By: Kelly Ranck

In July of 2001, Thomas Klestil was president, the most popular album was “1” by The Beatles, and the country had recently cheered on David Coulthard as he won the Grand Prix. It was Austria.

And on July 30 of 2001, the Italian Geocacher Giorgio introduced Austria to the cutting edge GPS-enabled treasure hunt called geocaching. His original cache on Mount Niedere in Vorarlberg disappeared a short two years after it was hidden. Local geocachers placed a memorial plaque at the original cache coordinates and hid numerous caches nearby – all under the name ‘A Tribute To Austria’s First (ATTAF)’. These caches were placed in a circular shape along a beautiful path with breathtaking views of the surrounding Austrian mountains.

On July 3, 2011, the Austrian geocaching community gathered to celebrate ten years of geocaching in their country with the event ATTAF – 10 Jahre Geocaching in Österreich. Geocachers met on Mount Niedere to make the circular trek to the memorial cache, ATTAF – In Memoriam “Austria’s First GCE47.”

The group of geocachers included Geocaching.com CEO Jeremy Irish and German reviewer Stash-lab. Dozens of geocachers stopped to take a group photo and toast the occasion. This moment would not have been complete without the stunning mountainous backdrop. What better way to celebrate an anniversary than on an Austrian mountaintop?

Since the first cache was logged ten years ago, more than 18,000 geocaches have been hidden in Austria.  Some caches, such as You have got mail, are so popular that they have accumulated over 170 favorite points.

Geocaching is quickly growing in popularity. As you’ve been reading this article, more than 100 caches have been logged on Geocaching.com from around the world. In fact, 3-5 caches are logged every second!

Because of its popularity, geocaching anniversaries such as Austria’s are continually being celebrated around the world. These anniversaries signify commitment to the activity, consistency, longevity, history, and tradition.

Let’s continue to gather together to celebrate this much loved activity.

Editor’s note: Groundspeak Lackeys are traveling thousands of miles from H.Q. this year to share smiles, shake hands and make geocaching memories at more than a dozen Mega-Events worldwide. Nate, aka Nate the Great, attended the Mega-Event 11 Years! Oeiras – Portugal on May 1^st in Lisbon, Portugal. Nate has been a Lackey since 2003 and guides new Groundspeak development as a Product Planner. This is Nate’s account of his trip.

I’m more than 8000 miles from home and among 500 of my closest friends (whom I just met today), in a park outside Lisbon, Portugal having my caricature painted while the DJ spins a-ha‘s “Take On Me.” The absurdity of the situation is enough to keep me grinning like a lunatic for the 10 minutes it takes to complete my portrait. A geocacher swoops in smiling, snaps a picture of my Trackable Lackey nametag, high fives me and then disappears into the crowd. The artist complains: “Please, try and sit still.”

It’s difficult to sit still at a Mega Event.

Culture shock? Geocaching is culture. When you’re on the road and feeling out of place, attend a geocaching event and you feel right at home. Witness the familiar cast of characters: the frenetic first-to-finder with smartphone glued to his hand, the prolific cache hider with more Tupperware in the woods than smileys, and more cachers with muddy boots than a pack of school kids on holiday. Except for the lovely shushing sounds of Portuguese being spoken all around me, I could be anywhere right now.

An adventurous spirit is naturally shared by all people, but the Portuguese in particular have exploration baked into the national identity. Age of Discovery explorers like Vasco da Gama brought fame and riches to Portugal from the 15th century to the 17th. You can’t go anywhere in Portugal without tripping over a monument commemorating this voyage or that. Chances are good you will find the solution to a mystery cache on your way down, too. Nowadays you can buy detailed topographical maps at the corner store. This may help explain the huge growth of geocaching in Portugal in the last couple of years as cachers find expression for their urge to explore, and are impelled to rediscover their own backyards. As a country with more than its fair share of enticing and historical backyards, Portugal is ground zero.

Or maybe geocaching is just fun. Why overthink it.

I’m back in the States now, sifting through a notepad of hastily scribbled ideas for improving Geocaching.com. Yes, I admit to an ulterior motive for my presence at the Mega. No, my motive wasn’t only to stuff my face with roasted pork on a spit (heavenly), or to avail myself of local geocachers’ hospitality (limitless), and certainly not to hear 80’s music while becoming a cartoon (bizarre).  I wanted to connect with geocachers and learn more about what Groundspeak does right and what we can work to improve. I have learned in my experience as a Lackey the best thing I can do for geocachers is show up and take notes and then help the website match up with how the game is already being played by those muddy boots on the ground. Because cachers in Portugal are at the leading edge of innovation in geocaching, I have my work cut out for me.

Muito obrigado for the Mega, Portugal!

11 Years! Oeiras – Portugal Mega -Event sponsored by GeocacherZONE.

You can also find a Lackey at one of these upcoming Mega-Events:

New York, USA – ASP GeoBash 6

Ontario, Canada – COG Spring Fling

Salzburg, Austria – Pinzgau 2011

Pennsylvania, USA – GeoWoodstock IX

Ohio, USA – Midwest Geobash

Wales, UK – Mega Wales 2011

Wisconsin, USA – West Bend $1000 Cache Ba$h

HQ in Washington State, USA – Groundspeak Block Party

Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany – Geocoinfest Europa

Catalunya, Spain – Mega Event Catalunya

South Carolina, USA – Geocoinfest