I'm a newbie in Geocaching, but long-time Scouter and outdoor enthusiast!
My list is broken into segments and seperate 'mix and match' kits:
GPS Kit- carried in a small shoulder bag and pockets
- GPS, spare batteries, PDA cable (hoping to go to Bluetooth soon)
- PDA with cache info, personal log, maps, wildlife guides/ID photos and sounds
- Pens/pencils
- Camera
- Items to leave
- Cache repair/CITO small roll of duct tape and some big Zip-locks
- Cell phone and FSR-type radios for everyone
- Mini-cache in case we find a great site
Hiking Kit- Not usually used for city caches, but kept in car just in case. Carried in a small backpack.
- Sunscreen, bug juice
- Spare socks
- Big bandana, usually with something helpful printed on it
- Multi-tool or Swiss army knife
- First-aid kit, with moleskins
- Water bottles, munchies, cup
- Small survival pack with compass, whistle, lighter, etc.
- Hiking staff- usually my stick, but a collapsable one would be nice!
- Binoculars
- Flashlights- 1 micro (Photon) on my keychain, 1 mini-maglight in the pack
Car Kit- Left in car for use between caches
- Spare batteries and chargers for everything
- Manuals for all devices
- Extra water, chilled if possible
- Spare items to leave
- Usually, my laptop with a ton of other sites loaded for use
Things I am less sure about-
- snakebite kit- the Red Cross recommends not using these. You can find other care options on-line
- I am confused by the frequent comments about a compass- why a compass and a GPS? I carry a small on in my kit for just-in-case, but is there a reason to carry a better one?
Things I did not have but will get now-
- Inspection mirror- what a great idea!
- Gloves- like this one too- keep thinking about it when reaching into nasty places
- Safety cone or triangle for less-than-ideal parking situations
- Poison Ivy Treatment- just thought of this- at least 1 cache I've seen was placed really close to PI.
