2022 is the Year of the Hide, and we’ve spent the year sharing tips, checklists, and examples to prepare prospective cache owners to hide amazing geocaches in their neighborhoods! But what does being a cache owner really look like?
Being a cache owner doesn’t just stop with cache publication or maintenance. There’s so much more to experience, that we wanted to share just a few joys that you might experience as a cache owner!
Read on to discover the rewards you can reap from your cache hides:
1. Favorite points
Premium members are awarded Favorite points that they can then award to geocaches they enjoyed the most. The total number of Favorite points shows on the cache page and adds to the total accumulated Favorite points from all the cache owner’s hides.
Premium members can even search for caches with the most Favorite points on Geocaching.com, encouraging even more finds on highly-Favorited caches. As a cache owner, it can be extremely rewarding to see that your cache was enjoyed and appreciated by finders.
2. Geocache of the Week
Geocaching HQ likes to recognize cache owners that put extra effort or thought into their cache placements; that’s why we feature a Geocache of the Week on the Geocaching Blog!
From unique gadget caches to awe-inspiring views, we find caches that the community loves, and give a special shout-out to the cache owners who place and maintain them! With a new feature every week, your most-Favorited hide might just make the cut!
And for those that don’t quite make it on the blog? Well, you might just see it on one of our social media channels! It can be a pleasant surprise to spot your hide on Geocaching’s Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Youtube or TikTok accounts (often with community comments like “I’ve found that one!” to show that your hide really had an impact).
3. The logbook
No doubt about it, caches sometimes go through a ton of logbooks. Caches that have been in place for years at a time or are in a highly-visited area may see a handful of logbooks. Many cache owners like to collect these—it can be amazing to see just how many people have visited and searched for your cache!
Seeing a physical representation of these finds is a good reminder that you have added another find—and memory—to someone’s collection.
4. Reading the logs on your cache page
One of the most rewarding parts of being a cache owner is reading the logs posted on your cache page. Many geocachers will leave stories of their search, their favorite part of the cache, or even just about their day!
We’re encouraging finders to continue this practice of leaving thoughtful logs and remembering to thank the cache owner if they enjoyed the search. There’s even a way to upvote logs that you think are helpful or a great story.
Logs are an excellent way for cache owners to see exactly what geocachers thought of their experience and the many memories made during their hunt! You might even meet a cacher at an Event who still recounts the story of your memorable hide.
Caches also have a cache gallery with all the pictures that are posted alongside the logs. Scroll through your cache’s gallery and see the fun pictures posted. Smiles—or sometimes frustration, after a particularly difficult hunt—are pretty much guaranteed!
Need even more proof? Check out these responses from recent cache hider interviews that highlight the realities of cache ownership:
“It’s always nice to get a notification that someone has found one of my caches. One of my caches is a puzzle box, and I especially enjoy the messages that come with the Favorite points it gets. Another is a Letterbox Hybrid in downtown Austin, and I get messages from travelers passing through from other states and countries. All of them give me a little warm feeling inside. Every time you make a hide, you give something back to the caching community. If nobody hides things, there’s nothing for anyone to find (hence the Year of the Hide)!”
.–Marcellus Cadd (atreides_78723)
“The greatest reward in this game is the people that you will meet. There is a powerful community behind the game, so I would just advise that when you are having fun playing it, give thanks to the cache owners or volunteers who made that possible. Keeping that mentality when hiding a cache or when dedicating some time as a volunteer goes a long way, too. Think about all the joy and fun that other cachers will have thanks to you. This is the best reward.”
Being a cache owner often requires a lot of hard work and maintenance, but moments like these make the experience worth the effort.
What’s your favorite part of being a cache owner?
Source: Geocaching