In January of this year the Sedona Police Department (Sedona, AZ) created a geocaching account. A few employees are active geocachers and felt it was important that police officers know more about geocaching since we have had situations where concerned citizens have brought ‘suspicious’ objects into the police department. In 2005 a nearby police department also utilized the bomb squad for a suspicious item later determined to be a geocache.

Now that we have our own account, our officers and dispatchers are aware of what geocaching is. We can research and know where caches are should there be problems that are brought to our attention. We even have our own geocache published and is a favorite here in Sedona.

Sedona is a tourist destination with close to 4 million tourists a year. Reaching out to the geocaching community and reminding them of the potential dangers in geocaching was also a goal of ours. We often have lost or unprepared hikers, a favorite activity here in red rock country. Reminding our geocaching visitors will hopefully keep them safe and make their trip here a pleasant one. Hopefully you will make the trip to Sedona some day as well and do a broadcast from here!

Happy Trails!
Sedona Police Department
(Badge #181)

I think at least all of the countries that have caches in them should get a souvenirs

You’re show helps keep me company at night too when I can’t sleep

We are looking forward to DorsetGal & Geodog’s Disabled Friendly WWFMX this year.
We are hoping to get a Geocoin and Pathtag for the WWFM – does anyone have any to trade or sell from last year please? We went to DorsetGal’s WWFMIX last year

It was good to hear you give a shout out to her, especially as she is, unfortunately, still in hospital – we are all thinking if her and pray she will soon be home

Thank you Podcacher

So everyone start watching for your own local Battlecache Challenge!

And if you live in the Atlantic Canada region, you have 23 days to fill your board!!!

Cheers,

Chuck (E&Cplus3)
PHDCoins.ca

Thanks for another great show Sonny & Sandy.

Logan Wealing
Cachebox Geocaching Store

Great show and Merry Christmas to Sonny, Sandy, and Sean! Keep on caching!

– Lynette’s Lost Husband

Thanks for another great show guys. Great job bringing us the latest and greatest from the Geocaching community.

Logan Wealing
Cachebox Geocaching Store

Great show this week. I really liked the segment on leaving quality logs. While I do use my GPS unit from time to time, a majority of my caches are found using my smartphone. I suspect that many of the other Geocachers out there might be the same. That being said, I find that I do leave a little shorter log while on my smartphone rather than sitting down at my computer to compose a log after the find when I get home. However the convenience of the smartphone app really make it worth using. If the cache is at an interesting place or a really cool container I do try my best to leave a creative log for the rest of the community to read.

Thanks for the podcast and KEEP ON CACHIN’!

Logan Wealing

Thanks
Leo

I’m Cache Slinger, and currently hailing from Cold Lake, Alberta, Canada.
I’ve helped out with events before, but GC3KRTG (WWFM IX 2012 – “LakeLand LandLocked Fishing Derby”) was my first solo planning and execution of an event, and now I’m addicted.

I’m not sure if they’ll publish it, but I wrote a short article about the Event experience for the local paper and emailed it off to them last night. There’s photos on the Cache page, but here’s what I submitted:

WORLD WIDE FLASH MOB TAKES COLD LAKE BY STORM
by Brian D. Watters

There were a few raised eyebrows Saturday morning on the 9th of June in Cold Lakes Tri-City Mall at 11:00am sharp, when 12 year old Kelsey Watters let loose with three shrilling blows of the whistle inside the main entrance.
What happened next can only be described as a storm of unexpected activity, as seemingly unrelated visitors of all ages dawned toques and quickly converged around a child’s inflatable swimming pool which appeared suddenly in front of the malls food court.
A bucket of fifty numbered paper fish with paperclip mouths were dumped into the pool, and those who gathered were handed fishing poles sporting magnets instead of hooks. Each visitor dropped an index card sporting odd names such as Kid-K; Team G&V; geofunbmsw; or TheGunNuts into a tin can, then began fishing.
As each fish made its way out of the pool, the odd assortment of spontaneous fisher persons moved to a nearby table and exchanged their numbered catch for a like numbered prize bag, then went back to fishing, repeating the process until the pool was empty.
A quick group photo was organized, and at exactly 11:15am, the whistle blew again, signaling the group and pool to disperse without a trace as quickly as they had arrived.
This flurry of bizarre activity is called a GeoCaching Event, know to GeoCachers as a Flash Mob. What was particularly special about this Flash Mob event is that it was one of 312 synchronized events spanning 31 countries worldwide.
GeoCaching is a generally considered an outdoor recreational activity embraced by regular people of all ages and walks of life. A high tech treasure hunt game played the world over; geocaching is free and can be indulged by individuals or teams. All that is required to become a GeoCacher is a Free online account, creating a cacher name that suits your taste, and either a GPS, Smart Phone, Mobile device like a tablet, or even a map and compass. Some people can find Caches just by looking at google maps and following the clues.
There are several types of Caches, the most common being the Traditional Cache, which may be a container of any size, usually ranging from the size of a pencil erasure to something larger than an ammo box. The one thing that all GeoCaches have in common is that they must contain a log sheet that the GeoCacher can either write their Caching Name, or initials and the Date that they found the cache.
On returning from a geocache, the cacher signed onto their account, and Logs their experience, even uploading photos if they like. All sorts of statistics are generated under their caching profile, so caches can track their process.
The Flash Mob hosted at the Tri-City Mall is an Event Cache which is designed to have cachers gather together in a specific place, to take part in some sort of activity, such as the Flash Mob, maybe a Potluck, or even a Fun Bowling event.
There are over 500 Traditional GeoCaches physically hidden within 25km of the City of Cold Lake just waiting to be discovered by new and veteran GeoCachers alike.
GeoCaching is a great tool for team building activities, and promotes CITO, (Cache In Trash Out), leaving an area cleaner than how you found it.
To view or join the Lakeland Geocachers Group on FaceBook, just search for “Lakeland Geocachers”, or to find out more about geocaching or create an account, visit the http://www.geocaching.com site.

#1. Near Reston, VA, I’d just crossed a small stream, when I heard a little noise in the leaves next to my right foot. I looked down, expecting to see a chipmunk scampering away. Instead, I saw a 3′ snake slithering away. First, check the tail — OK, no rattles . . . . but I really don’t like the pattern on the back, and when my eyes travelled to the triangular, copper colored head, I decided to head back the way I came. I found the cache about 6 feet to the west.

#2. Near Leesburg, VA, I was looking on a gravel turnaround near a reservoir. My GPS showed the cache about 35′ over my right shoulder. Aha ! I can see the hidey-hole from inside the car. I leave the GPS in the car and walk toward the hidey-hole. Now, my eyes are seeing the normal wide vision you would expect, but my brain is processing only the hidey-hole. About 6′ from the hole, I stop. What’s that white at the top of the hole ? . . . and what’s that above the white ? Hair ! ? ? Time to put the brain fully in gear to process the full picture. I find myself standing at the foot of a poached 120# black bear ! ! ! The hidey-hole was where the pancreas had been removed, and the white was the breast bone. BTW, I never did find the cache.

I like hearing Sean do his introductions. He sounds like he’s turning into quite a fun young man !

– Flydad

Sue (Renroc) NSW Australia.