So what in the heck is this "GeoFoxing" stuff, anyway?

Well, back around the year 2000 a new sport/game called Geocaching, in which the players would hide a container filled with small items to trade and take the coordinates down using a GPS receiver and tell or email their friends, came to be. Their friends, in turn, would go out to find the "cache" and swap out an item for one of their own and sign a log. After a short while, there was a website where players could post their coordinates for the world to see. You can read all about the history here.

Yeah, but what about GeoFOXing? How does this thing work?

Let me explain by introducing you to a Fox, in ham radio terms, and what Fox Hunting is all about...

We ham radio types have long enjoyed hunting hidden transmitters, or Foxes. Some of these hides can be VERY devious, not unlike some Geocaching hides. This activity generally requires some specific equipment, namely a receiver for the correct band and some sort of directional antenna or indicator so one can differentiate which direction the received signal from the fox is coming from. (It should be noted that one does not need to have an amateur radio (ham) license in order to participate in fox hunting, as they will not be transmitting. Only the fox or hidden transmitter is transmitting, and that is the only part where a license is required.)

So, a couple of us NoBARC (North Bay Amateur Radio Club) members got to thinking about how we might combine our hidden transmitter hunting game with the Geocaching game and this is what we came up with.

Our GeoFoxing game consisted of 3 temporary Geocaches (not listed on the Geocaching.com website because they don't allow "temporary" caches to be listed) and two hidden transmitters. On the morning before our group arrived at Youth Park, Larry (callsign KD6VUM), Mike (callsign WB6TMH) and Ken (callsign N6MHG) hid a microcache [very small cache] approximately 1/10 mile away from where our group would be picnicing. We'll call this NoBARC Cache #1. We hid NoBARC Cache #2 and Cache #3 in various other parts of the park. We then hid two different automated hidden transmitters in still other parts of the park. Here is how it worked:

Participants were provided with the coordinates of Cache #1 at the picnic area.

They proceeded to find Cache #1 using GPS receivers.

In Cache #1, they found the frequency of the first hidden transmitter they were going to be looking for. At that point, they put away their GPS receivers and broke out their 2 meter ham radio receivers and directional finding antennas.

At Hidden Transmitter #1, they found the coordinates for Cache #2, and put away the fox hunting receiving equipment and again broke out the GPS receivers.

Repeat steps above for finding Cache #2 and Hidden Transmitter #2.

At Hidden Transmitter #2, they found the coordinates for the final cache, Cache #3, which conveniently was located only a few feet away from where we were picnicing.

We had a bunch of fun and we introduced some in our group to the game of Geocaching and had a great time doing our more traditional activity of hidden transmitter hunting, or Fox Hunting.

...and the new game was born:     GeoFoxing.

>>>> Check out our photos of our hunt(s) below. You'll definitely want to see the series of shots at the final cache (Cache #3) when one of our group started thinking that something just "didn't look quite 100% right..."

After we were done with our GeoFoxing, we visited a listed geocache right HERE in this park. The direction I went in was not something I personally wanted to navigate, seeing as I am not quite 100% in the knee department due to a back injury suffered some time back. I opted to come back another day but there were 3 in our group who did find it. (Tenevda, Dictaham, and Dave, but I've forgotten Dave's Geocaching "handle".)

Please click on the photos below for a larger, more detailed version to pop up. You'll need to have javascript enabled in your browser.

(L-R) Dawnell, Andrew (KE6HID) and Glen (KF6AKT) getting ready to head out for Cache #1.	(L-R) Michelle, Joel (NN6J), Larry (KD6VUM) and Debbie. Larry gives the coordinates to Joel to enter in his GPSr.	Mike (WB6TMH) gets some of the fox hunting equipment ready.
The first group looking for a somewhat 'evil' hide. It was a micro (35mm film canister) with real oak leaf camo. Possibly a little too difficult for the first hide. My bad.	Dave (KD6KWM) [Geocaching: Tenevda] starts to examin things very closely. (Hey Dave... Check the other side!)	"I know the darned thing is here somewhere! My GPSr says so!"
So now we've settled on this tree right here...	(L-R) Michelle, Dawnell, Debbie and Dave are circling in for the kill. "Maybe it won't get away if we surround it!"	Andrew (KE6HID) (center) displays Cache #1 outside of its cozy jacket of oak leaves. Now to sign the log and read the radio frequency for the hidden transmitter!
Dave (KF6DDP) and Jeff (KD6RC) (somewhat hidden) are searching for Cache #1 next.	Jeff navigates the stickers.	And Dave goes in for the kill! Dave seemed to have an especially easy time finding this, unlike the first group above.

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