Geocaching on the North Shore

Recently, we added “Go Geocaching” to our list of Free Things to do on the North Shore. This family-friendly activity came highly recommended by many but was something we hadn’t actually tried ourselves. So, this week, we decided to go Geocaching! This is our experience Geocaching on the North Shore.

What Is Geocaching

Explore Minnesota describes it as “a global scavenger hunt in the modern era”.  To start your journey, download the official Geocaching app. From the app, select a cache and follow the directions on your cell phone to identify the location of a cache. You go to the location, follow some hints and clues, and find the cache. Well, that’s the basic idea, anyway. Some caches require multi-step searches. Others, specifically those found in some State Parks, have a specific topic to help you learn more about the area.

What the cache actually is varies a lot, as they are placed by fellow Geocachers. Most of the caches we found were either pencil-box sized or pill-bottle size. Many just contained a slip of paper that you sign your name to, while others contained small toys and trinkets available for those who find the cache to take. No matter if the cache contains a small treasure or not, we found finding them to be thrilling each time.

There is much more to Geocaching that we have yet to explore, personally. There’s even a whole lingo glossary to learn, should you really want to get into the activity. We did find ourselves checking what certain acronyms meant as we went on our local Geocache adventure. But, you don’t have to know what everything means to enjoy this activity.

And, yes! Geocaching on the North Shore can be a FREE activity. And, it’s definitely family-friendly! While the app allows you to upgrade to a Premium account to get access to more caches and other adventures, a free version will provide you with ample caches to track down. Should you decide this is an adventure you want to expand on, the upgrade only costs about $30 for the year.

The Start of Our North Shore Geocaching Adventure

We set out all around Grand Marais and Lutsen to see what this whole Geocaching thing was all about. I had heard of it and seen posts by friends who are very interested in it but had never actually tried it myself. Downloading the app was easy- we had it on our phone and an account set up within about five minutes. Once we had the app downloaded we set out to one of my favorite public beaches- Five Mile Rock.

I was intrigued by this cache mostly because I had visited the beach several times with my kids. We have spent hours walking the beach, hunting agates, and just enjoying the gorgeous Lake Superior shoreline at this location. Being very familiar with the beach, I wondered where a cache could possibly be hidden that I hadn’t already stumbled upon. The directions on the app led us to the start of the beach- right to the area we always park at and the stretch of the beach I was most familiar with. Clearly, I had to use the app to find the cache as where it was, and even what it was, was a mystery to me being a first-timer.

Using the App to Find a Cache

We arrived at the beach and spent a bit of time exploring the app for clues. Each cache has a name (this one is called “The Rock”), a difficulty rating between 1-5 (this one is a 1.5), a terrain rating of 1-5 (this one was also a 1.5 rated), and size (this one was described as “micro”). The app tells you who placed the cache and when (Border Brats on 6/3/11), and gives you a hint should you have an issue finding it.

Hilariously, I found the cache the first place I checked because I made a comment about it when we arrived. “I never noticed this thing before!” I said. But, having no clue what I was actually looking for, I didn’t realize that was the cache! It wasn’t until we peaked at the hint after wandering around for a bit that I realized that was, in fact, it.

Micro, we quickly learned, describes a pill-bottle-sized cache, although we later learned that micro could also be much smaller!

The app also includes a description of the area and often explains why the user placed the cache there.  There’s also an activity log that often contains more hints and tricks for finding the cache, should the provided hint not help. Users can include photos of the cache and the area. They keep photos hidden just in case they include spoilers, which they often do.

Quick Tip: Bring a pen with you! This first cache didn’t have one and we couldn’t find one to sign the log. We ended up going back to the office for a pen!

After singing our name we left behind a small prize for whoever finds the cache after us. You do not have to do this, we just wanted to leave a little something behind at each one!

Geocaching on the North Shore

From Five Mile Rock, we went back to the town of Grand Marais. There are about 15 caches located within city limits. Some, like those located on Artist’s Point, require the premium upgrade to find. Others, like six located within the Grand Marais Rec Park and Campground, are included on the free account.

We decided to search the Rec Park for our next one because they were so many. We quickly found one left on the Sweetheart Bluff Trail on 10/9/19 by a user named troll lover. This one was the size of a pencil box and contained a small notebook as a log and some trinkets for kids. Mostly stickers and temporary tattoos. We once again signed the log book, left behind our own little prize, and then carried on.

Over the course of the next coup