This is a story about one of those phenomena that you’re either completely hooked on or you’ve never heard of. The phenomenon is called “geocaching,” and it was created in 2000, when GPS devices were just starting to become widely used. Geocaching is a real-world, outdoor treasure hunting game using GPS-enabled devices. Participants navigate to a specific set of GPS coordinates, and then attempt to find the geocache (essentially, a container) hidden at that location.

Geocache 101

There are now more than five million geocache enthusiasts seeking out an excess of two million geocaches around the globe, PlumasNews reported. The most passionate geocachers sometimes travel over harsh terrain on special geocaching tours to exploring unique destinations in a new way. These tours showcase entertaining geocaches designed to introduce travelers to unfamiliar locations. If you decide to take to the road to become part of a tour, you’ll need a suitable vehicle to traverse the environment. The Toyota 4Runner has been named “one of the best SUVs for a backwoods adventure,” according to a 4Runner review by U.S. News.

It’s common for participants to hide caches in locations that are important to them or reflect a special interest of the cache owner. These locations can be quite diverse and may include the local park, under a rock at the end of a long hike, underwater or on the side of a city street. Common cache contents include a logbook, unusual coins or currency, small toys, ornamental buttons or anything that will fit inside the container.

Moreover, common objects moved from cache to cache, called “hitchhikers,” whose travels may be logged and followed online. So if you don’t feel like traveling far to find a geocache, you can opt instead to let your geocache do the roaming. Geocachers can track trinkets online as the participants make their way around the world like a virtual tourist. Though the treasures themselves may be minimal, a huge part of the attraction of the game is the thrill and adventure of the hunt.

Geocache Challenges

There are varying levels of difficulty you can choose when playing. “Hide & Seek a Cache” on Geocaching.com contains caches with difficulty ratings of 1 to 5, related to how challenging the hiding place is to find. “Traditional” caches (more than a dozen “cache types,” with each type being different) consists of, at a minimum, a container and a logbook with coordinates that provide the exact location. Etiquette dictates that finders can keep a trinket inside the container if they replace it with something of similar value.

It’s not surprising that we have a computer consultant to thank. In May 2000, Dave Ulmer wanted to test the accuracy of the then-newly universalized GPS technology by hiding a navigational target in the forest. He coined it the “Great American GPS Stash Hunt,” the official geocache site states. The idea was simple: hide a container out in the woods and note the coordinates with a GPS unit. Little did he know that his idea would grow into a worldwide activity with millions of devoted participants.

About the author: Amanda is an entertainment writer from San Antonio.

Road trips aren’t just tons of fun; they’re a cheap and convenient way to get around. Not sure how to pack? Don’t worry, we’re got you covered.

Road trips are cheaper than flying

image credit: kingsunderlavenderskies.tumblr.com

One of the greatest things about road trips is the money you save on travel expenses, especially in countries like Canada, where (thanks to a monopoly on air travel) flying can be outrageously expensive. For North Americans, taking to the roads is an affordable way to explore the vast wilderness that occupies their own backyard, while European road trips can lead to the exploration of multiple countries in only a few days. Forget booking airline tickets and train tickets that cost an arm and a leg, take to the road and travel far, for less.

Planning to embark on some long-term travel? Why not consider investing in a caravan, giving you a motorhome, instead of a mortgage! After all, there’s a reason that the iconic hippie love wagon – the original caravan – has become a symbol for freedom, escape and respite that represents the wonder and beauty of the open road. Whether you decide to buy or rent on-site, a caravan is an awesome way to enjoy a cheaper travel experience.

Travelers tip: Don’t forget, there is strength in numbers. Loading a car or sharing a caravan with four of your friends, and splitting expenses, can save you huge amounts of money on gas and other essential items like caravan insurance.

Road trips are a convenient (and entertaining) way of getting things done

Not only is traveling in a pack the most affordable way to get from A to B, but it’s also the most entertaining means of making your “must does” memorable! Moving across country? Grab some buddies and take a week to explore the open road, stopping along the way at your convenience as you take in the food, the music, the festivities and the strange nomadic people, staggered across the land.

What to pack for the best road trip ever: 10 “must-have” items

While road trips are designed to save you money, they can get pretty pricey if you haven’t planned ahead. Moreover, there’s nothing worse than hitting the open road and realizing that you forgot something at home, which is most likely a few hundred kilometres in the opposite direction. So, to ensure you have the best road trip ever, here are 10 items you won’t want to forget:

1. Food: Most importantly, pack enough food for the trip, and then some. Grab snacks for the short-terms and take along non-perishables that you can break out if you want to skip a meal en route to your final destination. The worst situation imaginable is more bearable if you have something to chew on.
2. Water: Don’t get caught on the road without a way to quench the thirst. Food, you can live without, but water is going to come in real handy once you’re stuck in traffic or driving in circles for hours on end. It’s a road trip – it happens.
3. Kleenex/toilet paper: To be used once fed – and hydrated. Toilets are for the weak.
4. Blankets: For longer road trips, bring a few blankets. In fact, a pillow or two wouldn’t hurt. When you’re on the road, you never know when or if you’ll find lodging for the night. If you’re going to drive all day, do it on a good night’s sleep. Do your best to stay warm and (relatively) comfortable.
5. Flashlights: If your car breaks down, don’t get left in the dark. That’s how horror movies begin. Seriously, bring a flashlight.
6. Mixed CDs: Jamming to the radio in different cities is great and all, until you lose reception. Pack a few mixed CDs you made in preparation for the trip! Depending on where your travels take you, you may be passing through dead zones and trust me, on road trips, forced silence is never golden.
7. Camera or phone with awesome snapshot ability: You might want to cut yourself off from the outside world, but you’ll want to capture golden moments as they arise, and on road trips, they always do.
8. Cash: This is kind of an important one. Yes, it’s the 21^st century, but no, not everyone accepts credit card. Don’t go hungry because you ran out of small change. Pack enough cash for emergency situations and store it in a safe place.
9. Deck of cards: Whether you’re in your caravan, or stopped in a motel for a good night’s sleep, a deck of cards takes up little to no space and can provide instant entertainment for groups of people. And if you’re traveling alone, well hey, there’s always solitaire.
10. Medical kit: Bandages, antibacterial cream, Ibuprofen (or another anti-inflammatory), Acetaminophen (or another pain killer), diarrhea medication and stomach salts for heartburn. Be prepared to battle the nemeses of the road traveler and don’t let a rough meal or small cut stop you from having the time of your life.

Do you have more items to add to this list? Let us know!

Unlimited, free cash withdrawals overseas? Easy packing.

As I was emptied my purse in preparation for the trip, I stood contemplating which credit card to take with me overseas. You see, my husband and I are lucky enough to have a German account from which we can withdraw money from any bank machine around the world. So, the easiest way for me to pay for things while traveling – and avoid massive charges on my Canadian credit card – is to take out money and just pay cash. That being said, I always take my Canadian card with me in case I run out of moolah and need to use the plastic.

Making payments prior to take-off

Since I was heading to Russia, where I had no idea how easy it was to get things done on the ground, I decided I should plan a little further ahead than normal. My itinerary had me flying into Stockholm, traveling onward to Helsinki and Kuopio, and then onto St.Petersburg for four days of discovery before heading home.

First of all, since the Russian visa application for Canadians (and Europeans) demands an invitation letter from the hotel for every applicant, we had to make our reservations months in advance. We reserved four nights in a three star hotel called History Hotel on the English Embankment (review of what is possibly the worst hotel in St.Petersburg, to follow) through St.Petersburg.com (mixed feelings about this site, you’ll find out why later). I made two separate reservations, since 4 of us were staying for 3 days, and only 3 were staying for the 4th. To make sure that we had the best possible “Russian” experience, we also booked tickets to see Swan Lake at the Hermitage! Needless to say, costs were adding up, but given the fact that I had made the purchases on the Canadian side of the ocean, I was sure there would be no problem with the order.

Touchdown in Sweden!

So, after buying my airplace tickets to and from Stockholm, and my hotel and entertainment in Russia, off I went; first stop, Stockholm. My flight from Toronto however, included a slight layover in Iceland, totaling something along the lines of a 10 hour trip, so needless to say, provision was needed. I stocked up on food before leaving but decided to grab a sandwich on-board since I wasn’t sure how far into the Icelandic airport I’d be allowed to wander. I used my Canadian credit card to pay for my ham and cheese sandwich and carried on my merry way.

When I pulled into Sweden, I took out a few hundred Krona (SEK) which was guaranteed to fund my food and any additional expenses. Since I was staying with a friend, I didn’t have to worry about paying off any big ticket items, like hotels and outstanding public transit made rental cars entirely obsolete. After three days in Stockholm, my friend and I headed towards Helsinki, where I took out some Euros (once again, negating a full on money exchange – thank you DKB) and pocketed just enough to cover four days or so in Finland. It was at that point that I received an e-mail from St.Petersburg.com informing me about a problem with the second half of the payment for my reservation. Instead of charging me immediately for the rooms, they had charged me a few days before arrival and I was being told that the 4th night hadn’t been approved. Shocked, as we’d never had never had a problem before, I figured that we’d exceeded our limit and forgot to pay off the card. After a few e-mails back and forth with the company, it was agreed that we could pay upon arrival at the hotel. I shot a message over to my husband back in Canada and thought nothing of it.

Take my card? Try it. I dare you.

After a day of touring Helsinki, we jumped into a car and headed north, way north, with two companions,  to a friend’s wedding in Kuopio. It was 9pm when we arrived at our hotel; we were tired from a 5 hour drive from the city and couldn’t wait to check-in and get cleaned up – and that’s then the fun started. Since we had to pay the hotel up front and I had barely enough cash to cover the cost, I handed the receptionist my Canadian credit card and waited.. and waited… until I finally said I would just pay cash. To my surprise, the receptionist shook her head and said that she was obliged to call the credit card company because of security reasons. What? My blood boiled. At 5.5 months pregnant, tired and outside my home-zone, I wanted my credit card back – immediately. I eventually got it back, but the payment was declined. Shocked, I paid with cash and grabbed my credit card back, realizing suddenly that I was traveling overseas with no way of paying for anything that couldn’t be paid for in cash.

Tiny man with a death wish

After a wonderful wedding and a few relaxing days at a friend’s cottage, I was en route to Russia and in need of Rubles (RUB). I withdrew some notes and cashed in on money owing from my companions who shared lodging and were joining me at the ballet. Upon arrival at the hotel, I asked whether or not we could pay for our last night – I was told there was no rush and we were ushered into our rooms (in what was, let me reiterate, the worst hotel I have ever stayed at). On our second day at the hotel, I received a phone call in my hotel room. First off, I was shocked the phone in the room actually worked since nothing else in Russia does. Secondly, who knew which hotel room we were staying in and why would they call me? This was my first run-in with Victor from St.Petersburg.com, the gentleman who had been communicating with me about payment for the last night. Sounding a bit frantic, he was wondering whether or not we could leave the money in an envelope at reception. Of course, I agreed and was told, once again, that there was absolutely no rush. Great! I didn’t rush.

On day three, after catching a bit of a cold due to the terrible accommodations and the mosquitoes buzzing around our heads as we tried to fall asleep, I decided to call it an early night and headed back to the hotel while the girls grabbed a night cap at what had become our local cafe down the street. I approached the gentleman at the counter in an effort to explain that I would be leaving an envelope with cash for St.Petersburg.org to pick up the following day. Needless to say, I was stunned, when a voice behind me exclaimed “St.Petersburg.COM”. I then turned around to see an imp of a man set down his newspaper and stand up off the couch. He wouldn’t look me in the eyes but introduced himself as Victor from St.Petersburg.com, the man with whom I’d been communicating over the past few days.

If the follow-up phone call hadn’t been intrusive enough (it bordered on professional, an assumption that was soon dashed by this incident in-person) the showing up at my hotel around 11pm at night put me completely over the edge.Outraged as I was, I started berating the man for showing up out of the blue when we had agreed that I would leave the cash in an envelope for pick-up. He, staring at the floor, insisted that he thought it prudent to follow up and “politely” bug me again – clearly the Russian definitely of “polite” leaves something to be desired. After reminding him that he’d insisted there was no rush on the delivery, I told him that we’d leave the cash for him the following day. “So, not today,” he muttered. “No, not today,” I said staring at his bald little head.

The following day, I left the envelope, two rubles short – just like him.

The long road home

After returning to Stockholm, I prepped for the long-haul flight home two days later. I packed some food and had just enough SEK to get me to the airport – perfect! Until I realized that I needed food for the flight – crap! So, I picked up a water, a salad, a yogurt and a granola bar from a food stand at the airport and attempted to pay with my Canadian credit card, only to be told that the payment was, yet again, declined. Devastated and worried that I’d be left starving (keep in mind I was eating for two) on board, I used my German visa as a credit card and it worked, thank God. After being rejected one too many times, I paid a visit to the Icelandair ticket counter and asked specifically whether I’d be able to pay with Canadian coin on the leg from Reykjavík to Toronto; the answer was yes.

Face off: Me vs. the Bank

The day after I touched down in Toronto, I ordered a book from Amazon only to say that payment wasn’t accepted. Having assumed that my card would work once I was back in Canada, I called up TD and had a half an hour discussion with the poor customer service agent who had the bad luck of taking my call. As it turns out, the bank, after receiving a second charge from St.Petersburg.com, had canceled access to my card. In an “effort” to inform me, they had called me and SNAIL-MAILED me a notice to get in touch asap. Since I had no phone signal in Sweden, Finland or Russia, how I was supposed to get the message, was beyond me. Thus, I informed the agent that it would have been useful for the bank to send me an e-mail or call my husband, an authorized user on the account. Claiming however that it was the bank’s duty to protect the account, the agent defended the decision to shut me down completely. It was then that I blew a little bit. Yes, it’s the bank’s responsibility to protect the account, but more importantly, it’s the bank’s responsibility to protect the client! I had airline tickets on my credit card statement that clearly showed an intention to travel abroad, and instead of thinking ‘outside the box’ to get in touch, the company left me high and dry overseas. If I hadn’t had access to my German account, I would have been nearly 6 months pregnant and penniless overseas. More importantly (to a pregnant woman), I would have been starving!

Lesson Learned

As the agent reviewed transactions with me, I realized that my card had been invalid since my flight to Stockholm. That ham and cheese sandwich I had purchased on-board? Apparently that was for free, since payment was declined. The agent then proceeded to tell me that I was supposed to inform the bank every time I travel, so I asked, as an avid global traveler, that those security measures be removed, or that some alternative type of alert system be set up. The answer was no.

At times like these, I’m reminded of how removed Canada is from the rest of the world. Hoping overseas is like entering another solar system or something. If I’m in Germany and travel to Romania, my bank doesn’t question a thing, but wander too far from the Canadian border and your card must be compromised! Calling my bank is the last thing that crosses my mind when I’m readying myself to go overseas. That being said, after this whirlwind experience, it’s one call I can’t afford, not to make.