Geocaching is an outdoor sporting activity in which the participants use a Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver or mobile device and other navigational techniques to hide and seek containers, called “geocaches” or “caches”, anywhere in the world.

A typical cache is a small waterproof container containing a logbook where the geocacher enters the date they found it and signs it with their established code name. Larger containers such as plastic storage containers (Tupperware or similar) or ammunition boxes can also contain items for trading, usually toys or trinkets of little value. Geocaching is often described as a “game of high-tech hide and seek”, sharing many aspects with benchmarking, trigpointing, orienteering, treasure-hunting, and letterboxing.

Archive

Archiving a cache removes the listing from public view. This action is usually taken when a cache owner does not intend to replace a cache after it has been removed. As an alternative to archiving, the cache owner can temporarily disable their cache if they plan to provide maintenance on the cache or replace the container within one month.

Benchmark

Using your GPS unit and/or written directions provided by NOAA’s National Geodetic Survey (NGS), you can seek out NGS survey markers and other items that have been marked in the USA.

BYOP

Bring Your Own Pen/Pencil. An acronym often used by cache owners to communicate to other geocachers that you will need to bring your writing utensil in order to sign the cache logbook.

CITO

Cache In Trash Out is an ongoing environmental initiative supported by the worldwide geocaching community. Since 2002, geocachers have been dedicated to cleaning up parks and other cache-friendly places around the world.

DNF

Did Not Find. An acronym used by geocachers to state that they did not find a cache. This is also a type of online log on Geocaching.com and is useful for alerting cache owners of potential issues. Cache owners who repeatedly receive “Did Not Find” logs should check to see that there cache has not been removed.

D/T

Geocaches are rated in two categories, each designated on a 5-point scale. Difficulty relates to the mental challenge of finding a cache and terrain describes the physical environment. A 1/1 difficulty/terrain rating would the easiest cache to find, while a 5/5 difficulty/terrain rating would be the most difficult.

FTF

First to Find. An acronym written by geocachers in physical cache logbooks or online when logging cache finds to denote being the first to find a new geocache.

Ground Zero (GZ)

The point where your GPS device shows that you have reached the cache location. At Ground Zero, you are zero feet (or zero meters) away from your destination.

Muggle

A non-geocacher. Based on “Muggle” from the Harry Potter series, which is a non-magical person. Usually this term is used after a non geocacher looks puzzled after befriending a geocacher searching for a cache, or when a non-geocacher accidentally finds a cache. Geomuggles are mostly harmless.

SWAG

An acronym often referred to as standing for ‘Stuff We All Get.” It includes the trade items left in caches by geocachers.

TFTC

Thanks For The Cache. An acronym written by geocachers in physical cache logbooks or online when logging cache finds.

TFTH

Thanks For The Hide

TNLN

Took Nothing. Left Nothing. Usually written in cache logbooks by geocachers who do not trade for material contents in a cache.

TNLNSL / TNSL

Took Nothing. Left Nothing. Signed Logbook / Took Nothing. Signed Logbook.

TOTT

Tools of the Trade. An acronym used for any of the tools that might be used to search for/retrieve/find/log a geocache.

For more info on geocaching or to get caching head over to geocaching.com 

Repair it Right

Do you have the stuff in your pack to make a field repair to your tent, boots, or other gear?  Having something fail miles from the trail head can really ruin a trip, but having a well stocked repair kit can save the day and the trip.  Here are some things to consider having in your kit.

• Duct Tape – This is a must! keep about 10 feet or so wrapped around your hiking pole. If you don’t use poles wrap it around a cut down ball point pen.  Check the tape one a year or so to make sure it is still usable… Duct tape is a good quick fix for almost everything but remember to remove the tape as soon as you get home and make a true repair the longer the tape is stuck the more damage you might do trying to remove it.
• Multi-Tool with Scissors – Scissors make all the difference, it is the hardest tool to improvise.  Cutting moleskin is so much easier with scissors. Pack a quality multi-tool its worth the weight!
• Floss and a Needle -  Sew anything! Floss is super strong and makes a great repair thread.
• Zip Ties – The plastic version of duct tape. Zip ties are cheap and can be used in many repairs.
• Tent Pole Repair Sleeves – These can save the trip if you break a pole, chances are slim but if it happens you will be glad you have repair sleeves.
• Paracord – Another must have, paracord can be cobra stitched or wrapped around lost of items you are already bringing.
• Safety Pins – Pin a rip shut, They weight nothing so bring them!
• Super Glue – Glue cuts shut, fix boots, small holes in anything, ect.  Super glue is great to have.

Please share what you carry in your kit in the comments below or better yet tell a story of failed gear on the trail and how you saved the day! 

Photo by eliduke

Dr. Welch is a professor of pediatrics at Upstate Medical University in Syracuse, N.Y. He is also a licensed professional guide, a certifying instructor (and field course instructor) for the Wilderness Education Association and a member of the Wilderness Medical Society. Welch has drunk from many water sources with no filter other than his teeth.

While at the University of Cincinnati, Welch conducted a 1995 survey where 48 of 50 U.S. state health departments responded to a questionnaire about giardiasis in their jurisdictions, the agencies studied 80 outbreaks of giardiasis in 1991; 19 outbreaks were linked to contaminated water, and just two were associated with campers or backpackers.

Two departments considered water-associated giardiasis to be a problem for backpackers in their jurisdiction, though the study found neither had any data to reinforce the claim.

“This was a classic food/hand epidemic in all respects,” Welch says.

For Easy Access

Poor hygiene, Welch believes, is the real issue, as he explained in a 2004 article that appeared in Wilderness and Environmental Medicine:

“If our objective is to protect the backcountry user from enteric [intestinal] infection,” he wrote, “then we should emphasize the overwhelming evidence showing that assiduous hand-washing or using alcohol-based hand cleansers is by far the most important strategy. It must be impressed upon backpackers (just as it is impressed upon health care, food industry, and daycare workers) that stopping hand-to-mouth spread is the key to preventing gastrointestinal infection.”

With all that being said should you still treat or filter your water?  I say yes! I think it is better to be safe.  Most of the east has been farmed at one time or another at all elevations so animal contamination is likely. Using a filter, steri-pen, or drops, always a good choice.

Most importantly I think using an alcohol based hand sanitizer on the trail is crucial.  I can’t count the times I have seen people digging

Sanitize! Sanitize! Sanitize!

into their bag of GORP with dirty hands.  When the back to school products hit the shelves you can usually find convenient hand sanitizer lanyard that you can attach to your packs hip belt strap for easy access.  You should always sanitize after bathroom breaks and before meals.

How do you treat your water in the backcountry?  Do you carry sanitizer?

You Sweat You Die

Wearing Cotton – Cotton is great for bombing around town or the trip to the mall. It is soft and comfortable but once cotton is wet, it stays wet and loses any insulating properties. If the summer nothing is worse than your sweat drenched clammy cotton shirt sticking to you. Pick wicking clothing; you can even find wicking sport shirts and underwear at Walmart.

Wearing too Many Layers – Piling on a bunch of layers before heading out is great, just don’t over do it.  What is the point if a mile into the hike you are going to over heat and have to shed a layer? I keep a record of what I wear and the temperature so I can look back and compare for current conditions.

Bundle Up When You Stop – When you stop hiking, you lose body heat fast, epically if it is windy.  Bundle up when you stop for food or to take a break to avoid the chills.  Once the chills set in it is hard to get rid of them…

Sweating – Les Stroud says it best “if you sweat, you die”. Sweat is your body’s way of removing excess heat through evaporation.  After sweating when the temp drops the chills set in and can quickly lead to hyperthermia.

by silent stereo

Making the transition from car camping to wilderness camping and backpacking leaves the question about bathrooms… Believe it or not you are going to have to go in the woods, you are going to have to dig a hole and bury it and maybe even pack it out…  Let’s dive umm.. head first into this semi-taboo subject.

Most privies are gross. We all hate using them but when they are available please use them…  They place them in areas of high traffic to keep the area clean, if they are used it works!

Urinating in the woods is pretty self explanatory.  You just need to pick a spot at least 200 feet from any trail, camp, or body of water such as lakes and streams. Women have it a bit harder than the guys here. Avoiding pee in the boots can be a challenge. but practice makes perfect. I hear the shower is a great place to practice.

Defecating has a little more art to it, where to lean, how to prop… First you should have a bathroom kit packed with wiping material (I like paper towels and wet ones), hand sanitizer, all packed in a heavy-duty zip-lock bag with some extras thrown in.  Some like to bring along a trowel. They make small and light trowels just for this purpose. A stick or flat rock will do the trick, but require a little more effort.

The five steps to sh*t in the woods

1. Dig a hole about 8 inches deep and 8 inches wide (“cat-hole”) 200-300 feet from any trail, camp, or water source. Pick somewhere with a view, it could be the nicest bathroom you ever use.
2. Squat over your hole, there are many squat methods so choose wisely (see below).
3. Hope your aim is good, if not make sure to move your waste to into the hole.
4. Wipe and bag in one of your extra baggies. Even though paper biodegrades it is still uncool to bury.
5. Cover your waste with dirt and place a rock or downed log atop to keep curious animals out and SANITIZE your hands for gods sake!

Note: if you are above the tree line and/or there is no good place to bury pack out that poop! Extra zip-locks are handy…

It’s as easy as that!  For more info on the art of pooping in the woods check out “How to Shit in the Woods” by Kathleen Meyer

Methods for Pooping in the Woods

By somedude

The Full Squat. Surprisingly easy. Discovered by girls (and Asians) long ago; shunned by the white man. No stamina required in the legs because you’re already all the way down. Actually leaves plenty of clearance between droppings and dropped pants. May require (minimal) practice to maintain balance.

The Half Squat. A futile farce to keep far from feces. Makes the quads burn. Takes ripped quads to maintain. Maybe degrades gracefully into the Full Squat. Maybe.

The Overbite. Mental comfort of being in a familiar physical position. Must invest time searching for that perfect log or rock (preferably with a view). Risk of tumbling backward if improperly sized object used.

The Middleman. Similar to the Overbite. Eliminates risk of falling over backward, but must find two objects adequately spaced. A well balanced option, though butt-cheek contact with foriegn surfaces appears necessary.

Lean Cuisine. A nice compromise between the Overbite and Middleman. Uses the cheek-lean technique on a single object, eliminating both tumble risk and two-object requirement. May be slightly more difficult to maintain over long periods than the parent methods.

The Whomping Willow. Similar to the Half Squat, but offloads the legs with some additional support. Must find a a tree with appropriately low and flexible branches. Risk of falling into the pile if the branch lacks adequate strength. If you’ve found the right tree, there should already be a hole for you.

Please Share Your Favorite Method…

photo by gregor_y

Your first aid kit should be more than a few ibuprofen and a couple band aids. How much you choose to take is really up to group size and the length of the trip. Do you need the same kit on a 2 mile hike with the family as you would on a seven day trip in Alaska, I doubt it? Should you still bring the kit with you on the family hike? Most definitely…

Items that can be used elsewhere are best for you kit. So think out side the box. For instance, you already have 20 feet of duct tape on your hiking poles do you need more? The hand sanitizer you have on your hip belt can be a great first aid item.

You could have the best most well stocked first aid kit in the world and it will not do you a bit of good without proper training. Everyone should take a wilderness first aid course NOLS and SOLO both offer wilderness first aid courses. If you can’t take a course at least buy a good book on wilderness first aid and READ it!

Here is my suggested list of first aid kit items, keep in mind this is not a survival kit…

• loperamide – anti diarrhea
• ibuprofen or acetaminophen – for pain, swelling, fever, etc.
• antihistamine – for bug bites and reactions
• water purification tablets – you never know when the filter will break
• hand sanitizer – for cleaning wounds, tools, hands, etc.
• antibiotic ointment – wound treatment
• zinc oxide – rash prevention and treatment
• sun block – avoid sun burn
• bug repellent – avoid biting and annoying bugs
• moleskin – blister treatment
• band aids – small wound treatment
• 2”x3” gauze – small wound treatment
• wound closure strips – medium wound treatment
• duct tape – wound, blister treatment, etc.
• powdered drink mix – energy, electrolyte replacement
• tweezers or a tick remover – to remove embedded ticks, thorns, splinters, etc.
• safety pins – fasten slings out of clothing
• razor blade – multi purpose
• bandanna – slings, splints, etc.
• WFA cheat sheet – Here is a great one

Be creative when packaging your kit.  Use Ziploc bags or Ez Does Pill Pouches. Whatever you use make sure it is water tight and durable.  A lot of people like to use individually packaged items some can be found at the pharmacy but I suggest checking out minimus.biz

Make sure to check your first aid kit before heading out to make sure nothing needs refilling.

What do you pack for first aid? How do you pack it? Please share your tips…

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Simple hiking etiquette can go a long way in making trail experience more enjoyable. Most state parks have rules and regulations posted but trail etiquette is a bit more.

Share the trail – Common rule is bikers yield to horses and hikers. Hikers yield to horses and horses yield to none.  This is the common rule. I like to yield to bikers as well. I feel it is safer this way.  Greet others as you pass. Uphill hikers should yield to downhill hikers.

Leave only footprints and take only pictures AKA leave no trace – Taking rocks, carving trees, damaging plants, etc. Not cool man, don’t ruin it for the next people! Even biodegradables like orange and banana peals should be packed out.

Stay on marked trails – This keeps you safe and protects flora and fauna. Even when navigating a tricky area like a big puddle, stay on the trail, get them boots wet.  Staying on the trail helps prevent further trail erosion.

Keep the noise to a minimum – Noise travels in the wilderness, others might be trying to enjoy the quiet.

Clean up after pets – Bag the poop and carry it out.

Keep a leash on your pet – Use it when others are around. Not everyone loves your muddy dog as much as you!

Report any problems to park authorities – trail damage, vandalism, suspicious people, etc.  The rangers will thank you.

Survive!

I finally finished up the original survival man Les Stroud’s book Survive!: Essential Skills and Tactics to Get You Out of Anywhere – Alive.  As a fan of his show I really wanted to read the book.  If you watched the show the book just reiterates most of was covered in episodes of the show, just more in depth.  Les goes into detail about water, shelter, food, navigation, etc. for various locations worldwide.   The best part of the advice he offers is you know it is tested and true. Les has spent years in the wilderness practicing his skills.

In the book, he covers building survival kits for auto, home and wilderness.  If you carried everything he recommends on every day hike you would have legs of steel.

The book was informative and kept me entertained. The added survival stories were fun to read. If you are a Les Stroud fan pick it up.  Survive! Would make a great gift for anyone who loves the outdoors.

GSI Outdoors Pinnacle Dualist

Having a hot meal after a log day of hiking is just awesome. Even the simplest things taste wonderful, after a 10 mile day you can have the best instant noodles you have ever had. Setting up a backcountry kitchen can be challenging seeing that most people don’t really know what they need or want till they are out there cooking at camp. Here I hope to steer you in the right direction in building your perfect backcountry kitchen.

Parts of your basic kitchen:

1. Stove: When it comes to picking out a stove that will work for you first you need to think about what kind of cooking you plan on doing.  If you plan on mostly instant noodles, oatmeal, and dehydrated meals almost any stove will work for you.  If you want to cook gourmet backcountry feasts than you will need to look for a stove with good flame control so you can simmer and whatnot.  For simple cooking you can go with anything from a low cost alcohol stove to a fancy jetboil stove. Cooking that requires more finesse like simmering and low heat you need to shop around a bit more. Stoves like the MSR Simmerlight, Jetboil, and MSR Dragonfly.I carry a MSR Whisperlight mainly because I picked it up at a yard sale for $5 a few years ago and it does everything I need, It is a great stove for boiling water and simple cooking, very reliable…
2. Cookset: Here it is all about size and weight.  If you cook for only yourself a small pot will do, something like this 0.9L Vargo Ti pot would be great. If you hike with groups varying in size a full cookset might be a better choice, allowing you to pick and choose what you take a long. This Optimus Terra 3 piece will treat you right.Want it all? Want to impress your friends? Weight not a concern? Get the MSR Flex 4 system or the GSI Outdoors Pinnacle set.I’m cheap, I carry a super cheap option for a solo pot. An aluminum grease pot, I got mine at kmart for about 6 bucks…
3. Utensils: I think Utensils are the most fun to buy, they are cheap and you can find them in every style. The funny thing is almost anything will work, heck a stick could do the job. All you need to do is stir and shovel…Plastic “silverware” from a fast food joint is free and does the trick. Need something a bit more sturdy? How about the light my fire spork, or the Brunton Folding Spork.

Having a great camp kitchen can really make or break a trip so shop around read some reviews and choose carefully…

Hunting season is upon us! As a non-hunter you can assume the primary hunting season for most game animals will run mid October until Jan 1. This is an important time of year for hikers and backpackers to be alert to their environment and dress safely.

No one wants to be accidentally fired upon while on a recreational hike. If you see a hunter, don’t be shy to make noise to alert him to your presence. Don’t wave your arms around, just yell out or use a whistle. Unfortunately you usually won’t be able to see a hunter before he sees you. State regulations vary, but the hunter is usually required to wear a certain amount of bright hunter orange clothing so as to be seen by other people (called hunter orange). When bird hunting only an orange cap is required. For deer hunting a vest is also required. Most game animals either don’t see in colors very well or don’t see hunter orange as a warning sign. There is an exception though, and that is wild turkey. Turkey season is particularly dangerous because turkeys see colors very well. A hunter is allowed to be dressed entirely in camo from head to toe during turkey season.

So if you can’t rely on seeing a hunter, you should do your best to enable the hunter to see you. Obviously wearing a large amount of hunter orange is your best bet. But let’s be honest, as recreational hikers we may not have, or be willing to wear, bright orange caps, vests, or backpacks. What can you do on the cheap to be noticeable without going out of your budget?

The simplest and cheapest solution may be a hunter orange handkerchief. I bought 2 for a dollar at a dollar store. You can wear one like a bandanna around your head, tie it to the top of your backpack like an orange flag, or come up with any number of places to display it so you will be noticed. A bandanna is almost as useful as a swiss army knife and duck tape. It’s a versatile, cheap, and lightweight tool to keep on you for any hiking trip. Wipe sweat, filter sediment from water, tie to apply pressure to a wound, hold together a splint, pot holder, you name it.

Another cheap, lightweight, and versatile product is hunter orange paracord. Paracord is short for 550lb test parachute cord. Paracord can be used for damn near everything and is an essential survival tool. You usually see it in black, drab green, and camo colors but it also comes in bright hunter orange. Utilizing a simple cobra stitch as seen here:

You can do a lot with paracord. Paracord bracelets are a great emergency tool and making them in bright orange may help you get noticed. Not into bracelets? I’ve cobra stitched paracord around my backpack’s top loop, for example. Many folks like weaving paracord around knife handles, around hiking poles. Anywhere you have some open area you can weave some paracord. And who knows, that cord may save the day when you least expected to need it.

Luckily the number one protection you have is also the cheapest and best, and that’s being in a group. Humans aren’t exactly the most graceful creature in the woods and a group of humans is pretty hard to miss. If you’re sticking to known trails, you’re probably safest of all.

If you live in Massachusetts and are interested in learning more about hunting, check out the FREE hunter’s education course offered by the state. No experience is necessary and you don’t need a firearm license. Keep an eye on the following link for new courses to come up. I learned an incredible amount during this course and would highly recommend it to anyone. http://www.mass.gov/dfwele/dfw/education/hed/hed_basic_listing.htm

Here are my top 5 FREE hiking apps for android:

1. Hi-HikerPro

Hi-Hiker Pro is a all in one tool which is really all the different devices needed on the trail. It includes a pedometer, stopwatch, compass, flashlight, maps, altimeter, GPS tracking, weather forecast and emergency call. You can save your different sessions and import/export your trips as a GPX files to visualize your them on Google Earth.

2. My Tracks

My Tracks developed by google enables you to record GPS tracks and view live statistics – such as time, speed, distance, and elevation. Once recorded, you can share your tracks, upload them to Google Spreadsheets and visualize them on Google My Maps.

3. Peak.AR

Peak.AR offers a panoramic augmented reality view of the surrounding peaks. It uses the compass and GPS receiver in the phone to let you know what peaks you are looking at and how far away they are. Sometimes lacks accuracy but still pretty neat.

4. AlpineQuest GPS Hiking (Lite)

AlpineQuest GPS Hiking (Lite) is a maps program, you can store maps on your SD card so they can be accessed without network access. USGS TOPO maps can be made and saved via the AlpineQuest website. AlpineQuest will also track your route and allow you to save waypoints if you buy the full version of the app.

5. Wheres My Droid

Not really made for hiking but I’m including it here because it is a great tool for loved ones. With Wheres My Droid you can set up a phrase so when it is text to you it will auto reply with your location. I like this because Miss HuskyHiker can see where I am on the trail as long as I have network access. Great peice of mind for loved ones if you often hike alone.

And always remember to keep your phone on silent when hiking, nothing is worse than a ringing phone in the middle of the woods especially when you are trying to snap a shot of a deer or neat bird on the trail…

1. Drink 8oz of water first thing – Over night you become dehydrated, drinking first thing will help fight fatigue.  I like to keep a bottle of water bed side so that it is room temperature and ready right when I get up.
2. Get out of bed – Avoid hitting the snooze and lying in bed, killing time in bed is bad for motivation.
3. Move – Stretch then jump rope or do jumping jacks for a minute, doesn’t have to be a lot just enough to get the blood flowing. You will be more alert and ready to take on anything.
4. Eat breakfast – I know you have heard this a thousand times and there is a reason… Breakfast is important, eat a wholesome high protein, high fiber breakfast.
5. Set goals for the day – Set small goals to be completed that day, this keeps you moving forward and on the right track.  Goals can be little things like eating a salad for lunch or not spending money on eating out for the day.
6. Avoid rushing – nothing will stress you out more than rushing to get out the door in the morning, give yourself plenty of time to get ready… “to be early is to be on time and to be on time is to be late”
7. Listen to music that excites you – Either on the way to work or in the shower music can set your mood for the whole day.
8. Be a courteous driver – on your commute allow other drivers the right way wave and smile. This will lead to less stress for you and you just made their day!
9. Enjoy some fresh air – Have some free time? Rather than watching the news spend it on the deck getting some fresh morning air.  Coworkers will fill you in on the new at work so don’t worry.
10. Kiss everyone in the family before you leave – even the dog!

Max the Dog

Most trails in Massachusetts are dog friendly, but there are rules and common etiquette that must be followed.  Safety for you, your dog and others are number one. Read the sign at the trail head for any rules about the property you are hiking, many areas require dogs to be leashed, this is to protect the wildlife, your pet, and other hikers.  I think it is common courtesy to keep your dog leashed when hiking at even a slightly busy area. Not everyone likes dogs and not all dogs are friendly with other dogs these people and pets should be able to enjoy the trails too…

Prepping for a Safe Hike:

• Make sure your dog is up for the hike.  Not all dogs are built for a 12 mile day hike.
• Keep weather in mind.  Hot days are extra hard on dogs.
• Think about the wildlife in the area you will be hiking. Are there dangerous snakes? Maybe Bears or Mountain Lions.
• Learn about ticks and lyme disease.
• Bring plenty of fresh drinking water for your dog. Drinking out of streams or lakes has the risk of giardia and other bacteria that can cause disease.
• Your dog should wear an ID collar with not only your name and number but the vets name and number as well.
• During hunting season get an orange vest for your dog, they can be found at many hunting shops.

Hiking with a Dog Ediqutte:

• Always follow the rules at the trail head.
• Keep unleashed dogs within site and under strict voice command at all times. Strict voice command means the dog immediately heels when told, stays at heel, and refrains from barking.
• ALWAYS leash your dog when others are approaching. Not everyone likes dogs!
• Step to the side off the trail and allow others to pass.
• Keep dogs quite and from chasing wildlife.
• Clean up after your dog. Pack out the poop or bury it in a cathole.

Keeping everyone safe and happy on the trail is easy when you follow the rules.

You can find well made dog packs allowing your dog to carry water and food for itself.  Be sure not to exceed 1/3 of the pooches body weight in the pack.  You can also find all kinds of other outdoor products for your four legged friend like collapsible water bowls, booties, and even sun glasses.

Photo by Gerry Gosselin

Guest post by Gerry Gosselin
Want to be a guest poster on HuskyHiker.com?  E-mail me

Every hiker should have a compass right? Eventually I got around to picking one out, not because I felt I needed it, but because I’m a gadget whore and that itch needed to be scratched. A Suunto A-10 found it’s way into my possession for about $15 US. Then it sat in my bag for 2 years barely getting any use. I’m a novice day trip hiker who usually sticks to marked trails. Every now and then I get turned around but the areas I hike in Western MA don’t usually extend more than 10 miles in any direction before hitting a road. Getting truly lost was never a concern, only a minor nuisance.

This last Saturday June 12, 2010 I took a Compass, Map, Survival Course offered free by the State of Massachusetts. It’s a 10 hour course, half classroom and half in the field. The course was light on survival but very detailed on the map and compass work. If I took anything away from the course it’s that you will never ever use the ‘L’ word (lost) again as long as you have your trusty compass and map. The course really changed the way I think about hiking in the woods. Here are a few benefits I can see to truly knowing and practicing map and compass navigation.

1. Who needs it when everyone has a GPS? The obvious answer is GPS batteries die, GPS units die, and GPS reception will probably be flaky when you need it the most. A compass is a non-electronic analog device powered by the Earth itself. You can submerge it in water and it will likely outlive you. No one is saying throw out your GPS in favor of a compass. Having a backup for a critical tool is good survival planning. Backup your GPS with a solid compass and detailed map and you’ll never be lost again.

2. GPS units point you in a straight line to your destination. But a good 1/24,000 scale contour map will show you the terrain. Observe the contour of the land. Perhaps you’d rather go around a mountain, or avoid scrambling up a cliff, or cross a river at a bridge. Good map skills can get you where you need to go safer and easier. That is, until Google starts mapping major hiking trails with traffic data, routing based on elevation, weather patterns, average pace, and Calorie efficiency. You know it’s coming.
3. The biggest danger to you when you are turned around in the woods is your own head. You need to keep cool, come up with a plan, and execute it. A map and a compass in hand will instantly reduce your stress level because you aren’t really lost! Your first job is to find where you are on the map. In heavily wooded areas this can be a challenge. But once you hike that peak or find that vista where you can get a good idea of the layout of the land you should be able to find your location. Now you plot your course and make for it. Constantly checking up on your progress with your map and compass is a reassuring thing that will keep you cool and levelheaded. It’s easy for your head to make you believe you need to go in a certain direction. Some may call it intuition, direction sense, or a dangerously over-inflated ego. It can be unnerving when the compass tells you the opposite. After a quick check of your compass to ensure it’s not pointing at your cell phone or wind-up flashlight, you need to put your flawless direction sense aside and trust the compass. Your head can be in a weird place when you’re lost, trust your tools instead.

4. How did you get lost in the first place? Another important thing I learned from the course. Didn’t you plot out where you started and where you were going before you headed into the woods? Did you check your compass and map all along the way? If you fail to use your map and compass from the get-go, your job is much harder. Before you head out study the map, mark it up, plot your course and return trip. If you do these things, use your map, and compass along the way you’ll never get lost in the first place. Everyone likes to be told periodically that they are doing a good job when they are engaged in a difficult task. Your map and compass will be that calm and confident nod of approval every step of the way.

5. Know your pace and keep track of it. I had never thought about this unexpected gem. In the course, we measured how many paces it took to walk 100 feet. A pace is every time your left foot hits the ground. I believe mine was about 21. If the map tells us we need to travel 1500 feet to our next destination, and I’m counting my paces, I will know roughly when I’m in the right area. If I go 2000 feet and still haven’t found my destination then I know perhaps I was too far left or right and went by it, time to backtrack. Smart map and compass users carry rangers beads or pace count beads to keep track of how far they’ve gone. My instructor was nice enough to give me his to keep after the course. It’s some shoe lace and beads but it meant a lot and I’ll never go into the woods without it.

In closing, I’ve read a bit more about this subject in the last two days and there seems to be a bitter distaste for GPS users in this community. I’m an all inclusive kind of guy so if I have a GPS unit AS WELL AS a map and compass I’m going to be a lot happier than having only one or none. I can see the point that a GPS can make you lazy in that you never practice your map and compass skills, and that’s a valid concern. Hell I’ve been hiking for decades and this is the first time I’ve seriously respected the old map and compass combo. I strongly encourage you to get a Sylva style compass (with that transparent internal dial), read a good book or take a course on map and compass use, then practice. Not only can it save your life, it’s pretty fun and rewarding as well. And when the zombie apocalypse comes, you’ll be a survivor!

By the way, I like my Suunto A-10 but the class gave me an appreciation for compasses with a sighting mirror. This Brunton 15TDCL appears to be the bee’s knees. Reviewers have suggested that there are cheap knock-offs of this compass but this model is the original and maintains a high standard of quality. It’s definitely on my list to become my primary compass with my A-10 as a backup.

Photo by: Darren Lone Fight

Guest post by Darren Lone Fight
Want to be a guest poster on HuskyHiker.com?  E-mail me

Day Hiking, Multi-Day Hiking, and Weight

Getting outside and enjoying the outdoors is a great way to maintain and increase fitness levels, burn calories, and has the potential to be a very enjoyable hobby. Nevertheless, the enjoyment can be quickly lost when you’re lugging a pack, pouring sweat, and trying to remember why it is you’re on a trail in the first place. Lowering pack weight, then, becomes a very important component to maximizing your enjoyment of the outdoors and create a positive, healthy experience that you’ll want to repeat in the future. Hiking with a backpack falls very generally into two categories: day hiking and multi-day hiking.

Day hikers don’t need to carry such items as a tent or a sleeping bag, but the pack itself and whatever other supplies that are brought along with the hiker might weigh anywhere from 2-10+ pounds. While this weight is not negligible, it is nevertheless a significantly lighter weight than the average multi-day pack. This article will focus primarily on reducing weight in the larger packs of a multi-day hiker, but most of the general points made here can apply to a lesser degree to the day hiker as well.

For a multi-day hike, one has to carry many supplies for daily use. I’ll be speaking here of a weekend trip, since this is the kind of backpacking trip most of us are able to fit into our schedule (not to exclude the bearded and smelly Appalachian Trail thru-hikers and other multi-week and multi-month hikers). This means a half-day Friday, Saturday, and half-day Sunday (or roughly two full days of supplies). A Base-pack weight for a multi-day hike of this nature includes the “Big Three” of backpacking: the pack itself, sleeping system (sleeping pad/bag), and shelter system (tent, tarp, etc.).

The (Other) Things We Carry

On top of this base-pack, a backpacker will often carry: a first-aid kit, food, water, a compass, whistle, GPS, knife, cooking system, map, clothes, water purification system, light (headlamp/flashlight/lanterns), camera/electronics, etc., etc. Obviously this list grows quite long very quickly, and it is not uncommon to see multi-day pack weigh 30 pounds or more, even for such a short trip. The “best” equipment in each of these categories is fiercely debated, but this post will take simplicity and utility as a guiding principle to organize and revise how we plan for a multi-day hike. In this scenario, we’re looking for our pack to be 20 pounds or less fully packed including food (excluding water). 20 pounds is the ceiling, but 10-15 pounds should be readily attainable. This process of winnowing pack and equipment weight in order to decrease overall weight and increase enjoyment is known as lightweight backpacking or ultra-light backpacking depending on how “ultra” you get about cutting weight: If you’re counting half-ounces when weighing your individual pieces of equipment and sawing the bottom half off of your toothbrush to save weight, it’s safe to say you’re “ultra.”

Perhaps the most common mistake made by hikers who are preparing for a short -weekend trip in the middle of summer is that they pack like they’re going on a two-week trek in the middle of winter. Bring only what you need and prepare for what you can reasonably expect! I’ve seen a fellow backpacker, bent at the waist and red-faced, hauling enough equipment, food, and water to feed and shelter himself and everyone in our crew for at least a week! He had an enormous tent, food for miles, and he was paying for it with every trembling, labored step he took on the trail.

The relationship between food and packing can actually make hiking even more useful for weight-loss; it’s good exercise, yes, but it can also teach us important lessons about portion sizing and the relationship between calories and exercise. Before a trip, you’ll need to determine the amount of miles that will be hiked and calculate the food necessary for the trip. If you’re going to cover five miles a day (10mi.), depending on weight, one would burn at least 4,000 calories a day in hiking alone (not including basal metabolism). This means the amount of food one would need to bring to replace every calorie would easily be close to 7,000! To calculate for weight loss, one would adjust the replacement calories down from these totals, and when you’ve got to pack each of those calories into a backpack and wear it on your back, you will begin to get a better sense of how much food that really is and make decisions on what and how much to bring accordingly! Even more, when you’ve got to be sure to portion your foods out correctly because you can’t run to the grocery store if you eat it too quickly, you’ll begin to necessarily harden your resolve about portioning.

While monitoring and portioning food may sound like a less-than-fun part of hiking, I’ve found that when out hiking trails, food becomes less of a central concern and more of a functional activity: we eat because we need fuel to keep walking and enjoying our hike. This doesn’t mean that good, warm, and healthy food shouldn’t be enjoyed on the trail, but that hiking holds entertaining or interesting wildlife, incredible vistas, and other beautiful flora and fauna that you’ll (hopefully) be too excited about what’s around the next bend to be too worried about food other than to refuel the tank!

Dropping Weight and the Lightweight Pack

So, aside from the more psychological components of food portioning and its relationship to physical activity, calorie burn, etc., there is the basic equipment list of a lightweight pack that will allow you to spend more time enjoying your hike and less time wishing your back and shoulders weren’t screaming at you. Examine the following suggestions as you take a look at your own pack and see where you might be able to make cuts. I have provided some links to places where you can buy ultralight or lightweight gear, but don’t feel as though this is an activity that you should “buy” your way into: paring down backpack weight in order to have a more enjoyable outdoor experience is about finding ways to do more with less. Sometimes this can best be attained by purchasing something, but very often what is needed is some DIY trimming, sewing, or construction or an honest appraisal of what is really needed in the backcountry.

The Big Three—This is the place to find the biggest/easiest weight savings. Right now, I’m using an old Swiss Gear backpack that I had for school. It had a waist strap, so I hand-stitched more straps to lash a sleeping bag, tent, etc. to the pack, and I use this for most of my weekend multi-day hikes. It weighs in fully packed with tent, pad, bag, food, etc. (minus water) at about 15 pounds. My wife uses a canvas, no-frame pack we found at a garage sale for $2 (it does have a waist/chest strap). Her whole pack weighs about 11 pounds, and the knee pain she used to suffer from lugging a 30+ pound pack around has gone away. Whatever you get, make it light and comfortable. Gossamer Gear (http://www.gossamergear.com/) makes a wide selection of very light gear, including packs, bags, and tents. Most major pack brands (Osprey, Gregory, etc.) all have ultra-light and lightweight models as well that you should look into for your next pack purchase. Ideally you’d like a pack that weighs in at under two pounds. Nevertheless, go with what you’re familiar with and what is most comfortable, just be sure you pay special attention to weight.

A sleeping bag can be replaced by a good, lightweight quilt (you really only use the insulation on the top part of the sleeping bag anyway when you sleep on a pad). I still use a bag, but I have cut out the stuffing on the bottom side of my sleeping bag and sewn back up the cells. This allows my sleeping bag to pack down to a very small and light size. Finally, I use an old, A-frame, single-wall tent which, with poles and stakes, weighs less than 3 pounds. This sleeps me and my wife (and very little else) and is basically a glorified bivy. Speaking of Bivy’s, they’re actually a good option for a tent as well. All-in-one hammocks, such as the Hennessy Hammock (http://hennessyhammock.com/), are a good third-way option (tent/bag/pad all in one!).

The Other Stuff— Look into getting an alcohol stove (http://zenstoves.net/Stoves.htm) and using it as your primary cooking system. Keep your food simple: lots of gorp/jerky/trail-food, couscous, freeze-dried foods, and other add-boiling-water foods. Be prepared to purify and treat water rather than attempt to haul 2-3 gallons (this will add 25 pounds to your weight alone). For purification I would suggest a combination of the AquaMira Frontier Pro (http://www.aquamira.com/) and a chemical treatment, either iodine or chlorine dioxide (I prefer the latter). Bring one LED headlamp for light. It will be more than enough (you should be sleeping at night anyway!). Lightweight multi-compass/ruler/etc.. Skip the non-essential electronics. Use only a closed-cell, ¾-length sleeping pad rather than an inflatable system. One small pot, one large mug-bowl, and one spoon. Buy a small, waterproof first-aid kit appropriate for your trips. Use light-weight and small containers (I like Platypus Bottles: http://www.cascadedesigns.com/platypus) to hold your water.

These suggestions certainly aren’t all-encompassing, but they should get you started towards a lighter weight pack and a better experience on the trails.

Finally, Philosophy.

Backpacking provides an enjoyable and healthy pastime for people who enjoy the outdoors, and is made all the more enjoyable the less weight we have to carry around. More than this, the process of stripping weight down is done most effectively by looking to get rid of extraneous or unnecessary items and by maximizing the utility of our equipment. In the first move, we must examine our own mental categories of “necessity” and “luxury.” It can be difficult to let go of the three-room tent and blow-up air mattress, but remember that the glory of the trail is found on the trail; when you’re attempting to be out in nature and enjoy a good long hike, it’s important to remember that we’re there to enjoy the raw natural beauty of the environment and not attempt to import the necessities of our daily lives (obviously in the “real world” my pillow-top bed is a necessity. It simply is.) into the great outdoors. Necessities have to shift when we’re on the trail. What is a necessity at home (refrigerator, toilet, infinite water, etc.) can be impossible in the backcountry. This shift will help you trim down and simplify your backpacking experience, but it will also heighten your appreciation of your daily-life luxuries when you get back from a hike. No hot shower and short nap in a comfy bed has ever felt better than after a multi-day hike.

The second philosophy of utility is about finding ways to get the most out of equipment. I know hikers that use only a tarp for a tent system, which also doubles as a poncho in a pinch. We don’t have to be quite as radical as that: using a spoon for most all utensil needs instead of bringing a full compliment is one example of this sort of utility; using a stuff-sack with your clothes in it as a pillow instead of bringing a separate pillow is another: these little tricks are simply ways of getting more out of less equipment by removing redundancy where you may not have realized it was present. Such small tweaks often help save significant space and/or weight by allowing for items to be used for multiple purposes. Small changes in how we perceive the functionality of our gear can lead to large savings in both weight and space, and the smartest cuts/utility uses/modifications of your gear will come from your own examination and reflection on the role your gear plays in your backpacking excursions. Look for redundancies in your gear that can be remedied with increasing the scope or role of another piece of similar (or modified) gear.

Finally, this is really all about locating an aesthetic which treasures non-excess, simplicity, and utility. This often flies in the face of how we live our daily lives, and yet there are important lessons to be learned from this outdoors paradigm. These reorientations run through the heart of the lightweight and ultra-lightweight backpacking philosophies, and they can also inform weight-loss strategy as well. As I’ve mentioned previously, the relationship such backpacking creates between a hiker, his body, his “fuel,” and his activity is invaluable in creating an awareness of the interdependence at the heart of any endeavor to lose weight, and is a necessary awareness to truly begin to manage calorie intake and exercise/physical activity in a meaningful manner. When you can translate a bag of chips into the several miles/hours of hiking it contains in energy in a meaningful sense, you’ll hopefully begin to have a better sense of the relationship between energy/calories and what, say, 1,000 calories translates to in real, physical terms.

Ultimately, weight loss works best when it comes while doing something you enjoy. I hope that some of these tips and ideas help make your next hiking trip more about enjoying your beautiful surroundings and less about enduring the physical pain of an unnecessarily large and/or heavy pack. Stripping your gear and pack down to the essentials and focusing on the enjoyment of the experience itself will help you not only enjoy your hike, but enjoy the pounds you’ve shed off your body because of the pounds you’ve shed off your pack!

Darren is a Youth Conservation Corps supervisor for the Trustees of Reservations (http://www.thetrustees.org/), a PhD student in the humanities at UMass, and a free-lance writer and reporter. He hikes primarily in Western Massachusetts and Southern Vermont and is preparing for a hike across the state of Massachusetts (north-south) at the end of the summer. He can be reached at: darrenlonefight@gmail.com Please put “Huskyhiker.com” in the subject line.

Healthy Eating Nightmare

Eating out is a part of life and when you are trying to loose weight it is a huge challenge to stay on track.   Here are some tips to help keep that meal out a little better on the belly…

1. Split your meal! Portions are HUGE, big enough for 2 in most cases.  Miss HuskyHiker and I have starting doing this a lot.  Not only are you saving calories your saving money too.  Heck, even the grilled chicken at chilli’s has 850 calories and 45 grams of fat!  That is without fries!   Even if you are not with someone who is willing to split order your meal with a to go box and split it right when you get it.  Enjoy the rest the next day for lunch…

2. Avoid sugary soda. Get water instead, you should drink more water anyway…   One regular soda packs about 160 calories.  Water zilch! and never mind free refills with water the first fill is free…

3. Don’t go blind and hungry. Do your research, look at the menu on line.  Plan your attack before you get there make a healthy choice and stick to it.  Most restaurants have nutritional info on line for download…  Keep looking it’s there somewhere, they hide it well they don’t want you to see that info.  Also have a healthy snack before you go it will help keep your mind on track and avoid appetizers.  The bloomin onion at outback has 1560 calories and 86 grams of fat.

4. Avoid the fat key words. Some things just sound so good… butter, cream sauce, creamy, oil breaded, alfredo, battered, gravy, smothered.  Stay clear,  as good as it sounds it is just not worth it…  The fettuccine alfredo at the olive garden has 1220 calories and 75 grams fat.  Keep that in mind when you see the fat key words.

5. Change how they serve it. That burger comes “smothered” in mayo ask for it with no mayo, or mayo on the side.  Salad or a vegetable side instead of fries most will do it…  Have them make it for YOU!  You are paying top dollar for this food so you should be happy with it…

So when heading out this weekend keep these tips in mind…

With spring comes ticks…  It seems to be worse and worse every year.  On an average hike I can pick at least 3-4 ticks off me and if I have the dog with me double that off him. Ticks carry lyme disease and rocky mountain spotted fever.  The risk of contacting lyme disease increases after 24-72 hours after the tick attaches.  At least with pets you have the availability of Revolution, Advantage, Advantix, and the like.  For us two legged folks we are not so lucky…  We don’t have any magic topical drops to repel ticks.  In this post I will go over some ways to help keep you tick free.

The most important thing is keeping the ticks off you to start with.

Here are some simple things you can do to keep ticks from biting:

• Wear long pants, long sleeve shirt, socks, and a hat when you can.  Also it helps to keep your shirt tucked in to your pants.
• Stay on groomed trails, avoid bushwhacking.
• Spray exposed skin and areas like bottom of pants with a replant containing deet.  The more deet % the better.

Always check yourself very carefully when coming in from an adventure in the woods or other tick hot spots.  Ticks like to make a home in warm moist areas on your body like armpits and the groin area.

If you find a tick on you don’t panic if you take the right steps to remove it you will be on your way worry free.  You can find a tool in just about every shape and color for tick removal.  If you are lucky the tick will not have had a chance to bite and embed its head yet.  If that is the case you can just pick it off…  If the little bugger has got a chance to embed then removal is a bit trickier.

How to remove an embedded tick:

• If you have a tool follow the instructions that came with the tool.
• If not you can use tweezers the finer the point the better.
• Grasp the tick as close to the skin as you can.
• Pull the tick out by slowly pulling straight up. Do not twist or rock the tick out.
• Flush the tick down the tolit or place the tick in a cup of rubbing alcohol to kill it.
• Clean the area the tick was attached with rubbing alcohol.
• Never try to remove a tick with a hot match, peanut butter, or petroleum jelly.

For people that spend a lot of time out side and are worried about lyme disease you can now get a vaccination against lyme disease called  Lymerix.

If you take some simple steps to protect yourself ticks are nothing to worry about…

• What is geocaching (part 1)
• What equipment you need to get started (part 2)
• Now What – Finding caches on line (part 3)
• Picking a good first cache to hunt (part 4)
• The hunt (part 5)
• Caching with kids (part 6)
• Advanced geocaching (part 7)

(Part 7) Advanced Geocaching

If I did a super in depth post about even some of the “advanced caching practices” it could fill a book…  Here I am going to give you the jist of it and give you a link to go learn more. so here we go…

Travel Bugs and Geocoins – Travel Bugs attach to an item and are tracked at geocaching.com.   They move from cache to cache (not for you to keep). When you take a travel bug out of a cache you enter the tracking code on the geocaching website and then you report on the cache page when you drop it off.  Geocoins are the same for the most part just they are coin like.  more on travel bugs -   more on geocoins

Paperless Caching -  Paperless caching is just that geocaching without paper. When most people start out caching they print out the cache pages to take with them… This can be a bit much if you plan on trying to find multible caches in a day (cache run).  So people have turned to using PDAs to store the cache data.  You can read more about paperless caching here & a two part how to here (part 1) (part 2)

Geocaching Bags - Most cachers have a caching bag.  Some have this bag with them at all times and in this bag you will find everything would ever need to find a cache plus some.  You can read more about what you might find in a caching bag here

Multi Stage Caches and Puzzle Caches – These caches are a little harder than your normal cache…  Multi Stage caches you have to visit multiple caches to get the location of a final cache location. and Puzzle Caches off a puzzle that has to be solved to get the location of the cache.  You can read all about the different cache types here

That wraps up my how to on caching…

Here is a list of geocache blogs for you to visit if you wish to learn more…

• GeoCache I’m Not Obsessed Right
• Slim Cache
• Hellolost & Saz’s Geocaching Adventure
• Northwoods GeoCats
• Parabola’s Blog
• So You Wanna Go Geocaching
• HeadHardHat’s Ingenious Cache Inventor
• Geocaching Geochronicle
• Geocaching Journal
• Adventure Monkey Goes Geocaching
• Headshot119′s Geocaching Blog
• Adventures In Geocaching

• What is geocaching (part 1)
• What equipment you need to get started (part 2)
• Now What – Finding caches on line (part 3)
• Picking a good first cache to hunt (part 4)
• The hunt (part 5)
• Caching with kids (part 6)
• Advanced geocaching (part 7)

Photo by cmiked

(Part 6) – Caching with kids

Geocaching with kids can be tons of fun and educational for kids. Keeping them interested might be a bit of a challenge. I am going to share a few tips that I might help.

Kids these days are very good with computer so let them be part of the of every part of the hunt even learning to use the GPS, finding the cache on line, the hunt, and logging the cache.  It will be more rewarding for them. The most important thing is letting your kids find the cache, even if you spot it let them find it. If they are having a hard time give them hints until they find it. Also when it comes trading items you should teach them it is not about what is in the cache it is about the hunt, and being out in the woods.  Some caches bring you to places of great history teach your kids the history of the area. Make sure that when you head out that you are extra prepared. Bring water, bug repellent, sun screen, snacks, ect.  This stuff will help keep kids happy when the times are getting tough on the hunt…

Things to remember:

• Let them find it
• Let the kids be pare of every aspect of the caching experience
• Teach them about leave no trace
• Teach them item trading is not all that caching is about
• Go prepared

Part 7 – Coming Soon!

• What is geocaching (part 1)
• What equipment you need to get started (part 2)
• Now What – Finding caches on line (part 3)
• Picking a good first cache to hunt (part 4)
• The hunt (part 5)
• Caching with kids (part 6)
• Advanced geocaching (part 7)

Photo by René Ehrhardt

(Part 5) – The Hunt

Drive near the cache you are trying to find… With your GPS on and satellites found you will want to select the cache waypoint.  This will once again vary by model but you should be able to do it from the map screen or the main menu by choosing waypoints.  After you select the waypoint (geocache) you want to find it should take you to the navigational compass screen. It will have an arrow (that points in the direction of the cache you are looking for) and some data fields that you can customize.

So here is where it gets fun, At the very least you should be looking at an arrow and distance on the screen.  Walk in the distance that it is telling you to go.  When you get close, around 20-30 feet start looking for a hidden cache.  Places to check, base of trees, in downed logs, the the crevices of large rocks.  Once you find a few you will know where to look.  Most times the hiding place will look just a little to unnatural, like a pile of sticks, or a leaning log, ect.  If you are having a hard time you can decode the hint on the cache page, if that still doesn’t help just move on try the next one and come back for that one after you find a few… Hey! look there you found it! Congrats! Now open it up sign the log check out the contents.  Remember you DON’T have to trade items and if you do ALWAYS TRADE UP leave something or equal or greater value to keep the cache contents alive.  Next when you get home you have to log your find on geocaching.com.  Go back to the cache page on the website (did you save that paper you printed) and click on “log your visit” in the upper right corner.  Publish your log and move on to the next. Now you are HOOKED!

Part 6 – coming soon!

• What is geocaching (part 1)
• What equipment you need to get started (part 2)
• Now What – Finding caches on line (part 3)
• Picking a good first cache to hunt (part 4)
• The hunt (part 5)
• Caching with kids (part 6)
• Advanced geocaching (part 7)

Photo by LollyKnit

(Part 4) – Picking a good first cache to hunt:

All caches are rated 1-5 stars in difficulty and terrain. For your first hunt you are going to want to pick a cache with a low rating, something between 1 or 2 stars would be good. Also you are going to want to pick a cache with a larger container, no micro or small caches they will frustrate you in the hunt.  It would also be helpful to pick a cache that is away from populated areas this way you can have a leisurely hunt and not worry about muggles. A muggle is a non-geocacher, you want to make sure a muggle never sees you remove or replace a cache.  When a non-cacher sees someone remove a box from a secret hiding place and rummage through the contents and put it back in said hiding place it’s gets their curiosity flowing.  They will take it out, look it over, and hopefully realize what it is and put it back. But sometimes people are not so nice and the cache can become vandalized or stolen.  Now this location has been ruined for other players. Nothing is worse that coming to a muggled cache site and seeing cache contents strewn about and the cache container smashed to pieces.

Now that you have picked a cache lets get it loaded on your GPSr.  Different brands and models of GPS units have different loading instructions, it would be best to look at your user manual for loading waypoints to your specific model. Here I will just go over the basics…

The coordinate info is only available so I hope you signed up for that free account.  The coordinates of the cache are located at the top of the cache page just below the title and are formatted something like this “N 42° 21.138 W 072° 40.334” you can enter the coordinates in to your GPSr manually (did you read that manual?), or better yet you can download the GPX file and transfer it to your GPSr using the software that came with your unit. Even better yet if you have a Garmin GPSr you can download Garmin Plugin Communicator and use the “send to GPS” button and it will do all the work for you.

Now it would be a good idea to print the cache page. The info on the cache page will help you in the hunt once you get to the cache site as well as help you find the cache page again so you can log your visit on line after you find that cache…

Part 5 – comming soon!

• What is geocaching (part 1)
• What equipment you need to get started (part 2)
• Now What – Finding caches on line (part 3)
• Picking a good first cache to hunt (part 4)
• The hunt (part 5)
• Caching with kids (part 6)
• Advanced geocaching (part 7)

Cache Index Page

(Part 3) Now What – Finding caches on line

Next you need to sign up for an account over at geocaching.com. They offer both free and paid accounts, the free account gives you plenty of access to get started. You can get stated here.

Now lets find some caches on line now that you have your geocaching.com account.  Now that you are a geocaching.com member you can view full cache pages.  All the info you need to find the cache is on the caches page.

I would assume you want to find a cache close to your home or work. You can search for geocaches from the geocaching.com homepage by clicking on the “hide and seek a cache” button on the left of the page. From the “hide and seek” page you can search by address, zip code, state, country, latitude & longitude, keyword, area code, waypoint, found by user name, and hidden by user name.  I would search by address or zip code then click go.

This will bring you to the geocache search index page. This page lists all the caches in the area you searched closest being first.  Also on this page you will find the cache size, type, difficulty, cache title, last find date, and whether the cache contains a travel bug or geocoin (more on travel bugs or geocoins in part 7). Clicking on ant of the cache titles will bring you to the cache page. This is the page that has all the info you need to find the cache.  From the cache page you can do things such as, read logs from other users, view cache location in a map, get driving directions, and more.  I suggest browsing different cache pages to get the feel and learn the layout of the site.

Part 4 – Picking a good first cache to hunt

• What is geocaching (part 1)
• What equipment you need to get started (part 2)
• Now What – Finding caches on line (part 3)
• Picking a good first cache to hunt (part 4)
• The hunt (part 5)
• Caching with kids (part 6)
• Advanced geocaching (part 7)

Photo by RoyP

(Part 2) What do I need:

The only thing that you need is a GPSr.  You can get one as basic or as advanced as you would like, the only requirement being that you can input coordinates in to the GPS unit. Many cell phones now-a-days are GPS enabled and ca be used for geocaching.  A basic GPSr can be found for $100 or less, if you feel like you need more bells and whistles you can spend upwards of $500 or more.  Both will get you to the cache.  I recommend a handheldGPSr rather than an automotive unit.  Both can get you to the cache but handheld units are made for outdoor use and are much more rugged than automotive type. A common GPSr used for geocaching is the Garmin Etrex Legend HCX.

Part 3 - Now What – Finding caches on line

Photo by Bill.Roehl

I have been posting here about some of the geocaches that I have found. Today I was thinking that maybe some readers might not be aware what geocaching really is and how to get started.  Over the next few days I will be posting my 7 part geocaching how-to.

Starting a new hobby can be intimidating, especially one that is based on technology like geocaching. In this article I hope to give you the info you need to get out and start geocaching…

What we will cover in this article:

• What is geocaching (part 1)
• What equipment you need to get started (part 2)
• Now What – Finding caches on line (part 3)
• Picking a good first cache to hunt (part 4)
• The hunt (part 5)
• Caching with kids (part 6)
• Advanced geocaching (part 7)

What is geocaching:

Geocaching is an outdoor “treasure” hunting game in which people use a Global Positioning System Receiver or GPSr to hide and seek containers, usually military ammo cans or tupperware all over the world outdoors and in public places. The “treasure” is typically low cost items such as toys, foreign coins, flashlights, hand warmers, ect.  Every cache should have at minimum a log book for you to sign, proof that you where there and to leave your mark. Caches can be found anywhere from your local shopping plaza parking lot to the top of a mountain.  There is a cache to meet any one’s caching style… Geocaches are usually placed in laces of interest so this is a great way to find some really neat places you never knew existed.

Part 2 – What equipment you need to get started