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Quincy and Nauvoo have geocaches in place for the 70th Anniversary Geocaching Contest being held by the Mississippi River Parkway Commission. The MRPC is a multi-state organization that was established in 1938 to work collectively to preserve, promote, and enhance the Mississippi River corridor.
Geocaching is a high-tech treasure hunting game in which individuals use GPS devices to track down hidden geocaches, using only a handful of clues and the GPS coordinates listed for that location. Once found, the treasure hunters often leave mementos and then log their visit online to show that they have successfully found the cache.
Senator John Sullivan, Chairman of the Illinois Mississippi River Parkway Commission said, "Geocaching is a fast growing recreational activity that often allows a unique site to be showcased and experienced. This contest will bring additional exposure and visitors to each of the participating communities that are along the 3,000 miles of the National Scenic Byway." Illinois has over 550 miles of the route winding through 15 counties and 59 incorporated communities.
Participants are asked to take a Great River Road geocaching log sheet to the special geocaches hidden just for this event and record a code listed in each found cache. Once a set of caches is successfully found, contestants will be entered into a drawing to win a "5 Weekend Stays in 5 states" travel package along with $500. For more information on the contest, please visit http://www.experiencemississippiriver.com/ or contact the Quincy Area Convention & Visitors Bureau at 1-800-978-4748.