Cache log near cache location

Geocaching as a tourist doubles the joy of sightseeing. Not only do you see what all other tourists see, but you unlock a hidden a treasure along the way.

Fontana di Trevi (GC1QC5D) offers Italian tourists the chance to see the fabled fountain just north of the city center and log a smiley nearby.

The cache was hidden by nemrodek in 2009. The difficulty two, terrain one has been found by geocachers visiting Rome from around the world. Fontana di Trevi has been logged more than 2000 times – making it one of the most popular geocaches in all of Italy.

The cache page understates the obvious, warning that the “cache is in an extremely muggled area.” Some other advice on the cache page offer geocachers a chance to potentially return to Rome. The cache page reads, “Legend has it you will return to Rome if you throw a coin into the water. You should toss it over your shoulder with your back to the fountain.”

One log reads, “Yes – we are in Rome – and we are not only looking at all the fantastic sites and monuments of ancient history… we’re also searching some geocaches… surprisingly easy to get and hide again – though there are quadrillions of people around – but they’re all just staring at the fountain. Good for us. ”

View of Fountana di Trevi

Continue to explore some of the most engaging geocaches around the globe. Check out all the Geocaches of the Week on the Latitude 47 blog or view the Bookmark List on Geocaching.com.

If you’ d 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@groundspeak.com.

Written By: Nicole (Louie Bliss)

Nicole (Louis Bliss) with local geocachers

Location: Rathbun Lake outside Moravia, Iowa, 60 miles south of nearest large city of Des Moine.

Time: 1pm, April 28, 2012

Who: 200 cachers competing (more than 1000 in attendance), including kids, elderly and one stroller

What: Midwest Open Geocaching Adventure 2012, aka MOGA 2012

The Goal: Find as many caches as possible in 2.5 hours

Terrain: Bushwhacking through prairie, sand dunes, climbing trees

Weather: Luckily dry, mostly cloudy and a mild 60°F

The scene: Everyone lines up at the starting lines. Teams plan out their strategies. The 40 caches are all downloaded. Most people have already found 1 to 200 caches in the last few days on the way to MOGA and they are hungry for more. Director Bumanfam makes a motivating speech and blows a whistle. The competition is on!

Crowd of geocachers at MOGA

Most people go to the closest cache and then quickly disperse.  To make the process faster, each cache is a decon container with a nail punch inside. Each team has a punch card. They punch this card when they find the cache, and then run on to the next. It’s a race against time and other cachers.

MOGA is different from many other Mega-Events. It is mostly based around this competition, although there are plenty of other activities and side events.  There are 1^st, 2^nd and 3^rd place medals for three different age groups and three categories – male and female individual, two-person and four-person teams. This gives ample opportunity for people to get an award.

I’m proud that I participated with my new caching buddy, ScorpioRed48, and we found 13 caches with minutes to spare. Three other teams found all 40 caches within 2.5 hours. The overall winning team found all 40 within 1 hour and 41 minutes, and one of the participants even swam across the lake to race ahead. Very impressive!

This year’s theme was a 1950’s sock hop. People dressed in poodle skirts and danced to Elvis all weekend. The traditional night-before-MOGA event even had a live band to keep people dancing in the brisk night air.

Geocachers dressed in sock hop apparel

This was my 6^th Mega-Event including the Groundspeak Lost & Found Celebration and Geocaching Block Party, so I thought had a good idea of what to expect going into it. I had no idea the competition would be so much fun. Most people joined for the social aspect, but of course there were the die-hard athletes.

At the event, I spent some quality time with past and present the MOGA organizers. It was really eye-opening to see the detailed planning that goes into an event like this. Given all the possibilities of what could go wrong, I was amazed at how smoothly it ran and any minor hiccups were quickly resolved and attendees had no idea.

I think this is because the directors of past MOGAs stay on as advisers and support organizers each year. This way, they don’t have to reinvent the wheel and start from scratch, especially with the Mega-Event being in a different location every time.

This is the 9^th annual MOGA event and fourth one that’s achieved a Mega-Event status. Well over 1,000 people pre-registered and plenty more showed up that day to join the festivities.  For a very rural area that was suddenly bombarded by 1,000 cachers, I’m sure the local farmers were wondering why there was so much traffic and people were pulling over to the side of the road every .1 mile. Nothing to see here folks, just a Tupperware container at a road sign…

MOGA 2012 (GC3GN2E) will be in Shelbyville, Illinois. Next year’s theme: Cachelot – Quest for the Dragon’s Cache. If their YouTube video is any indicator, it’s going to be epic.

Geocachers often come two by two: as couples or best friends out on the trail. April’s featured “Geocacher of the Month” nominees are great examples of couples who love nature and their communities. Though many other qualified candidates were nominated, Groundspeak Lackeys selected these international and inspirational nominees. Now it’s your turn to help select one of the couple below as April’s Featured Geocacher of the Month.

Alexschweigert - March 2012 Geocacher of the Month

Write a comment on this blog post about which of these three geocaching teams you feel should be crowned.

Last month, Alexschweigert was chosen as the March Featured Geocacher of the Month. Alexschweigert was recognized for sharing his love for geocaching and the sea with others by inviting them to experience a geocaching adventure like no other.

Here are your nominees for the April Featured Geocacher of the Month. Some testimonials have been edited for length.

Milosheart

Nominated by vbpad, Gwen and Terry, a.k.a. Milosheart, “have been very instrumental in the success of geocaching in Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada. They have been hosting a monthly breakfast in various locations in Fredericton and have organized a winter geocaching contest for the past three years, with the third annual wrap-up event just finishing this month. Not only have they put so much of their time into organizing events and contests, but they still take the time to greet and welcome new cachers in the area.”

 Isle

Nominated by geo-traveler, “Team Isle, Isle and Karl, a.k.a. Charly, together count for 163 years of life. Both have always been nature lovers and are in constant panic mode of falling rusty if they don’t exercise every day. For eight years now, Charly starts his laptop every evening and prepares the geocaching tour for the next day. Without fear, Isle and Charly search even for T5-caches in their hometown of Munich and in the near mountains of the Alps. They do not back off from crawling into dark and ugly tunnels, and they don’t fear high mountains or deep canyons if there might be the chance of a geocache. Night caching? No problem at all! I remember Christmas Eve 2008 with minus 20 degrees Celsius, when we hunted through the Holy Night for a cache whilst other families were sitting in front of their Christmas trees.”

Frog Dog and Corker

With several nominations under their belt, Frog Dog and Corker, a.k.a. Jerry and Gina, are best described by Mermaid&Hornytoad as “very active in geocaching. They host an event at least once a year, sometimes twice. They have hidden some of the most unique and creative caches and have close to 5000 finds under their belt. They encourage newbies in their finding and placing caches. They are major supporter of geocaching in southeast New Mexico and just recently sponsored an event to honor the 100th Anniversary of New Mexico Statehood.”

Comment below to tell us who you think should be the featured April Geocacher of the Month. A panel of Lackeys will use your comments to help decide which geocacher is awarded the honor. Each featured Geocacher of the Month will receive an exclusive special edition featured Geocacher of the Month Geocoin along with a Geocacher of the Month hat and a certificate acknowledging their contributions signed by two of the founders of Geocaching.com. We will be accepting comments for April’s award through Monday, May 28th.

Those whose nominees were not recognized here are encouraged to submit their nominations again next month.If you know an outstanding geocacher you would like to nominate to be a Featured Geocacher of the Month, send an email to geocacherofthemonth@groundspeak.com.

Geocacher of the Month Geocoin

Every nomination must meet the following requirements:

Please include your name, the name of your nominee, their username, at least one picture of the nominee and a description (500 or fewer 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. Nominations for the May Geocacher of the Month must be received by May 31st.

Once we have received all of the nominations, we will choose the top candidates and post them on the blog. You will then get a chance to champion your favorite. Our goal is to involve the entire geocaching community in this process so we might learn from each other.

Comparte tu pasión por Geocaching con este nuevo video en español. Muéstrales a tus amigos y familiares el mundo de aventuras al que se puede ingresar con solo abrir la puerta de tu casa y comparte con nosotros como fue que te iniciaste en esta maravillosa actividad.

Geocaching en Español

Explore Little Havana in Miami, Florida in this new Geocaching.com Presents video: Geocaching en Español. This Spanish language video takes you along on an urban cache run through an historic Cuban-American neighborhood.

Subscribe to the official Geocaching.com YouTube channel to be one of the first to see new videos about the evolving world of geocaching. Watch the more than 50 videos produced by Geocaching.com on our video page.

Geocaching.com and Facebook connect like never before. You can now log into your Geocaching.com account with your Facebook account info. It’s easy-peasy, like a stroll through the park. Logging into Geocaching.com with your Facebook account information is safe and makes it easy to share your geocaching activity. You control what’s posted to your Facebook wall. You also decide who sees those posts.

Connect your accounts here. Decide who you share with on Facebook (everyone, friends, custom groups) and then click “Go to App.” You will be asked whether you allow Geocaching.com to post on your behalf. This is a default message from Facebook. We will not post anything to your wall without your permission.

If you choose to connect your account, each time you log a cache, you have the option to share the log on Facebook. Simply check “Update Facebook Status” in the “Sharing Options” box beneath your log text.

You can also connect to the thriving geocaching Facebook community of more than 200,000 adventure seekers like yourself. “Like” the official Geocaching.com Facebook page to follow the latest geocaching news, discover the most creative caches, and connect with your fellow geocachers around the globe.

Mumbles Lighthouse Island

Tracking down this geocache requires tracking the tides off the U.K. coast. The traditional geocache is located on an island. Mumbles Lighthouse Island (GC2A4TB) is only accessible by foot during low tide. A sturdy lighthouse has crowned the island for more than two hundred years.

Geocachers unlock the history of Mumbles lighthouse island as they search for the difficulty 1, terrain 3 cache. According to the cache page, “[The lighthouse] was designed to alert passing ships of the dangerous Mixon Sands and Cherry Stone Rock – two massive undersea sand banks that have caused the destruction of countless ships and taken the lives of hundreds of seamen over the centuries.”

The small plastic container was hidden on the island by golden pig in 2010.  Since then, more than 300 geocachers have logged “Found it” for “Mumble Lighthouse Island.” It’s earned more than 100 Favorite Points.

Hiking across the tidal flats toward the cache

Those who log the cache say, “The tide was right so off we went. Loved exploring out here, can see why this had so many favourite points and about to have another one. TFTC.”

Continue to explore some of the most engaging geocaches around the globe. Check out all the Geocaches of the Week on the Latitude 47 blog or view the Bookmark List on Geocaching.com.

If you’ d 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@groundspeak.com.

Mumbles Lighthouse Island

Your Caption Here!

Enter your best caption for this picture to win a ‘barely coveted prize’ in the 33rd installment of our Geocaching.com Caption Contest. This picture was originally posted on the official Geocaching.com Facebook page. Special thanks to geocacher Alison Duhamel for use of the picture.

What caption would you write for the picture at the top of this post? “The geocache probably should have seen this one coming.”

Barely Coveted Prize

Submit your caption by clicking on “Comments” below. Please include your Geocaching.com username in all entries. Then, explore the captions other geocachers have posted.

The winner receives this month’s vintage ‘barely coveted prize.” It’s a medium sized t-shirt from a 2010 geocaching event organized by Lackeys. It celebrates the 25th anniversary of the movie Goonies.

Click on the image to see the winning caption of this contest

More than two dozen Lackeys voted to award the winner of the 32nd Geocaching.com Caption Contest a barely coveted prize. It was winter-themed – and coincidentally the voting took place on May 4th. [The joke goes, "May the 4th be with you."] Perhaps not so coincidentally, a Star Wars-themed caption won. Click on the image at right to discover the winning caption from the last Geocaching.com Caption Contest.

Explore all the past winning captions by checking out all the Geocaching.com Caption Contests. If you have suggestions for Geocaching.com Caption Contest photos, send a message and the image to pr@groundspeak.com.

Watch the Geocaching.com Presents video “A Brief History of Geocaching” to see how geocaching began.

Civilian GPS devices become 10 times more accurate on May 2, 2000 - when "Selective Availability" was turned off

The history of geocaching stretches back to a single container placed in the hills of Oregon, USA. The date was May 3, 2000.  The idea was radical. Treasure hunters would be guided by signals from orbiting satellites. The first geocache was found within days. It sparked a global movement to get off the couch and get outside.

The hobby has spread around the world. There are now more than 1.7 million geocaches and more than five million people call themselves geocachers. Join our ranks by exploring Geocaching.com.

Test your geocaching knowledge and sense of adventure inside a life-size maze. Explore the twists and turns of the GPS Adventures Maze Exhibit starting this May in Ohio. You can navigate the fun, interactive museum exhibit at the Boonshoft Museum of Discovery in Dayton, Ohio May 25th through September 3rd. You will learn the inside story of GPS technology, unlock navigation history, and discover geocaching fun facts as you chart a course through the family-friendly maze. Those who log the maze even earn the unique GPS Adventures Maze Exhibit cache type icon.

Boonshoft Museum will host a meet and greet event for geocachers on May 25th from 10:30 am until noon. They’ll be joined by Groundspeak CEO Jeremy Irish. The opening event is the perfect time for those on their way to the GeoWoodstock Mega-Event to visit the maze, which is only 200 miles away!

For future Maze locations, please visit www.gpsmaze.com.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY GEOCACHING!

With the flip of a proverbial switch, the idea of geocaching flickered to life 12 years ago. On May 2, 2000, at an order from the U.S. President, Selective Availability (the intentional degradation of the GPS signal available to civilians) was turned off. Civilian GPS devices instantly became 10 times more accurate. The original geocache was placed one day later. It was hidden in the U.S. state of Oregon on May 3, 2000.

In the geocaching community, we refer to the demise of Selective Availability as the “flipping of the great blue switch.” Although there never was a literal switch, the results are undeniable. Geocaching spread around the globe. Now you can use Geocaching.com, or one of the Geocaching.com smartphone apps to embark on adventures to more than 1.7 million active geocaches hidden around the world. The geocaching community has ballooned from that original small group of GPS enthusiasts to more than five million people.

Connect with your geocaching community. Share your stories about your first geocaching experience on the Geocaching.com Facebook page.

By Jen Sonstelie (powpea)

Nate and Jen in Australia

At the end of March, my husband Nate (OpinioNate – also a Lackey) and I flew to Melbourne, Australia, the first stop on our way to the OZ MEGA ALBURY WODONGA.

We had a few days to see the sights before driving to the Mega-Event, which was about 4 hours north of Melbourne in the twin cities of Albury-Wodonga. After picking up our registration packet, we met the farmers 5, some of the event organizers. We then sat down to peruse through all the info. 35 temporary caches (a mix of virtuals and containers) had been set up in interesting locations around Albury-Wodonga for the duration of the Mega. We decided to discover the area through the caches, assuming we’d meet people along the way.

Now here’s the really embarrassing part. When we left the U.S., Nate and I both thought the other person packed the GPS device. Fortunately, a vendor at the Mega was selling devices, so we invested in a new one. We plugged in the coordinates for the temporary caches, loaded up a Pocket Query of permanent caches in the area, and headed out on our first adventure.

City welcomes geocachers

My favorite cache that day, The ol’ stock route #2, took us to a wooden pedestrian and biking bridge over the Murray River. It was a beautiful location and the hide was really creative. We were the first team to arrive at the location, but four more teams were assisting with the search by the time the cache was found.

After dinner, we headed to the Mega-Event entertainment area, where a stage and a gigantic blow-up screen were set up. Greg, the President of the Mega organizing committee, had asked Nate and me to cut the opening ribbon, but he said there was an opening night surprise that needed to happen first. Nate and I speculated as to what this might be, hoping that we would not be subjected to a pie-in-the-face or forced to sing on stage. Fortunately, we were safe, but another geocacher (whose name had been drawn the night before) was at that moment on a plane, preparing to tandem skydive into the event.

OZ MEGA Flash Mob

Greg announced this to the crowd and we all looked skyward for the plane. Our necks craned, we followed its light back and forth across the night sky for several minutes. The skydivers left the plane and the crowd moved over to the landing field, which was illuminated with headlights and colored flares. And then we waited, and waited, and waited, but the skydivers didn’t appear.

Lazy Harry, that night’s entertainer, returned to the stage as we waited for news of our missing skydiving geocacher and her tandem partner. Eventually the call came to tell us that they were fine and on their way to the event. When they arrived, the geocacher shared her story onstage. Apparently they had not been able to spot the landing site from the air, so they had landed in a nearby field.  They hiked for 2 km, climbed over a barbed-wire fence and came upon a pub, which fortunately happened to be open (it was Good Friday, so a lot of places were closed). Given that all turned out well in the end, I thought this made an even greater opening event.

All sorts attended OZ MEGA

The evening closed with a fireworks display off a replica of the Sydney Harbor Bridge.

The next morning, we drove to the Mega grounds to meet Dicksontwo, a geocaching team we had met the night before, for coffee. Before we met up with them, Nate decided that he needed to buy a hat. While perusing the booth, he noticed the nametag of the woman next to us (hippihiiri) and saw that she was from Finland. We talked to her for a time about her travels and met up with Dicksontwo as we spoke.

It turns out that the coffee vendor was at another event that day, so Dicksontwo invited all of us (Nate, hippihiiri, and me) to go geocaching with them. They were finishing off the 35 temporary caches, but we stopped for plenty of permanent caches along the way. One cache, Wiradjuri, took up nearly an hour of our time because of a few mistakes on our part (driving somewhere we should have walked, ending up on the wrong side of a river). The less-than-straightforward adventure made us all the more determined to find the cache, which, of course, we did.

MEGA Fireworks

Our other favorite cache of the day involved a visit to the Splitters Creek Winery. We had lunch in the shade at this incredibly gorgeous location—with vineyards, a lake, and parrots flying overhead. On our way back to the Mega, we saw a mob of kangaroos. Although Dicksontwo were none too fond of kangaroos (like most Australians), they were kind enough to pull over to let the three non-locals in the car watch the kangaroos with immense fascination.

MEGA Entertainment

The Saturday evening entertainment was an ABBA cover band called BABBA. Ever since seeing Mamma Mia on Broadway, I’ve had a minor obsession with ABBA. After seeing BABBA, I’ve decided that ABBA cover bands should be a staple at geocaching events. Post-show, we said goodbye to our new geocaching friends. I hope that we’ll have a chance to see them again at other events around the world. Or maybe at the next  Australian Mega, since Nate and I are ready to move there.