Category: Community

Geocaching is delightful because of the people who play it — adventure-seekers, makers, parents, astronauts and (sometimes) celebrities. Read their stories.

/ Eric Schudiske /

“Solar Sailing” GC908D GEOCACHE OF THE WEEK – March 21, 2011

Since 2002 geocachers in Washington, D.C. have explored the solar system on foot. “Solar Sailing” (GC908D), a Multi-Cache, transforms geocachers into interstellar explorers. RobAGD writes on the cache page: “This cache will walk you from our Sun to the furthermost reaches of our solar system. The walk is scaled so that everything is within scale of the real solar system.”

The solar system is so reduced in size the walk is less than half a mile through the Washington, D.C. Mall.  Earning a smiley on this cache requires uncovering information from your scaled down journey through the solar system. You must email answers to the cache owner.

The Sun at one 10-billionth actual size

More than 1200 geocachers have logged a find on the Multi-Cache to date. “Solar Sailing” has earned 53 Favorite points, making it one of the top ten favorite caches in the U.S. capitol. Geocaching Favorites is a new feature on Geocaching.com.

Geocachers often use their log as a chance to thank the cache owner. One geocacher writes: “It’s nice to see that you can learn a bunch just walking the streets. Very nice walk, and it took us to a few other caches along the way which is always nice! TFTC.”

Continue your exploration of some of the most engaging geocaches from around the world. Explore all the Geocaches of the Week on our blog or view the Bookmark List on Geocaching.com.

/ Eric Schudiske /

“Zero Emission” GC234PG Geocache of the Week – March 14, 2011

Near the geocache "Zero Emission"

The icy, austere beauty of Antarctica is home to one of the most remote geocaches on the globe. “Zero Emission” (GC234PG) challenges adventurers to brave a journey to the bottom of the world to find the traditional cache. Leovinci81 placed the small geocache in January of 2010 outside a Belgian research station.

Leovinci81 explains the story on the cache page for Zero Emission: “I created this geocache for people to find in one of the greatest places I ever visited. During the first quarter of 2010 I visited the Belgian research station on Antarctica.

“After the first explorers Adrienne de Gerlache & A. Cook, 110 years later, Belgium returned to the South Pole with the team of Alain Hubert.   It’s the first zero emission research station on South Pole, running on solar and wind power.”

Belgium research station

The difficulty three, terrain five cache waits patiently in its extreme environment for the next geocacher. Could it be you?

Continue your exploration of some of the most engaging geocaches from around the world. Explore all the Geocaches of the Week on our blog or view the Bookmark List on Geocaching.com.

/ Eric Schudiske /

Geocaching.com Caption Contest 22 – Win a Barely Coveted Prize

WINNING CAPTION: "This is knot what I wood have expected.” - 1Delta10Tango.

Try your caption writing skills in the twenty-second installment of our Geocaching.com Caption Contest.   You could become the proud winner of a barely coveted prize! What caption would you write? “You’ve barked up the right tree.” You can do better!

Caption contest prize

Submit your caption by clicking on “Comments” below. Please include your geocaching username in all entries. Then, explore the captions that other geocachers have crafted.

You can influence the voting. “Like” the caption that you think should win.  If you think your caption should win, convince your fellow geocachers to “like” your caption. Lackeys decide between the top captions to crown the winner of this Geocaching.com Caption Contest.

The winner receives a barely coveted prize from Groundspeak Headquarters. This time it’s a much coveted prize, a Jeremy Irish Trackable Gnome.

Click on the image to discover the winning caption from this contest

19 Lackeys voted to award the winner of the twentieth Geocaching.com Caption Contest a barely coveted prize. Click on the image at right to discover the winning caption from the previous Geocaching.com Caption Contest.

Explore the wit and wisdom of geocachers by checking out all the Geocaching.com Caption Contests.

/ Eric Schudiske /

“Trouble in Tinseltown” – Insider Tips to Hosting a Geocaching Event

Copy of "Hush Hush" magazine

Molly Shock, aka mshock, teaches the basics of hosting a successful and fun geocaching event. It’s part party-planning and all logistics. Find out how to make the event something to remember, how much time you’ll need to prepare and other insider tips. Watch the video below for a three-minute tutorial from Molly on tips for making your own themed geocaching event a success.

Molly’s marque event to date has been Trouble in Tinseltown – A Puzzle Rally Event (GC2993W).

An Event Cache is where local geocachers or geocaching organizations decide a time and location to meet and discuss all things geocaching. The attendees often go geocaching before or after the Event Cache.

Crime scene map from "Trouble in Tinseltown"

Molly’s event was no different, but the geocaching that occurred that day took puzzle caching to a whole new level. Molly spent four months orchestrating the elaborate themed geocaching event. “Trouble in Tinseltown” guided more than 80 cachers through a fictitious scandal, betrayal and murder in a  Hollywood whodunit.

Teams of geocachers discovered 15 caches by solving puzzles. They accumulated clues which ultimately provided the answer to the question, “Who killed Noah Boddy, where and with what?”

Each team received a copy of “Hush Hush” magazine [pictured above] which Molly wrote to provide a detailed back-story for the event. Then teams received these instructions at the start of the caching: “Solve the puzzles, find the caches, record the facts, bring the murderer to justice!”

Clipboard with "facts" for the event

Molly also created an elaborate crime scene map, a dossier and a clip board full of facts. Correctly using and deciphering each item brought teams closer to solving the crime.

You can still get a sense of the event. Most of the 15 puzzle caches that Molly placed are still active.

Hostess, Molly Shock

Molly’s tips for a successful geocaching event include:

– Design an event that lasts no more than eight hours

– Make caches challenging, but not frustrating

– Make it self-sufficient, provide clues (for a penalty)

– Let friends help

– Take cachers to a safe, interesting place

– Practice the event

– Have fun!

Geocachers who wish to attend the event but not look for caches should be able to attend as well. They can be spectators or extra “props.” They can also simply hang out, enjoy the crowd, trade Trackables and the usual.

Find out even more tips by watching an interview with Molly below.

/ Eric Schudiske /

“Wahe Ka-Ho-Nee” GCJZDX Geocache of the Week – March 7, 2011

Scaling cliff to reach the "Wahe Ka-Ho-Nee"

“Thank you Colorado for placing a cache here. I am exhausted and will never forget this adventure, definitely one of my all time favorites.” That’s the latest log entry for “Wahe Ka-Ho-Nee” (GCJZDX). It’s an extreme geocache rated a difficulty 2 and terrain 5. The cache owner, Colorado Jones, insists you not try this cache alone and suggests that you tell someone where you’re going and when you’ll return home. It’s easy to see why he’s so insistent. Finding the cache requires a rope, hiking poles, shoe spikes and safety supplies.  Cachers wade through water and encounter poisonous plants, loose rocks and dangerous heights.

Kahonee Falls

The cache description consists of an elaborate story written by Colorado Jones about an explorer completing a rite of passage. For geocachers who complete the extreme cache, they join an exclusive group. Only 31 people have logged a smiley on this cache since it was hidden in 2004.

Continue your exploration of some of the most engaging geocaches from around the world. Explore all the Geocaches of the Week on our blog or view the Bookmark List on Geocaching.com.