Welcome to Gunny's Cache!

This is my little spot to document my new-found enjoyment of Geocaching, the popular outdoor game of treasure hunting.

Geocaching involves using a GPS receiver to find caches, or hidden containers, of goodies that someone has hidden in interesting locations. You can then log your visit to the cache at the Geocaching website, and see who else has found it.

Hopefully, this site will grow rapidly with notes and pictures from here in Okinawa and, eventually, back in the U.S.

Geocaching is something that I have heard of before, perhaps in a magazine article somewhere, but didn't give much more thought to. Recently, the topic came up in a conversation and I decided to give it a try. I own my own GPS receiver, and I have been using GPS technology in the Marine Corps for several years.

Exploring an unfamiliar area, and searching for a hidden item sounds like fun. Luckily, many other players have hidden caches at interesting locations. For example, there are many castle ruins, museums, and scenic locations here on Okinawa. Some locations are remote, and would probably remain undiscovered by most Americans if it were not for the game of Geocaching.

Knowing all of this, I tried my hand at Geocaching. Using my GPS was easy enough, although the game of Geocaching uses a location format that is different than what we use in the miliatary. Geocaching uses degrees and minutes of latitude and longitude, while we use the Military Grid Reference System, or MGRS in the Marine Corps. It's not difficult to switch between the two, and my Garmin Etrex GPS does it with the push of a couple of buttons.