Do you want to bring your Geocaching to another level? Do you want to share your love of Geocaching with others? Join a Geocaching club!

When we first got involved with Geocaching we were not aware of any local Geocaching association or club. Although we were still a part of the world-wide community and enjoying Geocaching immensely we missed the interaction with others that hold a similar interest. Since discovering a Geocaching club we have found that our interest in Geocaching has greatly increased and we are enjoying it a whole lot more! Not only have we met a lot of other Geocachers but we have also added another element to Geocaching by attending and participating in local events.

Associations and clubs bring people together from a wide range of backgrounds and experiences. Collectively, club members can achieve great things from organizing events and social gatherings to lobbying for local policy changes, as well as have a whole lot more fun! This is a perfect example of where the whole is greater than the sum of the parts.

Here is our Top 10 Reasons To Join A Geocaching Club (in no particular order):

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A ‘muggle’, in Geocaching terms, is a non-Geocacher, a person not playing the game, and usually not aware of Geocaching. The term is based on ‘muggle’ from the Harry Potter book series by A. K. Rowling which refers to a non-magical person.

The concern with muggles is that they may discover a Geocache, either accidently or by seeing a Geocacher accessing it, and then possibly destroying it. This is referred to as the Geocache being ‘muggled’.

Often times, especially in urban areas, Geocaches are placed in high-traffic areas where there are a lot of muggles around. While this may add to the thrill in finding a cache it also adds to the risk of it being found. This risk is increased when a Geocacher is accessing and logging the find. Geocachers must take great care to ensure that Geocaches are not muggled.

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As a whole, Geocachers are quite environmentally active. When we are out Geocaching, we collect litter along the trails and paths and then dispose of it properly. We ‘take out what we take in’ and strive to leave a place better that it was. On certain days, we also participate in international clean-up events that involve and benefit the larger community. CITO (Cache In, Trash Out) is one of several great programs that help us with this initiative.

CITO is an opportunity for Geocachers to help clean up the parks, trails and other cache-friendly places throughout the world. Through our volunteer efforts, we help preserve the natural beauty of our outdoor resources.

CITO began in 2003, when Geocachers from around the world organized 67 cleanup events in 5 countries. There were almost 1200 unique logs posted showing participation in these events, and hundreds more acted locally in recognition of this important day. The events were such a huge success that Groundspeak, parent of Geocaching.com, committed to carry on the tradition.

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An EarthCache is similar to a Virtual Cache in the way that there is no traditional cache container or a log book, but because of their purpose they differ greatly.

The purpose of an EarthCache is to share information about a particular geological feature of our planet Earth, and the object is to learn something about it. When you visit an EarthCache, you learn something interesting about the geology of the area. Usually the information is freely given but you have to do a bit of investigative work to answer proposed questions in order to claim the cache.

EarthCaches are created by Geocachers who have knowledge of geoscience and like to share it with the world.

The Geological Society of America administers the listing of EarthCache sites around the world and offers a ‘Masters Program’ where you can receive a pin as a reward for learning more about the Earth. There are four EarthCache Master Program levels:

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