What is the best GPS for Geocaching?

[Elly Dalmaijer]

Geocaching sounds like a lot of fun but we have been held back by $400+ price tags for the "needed" GPS.

What kind of low cost gadgets get the job done??

Elly

 

[donn]

Personally I am partial to Garmin.  There is no reason in the world you need to spend 400 dollars for one.  Check places like Ebay and craigslist for a Garmin  Should be way under 200 dollars for a good new technology device.

 

[captsteve]

If you have a smart phone, just download a app for hiking! I found it pretty easy to use for Geochching

 

[Wendy]

I have a Garmin eTrex, under $100, works great for geocaching. Check eBay and Craigslist and you can find reconditioned ones or used ones from folks who have upgraded to fancier ones. Just be careful, geocaching can be addictive and it can get expensive....if you like it, you decide you need a fancier gps'r, then you decide you need a Jeep so you can drive to some of the more difficult caches, then you need a kayak so you can get to the ones on islands, then you need a motorhome so you can take all that stuff and go on geocaching RV trips..........

Smart phones work great for geocaching until you get out of cell range and then, if you don't have a handheld gps'r, you're out-of-luck. We cache with the Garmin Nuvi in the car that gets to the general area, then we use the phone and/or the eTrex to get right to the cache.

Geocaching will take you places you never would have gone otherwise. Enjoy it !
Wendy (CokeCachers with Mike, 1300 caches found so far)

 

[wannabfree]

Geocaching sounds like a lot of fun but we have been held back by $400+ price tags for the "needed" GPS.

What kind of low cost gadgets get the job done??

Elly

A compass will get the job done ............... if that's all you want... but, using that analogy, a tent will get you camping, but probably not as comfortably as a diesel pusher.
Wendy's simplistic but accurate depiction of geo people is spot on.  It is addictive.  Her and Mike should know. They hooked us ! The more you learn, the more you realize that your electronic schtuff is critical to your enjoyment. Some of the smartphone apps  (www.cachesense.com) (www.geocaching.com/iphone)  are really getting  good, but it is not unusual for serious users to spend upwards of $600 on a touch screen paperless GPSr.  Like anything else, it depends on how serious you take your involvement. This does not mean you cannot have fun with someone elses trade-in.  One fact I always try to remind myself of when I am having trouble finding a cache with my $700 Garmin is that it may have been hidden by someone with a compass.
.... and,, by all means have fun... Our new goal is to catch and pass the CokeCachers
Dave and Marilyn

 

[dons2346]

Garmin is pretty much the standard GPSr used by serious cachers. We use a tried and true 60CSX which is no longer made. They can be found but you will pay a premium.

If you have a Nuvi, you can load caches as a POI to get you close and then use one of the cheaper units to go hunt. All I can say is get one with a screen large enough that you can see it. Some are so small things are hard to see.

If you have an iPod, you can use that to carry your cache info on, make field notes, and then upload them to geocaching.com to log your caches. If you spring for one of the more expensive GPSr's then you can go totally paperless.

I'll be giving a Geocaching 100 seminar at the FMCA Northwest Area rally in Coos Bay,OR this June. All are welcome.

 

[taoshum]

any of the units that are designed for hiking will do the job.  Topo maps are a handy addition but not mandatory. you need a display that shows the location, a zoom feature and someway to know your coordinates in the format needed.  Some units provide a compass as well.  As someone mentioned Garmin units are prevalent but TomTom's and others will work.  The 60CXS is a nice unit with a color display and good battery life.

 

[Robert K]

CW just had the Magellan Explorist110 on sale $116 reg  $129.I had a Magellan Crossover for yrs and it seemed to be pretty reliable but never did geo caching

 

[Wendy]

Wendy's simplistic but accurate depiction of geo people is spot on.  It is addictive.  Her and Mike should know. They hooked us ! .... and,, by all means have fun... Our new goal is to catch and pass the CokeCachers
Dave and Marilyn

You can't blame us ! I seem to recall some Texican dragging you up to the top of the tallest hill in Quartzsite   As for catching and passing us, shouldn't be too hard as there aren't a lot of caches around Cortez that we haven't already done. Unless we take a trip this summer, we won't be adding many numbers. Hmmm, maybe that's a good reason to take another trip in the RV?

Dave gives the best geocaching advice....Have Fun !
Wendy
CokeCachers

 

[Elly Dalmaijer]

Wow what great info. Thank you all.
Wendy, I think you may need to upgrade to a "better" unit.    ;D
Shall I start keeping an eye on the For Sale section of the Forum??

Alas, I don't have a smart phone just a basic Tracfone when in the US; but we do have a Garmin Nuvi.


Elly

 

[wgb1]

I love geocaching and have placed a few as well. I use a Garmin eTrex Legend HCx. It has color map capability. I purchased mine from Amazon 4 or 5 years ago for $188. I bought City Navigator maps for about 100. Street maps can be found for free at several websites but they will not auto route like CN. I also purchased Topo 2008 for about 100. What upset me is about 1 year later, I found FREE topo maps for all sections of the US that are even more detailed than the purchased set. I downloaded all the surrounding states and regions that cover our area as well. So in essence, I spent 200 bucks that I did not have to. Oh well. Lesson learned. Visit the geocaching forums and search for links to the free map sets if you get a handheld unit. I can also upload tracks and routes to Google Earth and other mapping programs I have on the computer. Kinda neat to capture screenshots to show FB friends where you hiked, etc.

 

[Wendy]

Wendy, I think you may need to upgrade to a "better" unit.  ;D

You're right, I do. Because somewhere this winter, I put down my eTrex and appear to have lost it. However, before that, my GPSr did a great job for me. In the meantime, I use my iPhone which works great so long as we have a good Verizon signal.

Wendy

 

[Carrolla & MissAnne]

Hi we're, Carrolla&missanne and we're Geocaching addicts LOL.First you do not have a costly GPs unit to have fun.I use a garman 76csx sometimes but mostly my droid and Anne uses her zoom tablet.  The e-trex by far is the most popular ( kinda like a zebco 33 just hard to beat) if you use a droid phone c:Geo is a free down load and very good app. The main thing is to have fun.

 

[jmugs]

Thanks to all for this good info. We have been talking about caching along the way to Oregon come spring. Since we are in no hurry to get there its a prefect way to see some nice locations.

 

[Gunny69]

We used to use the Magellen Explorists, but now only use it for multi-caches.  Primarily we use the Geocaching app for the IPhone and it gets us close enough to where we can find most all of them we look for.

 

[kennyMiller]

I use my smart phone. The geocaching.com app costs $10 and neongeo is less than $5. Also download "GPS status" as it gives you a radar screen to find the cache. This has worked well for me!