Four new geocaching attributes
In addition to the new Premium Attribute Search, we are excited to announce four new attributes.
Hiders with challenge caches, bonus caches, or caches that are part of a power trail can now add the appropriate attribute. Additionally, caches with the Geocaching.com solution checker will automatically show a new attribute to allow other geocachers to filter for them.
Read on to view the new attributes, learn more about the types of hides mentioned, and how to add these attributes to your active geocache.
To find a challenge cache, bonus cache, power trail cache, or Mystery Cache with the Geocaching.com solution checker, select the appropriate attribute using Attribute Search in the Geocaching® app or on Geocaching.com. Note: As cache owners and HQ apply these attributes to existing hides, filtering for the new attributes will start to show more and more results, but initially you will likely only see few results.
Challenge cache attribute
Though challenge caches are a type of Mystery Cache, the coordinates in the cache listing most often match the physical cache location. The challenge to claim a find on a challenge cache lies in having to accomplish a series of geocaching related tasks defined by the cache owner before logging the cache online—in addition to finding the cache container and signing the physical logbook, of course.
Bonus cache attribute
A bonus cache is a Mystery Cache for which you have to find clues in other caches. Sometimes the coordinates for the bonus cache are in one other cache. In other cases, you gather clues for the final coordinates of the bonus cache from multiple other caches. Clues for a bonus cache can be hidden in any other cache type.
Power trail attribute
A geocaching power trail is a large number of caches, often placed at minimum distance (0.1 miles, 161 meters) to each other, hidden along a walking, biking, or driving route. It often promotes a player’s ability to easily increase their find count.
Geocaching.com solution checker attribute
To help geocachers ensure their solved coordinates are correct before they go to find the final container, cache owners can add a solution checker to their Mystery Caches.
Information for present and future cache owners
- In the following days, we will automatically apply the challenge cache and Geocaching.com solution checker attributes to already published geocaches. If you don’t want to wait, you can also add the new attributes now.
- If you are creating a new challenge cache, bonus cache, or a cache that is part of a power trail, please add the matching attribute before submitting your cache for review.
- Only add the challenge cache attribute to caches that meet the current guidelines, as well as grandfathered challenge caches. Geocaching HQ may remove the attribute from cache listings where it has been incorrectly added. Going forward, if you are planning to submit a new challenge cache for review, the challenge cache attribute must be added, just like the challenge checker.
- If you are creating a new Mystery Cache, the Geocaching.com solution checker attribute is automatically added to your hide when you select “Display the solution checker on the cache page,” during setup.
- Cache owners with published bonus caches are encouraged to manually add the new attributes to their caches. On the cache page on Geocaching.com select “Edit” in the sidebar under Admin tools. Scroll down to the section ATTRIBUTES, and click once on the desired attribute to add it to your listing. Select “Save and view”.
- As a one-time community service, we offer cache owners the opportunity to email us a list of GC-codes of their currently published & active power trail caches where they would like the attribute added retroactively. Please email a comma-separated list of the GC-codes to us via the Help Center (choose Appeals) by September 30, 2020.
Which one of the newly added attributes is most useful to you? Let us know in the comments!
