Sigh-toe, see-tow, chai-to—No matter how you pronounce it, CITO (Cache In Trash Out) should be a part of every geocacher’s vocabulary. What’s it mean? It’s simple— whenever you’re out geocaching, clean up the area around you. It keeps the geocaching game board (the Earth, duh) clean and shows land managers that geocachers care. Here are a few tips to become the ultimate CITO champion:
Pack an extra trash bag in your geocaching kit.
Trash is gross! Bring gloves or a grabber tool.
Organize or attend a CITO event and turn trash or invasive species into a smiley.
Celebrate the next International CITO Weekend on April 25 and 26, 2015 and earn a digital souvenir for your Geocaching profile.
Finding a geocache can be as simple as walking to a location and looking down. But after a while, it’s natural to want to change it up—even make it more difficult. With this geocache, you won’t have to solve a word puzzle to make the find, but you will have to spin the wheel. Around the edges of this spinning contraption, loosely based on the television game show “Wheel of Fortune”, are many containers—only one of which holds the logbook. Make the hike, give the wheel a spin and see if you’re lucky enough to find it on the first spin!
“I found a large discarded wooden cable spool on the side of the road in Burlington Ontario. I brought it home and separated the 2 large round spools. I searched for small cans of paint the same colors as the Geocache symbols, drew out the Geocache symbol and painted it…I drilled about 25 holes and added film containers in the holes. One container contained the log sheets…It was a “hit” with geocachers. I had some comments that the wheel did not spin.
In 2010 I painted the other spool and drilled holes for film containers and a hole in the center so it could spin. I had a location on Hyway 5 that had abanded sign post. With the help of a ladder I managed to install the spool high on the sign post and make it SPIN. The caches require maintenance from time to time as the film container dry out and crack or fall out of their pre drilled holes.”
What geocachers are saying:
“this was the best cache I’ve found so far, quite the hike to the cache lol it was awesome!! TFTC!” – jessicaswr
“Wow did we have fun with this one. This has been on the radar for a long time and today we did it. This one gets a favorite for sure” – three-amigoz
“Dude, what a great, great cache! Very impressive. We had some fun with this one. A favourite for sure!” – thewhytes
Photos:
Wheel! Of! Geocaching! Photo by geocacher Nonsuch30The wheel requires a little bit of a climb to get to. Photo by geocacher Mark0077Two brave geocachers making the find. Photo by geocacher Superkatze
What is your geocaching lucky charm? Tell us and post photos in the comments.
Continue to explore some of the most engaging geocaches around the globe. Check out all the Geocaches of the Week on the Geocaching blog.
Can you spot the Geocaching HQ’er? (Hint: Look for the green sunglasses.)
Editor’s note: Geocaching HQ staff are attending dozens of Mega-Events around the world, shaking hands, sharing stories of adventure, and of course, geocaching. Each person at Geocaching HQ brings their own unique talent to advancing the adventure. Some write code for the website, others design images for the apps, and some shoot videos explaining it all. Paige Edmiston is a Communications Specialist for Geocaching HQ. She recently traveled to Hampton Roads, Virginia to attend the 12th Annual GCHR Picnic Mega-Event. Here’s her story.
I was the lucky Geocaching HQ staff member who attended the 12th Annual GCHR Picnic Mega-Event in Hampton Roads, Virginia. The event takes place at the crossroads of nature and early American history, where the best of both are highlighted through unique geocaching experiences. But that’s not what makes this event so special. This event is special because it has an extraordinary power to bring people together into community.
At my first Geocaching Block Party, a geocacher gave me a pin that read “Geocachers are the nicest people.” I thought it was cute, so I’ve held onto it all these years. But now, for the first time, I think I fully understand the truth behind that statement. It only took 2400 miles, hundreds of geocachers, and a dance with Signal the Frog (more on that later) for me to finally “get it”.
Geocachers really, truly are the nicest people you’ll ever meet.
What I learned from the 12th Annual GCHR Picnic Mega-Event:
My geocaching chauffeurs.
You can show up knowing no one and leave with friends for life. In what world can you go to a party without knowing a single soul and immediately feel like part of the family? The geocaching world, that’s where. Heck, the geocachers at the 12th Annual GCHR Picnic made me feel welcome even before the event started. A lovely group of geocachers who had driven from Pennsylvania to Virginia for the event waited at the airport to greet me. Showing up at the farewell breakfast the morning after the big event felt like catching up with old friends.
Geocachers are always prepared — and happy to share. Virginia has a few wonderful things Seattle doesn’t, and a few not-so-wonderful things: namely, chiggers and ticks. Luckily, a geocacher at the event had come prepared with enough bug spray to share with an unprepared Geocaching HQ’er. In addition to bug spray, the delightful event organizer Penguincacher equipped me with a yellow, trackable Jeep so that I could drive around in style. And yes, this Jeep was inspired by the Jeep Travel Bugs!
Love is in the details. Sometimes, it’s the small things that reveal how kind, caring and, well, detail-oriented the people you meet along the geocaching trail can be. Just a few examples from Hampton Roads:
A larger-than-life log book.
The brains behind the log book. Think there’s enough room to sign your name?
A contest filled with creative challenges designed to reveal the true “GeoSurvivors.” I’m happy to report my partner Maingray and I took second place. I think that means we would survive a Zombie Apocalypse. Maybe.
The epic slow walk of GeoSurvivor (second place) champions. Photo by steve-n-kim.
A special Lab Cache created to make me feel welcome.
Note: Lackey, Virginia. Photo by Monkeybrad.
And, of course, no portable toilet would be complete without a bouquet of flowers.
An extra dose of geocaching love.
And finally, being quirky is awesome. Geocaching is about exploration, adventure, and discovery, but it’s also about being a part of a community that challenges you to step outside your comfort zone and, at the same time, appreciates you just for being you. I never dreamed I would ever be in a position where I had the opportunity — and the support — to show the world my love of goofy dancing by tangoing with a giant Signal the Frog. Then again, I should have known: geocaching is always full of surprises.
We always knew you were an Achiever. Thanks for proving us right.
This August, we challenged you to explore more of the geocaching universe by unlocking the 7 Souvenirs of August. The results are now in and it’s official: geocachers are not just Achievers—they are Over-Achievers.
Want proof? Check out 7 Souvenirs of August in numbers:
555,000 geocachers earned the Explorer souvenir. That means 100,000 more geocachers logged a Traditional geocache in August 2014 than in August 2013.
160,000 geocachers found a Multi-Cache to earn the Sightseer souvenir.
Nearly 150,000 geocachers earned the Puzzler souvenir by logging a Mystery Cache.
Over 85,000 geocachers earned the Socializer souvenir. The number of geocachers who attended an Event Cache more than doubled from August 2013.
Over 100,000 geocachers unlocked the Nature Lover souvenir. This doubled the number of geocachers who found an Earth Cache and quadrupled the number who attended a CITO event.
More than 100,000 geocachers found a Letterbox Hybrid, Virtual, Webcam or Whereigo to earn the Collector souvenir.
That’s not all. A whopping 69,550 geocachers around the world earned all six souvenirs to become Geocaching Achievers. Not too shabby.
With each new Found It log, geocachers unlocked more than a souvenir. They unlocked a new adventure, a new discovery and a new memory to share with friends and family.
Want to relive the 7 Souvenirs of August? Watch 15 seconds of #7SofA geocaching through the lens of geocachers like you:
Did you find your first Earth Cache? Mystery Cache? Make a new friend? Tell us about your favorite adventure from 7 Souvenirs of August in the comments below.
Tweezers, magnifying glasses, flashlights, log rollers, backpacks—the sheer number of Tools of the Trade (TOTTs) for geocaching is incredible. But most of these go for finding geocaches? What about for hiding? Well look no further than the Swiss Army Knife of Geocaching containers. With this handy geocache, you’ll be ready with a container for any situation. This geocache is something that brings the “wow” factor into the find and is a magnet for Favorite Points. Not to mention, the resemblance to the Achiever icon for the Seven Souvenirs of August is uncanny!
“There are so many cachers I know of that have a cache next to where they live. When I am invited to their house to start a day of caching I am given a GC number and not a street address. It is so fun to pull up to a find and not just a house. I put out this cache for that reason.
“The idea for the Swiss Army Knife of so many of my favorite cache containers brewed in my brain for months. It had to fit many containers, it had to fold well, it had to be durable, and it had to be fun. With those basic needs in mind I collected containers from craft stores and friends for about a month. Assembly took just a weekend.
“The positive logs make me smile. I am so lucky to use a woodworking talent to share a fun cache with others. The wonderful logs probably make me smile as much as the cachers who have found the cache… Thank You so much to all of you cache hiders. It is because of you that the game keeps going on. Keep being creative and keep challenging me to get my smiley. I love to work for the find.”
What geocachers are saying:
“We truly enjoyed finding all the logs – and signing them, just to be sure. We couldn’t remember if the ‘real’ log was a red herring or not. We really appreciated the effort and time you spent to create such a unique and FUN cache. Thanks!” – TrekkingTurtles
“When we arrived I wasn’t sure quite what to expect but soon had things figured out and the cache in hand. It’s one of the most interesting caches I’ve found as well as being one of a kind. Loved it!” – MrWalkie
“travelchick raved so much about this cache that I determined to stop by for a visit. My chance came this morning, and I grinned with delight as I explored this marvelous, ingenious “knife”. Bravo for a job superbly done! Thank you for a unique, clever, marvelously constructed cache! Another Favorite point for this one, and I wish I could give it more!” – charliewhiskey
Photos:
All the tools you could need. Photo by geocacher JerLin_c_seekersI guess you could say this cache is jaw-dropping. Photo by geocacher wearn3Happy geocachers with the find. Photo by Spitfire03
What’s geocaching Tool of the Trade (TOTT) do you never leave home without? Tell us and post photos in the comments.
Continue to explore some of the most engaging geocaches around the globe. Check out all the Geocaches of the Week on the Geocaching blog.
