by Deb Taber

Lately, mentions of "geocaching" have come across my desk with increasing frequency. I understood the basic concept of this popular new sport, but wasn't quite sure how well it integrated with the equestrian community. As it turns out, the mix is so popular it gave birth to such companies as Equicaching, LLC, which provides coordinates, games, and a newsletter specific to the equestrian form of geocaching.

So what is geocaching?

Geocaching--from geo (earth) and cache (hiding place)--uses Global Positioning Satellite (GPS) units as part of what is frequently described as a "high-tech treasure hunt."  Cache owners hide a waterproof container (the cache) somewhere in the environment and send its GPS coordinates to a website. Players download the data and follow the directions to the cache, which can be filled with items that include a log book for recording your visit and possibly mementos left by other players. Some games will hide real "treasures"--money, gift cards, or products. The main rule of the game: if you take something, leave something behind.

The difficulty of the treasure hunt depends on the difficulty of the trail. Anything from an easy canter through flat fields to obstacles and jumps can be between the players and their goal. Learning the GPS system isn't much harder than learning to read a compass, and most equestrian geocaching groups offer a little training to get you started.