So I’m up to four geocaches now and I’ve officially got the bug.
Not that I haven’t encountered rookie issues. My first cache was in a car park, which lulled me into a false sense of security. My second was probably more typical – I found myself on a piece of public land that was nevertheless inhabited by horses. This, of course, meant I not only had a couple of inquisitive equines nosing around, I also had to navigate big piles of poo. That was about as much fun as you’d expect, but it didn’t obscure the sense of achievement when I found the cache.
That leads me to the first bit of advice I feel qualified to give – if you’re going to take a photo, make sure it actually works. Now I’m in the OCD position of really wanting to go back and get photographic evidence I found it. On the other hand, I don’t want to trip and fall into manure.
My other two finds were more straight forward, and reminded me of why I enjoy this game. Both of them were hidden in places I’ve driven past hundreds of times. Now I’ve been encouraged to get out of the car and walk and it’s made a difference to how I see the world. There are hidden treasures lurking near brickworks and memorials to our industrial past, a whole shadow world of hobbyists enchanting familiar landscapes. A cache can be lying behind any oddly shaped tree, be sitting at the foot of any random fence post.
And that’s why I already love this hobby.
