JUST NEED A GENERAL GIST OF THE GAME

[+WHO DAT LDY]

K so I read about this website on a Diabetes magazine. Recommending this as great motivation to get out there and get walking. I don't understand the whole point though so if someone could explain to me it would be great. It seems awesome I have been telling my friends in Jacksonville, FL about this.

So here is my interpretaion: You walk around serching for these little boxes, camera cases, or whatever and there is a log and surprise inside. You sign the log but ONLY take the surprise if you have something of equal value to leave. If you have nothing of equal value you don't take anything just sign the log.

1) Do you just get up one morning and start playing?

2) I am assuming you can't leave like $5.00 in there so what do you leave

3) Can you do it with just paper or must you carry your GPS. Tom Tom isn't the easiest to carry on a long walk but it can be done who knows.............

4) Anyone in my area who does this I would love your pointers as well I live in the Baymeadows area.

 

HELP HELP HELP - I have a Basic membership as well. Am I missing pointers by not getting the premium membership.

[+K7CJS]

My best advice and what taught me the most was.....email a few of the people who are leaving alot of caches in your area and ask them to help you get started - hopefully at least one will be happy to take you out with them. My next best advise is this forum...especially "Getting Started" and "GPS and Technology" - track them and especially track threads that interest you the most (you track them by click on the "Options" button at the right side of a post - pick either immediately or a daily recap). Good Luck and welcome to a great adventure.

[+sparkomatic1972]

Once you get started, it gets much easier, and that makes it more fun!

 

Also, not a paid announcement, but I enjoy the membership sine it has a few features that make it more useful, but you can totally enjoy the hobby without it

 

good luck, cheers

[+briansnat]

1) Do you just get up one morning and start playing?

 

If you like, sure. Just search on your zipcode, find a nearby cache, plug the coordinates into your GPS and go

 

2) I am assuming you can't leave like $5.00 in there so what do you leave

 

You can leave $5 if you like, or you can leave Matchbox cars, Post It notes, CDs, small toys, eyeglass repair kits, anything that is small, inexpensive and useful

 

3) Can you do it with just paper or must you carry your GPS. Tom Tom isn't the easiest to carry on a long walk but it can be done who knows.............

Some people use paper. Using a Tom Tom or other unit designed for vehicle is similar to playing tennis with a baseball bat. It can be done, but it's far from the best tool.

[Sannyasin]

The whole point of the game, for me, is just getting outside and having some fun. Whenever I'm going to be traveling, I'll look up a few caches that sound fun in that area, and, if I have time, I go hunt them out. What you will find is that people pick some great spots for their hides, and searching for them will take you to some place that you might not have ever found on your own.

 

I like travel bugs, you pick one up in one place, drop it off at another place. Make sure to add a log to the travel bug's log page. I "watch" them and am notified whenever the bug moves on to another location. It's fun!

 

You can leave money in the cache if you want, but people most appreciate fun little things.

 

You don't need much to get started. A GPS is really useful, but I have a friend that prefers just to use the clues to guess where it might be. If you have a GPS, look up the caches in your area, see what they are... you'll find that you like certain traits. I like multi-caches. That is where you find one cache, and it then has a clue to lead you to another and so on until you find the final cache. Check out the meanings of the icons next to the cache name and that will make it easy for you to pick caches you want to search for.

 

One thing that is really nice is to have a buddy that will go with you, so, see if you can get a friend or family member interested.

 

I just have a free membership... seems plenty good for my purposes, but some people really get into the social aspect, so, if you really get into it, maybe you would prefer a premium membership.

[+Team Birdaholic]

Actually we planned it a little and then one day went out to see what its like to geo-cache. Six months later we have found that this is a VERY EXPENSIVE hobby. We first found that our car was badly lacking to take us into the forest so we bought a jeep. Then after a little bit more time we found some of the roads were a little narrow for the jeep so be bought a four-wheeler. Now a little more time we find we need to go around the edge of lakes and swamps so we bought a hydratrek. Now fify thousand dollars later all we need now is a GPSr. I guess it just depends how serious you get and where you wish to go. Off course you could always walk around town and do caches in your local area, this would be cheap and easy. Which ever way you choose good luck and enjoy.

[Yashiboy]

K so I read about this website on a Diabetes magazine. Recommending this as great motivation to get out there and get walking. I don't understand the whole point though so if someone could explain to me it would be great. It seems awesome I have been telling my friends in Jacksonville, FL about this.

So here is my interpretaion: You walk around serching for these little boxes, camera cases, or whatever and there is a log and surprise inside. You sign the log but ONLY take the surprise if you have something of equal value to leave. If you have nothing of equal value you don't take anything just sign the log.

1) Do you just get up one morning and start playing?

2) I am assuming you can't leave like $5.00 in there so what do you leave

3) Can you do it with just paper or must you carry your GPS. Tom Tom isn't the easiest to carry on a long walk but it can be done who knows.............

4) Anyone in my area who does this I would love your pointers as well I live in the Baymeadows area.

 

HELP HELP HELP - I have a Basic membership as well. Am I missing pointers by not getting the premium membership.

ya it seems daunting but its not you can do it whenever you want just pop on the website and look around your area.

 

i would go to the dollar store and get some cute little trinkets or if u have coins from diffrent countrys sitting around. (one of my friends just got a huge bag of rubber frogs and changes em out ) its more of a tresure hunt than anything. i would sugjest if yer daunted about takeing and leaveing tresure is go to a cache near you and see whats inside so u get an idea of what people leave.

 

yes you need a gps a tom tom probably wouldent be the best i dont think u can enter the location on one of them there more ment for roads. you would want to get a garman or some other brand (i use magellan tho garman has the cheapest ones) but what you do is you follow the compass on your gps to where its located and you search around the area for where it is write down in the notepad that you were there (notpads are usualy in the cache) leave a tresure and take one you like if you choose to.

 

im sure people do it in your area would look on the fourms in your area for someone near you. some peope hold geocacheing tutoials in there area once a month or so. i wouldent be afraid about asking any question its a fun activity and once you get the hang of it (takes about 1 or 2 caches) its really fun. the neat thing is they have them all over the world like in china australia england germany so wherever you are theres most likely a geocache near you.

 

i hope this helped you out and welcome to geocacheing

 

(sorry for the probably countless typos not the best of spellers)

[+R.O.B]

Brigadier General Mordecai Gist

..

 

General Gist

[+Sandy Hams]

I know of a very few folks who do geocaching without a GPS but boy that is really doing it the hard way since the cache location is identification by latitude and longitude. So you need a handheld GPS at the very minimum and some inexpensive trinkets to trade. Key chains, small inexpensive tools, signature items, souvineers to identify a specific local area is nice.

 

Do not ever leave food or anything that would be dangerous to a pet or small child.

 

The real fun in geocaching is not the swag you trade but the hunt and the walk in a perhaps new or interesting or historical area that you would never have visited if it were not for geocaching.

 

Also nice to do is move trackables along -- travel bugs and/or coins. After you have cached a while you might want to create your own personal signature item -- in our case a pin with our name and a picture of our area.

 

It is a great hobby/game/sport that gets you out and moving in a fun way. Also after a while upgrade to a premium membership but only after you are sure you want to continue geocaching.

[+Bergie Bunch]

We also got into this for the reasons of exercise and to get my son away from the TV set. In 1 1/2 months, lost 7 pounds and have built an even better relationship with my son and wife. We also have made some awsome friends. Get out there and play!

[Matt7591]

1) Do you just get up one morning and start playing?

2) I am assuming you can't leave like $5.00 in there so what do you leave

3) Can you do it with just paper or must you carry your GPS. Tom Tom isn't the easiest to carry on a long walk but it can be done who knows.............

4) Anyone in my area who does this I would love your pointers as well I live in the Baymeadows area.

 

TomTom would be good for a few runs to see if you like it.

 

My (newbie) recommendation is simple. Quit reading and start doing. That will answer infinitely more questions. My prescription:

 

1. Get Google Earth installed if not already.

2. Find some caches in your area that look interesting (using the zip code search). Try 1/1 terrain/difficulty ratings to start. Pick like one or two just to get a taste.

3. Take the coordinates and copy/paste directly into Google Earth for a good visual of where the item is. If you're familiar with the area, the GPS may not be much more accurate than this!

4. Print the cache page with hints. Or, if you have a phone that supports email, send an email to yourself with the complete contents of the page.

5. Go. No need to bring anything. Do not give up until you find. Expect 30+ minutes for the first few, unless lucky. It's a good sign if there is recent find activity on the cache. Then just sign and take nothing/leave nothing.

 

Be sure to report back, whatever happens.

[+luvhockey]

I posted on our local caching group's site that I was new and needed help. Numerous people offered to take me and the family out to some easy caches in the area using their own gps to see if we liked it. You'll find that most cachers are a helpful friendly group.

[+Guinness70]

well, could do without GPSr, people would get to their destination even before GPS existed.

figure out the coordinates on a map and a way to get there.

 

GPSr makes it easier tho :-) A LOT easier ;-)

 

a GPS with map capability is handy. I still havent got a proper topo map on mine and i can cache fine, but its sure handy when doing multis or figuring out how to access a cache and definately when you have to do a projection.

[stryder717]

i did my first few using a tomtom and google earth. it was fun but i hated it :-/ its so much more fun with a hand heald.

[+krayapps]

K so I read about this website on a Diabetes magazine. Recommending this as great motivation to get out there and get walking. I don't understand the whole point though so if someone could explain to me it would be great. It seems awesome I have been telling my friends in Jacksonville, FL about this.

So here is my interpretaion: You walk around serching for these little boxes, camera cases, or whatever and there is a log and surprise inside. You sign the log but ONLY take the surprise if you have something of equal value to leave. If you have nothing of equal value you don't take anything just sign the log.

1) Do you just get up one morning and start playing? Yes, absolutely! I would suggest starting with some that are regular or large size and rated a 1 or so in difficulty for your first ones...and read the hints too.

2) I am assuming you can't leave like $5.00 in there so what do you leave We stocked up on little items like keychain flashlights, glow sticks, air fresheners, water pistols, bug wipes etc.

3) Can you do it with just paper or must you carry your GPS. Tom Tom isn't the easiest to carry on a long walk but it can be done who knows.............I think you can find some of the easier ones with the clue and with a good look at the google map - particularly using the satelite image! But we bought a cheap hand held eTrex at Walmart for $89 and it has never failed us!

4) Anyone in my area who does this I would love your pointers as well I live in the Baymeadows area.

 

HELP HELP HELP - I have a Basic membership as well. Am I missing pointers by not getting the premium membership.

 

Just go for it and have fun!!

[+NoHandsGPS]

My best advice and what taught me the most was.....email a few of the people who are leaving alot of caches in your area and ask them to help you get started - hopefully at least one will be happy to take you out with them. My next best advise is this forum...especially "Getting Started" and "GPS and Technology" - track them and especially track threads that interest you the most (you track them by click on the "Options" button at the right side of a post - pick either immediately or a daily recap). Good Luck and welcome to a great adventure.

This is great advice. If you can get an experienced cacher to take you out once you will be much more likely to have fun. Attend local events. Find the temp caches. They are usually easy and give you the jist of how people hide. If you get stuck you have plenty of help at the event.