The Ultimate Guide to Geocaching

Geocaching is a real-life treasure hunting game. The players include millions of people from all over the world. The playing field spans the globe from mountaintops to ocean islands. You can find a cache right in your own neighborhood or plan a trek to hunt down a challenging cache in a faraway location. Geocaching is a lot of fun and, according to many enthusiasts, can be incredibly addictive. It’s a great way to spend quality time with your family and encourage kids to explore in nature. It’s also something unique and interesting you can do with friends – or even an adventurous date. If you want to learn more about geocaching or are looking for places to connect with other geocachers, look no further. You’ll find plenty of useful resources for both amateur and expert here.

Geocaching 101: Getting Started

If you’ve never been geocaching before, do some research to make sure you follow the proper etiquette and rules of safety. The unofficial regulations of geocaching exist to ensure that everyone has a great time, respects land and property, and stays safe to cache another day. The following sites and pages will explain the practice of geocaching, give you some beginner tips, and provide you with lots of helpful resources just for the newbie cacher.

How to Go Geocaching – Completely new to geocaching? Start with this simplified how-to article that covers the fundamentals in 13 easy steps.

How Geocaching Works – How Stuff Works tackles Geocaching in this interesting and informative read. Learn all about the early days of geocaching, a little bit about equipment, and lots about the dos and don’ts of finding and hiding caches.

A Geocacher’s First Day – This fun guide comes from Mass Geocachers, a Massachusetts-based community of geocaching enthusiasts. You’ll get a crash course in safety, types of caching, cacher lingo, and more.

What to do When You Find a Geocache – So, you came across your first cache. You know what to do now, right? Chances are, you don’t! There are definite right and wrong ways to go about finding, removing, and replacing a geocache. Make sure you are aware of them by reading this article.

How to Hide Your Own Geocache – In this easy-to-follow guide from eHow, you’ll learn about different types of geocaches and how to make suitable containers for them. You’ll also learn what you need to know about placing a new cache for others to find.

Geocaching Equipment

In addition to a GPS device, it’s usually necessary to gather the right gear to help you locate and uncover your cache. Exactly what kind of equipment you should take depends on where you’re going, what the weather conditions are like, the time of day (or night) it will be, and who is coming with you. Look to the sites and pages in this section to help you decide what you need for your own geocaching adventures. There are device reviews, what-to-pack lists, user recommendations, and more.

GPS Reviews – If you don’t already have one, the first thing you need for geocaching is a good GPS device. Check out the reviews and ratings here, posted by thousands of real geocachers, to help you get the most for your money.

Basic Geocaching Equipment – Do not start shopping for your caching gear until you read this article. It’s an honest and thorough breakdown of all the things you need to make the most of your caching adventures.

Geocaching Offroad – Read through this article written from the perspective of a 4×4 enthusiast, and find out what to bring if you want to cache off the beaten path.

How to Pick the Best Geocaching GPS – This article doesn’t just give some reviews of popular GPS units, it also gives some excellent advice for deciding which one is right for you. Read this before you fork over the cash for the latest device.

Geocaching Communities

One of the most exciting things about geocaching is that it’s a shared adventure. It’s a great opportunity to make friends from all corners of the world. Online caching communities give people a chance to share stories, post and read product reviews, recommend caches, and connect with other fun-loving adventurers. Look to the well-populated and always thriving communities listed here for help, support, fun, and friendship.

Groundspeak Forums – Check the always-active threads in this forum for answers to all kinds of geocaching questions. Or join the community and start your own conversation.

Reddit Geocaching Page – If you’re looking for a buzzing conversation about all things geocaching, check out this little corner of the Reddit universe. There’s an ongoing stream of posts about geocaching, from product reviews and favorite sites to funny stories and caching jokes.

Geocaching on Google+ – This popular Google+ Community is all about geocaching. Stay in the loop with friendly geocachers from all over the world.

Geocaching.com – This is the most comprehensive geocaching site on the Internet. Geocaching.com has everything from articles, guides, and maps to forums, photos, and reviews. You have to be a member to access the vast database of international caches, but signing up is completely free.

Geocaching Blogs and Specialty Sites

There are a lot of blogs and niche sites about geocaching on the Internet. The ones listed here are the cream of the crop. Kept regularly updated with well-written, helpful, and entertaining posts you’ll find each to be a haven for geocachers both beginner and expert. These blogs have fun chronicles of caching adventures, helpful tips and insights, reviews, contests and giveaways, and the sites are full of awesome information.

The Mad Cacher – This blog is a favorite among cachers. With tons of great articles, an active community of readers, and all kinds of freebies like printable caching logs it’s easy to see why.

I’m NOT Obsessed…Right? – This excellent blog comes from acclaimed cacher Andy “HeadHardHat” Smith. Smith’s blog offers access to some of the best caching resources around, including archived and new video tutorials and his own award-winning TV spots.

Cache At Night – If you’re really up for a challenge, you can try geocaching at night – but don’t do it without first engaging in some research. This blog is dedicated solely to night caching and provides all the safety tips and helpful hints you need to know before you go.

Handicaching – This site was created to help disabled people enjoy geocaching. If you or someone you care about has special needs, consult the site to find accessible caching sites and more.

NaviCache – One of the Internet’s oldest cache sites, Navicache is still going strong. Use the site to find caches by location, or add your own cache to the database.