The traditional children's game of hide and seek has been reincarnated into a worldwide quest that people of all ages can play. Geocaching requires your feet, a GPS device, and your natural curiosity to find objects that have been hidden by other people all over the world.
Geocaching relies on a GPS unit. It's a handheld electronic device that can be purchased in outdoor and electronic stores. It can determine your location on the planet within 6-20 feet via latitude and longitude. It's most often used to pinpoint where you are (such as in emergency situations). But in geocaching you also use it to locate an object (cache) that has been hidden and whose coordinates you know. The hidden cache can be a logbook, a memento, a picture -- anything that isn't perishable or dangerous. Cache owners often hide their caches in locations that they find particularly beautiful or meaningful, wanting to share it with the searchers. Once found, the searchers either replace the cache for other searchers to find, or take it along with them to deposit somewhere else per the cache owner's request. The results of the find are then recorded on the geocaching.com website, which is where further geocache hunts can be selected.
While finding treasures via GPS seems to take some of the fun out of the hunt, you'd be surprised by how difficult it can be. The GPS doesn't lead you exactly to the cache. Often you can't reach the coordinates in a straight line: rivers, buildings, and other barriers may stand in your way. When it comes down to it, you still end up hunting around just like a pirate searching for the hidden X.
