MOTD 2012 Links

Event Details:

Join us at N N 35° 26.017 W 083° 49.364
(that's at the Fontana Rec. Hall for you newbies)
for a great time meeting other MINI owners who have embraced the wonderful combination of geocaching and motoring.

Plan to stop by and meet other cachers, show off your cache mobile and share your love of these two activities. There is no big formal agenda, just plan for all the traditional event activities:
Meet N Greet
Prize Drawings
Moving and Discovering travel bugs and geocoins

There will be lists of local caches available for those who want to go out caching.Commemorative Path Tags will be available for purchase for $3 each. 

Please post if you plan on attending.

So, What is Geocaching?

Geocaching, also known as GPS Stash Hunt, Global Positioning Stash Hunt is a entertaining adventure game using a GPS device. The basic idea is to have individuals and organizations set up caches all over the world and share the locations of these caches on the internet. GPS users can then use the location coordinates to find the caches. Once found, a cache may provide the visitor with a wide variety of rewards. All the
visitor is asked to do is if they get something they should try to leave something for the cache.

The word Geocaching broken out is GEO for geography, and CACHING for the process of hiding a cache. A cache in computer terms is information usually stored in memory to
make it faster to retrieve, but the term is also used in hiking & camping as a hiding place for concealing and preserving provisions.

What is a GPS device?  A GPS unit is a electronic device that can determine your approximate location (within around 6-20 feet) on the planet. Coordinates are normally given in Longitude and Latitude. You can use the unit to navigate from your current location to another location. Some units have their own maps, built-in electronic compasses, voice navigation, depending on the complexity of the device. They can cost
anywhere from $100. up to $1000.

You don't need to know all the technical mumbo jumbo about GPS units to play Geocaching. All you need to do is be able to enter what is called a "waypoint" where the geocache is hidden.

The rules are pretty basic:
Take something from the cache
Leave something in the cache
Write about it in the logbook
Where you place a cache is up to you.

A cache can come in many forms but the first item should always be the logbook. In its simplest form a cache can be just a logbook and nothing else. The logbook contains information from the founder of the cache and notes from the cache's visitors. The logbook can contain much valuable, rewarding, and entertaining information. A logbook might contain information about nearby attractions, coordinates to other unpublished caches, and even jokes written by visitors. If you get some information from a logbook you should give some back. At the very least you can leave the date and time you visited the cache.

Larger caches may consist of a waterproof plastic bucket placed tastefully within the local terrain. The bucket will contain the logbook and any number of more or less valuable items. These items turn the cache into a true treasure hunt. You never know what the founder or other visitors of the cache may have left there for you to enjoy. Remember, if you take something, its only fair for you to leave something in return. Items in a bucket
cache could be: Maps, books, software, hardware, CD's, videos, pictures, money, jewelry, tickets, antiques, tools, games, etc. It is recommended that items in a bucket cache be
individually packaged in a clear zipped plastic bag to protect them.

The location of a cache can be very entertaining indeed. As many say, location, location, location! The location of a cache demonstrates the founder's skill and possibly even daring. A cache located on the side of a rocky cliff accessible only by rock climbing equipment may be hard to find. An underwater cache may only be accessed by scuba. Other caches may require long difficult hiking, orienteering, and special equipment to get
to. Caches may be located in cities both above and below ground, inside and outside buildings. The skillful placement of a small logbook in an urban environment may be quite challenging to find even with the accuracy of a gps. That little logbook may have a hundred dollar bill in it or a map to greater treasure. It could even contain clues or riddles to solve that may lead to other caches. Rich people could have fun with their money by making lucrative caches that could be better than winning the lottery when you find it. Just hope that the person that found the cache just before you left a real big prize!