Geocaching to Promote Scouting

[knoffer]

I was flipping through the Boy Scouts of America Website and found this info. This is a great program. It would be neat to see more Scout Troops applying this. http://www.scouting.org/nav/enter.jsp?s=ba
You need to navigate to: “Training and Support” then “Supplemental Training Modules” then “Geocaching to Promote Scouting“.

[LightningBugs Mum]

Cool. I did a little intro to GPS and geocaching with one of my son’s denmates after camp last summer, but it would be fun to do something with more boys involved.

[Mofongo]

My son started cub scouts a few months ago and he is having a blast with it. He wants to show his den all about Geocaching, so we will have to plan something in the spring. I think it will be a lot of fun.

[rogheff]

As soon as I hear back form our Council, I’ll be offering this course. I’m thinking of tieing it in with a Camporee in the spring. Hopefully I can get some feedback at tonight’s District Roundtable.

If and when that all occurs, I’ll be tapping the geocaching resources surrounding me. (hint – Knoffer and Cacherclan)

There’s also an experimental Merit Badge floating around out there: Geocaching. I can’t wait till it goes national.

[rogheff]

Mofongo, you’d be in my Council too 😀

[Mofongo]

Sounds cool, let me know if you need more help.

[knoffer]

I am always willing to help in whatever way I can. Better to keep the boys in the woods then on the couch or the streets. That goes for girls too. I just thought it would sound funny to say “keep the boys and girls in the woods”. 😆

[greyhounder]

@rogheff wrote:

There’s also an experimental Merit Badge floating around out there: Geocaching. I can’t wait till it goes national.

I got a merit badge in geocaching! It was the prize for completing this cache (you did have to have proof of finishing and pay a couple bucks)

Scouting

Bec

[Pto]

Fred C Anderson Scout camp, outside of Stillwater/Summerset is a Very cool place, and with a GPS I could show them kids areas they (probably)werent meant to see- By that I mean Im not sure we never strayed from camp property- Id have to check it, but we found some really cool places out there. Man did we explore that area in the 4-5 times I was out there!!!
(a freind broke his leg on the bluffs, our “scoutmaster” almost started one of the cabins on fire, etc)

Some of the best memories ever come from scouting, and especially the big jambories, etc. Never missed one!

Anderson is about the only place I could help out, so keep me in mind.

Edit to fix

[knoffer]

@greyhounder wrote:

@rogheff wrote:

There’s also an experimental Merit Badge floating around out there: Geocaching. I can’t wait till it goes national.

I got a merit badge in geocaching! It was the prize for completing this cache (you did have to have proof of finishing and pay a couple bucks)

Scouting

Bec

The text below is the theme behind the Cache in your link. This is from the BSA National council site that I referenced at the start of this thread.

The Cache to Eagle Program

The Cache to Eagle program consists of dozens of public geocaches that are posted on geocaching.com. These are normal public caches set up at the sites of nice Eagle projects that also offer good cache spots. In most ways they are like an ordinary cache: all rules followed, caches are properly maintained by the owners, they are located in a good site, etc. The additions are twofold: The cache description includes information about the service that was done and there is a prize (such as a patch) that can be earned or purchased. Most of the series consist of 12 sites, with each site having a point of the Scout Law as the clue that must be turned in to earn the patch.

Initial response to the Cache to Eagle series pilot has been fantastic. Hundreds of people visit and observe Scouting Eagle projects, and many of them write public notes on the logs at geocaching.com. Scouts and Scouters love to visit these, as they get to see a wide variety of Eagle projects themselves, as well as have fun finding the cache. It is free, easy and a true win-win situation for both Scouting and the geocaching community.

All councils and districts are encouraged to expand on this program with public caches of their own. If each district set up only 12 Cache to Eagle geocaches, we would have 1,320,000 visits to our Eagle projects by the public each year—and this is a minimum estimate!

What a wonderful way to get Scouts and Cachers in the field.

[rogheff]

I got Council approval last night.

I think big, so here’s my plan: I’d like to have a Scouting / Geocaching event out at Camp Ohdakota where I already have a 10 stage multi centered around the 5 mile hike for Second Class rank advancement and the 4 mile backpack hike for the Camping Merit Badge requirement.

I’d like to set up several additional geocaches for plant and animal identification advancements. All in all, there’s be something like 5-10 caches that would be open to the general public on this day only. There’s already the “Camp Ohdakota Cache” on the grounds which can be done any time.

My BSA Council encompasses all of Racine and Kenosha Counties, so I hope I could rely on a number of area geocachers for help setting them up. I’ve got quite a few cachers who’ve already volunteered.

Logging 15 or 16 additional caches (and helping introduce a bunch of Scouts to geocaching) would be the draw to the geocaching community. I’ll teach the geocaching advanced training that Knoffer mentioned to the Scout Leaders (since I’m a Council BSA Trainer), while my Scouts and leaders and you folks could show the participating Scouts what geocaching is all about.

My plan is to make this a geocaching event open to any cachers, and a Southeast Wisconsin Council Scouting event open to any Cub Scout , Boy Scout or Venturer. I’m sure if an out-of-Council Scout wanted to participate, they could as well.

When I have a date (spring) I’ll let everyone know.

[rogheff]

Problem with the Cache to Eagle program in the SE part of the state is that there’s already caches very near eagle projects. I can think of Eagle projects in Bristol Woods, Bong, Wadewitz, Lake Andrea, Hawthorne Hollow, Petrifying Springs Park, etc. that are too near existing geocaches to make this program work without rchiving existing caches.

There’s an actual Merit Badge in the experimental stage being tested in another part of the country. I’m excited about combining Scouts and geocaching. We use geocaching in my Boy Scout program nearly on a monthly basis.

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