The Maritime Geocaching Association

output3-women, originally uploaded by RobDurdle.com.

For the Ladies out there, heres style #2!

Remember, Membership has its privileges lol

output1, originally uploaded by RobDurdle.com.

Style #1, on black!

We’re doing a tshirt! You may have seen a few of the sample images floating around, this is close to the finished design, it’ll only change at this point as we get more members.

If you’d be interested in one and arent a member of the forums yet, JOIN UP!

Just in case you didn’t notice, I created a Google calendar a couple months back and have all the upcoming events in there. If you have a gmail or Google account you can add your own events! You can also follow the calendar and get email / text message notifications if an event is added or about to happen!

The link to the page where you can view them on this site is -> Events Calendar (you’ll also notice it on the sidebar of the homepage). The Google Calendar page is -> Google MGA Events Calendar

card, originally uploaded by RobDurdle.com.

Pretty Spiffy new cards, check em out!

Despite the growing breadth of maps designed specifically for outdoor handhelds, sometimes the best map for a specific activity is only available in printed form or as a PDF or JPG file.  Running the latest software releases for Garmin Colorado, Oregon, and Dakota devices, using paper maps with Garmin outdoor handhelds is easier than ever with Garmin Custom Maps.  This unique feature allows users to combine Garmin map drawing technology with georeferenced map images, effectively putting a paper map inside your Garmin GPS.  Creating a Garmin Custom Map for your Colorado, Oregon, or Dakota device is easy with the following steps. However, please be responsible and only create a Garmin Custom Map from a map that is in the public domain, you holdthe copyright in, or you have permission to use from the copyright holder.

Step 1: Save the map in JPG format
Begin with the map you wish to use on your Garmin device.  If in printed form, scan the image at an appropriate resolution (Oregon & Colorado have a native solution of 155 dpi).  Garmin Custom Maps require the map be saved in JPG format. Since many maps are available in PDF, they may require conversion using GIMP or other suitable program.

Step 2: Create an Image Overlay
Using Google Earth to georeference your map, begin by locating the approximate area on Earth where your Garmin Custom Map will be located.  The closer the viewing window is to the location and coverage area of your JPG, the easier it will be to georeference. Once the location is set in Google Earth, use the menu to select “Add”, then select “Image Overlay”.

Step 3: Link the JPG
In the dialog box that follows, three important fields should be completed:
• Provide a meaningful Name.
• Set the Link field to the path of the source JPG to georeference.
• On the Location tab, Draw Order can be adjusted if desired.  Draw order values less than 50 places the Garmin Custom Map below roads & trails, values 50 and greater places the Garmin Custom Map above most map features except points of interest & waypoints.

Step 4: Adjust the Boundaries
Before closing the New Image Overlay dialog box, you need to georeference the JPG.  The most common way to do this is adjust the green marks to adjust the corners (a), edges (b), center (c), or rotation (d) of the JPG so it matches the satellite imagery beneath.  It may be necessary to adjust the transparency (in the New Image Overlay dialog) to a level that allows adequate viewing of the JPG and imagery beneath.  Once you are satisfied with the alignment of the source material, select “OK” on the New Image Overlay dialog box.

Step 5: Send to Garmin
To send the newly created Garmin Custom Map to your Colorado, Oregon, or Dakota it should be saved to the device.  To do this, right click on your Garmin Custom Map in the “Places” section on the left-hand side.  From the popup menu, select “Save Place As”.  Use the following dialog box to save your Garmin Custom Map to your Garmin handheld device, placing the file in the /Garmin/CustomMaps/ directory.  Be sure to save the file in the KMZ format.  If preferred, the file can be saved to a microSD card, in a /Garmin/CustomMaps/ directory for use with Garmin handhelds.

Once saved to the device, the Garmin Custom Map will appear as part of the map.  By default, Garmin Custom Maps are enabled on the device, but can be disabled under the Map Setup menu (select Map Information).

There’s been a lot of attention focused on the recent Anaheim bomb scare. As well, the geocaching world has been abuzz with speculation about Paul Repak, the accused cache thief in New York’s Adirondack region. Here are some more positive stories about (or relevant to) geocaching.

1. One environmentally-conscious geocacher has come up with a neat idea – using geocaches to trade and distribute tree seeds. Visit www.instructables.com for instructions on creating Geocache-A-Forest DIY Kit.

2. Lockheed Martin has announced that it is on schedule with much-needed upgrades to the GPS satellite system. The overhaul is projected to be launched in 2014. Despite what some recent sensational media reports have been saying, the sky isn’t falling, and neither are the GPS satellites.

3. This one’s gotten quite a bit of coverage lately: the Boy Scouts are incorporating geocaching into their 100th anniversary festivities with a new geocaching merit badge. You can also read about it at Scouting Magazine.

4. The second issue of FTF Geocacher is hitting mailboxes this week. I got mine yesterday. So far I’ve only had time for a quick look, but so far I’m impressed, and pleased to see an improvement over the first issue. What I like most about the magazine is that it shows geocaching in a positive light. With all the bomb scares and weird geocaching haters around lately, it’s nice to have some good publicity.

via /

http://www.earthday.ca

Some ideas for EarthDay Activities!

Scavenger hunting and GPS technology combine to create Geocaching. This film explores a new hobby through the eyes of three avid geocachers.

Some of us have an offline copy of the images that make up the following maps, but if you’d like to take a look at the online versions of them check out this link!

GeoNB Map Viewer.

Via SNB’s map section.

Geocaching for kids is an exceptional way to get your kids outside for a fun activity that surreptitiously provides educational opportunities and teaches them valuable skills. If you’re not convinced; here is the beginning of a long list of reasons to get kids into treasure hunting with a GPS.

A Game of Hide and Seek with a GPS Teaches Compassion

Geocaching for kids involves teaching kids to integrate and utilize modern technology with the age old pursuit of treasure hunting. It’s basically like a game of hide-and-seek only you’re looking for tangible objects, usually some form of a container filled with little prizes or trinkets, which other participants have previously left behind hidden in some public and sometimes private place. Once the kids find a geocache, they can determine the type of prize that they want to leave for the next search party on that particular site.

Of course right there; they’re learning the value of being considerate to others which some folks, unfortunately, quickly forget soon after becoming adults. The kids can use their imagination in what they want to leave as the prize for the next geocacher but usually coins and trinkets of some kind are the standard. Where to Find Trackable Geocoins is an article about where you can buy coins to use as your hidden treasures. This is a novel and important concept of geocaching; that it’s a shared experience that you want to make pleasant for folks that aren’t there when you’re doing it and you’ll probably never see. It’s all about passing it on. I think there is an important spiritual principle wrapped up in there, but I’m getting a little ahead of myself.

Many Steps to Follow to Achieve the Goals

First, the kids can learn through your tutelage how to access the details of a particular geocache in an area near you by logging on to eTrex Legend® HCxthe internet and searching the websites dedicated to keeping track of geocaches. Those websites are Geocaching.com, Navicache.com, Terracaching.com, and Earthcache.com. Once at one of these sights the maps and enticing but sometimes cryptic directional guidance will get them interested in hunting the prize down.

Depending upon the type of portable handheld GPS device you own, you can either download the specifics of a cache near you right onto your device using a cable or you can print out what you need to help you find the hidden stash. If you’re looking to buy a GPS or are in the market for an upgrade, read Best GPS Units for Geocaching to learn about all of the functions and features that make for the best GPS device. In that series you’ll also find concise reviews of the actual models by the big name manufacturers that match that set of criteria. You will find the cheapest models right on up to the top of the line models with all the maps, bells, and whistles money can buy.

So you and the kids have decided on the geocaches you want to find from the internet and they have played around with your GPS device enough to learn how it works for the most part. Once out in the “field” they’ll get a lot more comfortable. By now the kids are two steps into the process using their logical and technical faculties prior to hitting the trail. If you’ve got a GPS without maps, you’re still going to enjoy this activity but remember that long before outer space satellites put digital mapping capabilities in your hand, old-fashioned maps were just as fascinating and alluring to most kids and adults alike. The next article provides the gusto for getting out there and physically locating the geocache sites you found online.

The Best Learning Doesn’t Seem Like Learning to Geocaching Kids

Geocacaching is a modern day scavenger hunt combining the knowledge and skills required to carefully plan an expedition starting from home navigating the internet and then using a GPS device to find a hidden treasure in the outdoors. This series shows why it’s a great idea for kids on many levels.

Muggles & Geocaching

Geocachingis an act of playing hide and seek with many different containers and making use of the Global Positioning System and the other related technologies to find them. Commonly known as “game of high-tech hide and seek”, geocaching can naively be referred to as a high tech treasure hunting game.

Just as Harry Potter and J K Rowling refer to the common people who are less exposed to the magical wands as muggles, the geocache term muggles refers to a person who is not directly related to or aware of geocaching. If a person has tampered with a geocache, such an act is usually referred to as muggling, or being muggled.

Beware of Geocache Muggles

Many a times, to increase the fun involved, geocaches are placed where there are high volumes of people or muggles.

Though this is found to add the thrill and fun involved in locating a cache, there is every possibility that it gets destroyed unintentionally.

Hence, it is very important that the geocachers take utmost care to see that the cache is not getting muggled. Now, let us move to to see the precautions that can be taken to prevent a geocache from being muggled.

Preventing a Geocache from Being Muggled

A geocacher can take many different precautions to minimize the risk of the geocache being muggled. One simple yet effective way is to ensure that the cache is hidden in a proper place.

Any muggle can run into a cache, by simply stumbling upon it if it has not been properly hidden. The next most reasonable step is to ensure that when accessing the cache, the geocacher doesn’t raise a suspicion to the people around them. So, before making the ‘final move’, it is always advisable to ensure that no muggles are nearby and watching.

Dealing with Geocache Muggles

There are also ways in which a cache that has been found by a muggle is not muggled up. The best way to do this would be to enclose a log or a sheet of paper in a proper way along with the cache explaining what geocaching is and the intentions of the sport.

In such cases, even the muggles may make an entry in the log and place it back in the same place, without affecting the spice of the geocaching.

On the other hand, your geocache may go for a toss, if it is discovered by an irate muggle.

In a Nutshell

Having discovered a lot about geocache muggles, muggling, and how not to be muggled, you must have grasped what a muggle is in terms of geocaching.

So, make geocache puzzles and enjoy geocaching, as it can be a great learning experience for your kids too; just don’t let your geocaches get muggled!

Geocaching has been described as a worldwide phenomenon, an online scavenger hunt and the perfect family activity. Now it’s being called the key to a recent rescue in a search for stranded climbers on Mount Hood in Oregon. The hikers, equipped with a cell phone, were able to make contact with authorities after spending a night in a snow cave, according to news reports. But the two men were disoriented and had no way of describing their location. Until they stumbled across a geocache. Because the location of the cache was known, searchers were able to zero in on the climbers’ location and guide them to rescue just 13 hours after they first learned the men were missing.

The climbers are now officially “trackable items”.

The Confluence Project aims to “visit each of the latitude and longitude integer degree intersections in the world, and to take pictures at each location.” Includes stories from each documented point.

Waymarking.com provides tools for you to catalog, mark­ and visit interesting and useful locations around the world. It’s a fun site, packed with photographs, information and maps; a useful resource and tool for GeoCaching and other interests. Among the various categories included is Oddball Museums: The Glore Psychiatric Museum, Musee Mechanique, The National Plastics Museum with lots of great pics and links to other sites, The Leavenworth Nutcracker Museum, Orange Show, wbur Museums of Dirt, Plumbing, Antiquated Technology, Lizzie Borden and more oddities.

Earlier today, Garmin introduced a new GPS watch in their fitness series, the Garmin Forerunner 110. As the product number indicates, this fitness watch with GPS is targeting the entry level portion of the fitness market and is designed to be super easy to use.

Garmin will be showing off the watch at the Paris, Boston, and London marathons and then it will become available for sale to the public. Described as “affordable”, pricing is expected to be about $250 for the base model. While style is subjective, they look pretty ugly to me– but that doesn’t mean I might not want one.

Under the hood a SiRFstarIVTM GPS chip is used, and the battery should last up to 8 hours in GPS mode.

“Forerunner 110 fills the needs of runners of all levels by focusing on simplicity without sacrificing accuracy,” said Dan Bartel, Garmin’s vice president of worldwide sales. “Within seconds of stepping outside, you simply press start and instantly know your distance, pace and time – all without any complicated setup or excessive accessories.”

There are options available to add a heart rate monitor and some will be bundled with the monitor. Calorie consumption can be computed from the heart rate monitor. Current pace can be displayed either averaged over the current lap/mile or over the entire run.

Hands on with the Magellan eXplorist GC

The Magellan eXplorist GC is a new introduction designed to do one thing well – geocache! It has a 2.2” color (non-touch) screen, 18 hour (rated) battery life and a highly detailed  worldwide basemap. And while it isn’t designed for backcountry navigation, it can accommodate 500 waypoints and a 5,000 point tracklog. Really though, the eXplorist GC is a one-trick pony aimed at geocachers, with a low and sure to be discounted MSRP of $199.99.

UPDATES

I’ve got several updates to add:

• “Send to (Magellan) GPS” functionality is live.
• As noted in the comments, it’s a lot easier to get to geocache descriptions, hints, etc., than I said
• I’ve also been told that Magellan is working on a lighter colored background that should improve legibility in bright sunlight

Paperless geocaching

The eXplorist GC is set up for paperless caching, allowing you to have all the relevant information (difficulty, terrain, description, hint, recent logs, etc.) in your hand without needing to print out reams of information from geocaching.com. That’s a common feature in the Garmin Colorado, Dakota and Oregon series, but this unit goes even further. The eXplorist GC lets you filter caches, similar to the way the Lowrance Endura series does, as shown below:

Perhaps the best way to show the extensive geocaching features of this unit is with screenshots, so I’m including quite a few. A filtered list of caches is shown at left. Below, you’ll see the detail screen for an individual cache.

Loading caches

A 30 day premium geocaching.com membership is offered with purchase of the eXplorist GC. It appears that geocaching.com will soon have a Magellan option for sending individual caches directly to the GC, though that is not currently available. I was able to drag pocket queries to the eXplorist GC using Windows Explorer without any problem.

Pre-loaded caches

Promotional literature says that the eXplorist GC is “pre-loaded with the most popular geocaches in the world.” The unit I tested had 1,000 worldwide caches on it. And they really do seem to be the most popular — there were no caches for the 500,000 population metro area I currently work out of, but there were several caches for a theme park 70 miles away! The pre-loaded caches here are a minor attraction. This is not a Geomate.jr type unit.

Navigating with the eXplorist GC

The map can be viewed with or without a compass superimposed on it. The former is shown at right. To access this feature go to Map > Menu. The third choice toggles between Map and Map + Compass.

The compass can be set for smart or standard mode (Tools > Settings > Map Options > Current Location Icon > Smart Arrow). In Smart mode, the compass arrow will change colors – green means on course, yellow means off course and red means that you are moving away from the destination.

One downside here is the use of a standard rather than electronic compass, meaning that you need to start walking before the compass can accurately register the direction to the waypoint.

Accuracy was comparable to other high-sensitivity units. I tested the eXplorist GC side-by-side several times with the Garmin Oregon 450. Generally, at the cache, the units reported within one foot of each other.

Other navigation capabilities

The Magellan eXplorist GC supports waypoints and navigation to them. A record of your track can be displayed and downloaded. There is no provision for routes (multi-destination routing) or track navigation. Waypoint projection is supported (manual bearing entry required; no sight n’ go). I’ll also note that when I dropped a GPX file into the waypoints folder, the waypoints showed up on the GC but their names did not!

I asked Magellan about other capabilities and was told that the GC “does not support topo maps or turn-by-turn at this time.” It wouldn’t surprise me for those capabilities to be added in the future, to the GC or perhaps a forthcoming eXplorist model. There is no slot in the GC for an expansion card, although according to the specs, approximately 500 MB of onboard memory is available for user data (the unit I tested showed 720 MB).

Magellan eXplorist GC interface

The interface seems relatively intuitive and shouldn’t take too long to get used to. The face of the unit has a click stick surrounded by four buttons – menu, back, zoom in and zoom out. There are five icons on the start screen – geocaches, map, tools, dashboard (shown at right) and waypoints. The number of data fields and their content can be modified for the map and dashboard screens. Input response time was fast in most cases. I noticed a delay occasionally, but not that often.

In some of the geocaching screenshots above and below, you’ll notice icons in the lower left and lower right corners of the screen. The one on the left displays the map, showing your current location, the selected geocache, and a route line connecting them. The one to the right begins navigation.

Magellan eXplorist GC basemap

While there are no topo maps on the eXplorist GC, it appears to have an incredibly detailed basemap. A spot check of locations around the globe indicates that it probably has the entire NAVTEQ road network pre-loaded. Very nice!

Magellan eXplorist GC hardware and build quality

The unit is nice and compact, weighing in at 5.2 ounces with batteries. It’s rated IPX-7 in terms of waterproofness. The battery compartment and USB port seem well sealed. It uses a standard (non-proprietary) mini-USB cable. There is no memory card slot. The eXplorist GC feels solid and is easy to operate with one hand; the buttons all seem quite responsive. Perhaps the biggest surprise on the hardware front is the inclusion of the time-tested SiRFstar III chipset, which manufacturers have recently been avoiding like the plague, due to patent issues.

The image below compares the size of the Garmin Oregon 450, Garmin GPSMAP 60CSx and the eXplorist GC. It is not intended to compare brightness, which is very hard to do on film. A discussion of that subject follows.

Magellan eXplorist GC display

I was expecting a very bright display since this isn’t a touchscreen model. But touchscreen units like the Garmin Oregon series suffer more due to their high-resolution display than from the touch screen layer.

The GC’s specs state that it has a 240 x 320 pixel resolution display. They don’t give screen dimensions other than diagonal, but my measurements (34 mm x 45 mm) gave me a count of 50 pixels/square millimeter. I checked this because the more I used it, the more questions I had about the display. This is quite high BTW; the Garmin Oregon comes in at 40 pixels/sq. mm.

While brightness isn’t the only issue at play in legibility, I will say that it is comparable to my Garmin Oregon 400t and 60CSx in the shade. The GC is at its weakest in full sun, likely due to the high-resolution screen resulting in less reflected light. Like the Oregon, it’s fine if you get it at the proper angle, which shouldn’t be too hard for geocachers since they hold it in hand. Users will soon find that they intuitively tilt the unit for optimum display.

What’s worse is legibility. Magellan has simply used too small of a font (to compensate for the small screen size) for my aging eyes. While the display is fine in shade or indoors, text is too difficult to read in bright sun. To give you some idea of this, the image below shows a cache description from the eXplorist GC on the left and Garmin Oregon 450 on the right.

Pricing and availability

The Magellan eXplorist GC carries an MRSP of $199.99 and is expected to be available in April 2010.

Magellan eXplorist GC pros

• Paperless geocaching
• Geocache filters
• Intuitive interface
• Focuses on doing one thing (geocaching) well
• Awesome preloaded worldwide basemap (roads)
• USB (non-proprietary) interface
• Innovative compass features

Magellan eXplorist GC cons

• Difficult to read in bright sun, especially so for text
• Occasional lags in menu response
• Not very suitable for backcountry, non-geocaching use
• Lacks advanced features (electronic compass, Wherigo, touchscreen, topo maps, ability to load aerial imagery)

Recommendation and conclusion

At $199.99 MSRP, the Magellan eXplorist is the lowest cost paperless geocaching GPS receiver on the market. I have no problem recommending it as an entry level unit in that arena, though folks over 40 may want to think twice and check it out under bright sun before taking the plunge. This is the best handheld introduction Magellan has offered in years. My biggest issues with this device, font size and work flow, can both be fixed with firmware updates and I’m hoping Magellan will do so. They could have a real winner on their hands if they do. And if my suspicions are correct, we may soon see new eXplorist models with expandable memory, topo maps and turn-by-turn routing.

More Magellan eXplorist GC reviews

• This Magellan eXplorist GC review shows more screen shots and has a section on file structure
• Geocaching Podcast has posted a “first looks” Magellan eXplorist GC review
• A “first impressions” review of the eXplorist GC has been posted at Groundspeak, the geocaching.com forum

Other Magellan eXplorist GC resources

• A new Magellan eXplorist message forum has already been set up for the GC
• The official Magellan eXplorist GC web page
• A Magellan eXplorist GC “buzz” page
• A Magellan eXplorist GC FAQ

Compare prices on the Magellan eXplorist GC at these merchants:

• Check the current Magellan eXplorist GC price at Amazon
• This is a new product, but I’ll add more links as it becomes available

This example of geolocational fail is from an iPhone app called Sex Offender Search, which, thanks to Megan’s Law, allows you (quasi-legal) mobile access to a database of sex offenders.

Due to the unintentional hilarity of the GPS notification above, the makers of the app, LogSat Software, might want to consider hiring a copywriter. Or perhaps a lawyer.

dally and I headed over to Prince Edward Island today to give a talk to the PEI scouting groups, had an amazing time, and gave away some pretty keen prizes to the kids. They looked to have a blast! We deployed a secret cache design that until that moment only dally and I had knowledge of.

We started the day at GC25AKA with breakfast and caching talk. Got to meet El_Nimrod and some of the other PEI Cachers. (Great event El_Nimrod! Very nice meeting you all).

Once the event was over, we headed to the real reason we came over, Giving a talk about Geocaching/The MGA to the PEI scouting groups at Camp Riverdale. They loved it!  Just like any good scout/cub would

Gave the talk, showed off some UK scouting coins, and a Jeep TravelBug I had picked up at the event. Got the kids hyped for the ‘prize’ for finding the 2nd cache. A nice shiny unactivated PEI GeoCoin. The Prize for the 1st cache? To be able to keep the cache and hide it as an official geocache!

The first cache was a standard Ammo can + traders, and the second one was a very very top secret cache that can only be described as ‘evil’. The scouts nabbed the 1st cache pretty quickly, and then moved onto the “Evil” one. After 20 minutes of searching, we felt bad and started giving hints in the form of ‘i’m 3 feet away from it’, and asking them nature related questions so they could figure it out

2 scouts found it after a methodical grid search with their hands over the 3 feet surrounding where dally was standing, very very thorough!

I’d like to thank the scouts for having us down and I hope they had as great a time as we did. We hope to see some of them at GC256HE, the Red Dirt Dash in June!

One would think that someone smart enough to use a computer, the internet and a GPS to searched for geocaches, would also be smart enough to avoid causing a bomb scare.

The recent rash of bomb scares that turned out to be geocache containers, is a serious blow to the geocaching hobby. These reports not only give the wrong impression about geocaching, but could lead to a ban on geocaching. Some cities are considering laws and ordinances that limit, and in some cases ban geocaching because of the repeated bomb scares.

Recent headlines:

* Geocache Causes Bomb Scare In New Zealand
* Charges not likely after geocaching bomb scare
* “Geocaching” Web Game Leads To Bomb Scare
* A suspicious package attached to a pole forced the closure of Riverside Drive and a section of Ottawa’s bus Transitway for several hours yesterday.
* An Internet treasure-hunting game sparked county-wide panic Friday night and resulted in a bomb squad from Harrisburg being called to Waynesboro to detonate a suspicious device.
* GeoCache Game Creates Bomb Scare at Dog Beach – San Diego
* BOISE — Tuesday’s closure of Highway 55 has brought a lot of attention to something called geocaching.

Are laws limiting or prohibiting geocaching an over-reaction to a simple issue, or a reaction to the alarming increase in the lack of good judgment shown by a small percentage of Geocachers?

Why are geocaching container bomb scares a problem? Not only does an emergency evacuation cause massive disruption, but can cause thousands of dollars to be spent by responding emergency personnel. If a bomb squad is deployed for a suspicious package, the cost of the emergency responders can top $10,000 for only a few hours. Many cites are considering charging Geocachers for these unnecessary expenses.

As a group that enjoys geocaching, we must collectively police ourselves and discourage others from using geocache containers that may appear to be a bomb or suspicious package. If you find a cache that could be mistaken for a bomb, report the cache to the owner and to the site that listed the cache (such as Geocaching.com)

Here are some tips to avoid any potential problems:

1. Do not hide a cache in an area that can cause immediate suspicion: avoid under bleachers, near intersections, under bridges, near schools or public gathering spaces.

2. Always use an external waterproof sticker on the cache that identifies it as a geocache container.

3. Use a clear container so the contents can be clearly visible to emergency responders that may be called.

4. Don’t use a container that looks like a bomb. Incredibly, some Geocachers use bad judgment and make containers that look identical to a bucket bomb or pipe bomb. What were they thinking?

The below geocaching containers were mistaken for bombs: