Excited to go geocaching in the UK

[Laura612]

Hi, everyone! I'm going to West Wales (Clynderwen) and London in September. My DH is Welsh, so this isn't my first time to either place, but now that I've discovered geocaching I'm even more excited.

 

I'm trying to figure out if I'm going to need a new GPSr for there (I have a Blue Garmin). Its going to be weird for me not to use my Nuvi to get to the site... so any tips and tricks are welcome.

 

How hard is it to geocache in London? I'm not sure where we are staying yet, since the hotel isn't booked yet... but I know here that it would be hard w/o a car.

 

Laura

Edited July 28, 2008 by Laura612

[+Happy Humphrey]

I'm trying to figure out if I'm going to need a new GPSr for there (I have a Blue Garmin). Its going to be weird for me not to use my Nuvi to get to the site... so any tips and tricks are welcome.

The Legend should be fine, unless you're really desperate to upgrade. But there's no need to. Just keep it set to WGS84 (as it should be already) and allow it a few extra minutes when you first turn it on.

 

If you have Garmin maps for the UK, you could use them in the Nuvi: that's also capable of loading all the cache descriptions that you could ever want as well.

[+pklong]

Hi, everyone! I'm going to West Wales (Clynderwen) and London in September. My DH is Welsh, so this isn't my first time to either place, but now that I've discovered geocaching I'm even more excited.

 

Excellent. Wales is a lovely place, London less so but I'm biased

 

I'm trying to figure out if I'm going to need a new GPSr for there (I have a Blue Garmin). Its going to be weird for me not to use my Nuvi to get to the site... so any tips and tricks are welcome.

 

I really don't see why you would need a new GPS It will work anywhere - though you will have to live without the basemap.

 

How hard is it to geocache in London? I'm not sure where we are staying yet, since the hotel isn't booked yet... but I know here that it would be hard w/o a car.

 

Laura

 

It's not at all hard to cache in London without a car - in fact in the centre I highly recommend it. Travelling around by tube is swifter than the car and easy peasy. In London buses are frequent, safe and run at all hours.

 

Philip

[+Happy Humphrey]

I'm trying to figure out if I'm going to need a new GPSr for there (I have a Blue Garmin). Its going to be weird for me not to use my Nuvi to get to the site... so any tips and tricks are welcome.

The Legend should be fine, unless you're really desperate to upgrade. But there's no need to. Just keep it set to WGS84 (as it should be already) and allow it a few extra minutes when you first turn it on.

 

If you have Garmin maps for the UK, you could use them in the Nuvi: that's also capable of loading all the cache descriptions that you could ever want as well.

[Laura612]

Thanks. I only just started a few months ago and am still not sure how exactly different GPSr's work. I'm so glad that I won't have to fork out the money for a new GPSr before my vacation since its going to be expensive as it is... since our darn $$ is so weak and I noticed that everything is costing us more in GBP this time as well.

 

Anyways, I'll have to look into the UK maps for my Nuvi... wasn't sure I would want to invest a ton into something I would only be using for 2 weeks. I currently do load up the cache descriptions into it and that would be great to do for my trip as well.

 

I'm so looking forward to seeing parts of Wales and London that I've never seen before. GC'ing has introduced me to soo much of my own city that I never took the time to discover. I hope my in-laws enjoy it as much as I do. LOL

[+Geo.Kitten]

Hi London is awesome to go caching in. If you can go to Regents Park - Plenty caching and some lovely gardens. Also Hampstead Heath is fun too. Otherwise along the Thames

 

Happy Caching!

 

K

[+kbootb]

Plenty of caching in London. Much of it is the 'micro' or even smaller type. In the very centre of London, around government buildings etc, it can be tricky as the sort of behaviour that cachers usually use seems to upset the security forces.

 

They have all been told about caching, but people move on. There has been an agreement reached about allowing cachers to enjoy the sport without risk of starting a bomb alert. I can't remember the exact details, perhaps someone else can?

 

Basically, if challenged, be up front and honest rather than evasive. If you can carry a printout of a cache description, or some information about caching so you can show what you are doing then all should be fine.

 

If in central London, cache in Regent's Park. Loads to be found in a few hours.

[+Happy Humphrey]

They have all been told about caching, but people move on. There has been an agreement reached about allowing cachers to enjoy the sport without risk of starting a bomb alert. I can't remember the exact details, perhaps someone else can?

From what I remember, caches are supposed to be clearly labelled, and police advice is to avoid being "furtive" when searching.

 

I don't know about the caches in the area, but Clynderwen is in one of the most beautiful parts of Britain: a superb coastline.

[+The Flying Boots]

Hi Laura612

 

We're also holidaying in West Wales around the same time. We'll be close to Merrixton N51 44.515 W004 41.104 which is just South of Clynderwen between 1st Sept and 7th Sept. If you're there around the same time we could help with maps and locations of caches. P.M. us through our profile if you like.

[+JeremyR]

Basically, if challenged, be up front and honest rather than evasive. If you can carry a printout of a cache description, or some information about caching so you can show what you are doing then all should be fine.

 

I'd say (with experience in both places ) that you're far less likely to be approached by the police while caching in the UK than in the USA, even in central London. The police are much more hands-on Stateside... Basically same rules apply either side of the pond though, being straight with 'em about what you're up to may make you appear a bit geeky but that's better than a couple of nights at Her Majesty's pleasure in Paddington Green .

 

If in central London, cache in Regent's Park. Loads to be found in a few hours.

 

I second that, great caches in there including a whopping huge box that I'd wager is probably the only Large cache in the central zone*... Lots of stealth needed though...

 

*Yeah, yeah, just watch, someone'll prove me wrong now

 

edit for clarity...

Edited July 30, 2008 by JeremyR

[Jantaculum]

I'd recommend caching and sightseeing - caching, of course, will show you lots of hidden corners in London, but if you want to see some of the main sights I'd recommend:

 

this one at the Victoria and Albert museum. The museum is free to enter and it's a treasure house! It's also got a great cafe which isn't too expensive by central London standards. The V&A is adjacent to the Natural History Museum (beautiful old building) and the Science Museum, both also free.

 

St Paul's Cathedral - if you're planning on visiting here, and you've got enough energy to get to the top, there's a virtual with one of the best views of London. You get such a great sense of British history at St Paul's, my favourite is the tomb of Nelson. There's also guided tours if you want to learn more (and if your wobbly legs can stand it after the climb to the top!) The cafe, which is situated in the crypt, is a great place to eat - you're surrounded by statues and memorials - and never too busy.

 

If art is your thing there's plenty to see at the National Gallery (also free entry) in Trafalgar Square. This one involves a tour of some of the pictures then a walk to the final cache.

 

I wouldn't worry too much about getting Nuvi maps for a short holiday. If you check out the caches before your trip (and print out their locations on the Google Maps link from the cache pages) then that's usually accurate enough - you may find that for some caches the maps are so accurate that you don't need the GPS at all. This does work best if you've got internet access at your hotel though, for last minute checks or changes of plan. I would recommend buying a pocket A-Z once you arrive in London, that'll give you good maps as well as the public transport links (buses and Underground) There's a Visitors A-Z which costs about a fiver and gives you details of tourist attractions as well as maps.

 

Enjoy your holiday

Edited July 31, 2008 by Jantaculum

[+Crid]

If you don't need maps with automatic routing, you can grab OpenStreetMap map data in Garmin's IMG format from here.

 

I don't know if it works with the Nuvi, but I use OSM maps in Garmin format on my 76CSx and my Colorado. I just build the map file (rather than downloading a pre-built one), put my GPS into USB Mass Storage Mode and upload the file.

 

OSM map data isn't 100% complete (it's a collaborative open-source project), but it does have footpaths, bridleways, etc which regular road maps won't have.

[+Eclectic Penguin]

You may experience some problems in West Wales with GPS - I hear satnav stops working west of Cardiff. In fact, I hear colour television only arrived a few years ago and there's this new fangled craze where people have things called "telephones" - in EVERY HOUSE I'm told - some even have two!

 

Seriously though, welcome to my neck of the woods. If you're caching in West Wales you'll definitely need some form of transport as the caches are quite well spaced out - but of the ones that are there, most are well thought out in in good locations. On a concerted effort you could complete every single cache west of Carmarthen in a day or two!

 

If you're driving via the motorway, you may wish to consider a couple of mine - many are based around the end of the M4 and just before!

 

Clunderwen is a very picturesque village - I was there last year on a photography project for West Wales railways to photograph the station and surrounds.

 

Geocaching without a base map isn't that bad really - I know a lot of people who use basic Garmins with no base map - but I would recommend getting a 1:50,000 Ordnance Survey map of the area you're going to be caching in - or good internet access to the web sites that allow you to display and print copies.

 

I'm stretching out on a limb here but if you'll have regular internet access (a laptop with wifi for example), you may wish to seek out the Greasemonkey script that replaces the Google map with an Ordnance Survey representation.

 

I hope this helps.

[+currykev]

Hi London is awesome to go caching in. If you can go to Regents Park - Plenty caching and some lovely gardens. Also Hampstead Heath is fun too. Otherwise along the Thames

 

Happy Caching!

 

K

 

Good recommendationds there from Kitty. London's green spaces at their best.

You will also find that most Central London caches can be found without a gps.Just print out the Google Map up close and arm yourself with the hint and cache notes.

[Laura612]

Wow, a lot of information here.  Thanks!  I'll have to do some more researching this week end.  This will be my 5th trip to Clynderwen... so I've seen a lot of the countryside, but I'm sure I'm being so much more this time.  My FIL is retired and is being volunteered to take me geocaching.  I'm hoping to convert him, I think he will love it.

 

This will also be my 6th trip to London and I could probably stay there a year and never see everything I would like.  I'll only have 2 complete days and the only touristy thing that I want to see for sure is the changing of the guard.  I still can't believe I haven't seen that.  My DH will be complaining the whole time I'm caching... but I'll just keep sending him into the nearest pub while I'm search and that should take care of him complaining.   Oh, and I am used to urban caching.  We have a lot of nanos and micros here. 

 

I wasn't going to bring my laptop because #1, I'm not sure if I'll even have access to wifi there and #2, I wasn't sure if I needed to do something special for my laptop to pick up the wifi.  I was going to just try and rely on my iPhone for email and some internet.  I'm going to work on printing the cache pages I want to go to for sure here.  I'll take the advice given here and print up some google maps as well.

 

The Flying Boots, we will be in Clynderwen from Sept 17th - Sept 27th or 28th.  Too bad we weren't able to meet up. 

 

Thanks everyone for your suggestions and tips.  I can't wait to going caching over there.

Edited August 2, 2008 by Laura612