Mountain Home News: Story: Geocache hunters find = local treasures

Geocache hunters find local treasures

Wednesday, December 17, = 2003

Dave=20 Sonnetag checks out one of the geocache sites near = Mountain=20 Home.
[Click=20 to enlarge]

You may have = seen them as=20 they climbed over the rocky terrain behind the Desert = Mountain=20 Visitors Center. They were trying to locate the small = container with=20 the cache.=20

Nearly five dozen treasure hunters have already logged = the=20 geocache find onto the Internet -- 58 people who might not = have=20 stopped in Mountain Home if not for the lure of the = 'treasure' they=20 might find.=20

For Dave Sonnetag of Mountain Home, the spot seemed to be = an=20 ideal location to place the cache. "It is close to the = Interstate=20 exit and gives people a chance to pull of the road, stretch = their=20 legs, get a little exercise and have fun hunting. And while = they are=20 there, they might just stop in at the Visitors Center, learn = a=20 little more about Mountain Home, and maybe even visit some = of our=20 local businesses."=20

With those goals in mind, the "Welcome to Mountain Home N = 43=B0=20 08.222 W 115=B0 39.768 (WGS 84)" geocache was tucked away.=20

Geocaching is an entertaining adventure game for GPS = users.=20 Participating in a cache hunt is a good way to take = advantage of the=20 features and capability of a global unit. The basic idea is = to have=20 individuals and organizations set up caches all over the = world and=20 share the locations of these caches on the internet. GPS = users can=20 then use the location coordinates to find the caches. Once = found, a=20 cache may provide the visitor with a wide variety of = rewards. All=20 the visitor is asked to do is if they get something, they = should try=20 to leave something for the cache.=20

A GPS unit is a electronic device that can determine your = approximate location (within around 6-20 feet) on the = planet.=20 Coordinates are normally given in longitude and latitude. = You can=20 use the unit to navigate from your current location to = another=20 location. Some units have their own maps, built-in = electronic=20 compasses, voice navigation, depending on the complexity of = the=20 device.=20

There is no need to know all the technical mumbo jumbo = about GPS=20 units to play Geocaching. All you need to do is be able to = enter=20 what is called a "waypoint" where the geocache is hidden.=20

Sonnetag received his first GPS for Christmas in 2001 and = spent=20 much of the following month learning how to use the unit and = reading=20 about geocaching.=20

Paying a visit to the website (www.geocaching.com) he = learned=20 there were about a dozen people in the Boise area who had = been=20 placing caches. At that time (February, 2002), there were=20 approximately 74 caches located within a 100-mile radius.=20

After his first 'find' Sonnetag was hooked. It did not = take long=20 before his cache-hunting nickname appeared in a number of = cache=20 logs. The game's players were soon encouraging him to place = some=20 caches in the Mountain Home area -- something that might = present a=20 new challenge to players who had already visited so many of = the=20 existing cache sites.=20

He set out five separate caches and entered the = coordinates on=20 the webpage. Not long after, someone else placed two other = caches in=20 the area to give a total of seven around Mountain Home. = Before long,=20 as the popularity of the game grew, more players were = placing more=20 caches in their favorite spots.=20

In 2003, Sonnetag added six more caches. He noted that = finding=20 places to locate new caches used to be relatively easy, but = as more=20 people become involved, finding a location that someone else = has not=20 already thought of is becoming more of a challenge.=20

Geocaching is a relatively new phenomenon. Therefore, the = rules=20 are very simple: 1. Take something from the cache; 2. Leave=20 something in the cache; and 3. Write about it in the = logbook.=20

A cache can come in many forms but the first item should = always=20 be the logbook. In its simplest form a cache can be just a = logbook=20 and nothing else. The logbook contains information from the = founder=20 of the cache and notes from the cache's visitors. The = logbook can=20 contain much valuable, rewarding, and entertaining = information. A=20 logbook might contain information about nearby attractions,=20 coordinates to other unpublished caches, and even jokes = written by=20 visitors. If you get some information from a logbook you = should give=20 some back. At the very least you can leave the date and time = you=20 visited the cache.=20

Larger caches may consist of a waterproof plastic bucket = placed=20 tastefully within the local terrain. The bucket will contain = the=20 logbook and any number of more or less valuable items. These = items=20 turn the cache into a true treasure hunt. You never know = what the=20 founder or other visitors of the cache may have left there = for you=20 to enjoy. Items in a bucket cache could be: Maps, books, = software,=20 hardware, CD's, videos, pictures, money, jewelry, tickets, = antiques,=20 tools, games, etc. It is recommended that items in a bucket = cache be=20 individually packaged in a clear zipped plastic bag to = protect them.=20

But caches need not be large. An Altoid tin or a small=20 Tupperware-like container can serve just as well.=20

"It's fun and is a great way to get a little exercise and = to see=20 some really interesting sites, like the Crater Rings for = example.=20 Many of the log entries indicated the finders had not even = known of=20 the existence of the rings prior to the cache hunt, he said. =

If you are new to geocaching, he suggests you pay close = attention=20 to the rating system for both difficulty and terrain. "One = star is=20 the easiest, five stars is hardest." So if you see four = stars beside=20 'terrain,' you might need to think about whether you will = need=20 four-wheel drive to even get close enough to hike to the = site, or=20 climbing boots or other special gear, Sonnetag said.=20

The geocacher now has 185 'finds' credited to him and is = still=20 excited about the prospect of more. "It's fun and it is = something a=20 family can do together. You get your exercise and get to see = some=20 really interesting sites."=20

While most geocache coordinates are posted only on the = Internet,=20 Sonnetag plans to leave a list of coordinates with the = volunteers at=20 the Visitors Center so that when traveling cache hunters = stop at the=20 center, the volunteers could suggest other nearby cache = sites they=20 might try.