“Steinmaenncher” translates to English as “Stone Man.”  Steinmaennchen 3(GC1BZ5M) is one of nearly two dozen geocaches throughout the island nation of Seychelles.  The traditional cache takes geocachers up a steep slope and through a dense jungle on the main island, just outside the capitol city of Victoria.

The key piece of advice from the cache owner, Motoleni,  is to bring adequate water for the 1.5 km hike.

We asked Motoleni why he named the geocache “Steinmaenncher.”  His answer, in his native German, below, describes seeing the “Stone Men,” or cairns, as he drove his motorcycle through the mountains. The piles of rocks were used to hold sign posts.  He asks geocachers to create a cairn at the site of the geocache.  So far, there are nine cairns at the site – some even have painted rocks.

Motoleni says, “Bei meinen Motorradtouren im Gebirge habe ich immer wieder alte Wegmarkierungen in Form von Steinmännchen gesehen.So kam der Gedanke
diese Idee auch fürs Geocaching zu verwenden. Das erste Steinmännchen steht bei mir Garten und die Resonanz der Geocacher ist überwältigend. Jede Menge toll bemalter Steine und nicht weniger tolle Logeinträge. Inzwischen ist die Zahl der Steinmännchen auf 9 angewachsen. Verschiedene Owner haben mich angemailt, und gefragt, ob sie diese Idee aufgreifen können.”

The difficulty 1, terrain 3.5 cache was placed in April of 2008.  It’s been found nearly 40 times since. Geocachers who have logged the find write, “The way to this cache is quite challenging, but worth doing. We wouldn’t have done it if not for the cache. The view from the top is really marvelous! Good shoes are recommended for the walk.”

You can explore all the world of geocaching by checking out all Geocaches of the Week.

The Czech Republic geocache “Jested” (GCKDBV) rests high on Mt. Jested, not far from the border of Germany and Poland.

The search for this cache takes you to one of the most stunning landmarks of Northern Bohemia,  Jested Tower.  The structure is an architectural feat which combines a 94 meter (308 foot) tall transmitter tower, a hotel and a restaurant.

More than 1200 geocachers have logged “Jested” since Dorcadion Team hid the cache in August of 2004.

The regular-sized difficulty 2, terrain 2.5 geocache takes adventures up to an altitude of 987 meters (3,237 feet).  Dorcadion says his other interest, ”
(except geocaching) is photography of nature and architecture – and this tower is one of the most interesting examples of modern architecture in our country…”

Beyond discovering the traditional geocache, you’ll also find an amazing view that extends to Germany and Poland.

Dorcadion says he didn’t really expect the cache to become so popular, “in the time when I placed the cache (the first in the whole Liberec region)  the number of all Czech geocachers was lower than 50… But I expected that people will visit this cache – Jested is very popular and easily accessible by rail car, car or by short steep hike.”

Explore all the Geocaches of the Week here.