Geocachers

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. Individuals involved in a recreational pursuit that combines technology and exploration by using GPS to find hidden caches in various environments
2. Enthusiasts of a global pastime who seek out concealed objects using geographic coordinates while often enjoying outdoor adventures
3. People who participate in a game that involves finding hidden containers outdoors by following GPS coordinates

Etymology: "Geocachers" is the plural of "geocacher", a noun formed from "geocache" with the agent suffix "-er", so a geocacher is one who geocaches. The first recorded use of the base word dates to 2000, placing the pastime's vocabulary squarely in the early years of consumer GPS receivers, when the U.S. government's removal of signal degradation made civilian positioning accurate enough to hide and find containers by coordinates alone. The root "geocache" is a compound of "geo-", from Greek "gē" meaning "earth", and "cache", borrowed from French "cache" meaning "hiding place", which itself comes from "cacher", "to hide". The combination reads plainly: a hidden store located by earth coordinates. Players hide a container, publish its coordinates online, and others navigate to it, often logging their visit in a notebook kept inside.