The Maritime Geocaching Association

Gimmicky or not, its a neat idea.

The age old debate.  I think we could fairly place it into categories with sports, hobbies, or games.  There are quite a few more categories you could use to describe geocaching, but ultimately I thought those 3 were the most all encompassing.

Using the technology at hand, I jumped onto Wikipedia to see if I could gather some further information and perhaps fine tune the categories.  This is what I found:

Wikipedia defines “Sport” as: “activity that is governed by a set of rules or customs and often engaged in competitively.”   I’m not sure about your experiences with geocaching but I think that all of these certainly apply.   There is a set of guidelines we follow as it relates to cache’s.  A sort of etiquette if you will.   (sign the log, exchange swag, etc.)  You also have that somewhat competitive side related to how many caches you’ve logged, level of difficulty and the like.

While Wikipedia goes on to indicate that there is usually a physical element to sport it does indicate there are some sports where the level of physical activity is reduced and you are dealing with more of a mental challenge.   I would contend that in geocaching you can not only experience the physical but you will also need a high level of mental activity.

A hobby, again according to Wikipedia “is a spare-time recreational pursuit.”  I don’t know too many of us that participate in geocaching as a full time activity that we consider to be work.  Granted there are people who earn a living FROM geocaching, but the actual process of going out and finding a cache is probably a spare time recreational activity for virtually all of us.

Finally, we have the definition of a game.  This “is a structured activity, usually undertaken for enjoyment and sometimes also used as an educational tool. Games are distinct from work, which is usually carried out for remuneration, and from art, which is more concerned with the expression of ideas… Key components of games are goals, rules, challenge, and interactivity. Games generally involve mental or physical stimulation, and often both. Many games help develop practical skills, serve as a form of exercise, or otherwise perform an educational, simulational or psychological role.  Again this seems to define to a “T” what geocaching is all about.

The key thing to keep in mind is that there are rules, there is a physical component as well as a mental component and that it is often interactive and team related and can be very social and competitive.

I’d be interested in your thoughts… When you tell your friends about geocaching how do you refer to it?  Game, Sport or Hobby?

The Maritime Geocaching Association is looking for your help.  We would like to publish articles from those of you that are active in the sport of geocaching.

Surely I can write about my experiences and the caches that I visit and hide, and the geocoins and trackables that I have come across in my travels,  but in doing so you get a pretty narrow view that would in no way represent all that is happening in the sport/hobby/game of geocaching.

Articles can pertain to anything geocaching related.  If you are a software author and you would like to write about your geocaching software – perfect.  If you are a cacher and want to write about your favorite cache – perfect.  If you are a manufacturer of geocoins and you would like to describe the process to have personal geocoins created – perfect!  Maybe you’ve just hidden a new cache and want to talk about it – perfect!  The point here is that as long as the topic is related to something geocaching related we would love to have you write about it and submit it for posting on The Maritime Geocaching Association.

We will of course give you credit for your work and will allow links back to your own websites or other web locations (within reason).  We would like original works where you are the author and can give us permission to post them.  Please contact Dragoon for more details.

Thank you for your consideration… We look forward to hearing about your adventures in the world of Geocaching!!!!

To make absolutely sure that every geocache hunt is thoroughly fabulous and successful, your GPS must have the ability to do the following:

It must find it’s position quickly and easily. When you switch on, the gps looks around, finds four or more positioning satellites and works out how far away they are. Using this information, it works out its own location. That’s a lot to do. And some GPS do it faster and more reliably than others.

It must be able to accept the coordinates of the caches you are hunting for. So you know where to aim.

It must hold unto it’s satellite lock, tightly. It’s no good having your gps tell you it doesn’t know where you are, simply because you’ve walked under a tree, or a few clouds decide to make an appearance. You need to know that it will continue to guide you to the caches and back home.

It must give you information in a way that you find easy to understand. You can have your position displayed on maps of varying detail, or just as a longitude/ latitude number.

It must guide you in ways that you find easy to follow. Some gps just tell you the direction to take, others sketch a route, and others still can lay out your route in a 3-D, hello-holo-suite kind of way.

It must be accurate. Worst case, to get you within sight (10 – 15 feet) of the cache. Best case, to place you right on top of the cache.

It must be tough enough to survive knocks and falls. It will get banged about.

It must be waterproof. At some point it will get wet.

About the author: So where do you start looking? At www.squidoo.com/B estGeocachingGPS you’ll find excellent geocaching gps rated against a similar check-list to the one above. This will give you some top-performing GPS and an easy way to size up any other GPS. This will help you choose the best geocaching GPS for you.

We’ve posted a few reviews of the Android Geocaching, but I saw this one and thought it was well written, via Talk Android.

If you don’t know what geocaching is, let me break it down for you in simple terms:  High-tech treasure hunting with GPS devices.  Basically, somebody hides an item (called the cache), anywhere in the world, and then gives out the GPS location for the next adventuring treasure hunter who then leaves something for the next person to find (hopefully!).

Sound like fun?  Well then you can join this global game by grabbing the just released Geocaching.com app by Groundspeak Inc.  It’s a bit pricey at $9.99, but well worth the fun if you are into this sort of thing.  Here are a few of the app’s features:

• Search by current location, address or GC code
• Filter your finds from the Geocaching.com search results
• Access geocache details, including description, photo gallery, attributes, recent logs, hint and inventory
• Look up Trackable details, including item goals, while on the trail
• Save geocache listings, including maps and photos, for quick retrieval and offline use
• Log geocache finds and post notes in the field
• Download active pocket queries for use while outside of network coverage
• View geocache web pages on Geocaching.com without leaving the application using embedded web browser

Hit the jump for the QR and full press release.

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Techno Geeks – Bre Pettis and Joe Garland have posted a fun video/article on just how easy it is to build your own GPS using a few simple components.  Now I somehow think there was a bit more done than what we see in the brief video, but it is fun to watch and if you have the winter geocaching blues it might be a good project.  As they indicate schematics and code are available on the magazine website if you are so inclined.

The highlight of the video is of course the geocaching adventure that you take with them using the device.  First time not so much luck so they decode the clue and eventually find the magnetic key holder after some banter about Les Miseables.

Check it out at NirvanaSoftware’s blog.   The title is How To: LCD and GPS Localizer

Thanks for Cachemania for this tip!

I was talking to a geocaching friend the other day and he mentioned that he finds the new Garmin mounting system a bit frustrating.   He is used to the mounting system from the 60 series of GPSr.  He has a GPSMAP 62s now and has to deal with the carabiner clip as an attaching system.

His comment got me thinking.  I’ve been using the carabiner clip system since I got my Garmin Colorado last December.   What I do is clip the carabiner to a loop on the shoulder strap of my backpack.  In this way I’ve got the GPSr handy when I want to look at the screen.

The problem I had with the loop on the backpack is that it’s not aligned such that the GPSr rest flat on the shoulder strap.  Instead the GPSr is a little askew.  I’ve figured out two ways to correct this issue.  One is drastic the other is not.  Me being me I opted for the drastic route.  In fact it wasn’t until after I made the modification that I realized there is another way to achieve the same goal.

Backpack Loop Before Modification

Backpack Loop After Modification

What I did was use my hot air gun to heat the loop until it was pliable. I then inserted a metal rod and twisted the loop. The result is that the loop now runs somewhat perpendicular to the shoulder strap instead of parallel.   By changing the orientation of the loop the GPSr now rests more comfortably on the strap.

The second method you could employ is to use a split ring on the clip.  A split ring is the kind of ring you find on your key-chain.  The split allows you to wind it on to something or something on to it.   The split ring would then serve the purpose of changing the orientation of the loop.

This wasn’t a completely original idea. I have seen twisted loops on various backpacks. Garmin also makes a belt clip mount. I could also use one of those as I still have the belt clip from my 60Csx.

This post via /

Your backpack is your constant companion throughout your geocaching day and, in many cases, long after. What are the essentials in your bag that get you through the day?

If you’d like to share the contents of your backpack, post it all in the comments. Be sure to include a picture and detail why your items are portable essentials. (Try to fit it all in one picture; if you’ve got more than one image to share, reply to your first post.)

Here are a few samples of some bag’s.

We got engaged on a wonderfully sunny day in a park. We were walking our dogs along the trail when Peter said “I know there is a geocache here, let’s have a look.” We had geocached on our first date in the public gardens and around downtown Halifax so this seemed like just another adventure. For those of you who don’t know, geocaching (www.geocaching.com) is a treasure hunt where you find boxes or “caches” using your GPS. Peter introduced me to it and we’ve found dozens of caches together from coast to coast.

We ended up at the end of a local park near a beach. I was bending over looking in the exposed roots for an old ammo container or camouflaged ice cream bucket when I saw a little purple box under a nearby tree. I pointed past Peter to the box and said “what is that?!” He said “oh I don’t know”, grabbed the box and was down on one knee.

I of course said yes.

He had had the ring in his pocket all day and placed it in the roots of the tree while I wasn’t looking.

We are getting married in August at Hatfield Farms.

*As submitted by Amy Logan.

When it comes to packing for other people, I do a pretty good job: I remember socks, pj’s, all the really important stuff. However, when it comes to packing for myself, I seem to forget everything I’m going to need to get through a normal day. In fact, I usually end up making an emergency run to the nearest drugstore for stuff I’ve left at home.

That’s where the Universal Packing List comes in. This is a fantastic site that helps you customize your packing list to the nth degree: by weather, destination, trip dates, what you want to see, your luggage size, and more. If you’re a forgetful packer like me, this site is a lifesaver!

It works by having you fill out an online form with details about your trip, and some details about the kind of list you’re looking for. Then, based on your answers, it gives you a customized list of what to pack as well as some general advice and reminders. It’s very simple, yet very effective.

To be honest, The Universal Packing List isn’t complete or configurable enough to replace something like PackWhiz. But it has some clever touches, so I’ve added the site to my trip planning ritual.

Any seasoned camper will tell you there’s more to packing than just throwing all your stuff into a backpack and putting it on. It’s a science, based on weight distribution, order of need, and of course, not forgetting anything important.

Photo by Davidlohr Bueso.

Over at Wired’s How-To Wiki, they’ve put together a great guide for how to best fill your backpack and make sure your trip isn’t more difficult than it needs to be. The order of items is important (e.g., your sleeping bag goes in the bottom, because it’s the last thing you use), as is properly distributing the weight within the pack so you don’t hurt yourself. The wiki has it all laid out, including what to keep on your person and how to make sure you don’t run out of space or have your food eaten by bears). As Spring and Summer begin to roll in, it’s a good idea to brush up on your packing techniques, and make sure you have everything you need. Hit the link for the full how-to, and share your hiking and backpacking tips in the comments!

If you’re headed on a road/geocaching trip, it’s always wise to have a first-aid kit on you in case of emergency. The Gadling weblog covers what you’ll need to pack in your basic medical kit when you’re traveling, which includes all the necessities—home medications, band-aids for minor cuts and scrapes, latex gloves for protection, sunscreen, matches, hand sanitizer, and safety pins and bandannas for quick slings, in addition to other must-have items. All of their suggested items are small enough to be stored within a polycarbonate water bottle which won’t get crushed.

As Gadling states, your first aid kit should never be left behind as it is an insurance policy that you’ll hopefully never have to use. When you do, however, you’ll be thankful that you did.

The destruction from improvised explosive devices – or IEDs – in Iraq has been devastating. When they’re found, specially trained teams move in to defuse them.

One soldier – now based at Fort Lewis – told me the story of one such call after a patrol unit spotted wire – well-known for its use in making IEDs.

Sgt. Kent “Doc” Byrd, an Army explosive ordnance disposal expert, says, “We pulled on the wires and got nothing. We look for a while and don’t see anything with the robot.”

But Byrd, who spent a year in Iraq carefully analyzing and defusing explosive situations, tends to see things others don’t.

“And just as we’re moving the robot around on a pile of rocks, I noticed one rock in the camera screen that just didn’t look right to me.”

Byrd says he spotted the odd rock just as his team leader was about to declare the area safe.

“It didn’t look like it belonged, so I told him, ‘Hey man, before you get out of the truck, let me flip this rock over, see what I can find.’ And as we flipped it over, we could see a portion of a mortar.”

Byrd’s keen eye probably saved lives – he says the mortar was embedded in plaster made to look like a rock. It was actually part of an IED.

Sgt. Byrd says, “A lot of what keeps us safe is being able to see things before we get to them.”

Where did he develop this sharp eye? This intuition? A real knack for seeing what others don’t?

From a game – a treasure-hunting game called geocaching.

Byrd says, “It will show me a map, a base map.”

The idea is simple – you use GPS coordinates to direct you to a cache – something hidden for you to find. It could be out in the woods, on the top of a mountain, or down the street you drive every day.

“Seeing the things that are meant to be unseen,” he says. “Geocaching – that’s pretty much what the game is based on – is finding stuff, finding stuff that you know the average person is not going to see as they walk by it on a daily basis.”

Byrd’s been geocaching for about five years.

When he started this hobby, he was a firefighter and emergency medical responder. So – how did he end up defusing bombs for a living in the Army?

“Unfortunately, a very, very dear friend of mine was in killed in Iraq by an IED,” says Byrd. “I looked a little further into EOD (explosive ordnance disposal) and what they do, and I said this is my calling.”

He fulfilled that calling during a 12-month deployment in Iraq.

Sgt. Byrd is now at Fort Lewis, looking ahead to his next big assignment.

Sgt. Byrd says, “I really don’t see me getting out of this job any time soon.”

When he’s not at work, Byrd searches out caches. He’s also creating a cache – for you to find.

“It’s pretty much a life for me now,” he says.

So much of a life for Byrd – that he tells me he’s constantly getting his friends and his Army counterparts involved in geocaching.

via /

There is a strong rumour kicking around that Garmin are about to launch their own geocaching website to compete with Groundspeak’s geocaching.com.

The conspiracy theory started when the latest firmware update to support the Chirp also removed the geocaching.com icon from the GPS replacing it with a generic caching icon.

The other hint was how geocaching.com were not made aware of the chirp’s existence and only found out about it by chance 2 days before its release. Garmin also recently purchased the domain opencaching.com.

Link 1, Link 2, Link 3, Link 4

Via