Geocaching is basically a GPS-centered treasure hunting game. You can explore the outside world, or just inside your city, in easy or hard places, such as the base of a lamp post, or a camouflaged container in the bushes, forest or a tree. Most Geocaches run from a micro-sized container, like a pill bottle, to small container, such as an ammo box. Inside each cache are small knick-knacks and a log where you sign your name and the date. You can either leave something behind in the cache, or take something out, leaving something of equal or greater value.
Natalie and I began our first Geocache adventure on a Thursday evening after dinner. A few of our friends tagged along, also interested in a treasure hunt. We left our school’s cafeteria and hiked down a hidden but well known path just behind the school’s parking garage. As we wandered down the covered path, I followed our small blue dot on my phone’s GPS, toward the green dot at the end of the path. Natalie and I knew exactly where we were going; we’d been down that path many times.
We reached ground zero in a few minutes and spread out, looking for anything that could hold a small container. A few Muggles (non-Geocachers) wandered by, smiling and continuing on with their stroll down the path. After five minutes of searching trees and bushes, and Natalie excitedly called out, “I think I found something!”
Everyone bounded over, and Natalie lifted a small Tupperware container from a grey dome, hidden by the fence. We pulled the lid off and excitedly reaped our rewards. I signed the logbook while the others dug through the container, discovering highlighters, a trackable and a fluffy toy chicken. Once the logbook was signed, I gathered everyone in for a picture. Our first Geocaching adventure had only just begun.
OK, Mallory, I’m taking the mic.
Skip ahead about 48 hours, and by then we were pro Geocachers. Our merry little band of adventurers had decided on an extreme challenge for our next cache: the Canyon. This cache required a hike down a steep trail to the bottom of a deep canyon, a brief climb halfway up a sandy, riddled cliff face, followed by an army crawl through a series of pitch-black caves. It took a while to climb up. My noodle arms and stumpy legs couldn’t handle much vertical motion, but with Mallory’s life-guarding skills and a terrific yank, we managed it. From there we were supposed to wait for the rest of our Geocaching crew, but the dark recesses of the cave extended tantalizingly deep into the cliffs. I sat on pins and needles for about four minutes. After that? Forget it. I was headed for sheer adventure.
Mallory didn’t want to go too far into the cave, and I couldn’t blame her. She sat about halfway back as I wriggled on my belly through particularly tight holes and into deeper sections of the cave, searching for the cache. After one backtrack for a breath of fresh air, I found our treasure on a shelf at the very back of the cave, the farthest and most intense place it could possibly have been. The tiny box blended in almost perfectly with its hiding spot.
By then our friends had shown up and climbed to the cave, and together we opened the Geocache, which barely fit its logbook. I had never been prouder to write my name on a piece of paper.
The thrill of Geocaching has gotten my friends and I to explore the world a little more. On our adventures, we’ve run into basketball trolls (guys who wouldn’t let us cross the street until we made a shot in the net), a real snake (he was friendly) and a lot of much-needed exercise. So if you choose to go Geocaching with your buddies, watch out. You just might find a whole mess of fun -- with a little treasure thrown in.
