geocaching? what where why?

playin4funami

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Okay I am new to this whole geocaching thing and not sure it would be much fun for me,but my son thinks it would be fun, I checked and there are alot of close goecache sites near me, now I just need someone to explain what I am supposed to do with it after we find it? Actually I think I found a couple while out doing other stuff,just did not know what they were, but thought it strange for someone to hang a can in a tree, then saw it listed as a geocaching site, so anyway whats it all about?
 
The Wiki.

A friend of mine who does it says for the most part you take what you find and leave something new for the next person.
 
Most geocaches contain various items plus a "log book". When you finally find a cache you sign the log with date and time, take an item (if you want) and leave an item for the next person.

I tried it a few times and it's fun but even more fun for the kids. Some of them take you to interesting places that you normally wouldn't visit and you learn a bit about the local history.

Good exercise combined with trying to find the cache once you hit the GPS coords. The "cachers" can hide things pretty darned good sometimes.

As advised...geocaching.com is a good starting place if you're thinking about it. They have caches listed and you can search within your area for any distance around you.

Now I just use my GPS when metal detecting to mark sites to be returned to.
 
Some people have a BAD sense of Humor. Here in New Mexico, they put one in a Pit known to have Rattle Snakes in it. :wow:
 
I did a little write up about this a little bit ago as a research idea. Here is the link:

http://metaldetectingforum.com/showthread.php?t=57791

I love geocaching. Tons of fun, gets you out of the house, and it really does show you area's around your home that you may not even know are there.

When starting out, pay particular attention to difficulty rating and size of the container. The smallest containers called "mirco's" can be very tiny and very difficult to find. This can really cause new geocachers to become frustrated. When I say tiny I mean, the size of your pinky nail small or smaller which are called "nano caches". When just starting out I would recommend difficulty level 1 or 2 and the larger containers which are a bit easier to locate and find. Once you get a few under your belt try a couple micro cache's and see what you think. A lot of people by pass micro or nano cache's because they can be infuriating.

The smaller caches typically only have a log book which you sign. The larger ones usually have small trinkets where if you like you can take one and then you are supposed to leave a trinket to replace it, usually only worth a dollar or so. If your lucky you might even find a travel bug, which can be very fun in its own. People also put the "where's george" dollar bills in there for people who like to track them and see them travel. After you find the cache, you go back to the geocaching.com website and log your find under your account. The website keeps a running tally of all the caches that you have found.

Hope that helps,

CTKidd
 
thanks all, I appeciate the info and am going to check it out a little this weekend, I know alot of sites I have metal detected in are also on the cache list, but I guess I never paid too much attention or knew what to look for.
 
one description i read one time about what geocaching is went as follows:
"it's using multi-billion dollar satellites to find tupperware hidden in the woods", lol.
unlike detecting where you're trying to find something that "might" be there or that's accidentally lost, caching is looking for something that "should" be there and is placed intentially but with the added mystery of making it hard to find. (keep in mind that sometimes they DO go missing!) you CAN pin point a metalic object in the ground but you cannot pin point a geocache. oh, and caches are NOT buried! perhaps covered with something (leaves, branches, rocks etc), but actual burying is a no-no.
the GPS and the satellites will get you pretty close to the actual cache but the last 10 feet are usually the hardest part since it's not a pin-point thing like detecting is.

i'm very new to metal detecting, but have been caching for a couple of years and it's great fun and depending on which caches you search for, it can be quite adventurous as well! i've been to areas fairly close to home that i wouldn't even know existed had it not been for getting into geocaching. and thinking back to some of the locations, some would also be great areas for metal detecting! and there's nothing like having a GPS with you for saving those co-ordinates!

there's no rules that say you "have" to leave anything in a cache that you find, but the general rule is that if you take something, you should leave something of equal or greater value for the next person. dollar store items seem to be the most common thing.
metal detecting and geocaching are both great hobbies and both use their own versions of "hi tech" and i'm sure that combining the two isn't a bad thing... maybe it's twice the fun. :yes:

Pete
 
The coolest part sometimes, is the pure genius of the cacher. I searched circles around a tree once on the side of the road. my GPS was telling me that i was right on top of the cache, but i couldn't find it to save my life. Then my wife noticed an Electrical conduit box. You know, the skinny green ones with orange letter stickers on them. Yeah, it was one of those... Only with a wingnut on the front, and the numbers oddly enough matched the GPS coordinates. Sure enough, behind the wingnut panel was a geocache container!

I have also seen hollowed out logs, fake birdhouses on trees, the infamous hollow magnetic bolt, and even a pigeon decoy stuck in a tree, with a film canister cache built in. Once, in a tree, about 6 or 7 feet up there was a crotch with a small hole in the center of the crotch. There was a nail, with a piece of wire, and on the end... you guessed it, a cache of a piece of paper, and a pencil. Another classic was a metal box in a parking lot of a shopping center. The box had a combination lock on it, and the combination was on a big sticker right there on teh side of the box for everyone to see. Some caches are simply landmarks. Take a picture of you in front of Rainbow Records in L.A. to claim that cache on your list etc. etc. The sky is the limit.


Being a woodturner, I thought about taking a piece of wood, and hollowing it out, and "turning" it into a limb looking situation and putting it in a tree. Maybe offer a nice prize for the FTF (First to Find)


a little tip before you start. RESEARCH THE CACHE. A little "digging" (no pun intended) goes a long way. Make mental notes of the details because they will help you in that last ten feet. Check comments to see if you can judge if the cache is still there, and in decent shape. I have actually found caches without using a GPS at all. It is also considered good caching ettiquette to "Cache in, Trash out" Which means that you should take a garbage bag with you, and pick up any trash you might see along the way to the cache, and then again on your way back out of the cache.


Yeah.. caching is fun! Ironically, I think alot of the "tricks of the trade" could be crossover for detecting or caching. clipboard, hardhat, orange vest and electronic gadgets equal the impression of official business.
 
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"clipboard, hardhat, orange vest and electronic gadgets equal the impression of official business."

haha, i've heard of doing that too! make yourself stand out and look "official" and people will ignore you, lol.

i think one of the best "hides" i've found would have to be one i found in a parking lot at a university. you know those cement parking lot bumpers, a big pin through each end into the ground to hold them in place? sure enough, pulled one of those pins out and there was the micro hanging off the end of it by a piece of wire, haha!
it lived up to it's name: Hidden in Plain View!
 
Here are a few unique ones:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UiNK_dJ5W3o&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xH7zLjHkSJc&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q2m3k7dZf7I&feature=related

And to give you an idea of how elaborate they can get take a look at this one called, "Raiders of the Lost Geocache." "
Sound like something you’ve heard of before? Well, this geocache will require you to emulate Indiana Jones in his quest for the Arc of The Covenant in “Raiders of the Lost Arc”. No, you won’t need a whip and there won’t be any snakes. All you need is sunlight at precisely the appointed time of day and a staff cut to the precise height for that day and time. Remember in “Raiders”, Indy used a ruby topped staff to shine sunlight onto a model of the city to determine where the Arc was located?? Well, that’s what you’ve got to do in this geocache, but with a few changes. Instead of a model of the city we have selected a location (the coordinates given for this cache) that contains what amounts to an X-Y coordinate system. It is actually a brick entrance way to the Martha Mary Chapel (which they keep clear of snow in the winter!). You will place your staff at a particular point on the brick floor and locate where the end of the shadow falls. Each brick has been assigned a number by us. The brick number can be determined from two pictures (that we provide on this web site) that contain brick numbers overlaid on them. The latitude and longitude of the Raiders of the Lost Geocache is then obtained from a table of latitude/longitude pairs vs. the brick number."

http://home.comcast.net/~jennings.dh/geocaching/raiders.htm

http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.aspx?guid=f60d0420-65e7-46a7-b830-c7a2927bf439

And for the ultimate challenge, try the "Cerebral Codex." "Hidden deep within an old stone library was the Cerebral Codex, which told a unique and intriguing tale. In a mysterious environment, two friends find themselves in a strange place with only the Cerebral Codex to help guide them. They find that the codex is riddled with mind bending and mysterious mental challenges, which when solved lead them on an adventure like no other. Work to solve the puzzles and uncover hidden information in the codex and begin your own adventure. This is a multi-stage challenge which has several levels each consisting of a mental challenge (puzzle) followed by a physical challenge. All of the puzzles can be found in the attached text file. Can you unlock the mysteries encoded deep within the Cerebral Codex?" This geocache requires you to download a free book and read it. The book was a good stand alone read. The book has a series of puzzles that the characters must overcome, you must solve the puzzles to determine coordinates. On this geocache you will go from do some serious physical activity. It is rated a difficulty 5 and terrain 5. This is as hard as they come.

http://www.cerebralcodex.com/

http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.aspx?guid=98ac8aa6-bca1-4321-bb33-ed33ad9cbae0
 
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