Welcome to CarolinaCacher


Welcome to my CarolinaCacher site. I'm Randy Hefner. My caching screen name on GPSgames, Geocaching, and TerraCaching, is RanHefner. I have been caching since June 24, 2005.

You may be asking, "What is caching?" You would probably know it as Geocaching. Geocaching is the combination of technology, outdoor activities, and treasure hunting. You use a GPSr (Global Positioning System receiver) to locate hidden containers of different sizes and shapes. All cache containers will contain a log (piece of paper, notepad, or notebook) to document your finding of the cache. Some containers are large enough to contain trinkets for trading. The rule is that you take somthing and leave something.

There are many handheld GPS receivers on the market ranging from around $75 to over $400! All of them will get you started with geocaching. The more expensive ones are good for geocaching and road navigation. The two most popular companies offering GPS receivers are Garmin and Magellan.

Garmin offers a GPS Guide For Beginners. It is a little "technical", but does offer a lot of great information about how the Global Positioning System works.

The online "How To" manual, wikiHow, offers a very good guide to geocaching. This is a good article for beginners. This article takes you step-by-step from selecting a GPS receiver and how to log your find.

A good place to start is to join a local caching club. There are several in the Carolinas. If you live in North Carolina, you should join the North Carolina Geocachers Organization. This "club" is for everyone in North Carolina or anyone interested in caching in NC.

If you live in the foothills area of North Carolina, there is a group for you! The NC Foothills Geocachers is affiliated with the NCGO above, but is targeted towards the members living in the foothills.

If you live in the Asheville area of North Carolina there is a Yahoo! Group called Western NC Geocaching.

If you live in the upstate of South Carolina, there is an organization for you. The Upstate South Carolina Geocachers Association covers the 10 counties in the northwest portion of South Carolina.

There are two South Carolina state-wide geocaching organizations. South Carolina Geocachers Association and South Carolina Society of Geocaching.

Join the organization that best fits your needs and participate in their events. You will get more out of geocaching by making new geocaching friends!
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Monday, June 30, 2008

It's tick season!

tick It's tick season and there are many emails going around touting easy ways to remove ticks. Some of the more popular myths is to use liquid soap. This and other methods do not work and can even make the problem worse!

Ignore these emails. Here is what the CDC (Center for Disease Control) says about tick removal.

One of the most common diseases spread by ticks is Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever. Here is information on Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever.

Wednesday, June 18, 2008

4th Annual NC Foothills Picnic in the Park & CITO

The NC Foothills Geocachers will be hosting the 4th Annual NC Foothills Picnic in the Park & Cito event at Winkler Park in Hickory, North Carolina.

You can participate by joining us at Winkler Park in Hickory, North Carolina on July 26th at 11:00 AM. You can sign up for this Geocache event by clicking on the link.

The NC Foothills Geocachers has a celebration of geocaching every year. It is a gathering of geocachers to enjoy each other's company, food, drink, and geocaching.

The NC Foothills Geocachers have adopted city parks in Hickory. We have agreed to walk through and pickup trash several times a year.

If you are new to geocaching, there is no better way to meet your fellow geocachers and pickup tips and tricks along the way! Come out and join us for a good time.

Oh, yes, there are several geocaches and a couple listed on GPSGames.org that you can grab while partying and grabbing the trash!

Sunday, June 8, 2008

Logs for GPSGames.org geocaches

geocaching-small I have prepared some logs for geocaches listed on GPSGames.org. These are in PDF format and a couple of them have instructions within the file.

When you download the files, there may be instructions included.  Please read them.  It will make preparing these logs easier.

Click on the PDF logo to the left to download a log sheet designed for a Bison tube. An instruction sheet is included.

Click on the PDF logo to the left to download a log sheet designed for a 35mm film or similar canister. An instruction sheet is included.

Click on the PDF logo to the left to download a log sheet designed for a "Nalgene" type container.

Saturday, June 7, 2008

NC Foothills CITO @ Geitner Park

The NC Foothills Geocachers will be hosting a CITO event at Geitner Park in Hickory, North Carolina.

You can participate by joining us at Gaither Park in Hickory, NC on June 22nd at 11:00 AM. You can sign up for this Geocache event by clicking on the link.

The members of NC Foothills Geocachers have adopted city parks in Hickory. We have agreed to walk through and pickup trash several times a year. During this event we usually have a cook out and always enjoy each other's company.

If you are new to geocaching, there is no better way to meet your fellow geocachers and pickup tips and tricks along the way! Come out and join us for a good time.

Oh, yes, there are several geocaches you can grab while grabbing the trash!

Sunday, June 1, 2008

Two new geocaches in Catawba county.

I have placed two new geocaches in Catawba county near Claremont. Connor Park is just off highway 70 and is the entrance to The Bunker Hill Covered Bridge.

The "Connor Park" cache is a small Lock-N-Lock container that is camoed, but is easily found. Bring your own pen on this one!

The "Bunker Hill Covered Bridge" cache brings you to a magnificent example of an old covered bridge that used to be plentiful, but are now pretty rare.

The park is only available at certain times. Visit the cache sites for the posted times that they are available.

Note: Both of these caches have also been listed on GPSGames. You can claim a find there, too!