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✨ Enthusiasm, curiosity, and passion may come to mind when you think of Joshua Johnson, also known in the geocaching community as The Geocaching Vlogger. As an outgoing geocacher, it’s likely you’ve seen his content pop up on your screen more than once over the years.

Join us as we catch up with The Geocaching Vlogger and get to know him better. Let’s dive into the heartwarming interview!

Geocaching HQ: If you could only describe yourself in 3 words, what would they be and why?

The three words I would use to describe me are energetic, purposeful, and focused.

Energetic
I like to think that I bring energy and life to everything I do. This is most true when it comes to things I am truly passionate about. I hope that comes through on the video content I put out into the world. Life is too short not to have fun and bring joy to the things that you are passionate about.

Purposeful
I also feel that everything I do needs to have a greater mission. One of the reasons I love geocaching is that I believe it has the power to change people’s lives as it has changed mine. The mission of everything I have put on the internet is to inspire others to get outside and explore their world through geocaching.

Focused
Like many geocachers, I love goals. Whether it be to get as many geocaching souvenirs as I can or to put out a full-length video on YouTube every Sunday for a year, I love setting a challenge for myself and stubbornly attempting to reach that goal.

Geocaching HQ: What’s your background outside of geocaching?

Outside of geocaching, I work at a non-profit that facilitates day-long experiences in schools and the community, whose mission is to build character in young people and adults all over the U.S. I facilitate these experiences and lead a team of talented speakers who do the same all over the U.S. We aim to inspire more kindness, moral courage, and respect every day! I also have a background in acting; I’m not afraid of the camera or the stage!

Geocaching HQ: How did you get into content creation, and what made you choose geocaching?

It all started quite accidentally. Back when my kids were younger, I felt the urge to capture many precious moments of their childhood on video. That’s when I made a spur-of-the-moment decision to buy a FLIP camera, which I found on Craigslist. I remember meeting the seller in a parking lot to seal the deal. Eager to test the camera, I decided to film myself as I embarked on a geocaching adventure.

As I uploaded that video to YouTube, I couldn’t help but cringe at the quality, realizing it was far from perfect. Nevertheless, it marked the humble beginning of my YouTube journey. At that time, I was engrossed in watching family vloggers on YouTube who documented their everyday lives, no matter how mundane. It was during this period that I recognized the unique and captivating aspect of geocaching.

I made a commitment to create at least one long-form YouTube video every week, and it’s almost hard to believe that this dedication was over 13 years ago. Remarkably, I’ve managed to uphold this promise, and I still haven’t missed a single week.

Geocaching HQ: How and where can people find you and your geocaching content?

You can find all my YouTube geocaching adventures at GeocachingVlogger.com. You can also find my content on Facebook, TikTok, and Instagram.

Find my travel podcast (guided by geocaching), “Treasures of Our Town“, wherever you download podcasts.

AND you can find my geocaching comic book for all ages at geocachingcomic.com.

Geocaching HQ: How do you choose what geocache you want to film?

I really believe behind every geocaching adventure there is a possible story. For most of the years of creating content, I focussed on long-form content. These types of videos gave me more time to tell the longer story of my adventures. Those videos were not always reliant on great caches.

I love to feature communities that have official GeoTours as I believe they highlight some of the best things about geocaching. Amazing places, great caches, and sometimes the reward of a geocoin. I also, like most geocachers, follow the Favorite points that led me to great caches!

In 2020, my TikTok account took off, and I had to learn how to share compelling stories in less than 1 minute. Many of those videos rely on compelling and creative geocaches.

Geocaching HQ: Tell us a funny or heartfelt story of a recent geocache you’ve found and filmed.

A few years ago, I came across a trackable that held a wonderful dedication to an army veteran. His dream was to retire and embark on a journey through the heart of Texas. Sadly, fate intervened, and he left this world before his dream could materialize.

In the spirit of honoring his memory, the next time I found myself in Texas, I discovered an ideal cache to place the trackable. It is nestled within a remarkable TB hotel housed in a historic VFW in San Antonio. Standing in that place, I couldn’t help but imagine how much this veteran would have reveled in the surroundings. It felt like the perfect spot, a place where his spirit could live on.

Geocaching HQ: What tips do you have for collaborating with other content creators?

I have always thought the greatest treasure in geocaching is the people I have met along the way. Some of my closest friends are geocachers who also make geocaching content. In 2012, I created a group called “The Geocaching Network,” a group of geocaching content creators who learn from one another.

Being that we have such a specific niche I felt that it is important that we found ways to grow together. That has even come in the form of meet-ups together at Mega-Events over the years.

If you are interested in geocaching content creation, don’t be afraid to reach out to those doing it through the Geocaching.com Message Center.

Geocaching HQ: What is the current favorite video of yours that is your favorite? What makes it stand out from the rest, in your opinion?

I think the first one that comes to mind is when I visited Woodstock, IL, the shooting location for the movie Groundhog Day. In that city, there are 2 Adventure Lab® Caches that take you to the several shooting locations of the movie. As you will see in this video it really suited the location of the Adventure. Without spoiling the video too much, let’s just say it took a looooooong time to complete that Adventure!

Geocaching HQ: You travel a lot; what is your go-to geocaching playlist?

When road-tripping, I love music that perfectly suits what I am looking at outside the window.

I must say I loved listening to America’s “Ventura Highway” while driving down the actual Ventura Highway in California.

If I’m looking for a chill vibe, it is Wisconsin’s Bon Iver.

But most of the time, I listen to podcasts like “The Geocaching Podcast” or classic movie review podcasts.

Geocaching HQ: What is your favorite geocaching location that you traveled to? Why does it stand out as a favorite?

I have been to Germany on 4 different occasions since 2018. It is truly a land filled with amazing caches and wonderful people. The Germans I have met have such a PASSION for geocaching!

I also loved my visit to Brazil to visit the Project A.P.E. cache down there with the geocaching travel group Cacher Reisen. Never in my wildest dreams did I ever imagine I would have an opportunity to find this rare geocache in the jungles of Brazil!