I first heard about Geocaching about 10 years ago but never gave it a try. As you will read, maybe this activity is not for me. Over the last 6 months I had been hearing about Geocaching a lot. My hubby heard some people talking about it at work and asked me about it. We were hiking a few weeks ago and came across a family that was looking for a cache near the trailhead. Our friend Gizmo blogs about it a lot and launched a Geocaching challenge a couple of weeks ago. I took that as a sign and decided that now was the time to try it.
The Set Up
I skimmed through Gizmo’s primer on how to use the website Geocaching.com and Finn’s post on using a Smartphone app to go Geocaching. I went to the website Geocaching.com, created a free account and located a “beginner” cache 0.7 miles from my house. I don’t have a GPS so I downloaded the “C:Geo” (It must be the Geocaching.com app because I used the same login as on the website) to my Android phone. Located the cache I wanted to find again – Visit the Zoo Regularly Geocache #GC41PM4 – and headed out the door with the dogs. 
We walked and jogged toward the location of the cache. It felt good to get my blood pumping and it felt exciting to have the extra motivation of a “treasure” at the end.
Finding the Cache
I will be honest…..I did not find it. I got to the area the cache was supposed to be in and, after wandering around by some trees and realizing this wasn’t going to be as easy as I thought, I took anther look at the app. There was 1 photo so I could tell I needed to cross the street. I looked through the online log to try and find clues from people. Geocaching people are stingy and vague with their info because there was nothing that would help anyone – more mystery at best…..”great find”, “under cover”, “good-size container”, “how often should you visit the zoo?”. I discovered a compass feature and the best I could tell it was pointing me in the direction of the cache (In the end I am not sure what the compass thing was doing because it pointed me in the EXACT OPPOSITE direction of the cache). It led me into the woods where I came across a homeless camp with empty beer cans, a half-eaten cheeseburger and a food stash. I was afraid someone might come in to the woods and shank me for trying to steal their sh*t. 
After mostly standing around for 30 MINUTES my heart rate was no longer elevated from jogging but from frustration. I wasn’t frustrated that I couldn’t find the cache. I was frustrated that I had to spend 30 minutes in the middle of good workout doing nothing. I was frustrated that I scratched my back up crawling around under the trees and around the bushes. I was frustrated that Gretel started couching and sneezing because of the dust. I was just pissed off.
I’m telling you it’s not in here Mom
Clearly Geocaching is not for me. I will admit that from the start is was the journey to a Geocache that I found compelling. Once I got there and could not find the cache after a few minutes I totally lost interest. I think if I go again I will have to go as a team with S. He likes the minutia of clue finding. When I have a surprise for him he always wants to play 20 questions and guess. I will happily locate the cache to find but I will leave the digging around in the shrubs to him. UPDATE: I did drive S up there after he got off work and did more standing around with the dogs while he looked for the cache. HE was clearly hooked because he was immune to my pleas to “just forget it”. After 30 minutes he did find the container…..in one of the places we had guessed but not actually looked because the compass and clues seem to suggest it would not be found there. 
I did learn some good first-time lessons though:
- Most caches contain a log. Remember to bring a pen so you can sign it.
- Searching for a cache in a tank top is maybe not the best choice. These thing are actually hidden well and take some digging around….sometimes in the bushes. Bring at least a light jacket to put on so you don’t scratch the crap out of your back like I did.
- You need to be someone who likes deciphering vague clues and riddles to find a really tiny “prize”
- Bring a hands-free leash (or a belt you can clip yours to) because you will need both hands to operate the GPS/phone and to root around for the cache.
- Remember that some of the caches are magnetic. Don’t exclude metal surfaces (especially the underside of metal surfaces) when snooping around
Just because it is not for me doesn’t mean I wouldn’t recommend it to someone though. It is a great way to provide motivation to get out and exercise (provided you pick a cache further away so that you get some real exercise before you have to stand around for 30+ minutes trying to find this thing). It’s also good for families because you can make it as easy or as hard as you want. This probably won’t be the end for us but I am not in a hurry try it again. S may be though 🙂
Wallace and Samuel says
Well done for a) trying it out, b) not giving up and c) eventually finding it!!
Wally & Sammy
SlimDoggy says
I really LOL’d at your title. We tried it for the first time this week too. Luckily ours was pretty easy – attached to the bottom of our neighborhood mailboxes. There was a good hint they provided – not for the cache, but in general that people use altoid tins…the cache pointed us right to our mailboxes. Altoid tins + mailboxes…pretty easy to find. I understand your frustration though. My husband didn’t have much patience with the whole thing either. It might be more fun if we did one that was a little more difficult terrain wise.
Jessica Rhae says
Well, at least we tried it right? I have learned a bit about Geocaching in just two days and I can see how it may get easier and you learn the typical containers used and they typical hiding places. I didn’t write about it but we did find one a few blocks away that was stuck to the bottom of a pole. In the hints they all but showed you where it was so it was super easy to find. Still not gratifying in my book 🙂
Finn says
Hi! I know that frustrated feeling too….there are times when I know I am right on top of a cache and I can’t find it. Sometimes it takes going back to see the area in a whole new light in order to get it. Sorry you didn’t find it, but glad you got it in the end!! Thanks for playing along with us today!
Jessica Rhae says
My hubby was super happy when we found it. I was kind of like “that’s it?”. Ha, ha. I would be totally willing to do a “do over” though and start with a fresh attitude. Maybe my experience would be more satisfying next time.
rydyr says
You might find it more enjoyable to HIDE the cache for others to find. You could even encourage others with dogs to search it out if you included dog treats or small squeaky toys – The geocache ettiquette is to replace what you take with something else, so you would suggest in your clues that they leave something dog related.
Jessica Rhae says
To me, that is still not appealing. My hubby totally wants to do that though so I will probably end up helping him some. I LOVE your idea of hiding some dog-specific ones. THAT might be the motivation I need 🙂
Stephen says
I would discourage caches that have dog treats…It could attract other critters and they could ruin the contiainer trying to get to it. More important there is not supposed to be anything edible in a geocache…
Jessica Rhae says
Thanks for that info Stephen. I didn’t know that but it makes sense. I am not sure I was thinking treats for dogs in the cache though. Maybe just a special token with a dog on it or some kind of dog-related trinket. It certainly won’t be happening anytime soon though. Ha, ha.
Amber DaWeenie says
Well….on the bright side. You got to spend some quality time with the pups! Bet they loved it.
Have a great weekend!
🙂
GizmoGeodog says
Sometimes you have to forget about the outcome & focus on the journey…When you’re caching along a great hiking trail the caches are just bonuses not goals…I just checked and I have logged 470 DNF’s (Did Not Find) and many of those are beginner’s hides 🙂 To me caching combines my love of puzzles with my love of the outdoors and keeps my observation skills sharp…but I do know it’s not for everyone…Thanks for giving it a try and for joining Geodog Day!
Jessica Rhae says
That is they way my hubby sees it working for us – just a bonus on an already planned hike to a cool place. I don’t mind waiting while he does all the work of finding it 🙂
We did find another beginner cache a few blocks away. I didn’t mention it here but the clue all but showed us exactly where it was. It seems like even the “easy” once can range quite a bit in difficulty.
easy rider says
My mom was frustrated too as we were lost in the middle of nowhere the first time. Now dad is the scout, because mom and the girl inside of the GPS are a little catty, I think. Sorry for your shoulder, I hope it hurts not too much.
Jessica Rhae says
Ahhhhh….the swelling on the scratches went down not too long after the picture. I’ve done way worse to myself. I once smashed my face on a rock mountain biking and cracked my cheek bone. My face was black and blue for a week!
Paws and Pedals (Kate & Scooter) says
Hilarious. Like the way you didn’t fluff it up at all. Not for everyone is probably right. Think I’ll still see if there’s anything like that around here (Down Under) cause I reckon my kids would probably ‘dig’ the potential of finding a box with something in it & need that motivation to do the walk/hike. I’d probably be more like you though…..Are we there yet! Are we there yet! Can we keep moving pleeeeze……
Jessica Rhae says
That’s me….no fluff 🙂 I can see this being SUPER appealing to kids. I mean, thousands of treasures to find everywhere? I kind of just assumed that Gecaching was an all-over-the-world thing. I saw a couple people that signed the virtual log that were not from the US – Russia and Germany I think. I just assumed they did Geocaching there too.
Jill C. says
I’ve never tried Geocaching, and I don’t think it would be for me. I would get uber frustrated with vague clues and locations, haha. Good job, though!
Roxy the traveling dog says
I have to say, that probably would have been me too. I have seen and heard about geocaching for many years and it really doesn’t appeal to me. I prefer to just get out and hike for the sake of getting out and hiking. I don’t like hunting for stuff, and I suck at figuring out clues. So, I will stick to enjoying the journey.
Jessica Rhae says
I have felt the same way as you….never sounded appealing. I thought why not give it a shot though. I probably wouldn’t have make it happen though if it weren’t for Gizmo’s challenge. I enjoy hiking for the sake of hiking too. Personally, I don’t need motivation for that. I DO sometimes need motivation to go out and walk in my neighborhood though so Geocaching might be something I could use for that. I think next time though I won’t go with the distinct mission of finding the cache. I may walk to a place and give myself 5 minutes to find it. If I can’t then I move on and come back another time to try it again.
Kimberly Gauthier says
I’m a huge fan of geocaching, because a coworker does it and loves it. He actually travels around our state and does a goecaching hunt when on vacation in other areas. It’s fascinating to hear about. But I don’t think I’ll ever do it, because if I can’t find it then I’ll get discouraged and be ready to move on. What I do like is the trip there; so I think keeping friends company while they search would be fun. I’ll carry the camera.
Jessica Rhae says
It’s the journey that matters to me too. S on the other hand loves the “reward” at the end. Sometimes he complains if I make him hike where the views aren’t great at the the end because he says there is no motivation for him. Maybe THIS is the motivation I can use to get him to those less-than-stellar locations 🙂
Crystal says
I’ve never tried geocaching because that is about what I am positive would happen to me! I would go to the place, look for the cache, not find it, get frustrated, etc. I just got a smartphone for the first time last week, so I might have to end up trying geocaching now. But your story about it will make me feel way better when I can’t find it, get frustrated, and give up!
Jessica Rhae says
Welcome to the smartphone world! Which one did you get? I have the Samsung Galaxy 4. I LOVE my smartphone. Not sure what I did without it. I do a lot of social media and email on the go with it.
It was super easy to try Geocaching with the phone. I don’t see myself forking out the money for a real GPS for it.
Crystal says
I went cheap, and got the Samsung Dart. About the cheapest smartphone I could find that worked with my carrier! So far I haven’t used it for much except some Facebook and MapMyRun. We’ll see how much I end up using it after I’ve had it for a while.
Jessica Rhae says
Hmmm…I haven’t heard of that one. It looks like it gets pretty good reviews. It’s entry level but you knew that when you got it. The camera in mine is amazing. I forked out a lot of money for that though since I take so many blog and facebook photos with my phone.
Crystal says
Yeah, I figured I’ve gotten along with a simple flip phone for this long, I can go with a cheap smartphone for a while, at least. I really didn’t want to fork over the money for something like an iPhone or the Galaxy and then not use it much!
Plus, I am so used to taking pictures with my camera rather than a phone, it shouldn’t change a whole lot for me. And I can always upgrade later if I end up wanting to, without having lost much money on this first phone.
Jen says
Well shit Jessica! If that happened to you I can only imagine what is going to happen to me, better make sure I have some back up on this one and I probably shouldn’t bring Leroy!:)
Jessica Rhae says
Bring your kids. They will likely love it. I am pretty sure I would have when I was a kid. You can stand around, hold Leroy and look pretty while your kids do the dirty work 🙂
Genevieve says
Ha! That was a funny adventure. Mom and I are also beginners. We found our first cache and our second pretty easily, so we didn’t get pissed off till the third, which we did not find. We’ll go back and try again, though. I love the dogs’ faces!
Love and licks,
Cupcake
Jessica Rhae says
Glad I am not the only one who got pissed when I didn’t find the cache 🙂 Way to go finding two of them!
Pam | Words With Wieners says
Thank you SO much for being so honest your first geocaching experience. Part of me really wants to try it, but I’m afraid it would be exactly your experience combined with two dogs that don’t give a rip that I’m trying to find something… they would just be pulling the whole time I’m trying to stop and figure things out. Your two are so used to hiking and they’ll probably stop when you want/need them to for any reason. Mine are not trained out of pulling and they would just be all “let’s go-go-go” while I’m trying to look at my phone and figure out clues. And I’m terrible with figuring out clues… my hubs is some kind of wizard at it, but not me. So he’d definitely have to be there. I’m just afraid it would be a disaster with the dogs and I would go home p*ssed off and frustrated. There was a time when we had just one dox… and he was the sweetest. We might’ve actually been able to manage it with him. But our current two… they’d just be doing everything they could to make the whole affair more difficult. I think it would be a great hobby for just the hubs and I, but then the whole point of doing it with our dogs would be shot. Boo on that.
Again, I’m so glad you were so honest. Being into hiking and all, I thought geocaching might be a natural fit for you. It wasn’t, and you laid it out there. Maybe you’ll try it again and have a more positive experience next time. I’m bad about that. Bad time once and I’m turned off forever, lol.
Jessica Rhae says
Well, it was my blogger friend who posed the challenge and she LOVES Geocaching. I didn’t want to make it seem like it was miserable so I tried to be honest in a funny way 🙂 I AM willing to give it another shot. I still don’t think I will be that thrilled but I know it would make my hubby happy.
I know what you mean about pulling. Gretel pulls hard when we walk and hike. She still pulls a lot when we take a hiking break but not so much when we are walking. She does at first but then gets with the program when she realizes we are going to stand around for a bit.
Monica says
That is so funny but I’m sure it wasn’t at the time. We have a big woods near us and they do a lot of that over there but I’m way too impatient to try.
Jessica Rhae says
Yes, it is much funnier looking back on it 🙂
Kolchak, Felix & Jodi says
LOL, I learned that same GeoCaching lesson our first time out – you only have two hands. Now we always do it with our hands free leash.
We love the hunt, but then, we’re not great fans of the hike without something to look for. I guess it’s just a different style, eh?
Jessica Rhae says
Yeah….I am not sure I thought about the hands-free leash a ton before we went. It just happened that my little fanny pack (which I DID need) was also a hands-free dog walking belt. Came in super handy though.
Glad you liked Geocaching – anything to get out you out hiking in my book 🙂
Jan K says
Your title was so funny, and I knew I had to read this post for sure! Everyone else is saying how fun it is, but now I also wonder if it will still be for me or not. I can see myself getting frustrated, but not being willing to give up either (similar to spending hours at my computer determined to figure out how to do something)! And I know I couldn’t go back and get my hubby to help, he would have no interest. It’s probably easier to get hooked on it if you don’t get skunked the first time out! I am still going to keep it on my “to do” list. If nothing else, it will give me something to blog about. It made for a funny post for you!
Jessica Rhae says
Well, I didn’t mean to scare anyone off. I worked out at outdoor retail store and have sold A LOT of Geocaching stuff over the years. So many people just love it and it is a great activity for families with kids. I also like that it gets people outdoors that might not go otherwise.
That being said, I wanted to be honest about my experience in, hopefully, somewhat of a funny way. I don’t think it is for everybody and I wanted people to get a honest look at it without all the fluff.
Jan K says
I think it’s great you were honest. It’s good to know it might not be for everyone. I’d hate to get out there the first time and not like it, and think something’s wrong with me because everyone else loves it! And you didn’t scare me away…but I appreciate your tips about not wearing a tank top, and having a hands free leash. Just knowing those things might make my first experience better!
emma says
Mom says it reminds her of treasure hunts she had to go on as a kid and did not like. I guess some people love to run, some swim, some geocache. I think it is wonderful if you really get into it, but we have so many places to walk to and that we haven’t yet walked to, we don’t need to have a goal of something to find. For us it would be a distraction having to hold the phone and watch where we were headed. We prefer a nice walk or hike observing our surroundings, but tons of people love it and that is great if it gets them out walking! We are motivated more without a pre programmed search.
Lassie and benji the shelties says
Love your tip about notgeocaching in a tank top. We couldnt find our geocache. Glad u finally found yours. Mommy doesnt know how to work that compass either .
Jessica Rhae says
Yeah…lesson learned on the tank top thing. There are a lot of caches that are hidden in “urban” locations but it seem to me that you wouldn’t know for sure until you got there. Then there are people like me who end up incorrectly rooting around in the bushes for a half hour before finding it right out on the street 🙂
joann stancer says
Loved your adventure. Sorry it didn’t work for you.
Jodi says
Maybe if you do it together, it will be more interesting and fun. My hubby has done it before and I’ve been wanting to do it with the dogs. Hopefully he will join us so I don’t end up as pissed off and frustrated as you. 😀
Dalton says
Typist went searching for one once, it is on a regular walk she takes with the dog, she had been there with her other half and found a little pencil and commented upon how random the pencil being left there was. Next time her other half went without her he found the cache so she went up with her sister another time and the two of them searched for 20 minutes and couldn’t find the thing – thus ended her hunting career!
Dolly the Doxie says
Bwahahahaha! OMD this is so the blog that we would have done if we tried out geocaching! Mom decided we did not have the time to try it right so put it off. She was also getting worried it might be harder than it looked, i.e. not finding the cache/not enough patience! Love Dolly
Vicki Green says
Very entertaining! I appreciate your honesty. I’ve thought of trying geocaching, too, but haven’t because I suspected it would frustrate me, too. I still may try it, but enjoyed your perspective.
Jessica Rhae says
Hi Vicki. I may try it again someday but haven’t yet. My hubby suggested we plant our own dog-related one and that might make Geocaching, overall, more fun for me. I like that idea but don’t see myself having the time to get into something like that anytime soon. Hope you like it if you try it. Now that you know what my frustrations were, hopefully you will be mentally prepared 🙂
Elizabeth Prater says
I personally love geocaching, although I feel bad about your experience. The micro-caches are definitely the hardest to find. However, they tend to be the most rewarding! Also, once you are within 100-200 ft, it’s time to stop using the compass, because it becomes inaccurate at the point.
But thanks for being so honest, because I do share your frustration at times. It’s more fun to do it with other people, so maybe you should give it a try again! 🙂
Jessica Rhae says
Well, I can be an impatient person too. I want a payoff within a short time of getting to the location… not 30 minutes and then never finding it (at the time). I was not even interested in drying again under different conditions after that experience. I think I’ll stick to working hard on my hikes to find a “cache” of mountain tops or lakes 🙂
I know a lot of people love it though and I certainly don’t fault them for that. I can see the appeal. My hubby kind of liked it so if he decided he wanted to get into it I would go with him sometimes just because it’s something we could do together.