Letterboxing

Letterboxing = Fun!

This post will give you the info you need to understand what Letterboxing is and how to get started.

On the website, letterboxing is described as "an intriguing pastime combining navigational skills and rubber stamp artistry in a charming "treasure hunt" style outdoor quest. A wide variety of adventures can be found to suit all ages and experience levels." 

The best way to see what letterboxing is all about it to get started.  First, go to Letterboxing.org.
Create an account with a name for your family.  Ours, for example is "Curious Family."  You can use your last name or some other nickname you have for yourselves.  "Curious Family" fit well for us because one of the stamps we use is Curious George, and we felt "curious" through these letterboxing adventures.

By creating an account, you can log in and you will be able to save and update your adventures.  When you find a box, you will be able to keep track of it on the website.  While this is not mandatory, I believe it adds to the fun.

Next, search for letterboxes that are hidden in your area.  You do this by going to the "Letterboxes" drop down tab, then clicking "Search Clues".  On this page, you are able to search by location, region, county, state, or a combination of those choices.  My favorite is to pick state and county.

After entering your search, a list will come through in which you see the name of the letterbox, the user who placed it, the number hidden, the name of the town, and county it is hidden in.  You then click on the Box Name and are provided with information such as when the box was placed and clues. 

Please read these carefully to assess whether this particular adventure fits your family's abilities.  Some clues are more complicated and require miles of hiking, while others are simple and are located in an easy place to reach.  Also note when the box was hidden.  If it was years ago, realize the possibility that it is no longer there.  The clue I just clicked on, for example, was hidden in 2006, and there is a note stating that this box is missing. 

There is an option to click on in the right sidebar next to the full clue that says "Status".  I just clicked on this for a box placed in 2011, and saw that since then, four people have reported the box as "Found", the last one March 2012.  This is a great sign!  I will print this out so that my kids and I can find this letterbox.

I think it is a good idea to place your printed clues in a folder.  The yellow folder pictured is one that I collaged some found letters, a picture, and quotes on that fit with the Letterboxing theme.  Also, my kids and I made our own notebooks to collect our ink stamp prints in.  The front and back covers are made of cardboard squares.  The pages within are squares of thick, unlined white paper.  The cover and pages are hole-punched and attached with thin rope, string, or yarn.  It is fun to design the covers.

You do not need to make your own booklets, you could simply purchase any type of notebook and use it.  I recommend the ones without lines on their pages.

Two pictures above, you will also see a bag with our stamps.  We have three stamps that we bring with us when we go Letterboxing.  One is the Curious George stamp, another is a butterfly, and one is an angel.  The kids enjoy using their own stamps to stamp in the booklets of the letterboxes we find.  We also bring a stamp pad, crayons, and pens.

For some of the clues, you need a compass.  Another item we bring along is a whistle, as we live in "bear country" and a whistle can be useful in scaring bears away if necessary.  (thankfully, it has not been necessary!)

You'll need a bag of some sort for your Letterboxing items.  We use a lightweight backpack, and we keep our stuff for letterboxing in it at all times.  Then when we're ready for an adventure, we grab and go!

Here is what you do when you go Letterboxing: 
You take out your clues and begin to follow them when you reach your destination.
You follow the clues to find the hidden letterbox.
When you find the letterbox, open it and discover within it a stamp, (maybe) a stamp pad (which is why we bring our own), a booklet of some sort for YOU to stamp in, and once in a while you'll find a "Traveler" within it... more about that later!!

Now, you stamp YOUR stamps into the booklet of the letterbox you just found.  You can write a message as well, and sign your family's name.  Look through the booklet and see who came and found this box before you.  Then you stamp the stamp you just found into your own letterbox booklet, and record the date, location, and name of letterbox.  Replace the items that were in the letterbox back into it.

Remember to always place the letterbox back exactly where you found it so the next person can find it easily. Also remember to be inconspicuous if you are at a place with high traffic. Not everyone knows and understands what letterboxing is, and prying eyes may not know what to do with the letterbox if they are watching you and take it after the box is replaced. 

Letterboxing is SUCH a fun adventure, filled with learning opportunities.  To look back at your collection of stamps and remember your adventures is a great part of the experience.  Take lots of photographs!  You are collecting memories! 

I mentioned about the "Traveler" stamps that are sometimes in Letterboxes you'll find.  These are fun!  We found one once.  These stamps travel... they don't have one letterbox home.  Along their way, other letterboxers pick these travelers up in other boxes.  They then bring them to the next box they find and leave them their.  Travelers can go across the country sometimes!  When you find one, you record it in your own letterbox booklet, and on the letterboxing website under "Travelers" so that the adventures of these stamps can be tracked.  You take it with you, and hide it in the next letterbox you find.

Another opportunity for your family is to hide your own letterbox or place your own "traveler".  We purchased a couple of plastic containers and need to buy appropriate stamps, booklets, and ink pads to include in the boxes.  Then we need to find a good spot to hide them and come up with clues.

I hope you and your family have fun Letterboxing adventures!  When you go on trips, make sure to search letterboxes that might be in the area.  Doing so helps you find "off-the-beaten-track" type places.  We have had much success discovering interesting places when we go away because we have searched for letterboxes.  Also, you may find nearby places to take day trips to that you  might not have thought about otherwise, just because you can have a letterboxing adventure there. 

It is guaranteed that kids of all ages will enjoy letterboxing adventures.  When you go on adventures, and if you post a blog about it, will you please come back and share with me?  Just go ahead and leave a comment with your link right into the comment box.  Thank you!  I plan to post our adventures in the near future.  I hope you'll come back to see!

This post was featured on Homeschool Showcase #92 at Weird Unsocialized Homeschoolers.  Thanks, Kris!
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