Intro to Geocaching for the GPS Nomad

You've heard of GPS devices in cars and boats and even for hiking. But did you know hand-held GPS (GPSr) devices can be used to play a game? Enter geocaching.

A good un-official definition of geocaching comes from Wikipedia:

• "Geocaching is an outdoor treasure-hunting game in which the participants use a Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver or other navigational techniques to hide and seek containers (called "geocaches" or "caches") anywhere in the world. A typical cache is a small waterproof container containing a logbook and "treasure," usually toys or trinkets of little value. Today, well over 440,000 geocaches are registered on various websites devoted to the sport. Geocaches are currently placed in 222 countries around the world and on all seven continents, including Antarctica." (Source: Wikipedia, geo caching)

Geocaching.com, the popular geocache website, points out that the traditional cache is a "tupperware container, ammo box, or bucket filled with goodies, or smaller container ("micro cache") too small to contain items except for a log book." But there are other types of caches too. Instead of the traditional cache, there's a multi-cache variation. Multi-caching involves multiple caches with a GPS. Sometimes the first cache contains a clue that give hints (not coordinates) to the location of the second. It's like a real world Da Vinci Code quest, but for fun.

The GPS device only gets you close the geo cache. That's what makes it fun. You make it all the way to the coordinates, but you still have to find the cache. You'll likely be within 10 or 20 feet of the cache, but the GPS cache will be hidden. Geo cachers have to look around for it, like Scooby Doo looking for a clue to solve a mystery.

This video shows little bit about what geo caching is like.