Over the next few months, we’ll all be going on a geocaching journey to celebrate 15 years of geocaching. You’ll have the opportunity to complete five geocaching quests, each of which will earn you a special souvenir for your geocaching profile. Complete all five and you’ll earn a sixth, extra special souvenir.
After each quest begins, you’ll be able to complete it and earn your souvenir until September 2, 2015. So pack your bag, load up on snacks and set your road trip playlist, because here are your quests and their start dates:
June 19 – Sept 2: Find a geocache with 10 or more Favorite Points
July 3 – Sept 2: Attend an Event, Mega-Event or Giga-Event
July 17 – Sept 2: Find a T5 or D5 geocache
July 31 – Sept 2: Find an EarthCache or attend a CITO
August 14 – Sept 2: Find a Mystery Cache
Before you begin…
No road trip is complete without a trusty co-pilot. Sign up below and we’ll remind you when each new quest is launched. We’ll also send you helpful hints and tips for this fantastic voyage.
Every road tripper needs a trusty co-pilot.
Sign up for your Geocaching Road Trip ’15 co-pilot!
Du hast Deinen ersten Geocache versteckt. Und wie geht es weiter?
Geschafft! Du hast den coolsten, kreativsten Geocache aller Zeiten versteckt und alle Richtlinien eingehalten, nicht wahr? Na, damit endet der Spaß aber noch nicht. Als Geocache-Owner bist Du verantwortlich dafür, Deinen Geocache zu warten und kontinuierlich zu betreuen. Deswegen ist das Verstecken bloß der Anfang Deiner Karriere als Geocache-Owner.
Lies diese 9 Tipps zur kontinuierlichen Betreuung des coolsten und kreativsten Geocaches aller Zeiten. Um weitere Informationen darüber zu erhalten, wie man einen Geocache versteckt oder ein Event veranstaltet, schau Dir die neue Seite dazu an. Danach nimm an diesem Quiz teil, um Dein Fachwissen zu testen.
Yes indeed – this image of ticks is disgusting – Image (c) California Department of Public Health
It’s time to get serious about staying safe in the outdoors this year. It’s time for Tick Talk.
Most ticks do not carry diseases, and most tick bites do not cause serious health problems. But it’s important to avoid, check for, and remove ticks as soon as you find them. Removing ticks may help you avoid complications such as Lyme disease. Avid geocacher (and dedicated nurse) Kelley Piekarek* put together these safety tips so all outdoor enthusiasts can keep themselves safe during tick season.
Different types and sizes of ticks – Image (c) eMedicineHealth.com
How to prevent ticks:
Cover as much of your body as possible in grassy or wooded areas by wear a long-sleeved shirt, long pants (with the legs tucked in to your socks), and a hat
Wear light-colored clothes – ticks are easier to spot on light colored clothing plus it’ll keep you cool
When you come in from the outdoors, check your entire body from head toe
When you come in from the outdoors, also check your entire pet from head to paw
Heat and sunshine can kill the ticks on clothing. Put your clothes in a hot dryer or lay them in direct sunlight for at least 15 minutes
Consider using insect repellents that contain DEET
Remember to check any gear (cameras, backpacks, dog collars) you were wearing for ticks, too!
Use fine-tipped tweezers or a tick key or – do not handle the tick with bare hands
Grasp the tick as close to the skin’s surface as possible
Pull the tick straight away with even pressure
Do not grab the tick around its swollen belly or squeeze it – that could push infected fluid from the tick into your body
Do not twist the tick – this may break off the tick’s body and leave the head in your skin
After the tick has been removed, wash the area of the tick bite with lots of warm water, soap, and rubbing alcohol
Apply an over the counter antibiotic ointment on the bite
Dispose of the tick by flushing it down the toilet or placing it in a sealed bag or container
If you cannot remove a tick, call your doctoror veterinarian
If you’ve been bitten by a tick and develop a rash, headache, joint pain, fever, or flu-like symptoms with a few weeks, you may have a tick-borne illness. A healthcare provider or veterinarian should evaluate you to determine the best course of treatment.
Stay safe out there my friends, and cache on! How do you stay safe while enjoying your favorite hobby?
This blog post was written with help from geocacher extraordinaire Kelley Piekarek. If her name sounds familiar, it may be from this story that made national geocaching news.
You did it. You hid the coolest, most creative geocache and followed all the necessary guidelines… right? Well, the work is not over. As a geocache owner, you have a responsibility to maintain and manage your geocache after it is published. The hide itself is just the beginning of your ‘geocache owner’ journey.
Note: The cache was screwed into a tree for this photo, but this was not a permanent placement.
Here are some helpful tips to keep in mind as a new geocache owner…
1. It’s your job to perform maintenance on your geocache. That includes replacing full or wet logbooks, fixing the container as needed, cleaning up trash around the geocache, editing text on the listing page, etc.
2. If a trackable is listed online as being in your geocache but is not physically there, mark it missing.
3. If your coordinates are off or you need to move your geocache to a new location, update them.
4. The “Needs Maintenance” red wrench icon will show on your geocache listing if it has been reported by the community as needing maintenance. Geocachers see this icon as a sign that your geocache may not be in good condition and they may skip trying to find it. Once you have made repairs, post an “Owner Maintenance” log on your geocache page. This log removes the Needs Maintenance icon.
5. You can temporarily disable your geocache if needed. Do this if the geocache needs repairs, or if the area is closed for a period of time (construction, hunting, winter closures, etc.). This is meant to be temporary, which means a few weeks, or perhaps a couple of months.
6. Don’t log your own geocache. Save the smiley for use when you’ve truly discovered a hidden geocache.
7. Use your owner powers wisely. Logs that fail to meet stated requirements (such as ‘Found It’ logs by geocachers who have never found the geocache) or logs that conflict with our Terms of Use Agreement may be deleted. Read more about log deletion.
8. Sometimes life happens and you can no longer maintain your geocache. You will want to archive the geocache listing, which will permanently remove it from the geocaching.com website, or adopt the geocache out to someone else. Remember to also remove the physical geocache container if you archive.
9. Lastly (and most importantly), have fun! One of the greatest perks to being a geocache owner is reading all the wonderful logs by other geocachers discovering your geocache.
