Billion Dollar Satellites and Boxes of Stickers

For over 50 years, the United States government has spent hundreds of billions of dollars launching a complicated network of satellites capable of telling you, at any given time, exactly where on Earth you might be.  The technological advance has given our troops incredible capabilities around the world, and has given you the ability to find any fast-food restaurant in Chantilly without all that painful mucking about with maps.

To Geocachers, though, the ability to find Aunt Edna's house or drop a missile inside a three-foot-wide circle comes second to the Global Positioning System's utility in locating a tiny box of stickers buried somewhere in the woods.

My daughter's Girl Scout troop introduced me to Geocaching recently when her and approximately 14 other screaming Brownies descended on the back field of a local elementary school in order to find an assortment of, as my daughter put it, "Band-Aid boxes and American Girl shoes."  Why this incredibly advanced (and expensive) technology was needed to find what sounded like discarded garbage is a mystery to me, but the girls had a great time.

"Usually what happens is somebody posts a set of coordinates to a web site where they've hidden something, and people can go out and try to find it," said George Hornberger, Vice President of the Northern Virginia Geocaching Organization.  "When they do, they'll frequently get some trinkets of some kind and there will be a log book to sign, and they then can go home and write about their experience for others to read online."

The primary internet outlet is geocaching.com, where enthusiasts can find coordinates, forums and other information.  A great deal of local information can also be found at novago.org, the official site of the Northern Virginia Geocaching Organization.  Local and state parks are also enthusiastic supporters of the activity, and many boxes of goodies can be found on local trails.  Sometimes its as simple as locating coordinates, but other times you'll have some puzzles to solve.

"It's a great way to get outside with the kids and spend a weekend," said Hornberger.  "It's also a great way to explore a new area when you travel."