Geocaching - It’s a modern treasure hunt and it’s happening right here!
There are over 2.5 million people doing geocaching around the world and some of them (perhaps surprisingly) are right here in the Portes Du Soleil.
It’s a relatively new craze that started taking the world by storm in May 2000 after a computer geek decided that GPS could be “really exciting”. He hid some treasure at his home in Portland, America, for people to find, broadcast the GPS coordinates and said, “Come and get it”. His only rule: “Take some stuff, leave some stuff”. And that’s exactly what Geocaching is…you go in search of treasure by using the GPS system on your mobile device – once you’ve found it, you write your name in a logbook and replace the treasure you decide to take. It’s pretty simple really and means, as a family, you can be adventurers together. You won’t usually find anything quite as precious as gold, silver and diamonds but nevertheless it’s quite exciting!
So here in the Portes du Soleil, who knew that there was this hidden world of exploring going on underneath our very noses? And after doing some investigating of my own, the Geocache website suggests that it’s not only going on, but it’s a really popular and exciting pastime! I’ve discovered that there are well over a hundred geocaches in a ten-mile radius of Morzine and a staggering number in the Vallee d’Abondance. Now, if this doesn’t get your inner explorer going, wait till you hear about the different types of boxes of treasure that you can find.
Regular Geocaches (and this seems to be the main type across the Portes Du Soleil) contain a logbook in a standard box. Some of these will be bigger and may contain items as well... that’s when this treasure hunt gets interesting! I’ve had a look at some of the ones in an around Morzine, Les Gets and Avoriaz, and you wouldn’t believe some of the things people have found - According to the log, the cache along the Dereche contains lots of treasures and isn’t difficult to locate. Some of them appear to be very tricky though and you’re advised to pick your first one wisely.
Mystery Geocaches (and I can see about two of these in the Portes Du Soleil) often need you to solve a puzzle to find them - these aren’t just about the coordinates! If you’ve got a brain for riddles, and solving clues, this might be just the type of thing you’re after.
Multi-cache’s mean you have to travel to more than one location. There seems to be several of these in the PDS as well. One seems to be somewhere at a ski lift in Les Gets, lots of treasure hunters say finding this one “helped them explore the area”. These are definitely for more advanced explorers..
So you’ve decided to go hunting for a Geocache - what do you have to look for?
Well, Geocaches vary in size and appearance. You might come across anything from large, clear plastic containers to film canisters to a fake rock with a secret compartment. When you choose a cache to look for, you can see what size it is on its profile page, you’ll then have a better idea of what you’re looking for. You may or may not find treasure hidden inside but if you do, remember to replace it with something of equal or higher value. This is an important rule of Geocaching that has kept it going for the last 15 years. If you do have to replace some treasure, there are rules about what goes in a box as well. No food, dangerous things, or rude things…remember kids could be doing this!
In 2000, Geocaching started off as a simple treasure hunt and it has really evolved from there. You’ll find caches in waterfalls, rivers, under rocks and in town centres. But there are others that are much more difficult to find. Caches are now hidden at the top of mountains, or can only be accessed by rock climbing and by using special equipment. But don’t worry, you don’t have to start scaling rocks, you can take it as seriously as you like. You can take it up as a regular hobby, or just give it a go.
There’s a variety of the little boxes all over the Portes du Soleil, and it seems people from all over the world are finding them. All seem to be operating under a mysterious code, keeping them hidden from the unknowing public.
