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Listing all posts with label handheld GPS. Show all posts.

KC Cache Dash: High-tech Scavenger Hunt for Charity

Posted by Outdoorlover on March 19, 2012 at 2:52 PM under
geocaching, handheld GPS, handheld gps device
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In case you missed this in the news, I thought any geocachers would be interested in knowing about the upcoming geocaching event scheduled for this coming weekend. Garmin International and Land Rover Merriam have announced the inaugural KC Cache Dash, a high-tech, family friendly, scavenger hunt based on GPS technology and social media connectivity, designed to promote awareness and support for local charities. On Saturday, March 24, KC Cache Dash will kick off at Garmin's headquarters in Olathe, KS, and the interactive scavenger hunt and related festivities will conclude at Land Rover Merriam in Merriam, KS. While four teams in state-of-the-art Range Rovers explore the entire Kansas City area for hidden treasure using Garmin handheld GPS devices and clues logged at OpenCaching.com, everyone in the community is invited to the interactive geocaching expos at Garmin and Land Rover Merriam that will entertain and educate visitors of all ages with family-friendly activities and informational booths about the four charities selected as the event's beneficiaries.

"KC Cache Dash is a unique way for Garmin and Land Rover Merriam to welcome and connect with the community while using handheld GPS technology to showcase our entire metropolitan area," said Jon Cassat, Garmin's vice president of communications. "In addition to the excitement of a daylong scavenger hunt, we get to teach a very tech-savvy generation of kids about geocaching - a fun way to get outside and be active."

Check out KCCacheDash.com, where event details will be unveiled and fans anywhere can follow the action through live tracking and the #kccachedash tag. Supporters also have the opportunity to donate to the four charities involved: KidsTLC, Project Uplift, Sleepyhead Beds, and the YMCA of Greater Kansas City.

KC Cache Dash should prove to be a fun event for all ages that blends recreation, connectivity, competition and charity - all with the goal of educating the community about these amazing nonprofit groups. And by staying connected on social media, wherever you are on March 24, you'll be able to support these organizations.

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Spring Geocachers Are Here!

Posted by Crandela on March 12, 2012 at 3:15 PM under
geocaching, handheld GPS, handheld gps device
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Don't know about you, but I know that I have been cooped up in my house WAY too long by now! Talk about cabin fever! I have finally been able to get back out and enjoy walking in this gorgeous countryside around my home and am lovin it! Last week I ran into my nephew who was changing out the logs in some of his very popular geocaches nearby and learned that he and his family have been doing quite a bit of caching lately. Doesn't really surprise me - it has been so mild this winter, and the weather is turning absolutely glorious!

Yesterday I met a couple of women out walking their dogs on the hiking path near my farm and got into a conversation with them. Seems they not only had their dogs, they had the coordinates plugged into their handheld GPS and were in search of a geocache set out by my nephew near here on that hiking trail. How fun is that? It really is a very small world we live in. They had the perfect day for a nearly perfect hike and were having a wonderful time. They made me wish I had even more time to get out wandering 'cause they seemed to be having so much fun. Made me want to join them on their adventure.

I keep seeing folks on FaceBook mentioning how many states they had been to that day or that weekend, again out geocaching. What a fun family activity, and the kids and dogs enjoy it, too! Well, that's just a bonus in my book. I guess it is high time to break out the handheld GPS device and join in the fun!

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Love the Great Outdoors

Posted by Outdoorlover on July 3, 2011 at 6:05 PM under
handheld GPS, handheld GPS unit, handheld GPS units
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Are you a nature fan? Do you love the great outdoors? Then you might be a big fan of hunting. Hunting is one of the most enjoyable activities you can do outdoors. Sadly, there are some restrictions when you want to hunt. For example, you need to have a hunting license. This isn’t really a problem. Just a bit of studying and practicing and you’ll be good to go. Besides the license, you are also not allowed to hunt every deer or everywhere you might want to, but there are still plenty of deer. Another issue when you want to hunt is the fact that you only are allowed to hunt during the season. This means most of the year you are not allowed to hunt.
Perhaps you would be interested in geocaching for the rest of the year. A handheld GPS will be all that is needed along with coordinates of a geocache hidden in the area where you want to explore. You don’t need any license, and aren’t restricted in time frame. Besides which, handheld GPS units can also help you while hunting to be sure you don’t get turned around in the woods and to help you find your way back to the best hunting spots you found last week or even last year if you just save those coordinates on your GPS unit. Whether you are searching for deer or hidden “treasures”, now you can find yourself “hunting” any time you want!

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Wandering with GPS

Posted by Outdoorlover on July 2, 2011 at 5:14 PM under
GPS unit, automotive GPS, automotive GPS unit, handheld GPS, handheld gps device
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School’s out, the kids are home, and it's nice outside. I wonder if I can use my GPS unit to get away from the kids and find myself? Well, maybe I should use it to find adventure with the kids, in so doing perhaps to help us find each other? We can grab the handheld GPS device and take off on foot exploring the trails nearby. I like to pack a picnic and head out after work and do just that. Or we could do a day trip and take off exploring in the car using the automotive GPS unit to do that. Actually, now that I think of it I probably really don’t need to leave those kids behind to find myself after all. There are some great spots here in the Adirondacks for hiking and boating or just sightseeing, even to sit beside the lake and read while the kids splash around in the water. See ya later – its a pretty day – time for me to go pack that picnic lunch and get outdoors wandering with the kids…

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Time to Consider Laptop GPS

Posted by Crandela on October 21, 2010 at 11:25 AM under
automotive GPS, handheld GPS, laptop GPS, laptop GPS receiver
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Imagine that, we bought a new computer and needed repair right away. What a nightmare, right? The bright spot was the technician who came to rebuild our nearly brand new computer. She was wonderful. Anyway, of course we talked about GPS. No big surprise there. She has a handheld GPS unit for hiking, but she says in her opinion when it comes to automotive GPS there is nothing like using laptop GPS to get from one appointment to the next. After all, she has the laptop anyway; and it has a really large screen which really improves visibility as she travels from home to home, city highways or country roads, normally going places she is totally unfamiliar with. She says her portable GPS device is fine when riding her bike or hiking, but when it comes to highway speeds and traffic, she wants the best visibility at a glance that is possible. She feels she gets that with the large screen of her own computer and her laptop GPS receiver.

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Worth a Smug Chuckle

Posted by Crandela on October 15, 2010 at 10:31 AM under
GPS device, Geocaching, handheld GPS, handheld GPS units, handheld gps system
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I was talking to one of my friends today, and she suddenly started chuckling. She and her husband had been visiting friends this week. One of her friends started talking about how their neighbor was doing something with her navigation thingy looking for stuff and couldn’t understand what she was doing or why they thought it was so much fun. My friend surprised even her husband by explaining to them that they are using their handheld GPS units looking for a geocache. Geocaching is very a popular activity in which you get the coordinates of the location where someone else hid a special waterproof container containing a log and maybe some little trinkets or geocache coins or such, then you go out and find it with the aid of your portable GPS device. It is something that is fun for the whole family to do together. She was pretty smug that, after having talked about geocaching with me from time to time, she was the only one in their group who understood what was going on. Cute. She has since started talking to them about trying it with her soon with her handheld GPS system. Maybe I can tag along, too!

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Breathe Some New Life into an Old Friend

Posted by Backpackin on October 10, 2010 at 9:49 AM under
GPS antennas, GPS receiver, automotive GPS, automotive GPS units, gps accessories, handheld GPS
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Have you broken your GPS antennas on your navigation systems, or is your GPS antenna just not strong enough? Having trouble keeping track of your GPS receiver? Need a second mount so that you can move your automotive GPS units from one vehicle to another, or need to replace the holder that you used to use? Need to recharge your batteries, but still love your GPS device? It is time to consider replacing those lost or broken parts and save the hassles of replacing your trusted GPS receiver that has become like an old friend, one of your all-time favorite traveling companions.
There are lots of options. Perhaps you need a case, a holster or lanyard to protect your handheld GPS units, but help you remain primarily hands free on your adventure. Or you might just want to spruce it up and individualize it. With the right GPS accessories you can fix it up, protect it or update it without a great deal of trouble, and probably save yourself some serious cash while you are at it by breathing some new life into an old friend.

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Placing a Geocache within New York State

Posted by Outdoorlover on September 29, 2010 at 8:00 PM under
Garmin Colorado, Geocaching, handheld GPS, handheld GPS units
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According to the New York Capital Region Geocachers there are definite guidelines for where and how you are allowed to place a cache. To be sure we all are compliant and don’t cause any animosity toward geocachers in general, I thought it would be good to summarize some of the guidelines. You may remember that Geocaching is currently banned in all National Parks and National Wildlife Refuges. This includes the Appalachian Trail which is a National Park; therefore caches may not be placed inside or in close proximity to it. There are several other areas in New York State which are specifically listed as off limits to geocaching. They are listed in detail at geocachingny.org, and you may want to take a good look at this list before accidentally placing a geocache where it is forbidden. As for New York State in general, we have been asked to NOT place caches on mountain tops or right at the overlooks. Please be sure to keep caches down within the tree line.
Most land managers they talked with about geocaching insisted that all containers be labeled as a GEOCACHE on the OUTSIDE. Since that is already in the cache listing guidelines the importance of this should be stressed again. Well, now that you know some of the guidelines to follow, it is time to grab your Garmin Colorado or other handheld gps units and get out and have some fun finding all those geocaches that have already been hidden. Maybe you will even be adventurous enough to hide some of your own!

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Geocaching, a Fun Family Activity

Posted by Outdoorlover on September 15, 2010 at 8:00 PM under
handheld GPS, handheld gps device
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So what exactly is a geocache? Caches are typically waterproof containers which can vary in size and often contain a log book and several trinkets from geocachers who have previously found the cache. If you like you can help yourself to one of the trinkets but be sure and leave one of your own in return! Geocaching is a fun game that is played worldwide, sort of hide and seek using a portable or handheld GPS device. You will find coordinates posted on the internet of different caches in your area. There are hundreds of caches in our area alone. If you find a cache you write in the log inside it and post your finding on the web. If you should move the cache (be sure it is one that can be moved before you do), you want to then post the new coordinates on the internet so the next geocacher can look to see where you moved it to.
Be sure to be considerate of the environment while caching, and it is a nice idea to bring a bag to collect any trash you might see on your adventure. The national parks do not allow caches to be placed within them, but New York State parks have a permit system for geocaching activities. It is a great family activity so you can get your children outdoors hiking and learning and having fun together. Now get out there and enjoy the great outdoors.

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Wandering with my Daughter

Posted by Outdoorlover on April 3, 2010 at 8:00 PM under
GPS receiver, handheld GPS, handheld GPS units
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One day some folks stopped at my dad’s house looking for information about their ancestors who are reported to have been buried in this area around the turn of the century. They really got turned around trying to find them in unfamiliar woods. One glorious day recently, while enjoying the last of the bright autumn leaves, my daughter and I decided to wander some of the trails near us looking for those specific headstones. There are several really old cemeteries out in the woods and fields in this area off some of those trails, and we thought it would be fun to email them with the coordinates if we found the right spot so they could return with their own GPS receiver. We pulled on our hiking boots, grabbed our Garmin Colorado hand held GPS unit, and set off on foot to scour the area. A couple cemeteries and a picnic lunch later, and we did find their ancestors for them. That felt good to help out that nice family, but better still, the time spent wandering with my daughter was priceless. We need to plan another hike with our handheld GPS units real soon.

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