Geocaching is described as the world’s largest scavenger hunt. Geocaches are containers hidden all around the world. Some have been in place for over 20 years! They always contain a log, where geocachers sign and date their find. If the cache is big enough, cachers exchange trinkets. Geocaches are found by GPS coordinates, which typically get you within ~20 feet of the location, and from there you have to start searching. Some caches are ? (Unknown), these caches require additional steps to find, such as solving a puzzle. Puzzles can be based on riddles, history, math, programming, or pop culture. Geocaches usually have a theme or purpose that the owner is passionate about.

Geocaches are rated for difficulty (1-5) and terrain (1-5). There are relatively few high difficulty and high terrain caches in Seattle. Currently, the highest difficulty and terrain cache (found 5-7-2024) in Seattle is rated at 4.5 difficulty and 5 terrain. A high difficulty ? puzzle usually denotes tricky puzzle, whereas a high difficulty traditional cache means a hard to find container.

Geocaching container and log

My Favorite Hides

Geocache containers can be anything, from a fake rock to a large Tupperware the woods. Here’s some of my favorite containers¹:

Typical geocache in the outdoors

Some caches are super small, here’s a micro centrifuge container hidden in a sign post

A clever cache concealed under a drain cover

This geocache is hidden in a bucket hanging from a log, similar to a bear pole. The bucket needs to be lowered before getting to the cache

This cache is tucked in the crack of a wooden light pole

Lots of caches are hidden in little bits of infrastructure you wouldn’t think to touch before geocaching. This one is hidden in a chainlink fence cap

This cache requires solving a puzzle on the box to unlock the container

My Favorite Hide Locations

Geocaching takes you to unexpected places. I love finding new places to explore close to home and around the world. Here’s some of the cool places Geocaching has taken me:

The troll booth, a parkway covered in ceramic trolls, in Ravenna, Seattle, WA

Encinitas, CA

Out hiking in the PNW, taking a break to find a cache

The Gum Wall in Seattle

Near some animals in Doha, Qatar

A cool curiosity shop at the end of a fishing pier on the Washington coast, with a Geocache placed in memory of someone’s passing

A container hidden in a rock wall in Nepal

And the view right around the cache in Nepal, with a horse hanging out in the middle of a road

My Homemade Caches

I’ve recently gotten into hiding some caches of my own! I love finding places to hide bigger caches in the city streetscape. Here’s one hidden in a fence reflector and held in with magnets: