It appears as though Lennox & Addington County has mapped out a successful new tourism promotion. On Saturday, and estimated 220 people became temporary-but-enthusiastic treasure hunters for the county's first-ever geocaching event. Of those 220, L&A Geocaching founder and event organizer Joe Tisdale estimated that 80 to 85 percent of participants came from outside of L&A County.  "It was way better than we expected," Tisdale said later.

Geocaching involves the search for hidden 'caches' with the help of a global positioning system device. The hobby has developed into a worldwide community of geocachers - and a phenomenon into which L&A County decided to tap.

When asked what made this event work, Tisdale suggested that it was because the community itself got involved in organizing the event - at most geocaching events, all the organization is done by the geocachers themselves.  That can be taxing for participants, who not only have to worry about the caches on thier list, but also have to assist with prizes and other administrative duties.  "All they had to do (at the L&A event) was worry about finding caches," he said.

With the county's economic development department taking a leadership role, said Tisdale, the event got a level of community co-operation and welcome that isn't typically seen.

Judging by the standing ovation the organizers received at the wrap-up dinner at the Lions Hall on Saturday night, the effort was appreciated.  The geocachers also showed their gratitude by holding an impromptu clean-up at the Napanee Fairgrounds.

Tisdale, who with the ehlp of his family hid most of the caches for Saturday's event at various locations around the county, said that he tried to offer something for everyone, with quick finds and challenging finds, finds that involve a great deal of travel and finds that were located within close proximity to one another.  "People were coming up to us all day, just saying they enjoyed the day," said Tisdale.

Geocachers traveled from as far away as Montreal, Toronto and Cambridge to participate in the L&A geocaching event.  One team of geocachers from Nova Scotia who happened to be visiting the region stayed an extra day to take part.

Diane Adams, her husband, Tony, and daughter, Kelsey - a family of geocachers - made their way from the Maritimes last week to visit Diane's mother in Belleville.  "When we arrived at her house on Tuesday night, the first thing she told me was that there was an event on Saturday," said Diane.

The Adams have been geocaching since 2006, amassing a total of 4,100 finds along the way.  "It's an addiction," Diane says of her love for geocaching.  "It's the hunt and the thrill of the find, that's what it comes down to."

She also says events like the one on Saturday offer a chance to socialize with other geocachers.

The Adams may want to set aside a weekend next summer, too - Tisdale says that, based on the success of this year's event, a follow-up event is likely.  In fact, the push is on to make it a geocashing 'mega-event', if 500 or more geocachers sign in and take part.  By becoming a mega-event, the event is added to an international list of similar events on an annual basis.

From:  Geocachers treasure new L&A County event
By:  Seth Duchene
The Napanee Beaver
September 1, 2011