Geocaching is delightful because of the people who play it — adventure-seekers, makers, parents, astronauts and (sometimes) celebrities. Read their stories.
Whew! What a crazy, wonderful, mixed-up month we have had here at Geocaching HQ. In the last few weeks, we hosted a party that brought geocachers from all over the world together (Geocaching Block Party – maybe you’ve heard of it?), celebrated International Geocaching Day, and unveiled the first ever International Geocaching Film Festival (GIFF)….all while keeping the 31 Days of Geocaching streak alive. Okay, we didn’t all go #31in31. There were some frustrating 13-hour DNFs and some waking up at 12:08 am only to realize what was forgotten the day before. But we all learned a bit more about what it means to be a geocacher and what it means to work and to play at Geocaching HQ. So overall, not too shabby. And as if that wasn’t enough, rumor on the street is that we’ve made “orange headbands” the hottest fashion trend of 2013 (you ‘ll want to keep reading to learn more).
Adventurers from around the globe joined Geocaching HQ staff on August 17, 2013 to celebrate International Geocaching Day. It’s tempting to measure the Geocaching Block Party 2013 in attendance (more than 3,000) or by the number of countries represented by geocachers (more than 12), but we preferred to look up from shaking hands and swapping stories and just measure the Geocaching Block Party in smiles—and there was plenty to smile about. Geocachers soaked up the creative geocaches, clever wordplay and tricky clues of a newly launched Geocaching HQ GeoTour. Geocaching HQ also debuted a new geocache type, Lab Caches, and asked geocachers to help test the new style of geocaching (potentially coming to a Mega-Event near you). Plus, did we mention getting to meet 3,000 other geocachers from around the world?
Check out the new Geocaching Block Party 2013 video to experience the thrill of the event. Make no mistake, we want to see you in the next video. Put it on your calendar, make your travel plans and log your ‘Will Attend’ for the Geocaching Block Party 2014 on August 16, 2014. Keep scrolling down for the winners of the Geocaching International Film Festival (GIFF) and more pictures from the Geocaching Block Party.
[youtube=http://youtu.be/6vSB496S-4U]
Click the image to see more than 450 pictures from The Geocaching Block Party 2013
Most Adventurous Film
The Story Behind the Log – By: FredericBrot
Most Instructional Film
Geocaching Norway – By: Woodneyepatch
Best Cinematography
Galaxycache – By: aak7
Audience Award
My Geocaching Addiction – By: Mayberryman & Drjbroke
Most Inspirational Film
The Best Days of Our Lives – By: FrederikHast
Most Creative/Experimental Film
My Geocaching Addiction – By: Mayberryman & Drjbroke
Congratulations to each of the winners and all of the entries. Each finalist received a 1-year Geocaching Premium membership. Each award winner received a 5-year Geocaching Premium membership, a personalized (and super cool) trophy and a GIFF Geocoin. Want to see the finalists? There are two ways: attend a Mega-Event that will be screening them or view them online in Spring 2014. Mega-Event hosts should contact Geocaching HQ to request a DVD to screen at their event.
A happy mini-cacher making the find. Photo by geocacher Fee&me
Geocaching can be a bit like searching for hidden treasure. For instance, just like having an X on a map, we have satellites that tell us exactly where the “booty” is hidden. And just like a treasure chest filled with gold doubloons, we have ammo cans that are filled with…Well maybe that’s a bad analogy. Anyway, it’s no secret that geocachers have a certain affinity for seafaring, treasure-hunting, patch-and-parrot-adorned pirates—so finding a pirate-themed geocache like this week’s Geocache of the Week should be on every geocacher’s to-do list.
Geocacher Nashuan‘s first geocache, creatively named Nashuan’s First Cache (GC1D56C), is an extraordinary pirate-themed geocache located in New Hampshire, USA. While this is a two-stage multi-cache, the difficulty and terrain ratings are only 1.5, so the journey shouldn’t be too taxing. However, be sure to pay attention to the geocache description—without it, you’ll be left locked out of the geocache.
The pirates trying to figure out how to access the booty. Photo by Frau Potter
Once you’ve arrived at the final location and unlocked the final stage, this geocache shows the true reason why it’s being awarded Geocache of the Week. You unveil the scene of, “Captain Jack, his first mate Arthur and his second mate Nate in the dungeon of the Castle Waltraud; trying to get into the treasure room in search of gold doubloon sig. item coins that they can use to place in caches throughout the area.” The scene is complete with a goblet that tilts down to reveal travel bugs and a leather-bound logbook.
The geocachers who have earned their smiley on this geocache agree: the craftsmanship and creativity that went into creating this geocache is incredible. In a recent trip to the area, Geocaching HQ staffer Frau Potter had the opportunity to find this geocache. In her log, she writes, “Wow! I have found many geocaches. This one is near the top of the heap. The kids were delighted since they are often disappointed that other geocaches don’t have “treasure”. It was a dream come true to find the “x” marks the spot. Thanks to the cache owner got the great effort it took to construct and maintain this one. You sure set a high standard for others.”
For a closer look at the geocache and how it was made, check out this video Nashuan made of the creation process: (Warning: Spoiler Alert)
We’re continually blown away by geocachers who push the limits of creativity with the geocaches they publish. What geocacher has hidden geocaches that totally blow your mind? Let us know 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 or view the Bookmark List on Geocaching.com.
If you would like to nominate a Geocache of the Week, send an email with your name, comments, the name of the geocache, and the GC code to pr@geocaching.com.
Left: GBP2013 Tell Me Your Story! Center: TB racers at the starting line Right: GBP2013 – 2013 Miles to Say Hello!
And the Travel Bugs have (finally) crossed the finish line! With the 2013 Geocaching Block Party now in the books, it’s time to announce the winners of the The Great Geocaching Block Party 2013 Travel Bug Race. To be eligible for a prize, the Travel Bug contestant had to start at the 2012 Geocaching Block Party, travel at least 2013 miles, and make it back to Geocaching HQ before this year’s Block Party festivities wrapped up. In just one year, the 57 Travel Bug racers collectively traveled 479,548.48 miles!
Now, without further ado, here are the winners of The Great Geocaching Block Party 2013 Travel Bug Race:
LibLabLady carried Arruf1’s Trackable “Anne Bonney” thousands of miles. After discovering a shared love of this pirate lady’s history, they decided to meet up at Geocaching HQ to swap stories and drop off Anne Bonney together – just in time for Block Party!
The winners will each receive a (modestly) awesome bag of geocaching swag. Thank you to all of the geocachers and Travel Bug racers who participated, and a special congratulations to the winners!
See all the smiling faces of those who earned a smiley for attending Geocaching Block Party 2013 on our Facebook page.
What is your best Travel Bug story of 2013? Do you have any special goals for a Travel Bug in the next year? Tell us about it in the comments.
The earned, never for sale, Geocacher of the Month geocoin (sun flare optional)
The power of the worldwide geocaching community came calling for this Geocacher of the Month. The common denominator for all three nominees was the passion each nominee poured back into their community. From award-winning creative hides, to geocaching events that leave people talking, to a geocaching online platform that keeps people talking, these geocachers are all winners.
The Featured Geocacher of the Month is named by Geocaching HQ after reviewing community input and blog comments. After tallying the sentiment and reading the comments, Mollov has been officially named the Featured Geocacher of the Month for July 2013.
Mollov – Geocacher of the Month
One comment shows Mollov’s 360 degree passion for geocaching and its community, “Mollov is one of the most active geocachers in Bulgaria I know and probably the most enthusiastic one as well. His geocaching activities do not end with finding, hiding and maintaining geocaches. If you have seen any of his geocaching adventures on Youtube, or read any of his geocaching articles on his blog, or attended any of the events organized by him, then you probably know why Mollov deserves to be selected as Geocacher of the Month. For all the rest, it would be enough to say that Mollov’s devotion has made geocaching a much more popular activity in Bulgaria. His dedication to the game deserves to be recognized not only in his own country but by the wider geocaching society as well.”
Mollov will receive the earned, never for sale, collector’s edition Featured Geocacher of the Month Geocoin, along with a Featured Geocacher of the Month hat and a certificate acknowledging his contribution, signed by two of the founders of Geocaching.com. See a list of all the Featured Geocachers of the Month here.
If you know an outstanding geocacher who should be considered for the honor, send an email to geocacherofthemonth@geocaching.com. Every nomination must follow these requirements. Please include:
Your name, the name of your nominee, their username
A picture of the nominee
Description (200 or more words) explaining why he or she deserves to be the Featured Geocacher of the Month
Please inform your nominee that you have submitted them for the award. Nominations for Featured Geocacher of the Month are accepted at any time.
Congratulations again to Mollov for being recognized as the Featured Geocacher of the Month for July.
Meet some of previous Featured Geocachers of the Month
