take a hike
I was attracted to Geocaching because, even though I may not probably won't find the cache, I'll still get to enjoy an awesome Journey. Part of my fundamental philosophy of life is that it's about the Journey, not the Destination, so hiking is a wonderful metaphor for me.
Over at blogging.la, I found out that the Los Angeles Times has created a bunch of really spiffy printable maps to some of the greatest hikes in Los Angeles County. As Robert says at b.la, hurry and grab them before the Times puts them behind their Cone of Registration.
Comments
Hey Wil,
Sounds great.. too bad I am in Phoenix.. *sigh*. Oh well. Glad that you like Wilco. They are great. Are you going to check out the Coachella festival? They are playing there. Also how is Felix..? Lots of kitty love to him and the rest of the fam..
Kate
Posted by: kate_13 | March 23, 2005 04:46 PM
If life is a journey, and not a destination, why are we running?
Those maps are tight Wil. I'll have to use them. Thanks for the link.
Posted by: Shawn | March 23, 2005 04:58 PM
getting out of the office and milling about in the woods is a very good thing.
and the gps will prevent technojonesin.
heh
Posted by: carthies | March 23, 2005 06:06 PM
Hey Will,
Your blogs awesome, as you keep your readers up to date with really amazing stuff. I am college student, and you would think that I would have come across geocaching somewhere..., but I haven't. Anyway, I followed the link from your page, and did a search for the 3078 postcode in Melbourne, Australia. There's a cache near this giant dog called FIDO (http://www.darebin.vic.gov.au/Page/PagePrint.asp?Page_Id=268), which was set up as street art by the Station Street traders association.
It amazes me that 500 meters away from my house, someone has used a sophisticted network of satelites to hide 'treasure'. All without me knowing.
Thanks for letting me know about Wil. You Rock.
Posted by: JB | March 23, 2005 06:38 PM
If you like geocaching, you might also like: Confluence.
Posted by: James M | March 23, 2005 07:35 PM
Hey Wil, what games have you been into lately? You still playing Planetside? Thanks for the link by the way. Have a good one man.
Posted by: Raemus | March 23, 2005 08:23 PM
Our geekfriend from Texas introduced us to geocaching about two years ago and now we're hooked! My 12 y/o son could take or leave it, but my 6 y/o LIVES for the cache. It has the double benefit of getting my kids out on a hike , but don't realize that they are in fact ON A HIKE. I don't get nearly as much whining when their minds are otherwise occupied. love ya Wil - keep up the good work. Missed you on CSI the other night, but I'll catch in reruns this summer for sure!
Posted by: wacquejacqueo | March 23, 2005 08:24 PM
Dude, I LOVE geocaching. In fact I use a kick ass program on my Palm Vx with a GPS attachment that is absolute brilliant. There's a ton in Austin (where I live) so next time your in these parts you should hit a few.
Posted by: Heath Allyn | March 23, 2005 09:32 PM
Wil,
So, you like to hike. That is one hobby that I never got into. Why leave a controlled temp/animal hotel? I have a friend, in Canada, who walked out of his tent and was greeted by a giant moose. He is still in one piece but I don't call that a vacation. What if he caught the moose in a bad mood? I would have one less friend, in that case. Why put yourself at the bottom of the food-chain? I guess camping is beyond my understanding of fun. So, many people do it that I will always take all of your stories and read about them, in a warm, dry place.
Posted by: FABIAN | March 23, 2005 09:48 PM
Geocaching is a lot of fun and great way to get my geek ass out of the apartment.
Even though you know you probably won't find the cache: you always expect to.
Posted by: AJ | March 23, 2005 10:12 PM
Mad props for the Get Smart reference.
Posted by: Bitter Little Man | March 23, 2005 11:01 PM
You do realize hiking alone won't wear the boys out. Add a construction project for the yard. The local lawn and garden store can help there.
Keeps the youngsters occupied and fatigued. Cuts down any opportunity to get into mischief. :)
Almost forgot: Helps build up the body too.
Posted by: mythusmage | March 24, 2005 03:26 AM
The closest I come to hiking is watching those wild and crazy naturalists on the Animal Planet. Geocaching does sound like fun, though. Maybe I should stea... er.... borrow my sister's GPS.
Posted by: Mr. Lizard | March 24, 2005 05:21 AM
I grew up in San Diego and used to play in the canyons surrounding my house (I'm sure those same canyons are filled with new houses by now). I am very much a destination type person so forcing myself to slow down and enjoy the view and senses during a hike was like therapy for me. I don't know which I miss more: my youth or the hikes themselves.
Posted by: warcrygirl | March 24, 2005 06:02 AM
*sigh* Is it only me, or did the Times put a limit of 3 maps before you have to be registered? Durn it, I wanted that Mt. Baldy map, so I guess I'll have to register.
Thanks for the info, Wil! ...now, do you have any suggestions on how I can get my pasty-white, outdoors-deficient, computer-potato husband out on one of these hikes? :)
Posted by: rissatoo | March 24, 2005 06:32 AM
Dude, I have GOT to hook you up with complimentary copy of Bloodlines. It's a d20 Modern adventure with a geocaching plot hook. Of course, it wouldn't be an adventure if things didn't go wildly askew. I'll bet you'd have a lot of fun running it for the boys.
Posted by: Prest0 | March 24, 2005 06:35 AM
Remember: When they put up the Apparently Unassailable Wall of Registration, www.Bugmenot.com (usually) comes through.
Geocaching really does sound like a lot of fun.
Posted by: Kaz | March 24, 2005 12:53 PM
Hey Wil, you know what's even cooler than hunting a geocache? HIDING a geocache. Maybe you could think about planting an official WWDN geocache somewhere in socal?
Posted by: Julian | March 24, 2005 02:40 PM
Geocaching is awesome. You should also go to www.letterboxing.org . It's the same type of thing but it is more of a treasure hunt with clues and stuff. They have letter boxes hidden all throughout the United States.
Posted by: Viz | March 24, 2005 06:42 PM
Wil - I'm a letterboxer, a choice I made because I found the "clue" format a little more cerebral (well, it can be, or not, depending) and because I like being able to carry my book around and see all the places I've been. Give a glance at www.letterboxing.org if you haven't already. Good stuff.
love,
TryWhistlingThis
Posted by: TryWhistlingThis | March 25, 2005 04:45 AM
The Cone of Registration has descended. Got Hollywood Hills and now can't get any.
Posted by: RocketRay | March 25, 2005 08:44 AM
I love geocaching :) it's such a good and fun workout.
Posted by: joy | March 25, 2005 07:07 PM
Some of my most favorite trails are in and around the LA area. They are so close to the city and yet so very rugged. Now I hike the White Mountains of NH having moved to Boston 25 years ago. Go and enjoy them and watch for the big horns along the ridges.
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Posted by: Softshoes | March 28, 2005 08:46 AM