February 10, 2015 / Janelle /

4 Legendary Trackables Every Geocacher Should Find

Article written by Katie DiJulio

In the last 12 years, over four million geocachers have participated in one of dozens of geocaching-based Trackable promotions in partnership with adventurous brands around the globe. From John Grisham fans seeking gold ingot Geocoins to Jeep enthusiasts on the hunt for toy Jeeps, there are unique experiences for every type of geocacher.

Trackable promotions give geocachers a unique opportunity to engage with some of their favorite brands on a digital and physical level while spending time enjoying their hobby. Partnerships have included free Trackable giveaways, pre-release sneak peeks, and photo contests with prizes ranging from a set of new tires for your vehicle (road trip anyone?) to all expense paid trips. Each branded trackable builds a unique story as it travels. Trackables continue to generate engagement for years as geocachers discover and display these pieces of history at events, on social media, and online via their collection of unique digital icons (who wouldn’t want to collect a fancy little achievement for your profile page?) How many of these promotional Trackables have you spotted?

Jeep
1. Jeep 4×4 sweepstakes

This was one of the first branded Geocaching promotions and the first time digital icons were introduced on geocaching profile pages. Over 24,000 Trackables were attached to Matchbox Jeeps and released in different color batches from 2004-2007. Jeep trackables have traveled over 16 million miles to date and have become a staple within the geocaching community. The first Yellow Jeep in the promotion was even inspired by the Yellow Jeep Fever, locationless cache, which was a life size jeep! Throughout the promotion Geocachers submitted photos and essays about the Trackables for a chance to win the top prize: a full size Jeep vehicle.

Jeep2 — “As small as those TBs were in the grand scheme of life, participating in those promotions brought me an immense amount of joy.” – Brian – Team A.I., 2007 photo contest winner

Want to discover a jeep for yourself? Follow their latest movements or stop by Geocaching HQ’s museum!

gold 2. John Grisham Hunt for the Gold –

Doubleday publishing group’s 2012 Geocaching partnership focused on John Grisham’s new book “The Racketeer.” 5,000 custom gold ingot trackable geocoins were distributed to geocachers who then placed and moved them from geocache to geocache to mirror the book’s plot, in which ill-gained gold bars are moved around the United States. In addition to moving the ingot trackables over 17 million miles, geocachers showed off their photography skills for a chance to win the grand prize of a real gold ingot! The trackable program was paired with Facebook ads and geocachers flooded the John Grisham Facebook page, which gained 72,000 new Facebook fans and an increase in reach of 220% (according to Marketing Sherpa.)

The winning picture was of a young boy who posed with the "Grisham Geocoin" as a character, Theodore Boon, from Grisham's series of young adult novels. — The winning picture was of a young boy who posed with the “Grisham Geocoin” as a character, Theodore Boon, from Grisham’s series of young adult novels.

The story continues two years later: “Big score at Goodwill lol. Figured I had the trackable, might as well read the book. Both books for only $2. Might need to use for another library cache” - Jason Winder / animjason, Facebook, 12/2/2014. — The story continues two years later: “Big score at Goodwill lol. Figured I had the trackable, might as well read the book. Both books for only $2. Might need to use for another library cache” – Jason Winder / animjason, Facebook, 12/2/2014.

Geico

3. Geico Find the Gecko

GEICO’s 2011 Geocaching promotion released 9,000 Trackable tags designed in the shape of the iconic gecko mascot into the hands of geocachers across the United States. The tags were sent on their way while spreading awareness for the “Find the Gecko” sweepstakes in which one Magellan Explorist GC GPS unit was given away to a lucky geocacher winner each week of the 20 week promotion! The gecko trackables were moved by geocachers over 73,000 times and remain one of the most popular trackables being discovered around the world, averaging 29 touchpoints a day years later.

SHC’s Danger Ranger Geico Trackable has traveled the world collecting more miles traveled than any other Geico Trackable with a total of 326,315 miles (mapped above) since it was released into the game on June 11th, 2011.

Michlelin

4. Michelin Quest for Adventure

In 2014, Michelin celebrated their 125th Anniversary by launching a geocaching campaign to promote tire safety via a social media based photo contest. With 2,000 Trackable tags designed in the shape of a tire and attached to actual Michelin Man tire pressure gauges, geocachers were destined for success on the road. Geocachers across the United States tapped into their inner photography talent by submitting over 1,000 photos portraying a sense of adventure to the official photo contest by using the hashtag #MichelinQuest on Twitter, Instagram, or Facebook. The Michelin Trackables have traveled almost 1.3 million miles in just 4 months and have saved many tricycle tires from getting too low on air.

Geocachers submitted 1000+ photos over 4 months to the #MichelinQuest contest by adding the hashtag #MichelinQuest on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.

These are just a few of the many examples of promotional trackable history. You can locate these promotional trackable types by looking up their latest movements on each of their home pages. Keep an eye on the Geocaching Facebook page and join 3.9 million other people who have subscribed to the geocaching weekly newsletter to learn when new contests and new free trackable series are available.

February 5, 2015 / Derek H

Nano gets a new twist — Nano Invasion: A Tangled Mess (GC3YJ5Z) — Geocache of the Week

Geocache_of_the_Week_vFINAL_122314

Technically, it's still a nano. — Technically, it’s still a nano.

Geocache Name:

Nano Invasion: A Tangled Mess (GC3YJ5Z)

Difficulty/Terrain Rating:

3.5/1.5

Why this is the Geocache of the Week:

It’s no secret that micro and nano geocaches sometimes get a bad rap. But with the right creativity and work ethic, even the smallest geocaches can be a big adventure. To sign the micro logbook in this geocache, you’ll have to work the container through a series of tubes until it reaches the exit. Be patient and you’ll earn your smiley in no time!

What geocachers are saying:

“Talk about frustrating! When we found the cache I was quite confused based on the size of the container and the nano title. Man was I in for a surprise when I opened the container! While avoiding the ants and other crawley things, this one took me a few minutes to get worked around. Just glad to have figured it out. #7 with HerroSone. Submitted this one to Geocaching.com as one of the best field puzzles around!!” – Wild Dog Clan

“Got this with the kids after a long day at the beach! Awesome Cache!” – Superhero Team

“Its Caches like this that keep this game interesting. Not what we were expecting… Everyone took turns at retrieving the nano. WOW! Mahalo For The Cache!” – KALA696

What the geocache owner, ValerieAndMason, has to say:

“A few years back there was a flurry of urban nano hides (with spotty coordinates) that kind of took the fun out of the game for a large portion of the active geocachers on Oahu. My wife and I actually like nanos so I began thinking of unconventional ways to hide them, this is the one that started it all. It’s a pvc pipe maze that was built to fit the container, I had no idea what it was going to look like when I started. There was no blueprint just “what ever looked good”. I’ve already told myself that if this one goes missing, the replacement will be twice as big and ten times harder so for everyone’s sanity I hope it never gets muggled.

The goal is to make something different that will excite or even frustrate (sorry) others but still gives them a sense of satisfaction once it’s done. Favorite points are always appreciated but never expected, when we do get them we know we did something right.We really enjoy reading the logs and find ourselves going back to read them all again, from the FTF to the most recent. They also help to keep us motivated to find and build even more creative caches.

We can only hope that our geocaches keep the game fun and exciting for others and gets the gears turning for those brilliant minds out there. We know that ammo cans in the woods are the most popular and preferred geocache, especially for the veterans, but the handmade, imaginative ones are the most memorable to us.”

Photos:

You'll have to work the geocache through the tubes from start to finish. — You’ll have to work the geocache through the tubes from start to finish.

The geocache in the wild. Photo by geocacher havespots

What’s the best micro-sized geocache you’ve ever found? Tell us and post photos in the comments.

Continue to explore some of the most engaging geocaches around the globe. Check out all the Geocaches of the Week on the Geocaching blog. If you would like to nominate a Geocache of the Week, just fill out this form. Thanks!

February 4, 2015 / Carly /

The Story Behind the Photo

There are no ordinary days for the adventurous geocaching duo “Chiliconsushi.” The couple spends their free time geocaching all over the world together, 30 different countries so far. They document their travels through photography, a personal blog, and detailed geocache logs. Out of their nearly 2,000 finds, GC41D89 in Laos is one of their most memorable. Here is the story behind the incredible photo they took at the geocache location.

“This cache is in Luang Prabang. We left the touristy places in order to reach this geocache. What we found was unexpected… a temple right in the middle of a rural area surrounded by the forest. The place was peaceful and quiet. At GZ (ground zero) we started searching under the stare of some young monks. One of them walked toward us but didn’t say anything. He grabbed the tip of a “temple-like” construction, put his hand in the hole and there was the geocache…the scene was unreal. We felt like adventurers, lost in the jungle, reaching a grail. After signing the logbook we gave it back to the young monk, we bowed to them, smiled and left trying to believe what just happened,” Chiliconsushi.

And there you have it. Geocaching takes you to the most magical places. What magical place do you want geocaching to take you??

To see more of Luang Prabang (and additional stunning pictures), follow Chiliconsushi’s blog Seth et Lise.

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