Geocaching for me is less about finding the item and more about seeing your city in a new way or exploring new cities. I’ve lived in Austin for 12 years and recently visited neighborhoods and parks for the first time thanks to geocaching. It’s even more enjoyable if you have someone with you and can pair an additional activity on like biking, hiking, or a picnic. It’s a nice way to do something different without spending money and limited sweating (well, maybe not avoidable in Austin but you get the idea!).
I have been geocaching for many years and have done some pretty crazy things to get my caches. Size matters and micro caches are usually small. Some can be disguised as bolts, or faceplates. I found a geocache on every island I went to on my cruise, China, Korea, I even made my brother climb a tree to ring a door bell, so that I could find the next location. Good brain work, and you learn to see the world differently!
When my son was younger we went through a phase of geocaching, and I recall one particularly frustrating search while visiting my parents. We wandered around a small park looking everywhere and never did find it. I imaged the people in nearby businesses laughing at us. Our interest in geocaching petered out fairly quickly, but I think of it now and then as something I'd like to do again. I've just started riding my bike around town, and I like your idea of experiencing the adventure whether I find anything or not. Cheers!
I met my future stepsons on a geocache hunt, then 3 1/2 and 6, now 11 and 14. I hadn’t heard of it then, but it holds a solid place in my heart now. We’ve since introduced it to the son my husband and I baked up together.
That first hunt with those two strange and wonderful mini humans was weirdly wonderful. Geocaching as a thing people do was both very cool and foreign to me, and to watch a toddler walking train tracks with a gps tracker the size of his forearm was a trip.
We found one and missed one, and my heart nearly burst when both boys in turn asked me for help.
It’s certainly less about the thing found and more about the search and discovery. We don’t often get the chance to engage our hunter/gatherer brains these days, and it feels real good to do so.
Our boys continue to enjoy, as we two parents do, the thrill of the hunt… fossils, metal detecting, hikes, scavenging… geocaching was and is a riff on the classic tune.
Thanks so much for sharing my project Rob! If and when I make a book, I'm sending you copy.
I was thinking this whole geocache thing sounded an awful lot like the Pokemon go craze of a few years ago minus the kids blindly walking into traffic and then I saw your note. Your Medium piece is so good! It makes me think that there is some real potential for an augmented reality approach to exploring a city that doesn't involve incense and gyms. I'm sure there something like that in the works if it doesn't exist already.
I don't have any interest at all in the subject of geocaching but I just really really enjoyed your article and had a laugh - sorry at your expense, then my own cause I'm a dork too and that is just a word that doesn't get enough air time these days. I'm still giggling!!
When it first started way back in the early 2000s, I only did ones that I could bike or walk to. No driving. They were much simpler than today. I drifted away after a few months. I reconnected a year ago when I found that an old friend was into it in a big way with thousands of finds. I found most of the ones locally here on the north OR coast (still by bike or walk) and ended up adopting one that the originator couldn't support. There are many that I DNF (Did Not Find) on the first try so I'll go take another swing at them every once in a while. I usually get them. I tend to shy away from the puzzles. When traveling, I may remember to take a look at the map and go find one or two if they are bikeable/walkable or accessible via transit. I like ones that take me where I wouldn't normally travel.
While hiking in Lovel canyon outside Vegas we discovered a pile of odd things. I was confused until I realized it was a geocache, we had stumbled upon without trying. After that we geocached everywhere, the desert, neighborhoods, and carried small objects to plant as well. (Big expos with advertising gadgets make great drops) When we became homeless in 2010 we traveled a lot and always checked for them. Once near the area where James Dean crashed, we found a small desolate park with a chain link fence surrounding an electrical service. Instructions told us to climb over the fence and gave a combination to the lock on the panel box. We tried, and it opened with the cache inside!! Finally, when we were leaving California I stashed our remaining tchotchkes in a hollow tree at Jack London park, thinking we could register the site later. But the rules prohibit unmonitored cache's, so that treasure is still out there! (not on the geocache website)
We found a bunch of geocaches with the kids, it was a great way to get them outdoors and the caches out in the desert (we live in southern NM) are usually bigger boxes where people leave little toys, key rings, figurines etc. Geocaching truly got us to places we would have never visited otherwise, so yes, getting out of our comfort zone. We loved it. I also placed two caches near our home and checking on them periodically was a thrill too. Being the FTF (first to find) is a big thing apparently.
My kids and I geocached during Covid and some are super hard to find they look exactly like things that belong in the location like a fake rock, loose bolts, sliding panels on light posts. I think the key is to touch and try to move all the pieces that might move in the general area. And yes you look like a big dork more than once people stopped to ask us if we needed assistance or lost something valuable.
I've geocached off & on for a few years. What you said about "letting it send me on a mini-adventure" is the best part. By their nature, caches are generally placed in quirky or interesting areas - monuments or parks or hidden stairways that I would never have discovered on my own. I've found some lovely views and secret gardens because of geocaching. Once you've done a few you'll get a feel for finding treasure. My favorites are the ones that are hidden in plain sight.
Geocaching used to be a bit larger containers. When you found one, you signed the register, left a little gift (sticker, tiny model, painted rock, costume jewelry, etc), and took a little giftie from the cache home with you. Eventually the overwhelming majority of caches became micro-caches like the one you found. FAR less fun, so we just go enjoy monuments, parks and landmarks without all the sleuthing for “nothing.”
I learned about geocaching when I discovered a cache under a bridge while on a photo walk. The cache, as best I can recall, was a small box with a piece of paper with notations from cachers (sp?) and some trinkets. I Googled geocaching and put the box back in place. It did not grab me as an activity. I’m located in LA County.
I wish I had a word idea for the umbrella dance- one thing I did notice in Japan though was a lot of people using clear and smaller umbrellas - which afforded the user to keep the umbrella like a mini bubble close to their head and down - avoiding the dance after all. Ever since...I long for one :)
Geocaching for me is less about finding the item and more about seeing your city in a new way or exploring new cities. I’ve lived in Austin for 12 years and recently visited neighborhoods and parks for the first time thanks to geocaching. It’s even more enjoyable if you have someone with you and can pair an additional activity on like biking, hiking, or a picnic. It’s a nice way to do something different without spending money and limited sweating (well, maybe not avoidable in Austin but you get the idea!).
I have been geocaching for many years and have done some pretty crazy things to get my caches. Size matters and micro caches are usually small. Some can be disguised as bolts, or faceplates. I found a geocache on every island I went to on my cruise, China, Korea, I even made my brother climb a tree to ring a door bell, so that I could find the next location. Good brain work, and you learn to see the world differently!
When my son was younger we went through a phase of geocaching, and I recall one particularly frustrating search while visiting my parents. We wandered around a small park looking everywhere and never did find it. I imaged the people in nearby businesses laughing at us. Our interest in geocaching petered out fairly quickly, but I think of it now and then as something I'd like to do again. I've just started riding my bike around town, and I like your idea of experiencing the adventure whether I find anything or not. Cheers!
I met my future stepsons on a geocache hunt, then 3 1/2 and 6, now 11 and 14. I hadn’t heard of it then, but it holds a solid place in my heart now. We’ve since introduced it to the son my husband and I baked up together.
That first hunt with those two strange and wonderful mini humans was weirdly wonderful. Geocaching as a thing people do was both very cool and foreign to me, and to watch a toddler walking train tracks with a gps tracker the size of his forearm was a trip.
We found one and missed one, and my heart nearly burst when both boys in turn asked me for help.
It’s certainly less about the thing found and more about the search and discovery. We don’t often get the chance to engage our hunter/gatherer brains these days, and it feels real good to do so.
Our boys continue to enjoy, as we two parents do, the thrill of the hunt… fossils, metal detecting, hikes, scavenging… geocaching was and is a riff on the classic tune.
Thanks so much for sharing my project Rob! If and when I make a book, I'm sending you copy.
I was thinking this whole geocache thing sounded an awful lot like the Pokemon go craze of a few years ago minus the kids blindly walking into traffic and then I saw your note. Your Medium piece is so good! It makes me think that there is some real potential for an augmented reality approach to exploring a city that doesn't involve incense and gyms. I'm sure there something like that in the works if it doesn't exist already.
Anyway, thanks again!
PS: umbrellaquette?
I don't have any interest at all in the subject of geocaching but I just really really enjoyed your article and had a laugh - sorry at your expense, then my own cause I'm a dork too and that is just a word that doesn't get enough air time these days. I'm still giggling!!
When it first started way back in the early 2000s, I only did ones that I could bike or walk to. No driving. They were much simpler than today. I drifted away after a few months. I reconnected a year ago when I found that an old friend was into it in a big way with thousands of finds. I found most of the ones locally here on the north OR coast (still by bike or walk) and ended up adopting one that the originator couldn't support. There are many that I DNF (Did Not Find) on the first try so I'll go take another swing at them every once in a while. I usually get them. I tend to shy away from the puzzles. When traveling, I may remember to take a look at the map and go find one or two if they are bikeable/walkable or accessible via transit. I like ones that take me where I wouldn't normally travel.
While hiking in Lovel canyon outside Vegas we discovered a pile of odd things. I was confused until I realized it was a geocache, we had stumbled upon without trying. After that we geocached everywhere, the desert, neighborhoods, and carried small objects to plant as well. (Big expos with advertising gadgets make great drops) When we became homeless in 2010 we traveled a lot and always checked for them. Once near the area where James Dean crashed, we found a small desolate park with a chain link fence surrounding an electrical service. Instructions told us to climb over the fence and gave a combination to the lock on the panel box. We tried, and it opened with the cache inside!! Finally, when we were leaving California I stashed our remaining tchotchkes in a hollow tree at Jack London park, thinking we could register the site later. But the rules prohibit unmonitored cache's, so that treasure is still out there! (not on the geocache website)
We found a bunch of geocaches with the kids, it was a great way to get them outdoors and the caches out in the desert (we live in southern NM) are usually bigger boxes where people leave little toys, key rings, figurines etc. Geocaching truly got us to places we would have never visited otherwise, so yes, getting out of our comfort zone. We loved it. I also placed two caches near our home and checking on them periodically was a thrill too. Being the FTF (first to find) is a big thing apparently.
My kids and I geocached during Covid and some are super hard to find they look exactly like things that belong in the location like a fake rock, loose bolts, sliding panels on light posts. I think the key is to touch and try to move all the pieces that might move in the general area. And yes you look like a big dork more than once people stopped to ask us if we needed assistance or lost something valuable.
Fruitless dork time! My life in a nutshell 🤣
I've geocached off & on for a few years. What you said about "letting it send me on a mini-adventure" is the best part. By their nature, caches are generally placed in quirky or interesting areas - monuments or parks or hidden stairways that I would never have discovered on my own. I've found some lovely views and secret gardens because of geocaching. Once you've done a few you'll get a feel for finding treasure. My favorites are the ones that are hidden in plain sight.
Geocaching used to be a bit larger containers. When you found one, you signed the register, left a little gift (sticker, tiny model, painted rock, costume jewelry, etc), and took a little giftie from the cache home with you. Eventually the overwhelming majority of caches became micro-caches like the one you found. FAR less fun, so we just go enjoy monuments, parks and landmarks without all the sleuthing for “nothing.”
I learned about geocaching when I discovered a cache under a bridge while on a photo walk. The cache, as best I can recall, was a small box with a piece of paper with notations from cachers (sp?) and some trinkets. I Googled geocaching and put the box back in place. It did not grab me as an activity. I’m located in LA County.
Have you heard of letterboxing?
I wish I had a word idea for the umbrella dance- one thing I did notice in Japan though was a lot of people using clear and smaller umbrellas - which afforded the user to keep the umbrella like a mini bubble close to their head and down - avoiding the dance after all. Ever since...I long for one :)