We recently had a family gathering at our place and at one point we were talking about Geocaching and our upcoming trip (surprise, surprise). The brother-in-law posed a question that sort of threw us for a loop. He asked, “Why do you do it?” Of course, our quick reply was, “Because it’s fun!”.

However, this didn’t explain why we believe it is so fun so we thought a bit more and here, in no particular order, is our Top 10 Reasons To Go Geocaching:

Great Exercise
Walking is one of the greatest exercises and one of our great pleasures. Geocaching offers us a walk with a purpose. It entices us to walk further, and most time unknowingly. Time and distance just seems to fade away. We look forward to ‘going Geocaching’ a whole lot more than ‘another walk around the block’! And, of course, there’s that mad dash when we spot the cache that really gets the blood flowing!

Quality Family Time
Geocaching offers a chance for us to participate in something together. Today’s schedules can get quite hectic and we find Geocaching is a great grounding point. We have also had the chance to share this with other family members and have had a great time. We have several friends with young families that Geocache and it’s a real treat to see the children’s eyes light up when you mention ‘treasure hunting’!

Nature Appreciation
A simple walk in the woods, feeling the spray from a waterfall or standing on the edge of a lake with the sky opening beyond makes you quickly realize the beauty that surrounds us. Our photo album has quite a few shots of these beautiful vistas as well as chance meetings with deer, birds and little critters like squirrels and chipmunks. Since we enjoy ‘the great outdoors’ Geocaching just adds to this passion.

Make New Friends
We have met some great people both online and offline that have turned into friends, friends we would never have had without Geocaching! We’re looking to meet a lot more!

Learn Life Skills
Geocaching has given us the opportunity and the challenge to test and learn new life skills. We are learning about navigation, wood lore and more! It’s like being in Scouts and Guides all over again!

Travel
Geocaching has become the dominant criteria in our travel plans lately. We have moved away from the general ‘touristy things’ and look forward to seeing the ‘real deal’ of a place and caching is one of the best ways to do this. Not knowing an area can be daunting but with caching it’s like having a local guide! Geocaching has taken us to places that we never would have gone and often find ‘nuggets’ that regular tourists would never see.

The Thrill Of The Hunt
This is a simple one! There is no feeling that matches the exhilaration of treasure hunting, except maybe treasure finding! What more can we say?!

Gain Earth Knowledge
EarthCaches are definitely one of our favorite types of caches and we really enjoy learning about the Earth’s natural phenomenon, especially in such a fun environment.

It’s Green
By participating in programs like CITO we are more conscience of the ever growing need to ‘do our part’. Often we are distanced from the ’cause and effect’ of our actions but with Geocaching we see a direct need for involvement in keeping the Earth ‘green’… and this makes us feel good!

It’s High Tech
Because Geocaching involves electronics, which we can’t seem to get enough of (or away from!), it fits in well with our lifestyle. We enjoy the whole process from downloading cache info to online mapping, from GPS routing to messaging friends via email and forums and of course, blogging!

Yes, there’s no doubt about it - Geocaching is FUN!

What are your reasons for Geocaching?

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