Friday Freebie: Can You Hunt Your Way to Free Entertainment and Fitness?

Remember going on scavenger hunts as a kid? I always found them one of the best, most challenging games. For those of you who don't know, a scavenger hunt is a game where you find clues, and each clue leads you to a location with another clue. This continues on until you reach your final destination. At the end of the hunt, after the last clue, children usually find a present or some sort of reward.

Well Geocaching is like a scavenger hunt for adults (but kids can play too, and they love it!). In order to participate in geocaching all you need is GPS (which most of us have on our phones). I've listed geocaching websites below. You find a geocache in your area, then find it! The geocache location is written in a latitude longitude form, and you use your GPS to find your way to the precise spot. Once you have found the spot, you can log it in your geocache journal or list, and you will usually find a box or container at the spot. Inside are small trinkets left by other geocachers. You can bring your own and swap them out! Or some locations have books where you can sign and leave a message like a guest log at a wedding.

Geocaching was really popular in the mid-2000's, but you don't hear about it much anymore. There are geocache locations all over the world and its a great way to explore new and old places. Once you get the hang of finding geocache's, you can even make your own! All you have to do is log it, and leave a box or something to mark the spot. You can find geocache's in most US and UK national parks/trusts.

Geocaching is a great way to make going to the park new and exciting. It can seem boring to kids to just get in the car and drive to some woods to walk around, but if you give them a goal, and a purpose they are much more likely to enjoy it. Children's groups like Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts do geocaching to work on outdoor skills and team bonding.

 An added bonus to geocaching is it is great exercise! If you are like me, going on the same boring walk every Saturday gets dull. But doing a geocache to all the parks in your area makes you weekend exercise fun and free! Scientists recently said that doing aerobic exercises like walking are the most beneficial for losing weight and promoting good heart health.




Links to Geocache Websites

http://geocaching.co.uk/

https://www.geocaching.com/play

https://www.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/getoutside/guides/beginners-guide-to-geocaching/