I admit it, I really dislike clowns. For instance, if there’s one on the street handing balloons to children, I’ll cross to the other side of the street so I don’t have to get within a few feet of him/her. While I know I’m not alone, I think I’d definitely get over my dislike of clowns for a chance to find this week’s Geocache of the Week.

Pennywise the Clown (GC3XB2Z), hidden in western Germany, ranks pretty high when it comes to geocache innovation, fun, and skill.  When asked about the time and commitment that went into creating this geocache, the creators, Paladium and Paulicacher, said “We think that we needed around three month’s from the scratch and around 150€. We think that the cache-building is only one part of the project. After a while you have to rethink parts of the cache according to experiences from loggers and update the cache. Also after some destructions you have to rethink the cache again and repair and rearrange parts of the cache. So it is a ongoing process.” When asked about the theme, it was a simple answer,”We think that every more sophisticated cache should have a story. So shooting a clown… hmmm… Stephen King’s IT??? :)”

At first glance, this geocache is pretty terrifying. However, once you get over the fear, you’re ready to have a great time—so long as you bring the right tools for the job. According to the geocache details page, geocachers wishing to earn their smiley for this geocache will have to come prepared with at least 10L of water, some sort of water-gun, six AA batteries and at least four people. Luckily, you won’t have to carry these items through any tough trails—the terrain rating is only 1.5. However, using them might prove to be a little harder—the difficulty is 3.5. Once you’re at the cache, it’s time to have some fun.

So far, over 600 geocachers have followed the instructions, aimed their water-guns and defeated Pennywise. Of those, 463 have awarded this geocache a favorite point. One such geocacher is jumuyou, who said (translated from German), “Since we do not have the necessary equipment, we hired our 8 year-old nephew to accompany us on our mission to protect the world from evil. He was very enthusiastic and provided us with everything that was needed. Together we set out to search for Pennywise and eventually tracked him to his hiding place. Although he resisted and ridiculed us, we did not give in and, finally overwhelmed him even faster than I thought. It was great fun. Thank you for this great cache!”

In response to all of the positive logs and favorite points, the geocache creators said, “We are really overwhelmed by all the positive logs and personal statements from other cachers. More overwhelming is the fact that a lot of cachers come from far away only to play this cache.”

This geocache requires you to perform a special task before you’re able to open the container. What’s your favorite geocache that also requires a special skill or task to open? Tell us 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, send an email with your name, comments, the name of the geocache, and the GC code to pr@geocaching.com.

As the legend goes, Arthur pulled the sword Excalibur from the stone to become King of the realm. Sometimes when I finally pull the logbook from a micro-cache, I feel like a king too. For those who want a little more of an experience fit for a true king, finding this week’s Geocache of the Week will put you on the right track.

While you could probably rate the original Excalibur at difficulty and terrain 5, the geocache Excalibur (GC2VQ88) in the Netherlands clocks in at a mere 1.5 for each. The story begins in the geocache description, where new evidence suggests that the original sword in the stone was actually located in the Netherlands, not England. While this suggestion may be inflammatory, those that seek out this geocache will find the truth.

So far nearly 650 geocachers have made the journey to gently pull the sword from the stone, sign the logbook and potentially become the King (or Queen) of geocaching. Once such geocacher is imke1967, who in their log, said,”This one isn’t very hard to find. It’s a classic “Drive-By”, but still it is a brilliant one: The craft behind it is phenomenal and the effort is well worth a favourite point. TFTC!”

This geocache has earned 261 favorite points, which is a testament to the time and effort that went into its creation. The geocache owner, Zwiepjes, said,”This cache took me a lot of hours to build. Drilling the stone took me about 20 hours and making the sword about 5 hours work.” After creating the actual geocache at home, the perfect spot to place it had to be found. Regarding the inspiration for this geocache, Zwiepjes said,”Right from the beginning of when we started geocaching, we had this idea to make a geocache based on this famous legend. We wanted to make something where the geocacher could have the feeling he/she is King Arthur themselves. After some years of brainstorming, this is the final result.” Regarding all of the positive logs and favorite points, Zwiepkjes says, “It is great when your geocache is rewarded and certainly fun when we hear stories at events and when other people are talking about your cache. Reading the positive logs is so nice. We always say: that’s why we are doing this.”

Legends inspire many geocaches. Which geocache that’s inspired by a legend (well-known or local) is your favorite? Tell us 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, send an email with your name, comments, the name of the geocache, and the GC code to pr@geocaching.com.