Amber Goes... Geocaching
Amber Bond
Issue date: 4/27/09 Section: Entertainment
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I think it was the five minutes that limited my explanation and in fact, I went over the five minutes and the teacher had to cut me off. Since I've been on the newspaper staff, I have wanted to share what geocaching is. And, what better opportunity, to save it for the last issue, and entering summer break.
Geocaching is simply a scavenger hunt using a GPS (global positioning system) to locate "treasure." A compass and a map could also be used, but I've only ever known an Eagle Scout to do it that way.
Geocaching began in 2000 when the government removed selective ability, which was for military purposes. The accuracy of GPS technology had an upgrade. GPS users around the world were able to precisely pinpoint a location or the location of items.
This provoked a man by the name of Dave Ulmer to hide a "cache" by using a GPS to note the coordinates. When he posted the coordinates on a website, people went looking for it.
I was introduced to geocaching in fall 2007 and it wasn't until the next fall that I really started to get into it. It is now one of my favorite hobbies.
Geocaching is an activity that allows you to break away from normalities such as the television and Internet that keep us cooped in the house all day. It can also be bonding time with friends and family, or time with ouselves.
For me, the biggest aspect of geocaching is the sense of adventure. It leads you to places that you never would have thought to venture too. Some places you pass by on a normal routine and it may look like a patch of woods but beyond there may be a cliff and great place to watch the sunset.
You get the feeling that you're the only one who knows about that spot. From that moment on you will pass by that patch of woods and know what lies beyond it.
Caches may be right under your nose. There are about five on campus. My boyfriend's step dad told me a story about spotting a geocache from the road one day.
He was stopped at a red light one afternoon and saw a film canister taped to the back of a stop sign. He pulled over to see what it was. He got out of his car and walked slowly with caution. "I thought it was a bomb," he said.
But when he figured it wasn't any threat he opened it and found a rolled up piece of paper which is the log sheet geocachers sign to prove they have found it.
Geocaching is gradually catching on with many people. Believe it or not, geocaches are hidden all over the world. It's incredible.
One such geocacher, who is very active, has found nearly 11,000 caches. He has also hidden over 200 caches all over Tennessee.
Some caches are in plain view and some are discretely hidden. Never are caches buried under ground though.
One cache I have found was taped to the end of a pinecone. That pinecone was arranged in a way that covered the exposed area and was on the ground with a bunch of other pine cones. When I found this it was nighttime and by luck light from my flashlight happen to spot its "awkwardness."
After you begin to geocache for a while, you start to pick up on how caches are hidden. And, some, may take three or four tries to find it.
There are also caches called earth caches. You find them in the same manner but instead of "treasure" it involves a unique feature in the earth.
There is one in downtown Nashville located at an underground parking garage. It's an underground stream that flows from a large fracture in the rock from a spring.
On Tuesday, April 21, me and Kayla, editor of this newspaper, went geocaching. I was thrilled when I found out she had been geocaching and was excited to have someone to go with me.
It's not always safe going geocaching alone. I have ended up trying to locate a cache in woods only to run to my car because I hear eerie noises.
We traveled to Castalian Springs to find a cache called "Re-A-Pier." The coordinates guided us along a road where the sky was filled with endless clouds and blue sky. Alongside the road was a creek and the cool breeze flowed inside the car through the cracks of our windows.
It was located at a site that was once a railroad track but now had been knocked down. Parts of the wooden track still remained. It was fascinating to reflect on the missing link of track that was once between the two remaining wooden frames. Where did the train once lead? When was it built? Who road the train?
The next coordinate on our list was called "Rock? Bridge." It led us to an old rusted bridge down a road called Rock Bridge. The question that the geocacher who hid this was, "why is the road called Rock Bridge if the bride is obviously not made of rock?"
Our next cache was located in a tree along a creek in Gallatin. The container was a film canister hidden in a hole about 8 feet from the ground. The gray lid was covered with camouflage tape so that it blended with the tree.
At the end of the day of geocaching, it feels like I have explored parts of the world. I have no idea what the latest and hippest TV show is, but I do know where the best hiding spots are and the where the best views of the sunset take place. That, to me, is living.
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