Category Archives: Awards

Celebrating Victoria’s Best: 2024 Victorian Cache of the Year Awards

Posted on by
Reply

On Saturday night, the geocaching community came together at the Hampton RSL to celebrate the Victorian Cache of the Year Awards for 2024. It was standing room only as a packed house gathered to recognise the incredible caches and dedicated cache owners who make geocaching in Victoria so special.

Between dinner and a lively round of trivia, the winners of this year’s awards were revealed. Each category celebrated the creativity, effort and passion that goes into hiding and maintaining some of the best caches across the state. From epic constructions, to stunning locations and challenging adventures, the 2024 nominees showcased the diversity and imagination that makes our community shine.

2024 Victorian Cache of the Year Award Winners

CategoryGC CodeWinner
Best Traditional CacheGCAV9WBGame On: Strong Man by BossConner
Best Multi CacheGCATPKATDOC24 – The Christmas Links by Sol de lune
Best Mystery CacheGCANE5HHistoric Pubs of South Melbourne A/L Bonus by LetThemEatCache
Best Other CacheGCARD2XTDOC24: LITTLE Drummer Boy by surefoot24
Best First HideGCAXMDKYarraville-Footscray Bowls Club by Nel&Andy
Best Cache SeriesGame OnGame On by BossConner
Best Cache Location
(joint winners)		GCAKYAR


GCAJFKP		Discover The Dome by Donutholes

Vaughan Springs Reserve – Virtual Reward 4.0 by micaparamedic
Best Regional CacheGCAKYARDiscover The Dome by Donutholes
Best Adventure LabHistoric Pubs of South MelbourneHistoric Pubs of South Melbourne by LetThemEatCache
Best Cache LogGL1DBH619horror.fan.jm on Twinkle, Twinkle (Night Cache)
Best Overall CacheGCAY06BLost in Space Again by Captain Mister Doctor

Congratulations to all of this years winners and to everyone who was nominated by their peers. A special thanks to Elvis (JonnyGoldCoast) our trivia host and to team Worst Cache Scenario who won tonights Trivia!

Sponsors

We’d like to acknowledge the amazing sponsors of this year’s awards – several of whom have supported the awards for multiple years. Their generosity helps make this celebration possible and keeps the awards thriving.

  • BernieH
  • Bunnings
  • OzHockeyChick
  • posums
  • Super Kind Cacher (Anonymous)
  • Generous Cacher (Anonymous)

Profile Badge and Cache Page Banner

If you were a nominee or winner in the 2024 Victorian Cache of the Year Awards, you can proudly share your acheivement with the community!

  • Add a badge to your personal profile to showcase your nomination or win.
  • Add a banner to your cache page so finders know your cache was part of the 2024 awards.

Visit this link to download the badge and banner resources.

10th Anniversary Unobtainium Geocoin

We also drew the winner of the 10th Anniversary Unobtanium Geocoin, awarded to one lucky winner who had found 10 or more of this year’s nominated caches.

Congratulations to Omegaman1971 – Well done!

Only 2 10th Anniverary Unobtanium Geocoins remain:

  • One will go to the lucky attendee of a 2025 Victorian CCE (random), and
  • The final one will be awarded to a cache owner who has published a particularly rare hide.

Stay tuned to find out who the final two recipients will be!

The Top 10 finders of the 2024 nominated caches (by points) were as follows:

CacherPoints
RoamingHowie60
Kristysadventures56
OzHockeyChick47
Rebel Acts45
spiffy-45
SteMicMitSar45
n0w0rries43
Snips and Co41
Omegaman197140
Riddell40

Looking ahead to the 2025 awards

That’s a wrap on the 2024 Victorian Cache of the Year Awards! A huge thank you to everyone who nominated, found, voted and celebrated the incredible talent within our community. Thanks goes to our dedicated committee including the lead for this event LetThemEatCache for hosting this fantastic event.

Now it’s time to turn our attention to 2025 – continue exploring and start identifying the next round of standout hides that could be among next years’s nominees!

You can keep track of the new caches published in 2025 through the following lists on our webstie:

We can’t wait to see what the community comes up with next.

See you next year when we share the next batch of nominees!

From Seedlings to Celebrations

Posted on by
1

As the 7,000 seedlings planted in Mullum Mullum Reserve form new roots after a huge planting day, we look ahead to a number of exciting events coming up on the geocaching calendar and more. Keep ahead of the news in our latest blog.

National Tree Day – 27 July 2025

This year, Geocaching Victoria partnered with Manningham Council to celebrate National Tree Day at Mullum Mullum Reserve. A wonderful group of geocachers and local community members came together to plant 7,000 indigenous plants across the reserve. The event was exceptionally well organized by Manningham Council, and we were proud to collaborate with them alongside the many volunteers who lent a helping hand. Special thanks go to Leah (Crack’n’LeeLee) for her efforts in coordinating this meaningful event.

Mark your calendars!

Spring is upon us, and the geocaching calendar is jam packed! We have three major Community Celebration Events coming up on the calendar filled with celebration, fun, and recognition: Be sure to log your will attends!

  • Victorian Cache of the Year Awards 2024 (GCB0YDT): Come and celebrate from 5:30pm on October 25, as we congratulate all of the nominees and announce the winners of the 2024 Victorian Cache of the Year Awards. Voting will open on 15 September, allowing you your chance to pick your favourite nominated caches, Adventure Labs, and logs.
  • GIFF – Thanks For The Community (GCATN5R): Mark your calendar for 11am on November 16, 2025. Enjoy geocaching short films from around the globe and other activities in comfortable theatre seating while connecting with fellow caching enthusiasts.
  • 10th Anniversary of The Melbourne Event (GCATKT5): It’s time for a milestone! Join us for a Free BBQ dinner at Casey Fields from 5pm on November 16, 2025. It’s a chance to celebrate 10 years since the first ever Mega event in Victoria, and the many more that have followed in its footsteps.

Don’t forget you can view a list of every geocaching event being hosted in Victoria on our website by visiting our Upcoming Events page.

Don’t Miss Out: Jackets and Zip Hoodies—Limited Release

After all the love for our new jackets and zip hoodies at recent events, we’re doing a LIMITED 2ND RUN. The gear is back online and ready to order… but only until 7 September. Don’t miss your chance to level up your geocaching gear and add these pieces to your collection.

Order HERE by 7 September to secure yours.

Join the Team

Geocaching Victoria is a volunteer-driven community and welcomes new committee members! Are you keen to help organize events, manage communications, work with the community or share some fresh ideas? Now is the perfect time to get involved. Bring your passion and help shape the future of Victoria’s caching adventures.

If you are interested in joining the team, send an email to president@geocachingvictoria.com.au with your name (real and geocaching!) and a short spiel about why you’d like to join the committee, and what skills you think you can bring.

And The 2024 Nominees Are…

Posted on by
Reply

Nominations have been flowing in recently in the search for the best geocaches, adventure labs and logs from 2024. All of the nominees for the Victorian Cache of the Year Awards have been carefully tallied, cross checked and shortlsted, and are now ready to be revealed. They include creative multis, impressive caches from a great selection of first time hiders, and some tall tales of geocaching adventures past just to name a few. Thank you to everyone who nominated and shared their voice.

With daylight savings affording attendees an extra hours sleep overnight, geocachers gathered, bright eyed at Darebin Parklands, ready to hear word of the amazing caches nominated by the community. The aroma of the sizzling BBQ wafted through the park (with thanks to bunadoorian, posums and ) and helped fuel the strong crowd that had gathered to celebrate.

For those eager to dive in, the full list of nominees is available on the 2024 Victorian Cache of the Year Awards page on our website. It is complete with links to each cache, Adventure Lab and log. There are an incredible 42 individual caches (some nominated in multiple categories), 106 caches that form the shortlisted cache series nominees, 6 Adventure Labs and 8 entertaining Found IT/DNF logs to enjoy. Congratulations to everyone that was shortlisted.

Don’t forget the 2 geocaching.com cache lists to help you find all of the nominees:

In addition, the 2025 eligible hide lists have already been created and are periodically updated. Keep your eye out for new hiders, new cache series, or any other new caches published this year. All of them are available at the Great Geocaching Lists section of our website and will be eligible for nominating in next years awards.

To give you time to find as many of the nominees as possible, voting won’t commence until later in the year, with the final winners slated to be revealed at an event in October/November (TBA). Don’t leave it until the last minute though, grab your GPS, lace up your caching boots and go out and find as many of these amazing nominated caches and adventure labs as you can. And when you have a quiet moment, read through the great logs also.

If you are one of the worthy nominees, you can also add a nominee banner to your cache page, and add a badge to your profile using the 2024 COTYA resources here.

To everyone who has earned a spot on the coveted nominations list for 2024, congratulations on your nomination and thank you for bringing so much enjoyment to the community – Good Luck and keep up the amazing hides, labs and stories.

Hot Off The Press at Awards Night

Posted on by
Reply

As we wrap up a night of entertainment at the Yarraville-Footscray Bowling Club, there is an atmosphere of celebration and achievement. The 2023 Victorian Cache of the Year Awards have just concluded, and the sense of community among geocachers is palpable. This annual event, a highlight on the Geocaching Victoria calendar, celebrates the creativity and dedication of our fellow cachers who have made significant contributions to our beloved pastime over the past year.

The evening began with a battle between barefoot bowls in the Spring heat, and a drink in the cool of the indoors. It was a great chance to mingle and share stories about the latest caching adventures before transitioned indoors for the awards ceremony and 10th anniversary celebration. This year’s awards again featured a range of categories that highlight the diversity and ingenuity within our community. From Best Traditional Cache to Best Adventure Lab, each category showcased the exceptional talent of our nominees. The anticipation built as we awaited the announcement of this year’s winners, and if the glory wasn’t enough, there was $1,000 of prizes of offer for the award winners, thanks to our very generous community sponsors.

And the winners Are…

With great enthusiasm, the awards for each of the eleven categories were presented and the winners for 2023 are:

CategoryGC CodeWinner
Best Traditional CacheGCAAK8FTDOC23: solo? by RyderSpider
Best Multi CacheGCAD0WZJuzzMagic – Bring a Friend by JuzzMagic
Best Mystery CacheGC9YANWThe Lie of The Land by Jacko83
Best Other Cache
(joint winners)		GCADTP6
GCA9G2C
GCAAGTV
Danger!!! Drop Bears by SciFiRulz
TDOC23: The Grinch by OSHFAM the Grinch
TDOC23: A Letterbox/TB Hotel for Cachemas
in July by surefoot24
Best First HideGCAC2YWDog walk sniffs 1 by TanSaf
Best Cache SeriesThe BasinThe Basin by JuzzMagic, Mister Doctor,
iTEEM & Crustyvarmint
Best Cache LocationGCA33DZTDOC23: The Beaumaris Fossil Beach
by gmj3191
Best Regional CacheGCAAGTVTDOC23: A Letterbox/TB Hotel for
Cachemas in July by surefoot24
Best Adventure LabThe Great
Victorian
Ice Cream Tour		The Great Victorian Ice Cream Tour –
Double Scoop by RoamingHowie
Best Cache LogGL1929B59Log on Ducks Ahoy by OSHFAM
Best Overall CacheGCA9G2CTDOC23: The Grinch by OSHFAM the Grinch

Congratulations to all of this years winners and to everyone who was nominated by their peers.

Sponsors

We wish to acknowledge all of the amazing sponsors for this years awards who very generously donated prizes:

  • BernieH
  • Crack’n’LeeLee
  • Grub62 & Bunadoorian
  • ILookedThere
  • OzHockeyChick
  • posums
  • Generous Cacher
  • Kind Cacher
  • Mystery Cacher
  • Supportive Cachers
  • Your friendly neighbourhood cacher

Profile Badge and Cache Page Banner

You can share your nomination/win in the 2023 Victorian Cache of the Year Awards with fellow cachers by doing the following:

  • Add a badge to your personal profile, proudly sharing with the community that you were a nominee/winner
  • Add a banner to your cache page to highlight to finders that your cache was part of the 2023 awards.

Visit this link to find the badge and banner for you.

Prizes

In addition to our award winners, congratulations go to McLookers who took away the major raffle prize valued at over $250 and LongJohnSilva who won the first of our money can’t buy 10th Anniversary unobtainium coins. Stay tuned for more details on how you might be able to win one.

And a huge thank you to our 10 year service award recipients, BernieH and ahomburg for their outstanding contribution to Geocaching Victoria since inception. Geocaching owes an incredible gratitude to you both for your contributions.

As we conclude this year’s celebration, it is inspiring to see the creativity displayed throughout our community. We hope it inspires you when hiding new caches. You never know, you might be one of our nominees for 2024! Congratulations once again to all of the winners and nominees! Here’s to more adventures ahead!

Double Digits! Geocaching Victoria Turns 10

Posted on by
Reply

10 years ago today, on the 21 October 2014, an enterprising bunch of Victorian geocachers got together with the lofty idea of hosting the first Victorian Mega. The pioneers, Day1976, LouiseAnn, BernieH, °, ahomburg and sharkiefan got the ball rolling, and as history now tells us, their efforts early on, along with a lot of support from the community, was a great success. In fact the first mega, The Melbourne Event, is still the largest ever mega held in Australia. That initial planning marked the start of Geocaching Victoria (or Geocaching Melbourne as it was known in the early days).

It didn’t stop at just one Mega, with plenty more in the years following. Other events and activities began to be hosted, and involvement in advocacy and support for the geocaching community grew as did the thriving community.

Over the years, there has been a total of 20 individuals who have volunteered and dedicated their time on Geocaching Victoria’s committee. Their energy and guidance have helped to nurture the organisation in continued support of the geocaching community.

In addition there have been numerous sub committees filled with dedicated volunteers who have worked tirelessly to provide major activities and events. These include but are not limited to:

  • Mega sub committees
  • GPS Adventure Maze sub committee
  • Ballarat GeoTour sub committee
  • Block Party sub committee
  • and countless volunteers who have supported our megas, BBQs and other events throughout the years

Without all of these volunteers, Geocaching Victoria wouldn’t be what it is today. We would like to extend our sincere thanks to everyone who has volunteered and contributed over the past 10 years.

For those that love their stats, here are the last 10 years by the numbers:

  • 8 Mega events delivered
  • 1 Block Party in development
  • 4 GPS Adventure Maze exhibits
  • 1 GeoTour
  • 250+ events hosted
  • 14,000+ attendances
  • 573 geocaches hidden

As we look forward to the Anniversary and Cache of the Year Celebration event on 16 November (GCAWDFX) and our first ever Block Party in March 2025 (GCAP417) there is no shortage of activity to come. Don’t forget to log your will attends for these events.

As always, none of this is possible without fundraising, and you can commemorate the occasion, and support future Geocaching Victoria activities by purchasing our limited edition 10th anniversary geocoin through our online store.

We look forward to what the next 10 years has in store, and we hope that you will continue to join in all the fun.