On a Bench: High Tech Hunting

This bench sits on the parking strip garden in front of our house. It's rarely used for sitting, but for the last year and a half it's been the destination of geocachers looking for this particular prize. A friend of ours set up the cache, and there have been a few dozen visitors who've located it and signed the log book that's kept inside the canister. There are some little prizes inside - right now there's a red ball, a hair comb and a barrette, some pens and pencils and a couple of plastic toys. The next geocacher may take one of the objects and leave behind something else.

Geocaching is a like a scavenger hunt on steroids. This video describes much better than I can how it works. Geocachers come with the coordinates programmed into their GPS (they get information and coordinates on the geocaching.com website) and then have to find it where it's Velcroed underneath the bench. They report their find on the website. Some geocaches become quite popular due to location or the goods that are at the site or a particular trendy theme. Even though there are lots of names on the log, I've only seen people out looking for it a few times.

I don't think of it often (except when I'm taking on Missymoo's June challenge - "on a bench" for today) but when I do, it's fun to think of people scouting the location and leaving a little something behind, perhaps pausing to look at the columbines that are blooming or smell the irises. I ought to put a note on the canister: Feel free to pull weeds while you're here.

EDIT: Here's the entry on the geocache site for this treasure.

I had several other possibilities to use for the theme today - here's a slideshow of them.