In the game of geocaching (you use a GPS unit and coordinates listed on the web to find a hidden treasure box in the woods - read about our intro to game here), there are a variety of classifications for a box from tiny "micro" boxes (the size of an old 35-mm film canister or smaller) to larger boxes in all shapes and sizes to "mystery" boxes that require riddles to be solved in order to find the prize to "hybrids" that combine the letterboxing and geocaching games.
My family has played the game of letterboxing (like geocaching there is a box hidden in the woods but instead of trinkets to trade there is a hand-carved stamp inside) and the kids enjoyed finding the stamps to make impressions in their log books of their finds. But, we don't care so much for the directions to find these boxes (instructions to find letterboxes are not great, nor designed to be easy most times, so we find geocaching more family-friendly (i.e., better chances of finding one and keeping the kids motivated to do it again) with the bonus of an active online community even when we can't get outdoors).
[I talk more about the pros/cons of each game here and less you ever talk about anyone else's letterbox stamp well, this is the sort of reception you can expect).]
So when developing our own geocaches (the kids love choosing hiding spots) we decided to make several of them "geocache hybrids."
Geocache hybrids are boxes found by GPS coordinates but instead of prizes inside the box for people to trade, there is a stamp that stays with the box like letterboxing. Geocachers can make an impression of the box's stamp and add their own personalized stamp (if they have one, sometimes we saw hand-drawn pictures in our log book that were just as much fun). It's the combination of both games' best features (stamps and GPS directions) that my crew really likes.
Our hybrid, Ski Away, was made in honor of the location being one of our favorite places to cross country ski and we took it off-line after it was stolen. It wasn't until recently that we got things put together to activate this box again.
G. took on the task of making a new stamp for Ski Away in the same design (a ski theme of course) as the original one. And because it's been a while since we've done any stamp-making (we're still novices at this craft), the kids and Fino were inspired to make some new ones.
To make our stamps the kids draw something on a piece of paper the size of the eraser they plan to use.
Then we use a pencil to scribble lead on the opposite side of the drawing so we can trace that drawing (with a pencil) on to the eraser (we use 'chunky' erasers but art supply stores have higher quality erasers and/or special material for making stamps).
The girls use one of Fino's small, not-so-sharp woodworking tools to carve their stamps and it works well for them.
A closer look at the the girls' carving tool.
Fino uses sharper implements to carve but the girls are still not keen on these tools and they get similar results with their own tool with less worry about cutting themselves.
The bird stamp is L.'s latest creation and the rooster is Fino's, which reminds me of his other rooster image that I still chuckle about. I think he made this particular stamp because of that.)
In the photo with the text above is my family's stamps that we use to sign log books. Each of us has made their own along with a small pouch to store them in our backpacks.
If you're interested in learning more about my family's experience with these games, you can read more about them on MaineOutdoorJournal.com:
Letterboxing with Kid Tracks
Geocaching with Kid Tracks
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