Category Archives: General

General Announcements

GeoWoodstock XIX – 2023 (GC89GMX)

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GeoWoodstock XIX – 2023 (GC89GMX) is scheduled for May 27th 2023 (Memorial Day weekend) in Owensboro, Kentucky. That’s between Louisville and Evansville on the Ohio River and is 700+ miles driving from our area.  The Event posting says: “GeoWoodstock has been the paramount Mega Event of the year in North America. Come and celebrate as we build a new chapter with rich history in the land of Bar-B-Que, Bourbon, and Bluegrass Music in Owensboro, Kentucky, just 1 hour from where it all began in 2003.” More information is available on GeoWoodstock XIX 2023 – Geocaching Owensboro Kentucky although the registration isn’t open yet and most of the detailed activities haven’t yet been loaded. However there are links to various hotels in the area, and rooms are still available at not too exorbitant rates. Unfortunately there is no camping available at the event but there are sites that may have space about 15 … Continue reading →

Spotlight Cache: Wetlands, A National Treasure

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#WorldWetlandsDay (February 2, 2023) Huntly Meadows Park Today, we’re celebrating #WorldWetlandsDay by spotlighting one of Northern Virginia’s favorite wetlands, Huntley Meadows, in Alexandria. This is the largest park operated by Fairfax County, encompassing 1,452 acres of land. The land has a pretty interesting history. In colonial times, it was owned by George Mason. His descendants continued ownership of the land into the 1900s. An entrepreneur purchased it with the intentions of building the world’s largest airport. That didn’t take off (pun intended,) and the federal government snatched up the land for all kinds of testing and experimenting. The Bureau of Public Roads tested asphalt road surfaces and the Navy conducted highly classified radio communication research here. In the 1970s, the federal government declared the land surplus and it was given to Fairfax County for use as a park. Not long after the feds left, the beavers returned, transforming the land and biodiversity. photo by … Continue reading →

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Help With Mystery Caches

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Sunday, January 29th is #NationalPuzzleDay Help With Mystery Caches Do you typically avoid those blue circles with question marks on the map? You may be missing a lot of fun solving the puzzles so here are a few tips that may assist you. If you can identify the type of puzzle, then “GeocachingToolbox.com. All geocaching tools a geocacher needs in one box.” can be a big help. For example, “what3words” is common in mysteries. This tool enables users to enter the 3 words that define the co-ordinates – and it even shows the location on a map. GC8MVT7 uses this technique, but can you find the 3 words? The Toolbox can also be used if you are asked to project a waypoint given the distance and angle (but be careful to use the correct units of measure!). It’s always a good idea when looking at a Mystery page to check … Continue reading →


Spotlight Cache: Burke Lake Park

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#PretendToBeATimeTravelerDay (December 8) Today we’re going back in time to find the oldest cache in Virginia. Welcome to Burke Lake Park (GC175) — did you see how short that GC code is? This cache has been around since December 17th, 2000 – which makes it a favorite visit for those trying to fill in their Jasmer Challenge grid. There’s lots to love about this cache. It is a big ‘ol container. That makes it easier to find for beginners and means it has lots of room for SWAG items inside. It also isn’t too far from the parking and the trail, which means its an easy find on a day where long hikes aren’t possible. If you do want to go for a long hike, though, this is a beautiful park to do so. Burke Lake Park has lots of trails, disc golf, kayaking, picnicking, and more. At time of … Continue reading →

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Thanksgiving

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Thanksgiving Guest Author: Effstop (thanks for sharing some thoughts with us) We’ve reached the month of November and usually at this time of year I start to think about the things I’m grateful for.   For starters, my family, friends, health, having a job, a roof over my head, food on the table and clothes to wear are some of the things I’m grateful for.  The opportunities I’ve had this year is another thing I’m grateful for.  The trips I’ve taken, getting to see family member and seeing some of my high school classmates are just some of the opportunities that I am grateful for this year. When it comes to geocaching the things I’m grateful for this year include the places I went, completing CAM (Cache Across Maryland), making my 5,000th find, my teammates in the NOVAGO U competition and above all, the ability to do this great hobby, … Continue reading →


Spotlight Cache: Kindness Rocks!

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#WorldKindnessDay (November 13) Today we’re celebrating #WorldKindness Day by spotlighting the most colorful cache location in Leesburg. Kindness Rocks! (GC9RXFB) by HyperactiveGirl, is not your typical location. In a quiet neighborhood near the Potomac River is a home decorated year-round with a message – you matter. The Kindness Rocks Project is a national grassroots movement to spread kindness to strangers, one painted rock at a time. Messages written on colorful rocks are meant to offer encouragement, inspiration, comfort and more to unsuspecting strangers who find them. One of the leaders of the Leesburg group, Margie Hunter, has taken a leap from painted rocks (there are lots of them at her house) to yarn bombed trees, butterflies and flowers on the fence, chalk messages along the sidewalk, wishing tree, and rainbows everywhere. There is even a little free library that would make Dr. Seuss proud, full of books donated by neighbors.  Be … Continue reading →

Spotlight Cache: Turning Point Suffragist Memorial

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Spotlight Cache: Turning Point Suffragist Memorial #ElectionDay (November 8, 2022) #spotlightcache Today’s Spotlight Cache is Turning Point Suffragist Memorial (GC9CBRG) Women were not included in the U.S. Constitution until the 19th Amendment. Did you know that it took 72 years to pass and ratify the 19th Amendment to the Constitution? The Turning Point Suffragist Memorial is the first national memorial for the women who fought to win the right to vote. The memorial tell the stories and experiences of generations of these women so that future generations can better understand their sacrifices. It was because of their courage and determination that we had the one-day, largest expansion in voting rights in our country. The memorial is located on part of the historic prison grounds where the infamous Occoquan Workhouse was located. The memorial includes several bronze, life-size statues of suffrage leaders, replica White House fence and gates, 19 informational stations, and a … Continue reading →

Geocaching.com Drops Benchmarking

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Geocaching.com Drops Benchmarking Geocaching HQ made an announcement on October 17, 2022 that they will be dropping Benchmarking from the website. As part of their page updates, all logs will be removed. Owners who wish to save this information should do so as soon as possible. In addition, all challenge caches that require benchmark finds will be archived. Benchmark finds will stay in user statistics, so that others can know that you logged some before they were gone. The official announcement was hidden in the release notes within the forums. You can read it it here. Geocaching HQ is recommending that users who wish to continue logging benchmarks do so by moving to their sister site, Waymarking.com So, why the change? The code is old and will be too burdensome to update to make it work with the rest of the site. Honestly, it has been on borrowed time for … Continue reading →

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Getting Permissions to Place Caches: Be a Good Neighbor

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Getting Permissions to Place Caches Be a Good Neighbor #NationalGoodNeighborDay (September 28) Did you know that one of the missions of the Northern Virginia Geocaching Organization is to promote local land use policies when placing their geocaches? Our local reviewers, YetAnotherReviewer and CardinalReviewer, help maintain a geocaching wiki page where you can find many of Virginia’s localities and their policies. Remember to always seek out permission when placing your caches. You can find that link here: https://wiki.groundspeak.com/display/GEO/Virginia


Spotlight Cache: Book Nook

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#ReadABookDay (September 6) Need at book for Read a Book Day? There are many great book themed caches hidden around Northern Virginia. Today we are spotlighting Book Nook (GC68AD1) hidden inside a Little Free Library on a neighborhood street in Fairfax. When I visited this area in 2020, I remember passing at least three other Little Free Libraries on the way to this one. What makes this one special is that it has lots of books AND a fun hidden geocache. The hiding location might take a bit of looking because access is hidden so well, but for those that persevere will find a regular sized geocache filled with kid-friendly SWAG items. At time of publish, this cache has earned 85 favorite points. Well done and thanks to the cache owner, DPV1972 for the hide.Winner of 2015 NoVAGO Best Traditional. Congratulations! Luv4VA makes the find at Book Nook. … Continue reading →