For me, geocaching is the perfect incentive to return to those bygone days of youthful adventure seeking. There's nothing like the prospect of a treasure-laden ammo can in the woods to get the adrenaline flowing and the heart pumping. And the fact that I am among a choice few who know where and how to locate the hidden prize is more than enough to get me to turn off the television, climb down from the sofa, grab my GPSr and head for the wilderness. The nifty toys and beads interred inside the cache are always a nice reward, but the hunt itself provides most of the fulfillment...With one notable exception! For the eight months that I have been obsessed with this sport, I've had a goal that has always remained just beyond my grasp...I want to find a Jeep Travel Bug!
Countless times I've been notified that one has been sighted in my area and I've quickly set out to make it mine, only to find that someone else has gotten to it just before me. I was rapidly becoming convinced that once the little yellow Jeeps heard me coming, they would immediately pop in their four wheel drives, climb out of the cache and motor off into the wild! But now, finally, one of them must have felt that I was worthy of it. It took a twilight bushwack through heavy brush and a chilly December creek crossing, but mission accomplished! For now, I've given him a place of honor amidst the ornaments on my Christmas tree where he can rest for a bit. But I know that soon he'll be anxious to get back on the road and seek out places to go in cities, countrysides and forests across the nation. I'll be sad to do it, but I'll set him free again soon where he can once again entice another like me to venture forth beyond the comforts of home in search of adventure. So turn off that rerun you've seen a hundred times...Now there's a reason to get off the couch!