Geocaching is ripe for one more acronym. Move aside BYOP* and TNLN** —get ready for GIFF. It’s the Geocaching International Film Festival. The finest videos from the global geocaching community will be showcased as part of the 2013 Geocaching Block Party in Seattle on August 17.

You’re invited to submit up to two entries. All entries should be one to five minutes in length. The GIFF final entries will be judged by geocaching organizations around the world. They’ll vote on winners in five categories, including Most Instructional, Best Cinematography, Most Inspirational, Most Adventurous and Most Creative/Experimental. Those watching the final videos live in Seattle on August 17 will choose the winner of the Audience Award.

Will your video show on the big outdoor screen in front of a projected crowd of more than a thousand geocachers? The answer to that question begins by checking out the Geocaching Block Party website. You’ll find rules and information about GIFF. And get ready to use one more acronym… LCA (lights, camera, action!)

* Bring Your Own Pen

** Took Nothing, Left Nothing

Check out the Call for GIFF Submissions video to learn more.

It’s a small step for geocaching and even a smaller step for geocaches. Field tested and geocacher approved, a new geocache size has entered the adventure of geocaching. Just be sure to pack your magnifying glass, tweezers and a metric ton of patience. The new geocache size is named “T.I.N.Y.” It stands for Teentsy Infinitesimal Nucleic Yocto Geocache. Just how small are they? Take a look at this: . Right here: . Yeah. The T.I.N.Y. geocaches are smaller than that punctuation mark. Or this one: .

Interested? Curious? Don’t know what Yocto means? There’s one way to find out. Check out the latest Geocaching Presents video: t.i.n.y. geocaches. Interested in purchasing a 100 count of t.i.n.y. geocaches? They’ve been sold out recently, but for a limited time you might find one in your Shop Geocaching order.

Go behind the scenes and watch the Dosenfischer T.I.N.Y. video.

Geocaching HQ has a history of releasing blockbusting geocaching ideas on April 1. Check out the Geocaching Workout Video you might need to practice before you search for your first t.i.n.y. geocache.

A geocacher’s study guide

Geocaching adventures can take you to new vantage points, down scenic roads and into long-forgotten forests. You’ll search through both new parks and familiar neighborhoods. The adventure is in the journey, but the real thrill can begin when you close in on the coordinates.

Geocaches can be recycled containers like pill bottles

When you uncover a geocache, a hidden story is revealed: who traveled to this location and the adventure they had along the way. But the exact appearance of the container you’re looking for is often a mystery. The geocache page will usually tell you the size of the geocache, but sometimes you’ll encounter an “other” or a “not chosen.” They’re the wildcard size for geocache containers.

Some geocache containers are easier to find than others…

At the top of this page, you’ll see eight geocache containers. Odds are you’ll encounter geocaches of this size most often. They’re all small or micro geocaches. More than 70% of geocaches listed on Geocaching.com are either listed as “micro” or “small.”

There are hundreds of variations on geocache shapes, from whimsical (think a small yard gnome in the woods) to devious (think of a fake security camera attached by magnets to the side of a building).

The most interesting geocache containers are often the ones you’ve never encountered before and likely will never see again. Keep your eyes and your mind open when you’re geocaching.  If you’re stuck, geocache pages often include helpful hints. Previous logs and pictures can also offer clues to find the geocache.

If you have more questions, check out the Geocaching 101 page. You can also post a question on the Geocaching Facebook page for the community to answer. To see clever geocaches being discovered, check out this video below for a look at 5 Geocaches in 30 Seconds.

]]> http://blog.geocaching.com/2013/01/a-geocaching-beginners-guide-geocache-container-pictures/feed/ 2 http://blog.geocaching.com/2013/01/geocaching-year-in-review/ http://blog.geocaching.com/2013/01/geocaching-year-in-review/#comments Fri, 04 Jan 2013 22:14:53 +0000 Eric Schudiske http://blog.geocaching.com/?p=15036 [Click CC for subtitles]

Watch the new Geocaching Year in Review video to see the geocaching highlights of 2012.

With geocaches found more than 68 million times in 2012, last year could be called the Year of “Found it.” And that’s just caches—thousands of geocachers spent Leap Day, International Geocaching Day and 12-12-12 attending events, meeting other geocachers, along with finding geocaches. We also watched our community grow to new heights as you shared the adventure of geocaching with friends and family.

2012 Leap Day celebration

We’re excited about what’s ahead in 2013. We’re approaching two million active geocaches. That’s two million adventures for you to explore almost anywhere in the world. You’ll also see advancements across Geocaching.com and on the Geocaching apps. Check out the new video to see where we’ve been and where we’re headed – and tell us what’s on your geocaching wish list for 2013 below in comments.

And don’t forget to log your “will attend” for the 2013 Geocaching Block Party on August 17 in Seattle!

Subscribe to the Official Geocaching.com YouTube channel for the latest tips and tricks in geocaching. Watch the more than 50 videos produced by Geocaching.com on our video page.

They don’t all speak the same language and they don’t all live on the same continent, but all of these geocachers have something in common: they’re all united through their love of geocaching and the community it creates.

These 16 geocachers, some in teams of two, are committed to sharing the adventure of geocaching. They have all been named featured Geocachers of the Month. Watch Geocaching.com Presents: Meet the Geocachers of the Month to see why their local geocaching communities nominated them, and why they were honored with the recognition.

Click on the image to learn more about each Geocacher of the Month

Hear from TeamAstro, Lulusoy, AbbeyAckbar and whbaisden. No matter where they live or how long they’ve been pursuing the hobby, these geocachers are dedicated to giving to their communities. See a list of all the featured Geocachers of the Month here.

The geocaching community is encouraged to nominate those who have yet to be honored as featured Geocacher of the Month. If you know an outstanding geocacher who should be considered for the honor, send an email to geocacherofthemonth@groundspeak.com. Every nomination must meet the following requirements:

• Your name, the name of your nominee, their username
• A picture of the nominee
• Description (200 or more words) explaining why he or she deserves to be the Geocacher of the Month

Please inform your nominee that you’ve submitted them for the award

Subscribe to the Official Geocaching.com YouTube channel for the latest tips and tricks in geocaching. Watch the more than 50 videos produced by Geocaching.com on our video page.

Join tens of thousands of geocachers on 12-12-12 as they tromp through snow,  brave chilling winds, or if they’re closer to equator or in the Southern Hemisphere – enjoy a nice sunny day on the beach. Geocachers united on 12-12-12 to celebrate caching, and record the last numerical alignment of day, month, and year this century. Geocaching.com and four geocaching vloggers recorded the day.

12-12-12 in Seattle, WA

Nearly 70,000 geocachers from around the world log a “Found it” or attended an event on 12-12-12. Every one of the geocachers, or geocaching teams earned a special digital souvenir for their efforts. Watch ‘Global Geocaching on 12-12-12′ to see the special sense of global community created by this geocaching event.

Subscribe to the Official Geocaching.com YouTube channel for the latest tips and tricks in geocaching. Watch the more than 50 videos produced by Geocaching.com on our video page.

Click to watch a rare geocaching adventure. It’s part club house, part dream destination for avid geocachers. Space Coast Geocaching Store is the only full-time walk-in geocaching store in the United States. The Space Coast Geocaching Store is the hub of activity in eastern Florida. Caching supplies, from Geocoins to cache containers, stretch wall to wall. Plus the store offers one of the largest active geocaches you’ll find in plain sight.

Cache Containers at Space Coast Geocaching Store

Dale n Barb own Space Coast Geocaching Store. The Florida geocachers also hosts events and have been nominated as Featured Geocachers of the Month on the official Geocaching.com Blog.

They have worked with parks and the geocaching community, including numerous CITO events.  They are the owners of “A Cool Cache” (GC15RQB)

Subscribe to the Official Geocaching.com YouTube channel for the latest tips and tricks in geocaching. Watch the more than 50 videos produced by Geocaching.com on our video page.

Signal, getting his picture taken

12-12-12 only happens once every hundred years, so we’re celebrating the best way we know how – by geocaching!

We’re asking you to be one of the many cachers who will join us to celebrate not only the date, but also the activity we all love. There are plenty of ways to join in: get outside and log a find, attend one of the many geocaching events being held around the world or come up with your own special celebration.

We’ll be commemorating the day with a special video project that you can be a part of. Due to our inability to be in multiple places at once (we’re working on it), we are collaborating with four vloggers (video bloggers) who will set out to create videos of their unique 12-12-12 geocaching adventures. If you want to be a part of the video too, just send in your still photos that capture how and where you spent the day.

The plan:

• Twelve Geocaching.com employees, a.k.a. Lackeys, will venture out to find a special geocache together.
• Four geocaching vloggers are going to celebrate the day their own way and send us their footage.
• You post photos of your 12-12-12 adventure on our Facebook page (on 12-12-12, please) and you may be included in the video. Participation is highly encouraged!

On Monday, December 17, we’ll present the mash-up of all the adventures in the official Geocaching.com 12-12-12 video. The video will be featured on the Latitude 47 blog, the Geocaching.com Facebook page, and the Geocaching.com YouTube page.

Meet the vloggers:

GeocachersNYC

GeocachersNYC - A group of geocachers from New York City who run a geocaching series featuring interviews with musicians, comedians, writers, and entertainers as they go out geocaching.

Sam Osterhout, Host     Dustin Nelson, Producer     Erick Fix, Video & Editing

Justin D. Wright, Audio     Will Clark, Motion Graphics, Website

Members of the geocaching community since 2011.

mngeocaching

mngeocaching - A prolific vlogger from Minnesota who documents his exciting geocaching adventures with a special brand of energy, passion and enthusiasm, which has earned him the nickname “The Steve Irwin of geocaching.”

Member of the geocaching community since 2008.

Geovloger

GEOvloger - A quirky vlogger from Colorado who co-hosts his show with none other than himself. His videos entertain more than just geocachers with the antics of Mike and Mikey (Mike’s off-kilter alter-ego).

Member of the geocaching community since 2005.

Pedro Santos

Pedro Santos - An extreme geocacher from Portugal whose  vlogs include footage of him skydiving and snorkeling while in search of geocaches. When he’s not geocaching or taking part in other adrenaline-fueled activities, he helps maintain GeoPT.org, a geocaching adventure portal.

Member of the geocaching community since 2008.

Need inspiration for your 12-12-12 portraits? Check out what mngeocaching and GEOvloger will be doing to celebrate the day.

Stay tuned for the world premiere of “A 12-12-12 Video Featuring You.”

Please note that by posting your 12-12-12 photo(s) to our Facebook page, you are giving us the right to include them in our 12-12-12 video described above. All photos submitted remain the property and copyright of the original author. By submitting a photo for consideration, you grant Geocaching.com a worldwide, non-exclusive, transferable, perpetual, irrevocable, fully-paid royalty-free license and right to use, reproduce, distribute, import, broadcast, transmit, create derivative works of, and publicly display the photo(s) within the 12-12-12 video without restriction or obligation to you. You understand and agree that Geocaching.com is under no obligation to include your photo(s) in its 12-12-12 video.

Signal travels to five continents to wish you warm holiday greetings. Watch and share this video to spread the joy of geocaching and the spirit of the holidays to your friends and family. Signal uses a reverse geocache box to direct him to geocaching hot spots around the globe. The reverse geocache box opens, and Signal receives a surprise, when the cache box reaches a specific latitude and longitude. Watch to find out the location where the reverse geocache box opens.

Happy Holidays from all the Lackeys at Geocaching.com!

(Find out more about reverse geocaches with this video)

Subscribe to the Official Geocaching.com YouTube channel for the latest tips and tricks in geocaching. Watch the more than 50 videos produced by Geocaching.com on our video page.

BONUS: Watch this special 2010 holiday greeting video card from Geocaching.

One geocache type offers two “Aha” moments. It’s a Puzzle Cache. Cachers say you earn the first “Aha” when you solve the puzzle, and the second when you find the geocache. Watch this video to discover what makes Puzzle Caching a creative way to log a smiley.

Geocaching.com talks with a Puzzle Caching master ePeterso2. This Florida, USA geocacher designed a series of Puzzle Caches to teach geocachers how to solve almost any Puzzle Cache. His easy-to-understand geocache series has been duplicated in several regions as Puzzle Caches become more popular. Have you ever earned a smiley on a Puzzle Cache?

Subscribe to the Official Geocaching.com YouTube channel for the latest tips and tricks in geocaching. Watch the more than 50 videos produced by Geocaching.com on our video page.