Looking For a New Adventure?
by Timurlane Cakmak
Looking for something social, active, outdoors, fun and costs no money? Does such a thing exist?
Yes it does and it’s called geocaching!
People who do not know what this is are known as muggles (i.e. people who are not familiar with a particular activity or skill), but read on and you will be in the secret club.
Geocaching is a global treasure hunt for hidden caches (i.e. a collection of similar items stored in a hidden or inaccessible place) that can be found sometimes right in public or nestled into the woods and the coordinates are posted on the Internet for those searching to find typically by using GPS. Some are more all-weather than others. Be sure to read the notes of each cache as ones on the ground can be covered in snow or submerged in water.
There is also a free app which can be easily downloaded, called Geocaching, instead of using GPS, or you can go pure detective.
Cache size ranges from being very large to micro small as much as where you find them ranged. Some items are found in difficult terrain like mountains, river valleys, swamps and high up in a tree. Others are in more accessible places like parks, fields, light trails and in the lower sections of trees.
Purely for this activity, amazing little containers masked as rocks, sticks, logs, bolts and magnets are used to make it difficult to find items as they blend into their environment.
Upon finding caches, there is the satisfaction of finding and “winning” the hunt. But there are other reasons and benefits to take part in this activity including that some caches contain items to trade – give a small item, take a small item – like a deck of cards, small toy or the occasional Tim Hortons gift card.
Geocaching also presents the opportunity to gather people together, solve a puzzle, play, enjoy nature, move and nurture our minds through curiosity and the joy of adventure.
All ages and skill levels are welcome, so it can be a family activity or a group of friends.
It’s a great way to embrace your inner detective and love of nature, activity and community.
Want a bigger challenge? If you feel inspired enough, you can your friends can make a geocache, fill it with things, hide it and then upload a clue with the rough coordinates at geocaching.com/play. Then see how many people find and enjoy your cache!
Get out and make the most of the outdoors this year!
Happy Adventuring.
New-Normal 