Geocaching in QLD

Geocaching is an outdoors, GPS-based, global treasure hunt. Participants (geocachers) use a GPS-enabled device (most often a phone) to navigate to, and find hidden containers, called geocaches (sometimes shortened to just 'caches').

There are over 3 million hidden around the world! There's a good chance you've driven or walked past a few every day without knowing. Almost 18,000 of them are here in Queensland; Queensland's first was placed in October 2000 in Karawatha Forest. Check it out here! 

Getting started is easy. You can sign up for a free account at geocaching.com, and by installing the Geocaching app. You do not need to be a member of Geocaching Queensland to get started.

The premise of the game is quite simple. Geocachers hide a geocache in the public outdoors and record the coordinates. Then, they submit the cache listing for review and the listing is published online by a Groundspeak volunteer (Groundspeak is a company in USA that manages the listings). Other players may then choose to look for that geocache, by navigating to the coordinates and looking for the hidden container.

Geocachers are creative people, with geocaches hidden in local parks, urban areas, up mountains, along creeks and almost any kind of terrain and public space you can imagine. Geocaching attracts people from all walks of life; families enjoying the treasure hunt, adventurous thrill seekers, travellers hunting across wide areas - and more.

When a geocacher finds a geocache, they sign the logbook with their user name (and date should they choose), and then replace it as found. They may then electronically log the find on the online listing. This means every geocache gets a list of who has visited, and each geocacher has a record of all the geocaches they've found.

Geocaches can vary a lot; in their size from as small as a fingertip, through lunchbox-sized containers to repurposed ex-military boxes. Sometimes, custom-made geocaches too.

And they vary by their type. The most basic being hidden at the coordinates listed (called a traditional), multi-caches that require visiting multiple waypoints, mystery geocaches that you have to solve a puzzle at home before venturing out.. and several other types to explore.

Each geocache listing will give you a bit of information about the geocache; the difficulty (an indication of how hard it is to find), the terrain (how much of a challenge it is to get to the coordinates), the size, and some description of the area. If you're lucky, there'll even be a hint.

There's a lot you can know in the depths of geocaching knowledge. But we suggest you just get started; sign up, download the app, and start looking for the closest to home. Pick a traditional with a low difficulty and terrain rating for your first.

Geocaching Queensland encourages all cachers to review the Queensland Geocaching Policies Wiki before submitting a new cache for publication. These guidelines outline important regional requirements, land manager policies, and reviewer expectations.


Community Maintained Geocaches

Geocaching Queensland and the Australian Reviewers recognise that there are certain geocaches that the community are interested in maintaining due to their age and historical significance. For a geocache to be maintained as a community cache it must be considered to be "significant". For this to occur it must meet the following criteria:

1. Be placed/published at least 20 years ago,

2. Have a reasonable number of favorite points,

3. Still closely matches the way it was originally hidden (no mint tins to replace an ammo can), and location,

4. Have a cache owner that is no longer active and non-contactable,

5. Have a community member flag an interest in maintaining the geocache before a reviewer has taken action upon the listing (Reviewer Attention Requested, Disabled or Archived)
   
   

When a geocache is community maintained the following shall occur:

1. Have a community member that has expressed interest in maintaining the geocache by posting a note to the geocache page, and contacted the local reviewer prior to any maintenance requests (sock puppets will not be accepted) making it clear they will take on community responsibility for the significant geocache,

2. That community member will have the geocache on a watchlist,

3. The reviewer will add a simple note only to the listing description noting the community maintainer,

4. The reviewer will add the geocache to a public bookmark list.

5. The community member (or others) will promptly respond to any maintenance requests by prompting a note to the geocache page if and when concerns are raised.

6. For any small changes to the listing, they shall contact the local reviewer. Updates to location will only be considered on a case by case basis.
   
   

Please note that HQ and the Reviewer have no ability to adopt a geocache without the CO involvement. The Reviewer will assume the noted player will be responsible for the geocache as if they were the CO of the geocache in question.