Open letter to MN lawmakers regarding State Park Geocaching ban.

[+B3Fiend]

RE: OPEN LETTER TO THE MINNESOTA DNR REGARDING THE BANNING OF 'GEOCACHING' IN THE MINNESOTA STATE PARK SYSTEM.

 

CC: Minnesota DNR

Governor Tim Pawlenty

State Sen. Julie Rosen

State Rep. Tony Cornish

Geocaching.com public forums.

 

 

Hello,

 

I would like to express my utter disbelief and bewilderment regarding the policy the DNR has posted at http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/state_parks/index.html banning the activity of "Geocaching".

 

It is my strong opinion that this poorly researched policy was hastily created without an understanding of what the hobby and spirit of geocaching is all about.

 

Geocaching (www.geocaching.com) is a world-wide hobby among outdoors enthusiasts and hikers involving finding hidden "caches" or interesting locations by GPS. These caches are discretly placed by hikers, and are sought by other hikers using GPS. Caches are registered and shared via the Internet - primarily through www.geocaching.com.

According to State policies compiled at www.geocachingpolicy.info/usa.html, Minnesota is the *only* U.S. State that has mysteriously banned Geocaching, which is a good hint that this policy was written hastily, poorly researched, and that it is not in-line with what is happening in the rest of the country.

 

In short, banning Geocaching is the equivalent of banning hiking or even bird-watching. To ban Geocaching in a park that allows hiking is patently absurd. Geocachers *are* hikers, and are bound by the same rules and liability that the park weould have in place for hiking. Geocaching openly encourages a "cache in trash out" practice encouraging Geocache hunters to pick up litter as they are hiking.

 

Geocaching has so many strong benefits for the State Park System, it is perplexing why it would be frowned upon. Geocaching attracts visitors from all over the world, and encourages people to visit parks that they may not have otherwise visited, or even known about.

 

Other states openly encourage the hobby by their State Park visitors. A good example of this is the State of Missouri, who have published their Geocaching Guidelines via PDF at http://www.mostateparks.com/geocaching.pdf. Missouri's policy simply states that caches must be registered with the local park, and that caches cannot be placed in areas that are off-limits to hikers - which is why banning Geocaching would be the same as banning hiking itself.

 

The Minnesota DNR policy makes several claims attempting to support the ban on Geocaching. The policy states:

 

"Due to concerns related to natural resource protection, visitor safety, staff workloads and liability, geocaches are not permitted on lands administered by the Minnesota State Park System"

 

For a moment, please apply this same train of thought to other popular activities in Minnesota State Parks:

 

- Hiking. A hiker may ignore signs and stray into dangerous or sensitive areas. Hiking should be banned.

 

- Fishing. An angler may lodge a fishhook in their hand, making the DNR liable for this accident. Fishing should be banned

 

- Biking/Skiing. Someone may take a nasty spill on the bike or skis, making the DNR liable. These activities should be banned.

 

- Bird watching. A bird watcher may ignore signs and stray into dangerous or sensitive areas. Bird-watching should be banned.

 

- Boating/canoeing. Someone may get thrown overboard and drown, making the DNR liable. Boating should be banned.

 

In short, *any* activity performed in the State park system would violate the same concerns that the DNR has posted about geocaching, even though most geocaches are only visited on a weekly to monthly basis. This policy singling out Geocaching is absolutely absurd and has no reasonable supporting argument or reasoning. This bewildering policy should be either be removed, or the DNR should instead ban all visitors from leaving their cars.

 

The DNR should be ENCOURAGING visitors to partake of the state park system. This recreational activity is what the parks are for, and what our tax dollars pay for.

 

Sincerely,

 

Gregg Anderson

Mankato, MN.