Geocaching

WELCOME TO THE BACK MOUNTAIN RECREATION TRAIL GEOCACHES!

Do you enjoy hiking? Finding treasure? Geocaching is a real world “treasure hunt” involving a handheld GPS unit or an app on your smartphone. There are over 2 million geocaches located worldwide.

Geocachers get started by accessing the website Geocaching.com. While not the only website devoted to this hobby, it is the best comprehensive, easy to use site devoted to geocaching. So what are geocaches? Geocaches are containers hidden outside in any area. They are disguised to blend in with the location they are placed in, and can be any size- from pencil eraser dimensions to 5 gallon containers. As they are placed, the GPS coordinates are entered into the website along with a description of the terrain, size of container, and often a helpful clue. Geocachers then access the info on the website, plug in the coordinates, and go find the cache! When you find one, it will have a log- a slip of paper to write your name. If large enough, it will also contain trinkets for trading, called SWAG (stands for Stuff We All Get).

There are a few rules associated with Geocaching.
1. Leave natural areas the way you found them. Practice light footprints as you hike into areas to find caches. CITO is also a good practice ( stands for Cache in Trash Out).
2. If you take an item from a cache, leave one in return. Never leave anything flammable, or liquid, food items or any type of weapon- like objects in a geocache.
3. Replace the cache exactly where and exactly how you found it. Since these are placed based on GPS coordinates, it is important that others after you will be able to find it as well.

Why is this a fun hobby or activity? For starters, it gets people outside, away from the couch! Most importantly, geocachers pride themselves in hiding caches in places that are unique. Geocachers find themselves in places they would never have the chance to be in on a regular basis, or in a place they may have driven by hundreds of times and never had the occasion to stop. Caches are often themed to enlighten hunters to a particular area, or history of a place, or just a breathtaking natural area. Geocaches are often puzzle- themed, involving problem solving skills to actually find the cache or working out how to open the container to get inside. There are even “extreme geocaches”, involving climbing gear, scuba diving, kayaking, etc.

There is more to geocaching that the brief description here. Log on to Geocaching.com for more, and to download a basic geocaching app for your phone. There are also other GPS and caching apps available online. The basic membership to the website is free. Happy Caching- get out and play!