Geocaching: Geocaching is a real-world, outdoor treasure hunting game using GPS-enabled devices. Participants navigate to a specific set of GPS coordinates and then attempt to find the geocache (container) hidden at that location.
I heard about geocaching several months ago from a friend and only recently has it been nice enough out to actually go and find a "treasure." I gotta say, this was one very fun activity to do with the kids! In a nutshell (and as it says above) you go to a website, search geocaches in your area, get the coordinates and plug them into your GPS, then off you go!
We drove about twenty miles up North Fork and ended up at a trailhead, then hiked the last mile or so, followed our GPS, and voila there was the ammo box (on the website, the people who hide the treasures can put in a little description, so we knew what we were looking for) hidden in a hole under a large rock. There were goodies for the kids and we came prepared, because if you take something then you have to leave something. Amanda took a bookmark and left a little plastic dolphin, and Brandon took a little Lego guy and left a plastic praying mantis. Also inside was a small notebook and pencils so we could add a little note and read what others said about finding it themselves. That one in particular has been there about five years and it was so cool to see what others said when they found it.
We will be doing more throughout the summer 'cause there are about 25 geocaches in our area. If you are looking for something to do outdoors and you have a GPS that you can carry around, I highly recommend this. Not only was it a fun thing to do for all of us, it was so nice to be in our beautiful mountains.
Here is the website, go check it out! http://www.geocaching.com/
2 comments:
Oh wow that is such a cool idea. I love that your kids love to be outdoors and do things like this. When I was growing up we were outside ALL the time. ALL THE TIME. My parents and my friends' folks had to shout at us so that we would come home and eat. ANd there was always barganing at the end. 5 more minutes! No, 10! 5 or you are coming home now! o.k 7. etc.
These days... I live in a massive block of flats... the whole neighborhood is like that, and yet you can't see kids. You see teenagers sitting on benches swearing and being loud and smoking cigarettes, but no kids. Where are they? At homes in front of computers I reckon. We are growing a generation that will be socially retarded and obese. They won't know how to hold a normal conversation, or do things, because they spend time on facebook and otehr social portals or in chat rooms.
Oh-oh got carried away.
Anyway love that you do these things.
Roxy you are so right! I try to keep a little balance with the kids - they do plenty of tv watching and video game playing, but they also read, play outside, we do puzzles or board games, and we do things out and about town. Hiking has become a favorite thing to do for us and when I discovered the geocaching, hiking became that much more fun!
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