Geocaching Informational Podcast

Good day, this is William Byrd and my podcast is on Geocaching. Geocaching as some know is a very broad game that has a lot of intricate parts that any person with a little tech savvy can do. The first thing that we will talk about is the basis of Geocaching. Geocaching is basically finding a “cache” using a GPS unit and logging a find. There is a lot more that goes into it and that is what we go into today. The first thing that a beginning geocacher would like to do is become familiar with the sport. The sport is basically free besides purchasing a GPS unit. Besides the purchasing of a GPS unit all of this can be done at www.geocaching.com. Once the person is signed in, they can go straight to hunting down the cache types, sizes and terrain difficulties of their choosing. There are caches that consist of a virtual, traditional and Earth. Virtual is mainly a landmark or interesting place. Traditional caches are a container with a log. Earth Caches are caches based on a geologic area. With an Earth Cache, the geocacher will be asked specific questions about the area to ensure that the cacher has been there and that the cacher had taken away some information from the area as intended. One of the motto’s of the geocacher is cache in and trash out, which we practice every time that we go on a hunt. We do this to make sure that we stay ecologically friendly and grab at least a piece of trash to do our part for the land. It also helps the areas that we go to and helps to propel the sport further into the future for children and adults alike.

What's in your Geocaching Bag?

All, just a quick note to bring up a very important part of Geocaching. Your travel bag/kit. This kit should contain, but is not limited to: First Aid Kit, sunscreen, spare batteries, and spare log parts, plenty of writing devices, and swag. Geocache swag consists of geocoins, small kids toys, etc. Remember for caching it is trade equal or trade up! Have a great caching week!

Hunting Season Safety Message

Greetings everyone. I wanted to make everyone aware that across the United States deer season along with other big game seasons is occurring. Make sure that if you are caching in an area that it is not an active hunting site. Even when I am out and about on public lands I like to wear an orange vest just to make sure that I am visible to others. Try not to wear tan or any other color of indigenous animals. Thank you for your attention and Cache On!

Track the trackables...

Hello everyone. I would like to talk today about trackables. These are items that go from cache to cache and have tracking numbers on them. I currently have one in circulation and one I carry around with me to visit caches. The URL to the one that is circulation is http://www.geocaching.com/track/details.aspx?id=2488563. The one that I have with me is http://www.geocaching.com/track/details.aspx?id=3013908. This one I got when I went to an event in Las Vegas. There were only so many of them made. I actually did a couple of the associated group of caches before they were mowed over by Nevada DOT. There are also path tags. These are player specific and people get them made based on their interests or their caching name. I have a quite a few. So, with that being said. When you are out there on the hunt you can look for trackables and help them go on to serve their purpose within the geocaching world. Remember, there are many typoes of trackables out there and you can always create your own. Happy Hunting!

Geocaching; what it is, how you do it, and my current adventure.

Geocaching is an outdoor activity that you can do for little cost. In the Geocaching community we like to say that we go out into the woods and find Tupperware using a billion dollar government satellite system. Getting out there and finding caches can be challenging at first, but after you get your "Geo Senses" dialed in, you will have no problem. You can ask my wife about when I first started. There was a lot of frustration until I got the hang of it. If anyone is interested in geocaching go to geocaching.com and they have all sorts of information to help you get started. The signup for the basic member is free and the amount of caches that they have is not that much different than that of the premium member. Next you will want a GPS Receiver. I started out with a generic Garmin Etrex for 80 dollars. In fact I had to use it today on my caching trip. I like my Delorme PN-40 a lot better, but it is out of commission. Once you have the GPS Receiver dial in the coordinates on the caching page, find the cache, sign log, put back, and then log it in on the website. Mission accomplished. On another blog I will go over the different cache types/sizes that you will run into on your travels. Today, we went on a small nature hike that ended up with a nice small find. With this one, I went through all the pre-hike foot work to include Geo pup, water, first aid kit, my Geo Coin, and a little bit of swag in case we ran across a decent sized container. Once we made it around the loop, the cache was fairly easy to find. We had originally planned a cache spree at Boettler Park in Green, but it did not allow dogs so we drove around until we found this gem. There are a few more left in this area, so we will definitely be back. (These images have spoilers) A spoiler is the revelation of a cache location.