Geocaching.com and the Geocaching apps will be temporarily offline on April 8. We’re adding horsepower and beefing-up* Geocaching.com and our apps. They’ll both be much more stable after the upgrade. The site outage is expected to run about six hours starting at about 2pm PDT (convert to your local time here).
Yeah, you read that right. Apologies, six hours is a little bit of time right? So, during that time you have a two-part assignment, if you choose to accept it. Step 1: Load up your Pocket Queries and offline lists so you can still go geocaching. Step 2: Use that time to get inspired to “make” an amazing geocache. Check out this blog post with all you need to know.
Let’s paint a mental picture: on cold, dark, rainy, frost-bitten, locust-infested nights—and all other nights—your geocache waits, hoping for intrepid explorers to sign the logbook. But if your geocache is lonelier than you expected, it might ultimately be waiting for a very special someone: you. Geocaches don’t just require maintenance; some may need some more tender loving care. If your geocache isn’t getting the “Found it!” after “Found it!” logs you think it deserves, there are options to help up the find count.
Rewrite the description: Be creative, add some humor, local insight and upload a few pictures to the geocache page.
If you’re not fundamentally changing the experience, choosing a sturdier container or adding a splash of personality to your geocache will help cultivate Favorite Points and lead more people to your adventure.
Double-check your coordinates. People might be trying to find your geocache, but are led astray.
Did you choose a container size on your geocache page? If the container is listed as “size not chosen” it might discourage people from searching for your geocache.
Get advice from a notable geocache maker in your neighborhood, attend a Maker Madness event to up-level your geocaching hiding game.
And if you’re not interested in maintaining the geocache anymore, it’s okay to archive your geocache and open up the location to other hiders, or even adopt it out to another geocacher.
What advice would you offer to new geocache hiders? Share your maker advice in comments below or on the Geocaching Facebook page.
There are two steps to any geocache: 1) it’s hidden and 2) others are challenged to find it. As easy as that is, it’s even easier to make sure you’re keeping your geocaching adventures on the up-and-up. Check out five helpful geocaching etiquette tips below or just watch the geocaching etiquette video.
Bring a Pen – It’s like the first day of school. You need to be prepared. Always pack a pen to make sure you’re ready to sign your Geocaching username and the date.
Leave No Trace – Be kind to the geocaching game board, which happens to be the entire world. Make sure to Cache In Trash Out (CITO) when you geocache: pick up litter along the way and don’t leave anything behind.
Write a Great “Found It” or “Didn’t find It” Log – When you find a geocache, or even when you don’t find a geocache, make sure to share the spirit of adventure with the geocache owner and for other geocachers. Write a log detailing your journey.
Put the Geocache Back Where and How You Found It – The geocache owner placed the geocache at a specific location for a reason. Make sure the owner can find it again later and that other geocachers have the same experience as you.
Move Trackables Along – If you remove a trackable, like a Travel Bug ®, from a geocache make sure to post a “retrieved” log and move it to another geocache as soon as possible.
These five steps will have you rocking the geocaching world in no time. What geocaching tips would you add? Post your thoughts on our Geocaching Facebook page. Oh, and don’t forget the sixth step: repeat steps 1 – 5 often!
A record day for Carol and Kristie (Guwisti and mom) with 52 finds
Crumpled geocaching log sheets record simple, even fragile moments. Laughter, singing to classic country music and victorious thumbs-ups roll into three words for a daughter and her best geocaching partner. They sign logbooks with, “Guwisti and mom”. If you’ve geocached around Arkansas in the United States, you’ve probably read those three words on geocache log sheets for years.
But Kristie Boucheer Moore says all those geocaches are becoming flickers of half-remembered moments from her mom. “Her Alzheimer’s began a couple of years ago and has slowly progressed… She has problems remembering recent events and tends to repeat herself. She’ll ask me a question and say, ‘I’ve probably already asked you that, huh?’ And then she laughs. I don’t mind. She has a childlike exuberance which is infectious.”
Kristie began geocaching in 2010. The librarian happened upon something called, “geocaching” in an article. Soon she and her husband found their first geocache. She said they’ve been hooked on the outdoor adventure ever since.
Carol and Kristie
After her father’s death Kristie searched for ways to spend time with her mom. “My husband and I told her about our new hobby and she thought it sounded silly. We took her to find an ammo can and she found a plastic grasshopper inside as SWAG and has loved it ever since! This was when she was in the very early stages and quite independent. She’d go caching with us every once in awhile, but not as much as she does now.”
The more Alzheimer’s becomes part of their lives, the more they find themselves searching for geocaches, “You really have no idea how much my mom means to me or how much we love geocaching together!! I am so happy my mom and I have found ‘our thing’ to do together.”
“Guwisti and mom” is now appearing on geocaching log sheets at a record pace. They recently broke their record and found 52 geocaches in one day.
“It’s definitely me and her time, my husband will usually go have ‘guy time’ and mom and I go caching. We usually go on weekends, in fact when I call her on Saturday morning she always asks, ‘any new caches?!’ She thinks all caches are a First to Find opportunity.”
Carol has also discovered she’s part of a larger community where she’s welcome to just be herself. Kristie says, “She loves all types of caches and she goes to events with us as well, she might not talk much anymore but she loves being around everyone and hearing their stories.”
The quiet stops when Kristie and Carol start driving to their next geocache, “Caching has given us a way to connect in the outdoors. My mom has never met a stranger, all her neighbors love her and help look after her. Since developing Alzheimer’s she’s quieter in group situations. But she sure talks a bunch while we’re out caching. I’ve heard more about her childhood than I ever have. She loves to sing and we listen to old classic country and sing while we cache.”
It’s the activity of geocaching that Kristie believes builds something stronger than memories. They’re focusing on the moment being lived, not the moments that have been lost, “It’s a great opportunity to spend quality time with a parent who honestly might not even remember your name in another year or so. We’re creating memories out there and while she might not remember exactly what happened, I think she will remember the happy feelings and general good times. I will always treasure the memories made while out caching with my mom. It is also, I suppose, a stress free time for both us. She’s not worried about remembering something she has forgotten and I can step out of the role of caregiver for a few hours. Geocaching has us both looking for something that neither one of us knows where it is. It lets us live in the moment.”
Get ready for a test of a new way to explore through geocaching on February 3. It’s an experiment and we’d love to hear what you think once you’ve played or created a new I <3 Geocaching Lab Cache. Whether you create a trek through nature, a romantic quest or even a trip guided by robots, the I <3 Geocaching beta-test is a new way for Geocaching Premium members to experiment with what might be part of the future of geocaching.
Beginning February 3, Geocaching Premium members can take part in the beta-test by using the Lab Cache creator to craft a one-of-a-kind adventure for someone special. (Hint: It can even be indoors.) Each I <3 Geocaching Lab Cache will be a personalized, temporary Lab Cache meant for just one person.
This new test is different than normal geocaching and is open to all sorts of creative interpretations. To help get you started in creating a cool adventure, here are a few ideas we put together:
1. Say thanks to your favorite geocaching buddy.
It’s no secret that geocaching is better with friends, so why not use this opportunity to say thanks to your favorite partner-in-find. This could work by having your Lab Cache lead them to the outside of their favorite movie theater. In the description, you can leave a clue like, “Check under the bench outside.” You could hide a typical geocache that contains two tickets to that movie they’ve been wanting to see. And don’t forget to include the find code inside, too. When they enter that in the web app, they’ll see a picture and your thank you. Who knows, maybe they’ll even have an a Lab Cache created to say thanks to you, too!
2. Make it really special.
Just like any other day, your loved one wakes up and heads to the coffee maker for their morning pick-me-up. Except this morning, there’s the URL to your Lab Cache with the words, “I can’t wait to see you!” When they open the Lab Cache on their phone, it leads them to the park where you two first met. Upon arriving, they see you sitting there with a delightful picnic waiting for them. And if you want to make it really special, maybe the find code is “MARRYME?” (No pressure.)
3. Create an all-day adventure.
We all know someone who thrives on adventure. For them, you could create something like a multi-stage puzzle cache. It begins by leading them to their favorite rock climbing crag and has the clue “Head to the top.” Once there, they find another clue: “It’s time to go for a hike, visit the top of the hiking trail we enjoy.” After safely rappelling from the rock climbing route, they’ll head to your favorite hiking spot and make their way to the top of you favorite trail, only to find another clue: “Now it’s time to get wet. Grab your kayak and paddle out to that spot we swim in the summer.” Your friend will paddle out to the floating platform to find a fluffy bunny, some balloons and of course, the find code to your Lab Cache. Epic!
An I <3 Geocaching Lab Cache is easy to create. You’re only bound by your imagination, a Find Code and, of course, local laws, regulations and just common sense. Need more info? Check out the I <3 Geocaching FAQ.
Tell us your creative ideas in comments below. You might help inspire a once-in-a-lifetime experience for another geocacher.
Geocaching.com and the Geocaching apps will be temporarily offline on April 8. We’re adding horsepower and beefing-up* Geocaching.com and our apps. They’ll both be much more stable after the upgrade. The site outage is expected to run about six hours starting at about 2pm PDT (convert to your local time here).
