Geocaching uses GPS navigation to follow coordinates that lead to a destination. Once a geocacher finds the destination and collects the prize, he or she leaves something in its place and continues on to hunt another.
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
F-4 fighter jets lie like tossed toys, fragile and insignificant, filling trivial space. These are the fallen heroes that paint the scene of the airplane junk yard in Rantoul, Kan.
Paul Bickford’s GPS shrieks a high-pitched whine signaling the next direction, which he obediently follows. An urgent message informs Bickford that his destination is under one of the planes decorating the barren field.
Geocaching how-to
To start, register for free at Geocaching.com, search your postal code, and select a cache to find that fits your goals, consider distance, difficulty, and time (especially close to sunset). Enter the GPS coordinates and begin the hunt for your cache. Once found, sign the logbook and return the cache to its original location. If you take something, leave something of equal value for the next visitor to find. All age groups are encouraged to participate and the search can be solo or as a group. Share your adventures and photos with other cachers online. However, Olathe geochacher, Larry Robinson, offers a word of caution.
“I would most definitely recommend this activity, but I will warn anyone taking it up that it is addictive and once you start if you really get into it you will never be the same afterwards.”
Bickford, Olathe junior, gingerly checks out the target he’s been hunting: a relic F-4 fighter jet of the Vietnam War. Running his hand down the cool, metallic belly of the beast, he reaches into the engine’s air intake valve. Crammed inside is the cache — the treasure Bickford had been searching for.
This high-tech version of a treasure hunt is called geocaching, where hand-held GPS devices and specific coordinates have replaced the crayon-colored maps hanging on the refrigerators of childhood.
What you'll need
- GPS receiver
- Good shoes
- Bug spray
- Extra batteries
- Water
- Flashlight
- Compass
- Pen and paper
- Camera
- Something to leave
The treasure is different, too. Hidden containers called geocaches, or caches, bear unknown secrets such as logbooks, objects for trade or more clues to continue the chase on to the next mysterious location. Caches linger not just in the backyard, but around the world in anticipation of the next visitor.
“The first time I tried geocaching, my GPS said the cache was in the middle of a large lake,” Bickford said. “I eventually found it hidden in a rock wall. I myself took an old Army patch and left a keychain I picked up in Colorado.”
On May 2, 2000, the government removed the selective availability on its satellites, making them available to anyone wanting to pinpoint an exact location.
The next day, Dave Ulmer ventured into the woods of Beaver Creek, Ore., with a black bucket containing a logbook, pencil and various prize items: videos, books, software and a sling-shot. He shared the coordinates of his stash online with the simple rule: “take some stuff, leave some stuff.”
Nearly a decade later, Geocaching has become an obsession for more than 2.5 million treasure hunters. Worldwide, there are 924, 213 active caches and 727 in Lawrence, according to Geocaching.com.
Larry Robinson, an Olathe geocacher, said he became a hooked geocacher after receiving a GPS device for Father’s Day in 2005. “I have been to many places I would not have seen were it not for geocaching,” he said. “I have been in caves, castles and on top of mountains. There is no end to the rich diversity of places I have seen.”
Geocaching encourages people from all age groups to wander onto the serene scene of nature, disturbing an otherwise unknown location. Respect and support for the environment are strongly emphasized. “Cache In Trash Out” is a worldwide clean-up effort sponsored by geocaching designed to preserve the environment.
The impact of this high-tech treasure hunt is personalized for each cacher. A new appreciation for the outdoors, Bickford said, was his greatest benefit. For Robinson, it has been a life-changing experience. He has lost more than 100 pounds since he started participating.
“Geocaching has changed my life,” Robinson said. “It helped me make some very healthy choices in my lifestyle, brought me some lifelong friends and helped me to see the world in ways I never would have otherwise.”
Dana Atwood-Blaine, Ada, Okla. graduate student, researches ways to use GPS in K-12 education. She said geocaching has allowed her to become more confident, persistent and able to spend more quality time with her husband and 8-year-old son.
“Our whole family gets to spend time together,” Atwood-Blaine said. “It’s exciting and fun, and you learn a lot. You kind of feel like you’re part of some secret network of people. It’s a sneaky, fun feeling.”
Bickford plans to continue the adventure of hiding and seeking treasures into the future. The alluring activity has him hooked.
“It’s like hiking but there’s always a surprise ending.”
— Edited by Betsy Cutcliff
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