Category Archives: General

General Announcements

Presidents Favorite Points ❤️

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Giving Thanks to everyone. As this year comes to a close with all the hustle and bustle of holiday shopping, festivities, decorating and love I wanted to share my own little bit of love and appreciation.  Read on but don’t forget to join us on January 21, 2024 for our official NoVAGO Thanks Event GCAHRY9!   Geocachers, NEW Geocachers, COs & the Young or just Young at Heart I have mentioned before, that it’s just not one person, nor is it just the officers or directors who make Northern Virginia an enjoyable place to cache and socialize.  It truly takes all of us for it to be fun and geocachers who find and hide caches are the driving force of NoVAGO.  In 2023 so far there have been 414 geocaches placed by fellow cachers in NoVAGO jurisdictions as of December 18th.  These have overall been found 8832 times!  The time … Continue reading →

Happy 123sDay Trackable – have arrived!

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8:11 PM Cachers who pre-ordered by November 15th: The 123123 Trackables will be available for pick up at the MGS and NoVAGO 123123 events: GCAGDZ4: MGS 123123sday 11:30 – 12:30  Pike Kitchen, 1066 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD GCAGCH0: NoVAGO 123sDAY: 12/31/23 New Year’s Eve Event 2:00 – 3:00 Ledo’s, 8324 Old Keene Mill Rd, West Springfield, VA Log your Will Attend! NoVAGO Cachers may message Monica Lynch, TrexM8s if you would like to arrange for payment in advance. Reminder: The MGS version will feature colors from the Maryland state flag. In the NoVAGO version, the trackable will highlight the blues and greens of the great Virginia outdoors. There will also be an American version featuring red, white and blue. These fundraisers will only be available through MGS and NoVAGO. You can purchase one trackable for $15, two trackables for $25 or three trackables for $35. Your trackables will be delivered during NoVAGO and MGS caching … Continue reading →

Presidents Favorite Points ❤️

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2023 @ a Glance (Back)!What happened this year in NoVAGO? Wow, the year has flown right by! I can’t believe the cold weather is upon us. Every winter I want the warm weather, until the green grows in, then I want the cold, then the leaves hide all the caches I want to find. Hopefully everyone had time while the weather was “perfect” to grab some caches this year, there certainly were a lot of great ones published. Before I was elected as NoVAGO President last year I started a list of goals I would love to see happen for us. Our Officers and Directors group also had items on this year’s agenda and I’m happy to say we have accomplished many of those goals and have opened the doors to more! From the outside it may be hard to tell, but we have had many discussions, changes and growth … Continue reading →

President’s Favorite Points ❤️ 

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Your NoVAGO, Your Choice, Your Chance to Nominate, Vote and be part of the action. Right now you could be thinking: What in the world are you talking about, Gina?   Don’t worry…I’ll tell you…sit back for just a moment. This month’s message will beshorter…For real.  If you are still reading this, you care about or are curious aboutNoVAGO and its goings-on. Here we go… How the NoVAGO Board Gets It Done NoVAGO has a group of dedicated officers, elected each fall by your geocaching peers,and directors, confirmed by the officers, who have volunteered to go above and beyondto keep our operations going, big and small.  Each month the NoVAGO board comestogether to make decisions and take actions on ideas to make geocaching fun in our areafor all cachers – both local and visiting. Working on your behalf, we decide on eventsand activities, find ways to raise and save money to … Continue reading →

Spotlight Cache: OLYMPIAD2020: Rhythmic Gymnastics (Adv. Lab Bonus)

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#NationalGymnasticsDay (September 19) Spotlight Cache: OLYMPIAD2020: Rhythmic Gymnastics (Adv. Lab Bonus) Today we are celebrating National Gymnastics Day with a cache that brought us out of pandemic hiding places and challenged us to to be our best gymnast. As one cacher said, “They rhythm is going to get you.” This cache by Serrabou and ZippyFinn, OLYMPIAD202: Rhythmic Gymnastics (Adv.Lab Bonus), is a mouthful to say so we’re just going to call it Rhythmic Gymnastics. It is the bonus to a fun Adventure Lab that you must complete first. It is located in Clifton, VA. Because the cache was part of NoVAGO’s annual series, OLYMPIAD2020, you will notice lots of fun photos in the early logs of competitors showing off their best Anna Bessonova. For those who don’t know, this cache series involved, among other things, participants submitting photos that would be judged in an effort to earn points for their … Continue reading →

President’s Favorite Points ❤️

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What’s been happening around NoVA? We all have seen those big yellow buses on the road and kiddies with backpacks and lunch boxes crowded on the corners.  That’s because it’s September and school is back in session. Seems too early doesn’t it?   Even though the last few days have been the hottest of the year, Summer is quickly ending.  We all know that the end of Summer turns into Autumn!  Seasonal events & activities are happenings all around & geocachers who have been waiting for the green to fade away, can hit the trail soon.   Autumn is also an exciting time of the year for NoVAGO.  The fall picnic is right around the corner; October 22, 2023.  This year’s picnic will be located at Laurel Hill Park Central Green, Pavilion B, Lorton VA  11AM – 2PM.  Event Cache – GCABN9Y; 2023 NoVAGO Fall Event: Laurel Hill Central Green.  A big … Continue reading →

Don’t be afraid to reach out to a cache owner.

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When and how to reach out to a CO and how it benefits the greater geocaching community.  Many years ago when I was training as an engineer, it was commonplace to see technical drawings stamped ‘If In Doubt Ask!‘. Most seasoned cachers believe in this adage and will message Cache Owners (CO’s) for advice and guidance when stuck on a puzzle or at a particularly evil cache hide. CO’s are usually very willing to provide a “nudge” and it isn’t uncommon for them to be so eager to help that they will jump in their car and race out to meet a cacher in distress! To contact the CO, go to the top of the caching page for that GC number and click “message this owner”. The Message Center page will open automatically and will start your message by showing the Title and GC number for that cache. Don’t forget … Continue reading →

DNF versus Needs Maintenance

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(Originally published August 13, 2013) So what do you do when you are out in the field and cannot find a cache ?? Well, if you are out on your own or with others who have not found the cache, you should be logging the attempt as a DNF (Did not Find). The DNF is a tool that is used by the cache owner (CO) to help them to maintain their caches. Several DNFs in a row are a strong indicator that there is something amiss with a cache. Of course, the other possibility is that the cache is very well hidden and is just not being found. In either case, it is the cache owner’s responsibility to check on it and verify it is in place or fix it if it is not. So how does a Needs Maintenance Log fit into the picture ?? The requirement for a … Continue reading →

Geocaching 101 Class in Winchester, September 23, 2023

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Want to learn more about geocaching? Join NoVAGO at the Handley Regional Library in Winchester on Saturday, September 23, 2023. There will be a “Geocaching 101” presentation at 11am hosted by NoVAGO’s president, Gina Thompson. The presentation will also be an official geocaching event (GCACYZZ) so be sure to sign the log book! There will be a scavenger hunt inside the library to get you in the mood. Local geocachers will be on hand from 10am-4:30pm to answer questions. All geocachers are invited to attend the event, whether this is your first “find” or you have thousands under your belt. We look forward to meeting you! Visit the Handley Regional Library website for more info. To go to directly to the event page, CLICK HERE. … Continue reading →

Spotlighting Accessible Caches

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Spotlighting Accessible Caches Henderson House and Meister’s Mystifying Box National Disability Independence Day #NationalDisabilityIndependenceDay (July 26, 2023) #spotlightcache Today we are spotlighting two caches that are great examples of placing caches with accessibility in mind; in Falls Church, Henderson House – FCCRH (GC3EFEQ) and in Winchester, Meister’s Mystifying Box @ Jim Barnett Park (GC5115R). Read on, to find out what makes these caches great. Henderson House – FCCRH (GC3EFEQ) According to Atlas Obscura, the Henderson House is a Sears Catalog kit home built in 1913. Its owners, Dr. E.B. Henderson and his wife, Mary Ellen Meriwether, were both notable civil rights activists. In front of the little house is a marker noting the historic significance of Henderson’s contributions. The cache page tells more history than can fit on a marker. What makes this cache by cacher zgrav special is the unique way that a regular size container is hidden in … Continue reading →