Using Google Maps to Find Geocaches

Part of my hesitation in originally trying Geocaching was my lack of a GPS.  I had a cheap TomTom in my car, but it was unsuitable for caching (believe me, I tried).  At best, it could get me to a nearby parking area; the worst it did was try to place me on a highway overpass, rather than the road underneath where the cache was hidden.

I've seen the Geocaching.com blog post about the guy who does everything with maps, but honestly, my map skills and patience for the technique are not that good.  I did manage to find my first 20 or so caches without GPS, though, simply using Google Maps.  This gave me enough of a taste for caching that I decided to commit to it and eventually invest in a GPS receiver (though I ended up getting one for my birthday instead - woohoo!)  It's a great way to learn about caching without spending a dime, and the challenges of using a map instead of a GPS add an additional element of "fun".

This is not difficult to do, but I'm posting a short tutorial with pictures for anyone interested.  I'm still pretty new at this, and I love hearing about people discovering this hobby.  If this helps get you out and caching, all the better!

Important - please note that this method works best in an area with landmarks.  It's pretty easy to identify light pole caches or guard rail caches with this method, and bushes and trees are pretty easy to spot if the area is not too overgrown.  I would not recommend doing this for caches in the woods, however.  This works well in urban or suburban areas: parking lots, shopping centers, and the like.

GPS Accuracy Issues

Also note that the coordinates listed on the Geocaching web site are only as accurate as the GPS used to get the coordinates in the first place!  The rule of thumb is that the coordinates get you within 30 feet / 9 meters, so even if you follow these steps exactly, you may only end up close to the cache.

Additionally, GPS accuracy is limited by both the original cache owner's coordinates and your own GPS accuracy.  If their coordinates were off by 30 feet when they submitted the cache, and you're 30 feet off from their original coordinates due to your GPS, you're now 60 feet away!   As you gain experience, you'll rely less on the GPS and more on what you've learned, and even if you have a state of the art GPS, it's still a good idea to scope out the satellite view first and look for landmarks in advance.

STEP 1 - Choose the cache

Visit Geocaching.com and look for a cache that you want to find.  For this example, we'll use an archived cache so I'm not giving any spoilers away - Avoid the Noid, which was archived back in September of 2012.  I'd also like to thank the owner, ngauger, for permission to use this cache as an example.

STEP 2 - Copy the coordinates

Highlight the GPS coordinates with your mouse and copy them.  I use Ctrl-C, but you can just as easily Right click and select Copy.

Copy the coordinates from the circled area.

STEP 3 - Enter the coordinates in Google Maps

Visit the Google Maps web site, paste the coordinates into the search area, and hit Enter.

STEP 4 - Adjust the map to show the cache

You'll notice that Google Maps shows two markers - the red pushpin "A" marker, and a green arrow.  The coordinates that you entered are always the green arrow. The red pushpin shows the closest business nearby, so in this case we can see it's a Domino's Pizza (remember the old "Avoid the Noid" commercials from the '80s?).

If you are seeing the street map, rather than the satellite view, click the square in the upper right hand corner that says "Satellite". 

  

Zoom in as close as possible.  By default, Google Maps now tilts to a nifty 45 degree aerial shot when you zoom close, but that's not always going to be very helpful.  Move your mouse over to the top right button that now says Map and uncheck the 45° symbol.

Make sure that 45° is unchecked.

STEP 5 - Look for landmarks

The image below shows the cache area, zoomed in as far as it can go.  As mentioned above, the green arrow shows the location of the GPS coordinates that you entered into Google Maps.

Zoomed in, flat view.  The green arrow is the location of the cache.

Look for landmarks within the picture.  In this case, we can see at least three trees (maybe two large trees and a big bush) to the east side of the building.  We can also see that the cache is pretty close to the northeast corner of the building.

Some landmarks to look for:

• Anything in a row, e.g. trees, light poles, telephone poles, etc...  If the cache is near one of them, simply count down the row until you get there - i.e. Second light pole in the third row of cars in a parking lot.
• Landmarks within line of sight - Is there a water tower or cellular antenna tower nearby?  Are you within sight of one corner of a large building?  You can use the visible landmarks to triangulate your position.
• You may be able to use the printed copy of this image (Step 6 below) to help triangulate position.  Use a ruler and pencil to draw lines intersecting the cache with the tall landmarks.
• In parks, look for ground markings on sports fields.  Does the cache line up to the third base line? (I found one this way)  Also look for bleachers, goal posts, or anything else to help get your bearings.
• Lone objects in otherwise empty areas.  I found a cache under a bench, which was the only thing visible on the Google Map.  Honestly, I couldn't tell it was a bench from the satellite photo, but when I got to ground zero it was easy to spot.

Here's another example from a different cache:

In this case, the green arrow isn't pointing at anything in particular, but it's really, really close to a light pole.  As mentioned above, GPS accuracy is an issue.  In this case, it makes sense to check the light pole before expanding your search area.

Another example from a different cache:

Note that the green arrow is pretty close to several trees off of a dirt road.  You can bet that the cache is in one of the trees, but you probably should actually go to GZ to get a better sense of where the hide may be.

And here's one that's probably too difficult to find without a GPS:

Yeah, good luck finding this one.

Note the lack of landmarks in this picture.  I mean, you can see the roads, but there are a lot of trees, and not much information in this image to differentiate between them.  You can barely tell from the image above, but there's also a stream in the vicinity.  When you switch to the Map view from the Satellite view, you see this:

I actually looked for this one with a GPS and still couldn't find it.  It's since been archived.

The location of the arrow looks like it may be on the west side of the stream, but with GPS accuracy it could really be on either side.  Note that there are still no other landmarks to work with, so unless you feel like putting on waders and working your way up and down both sides of the stream, it's probably a good idea to look for a different cache.

STEP 6 - Print the image and go find the cache!

You can print this image by clicking the little printer icon in the upper left of the window.  The little chain link thing lets you copy the web site permalink for email / posting / etc...

Print the cache description and hints as well, along with a few recent cache logs.  It's probably a good idea to review more logs to gather any more clues that you may need.

Now get out there and find the cache!

OPTIONAL STEP - Use Google Street View to get more information

You've done all that you really need to do, but the more information, the better.  Let's check to see if there is any Street View images that can help us.

Please note that the pin that shows up on Street View can be much less accurate than the pin viewed from overhead.  Also note that Street View is not available in many areas, places like large parking lots, and anywhere off road.

Using the original "Avoid the Noid" cache as an example again:

So we know that the cache is somewhere near the northeast corner of the building, but before you go to visit the cache you may want to check out the Street View of the area to get a better idea of what to expect. 

Click and drag the little Street View guy over to the nearest road.  As long as the road turns blue when you hover over it, Street View images are available.

Drag this guy over to the closest road.

Drag the mouse around until you see the pushpins, and zoom in if you need to.  You should end up seeing something like this:

The pushpin to the left, with the GPS coordinates, shows the location of the cache.

The pin to the left, marked with the GPS coordinates, is the location of the cache (or nearby).  It's difficult to see in this picture, but there is a guard rail right near that marker.  The hint for the cache was "Look by the tree", and sure enough, the cache was located just past the tree, in the guardrail.

Final Thoughts

Obviously a GPS receiver, or even a smartphone, makes things much easier, but if you don't have access to them it's still pretty easy to go caching.  So... what are you waiting for?  :)