Have you always wanted to learn about and try a night cache? Are you looking for a group outing while venturing out in the dark and eerie surroundings around Halloween time? If yes, tonight is a great opportunity. If you have never tried a night cache before, I highly recommend this unique experience. Bring a flashlight or two with you.
TIME: Sunday October 23, 2022 - 6:30 PM to 7:30 PM
For cachers that have never attempted a night cache before or haven't in a long time, the event will include educational displays showing various types of fire tacks, layouts (when to stay on trail, turn off trail, and start looking for the container), UV light options, and gadget based stages. A display board with various types and colors of fire tacks will be shown at the event, including ones that are difficult to see during daylight time. Once the sun sets, you can test your flashlight to see how each type of fire tack reacts to your light.
We were privileged to have had one of the best night caches in the area from October 2007 to December 2016. It was a gadget based night cache at the top of Miller Gap Road off of Wertzville Road (GC15MAJ - GC: Nocturnal by DocDiTTo and Lux). It is no longer available and was archived in 2016.
Having visited many other areas with an abundance of night caches and since it has been a long time since there has been a night cache nearby, it is time to bring new ones to this area and to provide area cachers with a unique night time experience.
A. What should I bring when night caching?
- Flashlights and spare batteries.
- GPSr and/or cell phone with caching app.
- Although not absolutely necessary, headlamps are great for lighting up the area immediatley in front of you while using a flashlight to spot the tacks.
- UV lights aren't always necessary, but good to have when night caching. Some headlamps have a UV light feature.
- Backpack and plenty of water for the hike in the woods.
- Bug spray in the warmer months.
B. What are the different types and colors of reflective fire tacks?
- White is by far the most common and also used by hunters to find tree stands in the dark.
- Orange is becoming an increasingly more popular color with tacks.
- Brown tacks are the hardest to see during the daylight time. Great for night cache setups.
- Tacks are now avaliable in a wide range of shapes from round and flat, 3D pyramid, and 3D square.
C. What if I see more than one tack together on the trail?
For night caches, you always want to read the cache description page before venturing out for the instructions and fire tack colors and layout. Many night caches follow this simple procedure:
- One tack - Stay on the trail
- Two tacks - Turn onto another trail or turn into the woods
- Three tacks - Cache is nearby
D. Do night caches include stages?
- Night caches can include stages. Read the cache description page and check out the attributes.
- If you see the UV icon attribute, someone in your group will need to bring a UV light.
There will be 1 to 3 new night caches hidden to check out after this event. Note: If the night caches are not be published before the event, printed sheets with starting coordinates and instructions will be provided.