Geocaching

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sailor3X7

Petty Officer 2nd Class
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Aug 5, 2004
Messages
140
Has anyone heard of geocaching? It sounds like it would be a pretty fun boating activity.<br /><br />GPS treasure hunts. I think on and around the lake would be more fun than around town.<br />Here's a site with some info in case anyone is interested.<br /> http://www.geocaching.com/
 
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DustyJacket

Seaman
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Aug 3, 2004
Messages
52
Re: Geocaching

Yep. I've been doing it since Feb 2003.<br />Good fun.<br /><br />Hydrocaches, are caches in water. Some you need a boat to get to. Hint, hint....
 
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sailor3X7

Petty Officer 2nd Class
Joined
Aug 5, 2004
Messages
140
Re: Geocaching

That's great. I think that would add a lot of fun to going to the lake. Both searching and planting. What kind of stuff do you usually put in your cache? I don't even have a GPS yet, but I want to get one.
 
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brother chris

Commander
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Jul 28, 2002
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2,063
Re: Geocaching

I have tried it once and it is really cool. <br />Good idea. <br />Keeps the kids entertained on those rainy days.
 
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DustyJacket

Seaman
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Aug 3, 2004
Messages
52
Re: Geocaching

Go to the Dollar Store for great geo-swag. And keep your eyes open for curiosities when you are at the mall. After a while you are always looking for stuff to put in a cache, or to make a cache out of.<br /><br />I find that geocaching gives you a reason to go places, a reason to get off your butt and outdoors, and something to do, when the wind whips up or is too cold to boat.<br /><br />Since I got my boat, I do most of my geocaching in the winter.<br /><br />I think I have 144 finds, and I have hidden 4.<br /><br />And, after some of them, it must be doing me good. I should have had a heart attack on some of the climbs/hikes.<br /><br />I got a Maggelan GPS because it has the buttons on the front - very good for boating and driving. I use it for geocaching, driving, and boating.<br /><br />Have fun........
 
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mikecjn

Petty Officer 1st Class
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Jun 8, 2003
Messages
238
Re: Geocaching

It seems like it would really help you learn how to use your GPS also. I looked at the link and there are quite a few right near me. I wouldn't mind taking the kids out and trying it one day.
 
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GradyBob

Cadet
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Dec 8, 2003
Messages
28
Re: Geocaching

Geocaching is even better when you use a handheld unit. There are so many more sites on high and dry land where most boats can't go. We were hiking in Great Smoky Mountains National Park to go to a waterfall and tucked away near a rock within 30 feet of the waterfall was geocache site.<br /><br />It can teach kids a lot, like how to read compass, basic wayfinding and orienteering. There are geocache sites on the net where you can go and get lat/long positions on stuff near your house.
 
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sailor3X7

Petty Officer 2nd Class
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Aug 5, 2004
Messages
140
Re: Geocaching

I think I will start working on a cache to plant. I imagine some of them are really fun to find and some are proabably sort of boring when you open them. <br />So, what is the coolest cache you have ever found?
 
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brother chris

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Re: Geocaching

I have never found one yet. I tried and it is difficult to do it when you are driving by yourself. At least it was for me. <br />Next time I will have a navigator with me.
 
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sailor3X7

Petty Officer 2nd Class
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Aug 5, 2004
Messages
140
Re: Geocaching

From what I can tell the idea is to leave a little gift of some kind and a log to sign. Then if you take the item, you leave something in it's place, is that the way it works?<br />Then of course I guess you log your find on the webpage. We spend a week at Possum Kingdom each summer. It is great just being out on the boat, but I think it would be fun to set up a cache but maybe even put a clue in the cache to another location. Some could have GPS coordinates others might just be riddles. Send them all over the lake. Especially if you could think of a fun "payoff" at the final location. I can imagine developing a "treasure hunt" that would take a few days to complete. This concept has just captured my imagination.<br /><br />I think this kind of thing inspires the little kid that is still in all of us.
 
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brother chris

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Re: Geocaching

Sailor3X7, yeah I was thinking the same thing...about having a weekend cache find. I plan on doing that with some friends when we go camping. <br />It will keep the kids busy too, and interested as well. <br />Some of the caches have a camera in them and you take a pic of yourself where you found the cache..then you move the cache to a different spot and then put the co-ordinates on the web site for the next person. <br />I think this would be great for kids for show and tell at school as well.
 
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DustyJacket

Seaman
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Aug 3, 2004
Messages
52
Re: Geocaching

Sailor - don't hide one until you find several. That will let you get the feel for the sport.<br /><br />Here is a page about my geocaching: http://www.dustyjacket.com/geocache/ <br /><br />Here is a page with some of my finds: http://www.dustyjacket.com/caches/found.html <br />There are some cool ones.<br /><br />And some caches I have made: http://www.dustyjacket.com/caches/index.html <br /><br /><br />And there is benchmarking: finding NGS survey markers. I did several reference pages on those, including real oddities.<br /><br />Yes, you sign the logbook, log online if yiou want to, and (optional) if you take something you should leave something.
 
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DustyJacket

Seaman
Joined
Aug 3, 2004
Messages
52
Re: Geocaching

Originally posted by brother chris:<br /> I have never found one yet. I tried and it is difficult to do it when you are driving by yourself. At least it was for me. <br />Next time I will have a navigator with me.
Click to expand...
Also, start with a difficulty level 1 first.<br />My first 2-3 caches found were "virtuals" where you are not looking for a box. You are looking for a landmark, etc. they are nice and easy to start with.<br /><br />Remember, depending on terrain, a GPS will get you with 10-15 feet of the caches, so you have a circle of 30+ feet to search. Only once or twice was I dead on....<br /><br />Good luck to all who try it.
 
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ndemge

Commander
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Jul 15, 2002
Messages
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Re: Geocaching

Wow, that is really cool.<br /><br />Gotta get myself a gps :)
 
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sailor3X7

Petty Officer 2nd Class
Joined
Aug 5, 2004
Messages
140
Re: Geocaching

Dusty:<br />Thanks for the great information and the great photos. I have a friend who has been doing geocaching for a couple of years. I think I'll see if he'll take me on a cache hunt.<br />Great advice. (plus I can postpone purchasing a GPS a little longer that way) :)
 
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yama_yama_haw

Recruit
Joined
Sep 10, 2004
Messages
2
Re: Geocaching

I live in Northern Montana and was out hiking one day and stopped to rest under a tree. I saw a geocache box and opened it, before then I never knew anything about geocaching. I went home and looked it up and found that there were several sites in the state where these had been hidden. I havent really tried to find any more since I dont have a GPS or just the time to do it but it looks like great fun, especially for a family outing.
 
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DustyJacket

Seaman
Joined
Aug 3, 2004
Messages
52
Re: Geocaching

When one of you try it a couple of times, why don't you post your adventures here?
 
i386

i386

Captain
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Aug 24, 2004
Messages
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Re: Geocaching

I've done a few. There's a lot of them around here. I have also found one by boat. Everyone should try it at least once.
 
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sailor3X7

Petty Officer 2nd Class
Joined
Aug 5, 2004
Messages
140
Re: Geocaching

Any reccommendations on a GPS? I don't want to spend a lot of money. But I don't want to buy a piece of junk either. I don't really know much about them. Are there optional features that you would reccommend? And I'm sure it's like a computer or DVD player, some features sound good but no one ever uses them.
 
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