Last Saturday, I spent the best part of the photo an hour evening stuck under a snoozing toddler. I had access to a computer and my phone so spent a bit of time attempting to solve some puzzle or mystery geocaches.
But what's geocaching I hear you ask?
I know there's quite a few other bloggers into geocaching (Sarah and Rachel spring to mind) but for those not already in the know...
It's a bit like a real life treasure hunt but played by using access to multi million pound satellites. Sometimes the treasure is a large ammo box containing all sorts of goodies and sometimes it's an incredibly tiny metal can containing a soggy bit of paper.
Remember the other year when everyone was using their phone to play Pokémon Go? Well imagine using your phone and GPS signals to navigate your way to a precise location and then try to locate a an actual (not virtual) container where you can sign your username to say 'I woz 'ere'. You log your found geocaches online too so you can have the satisfaction of watching your number increase each time you find one.
Granted, it doesn't sound like much but it's a strangely addictive hobby. There's over 200,000 geocaches in the UK alone (with over 3 million worldwide) and and you've probably walked or driven past hundreds without ever knowing they were there.
Just a few geocache hiding spots!
The idea behind geocaching is that it gets people out and about usually taking them to spots which have some sort of significance - anything from a historic site to a beautiful view to a personal story. The containers are sometimes things like 35mm film canisters, plastic boxes or even more elaborate items such as fake stones or flowers.
It's essentially free too (basic membership and the app is free) but you can pay extra for a premium membership for special features and access to more caches if you fancy. Years ago you probably would've needed to invest in a snazzy GPS device but nowadays, your mobile phone will work just as well.
One geocache spot - believe it or not, this is the River Thames!
Lots of geocache containers!
A gorgeous view from one geocache hiding place.
There's lots of different types of geocache: traditional caches are the most common (ones where you just follow the co-ordinates and find a container) but multi caches (following a trail to find answers which lead to the right co-ordinates) and mystery caches (completing a puzzle to find the co-ordinates) can also be quite good fun. And there's other types too! You can learn all about it on Geocaching's website where they've put together a comprehensive intro guide.
Like any hobby, it comes complete with it's own lingo and culture: geohusband, geowife, geowaggon, geotot, etc. are all fairly obvious but there's also acronyms such as TFTC (Thanks for the cache), SL (Signed log), TN,LN (Took nothing, left nothing) and TB (Travel Bug) amongst others. Non-geocachers are called "muggles" and there's even huge geocaching conventions (or "mega events") you can attend.
We learnt a lot about Rowley's House and Mansion in Shrewsbury by heading there to find a geocache...
Yet another gorgeous view from a geocache spot.
We're relatively small fry in the geocaching world; we're only on 169 finds compared to some people who've found thousands. I did become a member back in 2009 but we only really got started with it in 2015 and then in 2016, geocaching took a back seat compared to looking after a newborn.
We've just hidden our first two geocaches though - with plans for a few more and it's quite interesting to see people finding them and enjoying the stories behind where we've placed them .
We're called 'familyduckadventures' on Geocaching if you're also a geocacher and fancy adding us a friend.
A sleepy geotot after finding 5 geocaches!
And if you're intrigued and want to know more about it all, there's this handy little official video explaining everything.
Why not take a look at the map and see if there's a geocache near you?
Why not take a look at the map and see if there's a geocache near you?
