Geocache Name:

Deja Vu? (GC5F41G)

Difficulty/Terrain Rating:

2.5/1.5

Why this is the Geocache of the Week:

When I first saw this geocache in a post on /r/geocaching, I knew it had to be a Geocache of the Week. The work and creativity that went into it was incredible, not to mention, it had already won an award during a local event. However, a few weeks later, I visited the geocache’s page to gather some info only to find that it had been archived! Drats! Luckily, it was only to change to its current location. Phew! The idea for this geocache is pretty ingenious and creates a great experience for any geocacher who finds it.

What the geocache owner, The Geers, has to say:

We had a jar of pennies and one day I just randomly thought of making an image with the different colours of the pennies and naturally make it into a geocache…While we were in Cologne, Germany on vacation in June, we went to a flea market and saw some old iron locks which we thought would be really cool to use in a cache. A few weeks later, I made the connection between the locks and the pennies in that they were both magnetic (or at least some of the pennies were) and decided to make it a puzzle where the cacher had to use a magnet to find the magnetic pennies of which one would hold the key. After that it was a lot of drawings, trips to Home Depot, and construction and of course coming up with a name and a location. So all in all the whole project took about 3 – 4 months.

I very much enjoyed the logs that people wrote, especially in connection with the CCAR event because we were doing it as well. So by reading the logs as they came in throughout the day, it was such a neat experience to see the different situations that the cache went through…Even a few days after the event, I very much enjoyed reading the comments from cachers who decided to find it after talking to other cachers or after they saw it on Reddit. Getting the favorite points was nice and winning the CCAR category was pretty awesome, but it was the logs that really made it worth all the effort.

To the geocaching community: Making a bigger, more creative, and more involved geocache is a very exciting experience and the response you get from people finding and solving it definitely makes it worth the effort! Just make sure you put it in a safe place so that geocachers can enjoy it for a long, long time!

What geocachers are saying:

“I decided to make the short drive to the cache site this evening and certainly wasn’t disappointed with the cache. Simply a well thought out idea, design and constructed cache – TFTH and challenge!” – Sleepy_hollow

“Arriving near gz, we made short work of the first level of defences and moved onto the second. This one proved a bit harder than necessary for Daddy Duck as he was in full pirate mode and thought he had to pick the lock with the hook. Once that was figured out, success was had and thanks to the instructions everything was put back nice and tidy. Loved the symbol as well!” – Dancing Ducklings

“Really Really neat Cache. Noticed there were a lot that were not magnetic. Took awhile to find the right one. My favourite cache ever!!!!!!!” – Ewok Cacher

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Geocache Name:

Take a Deep Breath (GC4M0KY)

Difficulty/Terrain Rating:

3/1.5

Why this is the Geocache of the Week:

A great gadget cache is tough to build. First, you have to come up with a clever idea. Then you have to plan, buy supplies and actually put them together—not to mention troubleshoot if there are problems. This geocache goes a step further by not only being a clever puzzle, but also a piece of art. The geocache owner placed this geocache on his own property and says that the neighbors just think it’s a neat decoration, but geocachers come from far and wide to make this find and award another Favorite Point.

What the geocache owner, Doctor Dolittle, has to say:

“It’s relaxing for me to putz around in the garage with wood and tools.  I had in mind creating a cache theme matching the veterinary clinic location.  Also, I hoped to create a puzzle that was intuitive, would make people laugh but wasn’t too difficult. Snoopy and Woodstock have always been favorites of mine, but it took a year for them to pop into my head….Creating it took 24 man hours and $80 in material costs. The gracious logs and favorite points make my effort, time and cost worth while.

“Do you want more great hides in your area? You can make it happen by doing two simple things:

1) Use your favorite points! I have met many Geocachers who hoard them, give them out only rarely or say they don’t use them because they don’t believe in them. That just doesn’t make any sense. They don’t cost anything but two clicks of a mouse.

2) Take the time to write a good log on a quality cache. TFTC is not acceptable unless it’s a sign, light post or a guard rail Geocache. Write a gracious originally written log even it’s only two sentences long. If you enjoy writing, please feel free to expound! Some people use creativity or unique details in their logs to make them fun for others to read. Those are the best!

“These things will positively reinforce the best hiders in your area to continue hiding for you. Good hides require time, effort and expense. Favorite points and writing good logs cost you nothing, but give so much gratification to your hiders. Lastly, when you see them at social events go out of your way to tell them about a cache hide they created that you really enjoyed!”

What geocachers are saying:

“This is another example of just how creative geocachers can be. Thanks so much Dr. D for this very fun cache. Another favorite point coming your way.” – wisjanine

“Glad to have finally solved the puzzle and retrieve the log. We met lots of travel bugs visiting Snoopy’s house today, looks like a cozy place to stay! Thanks for putting the extra effort on this cache for others to enjoy, very well done.” – SparkSeeker

“Wow….. Awesome. . Never seen anything like this. Thanks so much for the great adventure.” – Lindave

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Geocache Name:

Eisriesenwelt – Giant Ice World (GC18G08)

 

Difficulty/Terrain Rating:

2/3.5

 

Why this is the Geocache of the Week:

EarthCaches not only bring us to amazing places, they also teach us about the processes that shape our planet. If you’re looking for an especially ‘cool’ EarthCache to find and earn your International EarthCache Day Souvenir on October 12, the ice caves near Salzburg, Austria should be high on your list. These caves even made Buzzfeed’s list of “19 Surreal Caves You Won’t Actually Believe Exist“. But beware: This EarthCache isn’t for the faint of heart. Geocachers must climb 134 meters worth of stairs and endure below-freezing temperatures. One look at the photos though and you can see that earning this smiley is worth it.

 

What geocachers are saying:

“This cave really is an amazing experience – but warm clothing is really required. Luckily we came prepared  One of the advantages by arriving early is that you will be passing the clouds on your way up, and at the cave you are above the clouds. Looking just like from an airplane  On the way down (take the panorama route down!) the clouds had dissipated and the most amazing view lay open for us! Thanks for placing a cache at the amazing location” – msi911

“Spectacular caves. Highly recommended visit. TFTC” – robib

“Since we are camping in this area of Austria, this wonder of nature can not be missed. What a great visit.” – JapieD

 

Photos:

Geocache Name:

Tschröuwe-Galari (GC3V52D)

 

Difficulty/Terrain Rating:

1/3

 

Why this is the Geocache of the Week:

Giant ammo cans, buckets, even whole cars—there are plenty of large-sized geocaches out there. However, few are large enough for you and a few of your friends to comfortably fit inside. In fact, you could even stretch out and take a mid-day geocaching nap inside this geocache. This geocache was once an unused farm house in the Austrian countryside. The geocache owner decided to breathe new life into this once ‘useless’ structure and turn it into something that brings to joy to geocachers across the world. The real question is, once you’re inside the geocache, do you become a piece of SWAG?

 

What geocachers are saying:

“…I’m at the cache and I see a very nice place! Hard to miss. I’m taking a little break here and I’m surprised about this location, never been ‘in’ a geocache…  A favoritie point is well deserved for this beautiful location! ” – Coyote0510

“While completing the series of PT Hochalpele, we took a deviation to find this cache without having seeing the pictures. When we arrived we were atonished! This is the biggest cache we have ever found! Fantastic!” – Zascandiles

[translated from German] “Super cool idea, we were excited! That was the largest I’ve done so far. We dried off, ate, drank and logged! The break was perfect for us to wait for better weather. I left a favorite here!” – Red-Habanero

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