Geocaching

About a year or so ago I heard about the hobby/sport called geocaching. I work a lot with map data from our GIS and found this hobby use of precision digital mapping tied to hiking to be quite fascinating.

The short of it is this: Someone hides a prize and a log book in a weather-proof container (surplus ammo boxes are a favorite because they are already camouflaged) in a location off the beaten path (or near it). Then then records the precise latitude, longitude, and elevation of this cache of items. The location, a difficulty rating, and some optional clues are posted on the geocaching website, http://www.geocaching.com.

As searchers find the cache, they may take the prize and replace it with another, or just add their name to the log book. They usually also record the find on www.geocaching.com with notes about their search or what they left behind in the cache box.

I routinely check www.geocaching.com for caches in areas where I am traveling and to see if there are any new caches near work or home. You can look them up by zip code or city/state.

For you readers in Mendham, you may be surprised by the large number of hidden caches near you. One cacher has created a set of 23 caches dedicated to airplanes from WWII. The Grumman G-21 Goose sea plane cache is located along the Patriots Path.

According to the Spring Mendham Township newsletter, there is an Intro to Geocaching class at Schiff Reservation. Any takers?

The closest cache to me is located in our neighborhood park, less than a half mile away. Someone logged a successful find of the cache just a few hours ago!

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I continue to add to my Flickr page - it now has all of our photos from June 2007. That's over 500! Please stop by, take a look, and leave a comment or 3.