Park City's Mountain Trails Foundation is offering outdoor enthusiasts an opportunity to learn more about one of the fastest growing outdoor hobbies, Geocaching. Mountain Trails will host a free introductory clinic on Wednesday, Aug. 1 plus a Geocaching trail ride on Saturday, Aug. 4.
Geocaching is a modern day treasure hunt utilizing a GPS receiver plus subtle hints to find hidden 'caches' at interesting outdoor locations. Park City is a hotbed for hidden caches, with dozens located along Mountain Trails' several hundred miles of bike and hiking trails in Park City.
Mountain Trails' clinics will be conducted by local Geocaching experts Tom Kelly and Carole Duh (Tumbleweed and Cactus) with nearly 400 caches found.
"Geocaching has really enhanced our travel and especially our outdoor recreation by taking us to interesting places we would never have known," said Kelly. "And for newcomers to the hobby there's no better place to begin than the trails around Park City."
The introductory clinic will be 7:00-8:00 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 1 at the Park City Miner's Hospital. The mountain bike trail ride will meet at the Starbucks at Kimball's Junction and run from 9:00-11:00 a.m. on Saturday, Aug. 4 utilizing only the flat trails in the valley, so it's perfect for any level rider.
The Wednesday clinic will include a short introduction to Geocaching and use of a GPS receiver. The trail ride will be a hands-on opportunity to find actual caches along the Park City trails. The introductory clinic is not required and enthusiasts are welcome to attend either or both of the free clinics.
Participants are encouraged to spend some time at www.geocaching.com to learn more and to register for a free Geocaching login. It's also recommended you have a GPS receiver. And a mountain bike or cruiser bike is required for the trail ride. The Geocaching trail ride will be designed for beginning riders.
"GPS receivers are really handy for outdoor trail riding or hiking," said Kelly. "For newcomers, I recommend Garmin's eTrex line, especially the new Garmin eTrex Legend Cx. Magellan's Explorist line is also very good." GPS receivers are readily available at outdoor stores, including REI in Salt Lake City which offers the best line and expertise.
More introductory information on Geocaching is available at www.tumbleweedandcactus.com. No advance registration is required for the free clinics.
Sunday, July 22, 2007
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