Free Loaner GPSr in Kimberly, British Columbia, Canada

Geo what? You either know or don't have a clue what we are talking about. Geo-caching is the modern version of treasure hunting using a hand-held GPS and is so much fun. Don't have a GPS? Do not worry, we will lend you one....with all the treasures around Kimberley programmed in!

There is a huge community of treasure hunters around the world and our beautiful surroundings is no different, lending itself to some great hiding places for these little caches. Enthusiasts hide their caches away and then upload the coordinates and clues onto the world wide web at geocaching.com for us all to go out and find them! It is as easy as that.

So all you need is a GPS (which we will lend you if required), a sense of adventure and as many willing friends and family of all ages you can must to help find the cache. When you find one you can take something out, leave a replacement item, sign the logbook and continue on to find some more because by now you will be hooked! The kids will love it, and of course they will be able to show you how to use the GPS properly!!

Make a good walk for the whole family a little more fun by finding a few of these on the way. A great way to get the kids away from their electronics on the sofa to making their electronics get them out in the great outdoors! Kimberley Nature Park is in easy walking distance from all of our condos and has a number of geo-caches hidden away waiting to be found.

We have a selection of Pet-Friendly units should you want to bring the whole family. Your pet will help hunt and can stay as a Free Guest but you must read and agree to our "Pet Friendly Guest Licence Agreement".

Rocky Mountain Accommodations: Call Anne 1.866.822.2666 or email: bookings@rockynow.com

 

If you’ve got the time, they’ve got the cache

Mike Van Burik and the large ammo can at Coombs Wooden Shoe. It’s used for geocaching, he says.
Steven Heywood photo
By Steven Heywood - Parksville Qualicum Beach News
Published: July 29, 2011 9:00 AM
You could use your global positioning system to find Aranea and Mike Van Burik’s geocache in Coombs. Or, you could simply use your eyes. However, you might not believe them.

Outside the couple’s store, Coombs Wooden Shoe, sits what is being hailed as possibly the largest geocache in Canada (perhaps the world). It’s a large, metal ammo can.

Modeled after a typical storage bin used in the sport of geocaching (using a GPS to locate waypoints and hidden caches), the couple’s large ammo can is attracting a lot of attention.

“I love the big stuff,” said Aranea, who has been geocaching with her family for three years. “An ammo can is a typical cache and a good quality hide. I thought it would be cool to make it bigger.”

After toying with the idea of making a wooden one, the couple decided authentic and metal was the way to go. She and Mike engaged the services of the Kwalikum Secondary School metalwork class, after taking them a sample — and much smaller — ammo can from the Coombs military surplus store. After three weeks, they received their large can — four feet long, three feet tall and about 18 inches wide.

“They did an awesome job,” Aranea said of the workmanship. “There’s a lot of guys who stop and have a look at it and are impressed with the quality of work.”

It was so good, and the material used so authentic, that the Van Buriks had to modify the lid, so that people could actually lift it.

“It’s completely functional,” she explained. “It’s the way it’s supposed to be.”

Aranea attended a recent geocaching event in Alberta, where she said a high-ranking geocacher indicated their can might be the largest cache in the world. Aranea’s only willing to go so far as to say it’s the largest in Canada — for now.

It’s size is attracting people and has quickly become a bit of a tourist draw. Aranea added people already come to Vancouver Island to geocache, this just adds a little something extra.

Since the large ammo can is functional as a cache, there are things inside to find. There’s a log book to record who was there, when, and where they are from, a smaller can for tradable items and other things for children. Geocachers generally take something and leave something behind for the next person to find.

One thing is for certain, they won’t have too much difficulty finding the Van Buriks’ great big can.

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Find this article at:
http://www.bclocalnews.com/vancouver_island_central/parksville_qualicumbeachnews/lifestyles/126358248.html

Geocaching: Take Fringe Fest Adventure to the Outdoors

Posted on July 27, 2011 by Michele


We’re introducing another new way to engage with Fringe Fest this year. First it was the summer double pass giveaway contest, and now this: Fringe Fest geocaching! If you aren’t familiar with geocaching yet, learn more about how it works.

We have currently set up a handful of locations throughout the Calgary area. Each geocache contains two Fringe Festival buttons and a note with details about how to redeem those buttons for free tickets to the Fringe show of your choice. In short, you treasure hunt with your friends or family, you find our geocache(s) with Fringe Fest buttons, and then you enjoy a Fringe Fest show.

I should also mention the best part: our buttons don’t expire. This means that if you discover a Fringe Fest geocache before August 6th this year, you’re welcome to use it to attend the 2011 Calgary Fringe Festival. But if you find a Fringe Fest geocache after that date – say, later this summer or even sometime next year – the buttons it contains will still be valid for two tickets to any Fringe show and good for next year’s Calgary Fringe Festival (and beyond).

Pretty simple, pretty fun, and pretty fantastic.

If you want to give this high-tech scavenger hunt a try, why not make your debut with a search for Fringe Fest adventure? I will be regularly sharing Fringe Fest geocache IDs online, so make sure to “like” Calgary Fringe on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.

Happy hunting!

Rachelle
CFF Social Media Manager

 1 Vote

Join The “Center of the Universe” Hosts Geocaching Block Party

By Sean Keeley · July 26th, 2011 · REPOST

Geocaching.com is hosting a Geocaching Block Party in Seattle’s Fremont neighborhood August 20, 2011. Geocaching is an outdoor treasure-hunting activity using GPS devices. The Block Party is a celebration of the activity for beginners and experts alike. Head to the “Center of the Universe” to:

There’s tons to do at the event. Test your treasure hunting skills with geocaching - a game that will have you searching high and low for containers hidden around Fremont. Accept the five Fremont Challenges - location-based missions that require a sense of adventure, a sense of direction and a sense of humor. Send Geocaching.com employees plunging into the dunk tank (yes, it’s cold!). Create your own zucchini vehicle and race it down the Zucchini 500 Track. Pin the antenna on Signal, the Geocaching.com mascot. Play a game of interactive bingo for the chance to win some great prizes.

If you already have a handheld GPS device, create a free membership onGeocaching.com and visit http://coord.info/GC2FYVM for instructions on downloading the coordinates for the geocaching and challenge courses. If you do not have a handheld GPS, don’t worry - devices will be available to borrow on site!

The Geocaching Block Party takes place August 20, 2011 from 11am – 3pm in Fremont in the Solstice Plaza (701 N 34^th St, Latitude 47.64864 Longitude 122.348927). For more information, visit GeocachingBlockParty.com.

Best of The Bad - Legacy Trail

We went out Caching on the Legacy Trail in southern Alberta last Sunday, during the Best of the Bad Mega Event.   We had lots of fun and found some interesting caches, during our travels through the Badlands.    We also met up with other GeoCachers from all over North America and Europe, everyone was so friendly even those passing waved and honked or offering hints when we looked perplexed.

Rollling Hills and Canola Fields

*The Legacy Trail starts in Three Hills Alberta and winds its way over almost 100 miles of back country roads going through some of the most scenic and spectacular landscape in this part of the Canadian Badlands. A large number of caches in a variety of types, sizes and difficulty will be placed on the Trail. Every town, village and hamlet in the Canadian Badlands will have its own cache. Some caches will be named after local historic events and people, as well as celebrities who grew up in this area. Yes - there will be a Nickelback cache!

As part of building this legacy, we're offering some attendees at the Best of the Bad Mega Event  had the opportunity to stake their claim in history by naming a cache they sponsor. It's a permanent testimony that they took part in this first Mega in the new WestCan series of Mega Events. A limited number of cachers can sponsor a cache on the Legacy Trail by selecting the "Best of a Bad Deal" event registration level.*

Old Homestead in the Badlands of Alberta

I took the time to take a few photos while we cached the Legacy Trail and saw some of the amazing views that each individual cache site offered.  While the trail had lots of adventures to pursue we only found that there was a few reasons to be cautious.   I lost my balance at the top of a drop off but fortunately didn't fall into the Horseshoe Canyon.  Horseflies were plentiful but I only got one bite and the temperature was 29 C (84.2 F), but with plenty of water and a stop for Ice Tea we had no problem handling the heat of the day.  So if you decide to take on the Legacy Trail , be sure to take bug spray, plenty of water, some good shoes and a good sense of balance :)





Keep on Caching

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Sources:

*   http://www.bestofthebad.ca/index.php/bad-news/164-legacy-trae

SOS Animal Rescue hosts "Geocaching with Canines" event at Midland City Forest Saturday

SOS Animal Rescue hosts "Geocaching with Canines" event at Midland City Forest
By the Midland Daily News
SOS Animal Rescue is hosting "Geocaching with Canines" Saturday at Midland City Forest, 2840 E. Monroe Road. This interactive event will allow participants to enjoy the wilderness with their dog while using clue maps and/or coordinates to find geocaches around the forest.
"Geocaching has become very popular," said Joann Taylor, SOS Animal Rescue president. "We thought this fundraiser was a perfect way for attendees to spend time with their pooch or family members while exploring one of Midland County's premier parks."
All proceeds from the event will benefit SOS Animal Rescue's Spay/Neuter Assistance Fund. The Fund is used to help offset the cost of spaying/neutering a loved pet for low- or fixed-income residents of Midland County.
"Anyone can participate, whether they have a dog or not," Taylor said. "Those who own a GPS or smartphone should bring them. However, we will provide clue maps to help everyone navigate to the geocaches."
Each geocache will have small items for those who find it. All participants will be entered in a drawing for a chance to win a GPS. Registration starts at 8 a.m. and the geocaching begins at 9 a.m. The entry fee is $25 per person. For details, visit www.sosanimalrescue.org.
About SOS Animal Rescue
SOS Animal Rescue (www.sosanimalrescue.org) is a nonprofit 501(c)3 organization, which places animals in need of homes, provides assistance to spay and neuter pets, advises pet owners about local resources for education and training, and participates in fundraising events to further our mission of reducing the number of unwanted pets in the Midland area.

Original post. http://bit.ly/MidlandDailyNews

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NG

CITO - Cache in Trash Out

I am always amazed by the amount of trash that litters our highways and byways, no matter where I go Geocaching it seems there is an amazing amount of trash, from recyclables like soda cans, milk cartons etc. to foil, paper, coffee cups, take out containers and the list goes on and on.  

How much litter is out there, well according to Adopt-a-Highway, their volunteers picked up over 26,000 tons of litter in Minnesota alone, I am sure that the Province or State you live in isn't any cleaner.  What can be done about this mess, Adopt-a-Highway has the right idea and the rest of us can do the same by pitching in and picking up trash where ever we see it.

Geocacher's have a unique tie with the environment, we are in nature more than the average citizen so we have the opportunity to make a difference.  CITO (Cache In Trash Out) is one way we have to make that difference, many CITO, events are held every year all over the globe by Geocachers but we can take it further.  

CITO can be an event, but even better CITO can be a Geocaching lifestyle.  Here are some ideas to reduce trash while Geocaching;  always carry some small kitchen catcher garbage bags and once at ground zero and have found your quarry, pickup the trash around the area, actually even if you have a DNF pickup trash anyway, that can equate to several Pounds of trash per year removed from those cache areas.  Do you like hiding caches, then here is something I do, when I place a cache I clean up the area, then when I drop back to perform maintenance on my cache I clean up the area again.  I made one exception to this I have an urban cache in a trashy area that is actually using the trash as camouflage, this is the only area I haven't cleaned up  http://coord.info/GC2WAAM .

If we were all to spend just a few minutes a day picking up litter where we see it the impact could be huge.  So make CITO a Geocaching life style.

Keep-on Caching