Low Tech Geocachers

May 30, 2011

We are "low tech" when it comes to geocaching. We have an old GPS (Garmin 12) that was given to us 8 years ago when we moved to Florida. We still print out the cache information for the caches we want to find while traveling. We look for local caches in the evenings after dinner. The most we've ever found in one day was 15, but we had a picnic with friends along the way.

We don't get much of a chance to be first to find, because we have pay as you go phones, not the kind that connects to the internet and texts us when a new cache pops up. Besides we still work, so we can't just stop fishing and run off after a cache...

We are on a limited budget that keeps us from things like Premium Memberships (yeah, I know it's ONLY $30 a year, we have priorities) I was just wondering , Are we the only ones left, is this a vanishing breed? Are we Geocaching Dinosaurs????

We started geocaching for cheap entertainment and our only expense is gas and printer ink... it's fun. We don't feel the need to be "number ho's" or keep up with all of the high tech stuff... is there anybody else, like us, out there????

1.3k · May 30, 2011

I understand the budget constraints and wanting a cheap form of entertainment. I'm a PM and have a couple of GPSrs but I'm an all out guy and usually jump into an activity full force. That being said, are you at all interested in a PM or are you content with how you currently play the game?

2.8k · May 30, 2011

Sounds like your doing pretty good. I wouldn't call you a low tech geocacher. Most geocachers are using an old GPSr or a car nav unit not designed for caching and have to print everything. The true low tech cachers are those with a topo map and a compass.

1.7k · May 30, 2011

We are on a limited budget

I don't come from the richest of families, so this is also an issue for me. We can afford gas, and we can afford premium membership, the real issue is that I have never been on a vacation that required an airplane. (never even been more then 500 miles from home). This limits my caching area to about 100 miles (as the crow flies).

6.7k · May 30, 2011

Reconsider the PM and paperless caching. You can save a ton of money on ink and paper using an inexpensive PDA. The prices they charge for ink should be a crime!

22k · May 30, 2011

I am fortunate that I can buy a few 'nice' things but I have yet to give up my Legend Blue. It worked when I bought it, it still works now.

May 30, 2011

One of our local cachers has no GPSr and no computer. Her sister in another town looks at the site and picks caches she thinks the local sister can find with just the directions she (the distant sister) tells her from the cache page and the sat photos. When the local sister finds a cache, her sister logs them for her. That's low-tech caching!

May 30, 2011

Just wanted to chime in that you are definitely not alone. I've only been caching for about a year now, really I'm just starting out on my caching career, but I would consider myself a bit lo-tech anyway.

I write out the information for every cacher I search for on a piece of paper or in a little notebook. I'm a college student, so I don't have a GPS myself. I borrow my parents, and when I can't turn to urban caching and try to make a go of it. I don't have a car either, so I bike to whatever local caches I can. This isn't a complaint, I rather like the adventure of this hobby stripped down.

While I do aspire to be able to afford a premium membership, the 10$ app, my own GPS device and even some geo coins/tags to send out into the world what I like about this sport is that you can do without all of those things. Those are just additives that make it a little easier.

I dont understand some cacher's desire to wrack up finds because personally I'd rather spend half a day journeying to one really, really cool cache in a place I otherwise never would have found then spend two hours finding 30 caches along a strip of roadway, but that is the thing about Geocaching as a sport. It's adaptable. Everybody can play it the way that is most rewarding for them.

Still, I'm glad to hear there are still cachers out there kicking it old school. More power to you friends.

2.7k · May 30, 2011

I've been low tech for almost 10 years, and guess what. Most of the hi techers can't find many of my caches because I use shoe leather and a compass. If you like what you are doing then keep it up.

May 30, 2011

Reconsider the PM and paperless caching. You can save a ton of money on ink and paper using an inexpensive PDA. The prices they charge for ink should be a crime!

May 30, 2011

The money I spend on ink & paper is probably still way less than phone & data charges... How much does your phone cost you a month? More than $10.00?

May 31, 2011

I have a 60csx that I bought used when my E-Trex Legend got water in it and died. I usually don't have cache descriptions. I have a regular cell phone. I load my caches from GC.com with GPX. It's not to save money it's just how I do it. There are things I use with the premium membership so I do have that. I have done some whereigos with a borrowed GPSr. Most of my caching I do alone but I have to admit when I'm with friends with the gadgets I ask for hints if we can't find it.

7k · May 31, 2011

The money I spend on ink & paper is probably still way less than phone & data charges... How much does your phone cost you a month? More than $10.00?

Who says you need a smartphone (or any phone) or a data plan for paperless caching? A cheap PDA is a one-time purchase.

19k · May 31, 2011

The money I spend on ink & paper is probably still way less than phone & data charges... How much does your phone cost you a month? More than $10.00?

Data charges? Why would I need data charges to geocache?

6.7k · May 31, 2011

The money I spend on ink & paper is probably still way less than phone & data charges... How much does your phone cost you a month? More than $10.00?

Who says you need a smartphone (or any phone) or a data plan for paperless caching? A cheap PDA is a one-time purchase.

Yup. One time cost on a PDA plus $30 a year. Heck, even the $30 a year is optional. How much are your ink cartridges and paper? Trust me. I was once in the "why go paperless?" group. If you try it you'll wonder why the heck you waited.

19k · May 31, 2011

We are "low tech" when it comes to geocaching. We have an old GPS (Garmin 12) that was given to us 8 years ago when we moved to Florida. We still print out the cache information for the caches we want to find while traveling. We look for local caches in the evenings after dinner. The most we've ever found in one day was 15, but we had a picnic with friends along the way.

We don't get much of a chance to be first to find, because we have pay as you go phones, not the kind that connects to the internet and texts us when a new cache pops up. Besides we still work, so we can't just stop fishing and run off after a cache...

We are on a limited budget that keeps us from things like Premium Memberships (yeah, I know it's ONLY $30 a year, we have priorities) I was just wondering , Are we the only ones left, is this a vanishing breed? Are we Geocaching Dinosaurs????

We started geocaching for cheap entertainment and our only expense is gas and printer ink... it's fun. We don't feel the need to be "number ho's" or keep up with all of the high tech stuff... is there anybody else, like us, out there????

Honestly, it sounds to me like this is a case of "if it ain't broke, don't fix it". It seems you are enjoying yourself quite well the way you are doing it. Unless you find yourself starting to lose interest, you are probably doing just what you should do.

GOF was right about the cost of ink... but I don't know if you are printing out cache information, or simply hand writing it. You don't need a data plan or smartphone, though, to make use of the benefits of Premium Membership, although you may find that you have problems loading the pocket queries into your older GPS (I don't know this... simply speculating). But if you're happy the way you're doing it, then I'd say... keep it up!

May 31, 2011

I tried paperless once. It was before my 60csx arrived. I was trying to use my Garmin nuvi and just wasn't having any luck. I went home and found out how to go paperless with my nuvi. I kinda like paperless and I kinda don't. It is just a pain to drag two gps' around and The nuvi doesn't display all the data like I would like it to. I am not going to pay to have a phone that can do all the paperless stuff so I am going to go back to printing out the caches. Technology aint all it's cracked up to be.

19k · May 31, 2011

I tried paperless once. It was before my 60csx arrived. I was trying to use my Garmin nuvi and just wasn't having any luck. I went home and found out how to go paperless with my nuvi. I kinda like paperless and I kinda don't. It is just a pain to drag two gps' around and The nuvi doesn't display all the data like I would like it to. I am not going to pay to have a phone that can do all the paperless stuff so I am going to go back to printing out the caches. Technology aint all it's cracked up to be.

That is exactly how I cache... a 60CSx for my handheld, and a Nuvi 255W for navigating to the park/cache site and for paperless info. I use GSAK and this macro and I get everything that the Pocket Query give me .

6.7k · May 31, 2011

I tried paperless once. It was before my 60csx arrived. I was trying to use my Garmin nuvi and just wasn't having any luck. I went home and found out how to go paperless with my nuvi. I kinda like paperless and I kinda don't. It is just a pain to drag two gps' around and The nuvi doesn't display all the data like I would like it to. I am not going to pay to have a phone that can do all the paperless stuff so I am going to go back to printing out the caches. Technology aint all it's cracked up to be.

Yes, there is a bit of a learning curve. I wouldn't go back to printing pages if you paid me. For one thing my wife has banned those piles of printed cache pages from the house. :laughing:

7.7k · May 31, 2011

The money I spend on ink & paper is probably still way less than phone & data charges... How much does your phone cost you a month? More than $10.00?

As others have already pointed out, you don't need a smart phone and data plan for paperless caching.

Get a Palm PDA. I used a Palm Vx, but you'd probably want a Palm m500 series because of the USB connection. Note that they cannot work on 64 bit Windows. jholly is the resident expert on the workaround.

Cost : about $20. Less if you shop around.

Cachemate - software for the PDA : $8

GSAK (optional) : $25

Note that these are all one time costs, not recurring.

If you really do not want to get premium membership, you can create your own GPX-formatted file individually. What premium membership provides is the convenience - you can transfer a huge number of caches to the PDA without going through them individually first.

May 31, 2011

We cached for a full year with a Nuvi 265w...I didn't have money for paper and ink so I wrote out everything in a journal and we dragged it around with us. I just looked at that journal today and smiled at all of the notes and craziness we had during that year. I always stapled receipts in there if we visited a park or area that required an entrance fee. I also used a page in the journal when I slipped down a hill and ended up hand first into a saguaro cactus....so, the blood is still in the journal....I would rip pages out of it when we came across a cache that needed a fresh log. There are phone numbers in there from cachers we would meet on the trail. I am SO glad that I have that journal from our first year. I also wrote down the name of cachers that had memorable caches that we found....this was long before the "favorites" button. I now have met most of those cachers and they know the impact they had on how I choose to play this game of geocaching. My son was 12 then and still wanting to do things with mom....those days are mostly gone....I will always treasure that journal and those memories we created together.

I see the Wii commercials and how that game console supposedly creates family time....SORRY - it can't compete with the family time that geocaching has given to the KBfamily....if anyone is listening, THANK YOU geocaching!!

Edited May 31, 2011 by KBfamily

7.7k · May 31, 2011

....I will always treasure that journal and those memories we created together.

Great story, thanks!

22k · May 31, 2011

The money I spend on ink & paper is probably still way less than phone & data charges... How much does your phone cost you a month? More than $10.00?

No kidding. And I can't even use my phone for geocaching.

1.4k · May 31, 2011

We are "low tech" when it comes to geocaching. We have an old GPS (Garmin 12) that was given to us 8 years ago when we moved to Florida. We still print out the cache information for the caches we want to find while traveling. We look for local caches in the evenings after dinner. The most we've ever found in one day was 15, but we had a picnic with friends along the way.

We don't get much of a chance to be first to find, because we have pay as you go phones, not the kind that connects to the internet and texts us when a new cache pops up. Besides we still work, so we can't just stop fishing and run off after a cache...

We are on a limited budget that keeps us from things like Premium Memberships (yeah, I know it's ONLY $30 a year, we have priorities) I was just wondering , Are we the only ones left, is this a vanishing breed? Are we Geocaching Dinosaurs????

We started geocaching for cheap entertainment and our only expense is gas and printer ink... it's fun. We don't feel the need to be "number ho's" or keep up with all of the high tech stuff... is there anybody else, like us, out there????

Yep I'm sure there are many like you thankfully I don't happen to be one. I like all of the things you don't

May 31, 2011

That is exactly how I cache... a 60CSx for my handheld, and a Nuvi 255W for navigating to the park/cache site and for paperless info. I use GSAK and this macro and I get everything that the Pocket Query give me.

That's funny, exactly the way we do it, except we still use a cheapo yellow Etrex with a serial cable for the handheld. The Nuvi works great for having a boatload of info stored it it. I just push the POI file to an SD card so I have plenty of room. Plus if we're in a strange town, it's great for turn by turn... eh... "recalculating"... navigation to the spot.

May 31, 2011

Isn't it great how this game can be played in so many ways? My first day was with printouts and no GPSr and in soaking rain. That ranks as one of the most memorable days. And isn't that why we play? Now I go paperless with PQs. (And seldom in the rain) We remember the challenges and misadventures better than the big counts, don't we?

May 31, 2011

We usually pick where we want to go, load up the caches we want to look for, print the first page of any hides that don't sound real easy to find, write a few notes and then go hunting. I keep a log of the finds or dnfs on the papers I bring. Upon returning from the hunting I take the time to sit down on the computer and write individual logs for each find or dnf. Any papers left over make good scratch paper which we use a lot of at the house. There are probably a few features that we are not utilizing that might be nice but this works good for us. Definitely not a numbers thing for us. To each their own way.

1.9k · May 31, 2011

not the kind that connects to the internet and texts us when a new cache pops up.

Since notifies are premium only, what kind of phone you have is a moot point if you aren't premium.

June 1, 2011

I use an old eTrex that I got at a garage sale for 5 bucks:) It apparantly will connect to the computer, but I don't have a cord;) So, I usually copy and paste the Cache title, coords, description if it seems tricky and any personal notes. I fit several on one page, print them up and put them in a binder. I'd love to go paperless. I have an old PDA...but have no idea how to put info from teh computer on it.

7.7k · June 1, 2011

I'd love to go paperless. I have an old PDA...but have no idea how to put info from teh computer on it.

What PDA do you have?

June 1, 2011

I tried paperless once. It was before my 60csx arrived. I was trying to use my Garmin nuvi and just wasn't having any luck. I went home and found out how to go paperless with my nuvi. I kinda like paperless and I kinda don't. It is just a pain to drag two gps' around and The nuvi doesn't display all the data like I would like it to. I am not going to pay to have a phone that can do all the paperless stuff so I am going to go back to printing out the caches. Technology aint all it's cracked up to be.

That is exactly how I cache... a 60CSx for my handheld, and a Nuvi 255W for navigating to the park/cache site and for paperless info. I use GSAK and this macro and I get everything that the Pocket Query give me .

Us too. I carry the 60csx, she carries the nuvi 255w (yep exact model)or an ipod with the description and she usually makes the find.

That said, it was just us with a nuvi and printed stuff for the first 100+ finds. Worked pretty well I think, just frustrating sometimes. I know there is software that condences the cache info into a much more efficient and printer friendly format. Might be a happy medium?

Edited June 1, 2011 by d+n.s

7.9k · June 2, 2011

There is nothing keeping you from having JUST AS MUCH fun as someone with the latest smartphone, the newest GPSr, and all the other gadgetry.

Sometimes fooling around with all that stuff actually REDUCES the fun factor.

Keep on doing it your way...you'll be fine.

And, NEVER, EVER feel inferior because someone else has XXXXX finds to their credit, or found XXX caches in 24 hours.

June 2, 2011

I'd love to go paperless. I have an old PDA...but have no idea how to put info from teh computer on it.

What PDA do you have?

I'll have to look...it is my husbands old one.

June 2, 2011

When I was in high school, I used to go after caches around Savannah, Ga with a friend. We didn't have a GPS to use, we were just familiar enough with the area that it wasn't something we felt we needed. Not to mention a GPS is an investment most high schoolers aren't going to see as worthwhile when a decent GPS is the same price as a few new Xbox games. Now I cache with a Droid and wish I could spare the money to get a proper GPS, it does a decent job but the battery life is way too short for my taste. Smartphones work fine until the battery dies...

7.7k · June 2, 2011

I'd love to go paperless. I have an old PDA...but have no idea how to put info from teh computer on it.

What PDA do you have?

I'll have to look...it is my husbands old one.

If you can post the information, together with what type of computer you have (Mac or Windows, and if Windows, 32 or 64 bit OS) we'll see what can be done.

1.9k · June 2, 2011

We are "low tech" when it comes to geocaching. We have an old GPS (Garmin 12) that was given to us 8 years ago when we moved to Florida. We still print out the cache information for the caches we want to find while traveling. We look for local caches in the evenings after dinner. The most we've ever found in one day was 15, but we had a picnic with friends along the way.

We don't get much of a chance to be first to find, because we have pay as you go phones, not the kind that connects to the internet and texts us when a new cache pops up. Besides we still work, so we can't just stop fishing and run off after a cache...

We are on a limited budget that keeps us from things like Premium Memberships (yeah, I know it's ONLY $30 a year, we have priorities) I was just wondering , Are we the only ones left, is this a vanishing breed? Are we Geocaching Dinosaurs????

We started geocaching for cheap entertainment and our only expense is gas and printer ink... it's fun. We don't feel the need to be "number ho's" or keep up with all of the high tech stuff... is there anybody else, like us, out there????

Hey, that's cool. My first 100 or so finds was with a GPS 12, and printing out cache pages. Then I got an eTrex Vista and thought I was cool stuff (plus EasyGPS and premium membership). And I determined to stop printing cache pages, maybe just a list or quick scribble note to myself. Now I am use a GPSMap60csx plus GSAK, and I still think I am cool stuff. OK, in all cases there are cooler things out there, but it worked fine for me and where I was at the time.

Just have fun with it, it can grow as you do, or if you like things, there is no reason to change them.

3.8k · June 2, 2011

I think the $30 permium membership and the $15 Cache Report is the way to go.

5.8k · June 2, 2011

We started out with the GPS12, I'd gotten it as a law school graduation present in 2000. Found the first few caches after some circling around -- it was pretty inaccurate under the trees. Can't remember when we upgraded to the 60CSx, but we used that for a good long while -- having a map changed our game a lot for the better, even though the maps aren't 100% accurate, when you're out in the field it's nice to be able to see which side of a river or highway a cache might be on. Still have the 60CSx as a backup, but we've almost completely switched to the Oregon 400t, mainly because of the paperless function.

June 3, 2011

yes there is someone out there who considers himself as a low tech type of guy. i have a couple older gps's that i bought and use. instead of printing the cache info out i write the info out into a notepad and then go look for them. i never take anything and every once in a while i leave a trinket that i find or pick up from somewhere else. i love to leave those smashed pennies that you get a special places. i feel that being a bit low tech goes with the philosophy of leaving minimal disturbance to places.

2.4k · June 3, 2011

We used to print, but eventually a sale on the Magellan GC made me think again. I hate the cost of printer ink and the pile of paper I accumulated. I recycled, making notepads for both my jobs - but eventually there were too many notepads!

I do like a printout for Earthcaches. I am lo-tech and have Popoki Nui load caches into our GPSs...I am too slow - and from one time to the next can't remember how. Oh, the blessings of getting older!!!!!

June 3, 2011

A Garmin Nuvi, with the paperless macro, GSAK, & TOPO's from File Depot is the easiest & cheapest way to go......& works really great!!

June 3, 2011

Look it up online here and try to find it from memory. No map, no GPS'r, no nuthin'. Cheapest way there is. Of course, I only average one a day but still...

June 4, 2011

I dont print the whole page. just enough info to get me to the cache. I can usually get 10 to 15 caches on a page, the city at the end is just the closest, cache could be 2 to 3 miles from the city. Copy ,paste, and cut can be time consuming, but I don't watch much tv, and work on it an hour or two before and after work.

for example,

(GC27B1K) N 43° 25.128 W 088° 37.942 Bobs hide by rocky&kids, An old friend of mines bar & restraunt long time ago it was called Woods Bridge. His family owned it , it had other oners since it burnt down.log cabin house there now. You are looking for a samll camo plastic bottle with little goodies in it , bring a pen to sign log sheet . Horicon.

(GC1HY14) N 43° 03.149 W 088° 13.445 WSQ Pilgrims' Rest by Mister Greenthumb,This cemetery is in a busy location so some stealth be neccesary. There are graves from the 1800's up to present day. Pewaukee.

June 4, 2011

I'd love to go paperless. I have an old PDA...but have no idea how to put info from teh computer on it.

What PDA do you have?

I'll have to look...it is my husbands old one.

If you can post the information, together with what type of computer you have (Mac or Windows, and if Windows, 32 or 64 bit OS) we'll see what can be done.

Awesome:) I'll see if I can't dig it out tomorrow.

7.3k · June 5, 2011

I'm a Luddite. No cell phone, no smart phone, just re-invested in Premium Membership this year. (And I mainly did that to be able to take advantage of Favorites points and bookmark lists. LOL )

My husband likes the PQ's. He sends me a list of GC codes, and I go to each one and read the cache page, and all the logs.

We're not into the FTF race, so notifications aren't of interest to us. In fact, after my one and only attempt to be FTF on a cache, I'm quite content to let others do the "beta testing" of coordinates of newly placed caches.

If it's a cache we want to search for, I'll either print off the whole cache page, or what I am doing more of lately...highlight/copy/paste the GC code, the cache name, D/T rating, cache size, coordinates and the hint into a Notepad file. If the cache page is supposed to have trackables, then I'll add that info, too.

When we get home, I log our finds and DNF's on-line. If we have something to report about trackables missing or discovered, I do that, too.

New to us is the gps: a Garmin 60CSX. Made that purchase after reading rave review after rave review. So far, I'm really liking this gps.

Also really, really new to us: an adorable little netbook computer. So far, I'm loving this little guy, too. We haven't taken it for its intended use of geocaching yet.

We tend to go on "cache runs". I choose one cache and look on the map for other caches in close-ish proximity to it. We have been known to drive a few miles while searching out caches. /understatement mode off

Our "most finds in a day" is 15. Heck, in the 6 years since we created this account, we've only logged 256 finds! But, I'll tell ya...I remember each and every one of them. It's to the point where driving around is a matter of pointing out where the cache is, rather than looking at street names. :lol:

Low Tech Geocachers

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