Feb192010
Geocaching Teaches Vital Survival Skills
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PDFLooking for a fun, practical skill for the whole family to enjoy? Spend some time online learning about geocaching. Who could resist the combination of a real treasure hunt with high-tech gadgets? Your family will learn about longitude and latitude coordinates, map reading skills, the use of a compass, and much more as you track down these hidden containers.
To find geocaches in your area, create a free account at Geocaching.com and plug in your zip code. You’ll be amazed at how many of these “treasure boxes” are within easy driving distance. Decide which geocache you’ll track down. Then grab the kids and a GPS unit, and head out for some educational fun. Family outings that combine fresh air, nature, and education are the best!
A GPS unit doesn’t have to cost an arm and a leg. If you can’t borrow one from a friend, check out my friends, Craigslist, eBay, and Freecycle! Techies are always upgrading to something bigger and better. Since you only need a basic unit, you have a good chance of getting a real bargain.
By the way, while you’re out and about, take along a field guide to identify local flora and fauna, and maybe even a guidebook for locating medicinal and edible plants.
To get you started, check out these links.
© 2010, thesurvivalmom. All rights reserved.
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A Review of the Diva Cup: Not for the faint of heart. (Men, avert your eyes.)
I did the same thing! LOL
A Review of the Diva Cup: Not for the faint of heart. (Men, avert your eyes.)
Here, Here! Made the switch a few months ago and never looking back.
Advice for new Survival Moms from those who have been around a while
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theotherryan
GPS’s are great. Just be sure you know how to get around with just a map and compass. Geocaching sounds fun but I have never tried it.
rightwingmom
LOVE geocaching!!! Found our first at 11,000 ft. at Lake Irwin in Colorado. Very cool!
TheSurvivalMom
It's a lot of fun, and you can find really inexpensive GPS units online or on Craigslist. It's also a good excuse to get the family outdoors and familiar with the wilderness in your part of the country.
Karen604
My Hubby and I have been geocaching for several years now. (In fact we are planning our summer vacation on how to cache in the most states and Canada in the shortest time.) We invite you to visit our website and listen to our podcasts on Geocaching. We started a Geocaching 101 segment around the first of the year and invite your questions. http://www.CentennialStateGeocaching.com links to the podcast are within. Look for ward to seeing you on the trail we are Team_CSG
Michael Smith
My 7 year old daughter and I tried this on Saturday. She ended up having lots of fun. I pressed my old Garmin GPS 12 into service and it did just fine. Our total cost to try it out: $0, and about 2 hours of time.
I wrote about our experience here: http://michaelsmith6.blogspot.com/2010/02/first-g…
Learning to use a compass and map is a great idea. This summer or next year we will introduce her to orienteering.
TheSurvivalMom
I agree completely about the need to learn how to navigate the old fashioned way. Lately, between cell phone problems, computer viruses, and networking issues, I'm almost ready to throw out all my electronics and go back to the 1970s!
JaNette
my family just got into geocaching about 4 months ago, we have 6 kids so this is a great cheap family fun time with great exercise. I usually take pictures along the way as well of the flowers, wildlife, and of course the family.
TheSurvivalMom
The best part, really, is being out in nature together. My kids got more excited about all the different types of mushrooms they found than actually finding the geocache!
spec
My kids and I love to go cacheing. Thanks for the article
Skip Ingersoll
GPS’ are expensive but there are many smart phone apps that can start you out.