GPS - A Hobby with Practical Applications:
Forestry students and recreational forest users now have something in common - Geocaching. Forestry students are using Geocaching as a fun way to train themselves in the use of a Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver. Foresters have always needed the ability to find exact points on the earth when collecting data associated with the forest resource. Outdoor enthusiasts with a passion for the latest high-tech toy are also finding Geocaching an addictive hobby using a GPS receiver to geocache.
The Geocaching Phenomenon:
Global positioning has been available to government agencies for a long time (including forestry agencies). The first real breakthrough for civilian use came with a de-classification of the sensitivity of GPS in 2000 which allowed for greater GPS receiver accuracy for the general public. The first "stash", name later changed to "cache", was linked to a GPS coordinate and hidden in the back country of Oregon. The coordinates were posted on the Internet and the GPS phenomenon exploded.
Geocaching Equipment - A GPS Receiver:
All you really need to play the Geocaching game is a location and a GPS receiver. There are many receiver models, most made by Garmin and Magellan, and are priced around $100 to $200US. You simply enter the longitude and latitude coordinate of the geocache you want to search for as a waypoint and begin searching. Search in the area your GPS leads you and find the cache.
So, How Does Geocaching Work?:
New geocachers need to know a few basics. A geocacher can either find or hide a geocache. It is probably best if a newbee finds a few before hiding his or her first cache (tricks can be learned in the process of finding caches). Enter coordinates of the cache's location and either hide or find the "stash" at that location using a GPS receiver. The hider chooses the location and the type of cache. The finder finds the cache, logs in, swaps treasure and places container back in its hiding place.
What Constitutes a Cache?:
Geocaching.com, a great source for geocache information, breaks down different types of caches. The four most popular are the traditional cache (a container with treasure), the micro cache (a small container with a log), the multi-cache (two or more finds with clues that lead to a container with treasure) and the virtual cache (where you visit a location and your description proves you were there). There are also travel bugs, event caches, webcam caches, puzzle caches and reverse caches.
Good Things To Do When Geocaching:
One of the most important things to remember - always respect the property owner by obtaining permission to geocache. Respect your Geocaching community by using only family-friendly objects to fill the cache and leave the area and cache as undisturbed as you possibly can. Mark your container as a GEOCACHE and check the contents regularly.
Bad Things To Do When Geocaching:
The contents of a cache should never be buried. Geocachers are not expected to dig and contents can be damaged if placed underground. Never include harmful contents like knives, combustibles or potentially dangerous food. Edibles can and often will attract animals that will destroy the container. Use the most weatherproof container you can afford and make sure it has plenty of room for treasure. Nothing is more frustrating than finding a container that can't be closed because of too much stuff.
Finding Geocaching Locations:
Using the Internet is the only practical way to play this sport to its fullest potential. So, first you have to be connected to the Web and secondly you must own a GPS receiver. With these two things you are perfectly equipped to geocache. In every instance you will have to either upload or hand-enter a set of latitude and longitude coordinates into your GPS receiver. Your GPS will do the rest (when you learn how to use it) and usually can get you to within 30 feet of the recorded cache.
Finding an Internet Source for Geocaches:
The undisputed home of the official Geocache community is Geocaching.com They have one of the largest databases of coordinates in existance, the database is easily sortable by location, you can sign up for free and maintain a whole assortment of information on your finds and caches. Geocaching.com also provides some of the best information for getting started available on the Internet. There also are associations and clubs in the US states that can offer assistance to new cachers.
Other Great Sources:
My brief but enjoyable experience with Geocaching and GPS has led me to these other very valuable sites: Buxley's Geocaching Waypoint; Geocacher University; GPSinformation.net
