids, especially if you are in a heavily wooded area.  With a first aid kit, you will be able to take care of minor injuries on the trail.   The tweezers will come in handy if you encounter any ticks or splinters.  Bug repellent is also a must.
  11. After you have been geocaching for awhile, let your kids pick up travel bugs to help them on their way.  These are not typical trade items.  They include a tag with a code on them and are meant to move from cache to cache.  Some travel bugs may have specific goals, while others may just want to accumulate miles.  Be sure to log the travel bug on the geocaching website using the code on the tag.  Then move it to another cache as soon as possible.
  12. Let your kids circulate their own travel bug.  Using trackable tags from the Geocaching Website, you can make a travel bug out of just about anything that is small enough to fit into a cache.  Children like tracking how many states and countries their travel bug visits.
  13. Think about choosing a family mascot such as a small stuffed animal or action figure.  Take your mascot and a camera along and take a picture of the mascot with the cache and any scenic views you encounter along the journey.  Create a scrapbook or Facebook page to share your adventures.
  14. Help your kids create their own signature items to leave as a “calling card” to let future geocachers know they were at the cache.  Good signature items for beginners are wooden nickels or pencils stamped with your trail name.
  15. Let your kids establish their own signature item collection.  Lots of geocachers leave signature items in caches they visit.  You kids will take pleasure in the tangible reminders of all their geocaching adventures.

With a little advance planning, geocaching with kids can be a wonderful experience for the entire family, and can help create treasured memories that will last a lifetime.

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Types of Geocaches

August 3, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Geocaching With KidsSearching for geocaches is a treasure hunt, so geocachers, just like pirates, will try to protect their treasure with clever disguises and camouflage.

Geocachers are a clever bunch and are always inventing new ways to camouflage their caches, so geocaches can be quite ingenious. This all adds to the fun and adventure of geocaching and helps to protect the cache from muggles. (see the article on Geocaching Terminology)

When you’re researching geocache descriptions you’ll see that they are listed with 3 ratings. Cache descriptions will list: Difficulty – from 1-5 stars, Terrain – from 1-5 stars, and Size – Micro (includes nano caches), Small, Regular, and Large

Here are the descriptions of the 4 cache sizes:

Nano Cache

A Nano Cache is the smallest type of geocache. Big enough to hold only a log sheet these definitely require that you bring your own pencil/pen. It’s a good idea to have a pair of tweezers with you because due to their tiny size, it can be hard to get out the log sheet. Many times these will be magnetic and can be disguised as bolts or bolts heads and placed on guard rails and light posts.

Micro Cache

A Micro cache is a bit bigger than a Nano cache. 35mm film canisters and pill bottles are often used for homemade Micro Cache containers and there are a large variety of commercial containers available. Another popular container for micro caches is a magnetic key-holder.These can attached under or behind any thing magnetic, like guardrails and metal park benches. The disadvantage of the magnetic key-holders is the fact that they are not waterproof.  Remember you will still need to bring your own pen/pencil and you might need your tweezers.

Normal Cache

Normal sized geocache containers include, tupperware, lock and locks (like tupperware but have flip down locks to keep the cover on), coffee cans, .30 and .50cal ammo cans. (these are very popular because they are both durable and waterproof and can be painted to help camouflage them) Normal caches have plenty of room for a logbook, pen, and swag.

Large Cache

Due to their size you won’t see as many of these because their size makes them harder to lug around and they’re harder to disguise. They include 5 gallon buckets, 30mm ammo cans, and decon containers.

In addition to the size of the cache here are 2 types of geocaches you will see listed:

Multi Cache
A Multi Cache in a multiple part cache. These require you to find one or more clues before you actually reach the final destination of the geocache itself. Some multi cache clues will be within walking distance while others may require you to drive from one location to another. The clues usually include a set of gps coordinates that will either lead you to the next clue or to the cache location.

Virtual Cache
A Virtual Cache does not include a cache container. Virtual caches will lead you to someplace that might be a historical location or a spot with a spectacular view. To log a virtual cache you might have to take a picture of the area or write a description to prove that you were actually there.

As you can see, there are many types of geocaches available for you to hunt for on your own geocaching adventures. Personally I prefer normal caches because they are easier to find and usually include trading items.

Happy Geocaching!

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What Is Geocaching?

August 1, 2011 By 1 Comment

What Is GeocachingWhat is Geocaching? Geocaching is a fun and rewarding treasure hunting adventure where participants worldwide hide and find “caches” using hand held GPSr (Global Positioning System Receiver) units. Ask any geocacher and they’ll tell you that there is nothing like the excitement of your first successful find.

The word “geocache” was derived from “Geo”, meaning Earth, and “Cache” (pronounced cash), a French word for a place where supplies are hidden. So geocaches are like supplies (or in our case, goodies) that are hidden all over the world and geocaching is the hobby of finding them.

Before the word “geocaching” was invented it was called “stash hunting”. On May 3, 2000, Dave Ulmer, a computer consultant, became the “father” of geocaching when he hid the very first “stash” in a wooded area near Beaver Creek, Oregon. The stash contained a logbook, a can of beans, mapping software, five dollars in cash, and a slingshot. Previous to May 2000 the GPSr’s that were available to the public didn’t have the accuracy needed to hunt small things like a stash. Ulmer hid his stash and posted the coordinates on a USENET group and called it the “GPS Stash Hunt”.

One of the first people to find the “stash” was Mike Teague. After finding Ulmer’s “stash” he wrote about it on his website and started a mailing list where members could receive locations of new stashes. One of the members of the mailing list was a guy by the name of Mike Stum. Stum is credited with inventing the word “geocaching” which soon became the universal term for the hobby.

Not only is geocaching fun, but it’s a great family activity that provides excitement, exercise, and fresh air. Kids love it and with over 1 million caches hidden around the world there are probably many close to your home. On our own geocaching adventures we found things close to home that we never knew existed. Geocaching is not just for people who live close to the great outdoors. You can find caches in small town and large cities as well. Many geocachers also include geocaching on their vacations, giving them an opportunity to search for caches that would be too far away during their regular outings.

Geocachers are an inventive bunch of people and have placed caches just about any place you could think of, even underwater. That’s part of the fun for cache hiders and seekers alike, making them challenging for both the mind and the body. Some geocaches even require you to have a boat or climbing gear to get to their location. One geocache that my sons and I found was sealed with a chain and a combination lock so we had to search the area for the lock combination. Another one we found was located in a swamp inside of a huge frog lawn ornament. The cache owner had appropriately named his cache as “Frog Bog”.

If you decide to try geocaching you’ll most likely come across fellow geocachers during some of your hunts. You won’t find a nicer bunch of people, members of the geocaching community are always happy to share tips and advice and you’ll learn a lot from them. Just about every geocacher or family that geocaches together has a nickname. My two sons and I are “Da3Amigos”. In case you’re wondering why it’s “Da” instead of “The” it’s because at the time my sons where fond of saying “duh” when they were making fun of each other.

When looking for caches you’ll need to learn to think outside of the box. When you reach the general location of a new geocache, also know as ground zero, start by looking for things that just don’t seem right. Some caches will be easy to spot while others will require some additional hunting, don’t be too disappointed if your first geocaching adventure ends in a “DNF” (did not find). It’s happened to all of us.(and still does..lol) On the other hand maybe you’ll be one of the lucky “FTF” (first to find) geocachers and you’ll get a change to grab a special gift that a lot of cache owners leave for the first person to find their “hidden treasure”.

Finally, I suggest you make your first geocaching adventure an easy one if you have kids. After they’ve successfully found their first geocache they’ll be anxious to go again and you can start searching for more difficult caches.

I wish you happy hunting and many successful finds on your geocaching adventures, have fun and respect the environment!

Now you’ll be able to answer your friends when they ask you “what is geocaching?”

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Geocaching Terminology

August 1, 2011 By 1 Comment

Geocaching TerminologyJust like cell phone texting, geocaching enthusiasts have developed a set of abbreviations to minimize the amount space and time required when signing logs or logging a geocache online.

 

 

 

Here are some of the most popular terms you will see in geocache descriptions and logs

  • BYOP – Bring your own pen/pencil. Some caches are just to small for the cache owner to include these so they will note it in the cache description as a reminder. Of course you should always remember to take along a pencil or pen (with waterproof ink) just in case.
  • Cache – Geocache
  • Cacher – Geocacher
  • Caching – Geocaching
  • CITO – Cache In, Trash Out. Most geocachers practice this and a lot of geocaching club even sponsor CITO outings. Help protect the environment and the hobby by practicing this yourself
  • Coin – Geocoin
  • DNF – Did Not Find
  • FTF – First To Find – the first person to find a new cache
  • Geocache – a container hidden that includes at the very minimum, a logbook for geocachers to sign
  • Geocaching – a worldwide treasure hunt game. Geocachers can place a geocache, pinpoint its location using a GPS and then share the geocache’s description and location online
  • GeoCoin – a special coin placed in geocaches. Geocachers can buy custom made coins and place them in their caches. Many geocoins are trackable (see the definition below) and intended to travel around the world. However some are intended as collectibles and are highly sought after
  • GPSR – Global Positioning System Receiver – this is actually the correct term for the GPS we all use
  • Ground Zero – the immediate area around a cache
  • GZ – abbreviation for Ground Zero
  • Hints – some cache owners will leave encrypted hints in the cache description for people that are having a hard time locating a cache. If this is the case they cache seeker can spend a few minutes decrypting the hint to get some extra help
  • Hitchhiker –  an item that is placed in a cache, and has instructions to travel to other caches. Sometimes they have logbooks attached so you can log their travels
  • Left – when a geocacher leaves something in a cache they might note this in the log. Ex: left deck of cards (you may also see L-deck of cards)
  • Log – Log Book (or  log sheet)
  • Muggle – Non-geocacher (this is derived from the Harry Potter series where non-magicians are called ‘muggles’) Muggles have been know to take or destroy geocaches so always try to avoid revealing cache locations to muggles!
  •  Multi – Multi Cache – geocaches that require more than one set of coordinates to reach the the final cache destination
  • PnG (P&G) – Park and Grab these are geocaches that are located close to a parking area and can be obtained quickly
  • Sig Item – Signature Item -  many geocachers have personalized items that they leave in caches. A few examples include pencils, dog tags, business cards, and poker chips
  • SL: Signed Log – used when the geocacher visited the cache and signed its logbook
  • Spoiler- a picture showing the cache location or an entry into your log online
  • STF – Second To Find
  • Swag – Stuff we all get, items left in a geocache for trading
  • TB – Travel bug, a trackable (see the definition below) item left in geocaches and meant to travel from one cache to another
  • TFTC – Thanks For The Cache
  • TFTH – Thanks For The Hide, a variation on TFTC
  • TNLN – Took Nothing Left Nothing
  • Took – when a geocacher takes something from a cache they might note this in the log. Ex: took key chain (you may also see T-keychain) One of the rules of geocaching is: if you take something, leave something, if you have nothing to trade just sign the log and leave
  • Trackable – items left in geocaches that can be tracked online, trackables like Geocoins and Travel Bugs have individual serial numbers so the owner and fellow geocachers can track their travels. If you find and take a trackable  make sure that you can move it to another cache within a reasonable amount of time, if you can’t then leave it in the cache for another geocacher to find
  • Travel Bug Hotel – these are special caches that are designed just for travel bugs. Many time they are located close to major airports so that the travel bug has a better chance of moving around the word

Happy Geocaching!

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Geocaching – Our First Adventure

July 29, 2011 By Leave a Comment

What Is GeocachingMy sons and I started geocaching in February 2008. Of course being from New Jersey this was probably not the best time to start.

I first heard about geocaching from my brother.  He and his kids had tried it and he told me how much they all enjoyed it. It sounded like fun and since I was looking for a way my sons and I could spend more quality time together, I started doing more research on it.

I spent quite awhile researching geocaching gps units and finally decided on the Garmin GPSMAP 60CSx. At the time (and still is) it was rated one of the best gps units for geocaching and I liked the fact that it could keep track of cache locations and finds and could also be used in my car and boat.

So after talking it over with my sons, I ordered our new geocaching gps and when it arrived I played with it and thought I knew everything I needed to know about it. (boy way I wrong…LOL)

I joined as a premium member at Geocaching.com and found some caches that were close to home and entered them into the gps. I printed out the descriptions and hints just in case we needed them and we decided we would head out the next morning and try it out.

Well, as luck would have it we got about 6 inches of snow that night. Undaunted, and excited about finding our first geocache treasure, we decided that since it was close to home we would give it a try.  I drove to the park where the geocache was hidden and we got out and turned on the gps.

For anyone not familiar with the Garmin GPSMAP 60CSx, it comes with an electronic compass and you have to calibrate the compass before you use it. Which leads us to the next part of our first geocaching adventure. I looked at the map on the gps and then put it in compass mode. The compass is very nice, it has a nice big display and an arrow that points you in the right direction.

So off went blindly following the compass to the far side of the parking lot. Eager to try all the functions on our new gps, I switched back to map view and noticed we were actually getting farther away from the geocache! What the heck was wrong with this thing, the compass is saying go this way and the map was saying go the other way!  Looking at the compass something didn’t seem right. It said we were going North but looking at the sun it seemed like we were headed East. Right about that time I remembered reading something about calibrating the compass.

Luckily I had brought the manual along (hey Dad isn’t a total dummy) and found the page about calibrating the compass.  All I had to do was hold the gps level and spin slowly in a circle 2 times which wasn’t a big deal, but you should have seen the strange looks I was getting from people wondering why this big dummy was turning around in circles in the parking lot!

Finally the compass and the gps map were agreeing and off we trekked across the field which was covered in 6″ of new snow. So far, so good until we came to the brook that we needed to cross. It was fairly deep and hadn’t frozen over so we needed to find a shallow spot where we could cross. At this point I should probably note that we drove across the bridge that goes over this brook on our way into the park.

We continued on with our geocaching quest and soon came upon a nice little parking area. The same one we had passed on the way into the park…lol and finally ended up in the woods, the compass and gps still agreeing we were headed the right way. A little more walking and we were at ground zero. (finally) I told the boys to start looking for hiding areas and things that might give us a clue to the location of our awaiting treasure.

There we were in was heavily wooded and with the trees still covered in fresh snow we were getting some gps bounce. So I tried walking back and forth from different directions to get a good average reading. Of course by now my youngest son was getting tired and cold and wanted to give up.

So in a last ditch effort to find the cache I pulled out the cache description and we decrypted the hint. It said the cache was located at the base of a fallen tree. So we went to the nearest one and started brushing the snow away. My oldest son found a small hole and reached inside and had his hand on our bounty! Just one problem, it was frozen in place.  Luckily I had brought a knife along so we were able to free the geocache from it’s location.

We signed the log, exchanged some swag and re-hid the cache.  Of course if anyone else was looking for it that weekend that would have an easier time finding than we did, thanks to our tracks leading right to it.

We headed back to the parking lot, which was 1/2 mile away from the nice parking lot where we should have parked and headed home to log our first find.

I’m happy to report that we haven’t had any similar problems with the compass, because now Dad always makes sure it’s calibrated before we head out :)

If you would like to share your first geocaching adventure please feel welcome!

Happy Geocaching!

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