So, you’ve heard about this gee-oh-cashing thing that sounds like fun.
You download the official Geocaching app after creating an account on the Geocaching website , and head out into the land of adventure!
History Lesson, History Lesson
Geocaching started a long time ago when the U.S. Government decided to allow civilians, who had a GPSr, better accuracy. So Dave in Oregon, decided to hide something and posted on a message board the longitude and latitude. Someone found it and geocaching was born.
Enough with History! Now I have noticed that the world has basically two kinds of cachers, those who know what they are doing, and those who don’t. This article is addressed to those who don’t, and for the amusement of those who do. It’s just a few hints and suggestions if you are just starting out.
The Basics
Before going out, learn something about how geocaching works- more than the simple stuff I’m going tell you here. Just because you can find a cache doesn’t make you a geocacher, it makes you a “muggle-lite.” Until you understand and can live by the basic rules you know just enough to be dangerous and annoying. You are the person the bomb squad gets called about. Visit Geocaching.com, Listen to Podcacher or another podcast, watch cool intro video on YouTube like this one; Geocaching 101 video. You didn’t just go out and start flying that 747, you had to take some classes first! So educate yourself.
Shhh… Be very, very quiet
Geocaching is about stealth, embrace your inner ninja. Don’t let other people see you or hear you. I recall an early standoff in a parking lot in which two cachers who didn’t know each other sat in their cars feet away from a cache trying to look inconspicuous. Finally, after it looked like one had decided to change their oil… Well it wasn’t pretty. It is better sometimes to walk away and try again another day.
Your First, Second, Third Find…
You found the cache on the third branch of a pine tree about a foot from the trunk… put it back in the same place. Many new cachers want to re-hide a cache because they think it was too easy, or the cache might get wet. Cache owners know exactly where they hid the cache and don’t want to play hide and seek with their own cache. Also when it comes to cache containers, make sure they are completely closed before putting them back EXACTLY WHERE YOU FOUND IT.
Trade items
Not all caches have trade items- the larger the cache container, the better chance that it will have SWAG (Something We All Get). The golden rule, if you take something from a cache you must put in something of equal or greater value. Something appropriate for all ages, not explosive and something that won’t attract critters (no food). As a new cacher stay away from trackables (TB’s) until you’ve some experience. That shiny coin is not something you take home and put in your treasure box, it is supposed to go from cache to cache. A dog tag means no matter how cute the troll is, it is supposed to travel, not go home with you.
Not All Caches are Created Equal
There are different kinds of caches. New cachers should start by only going for traditional caches- on the iPhone app these appear green… don’t mess around with any others until you’ve gotten the hang of things. Typically more than 25 finds and an event or caching with a seasoned cacher. Events are a great place to meet local cachers and to LEARN! You can set your app to only display traditional caches in the settings under Search Filter. By putting your app on “Traditional Only” you won’t get the person who put out “A Century of 5/5’s” upset because you logged their cache but didn’t meet the logging requirements.
Yes, some caches have logging requirements- READ THE CACHE PAGE to find out. If you stick to traditional caches you shouldn’t run into too much trouble, but still LEARN SOMETHING AND READ THE CACHE PAGE. Oh, did I mention you should READ THE CACHE PAGE? This is stressed here because there are several seasoned cachers that skip this part and it truly will make finding a LOT easier. There are hints in the description, in the HINT, and in the LOGS.
But My GPSr and Phone are Always Right!
Not there? If you are new to geocaching, it probably is there and you just can’t find it. Many GPSr units, and especially your phone, can be as much as 30 feet off- even more if you are under cover. DON’T email the owner saying it must have been stolen and they better get out and replace it, DON’T put in your log that it must have been taken and you are absolutely sure where it should be, DON’t try to be a good Samaritan and put a new cache out, where you “know” it should be. DON’T mark the cache as “Needs Maintenance” because you couldn’t find it, and DON’T mark the cache as “Needs Archived” because you couldn’t find it. As a new cacher your log should be something like “I’m new, I guess it just wasn’t my day- I’ll try again another day” or something like that.
Hiding a Cache-
New Cachers- don’t go trying to hide a cache until you’ve experienced enough hides. A good idea is to have 100 finds with 4 different types found. For example; a traditional, a multi, a mystery, and a Letterbox Hybrid, or any combination of the types of caches. Hiding a cache is a great way to give something back to the community, but listen to the reviewers, they are being paid millions of dollars to answer your questions (that’s what “volunteer” means). Don’t argue with them, that would be bad, they are really nice people and Karma can be a…
Membership has its Privileges
Becoming a Premium Member requires you to pay an annual fee, to get access to a bunch of things that as a new cacher you may not need. It is something to consider if after finding all the non-premium 1.5/1.5 caches in your area and you are HOOKED! There is a whole world to discover out there and the amount for the premium members is minimal compared to the adventures and memories to be made while geocaching.
Questions? Any other suggestions for new phone cachers? Put them in the comments.