Geocaching etiquette

Never remove a cache – leave it behind for others to find. Don’t disturb the natural surroundings when hiding or seeking a cache – no digging, marking or destroying. Leave something behind – a trinket or a note – when possible. Log your visit on the Web site and send comments by e-mail to the cache’s owner.

Send us your favorite geocache site along the lower Colorado River

Hundreds of geocaches have been hidden around the Highland Lakes and along the lower Colorado River. Send us the link to your favorite. We'll select and publish submitted sites in upcoming issues of Currents.

Did you know?

Orienteering and GPS classes are offered at LCRA’s McKinney Roughs Nature Park near Austin. The classes cover the basics of how to use a GPS unit and satellite coordinates as a guide.

Science fiction? No, it’s geocaching, a free Web-based game invented in 2000 and now played in all 50 states and more than 200 countries. Texas alone has more than 13,500 caches, according to www.geocaching.com.

The game can be played on your own or with family and friends. The idea is simple: someone hides an object, called a cache, in a public place for others to find, then posts the general location, the satellite coordinates and a few extra clues on a geocache Web site. Others search for the object by going to the general location, entering the specific coordinates into a handheld GPS unit, and using the clues to find the cache.

Some caches contain small containers with trinkets that can be traded by geocachers. Others have a small notebook for geocachers to sign. Some sites are “virtual” caches, such as a landmark, statute or unusual landscape feature.

If you think geocaching sounds like fun, visit a Web site such as www.geocaching.com or www.texasgeocaching.com for details on how to start. Basic membership is free on most sites. Prices for handheld GPS units start at less than $100, depending on the brand and features.