Data Hacking

Chapter 11 — Hacking Geocaching
2. Different listing sites have different rules, but there are a few commonsense rules that
anyone placing a cache should follow. To avoid disappointment, make sure that your cache
follows the rules of the listing site. Some of the most common rules include the following:
■ No alcohol, tobacco, firearms, or drugs in the cache. If possible, try to populate the
cache with “family-friendly” items.
■ At the very least, your cache should contain a logbook and a pencil.
■ No food or drink in the cache — animals will sniff it out and at best trash your
cache; at worst, they may get stuck in it or become ill as a result.
■ Get the landowner’s permission before placing the cache.
■ Take care not to hide caches where many cachers coming to search for it might
damage the environment. This also means no burying of caches.
■ The person placing the cache assumes responsibility for maintaining it.
3. The person placing the cache should accurately (or as accurately as possible) use a GPS
to get the coordinates of the cache he or she places. The more accurate this reading is,
the easier it will be to find the cache.
4. The cache hider then registers the cache with a cache listing site (basic membership of
the site is free). This involves filling in a form detailing the cache location. Some people
also provide a short description of the cache or a clue as to where it is hidden. The clues
are normally encrypted using a simple ROT 13 system whereby A = N, B = O, C = P . . .
X = K, Y = L, Z = M. Don’t worry, though, you won’t have to encrypt the clue manually,
as the system does that.
You can also have the clue decrypted automatically too, either on the website or by one of
the many geocaching software aids available.
5. The cache will then be approved by the listing site (or declined with an explanation). It
is at this stage that the cache details are made available for others to see.
6. Other geocachers now visit the listing site, choose the geocaches they are interested in
visiting, and download the details of the cache (or print out the information).
7. The geocacher then loads the coordinates onto his or her GPS and sets off to try to find
the cache. This might seem easy but trust me, geocachers can be clever when it comes to
hiding.
8. If the geocacher is successful in finding the cache, he or she fills in the logbook, swaps a
trinket or two, and replaces the cache.
9. When the finder comes home, he or she accesses the listing site and logs the find.
That’s it! That’s geocaching! There are many different kinds of geocaches and many variations
on the theme, but the overall idea is the same — to find a specific object hidden somewhere on
the face of the planet and log it. Only the pinpoint accuracy of the GPS enables ordinary people
to achieve such a level of precision. This level of accuracy goes well beyond what anyone
could expect from a map and compass.
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