Geocaching for the Visually Impaired

[10aciousone]

OK so I have done some background work and have read older post on this topic, but I am wondering if anyone has any newer information on bringing geocaching to the visually impaired. I am a camp director who's entire program is for the blind and I would like to bring this activity to our camp. I cant seem to find enough though out there on it. I dont know how to make it work for the visually impaired without spending $$$$. Has anyone tried it in a camp setting for the visually impaired? Has anyone tried it with multiple blind people. Any ideas on hiding caches for the visually impaired. If you have any information on this I would be so very grateful. Thanks in advance!

[+GeoGeeBee]

Geocaching is sometimes described as a "high tech Easter-egg hunt." How would you arrange an Easter egg hunt for your campers?

 

Frankly, I don't see how it could work. But there are a lot of people out there with more imagination than I have, and more experience working with visually impaired people.

[+Renegade Knight]

....$$$$. ....

 

That's your solution. It doesn't have to be a lot. I had one cacher who hid one that would respond to the sound a cacher made when searching. I doubt he spent much on the entire project. Likely adapted a cheap toy to a cache.

 

Using a cheap "responds to noise" toy you can eastly adapt a flashing LED, or leave the noise maker intact. Your cache might sound like little mermaid, or the singing fish that you picked up at a garage sale, but does that part matter?

[knowschad]

What exactly do you mean by "visually impaired"? Total blindness? Legally blind? Color blind?

 

The first issue, as I see it, involves reading the GPSr. Are there units that give audible or tactile readings of direction and distance? Sure, a sighted person could handle that part for them, but I'd think that would take some of the fun out of it for them.

 

The next issue, naturally, is how does a visually impaired person find the cache. Are you referring to special caches hidden for them that can give off, say, audible clues? Or are you referring to them finding standard caches hidden for sighted geocachers?

[+Planet]

I was at an event recently, in the North West Park in CT, and they have a braille trail. Maybe you could set one up at your camp? The hints for finding the cache could be in Braille, on signs on the trail. The trail can be marked with posts with ropes between, to show where the trail goes. Get some cachers to help build it! Have an event. Get help. Instead of hiding the caches in trees, or other such places where critters might be hiding, hang them in the air at chest height, or on posts, or in such a way as they don't have to stick their hands where something might bite that they cannot see. Or don't give vague hints. Check your local lumber mill, if you have one, ask them if they will donate rippings, or wood strips, 2" x 2" should do it, for the posts to make the trail, they don't have to be fence strong, just strong enough to hold a lightweight rope between them, and paint them so they last longer, at least the end that goes in the dirt, you can dip them in a paint bucket. Use an outdoor paint. Then use 50lb test kite string, or something thin as the trail marker to run their hand along to follow the trail (are you getting this picture?) It doesn't have to be expensive. Just an idea. And ask for donations from local vendors, hardware store, etc....

[+Planet]

I also hid a cache called Hootie and Go Fish. I put a keyfinder in the cache container that would beep if you whistled, so you cold find your keys. But when it was in the container, you had to do something louder than a whistle, so people had to get close, and hoot like an owl, and then be very quiet to hear the faint beep inside the Rubbermaid jar I used. It got a few laughs, but I couldn't keep the batteries going in it. I hid it in November and that gets cold in New England so the batteries died pretty quickly, and I changed it. Anything needing power would have to be something that works in your weather.

[+Harry Dolphin]

What exactly do you mean by "visually impaired"? Total blindness? Legally blind? Color blind?

 

I am having a problem with that too. PC? Or euphemisms? If you mean blind, shouldn't you say blind? When I maintained a trail in the state park, I met (on two occasions) a blind hiker. He hiked with two friends. The caches on that trail are rated 3.5 for terrain, at a minimum. He's a blind hiker, and makes no bones about it.

Having gone through most of my life 20/1200 without glasses, I think I know what visually impaired means. Yeah. I've had bifocals for 50 years. Coke bottles! Then the cataracts set in. Just before the operations, I couldn't read the speed limit signs! Now, I'm corrected to 20/20 at two feet. I wear bifocals to read. Plastic does not focus. Very strange not to be able to see close up. That's all I used to see! I think a cold blast of air stiffened one of the implanted lenses. I'm recuperating from that.

I thought I knew what 'visually impaired' meant.

[knowschad]

What exactly do you mean by "visually impaired"? Total blindness? Legally blind? Color blind?

Then the cataracts set in. Just before the operations, I couldn't read the speed limit signs! Now, I'm corrected to 20/20 at two feet. I wear bifocals to read. Plastic does not focus. Very strange not to be able to see close up. That's all I used to see! I think a cold blast of air stiffened one of the implanted lenses. I'm recuperating from that.

I thought I knew what 'visually impaired' meant.

Dang! I have only had a cataract in one eye so far! Still need bifocals, although I can now see distances pretty well without them.

[+popokiiti]

Any chance of buddying-up with a sighted partner? Maybe some geocachers near you would be able to volunteer?

[+goosefraba1]

Sometimes I feel as though I am blind. "Where are my keys honey?" .... then she says "you're getting warmer, warmer, colder.... ummm do you want me to get them for you?"

 

If somebody could write a program for a GPSr that would do that warmer or colder dance, I guess it could work.

[+J the Goat]

I was at an event recently, in the North West Park in CT, and they have a braille trail. Maybe you could set one up at your camp? The hints for finding the cache could be in Braille, on signs on the trail. The trail can be marked with posts with ropes between, to show where the trail goes. Get some cachers to help build it! Have an event. Get help. Instead of hiding the caches in trees, or other such places where critters might be hiding, hang them in the air at chest height, or on posts, or in such a way as they don't have to stick their hands where something might bite that they cannot see. Or don't give vague hints. Check your local lumber mill, if you have one, ask them if they will donate rippings, or wood strips, 2" x 2" should do it, for the posts to make the trail, they don't have to be fence strong, just strong enough to hold a lightweight rope between them, and paint them so they last longer, at least the end that goes in the dirt, you can dip them in a paint bucket. Use an outdoor paint. Then use 50lb test kite string, or something thin as the trail marker to run their hand along to follow the trail (are you getting this picture?) It doesn't have to be expensive. Just an idea. And ask for donations from local vendors, hardware store, etc....

 

All other points on this post aside, and there are some good ones, I'd like to give Plane props for coming up with a stellar idea. It might not work out, but what a great one. An event aimed at setting up caches for the blind? Very nice man, very nice...

[10aciousone]

You guys came up with really great ideas. Thank You! I actually have a braille trail already done at my camp. I am definitely going to incorporate this into their hunt as well as finding an object that responds to their sound. I am also in contact with an agency that does talking GPS's, so hopefully that will work out.

 

I used the term visually impaired because I was being politically correct as well as accurate. All of my campers are legally blind. Their vision and acuity varies greatly. I am sorry for any confusion that I caused. Thanks again for all your help.

Edited February 24, 2010 by 10aciousone

[+Castle Mischief]

I see that nobody mentioned a Wereigo cache. Can these play sound?

[+ooti]

OK so I have done some background work and have read older post on this topic, but I am wondering if anyone has any newer information on bringing geocaching to the visually impaired. I am a camp director who's entire program is for the blind and I would like to bring this activity to our camp. I cant seem to find enough though out there on it. I dont know how to make it work for the visually impaired without spending $$$$. Has anyone tried it in a camp setting for the visually impaired? Has anyone tried it with multiple blind people. Any ideas on hiding caches for the visually impaired. If you have any information on this I would be so very grateful. Thanks in advance!

 

I’ve done some geocaching with low vision pupils in Finland. We did twice a trip around a lake by tandem. My pupil was riding behind, looking for the landmarks. Had photos of the landmarks with us and he was able to spot them all. Did some calculation then and got the final coordinates, then he was in charge of the gps while riding our bike to the cache site.

 

There’s another interesting mystery cache in my home town and I intend to seek it with pupils this spring. Now it’s hidden under snow. The first stage is a plastic container with three tiny music boxes fasten on a piece of board, three different coordinates written next to them. So your task is to wind the handles, listen to the different melodies, hopefully recognize them; their names, perhaps some lyrics too, and then decide which one is the right answer. Coords lead to the final stage. if you choose wrong - you find "empty" box.

 

We did some geocaching with deaf-blind pupils too. I hid some caches of my own, all different sizes around the school yard and the nature path behind the dorm building. One ”cache” was a toy dog, one that started barking when you walked close enough. One was a frog with a similar sensor. Every cache had set of small items waiting for cachers; one filled with beautiful stones, one with sea shells, one with candies and so on. There was also log book in each cache. Pupils seeked caches together with counselors but so that the adults helped only when needed.

 

Pupils were aged between 8-15 and to my surprise they all got really excited and liked all caches. –And so did the counselors.

We didn’t have talking gps so I used to Garmin devices with those who could see the compass arrow. Some of the pupils preferred simplified paper maps with good contrast. I also had a wooden tactile map that covered our ”campus”. I brought the tactile map and other materials in the middle of the yard. That’sd where the pupils started their hunt and where they returned after each cache.

 

I was wondering if I could make night caching: using flash lights and reflectors. We even did a test but found out our light were not bright enough - or our reflectors bit too dim. Now its getting too light in early evenings so have to wait till next autumn.

[+wimseyguy]

There is a legally blind cacher in PA who has found thousands of caches. He would be a good contact for the OP.

 

I've emailed a geopal who knows this cacher better than I do to alert him to this thread.

[+Mocadeki]

Someone just let me know about this post. I am legally blind and have been caching since 2003. I have enough vision that I can use a normal gps with a magnifier to see it and have it set for light text and dark and the backlight on as bright as it goes. That is what works for me.. That may work if they have some vision. I also use my handheld monocular for the actual searching.

 

Normally I find the cache by feeling it by just reaching into places where I think it may be.

 

There was a cache near here a few years back that had some sort of motion detector in it and it had a voice saying let me out of here once you got within a couple of feet of it. Maybe something similar to that would work for the actually finding the cache. I have no idea how it was done. I will think about this some more and see if I can come up with any ideas.