Maker Madness Geocaching Event (The Waysider’s Way!)

During the week of March 28 – April 7, 2014 Geocaching promoted community events directed toward those who find enjoyment through hiding Geocaches.  There were several events held all over the world in hopes of teaching more about the art of hiding geocaches, as well as a way to earn a coveted Geocaching Souvenir. 

Being Geocache “Finders” we always appreciate the thoughtful and uniquely hidden (or disguised) caches!  Plus, we would like to start hiding caches in the future, so this was a great event for us to attend. Luckily for us our good friends, “The Waysiders” of Rome, GA were hosting a Geocaching Maker Madness event.
 

Andi & Jim from The Waysiders – Rome, GA

Andi & Jim of “The Waysiders” are the brains behind the “Going Caching Mega Event” held every year in Georgia in October.  To say that these two know how to put on an event is an understatement!  Plus, their geocaching skills and creativity in hiding caches are off the charts. Checkout our story about their event Going Caching 2013 that was held in FDR State in Pine Mountain, GA.  We love looking for their caches placed all over the state because they exemplify the meaning of “Thinking Outisde the Box”.

Read more on Going Caching 2013 Mega Event

They are known for their puzzle caches and how well they disguise their caches, so attending their Maker’s Madness Geocaching Event was a no brainer.  In fact, people came from all over the southeast including South Carolina, Tennessee, Florida, and Alabama.  They all wanted to learn about making and hiding geocaches from Andi and Jim, as well as getting the inside scoop about this year’s Going Caching 2014 event!

The Maker Madness Geocaching Event Starts off With Lunch

One of the aspects that we enjoy about coming to these types of Geocaching events is the opportunity to visit with our Geocaching friends that we haven’t seen in a while.  This event was held in a beautiful park in Rome, GA and was a great location with a perfect weather day!  The event started with a picnic lunch provided by Andi & Jim, and several other cachers who brought tons of goodies.  It was nice to sit and talk shop with fellow cachers over lunch.

How to Hide Creative Geocaches – by Jim from The Waysiders

Once we had a full belly, Jim took to the slide show highlighting some of their more well known Geocaches.  Jim went on to explain what goes into making a good geocache and how to hide it.  He also explained some of the tools he uses to make the caches (and where to get materials), as well as creative ways to use descriptions in the title of the geocache so it also works as a good hint.  His tips were fantastic, and he brought up points that we had never considered before…but made total sense!  We will definitely take these tips into account when we make future Geocaches.

Going Caching MMXIV – GC4AHKM

After Jim finished his presentation, Andi took to the mic to give us the much anticipated details about the next Going Caching Mega event for 2014.  I think that was a key draw for most of the event attendees, we are all dying to hear more details on this next event!

Taking place in October right in Rome, Georgia, the event will span across 4 days with 9 separate events!  Since it is taking place in Rome, they are having an ancient Roman theme.  Be sure to bring your togas because there will be plenty of opportunities to wear them, plus, who doesn’t like to wear a toga from time to time with your close friends?  We can tell from the few details that Andi described that this is going to be an amazing event that everyone is going to remember.  Make sure to follow along on the Going Caching Event Site and Facebook Page.

Making a Geocache at the Maker Madness Geocaching Event

After catching a glimpse “The Waysiders” Geocaching brilliance, it was our turn to exercise our creativity in making some geocaches.  They had a small kit for sale for $1 so that everyone could have a chance to make their own cache.  Liz stepped up and started disguising her first Geocache, and immediately her creativity started to take off.

People also brought samples of some really creative caches.  There were some that I’m pretty sure I would have to DNF if I walked across it.  Several caches were so creative that they were practically hidden in plain site, and you would really never know!

There was something for everyone at this Maker Madness Geocaching event, even a button making station for the little ones.  There was an ammo can camouflage station, as well as a tube station.  Liz decided to go with a tube, and she was gathering all kinds of natural materials to disguise her cache.

After sanding the tube, three colors of spray paint, some sturdy glue, rubbing in some dirt, and finding some sticks nearby, Liz comes up with her final design.  I think she did pretty well and her Geocaching Making Skills.

After a Geocaching Event, You Want to Go Geocaching!

When the event was over, people were eager to head out to do some caching.  We asked Andi which caches we should checkout while we were in town, and she recommended a couple.  So we said our goodbyes and headed out to do some caching in Rome.

Maker Madness Geocaching Event:  Success!

We really appreciate the “Maker Madness” Geocaching event idea.  For cachers like us who have never hidden anything, it was a great opportunity to learn “the art” so that we can create some cool and memorable caches for others to find.  It actually got us pretty excited and got our creative juices flowing.  We want to thank Andi and Jim for another awesome geocaching event.  They epitomize what it is to be ambassadors of the Geocaching community, and we feel privileged to have them nearby in Georgia so that we can attend their events.