By Marshall Zelinger
m.zelinger@krdo.com
Follow me on Twitter at www.twitter.com/mzelinger

COLORADO SPRINGS - You may be learning about Geocaching for the first time because of the wrong reasons.  Geocaching is a 21^st century treasure hunt.  People use GPS coordinates that they find online to search for a hidden object.  The object can be as simple as a container with a sign-up sheet inside, or it can be a package with toys or objects to swap out.  One Geocache, on the property of the Rampart Range campus of Pikes Peak Community College, created a bomb squad situation Tuesday night.  An off-duty campus officer saw three people with a package that looked like an ammo case.  When the officer approached, the three people took off.  The officer reported the package as suspicious.  That started a five-hour investigation ending with the package getting blown up.  The package was filled with toys and was determined to be a hidden Geocache.

"Now's the time to exercise a little bit of extra caution," said Pikes Peak Community College Police Chief Ken Hilte.

According to Colorado Springs Police Lieutenant David Whitlock, the investigation cost taxpayers in a few ways.  Some members of the bomb squad earned overtime investigating what turned out to be a package filled with toys.  Lt. Whitlock also cited the wear and tear of the bomb squad robot and other equipment.  He also mentioned the concern that if another suspicious package situation had been called in Tuesday night, the bomb squad would not have been able to leave until it finished investigating and detonating the package at PPCC.

For the most part though, Geocaching is a safe, family-friendly activity.  NEWSCHANNEL 13 found an online Geocache community.  Online you can find GPS coordinates and hints to hundreds of hidden Geocache in the Colorado Springs area.  NEWSCHANNEL 13 went in search of three.  One of them caught our eye because one of the clues hinted that it might be hidden near power lines in the Skyway neighborhood in southwest Colorado Springs.

Based on the coordinates we found, we ended up in the open space backyard of Leslie Gottesman.

"I've never heard of this," said Gottesman.  "It was kind of interesting seeing you guys walk in my backyard and going ‘what are you guys doing here?'"

We told Gottesman about Geocaching and what we knew about a hidden object near her home.

NEWSCHANNEL 13: "If you saw it and you didn't know what it was, what would you do?"

"I would probably call the police or the fire department, you don't know these days," said Gottesman.

"I think it's really creative and it sounds really fun," said Emily Nugent, Leslie's 13-year-old daughter.  "It's a little bit like trespassing I guess, but it's cool now that we have something in our backyard."

We searched for nearly an hour and couldn't find the Geocache.  We did find a log that had a hollow center, but when we removed it, we didn't see anything hidden inside.

As for Geocache being mistaken as "suspicious packages," NEWSCHANNEL 13 contacted Geocachers online and got various e-mail responses.

"I never thought of a Geocache as a suspicious package," wrote Jenn.  "It's a fun activity for families and to think of it otherwise is strange."

Kathy wrote, "Geocaches range in size from a micro = film canister or pill bottle size, to large = 5 gallon bucket or bigger. To keep non-geocachers "called muggles" from finding these hides accidentally, geocachers often resort to camouflage tape or other methods to disguise the container."

Kathy also wrote, "For each cache placement there is an approval process by geocache reviewers that must be knowledgeable of various community restrictions throughout each state.  If a geocache is submitted that does not meet the above guidelines it is denied."

John provided NEWSCHANNEL 13 this insight:

"There are places where common sense dictates that a cache should not be placed, like next to a bank - authorities would rightly be suspicious of folks slinking around in the bushes, especially after dark - by a police station, by a school, by a power transformer box,  and so on.  Unfortunately, common sense is not all that common, so geocaches continue to blown up by the bomb squad.  (There is a feeling among some that the police are a little too quick to blow packages, ignoring the bright green 'Geocache' labels that often are on the caches, or failing to just contact a geocacher they have established a liaison with, and confirming that there is a geocache at the locale in question."

John continued:

"A geocache can be labeled as a suspicious package if someone thinks it's a suspicious package.  We as citizens are asked to report anything out of the ordinary, be it a stranger in our neighborhood, or an unattended package at the airport.  So if someone, anyone, sees a container in the bushes, someone lurking around in the bushes with some electronic device in their hands, we are asked to call the authorities.  I believe we should be asking ourselves the opposite question; how can we play this sport WITHOUT making geocaches suspicious.  I don't have an answer to that question."

John also provided these official Geocache rules:

Off-Limit (Physical) Caches

By submitting a cache listing, you assure us that you have adequate permission to hide your cache in the selected location. However, if we see a cache description that mentions ignoring "No Trespassing" signs (or any other obvious issues), your listing may be immediately archived. We also assume that your cache placement complies with all applicable laws. If an obvious legal issue is present, or is brought to our attention, your listing may be immediately archived.

Caches may be quickly archived if we see the following (which is not exhaustive):

• Caches on land managed by an agency that prohibits geocaches, such as the U.S. National Park Service or U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (National Wildlife Refuges).
• Caches that are buried. If a shovel, trowel or other "pointy" object is used to dig, whether in order to hide or to find the cache, then it is not appropriate.
• Caches that deface public or private property, whether a natural or man-made object, in order to provide a hiding place, a clue or a logging method.
• Caches placed in areas, which are highly sensitive to the extra traffic that would be caused by vehicles and humans (examples may include archaeological or historic sites or cemeteries).
• Caches hidden in close proximity to active railroad tracks. In the United States we generally use a distance of 150 ft (46 m) but your local area's trespassing laws may be different. All local laws apply.
• Caches near or on military installations.
• Caches near, on or under public structures deemed potential or possible targets for terrorist attacks. These may include but are not limited to highway bridges, dams, government buildings, elementary and secondary schools, and airports.

Kathy also attached some rules to her e-mail to us:

Caches may be quickly archived if we see the following (which is not exhaustive):

• Caches on land managed by an agency that prohibits geocaches, such as the U.S. National Park Service or U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (National Wildlife Refuges).
• Caches that are buried. If a shovel, trowel or other "pointy" object is used to dig, whether in order to hide or to find the cache, then it is not appropriate.
• Caches that deface public or private property, whether a natural or man-made object, in order to provide a hiding place, a clue or a logging method.
• Caches placed in areas, which are highly sensitive to the extra traffic that would be caused by vehicles and humans (examples may include archaeological or historic sites or cemeteries).
• Caches hidden in close proximity to active railroad tracks. In the United States we generally use a distance of 150 ft (46 m) but your local area's trespassing laws may be different. All local laws apply.
• Caches near or on military installations.
• Caches near, on or under public structures deemed potential or possible targets for terrorist attacks. These may include but are not limited to highway bridges, dams, government buildings, elementary and secondary schools, and airports.

There may be some exceptions. If your cache fits within one of the above areas, please explain this in a note to the reviewer. If you are given permission to place a cache on private property, indicate this on the cache page for the benefit of both the reviewer and people seeking out the cache.

NEWSCHANNEL 13 found GPS coordinates and a hint online for a Geocache in the parking area of the Chapel Hills Mall.  We found the Geocache.  It was a small pill box, with a logbook inside.  All you do is sign it, put the Geocache back and go look for another one.