In Disney’s “Pirates of the Caribbean” series, Captain Jack Sparrow has a magical compass that points in the direction of whatever treasure his heart desires. People who participate in an activity called geocaching use a similar tool, a Global Positioning Satellite Receiver (GPS), to find treasures called caches, or geocaches, that are hidden all over the world.
Geocaching (pronounced geo-cash-ing) is basically a world-wide game of hide-and-seek. It started in 2000 after President Clinton ordered the deactivation of selective availability (SA), which had scrambled the signals sent to commercial GPS units. SA caused the units to be off by several feet, sometimes even as much as the length of a football field!
Previously, accurate GPS units had been limited to the military. After the removal of SA, any civilian with a GPS unit could pinpoint his location anywhere in the world.
Many were astonished by the thought of how one could use this technology. One such person was Dave Ulmer, a computer consultant. One day Ulmer decided to test the accuracy of the upgraded GPS system by placing a bucket in the nearby woods of Portland, Ore, posting the coordinates online, and challenging readers to find the bucket. It turns out that many did find the bucket. Afterward, others began to mimic Ulmer’s challenge and thus geocaching was born.
Today tens of thousands of people participate in geocaching world-wide. On Friday, it was reported on geocaching.com, the main geocaching website, that there are 710,618 active caches around the world.
A cache is a container which contains small trinkets and a log book that is used to record who has found the cache.
There are various types of caches. The traditional cache is simply a cache hidden in a particular location. The person who hides the cache, the keeper, posts the GPS coordinates online. The cacher, the one looking for the cache, could then punch in the coordinates on his GPS unit and find the cache.
After finding the cache, the cacher would sign the log book and could either leave an item or swap an item from the box with another of equal or greater value.
A multicache is a cache that covers multiple locations. For instance, when following the coordinates given on the geocaching website, the cacher might find himself at a specific tombstone in the cemetery that contains information needed to find the next location. Something like the birth and death dates or the name could be encoded GPS coordinates to the next cache, which could lead you to another cache, until you finally get to the end of the multicache.
“I try to place caches where you can learn something about the history of the local area,” said Dan Henke, a local cacher and keeper who is the president of the Rolla Historical Society and works as a librarian at the Curtis Laws Wilson Library on the Missouri S&T campus. Henke designs his multicaches so that through each cache, the cacher learns something about a particular historical person, place or thing in Rolla.
Caches can be placed in urban or wilderness areas. When placing a cache it is best to gain permission first. Most state parks and forest services respect geocaching because the hidden caches bring people to the are. The also appreciate cachers because of the Cache In Trash Out (CITO) program found on geocaching.com, in which cachers are persuaded to collect trash along the trails as they search for caches and to properly dispose of the waste once they leave the trail.
Felicia Higgins, a Protocol Assistant on Fort Leonard Wood, also enjoys geocaching a hobby.
“My son actually showed me (about geocaching) in Warrensburg. Just took the one time to get me hooked,” she said as she shared about how she first learned about the activity. Higgins has many caches hidden in the local area, but says she is mainly a seeker.
“You can go anywhere and still have something to find,” she said.
“It’s a way to see the world in a completely different way. (Geocaching) gets people out and exploring. There are places that I would never have seen if not for going after a cache,” Higgins added.
While geocaching one can also get to meet new people and see new places.
“There are event caches in the state where you can meet and greet others,” Higgins informed.
If a cache has any obscene material inside, the cache’s webpage will give a warning. However, the majority of caches are not obscene, but kid-friendly, which makes geocaching a great family activity. Many caches are also handicapped accessible.
“Geocaching can be anything for anybody at anytime,” Henke summed up.
One does not have to move to the coast and become a pirate to treasure hunt. All that is needed is a GPS unit and a free account on geocaching.com to begin the adventure.
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