advice

Geocaching Snack – Cheesy Trail Mix

Maybe it’s just me but I ALWAYS need to have snacks handy. I’m like the poster child for the ‘hangries’ (that’s when you get hungry and then you get angry!) Everybody in my family, Ben included, knows that you’ve got to feed me, regularly!

Of course, sometimes there’s just not a convenient time or place to stop for a whole meal. Enter… Trail mix!

Cheesy Trail Mix - a go-to #geocaching #snack Click To Tweet

I can’t STAND that pre-packaged store bought crap. Shudder. Usually way too much on the carb/sugar side and too low on the protein side. Or it’s filled with things that I’m just not that into. (I love raisins but won’t touch a cashew with a ten-foot-pole!)

Here’s a favorite go-to trail mix of mine, PERFECT for geocaching: Keep Reading!

8 years ago • • Tags:

Carrying water while geocaching: How much and how to carry it

I got asked the question:

What’s the best way to carry water while geocaching. A Camelbak seems like overkill!

~ Roger

Great question, Roger!

You might not know this but I spent about 10 years volunteering for Yavapai County Search & Rescue. One thing that was common was that people didn’t carry nearly enough water!

While geocachers probably AREN’T hiking 10, 12, 15 miles in a single stretch water is something that you should always have plenty of.

Jess carries a TON of water with her all the time!

Jess carries a TON of water with her all the time!

It’s important as well to know your personal water needs. My friend Jess needs about double the water I do. On a recent 10-mile day hike, she carried SEVEN LITERS! But she knew she needed it! I’m typically good with 3.

And don’t forget to take weather and activity into account as well. If it’s hot you’ll want more water. If you’re exerting (up and down hills) you’ll want more.

Here are my top tips:

Keep Reading!

8 years ago • • Tags: , ,

Buying Geocaching Swag

In preparation for my big upcoming geocaching event in September, I’ve been going through all my drawers looking for good swag as “seed swag” for the caches I’ll be placing. But, I’d pretty much already done that when I started caching and have placed or traded most of it.

Last weekend I was doing some shopping and decided to look into just BUYING swag. Of course, the toy department at my local Walmart had a ton of selection: for a ton of money! And the toys at the dollar store, while priced better, were just too cheap and boring looking.

Swag

This is the swag in just two and a half bags. We ended up with 7 bags of swag so 70 trade items!

Then, I hit upon it: Goodwill!

Now, I don’t know if every Goodwill store offers toys. Of the two here in Prescott, I think only one does. But it was still worth the trip!

There were about twenty bins attached to a back wall, each filled with a selection of plastic toys. And the sign above the bins:

10 for $1.49
4 for $0.99

Keep Reading!

12 years ago • • Tags: ,

10 Mistakes New Cachers Make & How To Avoid Them

1. Thinking GPS units are 100% accurate

They’re not! A GPS will get you close, but you’ll never stand right on top of a cache. And different units will be off by different amounts.

Tip: Expand your search area

Magnetic Cache Container

This was the first magnetic cache container we’d ever found. For people used to finding ammo cans in the woods, it took some time to readjust our thinking.

2. Hides are always on the ground.

Keep Reading!

12 years ago • • Tags: , ,

Loading Caches Directly Into A GPS

I recently got a great comment from Andy on the article “Using Geocaching.com To Find A Spot For A Cache”

I would normally load all the caches in that area to my GPS. When I find a good site I just simply check the GPS for any nearby waypoints in my GPS and it will show up it the new cache is close to an existing one. If this is the case I would try to seek out a new spot using the same method.

But that got me thinking:

How many cachers know how to load caches into their GPS?

Keep Reading!

13 years ago • • Tags: , ,

Explaining Geocaching To Muggles

Have you ever tried to explain geocaching to a muggle? It can be anything from a new convert to the geocaching game, blank stares, or GULP, having Officer McFriendly called on you.

Will the muggles leave you alone or will them come check out what you’re doing?

Here are some tips for what to do when confronted by a muggle:

1. Invent a Story

Yes, I’ve been known to spontaneously invent a story when I get asked why I’m carrying a GPS. This is when I’m not anywhere near the cache and am just starting to make my approach.

I’ve used everything from “I’m doing classified work for the government” to “I’m a geologist mapping the lake shore”.

I usually get asked this when people notice the GPS and are just being chatty.

Keep Reading!

13 years ago • • Tags: ,

Muggle Avoidance Tips

We all know that muggles (non-geocachers) are just part of the game. Unfortunately, muggles can cause geocachers some serious problems either by harassing a cacher OR by stealing a geocache. Here are some tips to help you avoid muggles altogether.

(Next week will be an article about what to do when you are actually confronted with a muggle!)

1. Think Before You Cache

Most geocaches hidden in high traffic areas will warn cachers to watch out for muggles. My ‘5 is Prime’ geocache is hidden in a more urban area of my home town. There are a lot of people walking dogs, playing ball in the park, and just hanging out at any hour of the day. To make matters worse, the cache has to be RIGHT THERE to be well-hidden from casual glances.

Keep Reading!

13 years ago • • Tags: , ,

Geocaching Supplies Checklist

Ealier, I posted about my geocaching tool kit; these are tools that I take with me to actually FIND and RETRIEVE the cache. I got so many comments on that post about what people have in their kits, I though I’d better do a follow-up article!

To Retrieve The Cache

  • Walking stick. This is a must for Arizona where all manner of creatures (usually that bite, sting, are poisonous or all three!) like to live around caches. So a walking stick is perfect for jamming into a likely crevasse or flipping over rocks.
  • Gloves. My garden gloves do double duty in my caching kit. This is nice when I’ve got my fingernails painted a la filming for The Outdoor Princess Productions. Or when locating the cache requires me to move plants with thorns.
  • Small mirror. I finally got tired of sticking my head under cattle guards looking for micros! Now, I just angle the mirror under so I can see BEFORE I stick my head into anything!
  • Needle nose pliers. For when you can SEE the cache, but you can’t get your fingers in there! Pliers are tough and portable!
  • Forceps. Yep, I carry BOTH. Sometimes the pliers are too big to extract the log sheet from a nano. And the forceps can be too delicate for leveraging a good-sized cache container out of the hiding spot.
  • Flashlight. Sometimes shining a light into a likely spot will show the cache reflecting back at you. And sometimes it shows the eyes of whatever critter is living in the hole!
  • Telescoping Magnet (or a magnet on a string). Sometimes, you can fish a cache out with that! Just make sure the magnet is tied on tight! (Thanks to GC Addicted)

Keep Reading!

13 years ago • • Tags: ,

What Are Collectable Geocoins?

Rotary International collectable coin.

When I first started geocaching, I had no idea that there are actually TWO types of geocoins: trackable and collectable. It wasn’t until I doing research for the EatStayPlay.com Geocoin that I discovered the difference!

Back in April, I wrote an article all about what trackable geocoins are and how they work. But, since then, I’ve realized that many people might not actually know the difference between a trackable geocoin and one that you collect.

Keep Reading!

13 years ago • • Tags: , ,

7 Tips For Night Caching

Did you realize that you can geocache 24-hours a day? Yep, unlike mountain biking which is TOTALLY limited to daylight, or hiking or kayaking which are NORMALLY limited to daylight, geocaching can be done in the middle of the night!

Hope you’re not afraid of the dark!

Here are 7 things to consider if you’re hunting a geocache after the sun goes down:

Keep Reading!

13 years ago • • Tags:

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