Geocaching, letterboxing, and waymarking

Yesterday I tried geocaching for the first time.  It was so fun!  Geocaching is like a treasure hunt using GPS or a GPS enabled device, there is even an app for that on the iPhone app store (the lite version is free and works fine).  People hide the geocache, which can be as simple as just a log book or larger like a Tupperware container with a log book and prize inside, and post the coordinates of the cache online.  You then can download the coordinates to your GPS and start hunting for the cache.  Click here for more details and for the rules of the game.  After finding the cache you record your information (handle, date, a comment about the search) into the log book and replace the cache exactly where you found it.  You then go online and record your find on the cache’s page.  I used to love making pirate maps and "searching for buried treasure" when I was a kid, now I can actually do it without having to pretend I don’t know where I hid something around the house!  Can’t wait to find my next one!  Another nice thing about geocaching is that it’s a cheap (free!!) way to have fun and gives you and your friends/partners something to do when you can’t think of anything else.

After looking into the geocaching community I stumbled upon the letterboxing world.  That’s even more like following a pirate map!  Letterboxing differs from geocaching in that you don’t necessarily need a GPS for letterboxing but you do for geocaching.  Also, in letterboxing you create your own rubber stamp.  When you find a letterbox cache you stamp your stamp into the log book and record the date, your handle, and any comments about the experience, then you take the stamp from the letterbox and stamp it in your own personal log book.  Then you go online and record your find.  I need to make my own rubber stamp so I can get started letterboxing!  Here is a link to letterboxing.

There is a third treasure hunt activity called waymarking.  From what I gather about waymarking it doesn’t sound as much fun as the others.   People select locations/buildings/etc. and post their location online along with any rules, like must take an original picture or something, you then go to that location and follow the rules then post your find online.  There are different categories and each category has it’s own rules.  Here is a link to waymarking, the website is not as well organized as the other two.

Whichever of these three activities you pick, you will have a great time at a great rate (can’t beat free)!