BrandiiPrime Origin Story (Long but hopefully entertainingly relatable):
Picture this: The year is 2007, the location is Oregon and I just turned 23... someone I knew told me about some kind of game that involved finding hidden treasure and how people ALL around the world are on the good ol’ world wide web uploading GPS coordinates so strangers could go out and find it.
I thought to myself... Say no more...
So... yes, I was really out there thinking what a great idea… a solo female in the PNW wilderness with my 2005 4cyl Ford Focus, armed with nothing but a pixelated print out from Google Maps yep… you read that right Google Maps lol (I mean I didn’t even get an iPhone till 2008) and I suppose... maybe a sense of adventure. Fast forward to when I upgraded from white knuckle driving, wasted gas and DNF’s to a Garmin Oregon 600— And in 2018, I finally decided to jump on the app.
One of the most exciting aspects of my geocaching journey has been witnessing the community evolve. Back in the day, spotting fellow women geocachers my age was rare! But now, it's heartening to see the diverse range of adventurers from all walks of life joining the ranks.
Geocaching has been my ticket to discovering some truly incredible locations which I wouldn't have stumbled upon otherwise. My absolute favorite finds are those elusive caches reported over and over DNF with a note from the owner defiantly declaring, "It's still there!" Sure, there have been a few questionable locations along the way (note to self: maybe avoid the abandoned stretches of rural Oregon towns claiming there is a micro on a “free puppies sign” when you’re caching alone… sorta kidding lol -eekk), but hey, every cache has a tale right?!
So, if you have read up to this point you know I live in Oregon, allegedly home of (trigger warning for some lol) the first geocache: N 45° 17.460 W 122° 24.800 placed by Dave Ulmer. If you don’t know why I said trigger warning lol or the “lore” surrounding this, I encourage you to use your geo senses read the forums/research and report back who you think the “first” was.
Now, let me introduce you to my FEARLESS caching co-piot – my daughter. She's been coming along on my geocaching escapades since she could barely walk (she is now a teenager and still loves going)! As one might imagine Oregon can often be quite remote with lots of critters that go bump in the night ...actually they go bump in the day too – *confession* I may be a bit of a geo scaredy-cat when it comes to snakes, she's definitely the fearless one in our duo.
What does 2024 have in store?
I am diving headfirst into the world of complex geocache builds. Considering I live in the 3rd largest city in Oregon there are not currently many local hides outside of the classic micros/parking lot or cache and dashes. I am aiming for folks who are city cachers or have accessibility needs to find caches that are just as exciting as the ones we have to travel/hike to. I don’t know what has taken so long to finally integrate myself into the geocaching community but here I am haha!
I am so beyond grateful for all the adventures I've experienced over the years, and I can't wait to help create similar memories for new cachers. <3 Brandi
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