Geocaching ignites childlike sense of mystery and joy
I stood in the BLM parking lot, excited about the day’s adventure ahead. I’d never been geocaching, but as I welcome any opportunity to get outside, I was thrilled to meet up with friends Dave and Diane Miyake, long-time geocachers who were willing to teach me the basics.
As I waited for their arrival, I watched a steady stream of traffic buzz by. It seemed the drivers who passed by had their gazes so firmly fixed on the road, I wondered if the chaos of the commute was stealing the beauty of the morning from their view.
The morning breeze had ushered in beautiful, white, wispy clouds that stood in stark contrast against a brilliant, blue sky. A wave of gratitude washed over me for the gift of stepping away from the rat race, even if for a minute, to wander down a dirt road and explore the vast beauty of the desert landscape.
A cool, light breeze caressed my skin and drew my attention again to the sky leaving me to wonder what the day’s weather might bring. As the Miyakes pulled in, we loaded gear into the truck and relished the extraordinary weather which was delightfully balmy at a time when our little corner of the Mojave Desert typically swelters.
Dave pulled a thick batch of folded papers from his pocket and we reviewed a list of geocache sites he’d printed the night before. Caches like, “Footprints in Stone”, “Roxy’s Cache for Kids”, and “It’s Written in Stone,” immediately intrigued me. Holding his cellular phone in one hand, Dave pulled up an application called “cgeo” and held his old Global Positioning System (GPS) in the other hand. Dave noted with a chuckle that when they began geocaching, cell phones didn’t have “apps” so today, they make use of both technologies to fine tune their hunt. The combined results are impressive; putting them within feet of the sought-for cache.
As Dave had entered the GPS coordinates in both devices the night before, we plunged right into the search. To my surprise, the first cache of the day was within 50 feet from where we stood. It tickled me to know that I’d been driving and walking right by one of those mysterious little caches every day for the past six years and had no idea what fun was to be had right under my nose.
After uncovering the cache, we opened the curious little “micro cache,” a tiny pill box that contained only a record of those who had discovered the site. Dave signed the tiny paper scroll with the Miyakes’ geocache handle, “Montana Pinenut”. After Dave logged our find on paper, his app also logged his find to the running list of over 100 other caches he and Diane have tracked down over the years.
Replacing the geocache and disguising it as it was before, we jumped in the truck and headed for the Arizona Strip ready to pinpoint cache number two.
As we drove, the Miyakes told me how their interest was first piqued in geocaching from a newspaper article the couple read just after moving to the area from Montana. With a desire to learn more about their new surroundings, the Miyakes invited a neighbor couple to begin exploring with them. Geocaching led the four to discover parts otherwise unknown, like a little-known cave in Green Valley Gap, and other sites which fascinated and excited them about their new home. The Miyakes also geocached with their children and today they continue the tradition with their grandchildren.
“Geocaching, hiking and camping—that’s what’s first on our grandkid’s list when they come to visit,” Diane said. For kids, geocaching can be a great way to connect with the outdoors. “Sometimes hiking can be boring for little kids so we always tie in hiking with geocaching because it keeps their interest going,” she added.
When we arrived at the Little Black Mountain Trail Head, Dave handed me his trusty GPS unit while he referenced his mobile app. As we followed the directional arrow north west toward “Footprints in Stone”, the arrow began moving and changing direction as we walked. Dave cautioned that while the arrow tends to bounce around on the display, regardless, he said, “just be sure to stay on the path.” Avoiding social trailing was just one of several geocaching rules of etiquette the Miyakes shared with me that I took heart in. From the sound of it, geocachers generally sounded like an adventurous group sensitive to natural resources, a desirable quality in those placing and searching for caches on public lands.
The GPS I held soon indicated we were within 20 feet of the cache. Observing a petroglyph of a footprint nearby we began searching high and low, crawling on our hands and knees to peer under boulders and in the nearby brush, seeking any sign of the cache.
I walked a few feet away and carefully turned over a few rocks. When I looked down and realized I’d just found the cache, a feeling I haven’t known for years coursed through me. It was the same exhilaration I once had when I found Easter eggs as a little kid. I even giggled a little bit from the thrill of it and my perspective changed about geocaching. After all, how often do adults get to recapture the experience of feeling the mystery, wonder and joy that children so blissfully celebrate every day? The experience left me excited to share this new adventure with my own kids so I can watch the sense of discovery and wonder pass across their faces as they find and open their first geocache on our next trip in the outdoors.
Rachel T. Carnahan is the Public Affairs Officer, BLM Arizona Strip District. Email her at rcarnahan@blm.gov