Geomate.jr encourages family time, outdoor play; Great gift idea anytime of year

The Internet and television may be dominating leisure activities and zapping outdoor time for kids, but that won’t slow down the fast growing trend millions enjoy: GPS treasure hunting called, geocaching. Thanks to Apisphere, Inc., the company behind Geomate.jr, children, their families and adventure seekers from all walks of life can get hip with the increasingly popular and fun geocaching phenomenon, a great group activity for scouting, summer camps and schools. Geomate.jr, the first and only device of its kind, combines technology and outdoor play while providing hours of geocaching entertainment; it is preloaded with 250,000 geocache locations.

Sadly, according to the Outdoor Foundation, outdoor activity among children ages 6 to 17 declined 11 percent in 2008.

“Geomate.jr offers a way to reconnect our children with family time and nature while encouraging them to be active, get outdoors and explore the environment,” says Warren Hewerdine, co-inventor of Geomate.jr and Apisphere’s vice president of marketing. “Savvy kids will get their technology fix from the easy-to-use device, and it eliminates the traditional fuss of Internet connections, downloads, coordinates and preplanning to provide a spontaneous geocaching experience families can enjoy anytime, anywhere.”

Geomate.jr acts as an electronic compass, guiding you to within yards of a geocache.

People all over the world have enjoyed geocaching but up until now, the GPS receivers required were expensive and difficult to use.

“Geomate.jr is about the size of a granola bar and built tough so it can take a beating. The contoured grip fits comfortably in the hands of kids and adults,” says Hewerdine. “Then all you have to do is head out to a local park, the backcountry or just down the street to get started on creating lifelong memories and a newfound appreciation for the outdoors.”

The Geomate.jr makes a great gift idea any time of year. Products available include:

Geomate.jr - Geocaching GPS (Retail: $69.95) Pre-loaded with 250,000 geocaches covering all 50 U.S. states, just switch it on and be directed to your closest geocache. European, Canadian, Australian & New Zealand versions are also available.

Geomate.jr - Update Kit (Retail: $24.95) The key to update any Geomate.Jr with the latest and greatest geocaches for the U.S. or for around the world. Other features such as being able to create a private geocache list and Pocket Query support are also accessible with an Update Kit.

Geomate.jr - Combo Pack (Retail: $94.95) Everything you will ever need in one box including a Geomate.jr, an Update Kit, a Geomate.jr Travel Tag, batteries, lanyard, and documentation. Geomate.jr is available for purchase at major outdoor retailers including REI, L.L. Bean, Gander Mountain and Eastern Mountain Sports. It is also available through Target, Amazon.com and Geocaching.com.

For more information about the Geomate.jr, including demo videos, please visit www.mygeomate.com. Follow on Twitter: @geomatejr and on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/geomatejr.