Andy Camper

GeoCaching

Discover It

Get Caching!

Read a good pirate story lately and dreamed about hunting for treasure? That isn’t such a far-fetched fantasy as you might think. Check out this section for some fun ideas on how to hunt for treasure right around the world. Oh and keep an eye out for the AndyCamper Gang too; they have got the travel bug.  You never know who you’ll come across!

Geocaching is a fun way to explore the outdoors and see some cool stuff along the way.  It may sound complicated but it really isn’t.  All you need is a GPS unit and a sense of adventure! (PS. You can rent a GPS in most major cities and parks.)

What’s a cache?
Just think of a cache as a treasure chest, and your part of a worldwide club that hides and finds them. In it you’ll find a logbook that you’ll sign to let everyone else who visits it know that you were there. You’ll also find all sorts of loot inside – anything from kazoos and whistles to DVDs and video games. You can usually find them in large rock piles, tree trunks, and bushy areas.

How do I find one?
Geocaches are tracked through geocaching.com.  Just enter your postal code or city name there to find ones near your home or cottage. Each cache listed should give you a waypoint - a location on a map by longitude and latitude. You enter this in your GPS unit to help you find it. There might also be a description of what’s inside and tips and hints to help you locate it. Hunting for one close to home in an area you’re familiar with is a good way to get started.

What’s a travel bug?
No there are no bugs in the loot.  Travel bugs are items with special tags attached to them. The tag has a unique ID# on it that you can track at geocaching.com.  These “bugs” travel all over the world from cache to cache fulfilling the dreams or “Goals” of their owners.  The bugs are picked up at a cache, follow the person who picks it up on an adventure and then gets dropped off at another cache where it waits for someone else to share another adventure.  Andy and the gang are traveling all over having all sorts of adventures like that. Click here to see where they’re headed to next and how you can help them on their way!

What if I don’t have a GPS?
Don’t worry if Dad hasn’t gone high-tech yet.  You can always hunt for treasure low-tech just like Boppa used to do.  Just get some loot and hide it in a treasure chest around your house or cottage.  Make a list of clues that your hunters will follow to get to your treasure.  Use your imagination and see where it takes you.  You can pretend the pond is an ocean or the hill is a mountain.  Pretty soon you’ll think you really have traveled the world!

Rules of the game:

• Sign the logbook and write a story about how you got to the cache.
• Take something from the cache and leave something behind. No food items allowed.
• If you can, take a picture of the cache, the items, and you & your friends and post it to the website when you get home. Try to take a picture that doesn’t give the location away so you don’t spoil it for others. Remember the fun is trying to find it!
• When you’re done, be sure to seal the cache back up and put it back exactly where and how you found it.  If you found it under a pile or rocks, be sure to pile them back on top of it before you leave.
• Make sure not to be seen by any Geomuggles either (Geomuggles are non geocaching people.)
• When you get back, log your visit to the cache, post the photos if you took some and let the website know how the cache is doing.  The website will let the cache know you found it!
• I f you find a travel bug, pick it up, punch the numbers into the website and find out what its mission or adventure is. Then share an adventure with it and place it in another cache to help it on its way. Don’t forget to log where you found it at geocaching.com. Maybe - just maybe it’s one of the AndyCamper geo gang. See more!

GeoCaching Tips:

Be prepared.

Research the area you’ll be exploring.  Buy a map and look for any obstacles you might come across in your search.  Be sure you dress according to the weather.

Do you research?

Geocaching.com will provide you with directions as well as the location of the cache, these instructions some times have warnings, and can also offer spoilers if you want to make it easier on your self. Make sure to read them carefully

Don’t go alone

Its never a good idea to explore the great outdoors on your own.  Make sure you bring a buddy along and check with Mom or Dad before you head out.  Be sure you tell them where you’re going and when you’ll be back.

Remember your starting point

You’ll need it to find your way back!  If your search takes you off a trail or into unfamiliar territory it’s a good idea to write down your starting waypoint so you don’t end up lost in the middle of nowhere.

Be aware of your surroundings

You’ll be so busy tracking your loot that it’ll be easy to lose track of what’s around you.  Keep an eye out for dangerous terrain and wildlife.