New geocaching game on Rachel Carson Trail encourages family hikes

A Pine Township family’s hiking experience has inspired a new game to get other families out on the Rachel Carson Trail.

Brian Vernon needed to get out of the house after working from home for months on end and helping his daughter, Lorelei, and son, Riley, learn during the covid pandemic.

Vernon saw a Facebook post about the Rachel Carson Trail and decided to give it a try in October.

Named after the late marine biologist, author and conservationist from Springdale, the trail is about 45 miles long and connects North Park to Harrison Hills Park in Harrison.

Its use is overseen by the Rachel Carson Trail Conservancy, a nonprofit dedicated to the development, protection and promotion of hiking, biking and walking trails throughout Western Pennsylvania.

It was such a great time that he brought his children along in subsequent treks.

“It’s a free activity,” Vernon said. “You get exercise. It’s been great spending time with my kids and have them be excited about something that I like to do.”

They discovered clues and trinkets along the trail as part of geocaching.

It is like a high-tech scavenger hunt using a GPS (Global Positioning System). If hikers find at least 26 geocachings along the trail and email the clues to the RCTC, they can get a coin.

“(Lorelei) had already gotten some of the basics, so I gave her a briefing about how GPS works,” Vernon said. “My daughter is very goal-oriented and methodical. She was very into finding the geocache. She was monitoring everything. My son just likes being out and finding sticks. Both of them keyed in on the geocache. The coordinates bring you close to it, but you have to look for it. Whenever they saw a rock that was out of place they got really excited.”

The family found enough items to get a coin. RCTC board member Kathleen Ganster responded to the family’s email.

“There so many limited opportunities because of covid,” Ganster said about family activities. “One of the things they are encouraging people to do is get out and hike and stay physically active.”

After posting about the family hikes to the Friends of North Park Facebook page, mothers and other parents began to reach out to Vernon.

He and Ganster began brainstorming ways of how to get more people on the trials and came up with a geocaching game.

More clues and items are being placed throughout the trail. Participants only need to find three to get a pin, five to get a patch and 10 to get a hat.

“I think families are looking for something to do with their children during these challenging times,” Ganster said. “This is an opportunity to do something fun. If you have children or you yourself have never been hiking before, there are places that are very beginner-friendly.”

Hikers can write down the clues and email them to geotrail@rachelcarsontrails.org to receive the prizes.

It is unclear how long this activity will last. So far no deadline has been set.

RCTC also has a 100-mile quest. Hikers are encouraged to hit the trails and go the distance in one year.

More information about the quest is available here.