If you’re hoping to earn a commemorative coin in the Molalla Geocaching Challenge , also known as the Molalla Geocoin Challenge, you’d better get moving.

“Probably by next weekend we’re going to be out,” Sheri Kelly, executive director of Molalla Area Chamber of Commerce, said on Saturday.

Only 250 of the Molalla Geocoins were made and as of Saturday afternoon, Kelly said 145 had already been claimed since the challenge started on Nov. 13.

“This is involving people of all ages. I had a lady I’m going to estimate was in her 70s and then families with kids,” Kelly said. “It’s exciting and everybody comes in with a smile on their face.”

To receive one of the coins, participants must find at least seven of the 10 caches hidden around the Molalla area. Geocaching is a worldwide hobby that combines treasure-hunting with GPS technology.

Participants use clues and insert coordinates into their GPS devices to find the hidden containers.

Kelly said that the first Saturday of the challenge proved to be the busiest day in the chamber office she has ever seen, with about 40 people coming through its doors.

The idea for the challenge came from Mulino residents and avid geocachers Robert and Michelle Bayley, who had seen a similar activity done in Canby and other cities.

They suggested the idea to City Manager John Atkins, who secured the grant funding for the coins, Robert Bayley said.

The Bayleys worked with Atkins to come up with a list of 10 locations for the challenge and placed the containers around town and in the surrounding area, including Wilhoit Springs Park and Shady Dell Train Park.

“I couldn’t resist the urge to go on a little treasure hunt in my own backyard, so to speak. Who would have ever thought that hunting for Tupperware could be so much fun?” said Molalla resident Dan Anderson, who tried out geocaching for the first time with his wife, young son and their dog. “It was a great family activity. It gave us an excuse to get some exercise and explore our hometown.”

Kelly said the challenge is also drawing many people from out of town and even out of the state.

“A lot of them have said it’s the first time they’ve ever been here,” Kelly said.

Bayley said one group even drove down from Washington in the middle of the night and started geocaching at 4 a.m.

One of the caches is located near the Dickey Prairie Store and employee Jason Dilworth said people have been showing up at all hours looking for it.

“They just come randomly,” Dilworth said. “From morning until dark I’ve seen them.”

As he hunted, Anderson said he met many other geocachers along the way.

Traditionally, geocachers use a GPS device to find the hidden caches. However, Anderson said he managed to do the hunt without one, using the clues provided and pre-searching on GoogleEarth. While on the trail, he met others who had downloaded GPS applications onto their cell phones.

“This isn’t just something that’s for a tech geek,” he said.

The clues and coordinates for each cache are posted online at www.geocaching.com. Even once the coins run out, the caches will still be in place for hunters to find. Brochures about the hunt are available at Molalla City Hall, the Molalla Area Chamber of Commerce and on the city’s Web site .

The coins are available at the chamber of commerce office until supplies run out.

“If you’re outside of Molalla, you wouldn’t know that these little treasures exist,” Anderson said. “It was a neat way to discover a few pieces of the city you might not otherwise know.”

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