Introduction to Geocaching & Letterboxing
Etiquette
Whether you choose to geocache, letterbox, or both, there are a few common sense "rules" for the game that we hope you follow.
- Trade equal or up
If you take an item from the cache, replace it with an equal or better item.
- No Food in Cache
Food will attract animals and bugs
- Family Friendly trinkets
We anticipate lots of families will be playing the game.
- Stay on Marked Trails
Many groups have graciously permitted us to place "hides" on their property. Keeping on the trails prevents property damage and may help avoid ticks and pos ion ivy.
- Leave no Trash Behind
If you see trash during your travels, take it out with you.
- Replace Cache exactly as found
Let the next person experience the same fun you had searching.
- Report any problems with cache
"Muggles" are everywhere and things may go wrong with a cache or letterbox. Let us know if there is a problem so we can get it fixed.
Geocaching
Geocaching has been called a high tech treasure hunt, a sport where you are the search engine. It involves using coordinates plugged into a gps unit to help find hidden objects, usually waterproof boxes of various shapes and sizes that have been placed in either urban or rural areas. These boxes generally contain a logbook, pencil and trinkets or treasure of some kind. There are currently 750,000 caches hidden over 7 continents with almost a million people looking for them.
The cache, or boxes vary in size from small "nano" containers to larger sized recycled ammunition cans. They are camouflaged and meant to be found by solving clues, puzzles, and using geo-sense to determine the exact location of the hide. This is all done in a discreet manner, so those that are not playing "muggles" are not aware of the discovery.
Visits are logged in the log book and trinkets are traded. Often players log their visit on a website for other players to see. Hides are usually rated by the difficulty of the puzzle to be solved and rated by the difficulty of the terrain to get there.
For this event, we have used these guidelines, most of the boxes are small to medium caches, though at least one includes a nano as part of a multi-hide.
Some of the caches are relatively quick finds (half an hour) and some require hikes of a couple of hours. We tried to give information so you can plan accordingly based on time and family stamina, but sometimes a particular puzzle or hide can be tricky. Feel free to return to find a hide if it eludes you the first or second time. The more you do, the better you will get at finding them.
Letterboxing
Letterboxing began in England in the mid 1800's. Hikers would leave notes or postcards along a trail for other travelers to pick up and deliver.It is believed that it was introduced in the US in 1998 after the Smithsonian Magazine published an article about it.
Letterboxing is a fun hobby often called "art in the woods". Participants solve puzzles or crack codes that lead to the boxes or caches hidden in the woods or parks. The find consists of a rubber stamp, a book and usually a stamp pad.
Letterboxers stamp their discoveries in a personal journal, then use their own rubber stamp, or signature stamp, by stamping it into the logbook found with the letterbox, adding a note about their find. Signature stamps are usually chosen for a team or family that represent them in some unique way.
The main difference between letterboxing and geocaching is the method in which people discover the caches. Geocaching requires a gps of some kind, usually the hand held, recreational units that are waterproof and more rugged than car gps units. The iphone also has developed an application for geocaching and it can be used in lieu of a stand alone gps unit.
Recommendations for either sport include appropriate hiking clothing, shoes, a walking stick, compass, bug spray, water, a pen or pencil to record your visit, cell phone and a first aid kit.
I have the booklet, now how do I play?
Ok you have this great booklet, what do you do with it. This is a step by step guide to begin your journey.
We recommend that you read all the wonderful information we have provided for you about what you will need to go out on a safe and fruitful adventure.
The first thing you'll notice is that the book is divided into two main sections, letterboxing and geocaching. They are similar but have some main differences you should be aware of.
How do I know if I want to Geocache or Letterbox?
If you have never done either, we suggest you start out by finding a letterbox. You will need a minimal investment to start out, primarily a rubber stamp of some significance to you and your team maybe a compass and some appropriate walking shoes.( We have other recommendations of supplies which will be spelled out on a separate page. These are common sense items that most families should have available to them)
The individual caches or hunts are put in order in the booklet from the easiest to the more difficult ones. Start out with the easiest! We want you to be successful, and you want to be successful, so do a little planning before you go. How much time do you have to allot for the hunt? Is there an area you are familiar with or an area you have always wanted to see? Look at the rating at the top of the page, The stars on the left denote the rating of the difficulty of the puzzle you will need to solve to find the box. If you need to decode something or travel to multiple places for information, the rating would be higher.
The puzzles were designed to get you out of the house, and not google accessible!
The stars on the right, refer to the terrain, is it a flat, short walk, it will be one star.
If it is a hike in Bluff Head, it might be a 3 or a 4. Ratings are on average. You might find some more challenging and disagree with some we rate as difficult.
Bring your rubber stamp if you have one, pencil, book to stamp in, map, compass and whatever other appropriate gear you will need for the adventure. When you find the box, stamp your stamp in the logbook that is in there, and take the stamp in the box and stamp your book.
Sign the logbook with whatever team name you have assigned yourselves.
Replace everything as you found it making sure the lid is placed on correctly so it remains waterproof. If there are people in the vicinity please wait until it is safe to find or return the container. Children can become very excited when finding the treasure box, please explain the necessity to keep this a stealth activity to keep the box safe from being vandalized.
If a treasure box has gone missing, please contact the gffe immediately so we can check on it and replace it if necessary. Don't forget to log your finds and share your experience with other players: http://discoverguilford.webs.com/apps/forums/
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