The National Headquarters of the USDA Forest Service is located in the heart of downtown Washington, D.C. It includes an Information Center of potential interest to geocachers and their families. An animated Smokey Bear, reading his mail, greets you as you walk in the door. The Center has an engaging 'hands on' rustic lodge atmosphere, which shares the history of the agency. Interactive displays quiz the visitor about using the natural resources wisely.
The Center is FREE OF CHARGE. It is open Monday through Friday 8:00 AM - 3:30 PM all year round (except government holidays), and also on some Spring/Summer weekends. It is staffed by informative Forest Service personnel. The Center has a variety of displays about natural resources management on the generally geocache-friendly National Forests throughout the country. (THE CENTER HAS NO PUBLIC RESTROOMS.)
Geocachers anticipating a visit to a National Forest are encouraged to become aware of the very brief General Rules for Visitors to National Forests , and practice the Leave No Trace ethics which closely parallel Geocaching's "Cache In Trash Out".
NOTE: A 'virtual cache' is a location (usually without a logbook). 'Cache finders' wishing to claim this site should answer the following question: On WHAT DAY OF WHAT YEAR was the building given its present name? The answer is on the dedication brass plaque, just off the street and INSIDE the door. Logged entries on the website should be accompanied by a separate email to the 'cache hiders', which correctly answers the question, to assure 'cache seekers' entry is not deleted.