Anfang dieses Jahres folgte das Videoteam des Geocaching-Hauptquartiers einer Gruppe von mutigen Geocachern bei einem bisher einmaligen Unterfangen. Ihr ultimatives Ziel: den schwierigsten EarthCache der Welt zu finden. Das Video ihrer Reise ist jetzt fertig. Schau es Dir hier an.
EarthCaches sind aus einer Partnerschaft zwischen Geocaching.com und der Geologischen Gesellschaft der USA entstanden. Es gibt dabei keinen gegenständlichen Behälter. Dafür vermittelt der EarthCache Dir eine geowissenschaftliche Lektion. An den angegebenen Koordinaten müssen Fragen beantwortet werden, um einen Fund zu loggen.
Schau das Video an und folge diesen begeisterten Geocachern auf ihrer Reise zum Mittelpunkt des EarthCaches.
CITO-Wochenende verlängert
Du hast jetzt zwei weitere Tage Zeit, um das CITO-Souvenir für 2015 zu erhalten. Zwischen Freitag, 24. April, und Montag, 27. April, bekommst Du das Souvenir für die Teilnahme an einem CITO-Event.
Durch CITO (Cache In Trash Out) [Cache rein, Müll raus] erhalten Geocacher ihr Spielfeld, also die Erde, in einem großartigen Zustand. CITO-Events sind Treffen, bei denen Geocacher Müll und eingewanderte Arten entfernen, Wege bauen und Gebiete restaurieren.
My name is Rock Chalk and I’m addicted to GeoTours and geotrails which offer rewards.
Whew. That feels better. Now that I’ve admitted my problem, perhaps I can persuade you to follow me into a realm where one can earn geocoins and other prizes, just for finding geocaches. (As if finding geocaches isn’t rewarding enough!) I currently work at Geocaching HQ in Seattle. But long before joining the team here, I discovered my passion for GeoTours and geotrails.
GeoTours and reward geotrails are collections of geocaches that take cachers on a tour of a specific area. They’re often sponsored by local tourism boards, historical associations, and even the National Park Service. In most cases, players find a certain number of geocaches to qualify for geocoins and other prizes.
A bunch of GeoTour and reward GeoTrail GeocoinsClick the GeoTours and geotrails map to explore
I first became hooked when we happened upon the Washington County GeoTrail while planning a vacation to Maryland a couple years ago. We spent a day visiting some amazing historical spots, finding geocaches, and capping it off by claiming a geocoin. Since then, I’ve enjoyed nearly 20 similar experiences throughout the United States.
Official GeoTours, which are organized through Geocaching HQ, have introduced me to the beauty of the riverwalk in Columbus, GA, the incredible learning opportunities at the National Museum of Natural History, and more than 50 of Washington’s amazing state parks. I grew up in Kansas, but had little knowledge of the Santa Fe Trail until their new GeoTour inspired me to follow the Santa Fe Trail through Missouri, Kansas, Colorado, Oklahoma and New Mexico last summer.
Clinton County Barn Trail (Ohio)
We’ve recently created a list of GeoTours and reward geotrails, so you can easily find them and learn about the cool rewards that await. We’ve also added a new forum where geocachers can discuss their adventures and ask questions about GeoTours and reward geotrails.
We hope these new resources can help your travel and geocaching become more rewarding than ever!
Check out the map and if a geotrail with a reward is missing, let us know in comments.
Washington State Parks GeoTour (Deception Pass)
Washington State Parks GeoTour (10,000th find at Deception Pass)
By Holly Walker, Geocaching HQ Guest Experience Coordinator
There’s the “you” when you begin a journey, then if by magic, there’s a completely different “you” when you finish a journey. As geocachers, we’ve all experienced this phenomenon. You learn and you grow and you change, even if ever so slightly, into a new person. And so it’s the same as we vicariously travel through Geocaching game pieces known as Travel Bugs®. We’re able to track an object as it moves around the world to new places. And sometimes when we see that Travel Bug, years later, the whole world we know has changed. This is one of those stories.
On February 7, 2010, Arkfiremedic placed a 2009 Groundspeak Lackey Geocoin in a Travel Bug hotel in Arkansas. The mission? “Try to make it back to Groundspeak Headquarters [in Seattle, WA] from Arkansas.” Lackey Geocoins are limited edition items annually released by Geocaching Headquarters. Commemorating its employees, or Lackeys as they we occasionally (and lovingly) referred to by the community, these Geocoins feature each Lackey’s unique pixel icon, an artistic characterization of each person and a rite of passage when hired. (You can see that latest Geocaching HQ Logbook Geocoin or Lackey Geocoin here.)
What could have been a simple 2,000 mile trip from Arkansas to Geocaching HQ across the country became, in the end, much more. This 2009 Geocoin, featuring just under 30 Geocaching Lackeys, spent nearly five years traveling to eleven different US states, visiting three countries across three continents, and logging over 26,000 miles all in an effort to visit us. To the delight of the coin’s owner, this lackey geocoin reached its final destination a couple weeks ago. On January 5, 2015, the coin finally arrived at Geocaching Headquarters and met a staff of over 80 lackeys! My how things have changed here at headquarters in the last 5 years!
Shortly after arriving, the Geocoin was discovered and photographed by the Lackeys and quickly retrieved that afternoon by a kind geocacher visiting HQ. Wondering where the coin is headed next? “The coin would love to come back to sunny Arkansas to retire the rest of its days in its owner’s collections.” And off it went back into the world…
This is just one of the many awesome trackable stories we encounter each day at our office. You’re invited to join. Schedule a hosted visit with us the next time you find yourself in Seattle. Discover all the interesting trackables our geocache contains and pick up your own Lackey Geocoin. Or activate a trackable from home and send it our way to travel the world for you. Who knows what kinds of adventures it may have.
“It is good to have an end to journey toward; but it is the journey that matters, in the end.” – Ernest Hemingway
On August 16, 2014, the world’s first Geocaching Giga Event took place. Annie, Andrea, Raine and Annika traveled from Geocaching headquarters in Seattle to the Bavarian capital of Munich to witness this historic moment. Below is a trip report in the Lackey’s own words:
The first-ever Giga was a blast! In geocaching terms, Giga means 5,000+ participants, but Mia San Giga 2014 had well over 8,000 participants!
A Giga would not be complete with a whole weekend of mega entertainment. The night before the giga, we attended the “ochsenessen,” where a whole ox was roasted on a spit in true Bavarian style. This was a chance to sit down and chat about local ‘caching customs. We learned that German cachers refer to each other using “Du” instead of “Sie” (both meaning “You.”) Normally “Du” is reserved for family, extremely close friends and sports teammates. This is an example of the instant community geocaching creates.
Roasting Ox- Photo Credit: “rejuch”
Delicious!- Photo Credit: “Rony90”
Saturday was the big event! The doors opened at the Munich Olympic Stadium and hundreds of visitors to our shared lackey/volunteer booth started flowing in. We enjoyed the wide selection of options available from vendors, including geocaching socks, Geocoins, and T5 gear. The food stalls, beer garden, and stage also provided constant entertainment. Particularly fun were the bavarian-themed games for kids of all ages including a stein lifting contest, a “cow” milking contest, and a coaster toss (the target was a barrel.) All the while geocachers ziplined overhead across the stadium and toured the rooftops of this architectural marvel.
On Sunday we rounded out the weekend with a great finale at the breakfast event in the festive hall of the famous Munich Hofbräuhaus. Together with hundreds of cachers we enjoyed a beer and white sausages for breakfast followed by a tour of the most interesting places in Munich thanks to 30 lab caches.
Sunday MealCity Views
We would like to thank all the friendly geocachers from all over the world for the fun, the insights, and the opportunity to participate in the geocaching community. A special thank you goes to the giga organizers and all the volunteers for their hard work in creating such a smoothly running and memorable experience.
Want more? This video immerses you in the experience (and it’s only 3 minutes!)
A decoy from Before You Can Torment, You Must Learn to Annoy (GCK2BA). Photo by geocacher calipidder
I recently attended a the Berkshire Geobash #3 Mega-Event in Massachusetts and came across one of the most devious hides I’ve ever seen. So devious, it inspired me to write a whole blog post dedicated to creating geocaches that some may consider “evil”. Not evil in the possessed by spirits evil, but evil in that when searching, frustration is inevitable. If you’re ever in western Massachusetts, near Pittsfield, finding My Wife Thinks I’m Nuts (GC1MW7), created by Gary, is an absolute must.
The gum nano.
Step 1: Decoys
Geocachers with a few finds under their belts will have developed a keen geo-sense, i.e. they know common places to look for geocaches. Some of these folks have seen it all, so getting past them can be hard. This is where decoys come in. Some geocaches have containers in all of the obvious spots, but instead of a logbook, it’s a note that let’s them know they’ve only found a decoy. Placing multiple decoys can create a fog of frustration that may cloud geocacher’s judgement when looking for the real container. (See image above.)
Step 2: Really Clever Camouflage
Don’t get me wrong—I love camo duct tape. It’s an easy way to add a little bit of cloaking to your geocache. However, when it comes to being truly devious, the right camouflage can make or break your hide. The real challenge is to make your geocache look like everything that’s around it—like it belongs there. Think fake logs, fake rocks, fake gum (ew) or even the always maligned fake dog poo.
Step 3: Hide in Plain Sight
You read that right. Hide in plain sight. This might mean skipping the traditional geocache container for something a little more creative. Just think: if your geocache looks like it’s just part of the surrounding decor, geocachers may not be apt to look there. This step is crucial for clever urban hides.
This just looks like it’s supposed to be there. Surprise! Geocache! Photo by geocacher Lady Nomad.
These are just a few ideas. How would you make your geocache truly devious? Tell us in the comments. You can also check out some devious geocache containers at Shop Geocaching.
