Marcie/Eric

And a shower.

I was looking around and searching keywords of landmarks near my house and the geocache.com with the same name popped up, and I read it, it was near the same landmark, so I read aon, and checked out the site, and the FAQ.. Just got a GPS. Going caching when the weather is better.

Handles are the way of the hardcore PC user!

Thanks guys!

Wondering if there were an cachers in the Sacramento region? Any good/bad stories.. Just a newb getting started.

I am looking for less than $250, but will take any advise. I would like to hear more about pros and cons of Meridians, since they aren't totaly out of range.

I have NEVER used a GPS in my life, nor even held one. I want to get into geocaching, and am looking for a good GPS that is better than entry level. I've read tons of amazon reviews on Garmins, and Magellans. -Price range: $0-$250 -I need it strictly for geocaching and on-foot (hiking/biking/hunting) activity. No auto, marine or air use. -I don't care about color screen -I want decent mapping and tracking/backtracking/reroute capability -Handheld. -Needs to work pretty good in trees, canyons, hills, and valleys. I live in Northern California, and hike and hunt in the Sierras. -Would like ease of use, but will sacrifice for price/customizability-- i'm an advanced tech junkie and can figure out pretty much anything. -Needs to have PC connectivity -Either enough, or expandable memory I've read alot about the Magellan Meridian Gold, seems like a decent unit. I can find it for about $170US average. Someone stated that it has a backtracking problem. Amazon review here But I read mostly positives. Anyone have any insight, taking into consideration my above stated needs? I also saw an Explorist 300, but it's expandablity seems limited from what i've read. Garmin seems to offer good looking units and good looking display layout, at least from the pictures. They seem a little higher priced for MAriGOLD's comparable, but are they any better for Geocaching and general hiking and such? It seems that the comparably priced (to the MariGOLD ($155+) was the GPS 60($150+, where the GPSMAP 60 I found for about $260. Obviously it doesn't have the MAP right? So is that that much worse? It seems that I would like the map dealie, especially for my vast mountains nearby. I would rather have a decent map, than just city points or major highways. Topo would be nice, but hey. I'm just a beginner. So some cachers out their with some various gps experience give me some tips on the best bang for my needs. Thank you all.