Rummaging around in the undergrowth of neighbourhood parks is one of my favourite hobbies. Occasionally it leads to suspicious looks, but it is perfectly innocent; I am searching for geocaches.

A geocache is a small container that people hide for others to find using a GPS device. The most common caches are made from film canisters, eclipse containers or plastic lunch boxes but they can be any size as long as they can contain a log book for visitors to sign. They are usually camouflaged in some way and are sometimes hidden in items designed to look like something else.

I am getting better at this but there are still some I have not been able to find despite having the GPS location which puts me within a few metres of the right spot. I went back three times to one location and finally found it exactly where the clue said it was. It was hard to find because it was only the size of the top of my thumb

There are at least 1,300,000 hidden around the world and they are hidden everywhere from central cities to suburban parks and remote mountain bush walks. There are thousands of caches hidden in Queensland, including xx in central Brisbane and within 4kms of where I am staying. I have found 37.

To begin Geocaching, you need a GPS unit, an Internet connection and an account at Geocaching.com. When logged in, you can search for caches in your location and see the GPS coordinates for each cache. Some caches contain items for children to swap and others have themes like the Australiana cache or the Christmas Cache. Others have clues that you have to decipher before you can start. There is even a community devoted to virtual Geocaching where nothing is hidden but you have to prove you have been there with photos or by answering questions.

Geocaches has been an interesting way to explore Australia. Some of my favourite locations were private spots I found while looking for caches. And there is also something quite satisfying about finding a cache right under the noses of unsuspecting local; just as long as they don’t call the police.