What's in my Caching Bag?

What’s in my caching bag depends on which caching bag I am using at the moment and where we are headed.  I have 2 different ones that I regularly use.  Now, in order to geocache, all you really need is to sign up on the GC caching page and if you look at the satellite pictures, you can sometimes guess about where some of the caches are hidden.  But to really get the most out of your caching experience, I suggest investing in a GPS.  So all you really need is a GPS, a pen and to follow the directions on the GC page.

However, I love gadgets and gear.  I am a gear junkie!  I like stuff!  I also believe in the motto:  Be prepared.  See, I am my mother’s daughter.  She was a Girl Scout leader and I was a girl scout.  This is my mom - you've met her before....

My mom is very good at going with the flow.  She handles whatever life thows at her.  She is always up for something fun (especially geocaching) and she never complains.  I like to think that I inherited those traits from her.  So, like any good girl scout (and my mom), I am prepared. 

Ok, so I have 2 basic packs.  The first one is my Eddie Bauer day pack, which we call (originally enough) Kim’s caching bag.  This is the pack I drag literally everywhere with me.  I mean, you never know when a geocache will be nearby and I want to be ready for it.  Especially since Louie, aka the best husband in the world, bought me an ipad recently and I take it everywhere so I can read my ultra important emails geocache alerts at all times. 

Attached to the outside of my bag is Snoopy, who goes everywhere with me.  Also attached is a mace sprayer, a whistle and my nametag that friends brought me back from Hawaii.

Incidentally, I've never used the mace but figure its good to have in case I run into a bear or a mass murderer while in the woods.  The whistle we used once when we got seperated on the trail from my mom and dad and we had to find each other.  It worked really well and better than running thru the forest screeching for each other.  The name tag serves no function at all, other than the fact that I like it. 

Inside my caching bag I have a glove in case I have to stick my hand inside something icky, a small flashlight for peering into dark places, my nuvi 1100 GPS and my Garmin 450 GPS, spare batteries for the 450 and my camera,  a waterproof bag for travel bugs and another waterproof bag with my camera, tweezers (good for slivers AND removing log sheets from tight caches) a magnet attached to a screwdriver and a multi purpose tool.

 All of that gear fits easily into my caching bag and I am prepared for most caches we encounter in between working or running around doing whatever.

My other back pack is used when we are going hiking in the woods for caches or on a day long cache excursion someplace.  This pack is a nice little Swiss Gear pack.  I also have a waterproof windbreaker that I bought from Eddie Bauer.  It's lightweight and rolls up into a ball about the size of a pencil case.  It's a dream to take along cuz I can stuff it into my pocket if I want to.

Inside this backpack we have another waterproof bag ( I love waterproof bags) with 2 bandana's (good for drenching in water and wrapping around your neck if you're hot, or can be wrapped around your head or can be used as a band aid or a sling),  a roll of toilet paper, wet wipes, 2 pairs of gloves, 2 more flashlights (in case we're out at night), a first aid kit and a tri-pod for my camera.

I also have a pencil case stuffed with pens and pencils, asperin, an emergency blanket, an emergency poncho and a firestarting flint.

And last but not least, I have another pencil case with my epi pen and benedryl in case I get stung by something, scissors, small knife, 2 more multi tools, some nylon cord and a mirror (for looking up into spaces).

Here's my bag totally packed.  It doesn't weigh that much and I've easily carried it on my back for 6 hours while hiking.

Check out this cool hiking stick.  We found it in the woods when we were deer hunting last year and I had to have it.  Unfortunatly we cut it a little short.  But I polyurethaned it up and its pretty neat looking.  Mostly I just have it sitting in a corner but sometimes I use it.  I call it "Twisted Sister."

And just to show you that I am not crazy enough well prepared, this is what the back of my car looks like. 

We have a plastic container that holds bug spray, extra water bottles, a complete change of clothes for both of us, a spare backpack, more toilet paper, an extension grabber (for reaching caches up high) and extra shoes in case we get wet or muddy.

And finally, we have our collapsible ladder….

Now, you’re probably looking at all this gear and think it’s way too much stuff to have to invest in.  Again, this is just me.   You really only need that GPS and a pen.  We've been caching tho for over 2 years and during that time we've found things that have come in useful more than once, so we tend to bring them with us.  Like I said, I like to be prepared!  My mom trained me well.