Explore the joys of finding an old soda can or picking up faded, weather-worn newspapers. Sounds wonderful right? It’s a wonderful feeling if you’re tromping around with a group of geocachers who are helping clean up geocaching-friendly locations. It even has a name: Cache in Trash Out (CITO). It’s easy to earn a CITO Event smiley and put a smile on your face at the same time.
More than 12,000 adventurers in over a dozen countries took park in CITO weekend this past April. Together, they cleared 50 tons of trash around the world. That weekend gets much of the recognition, but CITO continues throughout the rest of the year. Check out CITO events near you or host your own. Many geocachers simply practice the principle of Cache In Trash Out every time they geocache. Interested in seeing the other smiley you receive from a CITO Event?
Watch this Geocaching HQ video and see what the CITO smiles are all about in less than a minute.
A group of geocachers attending the Mega-Event with a well-traveled banner (I’m third from the right, green coat, goofy smile)
The rains fell for three straight days. The rivers rose. Roads were overrun with flood waters. And yet, more than 1300 geocachers from throughout Europe (and one geocacher from Geocaching HQ in Seattle—me) chose this water-logged weekend to visit a small Austrian community.
If you’ve never heard of geocaching you might wonder why not stay home. The couch is dry, it’s warm, the TV works just fine. The series Game of Thrones is really heating up. However, if you’re a geocacher, you’re probably thinking, “well, what’s a little rain?”
The geocaching Mega-Event, Projekt 2013, delivered a geocacher’s dream line-up. Get this: more than 600 geocaches were published throughout the day of the Mega-Event. That’s more than 600 First-to-Finds hiding in fields, and even one scuba geocache waiting patiently at the bottom of a lake. The mandate for all the geocaches was one word: quality. Organizers spent months lining up the geocache hiders and mixing together just the right chemistry of events for people to enjoy, when not searching for the fresh geocaches.
Want to show off your Trackable before the Mega-Event at a CacheMobile Event? Yeah, there’s that. Itching to learn how to safely climb to find your next geocache? It’s on the agenda. How about a concert for hundreds to cap off the Mega-Event? Okay, you get the idea. But one more—how about hearing the latest news from Geocaching HQ and have a nice little question and answer? Yep, I led that discussion.
Ma Ma saves the day
The organizational team from The Upper Austrian Geocaching Society planned it all. Before the event, the mayor of the Austrian community had never heard of geocaching. After 1000+ geocachers poured into his town, he’s now one of geocaching’s biggest fans. Especially after the Mega-Event when hundreds of geocachers cleaned up during (a rainy) CITO Event. But it’s the type of people who geocache who made the event. Take one of the organizers, for example.
His name is Mattias, or rightly known by his geocaching name as ma ma. The night before the event, he gets a call. A geocacher he didn’t know was stuck in the mud. Their car wouldn’t move. Five minutes later, we’re there and pulling the car free. And here’s a little detail you shouldn’t know: it was his birthday. Whatever you do, do not go to his profile, send him a message and wish him a happy birthday. And whatever you do, do not click this link and wish him a happy birthday. (Okay, click the link.)
Signal poses with geocaching rock stars
If you’ve never been geocaching in Austria, consider this Mega-Event an invitation. The FTF’s won’t last forever. If you’re from outside Austria here’s what you should know: there are more Multi-Caches and Puzzle Caches in Austria than Traditional geocaches. A city next door to the event, Wels, is known as The Riddle Castle because of all the Puzzle Caches. Get ready to crack some geocaching puzzles. The Mayor of Wels would appreciate your visit, and if your car gets stuck, you know who to call.
Check out all the pictures below of the event. And tell us in comments, what’s you favorite part of a Mega-Event or what would be on your list?
Upper Austrian Geocaching Society thanking local geocaching community reviewer, Tafari. (They really do not glow in the dark)The Log Wall could only be seen in black light
Congrats Space Coast Geocachers… 9 events, More than 200 geocachers and 4300 lbs of garbage collected!
It’s takes a village to do many things, say, raise a child. It also takes a motivated village to clean up the earth. The village geocachers created with Cache In Trash Out (CITO) events has a population of 11,124. That’s the population of Fredonia, New York. That’s the exact number CITO souvenirs that have been earned by geocachers who have logged an “Attended” for a CITO event so far. Geocachers attended hundreds of events in dozens of countries from April 20 through April 22. If each geocacher picked up ten pounds of trash, that’s over 50 tons of garbage removed from geocaching areas worldwide.
Geocachers in Montana cleaning the roadside.
It’s the same weights as a couple army tanks or say a large metal bridge. But each piece of litter was a crumpled wrapper or an old tire or a piece of discarded lumber. It’s 50 tons of trash that’s no longer polluting that earth. Well done geocachers, well done.
CITO weekend isn’t over yet. It continues today during Earth Day. Expect the final total number of geocachers who earned the CITO souvenir within the next couple of days.
Geocachers from around the world posted pictures of their CITO events on the Geocaching Facebook page. We chose a few of the photos posted to feature in this blog.
While the CITO weekend occurs only once a year, please CITO every time you geocache. It’s as easy as packing out a few soda bottles or a few pieces of litter. It may not seem like much, but when we all do it, it adds up quick!
45 geocachers attended GC494V1 near Suhl, Germany to clean up all this trash.CITO is for all ages. Kids, Caching and Cleaning CITO GC48DD9 in Ontario, CanadaCITO in Costa Dorada, Spain
Geocachers search parks, trails and forests to earn a smiley, but during a Cache In Trash Out (CITO) event they’re not looking for geocaches. They’re clearing litter and trash from geocaching-friendly areas around the world. Thousands of geocachers will walk away from their CITO events with bags of trash and a sense of pride. They’re preserving the natural beauty of our world. It’s often more than litter clean up. Some CITO events remove of invasive species, plant trees or build trails.
You can be a part of the movement. CITO events are held all year long, but you’ll have more than 140 to choose from on April 20, 21 and 22. It’s the 11th annual International CITO Weekend coinciding with Earth Day.
This year, more than a thousand geocachers from at least 30 countries are combining in the annual worldwide environmental effort. The locations range from Croatia to Hong Kong and include more than 40 U.S. States.
Share this new CITO video and log your “Will Attend” for a CITO event near you. For a limited time, Shop Geocaching will include a free CITO trash bag in each order (U.S. orders, while supplies last).
Celebrate Geocaching by Cleaning Up at a CITO Event
Geocachers will demonstrate their commitment to the environment by the bagful in April. Thousands of geocachers will join together in picking up trash and filling garbage bags with litter. They’ll be attending Cache In Trash Out (CITO) events over the 11th Annual International CITO Weekend. It’s scheduled for April 20, 21 and 22. Tons of trash will be removed from geocaching-friendly locations. It’s easy to join the global community by attending one of the many CITO events. With hundreds of CITO Events in dozens of countries, there’s sure to be one near you. If there isn’t a CITO event near you, there’s still time to create your own CITO event.
Those attending CITO Events on April 20, 21 or April 22 (or all three!) will earn a 2013 CITO souvenir for their Geocaching profile. Share International CITO Weekend with your friends by joining the Geocaching Facebook CITO Weekend event page.
Explore the joys of finding an old soda can or picking up faded, weather-worn newspapers. Sounds wonderful right? It’s a wonderful feeling if you’re tromping around with a group of geocachers who are helping clean up geocaching-friendly locations. It even has a name: Cache in Trash Out (CITO). It’s easy to earn a CITO Event smiley and put a smile on your face at the same time.
