My Granddaughter Took Me Treasure Hunting and Chasing Pirates

After my first geocaching experience, I began imagining the experience through the eyes of a child.

A fellow RVer turned me onto geocaching. I thought it would be a complicated, time consuming process. It is not. It is an opportunity to get out, stretch, walk the dog, and partake in a simple scavenger hunt. My husband and I enjoy these short stops when we are traveling.

But through the eyes of a child, geocaching is an adventure. I asked our four-year granddaughter if she would like to go on a treasure hunt. Of course, she did! So, I gave her the magic glasses, now referred to as the pirate hunting glasses, and crawled in the car.

It is simple if the settings are on that allow it to discover your location. A small blue dot surrounded by a white circle appears on the screen that shows your location. Green dots identify the location of geocaches, from now on called the treasure. When we start, I hand the phone to Kinsley, my granddaughter, so she could watch as our car moves closer to the treasure.

Kinsley's excitement increased as we approached. After parking the car, we walked in the direction the arrow pointed as it announced when to turn and how much further - 25 feet, 18 feet, 12 feet, 5 feet. When we stood upon the marked spot we began searching. Once our treasure was found under a rock, once attached to a guardrail by a magnet, and the cleverest hiding spot required a metal plate be rotated to uncover a hole in a post that held the cache. Each time we complete a hunt, it is logged, and a smiley face appears on the screen.

In case you are wondering, the question marks are harder as these searches provide clues and require increased interaction. Also, there is a cost associated with some of the geocaching, but the majority are free.

My first mistake

On the first adventure with Kinsley, we could not find the treasure. That was a mistake that I will not make again. Four-year-old children are short on patience so now I scope out the cache before beginning our exploration. With older children this would not be necessary.

However, because there was not cache, a story developed. Suddenly, I needed a way to explain our failed exploration so explained that the pirates must have moved the treasure. Her eyes lit up with excitement at the idea that we now were chasing pirates. From there the story grew from Kinsley's imagination. We talked about what to do if we found the pirates. She explained how to save the mermaids that the pirates had capture because apparently, pirates like to steal mermaids' tales. Her stories became more entertaining than the actual search.

Successful hunts

With the goal to inspire a young girl's imagination, I spent time the next day exploring caches near our home, amazed that there are so many within a short distance. The next time Kinsley and I climbed in the car, we were on the trail of the pirates and planned to find a treasure. While approaching our first stop, Kins said, "Maybe there will be a necklace in the treasure." There was!

Great activity for children

Depending upon the age of the child, numerous skills can be introduced and practiced.

Map reading

This map shows our house in connection to the neighborhood and the cache. It prompted a discussion of roads, directions, distance, and practice with map reading. Our experience helped build some understanding in a fun way.

Recognizing right and left

The arrow on the screen shows which way to walk. We have been labeling our movement as to the direction we are going, right or left

Patience

Once a child finds success, they will be hooked. I expect there will be no need to pre-inspect a cache over time. Once Kins learns there is not a 100% success rate, but that often there is a reward, her patience will increase.

Sharing

Whenever a treasure is taken from a cache, we leave one. Honestly, this was difficult for our four-year-old at first but taught her a great lesson on giving.

Writing

Some caches do not have treasures. Instead, there is a journal to sign your name recording that you have found the cache. I have explained to Kinsley that we are letting the pirates know we are on their trail. Each time she writes her initials, I print her name below them. We also add the date and talk about calendars.

Storytelling

The imagination of the mind is a marvelous thing. However, the more it is fanned the larger the flame grows. By offering the situation, we enjoy the process of storytelling, something than is too often a lost art.

Try geocaching

I am knew to this form of adventure. However, am enjoying the experience. It is low energy, basically free except for a little gas, great exercise because often you can walk, and fun. Give it a try as you have nothing to lose.