A year of geocaching draws to a close

Just about a year ago I got the idea that my family might enjoy geocaching. This hobby is basically a GPS-assisted treasure hunt. You use a GPS receiver to find caches hidden in various places. The caches themselves are usually just small containers containing a logbook (to prove you've been there) and sometimes some trinkets. For the most part the fun isn't in the treasure itself; rather, it's in the hunt. Some caches are more complicated, involving multiple stages or puzzles. Some are "virtual", meaning you have to find a particular spot (for example, a historical marker) and answer questions about it.

Well, all four of us tried it out last Christmas day. Teddy and I got bitten by the geocaching bug and have each logged about 200 finds in our first year. Valerie isn't so keen on the outdoor activity involved, and David is just too impatient to put in the time required for finding cleverly done hides.

There's also a large and friendly community built around geocaching. That's nice too.

On Saturday Teddy and I went out to do a loop of caches (most "virtuals") around the monuments in DC. Teddy had already hit 200, but I wanted to bring my total up to 200 for the year. Over the course of a 5.5 mile walk we succeeded in hitting my target - though I will officially log one of the caches Teddy created as my 200th "find".

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