Many Manitobans have found joy in a modern-day treasure hunt, and local experts say it's easy to get started.

Nathan Kachur is the president of the Manitoba Geocaching Association

"Geocaching is an online-based location game. People that choose to play go out and find containers that were hidden by other members of the geocaching community using GPS or their cell phone," says Kachur. 

Containers come in all shapes and sizes, but in Manitoba, they must meet a few requirements. 

"Normally it's a large Tupperware container. Lots of containers are not super weather resistant. At least heavily weather-resistant is a huge bonus. Not hiding things that look like potential pipe bombs, as the city police don't take very kindly to finding weird packages hidden in public areas."

When a member finds a cache, there will be a paper log inside to fill out so the community knows who has actually been there. Sometimes the container has a small toy that kids can trade their item for. 

"I ran the numbers and overall, we've seen a 30 per cent increase in the amount of people in Manitoba that are caching and the number that those people are finding."

Winnipeg has roughly 4,000 caches hidden within the perimeter. 

"Originally about 10 years ago for my son's birthday, he wanted to do a treasure hunt. I had heard about this geocaching thing. It made for a good day, we took some friends in the area of Stonewall and found 14 that first day," says the president of the association.

After that, Kachur's life changed and he wanted something to keep his mind occupied. 

"I went caching every day for a year and a half as a distraction from life. It's a lot of fun, there is a community, within the province, North America, and even the whole world. It's an interesting activity that is good for a solo person right through to a whole family."

Kachur says it's a great way to keep active while being socially distant during this third lockdown in the province from the coronavirus.