High-tech hide-and-seek

• By LISA TRAMONTANA
• FUN staff
• Published: Jan 2, 2009 - UPDATED: 12:05 a.m.

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When Claire Coco wanted to attend her first geocache meeting, she had to learn fast. Her geocache contact wouldn’t even tell her the location of the next get-together. Instead, he gave her some coordinates and told her to figure it out by using her GPS (global positioning system) device.

Geocaching is like a high-tech scavenger hunt, a grown-up version of hide-and-seek in which hobbyists use GPS devices to locate containers that usually hold a logbook and a “treasure” ... items that are hidden from view. That could be a film canister in a tree branch, a keychain lodged beneath a bus stop bench or a stash of coins hidden in a hollow tree stump.

Geocachers hide items, record the GPS coordinates and post them online so seekers can see what “treasures” are hidden in their area. Seekers can then plan their hunting/fishing expedition accordingly. Once a player finds a cache, he signs the accompanying logbook, and goes online to document his success.

Documentation is important since being the “first to find” a cache gives geocachers bragging rights. Some geocachers try to see how many items they can find in a day. Others seek a challenge by selecting items with high ratings in difficulty or terrain. A mountain trail cache, for instance, would get a high rating as opposed to something that could be discovered in a downtown parking lot.

The only equipment necessary for geocaching is a GPS unit, an electronic device that provides longitude and latitude coordinates to determine one’s location (within about 20 feet). GPS units can be purchased at sporting goods stores or ordered online. A compass can be used to narrow the search even further by triangulating the final location.

“There are rules to follow in the game of geocaching,” Coco said. “For instance, if you take something, you leave something for the next person to find.” That’s because many caches contain multiple items.

Not everyone follows the honor system, however.

Jeff Sibley once hid a collection of coins from other countries at a park near the airport. “There was a theme ... a sort of currency exchange,” he said. “Rather than a logbook, I placed a receipt book in the container with the hopes that people would trade coins. It was a good idea, but eventually, the bank was robbed. Oh well, those things happen.”

And then there are the “travel bugs.” These are items that have tags attached to them so they can be tracked as they are moved from location to location. Sometimes, they come with notes that say they would like to visit a particular place, and some geocachers are happy to oblige by taking travel bugs with them on vacations or business trips.

Sibley has indulged his hide and seek hobby in about a dozen states, he said, and he enjoys geocaching when he travels out of state or even out of the country. One of his favorite geocaching adventures took place in Normandy, France, he said.

Geocaching is a great hobby for kids because of the obvious math and geography skills it encourages. But it also qualifies as an outdoor activity that gets them moving.

“I’m a big proponent of getting kids off the computer, turning off the TV and going outside,” said Coco, who heads BREC’s Bluebonnet Swamp Nature Center. “So geocaching is great for them.”

In fact, Bluebonnet Swamp will offer a geocaching program for those age 7 and up. Coco spent last week hiding several geocache items for the upcoming Swamp Treasure Hunt, which will be held on Saturday, Jan. 17. The cost is just $4 per person, and participants will learn the etiquette and rules of the hobby and how to use a GPS device. For more information on the program, call (225) 757-8905.