All around us, hiding sometimes almost in plain sight, are troves of treasure and an entire community that is dedicated to finding (and rehiding) them. The game is geocaching, and it is becoming more and more popular not only in the United States, but across the globe. To get started, all you need is a cell phone, a Groundspeak account, and some motivation.
Here are some reasons to geocaching more this year:
1. It’s great exercise
Whether you’re hiking through the woods or searching discreetly downtown, geocaching is fantastic exercise that involves lots of movement. In fact, if you look, there are plenty of stories of people who lost tons of weight by geocaching regularly!
2. It gets you away from the computer
The average person spends more than 10 hours per day on a computer, and even more staring at various other screens—TVs, phones, smartwatches, tablets, etc. While, yes, geocaching does involve some technology, it gets you outside and more engaged in the world around you.
3. It helps you meet new people
There is a vibrant geocaching community out there just waiting to meet you! In fact, there are around 3 million active geocachers in the world, and more than 830,000 in the United States alone. Chances are there are some in your area just waiting for an invite to go exploring!
4. It will give you motivation
If you’re at all competitive, then geocaching is a great motivator. With more than two million geocaches in the world, there’s always another one to find, and the race to be the first and proudly display a FTF on your profile is well worth the time.
5. It will make you more tech savvy
Obviously there is some technology involved with geocaching, but even if you don’t want to use a handheld GPS (or simply don’t have one) becoming familiar with GPS can be surprisingly useful. You’d be amazed how few people actually understand how GPS works or how to read latitude and longitude.
6. It will build valuable skills
Being able to find your way is incredibly useful, and geocaching teaches you to be more observant of the world around you. Additionally, many geocachers are dedicated environmentalists as well, which is a great value to instill in children.
7. It’s great to do with friends
Most people have never even heard of geocaching, much less tried it, so it can make a great outing with your friends. Grab a phone, fire up the app, and go looking for a good beginner cache for some memorable times!
Why do you geocache? Is it on your list of New Years resolutions? Share with me below!
