Showing posts with label university of florida. Show all posts
Showing posts with label university of florida. Show all posts

Wednesday, April 22, 2009

Geocaching

Today, the University of Florida's student newspaper, the Independent Florida Alligator ran a story about a UF student that was involved in Geocaching as a hobby. Geocaching being searching for hidden objects, lists and treasures. Rather than using Pirate methods of looking for booty with crusty maps, modern Geocachers use hand help GPS systems to guide them on their journey. 

Why do these people do this? Not because it is pointless. They do it as an impetus for getting outside to explore new places.  To test their ability to navigate and to find hidden objects. Or as a challenge to see who can race to an object the fastest. 

Before reading this, I had heard of geocaching before, but had never given it a second thought. It certainly is not a flashy hobby, and chicks certainly will not dig it. But most girls have crappy hobbies anyway... scrap booking, cooking, cleaning, giving birth to children, etc. 

Anyway, I decided that Geocaching was an activity that I might want to try out. My brother-in-law owns a handheld GPS, and I am going to borrow it and explore this great earth one latitude at a time. In my research, I discovered http://www.geocaching.com/ which allows users to search for caches in their local area, or anywhere they may be going. I hope to have my inaugural attempt this weekend, and will keep everyone a-Breast of my explorations. 

Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Contributor Bio: Brian Tucker























  • Name: Brian Tucker
  • Base Camp: Redwood City, CA
  • Education: University of Florida, Go Gators!
  • Industry: Residential Lending
  • Music: Alternative Rock
  • Adventuring Experience: Wilderness Survival, Hiking, Backpacking, Camping, Fishing, Snowboarding, Surfing, Kayaking, Snow camping.
  • Non-Adventure Hobbies: Classic Car Research and Restoration, Reading, Wood Working.
  • Countries Traveled: USA, Canada, Mexico.
  • Places where I'd like to pitch a tent: Yellowstone, Redwood National Forest, Yosemite, Grand Canyon, Glacier National Park.
  • Where I want to travel: Everywhere
  • Best part about Adventuring and Travel: I try to prepare for unexpected problems when camping or hiking. I enjoy researching typical pitfalls and problems and have assembled a kit of items that would be helpful in a survival situation. I have not been in a situation that required survival skills, but feel confident that I would be prepared to handle any perilous situation that may arise.

Sunday, March 8, 2009

Contributor Bio: Charley Tucker


  • Name: Charley Tucker
  • Home Base: Chicago, IL
  • Education: Graduated from University of Florida
  • Industry: Technology
  • Music: All, especially Classic Rock
  • Adventuring Experience: Camping, Hiking, Survival, Paddling, Trekking, Trail Running, Fishing, Rafting,     International Travel, limited climbing, surfing and snowboarding. Eagle Scout.
  • Non-Adventure Hobbies: Reading, Watching Sports(Florida Gators, Chicago Cubs, Chicago Bears), Running, Playing Sports,
  • Countries Traveled: USA, Mexico, Canada, England, Switzerland, Germany, Austria, Belgium, France, Grand Cayman
  • Noteworthy Adventures:
    • Boundary waters Canoe trip(Minnesota, Canada, 2 times)
    • Philmont Boy Scout Ranch(Cimarron, New Mexico)
    • Appalachian Trail(Hiked about 100 miles of the trail)
    • Europe(Backpacked when I was  a Boy Scout)
    • Devil’s Bridge(Sedona, Arizona)
  • N.P.’s visited: Yellowstone, Rushmore, Redwood, Everglades, Badlands, Grand Teton, Mammoth Cave, Sequoia, Voyageurs, Wind Cave,  Devil’s Tower, Glacier, and probably more.
  • Places I'd like to pitch a tent: Yosemite, Bryce Canyon, Grand Canyon, Zion, Joshua Tree
  • Where I want to Travel: Ireland, Italy, Germany for Oktoberfest, Hawaii, South America, Mexico again
  • Best part about Adventuring and Travel: I think the best way to learn about yourself is by getting out of your comfort zone, and getting out of your daily routine.  There is no better way to do that than by taking time to cut the cord between yourself what life tells you is “important” from Monday to Friday. My favorite part about adventuring and travel is exploring new situations and experiencing the unknown. Nature is relaxing but you can never know who or what you will encounter on the trail, or while traveling. Being outdoors is refreshing and you can usually tell that by the friendly people you meet along the way.Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better.  ~Albert Einstein