MnGCA

[quatch27]

So...I think I have a problem.

Let me start from the beginning. After being laid off at the beginning of the year (due to the economy) I landed a good job with good benefits with decent pay, in my field of experience (yeah for me!) One of the perks was I received a Blackberry Storm paid for by my employer (the downside of being in IT...always on call.) I am enjoying my job...and my new toy. I can download apps to it...a few games, some weather stuff....nothing too distracting. Until....in July I discovered this little app called BlackStar Navigation.

At first I just used it to keep track of bike routes, nothing fancy....but kind of fun. Then I discovered it could do geocaching. Now I had heard about geocaching and had wanted to try it, but never could justify the expense of a GPS unit to try geocaching. I thought it could be something fun that I could do with the family, get us all outdoors and such. But if it turned out to be something that we didn't enjoy I didn't want to be stuck with a GPS unit we weren't going to use. So finding this free app was kind of nice.

I started reading up on geocaching and what I needed to do. I discovered that there was a cache at the park literally across the street from our house. I thought "Great, we can try this and see what happens." So on a weekday evening I loaded my first cache into my phone, and my girls and I walked over to the park, we searched for a good 10-15 minutes but didn't find it. Oh well...the three of us tried again a few days later, but still nothing (turns out that cache had gone missing.) So we then decided to try a different cache at a different park. This time the wife went with us. After a minor hiccup (the phone needed a reboot to pickup a GPS signal) we were off. We walked around for a few minutes and then the phone would point a different direction....so we would walk that way for a bit....then it would point a slightly different direction...after doing this back and forth dance for a bit the wife says, "Maybe it's that tree in there." So, I cut into the woods...looked around “that tree” and discover out first cache! We have gone out and found several other cache's since then; discovered (and moved) some Travel Bugs and picked up our first Geosafari card from Afton State Park. It is something we have found really enjoyable. The girls love finding things to trade.

So...now here I am middle of September and I think I have a problem. I have started looking for caches that I can search for on my lunch break during work. Last night I went out looking for a couple of caches while my oldest daughter was at her Girl Scout meeting. The wife and I are going to Vegas next week and I am looking for caches around where we are staying. To make matters worse, I got scolded by the family because I had found a cache with out them. In addition I have started looking for a dedicated GPS unit (leaning toward a Garmin Dakota 10) I don't recall reading anything about how additive this could become...is there any hope for me or the family? Thanks for listening to my tale of whoa...and any advice on what I should do would be appreciated.

[MNMizzou]

My advice, don't even look at any of the many many challenge caches that are out there (Many hidden by King Boreas) that require you do something nuts like find a cache in every county of Minnesota, every county seat, every page of the DeLorme Atlas... etc. My poor truck racked up probably an extra 10K miles since last summer on those road trips (along with the Minnesota State Park series.) Seriously though, what a blast we had!

In the last year or so we have seen just about every corner of the state, literally, and found places here, and in other states and even countries that we would have never found if it wasn't for geocaching! Oh if you're going to Vegas it is the motherlode of virtuals along the strip (and even a few traditional ones, make sure you're brushed up on micro hunting for those) so my only advice for Vegas is know which ones are virtuals and what they want for the logging requirement if you can't see the info on your phone. I also recommend Convention Center Hotel Cache, a nice cure for the micros that's close to a lot of the strip action! Oh and if you're into being able to "light up" another state found on your map don't forget California is only about 45 mins away down I-15 and there are caches right across the border! Kind of interesting drive through the desert if you haven't done it before, very different terrain from Minnesota!

Have fun!!

[quatch27]

Awe man....now you went and did it. I thought the Afton multicache was fun....now I am going to have start looking into these Challenge caches. Where do I find the details on different Challenge Caches?

We aren't renting a car for our trip to Vegas so hitting CA this time won't happen; we are only going to be their for a couple of days. I do have some relatives that live in CA...sounds like a good excuse to go visit. I've seen a number of virtual caches along the Strip which we are going to do.

Thanks for the advice

[Red_Devil35]

[casinoman]

Just so you know now that you and the family are hooked there is no hope.
I got hooked in 2006 and I still ove my time in the woods with my son and when the wife comes along it is even better. Nothing like spending family time.

Now that dose not mean that I don't like time out on the trail by my self. I had some time to do some more MN caches this weekend in New Ulm.

I have found that any time I go on a trip for work or for play I find at least 1 cache wear ever we go.
I got my first GPS for my birthday and laid it to rest just last mouth it was a nice funeral all in atendance were sad.
My 300 brought us to many places and many caches it will be missed.

Good luck with your new found adiccition.
It can and will be alot of fun for you and the family.

My only sugestion is don't tell the family when you go out by your self if they get mad. There are alot of us that sneek out and cache.
Check into the Event page and go with on some of the WNC ( week night Caching )
Bring the kids they will have fun too.
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I may grow old, But I will never grow up.

[ArcherDragoon]

Nope...you are done for!!!

...but, there is hope...there is a help group that meets almost weekly in the relative area...usually Wednesdays

Details about this week's self-help session can be found at:
http://mngca.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=5003
_________________
You may only be young once...but I will be immature forever!!!

[spinowner]

[bflentje]

And if you're really not careful, you'll find yourself canoeing to caches, wading through swamps, climbing trees, climbing cliffs with no safety gear, diving to the bottom of Square lake, and all kinds of crazy crap. You might even find yourself caching on Halloween.

[bflentje]

[quatch27]

[minnesotabrad]

Yes, you are in big touble. Let me tell you I started caching in Feb 2007 with a Garmin V, then moved to a Magellan 500LE, then to a Garmin Colorado, then an Oregon 400t and now a Oregon 550t. Last year I bought a canoe for geocaching as well. I try to attend most WeekNIGHT get togethers and most events. Last summer I visited every State Park to complete their challenge. I have learned you should always have an extra set of clothes and shoes in you vehicle. I have served on event committees for the MnGCA and am currently on the board. I am part of a committee to bring GeocoinFest to the Twin Cities next year. I have had two different pathtags made as signature items and have a pretty good size collection of geocoins and pathtags. I plan caching as part of my trips even if it means only getting one. I have driven to do one cache and have ended up being gone the whole weekend. My daughter will go occasionally and my wife is not an outdoors person so rarely goes at all. Consider yourself lucky the whole family enjoys it and hope they continue to.

Your journey has only begun and hold on because it can be quite a ride!

[spinowner]

[RudeRat]

At 24 finds, I say get out now while you still can. That initial high you’re feeling will soon turn into months of scratching and calamine lotion as you treat your poison ivy, not to mention the frost bitten nose as you trudge across a frozen lake to dig in the snow for a cache you couldn’t reach in the summer months. The bee stings alone should have you running to a safer sport. You can’t imagine the gut wrenching feeling we all have when the game is tied with 4 minutes on the clock and you have to miss the end because Surfer Joe published a new cache 2.8 miles away. Why subject yourself to the looks from your friends and coworkers as you try to explain it to them. My advice is to run, and run fast. It’s too late for us, but there is still hope for you if you can find the strength to just say no!
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Ahhhhhhhh, the power of cheese!

[ArcherDragoon]

[quatch27]

Thanks for everyone words of advice. I've been in the woods before....so I know what to look for in regards to poison ivy(it's green and leafy....right? ). And I've had my share of bug bites and close calls with larger critters. As for Wild Parsnip...I don't believe I've run across that yet.

As for soccer...I don't play anymore(if anyone thinks soccer is a safer sport we need to talk). I'm coaching my daughter's team now. So if I had to bail with 4 minutes left in the game...I'm sure the kids would do just fine I might get some funny looks from the parents, but I'm sure they would understand once I explained why I disappeared.....right?

I may have only 24...but I think it's already too late. I was at REI earlier today checking out different GPS units (didn't buy anything...yet)