Michelle M.

Hi, Michelle!

Thanks for your message. I don't have a lot of experience with geocaching either, to be honest, but I got hooked very quickly! Last spring we purchased a Garmin Etrex hand-held GPS. They run at about $100. Some of the more state-of-the-art units can run up to $500. The one we have is just fine for the amount of geocaching we do. It's a fun thing we like to do with our kids. If you go to www.geocaching.com, you can enter your zip code and find caches in your area. You can even enter your address and it should (although I have had some difficulty with this feature at times) show you the caches that are close to where you live. It won't give you the coordinates unless you have an account, and it's free to set one up. Each geocache has its own page with the cache description, any clues that might help you find it, and logs from people who have found it already (or couldn't find it, as is what happens sometimes). Most caches, depending on the size, contain a log sheet to sign when you find it, and many have trinkets to trade, like cheap plastic toys and things of that nature. So you can take an item and leave an item. The kids love caches of this type. Usually they are plastic tupperware-type containers; often you will find metal Army-type ammo boxes. You can also find micro-caches, which are often more difficult to find and only contain a log sheet. This type of cache is pretty common in urban areas.

Good luck getting started. It's very addicting! :)