We began our Geocaching journey 5 years ago on June 22, 2003. In late 2002 I remember seeing a show on the Travel Channel "Top 10 Lost Treasures" and #7 on the list was Geocaching (couldn't find a link). Using a handheld GPS to go "treasure hunting" was very appealing. It wasn't until the following summer when I was looking for something that the entire family could do and would also get us outside.

Being the geek that I am I immediatly started Googling and trying to remember that show or what the sport was called because I could remember the show in my head but I couldn't remember the name.  I guess it didn't take long and the next thing you know I had created us an account on Geocaching.com. After just a few minutes I was amazed at all of the caches that were around our house. The next step in the process was to buy a GPS.  I found a Magellan Meridian GPS on sale at Fry's and the Wife Acceptance Factor was high since Geocaching was going to be a family sport. We bought the GPS and headed out the following weekend. We didn't take the camera with us on our maiden voyage but we did on our second outing and here is one of those photos.

Fast forward 5 years and here is photo from two weeks ago when were geocaching here in Colorado. Everyone has grown up and we have added another kid to the team...not to mention I look a bit older too.

In the last five years Geocaching has really become common place with outdoor sports and there is software and tools all over the place to help out. My two favorite pieces of software are CacheStats (written in .NET) and Geocaching Swiss Army Knife (GSAK). When we started out we were all about the numbers...trying to find as many as we could and as fast as we could.  After the second year we really slowed down and tried to enjoy the whole caching experience.  Somewhere along the way we decided to start tracking which states we had cached in. Here is the most current map of the states that we've physically found a cache in (35 + Washington DC).

Well, enough memories for now. Since moving to Colorado we have really picked up the caching bug again and are excited about caches out in the mountains that require hiking, etc. and that has increased our enjoyment yet again.  God is good!

Giddy Up!

This looks like a nice release to an already great product.  This new version has full featured VB.NET support so now a whole new group of developers can experience the greatness of ReSharper.  Another great thing is the upgrade price for personal licenses.  I can get the full featured version (both C# and VB.NET support) for $119 or just one version (C# or VB.NET) for only $89.  On the surface, that seems like a bit of cash for an upgrade.  Don't get me wrong, when I first gave it a try I didn't want to part with the money for it.  I wish it was a free upgrade but based on the value it gives me and how much I use it - the upgrade price is more than fair.

I'll definitely be upgrading but I'm going to hold off on the upgrade for now.

• I'm going to let others test out the released version and wait until an update or two have been released.
• My "new gadget" budget is on empty.  I've just purchased a new GPS for Geocaching.

Anywho, if you haven't tried out ReSharper yet (knock, knock, VB guys) give it a 30-day spin and kick the tires a bit.

Giddy Up!

As I posted a day or so ago, I've moved my RSS feed over to FeedBurner.  I did a make a small change will let you subscribe to a particular category instead of making everyone subscribe to the main feed.  Again, your aggregator should automatically pick up the change so there will be nothing new on your part.

Giddy Up!

I'm in the process of switching my RSS feed over to FeedBurner.  In doing so there will only be one feed for my blog.  I think most, if not all, just subscribe to the main feed so this may not be a big deal.  If you do subscribe to a specific category please let me know and I'll be more than happy to work out a way to keep the category feeds alive.

Also, when I do make the switch you shouldn't have to make any adjustments to your subscription.  Your aggregator should pick up the change immediately.

Geocaching can be tuff on its own.  We don't need to bother the police to make it more difficult or dangerous for us (and them).  Plus, bothering them takes the police away from doing their job.  I was shown a CNN article today about a fellow Geocacher who put a cache underneath a bridge to make it an "extreme" cache.  I like the thought and that area of Idaho is probably a nice place to visit however, we've got to think about things in a post 9-11 mind set.  When we do that - caches like this don't work out so well.

“In a game of global positioning called Geocaching, the lowly treasure hunt has gone high-tech -- but it can also be a game of risk when terrorism-sensitive authorities find the goods first.”

On one occasion we've bee en approached by the police because we looked suspicious.  I was open and honest with him and that was that and we were on our way.  We've also had a cache in our area (not one of ours) where it was blown up by the local bomb squad.  This one was an ammo can that was hidden in a public park.  Nothing wrong with that except is was in an area where large crowds would gather.  Put those two things together and you can completely understand the paranoia.

We as cachers need to think before we place.

I finally met Roger a few weeks ago at my first Dallas .NET User's group meeting.  We got to chat a while and the subject of Geocaching came up.  Most people have never heard of it or don't understand what it is.  Sometimes it's better to see it to understand it.  A fellow Geocacher has a VLog and he has an entry that he shot while he and his brother are out Geocaching.  You can get the video here. (36.5MB).  

Enjoy...

I was contacted by newspaper early this week because they are going to do an article on Geocaching in our area.  They asked if I would be interested in being interviewed and I happily agreed.

I did a phone interview last night with the writer and it's suppose to be in Sunday's paper.  It was pretty cool to explain to her how we do it and what we get out of it, both from a paerent's perspective and what we think the kids are getting from it.

I'll post a link if it gets online.

I've got to talk about TiVo some more and how easy it makes to watch TV.  Plus if anyone is interested in Geocaching..please read on.

Two years ago I created an "auto-record, keyword wish list" for "Geocach*".  What this does (like with a search engine) will keep an eye on the show listings for shows who have the character string "Geocach" in either their title or description.  We got our first hit on 1/15 from the DIY Network.  It was "Family Outdoors" episode FAO-205 on Geocaching.  Please notice that today is 1/21, six days after it aired and gone off into the great airwaves in the sky.  I still haven't watched it yet but plan to this weekend.

I didn't even know DIY had this show.  In this episode they go through the Orienting the GPS, a Geocaching Primer, a family Geocaching adventure, and stashing a Geocache.  After I watch the show, if it's any good, I may put a season pass on this show since we like to do things outdoors with our family.

So, from having a TiVo with some logic I get to enjoy a show on a topic I am interested in that I wouldn't have even known was on.  In return, DIY has gotten me to go to their website to find out more about the Outdoor Family show, maybe get me to record the show on a regular basis, and at the same time get me see their ads on their website and some commercials in fast-forward.

I think that's a pretty good trade.  For anyone else that maybe interested it is going to be aired again on 3/26.

Hope your not Geocaching when a National emergency occurs.  President Bush is setting up the plans to pull the plug on the U.S. GPS network during a national crisis. 

On the serious side - I completely understand the President's position here for the safety of America.  Plus I always keep a compass with me just in case my batteries (and extra set of batteries) run out.

Another good find by the guys at Geek News Central.