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UPPER SALFORD - For those who have never heard of
geo-caching, Cindy Bruno describes it as treasure hunting
for the 21st Century.
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Bruno owns Geo Challenge Adventures in Abington, Pa.
The challenge she provides her clientele involves the use of
Global Positioning System Receivers to locate hidden caches
Bruno and her staff have placed throughout a given course.
One of the main locations she holds these treasure hunts is
Spring Mountain Ski Area. But Bruno has held similar
geo-caching events in Fort Washington State Park.
One time a tech company in New York City hired her to
organize a hunt in Central Park.
"We had to do it in the day," Bruno said. "Central Park
changes at night. You don't want to be looking for treasure
then."
Some of her clients include corporations, schools, scouting
organizations, outdoor clubs, and the average adventure
seekers.
Bruno says the main purpose of geo-caching, aside from a fun
time outdoors, is to foster better communication and problem
solving among her clients. "The most effective
team-building experiences are those that offer experiential
learning, and with our geo race, it's all hands-on," she
said.
On a recent Thursday morning a group of women and their
children arrived at Spring Mountain for some geo-caching.
For Kim O'Connell of Lansdale, it was her second time.
"I had a blast," O'Connell said. "I thought this would be a
fun thing to do together." This time she brought along
her 7-year-old son Timothy. The group was split up
into two teams, yellow and green. Bruno provided each team
member a bandana of their respective color. Each team
is assigned a guide who helps keep things on track. There
are about three different courses Bruno and her guides have
set up throughout the mountain.
The pre-programmed GPS units contain coordinates. Players
follow these coordinates to find the locations of a series
of hidden caches. In addition to GPS coordinates, players
will also be provided a set of physical clues to help them
in their quest. The team with the most points at the
end of the race will be considered the winners and prizes
will be provided for them.
Bruno reminded the O'Connell party that this is a
competition. Timing is everything. So is teamwork.
"Hike and keep together," Bruno said. "You always want to be
on the same page together."
For more information and reservations, call Geo Challenge
Adventures at
(267) 467-2759.
Or call Spring Mountain at
(610)
287-7900.
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