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  • GoSA Grapevine January 2023

GoSA Grapevine January 2023

GoSA NewLogo Grapevine
 
Happy New Year and a prosperous 2023 to all our fellow geocachers and their families!

From the Desk of the Chairman

I’ve been following the stats and am pretty happy to see so much caching taking place over the holidays and even more excited to note all the events to close out the year as well as those yet to come. Our first lockdown free year since 2019 is upon us and it’s time to take full advantage. I was reminded of this when a Facebook page called Date Night Ideas for couples in SA made a post about Geocaching and I figured, this is going to be the least restricted we’ve been in forever. I hope to see you at events around the country and if not, at least your names on many logs.
 
In 2023, I’m looking forward to our new and improved Cache of the Month revival so please to consider engaging it.
I’m also mulling the idea of a gadget cache workshop so if you have any thoughts on that, please do reach out.
 
May your 2023 be exciting, rewarding and full of found it logs.

 

Cache of the Month


To summarise how COTM will work: this month we will only have nominations for the January COTM. In February we will then have community voting for the January winner and nominations for the February COTM. In March we will announce the January winner, vote for the February winner, and nominate caches for the March COTM and so the process will continue each month thereafter.
 
The theme for January COTM nominations is Unique Logbooks – we often find caches that have great camo but every now and again we come across a cache with a very different type of logbook – this can be anything from an umbrella to an actual wooden log and loads of things in between! Have you found any caches with a unique logbook? Nominate them for the COTM by using this google form.  Nominations need to be submitted by 20 January 2023

Community Contributions
Adventure_T and Danie Viljoen
SA Geocaching Stats
By
Because sometimes, for some people, it is about the numbers… Here is a summary of the South African Geocaching activity for November:
776 Cachers found a total of 3,721 caches during November.
45 Cachers placed 54 new caches during November.
The number of Cachers who found at least 1 SA cache in the previous 12 months is 8,282.
The number of Cachers who placed at least 1 SA cache in the previous 12 months is 204.
The total number of active South African caches at the end of November is 16,302.




Note: All the above statistics include all South African caches on the geocaching.com database, which doesn’t include Adventure Labs.
An International Adventure - Part 2
By Henzz
 
Way back before GPS and Internet became kind of a big thing, I would get excited every time I could go to another town or a city. Going to another Province was just exhilarating and going to the sea in December meant I wouldn’t sleep for days before. Then one day, some fourteen odd years back this whole Geocaching-Treasure-Hunting-Hidden-Stash thing crossed my path, and life has just never been the same again.
 
Pretty soon I found myself zig-zagging the country’s map, going to all those dorpies and towns, all the while clocking up the caching finds. Pretty soon I realized that the treasure was not to be found inside the box, but actually it would be outside the box.
 
Then one day I got myself a Passport. That is kind of a license that allows you to go cache in places like Lesotho, Namibia, Botswana and Zimbabwe. Pretty cool I would say. Not bad for a boytjie from Vanderbijl, going on adventures other side of the border.
 
On a sunny Cape Town Day while out caching, I dared to dream big. I had the audacity to mention to the Huskies that it would be rather neat to go cache in the USA. A little seed was planted that day. From time to time that seed would be fed with water and the dream grew as time went on. The Good folk in Seattle at Geocaching Headquarters heaped a whole lot of compost onto the growing plant when they came up with the 20th Anniversary Celebration Event. Now there was no stopping this dream anymore. Well, Covid came along like a wild South Easter wind, and almost did break the back of it, but in the end not even a worldwide pandemic could smother this dream.      
 
I landed in Seattle on the 17th of August to be met by the Huskies with great big smiles and a steaming cup of Starbucks to welcome me to the biggest Adventure of my life. We started off with two amazing Gadget Caches nearby the airport. Corner Stone (GC7AMQR) and Ambaum TB Hotel (GC5FZDA). A few miles to the North we had an appointment to see a lackey about a cache at 837 N 34th Street, Seattle. That is the address of Geocaching Headquarters (GCK25B). So, this is where they think about all the cool stuff to keep us busy with.










 
Next day we took a drive down to Tacoma, a beautiful town with some amazing caches. Here I got to do my very first Web Cam Cache (Phatboyz … Go Dogs) (GCH3NT). Later on, we spend quite a bit of time at the Museum of Flight and Space Flight Academy (GC5GT6J).  Got to board Air Force One (Not the newest one though, we had to be satisfied with President Nixon’s plane.) Also explored one of only two Public Display Concordes in the World. I was surprised at how cramped that supersonic jet was inside. Old war planes and Boeing’s Red Barn Airplane Company kept us busy for a while, and then we set off to the Space Shuttle Interactive Area. We had so much fun, none of us wanted to leave.

On Friday, the 19th we were on a mission to find one of the two remaining APE caches in the world. Mission 9: Tunnel of Light (GC1169) takes you on a hike through an old, abandoned train tunnel, about 4 kilometres of damp, cold and dark from start to end. When you emerge on the other side you are greeted with stunning views of the Cascade Mountains and some very old caches.
  
That evening we headed to Issaquah for an Event, but there was also the small matter of finding some fan-cache-tic caches in the scenic town first. Ground Coffee (GC9M1ZV) wins the Oscar for best Cache of the holiday. It is a cache with a wicked sense of humour and a cheeky attitude, no kidding, it actually talks to you while you try and figure it out. Both me and Mr. Huskies broke into spontaneous dance when Frank Sinatra sang a song for us from the heart of the cache, to celebrate the fact that we cracked it. Two other caches that deserve a mention would be It takes THREE (GC7WE07) and Historic Shell Station (GC9P4RK).
 
Saturday 20th of August. How do you get someone you’ve never met in your life to speak Afrikaans to you on the other side of the World? You go to Pike Place Market (GC7B9XN) wearing a Springbok Jersey. We got a hit in under 5 minutes.
 
Next up on the day’s menu was the 20th Anniversary Celebration (GC896PK) at Fisher Pavilion, in the shadow of the Seattle Space Needle (GC7B6BG). About 2500 caching teams from around the world attended this event. From a unique logbook to exhibitions and interesting talks, a chance to meet Signal the Frog, eats and drinks stands, a concert, travel bug exchanges, there were just so much to do and see. If you were looking for an unhappy face there, you would have had to log a DNF, that’s for sure. Oh, and we just happened to bump into iPajero there as well. Small World.

From there we set out to Fremont to do the HQGT caches. They claim it to be the Centre of our Universe. I think they are absolutely right. You even get a Geocaching Headquarters Geotour Passport to track your progress through the six really cool caches. From a Giant Troll under a bridge to a Post office Box on the sidewalk, even a Dinosaur, and an arty bicycle rack along the way, they keep you entertained all the way. Almost forgot to say, they even throw a free souvenir onto your profile page too, just because they’re such nice guys.    

  
One would think the day just can’t get any better. Well, it can. A hike up Mount Margaret along beautiful forest trails led us to find Geocache (GCD), the oldest cache in Washington. After we signed the log, we were greeted by the most spectacular views of a bright blue lake down in a sea of green pine forests that stretches up and down and over many more mountain crests as far as the eye could see.  
 
We waved Seattle a Farewell on the 21st as we headed South on the Interstate 5. Should you just maybe one day find yourself on this road, and a signboard pops up saying that Centralia is down the next off ramp, remember what old Henzz told you today. Take that slipway and head straight to Johnny Islands Throne Room (GC57ZJR). You can thank me later.

On May 3rd, 2000, Dave Ulmer set off to the woods near Beavercreek, Oregon with a bucket filled with some odds and ends. He didn’t know it, but that day he started off something that would snowball right around the world. He hid that bucket near a bend in the road. With GPS in hand, he dotted the coordinates down. That day, right there in Beavercreek, Geocaching was born. That 5-gallon bucket got damaged during roadworks not long thereafter, but not before being found though by Mike Teague. The Original Stash Tribute Plaque (GCGV0P) now marks the spot. Yes, you guessed it. We had to go and check it out and place our GPS devices on the plaque in order to receive extended battery life and super-accurate satellite reception. 

 
We came into San Francisco over the multi layered, multi lane monstrous Bay Bridge. Supertankers were looking like small toys bobbing on the water down below. Skyscrapers reached high into the fog over to the right of the bridge. It looks just like in the movies, only difference, this is not a movie. We really are here.
 
The next day was jam packed with us juggling the touristy things, caching, and eateries. We took a ferry from Pier 33 to Alcatraz, and successfully managed to escape (GCF7A2). No visit to SF is complete unless you travel over the Golden Gate Bridge and take a thousand photos to remind you from time to time just how amazing it is. (GC7B77D) We also squeezed the Crookedest Street in the World (GC7B66Z) into our visit. A day and a half were just not enough time in this City. We should have made more time to explore it. All the more reason to come back again, say I.
 









Next Stop: Los Angeles. The trick with a holiday like this is to get the balance between caching and being a tourist just right. Methinks we actually pulled it off rather well. We handpicked some caches before, knowing that we would have to leave many undone. And we had a wish list of places we really wanted to see. The first two days in LA we stayed in a condo near the Dolby Theatre, home of the Oscar Ceremonies. We strolled Hollywood Boulevard’s Walk of Fame looking for the stars. Also jumped on a small bus that took us all over. If you’ve been to LA, you have to have your picture taken near the Hollywood sign. Boy oh Boy, did we have fun and laughs there. The tour guide behind the wheel took us into the hills to show us where the rich and famous stays. We saw Beverley Hills and Rodeo Drive, tall palm trees lining the streets for miles on end, exotic sport cars, and mansions so big you would need a GPS to just find the kitchen. Later on, we went to Santa Monica Pier for sunset pictures, some caching and supper at Bubba Gump. (GC42P0W).
Next two nights we stayed right next to Disneyland in Anaheim. Got to do some caching in Long Beach and around the Venice Canals (GC8KHDB). A silly little box I wanted to tick was to swim in the Pacific Ocean. Got my chance at Muscle Beach just before sunset. The Huskies made friends with every friendly dog on the beach.

We saved the best for the last few days in America: New York City. We landed at JFK in the middle of the night and set out for the hotel and a few hours’ worth of sleep. Next morning, we were like excited puppies with wagging tails who could not wait for the door to open. We bolted straight out of there, heading for Central Park. We’ve spent the whole of the first day there. Central Park is massive. There are just so much to see there. As an added bonus, it is filled with some really cool caches too. It would be difficult to spotlight three of them, but we decided that Bridges & Arches of Central Park (GC17MX1), Cleopatra’s Needle – New York (GC59BR5) and Central Park Guardian (GC3CFC) would be declared the prize winners.

 

 


Next morning, we caught a train down in the subway to Battery Park, from where we hitched a ride on a ferry to the Statue of Liberty. Around midday we were back in Manhattan, heading for Wall Street to go check out the most famous bull in all of New York (GC5HGR3). Does anyone remember the Movie Ghostbusters, from back in 1984, with Bill Murray and Dan Aykroyd? Would you believe me if I tell you that redbrick firehouse is still there on N Moore Street, looking exactly like it did back then? One could be forgiven if you were to think they just locked up for lunch and would be back later to shoot another scene. (GC9P70C)
 
Sept 1st was set aside for a tour of Ground Zero. Daniel, our tour guide was a mile and a half away from the Twin Towers the day it came tumbling down. We learned so much about what really happened on that fateful day in 2001. Going down into the museum beneath the Reflecting Pools is something that will stay with all three of us for the rest of our days. The reality of 9/11 hits hard down there, and many a time we had to swallow hard, and sometimes a glance of a hand past your eyes to wipe away a tear or two, was part of the day. (GC7BA4H) 










A walk on Brooklyn Bridge and lunch in Chinatown comes to mind when I think back of our last day in NY, but the cherry on the cake was going up the Empire State Building (GC4D7F) just before sunset. The views of the city from up there are absolutely magical. As we were every other night while here in NY, we were once again drawn to the spectacular lights and neon and dazzle of Times Square.
 
Early next morning, Sept 3rd Flight BA 178 took to the skies. Three of us staring through the small windows as the States disappeared behind us, all with our own thoughts to keep us company for a while.
 
A short layover at Heathrow awaited me before the last leg back home, but as for the Huskies, they will stay behind in London for two weeks…. Or so they thought…. Turns out they had to stay a bit longer, for something would happen soon that would make news all over the world. Thank you for listening (or reading through actually) to my ramblings about our time in the USA. I hope it would inspire some of you to dream big, so that you too can go on the caching trip of a lifetime.
 
Back to the Huskies now, so they can tell all about their UK adventures.
 
We got our rental with an upgrade just after 21h00 Saturday 3rd of August. We spent the night at a hotel close to the airport and drove to the family the on Sunday 4th, after a normal English breakfast. We spent the Monday relaxing and drove down to Sturminste Newton to visit fellow cachers we met a few years ago, Catawell and Hardnut. We met them in South Africa a few years ago while they were on their SA holiday trip.  We found 2 FTF’s on the way there: Lord Ryan’s treasure (GC9ZDA4).  On Wednesday, the 7th of September our friends took us around the area and stopped at a stunning little town with a steep narrow street: Gold Hill, Shaftesbury (Virtual Reward 2.0) (GC8917V). 
 
We attended a local event on Thursday the 8th and also got the bad news of the Queen that passed away. Suddenly all travel plans were thrown into mayhem, as Heathrow was closed for incoming and outgoing flights until further notice. After a spell of slight panic, we decided to make the best of the situation.
 
We took a drive down to Weymouth and The Grove the next day, 9th September and had lunch in a prison café. On Saturday, the 10th we attended a local cheese festival and drove up to Watford that afternoon. We did a few caches on the way and went past Stonehenge (GCA68D). We found it previously, but it was still worth a revisit.
We spent the following week driving out every day to a different area doing caching. We spent Wednesday the 14th of September doing caching in London. We now had the extra time to drive down to Nottingham on Friday 16th Sept to do a cache that has been on our radar for the longest of time – Cold War Cache (GC32REK).
 
Being in the UK during the time of the passing of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and the following days of bereavement and the ultimate funeral procession is an experience we will never forget. We visited Windsor Castle on Sunday 18th to see all the flowers and messages to the queen.
 
We spent the following week doing caching around Watford area and drove down to Bath for the day on Saturday 24th. We returned to SA on Sunday 25th Sept at 21h00 and were back at home Monday 14h30.

New Souvenir: Signals Labyrinth #5 Stone Castle


A quick summary of how this souvenir series works:
  • A total of twelve souvenirs over 6 labyrinths are up for grabs from 4 April 2022 – 3 April 2023.
  • Earn leader board points over a two-month period to qualify for two new souvenirs per two-month period.
  • Escape all 6 labyrinths, earn all twelve souvenirs and you will also earn a meta souvenir.
  • Earn 50 points for the first souvenir and 500 points for the second souvenir in each labyrinth.
  • There will be a mystery item in each labyrinth that if found will earn you bonus points.
 We’ve made it through the hedge maze and now we are in the Stone Castle, to help you along there are some bonus lanterns hidden in the castle and these are the mystery item for this Labyrinth. We have from 5 December to 5 February 2023 to escape the castle and reach the final challenge.

New Souvenirs

Once again in 2023 GCHQ will be rewarding us for hiding caches. Starting from 1 January 2023 you will be able to earn this souvenir with any cache you publish.  We look forward to seeing many new caches for us all to find!  
Current Souvenirs
 
Souvenirs are virtual pieces of art that you can earn, discover, and display on your profile page. They are associated with a particular location, task, find or event and may also be bound by time.
 
 
The souvenirs that are currently up for grabs are listed and pictured below:
 
  • Perserverance Rover on Mars TB – no end date announced
  • GC9FAVE, Locationless Cache – 17 August 2022 to 31 December 2023 (special cache type)
  • Signal’s Labyrinth #5 Stone Castle – 5 December 2022 to 5 February 2023
  • Full Sail – 1 to 8 January 2023
  • Hider 2023 – 1 January 2023 to 31 December 2023
 

They are your local go-to people, so keep their details for future reference
                                            
Eastern Cape FireflyAfrica (Jonker Fourie)  082 889 2459
Free State Uncle Chem (Richard Chemaly)  072 431 7131
Gauteng Leon St (Leon Stoop)  071 330 8435
KwaZulu-Natal M²C²D (Mark & Ceinwen Oosthuizen)  M 083 324 6176 C 083 324 2167
Limpopo Boats007 (Willem Botha)  082 463 3700
Mpumalanga Bouts777 (Gerhard Botha)  082 876 3572
North-West Team Tip Top (Hansie & Zaneta Van Huyssteen)   H 082 753 8082 Z 083 258 5926
Western & Northern Cape SKATTIE@1 (Elize Louw)  074 138 6360
 
Found an awesome cache? Have some tips to share? Been on a cool geocaching adventure lately? Exciting events happening in your geocaching community? Taken a great photo? We would love to hear all about it! 

Please email our newsletter editor at  
 

We are always on the lookout for photos from events or cool caches, as well as any fun, interesting, unusual or exciting geocaching stories to share with the geocaching community.  If you want to share yours, send it to us by emailing it to our newsletter writers.

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Last Updated: 13 February 2023
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