Wherigo

We have never done a "Wherigo" before.  A Wherigo is a form of geocaching (sort of) which requires a special kind of device - such as an iPad, iPhone, Android, etc.  I really can't explain it fully, so I copied this paragraph from the Whereigo web site:

                 What if you could take video games outdoors?

Wherigo is a platform that allows you to build location based GPS experiences on your computer and play them in the real world. Imagine playing Zork, Secret of Monkey Island or Myst, but in the park around the corner, or on the beach during your family vacation. Rather than clicking the mouse and selecting a location to move your character, you physically move from one location to the next to advance the story. Rather than searching for puzzle clues on a screen, you look for them in the real world. Using Wherigo, you can create interactive tours, adventure games and puzzles... the possibilities are endless

It certainly sounds like fun, so we set off with Laurie and Dylan for Jonathan Dickinson State Park to find the Wherigo called "Simple".  It's actually the only one available within 50 miles!  So they are relatively rare.

01/04/2013	You found  Simple		Visit Log
Caching with an iPad mini, the adventure continues - We have never done a Wherigo before but since the kids gave me a mini for Christmas specifically for Geocaching we have been working on our learning curve. Zoroan and Sharkie took us by the hand and taught us how to load and use the app. Fired it up in the JD parking lot, read the first directions and looked at the arrow, followed it and watched the numbers climb. "Ah dad, I think it's over here" As I followed her, the arrow stayed the same but the numbers counted down. We answered the question, got the second directions and now my arrow pointed toward the park entrance but I knew it was wrong because we have been here before. Sharkie grabbed the beast and waved it around in the air. That did it! Now following the arrow made the distance count down. We answered the second question and got the next directions. Again, we knew where to go. We reached our destination, answered the final question and the final cords popped up. I clicked OK and - - they vanished. Fortunately both Sharkie and Zoroan still had them on their phones. We spent a frustrating period of time attempting to load the cords without success. Fortune smiled again because the better half of the BB crew had stayed back in the parking lot with the cachemobile. A quick phone call and she came to our rescue with the Garmin 62. We loaded the cords, walked the walk and made the find. Signed the log for each of us and returned as found. Thanks for placing this cache which today gave us quite an adventure.

 This is the Wherigo icon.