Northampton Township Parks & Recreation
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Geocaching

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Northampton Township Parks and Recreation supports geocaching and other similar activities.  We just ask those who are interested in placing a cache within a park to read through the department's policies first. If you are interested in placing a Geocache in one of the township's parks, you will need to complete a Permit Request.  Northampton Township Parks and Recreation's Geocaching Guidelines and permit application can be found below.

Geocaching Rules
Northampton Township Parks and Recreation maintains and programs parks at the Civic Center Recreation Complex, the Municipal Park, Hampton Estates, Big Meadow, and Pheasant Run. Northampton Township Parks and Recreation welcomes geo-gaming as a healthy physical activity that encourages outdoor adventures.

The purpose of this policy is to establish management and placement guidelines for geo-gaming so as to minimize the impact on natural and cultural resources in the parks of Northampton Township. Permits are required at this time for Geocaches and Letterboxes only. There is currently no fee to obtain a Permit.

Geocaching involves the placement of caches (usually small containers) in urban and rural areas, with the majority being placed in natural areas. The general location and geographic coordinates of these caches are shared on the internet at www.geocaching.com. Global Positioning System (GPS) users can then use the location coordinates to search for and discover the caches. Caches contain a variety of items and the visitor is asked to leave a new item to replace the one they removed; not all cachers will take an item, but will sign a log book contained within the cache. Cache owners monitor the cache they placed with the logbooks in the cache box as well as through the electronic logs on the above-mentioned website.

Letterboxing involves the placement of small containers in rural or urban areas that contain a personal stamp (usually a rubber stamp) and logbook. Participants follow clues, sometimes using a compass or maps, to locate the letterbox. The logbook in the box is then stamped with the finder’s personal stamp and the letterbox stamp is stamped inside the finder’s logbook. Information on letterboxing, which began in Dartmoor, England and has spread to the USA, is available at www.letterboxing.org.

Geodashing includes the use of a GPS unit to participate in a game involving predefined waypoints and does not involve the placement of a physical cache. Therefore, no permit or approvalOfficial Geocache is required for Geodashing. All other Park Rules apply. 

For a list of parks that the Department manages, please visit the Facility List page.

Geocaching Guidelines

Geocaching Permit Application


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