Why?

[crtrue]

We like to Cache In and Trash Out if it isn't tooooo yucckky - - one of the last ones we were in had human excrement near the cache!! Oh brother!

 

If I saw feces at a CITO, I don't think "Oh Brother!" would be the first thing to mind...

[adm4984]

Your hobby is something other people think is neat, if not a bit unusual. You spend days and plot trips around hitting small tupperware. Your life may not revolve around it, but the moment a new cache pops up in your area, you're out there at 7am wandering around the woods.

 

So here is my ultimate question:

 

Why?

 

What makes you play this game?

 

(This is not an attempt to call out the game --I know my reasons and am one of the above described, so don't take this post the wrong way)

 

Here are some reasons I started:

1. Free

2. Gets me out on the trails

3. Helps me enjoy outdoor time with my wife and son

4. Lots of fun

5. Haven't encountered any mean cachers yet

6. Makes me feel like a kid again

7. Gave me an excuse to buy a new gadget

8. Every hunt is different

9. It offers year round outdoor fun.

 

This is absolutely the best sport I have ever participated in!!!

[ClemClan]

* Because I have a "life-time supply" of Happy Meal toys to get rid of!!! LOL

* I've always loved the outdoors, and this gets me out there and in new places

* Non-boring exercise...I've got muscles I didn't know existed!

* It's all about the hunt! No child ever really wanted those boiled eggs at Easter, but we fought over finding them!

* "You can't hide something I can't find!" and I'll prove it! LOL

and last but not least

* Because I CAN!

[vtmtnman]

I've been poking around the woods since I started walkin'....why not find cool stuff too?Plus training my eyes for something that's out of place in the woods keeps them trained for squirrel hunting.

 

I wish I had started this business earlier,but never having had a computer or internet till recently,I never knew this whole 'underground' treasure hunt was going on right under my nose.Already had the GPSr.I could never go back to 'Muggle' status.

 

Caching in some spots also doubles as great preseason scouting for hunting as well.Since I've been in Iraq,we're fortunate to have caches on alot of the big bases and smaller FOBs (Like the one I'm on).Even though I've found all of the ones here already,it's such a HUGE break up of the everyday eat-work-eat-work-eat-check email-sleep repeat routine I'm in.

 

Probably my worst experience was finding six caches while on some R&R after my first 14 months here and having to wait another 14 till more caching!LOL...makes going home even better I spose.The best was converting a muggle while on his six moth deployment here.I was more excited then he was when making finds,not that he wasn't enjoying it.After a while he was eyeing every container he could find from old welding rod containers to his altoid tins saying,"Hmmm,potential geocache.."

[+palser]

I have a terminal case of cabin fever! The only way to keep it in remission... well you know the rest!

 

The other thing that gets me out of the house is the Harley. VROOM! VROOM!

 

Dr. P

[+Bamboogirl]

Because it gets us off our butts and out of the house. On to a trail we've not walked or a park we dind't know or a lake that looks like it needs a return trip with a fly rod.

 

Because that GPS is just too much fun to use for a paperweight and I must follow the little arrow.

 

Because that little arrow points to a tin box full of useless stuff under a rock and it will bug me till I find it.

 

Because knowing that useless box of stuff is just another half-mile up a pile of rocks and brambles makes it a joy to climb the pile.

 

Because when I get to the top of the pile and shake off the brambles, I may see something amazing. Or not. But I still was willing to make the climb to look.

 

Clearly, we all are out of our minds. But it's too much fun, so why stop now?

[+Mij-aka-Julie]

Because of my passion for ticks and snakes.

[+GSVNoFixedAbode]

There's the exercise, exploring new places, time with the kids outdoors, but really I was initially hooked by the tech. I mean, this little unit in my hand is getting multiple signals from military satellites orbiting above me, then telling me pretty much exactly where on Earth I am, and exactly where I should go find 'stuff'. For a gadget geek, that is hard to beat!

Edited April 13, 2007 by GSVNoFixedAbode

[+DammitNanet]

For me, the primary thing is to disconnect from the real world and get close to nature, hike, exercise, hang with the pooch, exercise, look at the trees, birds, rocks, flowers, clouds, sky, exercise, hang with my pal Amy without our husbands, explore new places, exercise, challenge myself, exercise, get away from the TV, exercise, etc. If it's just Miko the geodog and me, I usually listen to a good playlist on the ipod while I'm out there too. If it's Amy and me and you encounter us, you'll hear us from a mile away because the chatter between us is non-stop. Oh yeah, usually when we're hiking and caching we're out for the day and the snacks are a big part - we plan this several days in advance and it's usually just the same old protein bar and a sandwich and apple.

 

Also . . . Although, I am sooooo scared of snakes, so alot of my time out there consumes me with the thought of what I will do if I encounter a snake. So I'm trying to have fun, disconnect and exercise while the whole time I'm thinking of what would I do to escape a snake encounter. I get kind of whacky at times I guess, although the fear of snakes is not enough to stop me. I love being outside doing this. I always thought if I could make a real living at hiking and kayaking (and now caching) I would find a way. Notice that I said a "real" living!!!