Welcome to The St Arnaud Event update. Can you believe there is only 2 WEEKS TO GO? The committee are working behind the scenes to bring you the best MEGA event we can – all for FREE! Remember to REGISTER HERE by logging a “Will Attend” as this year we will be crossing off names at the event to ensure everyone who registered early gets their FREE gift.
It’s also important that you log your “will attend” on any other events you plan to attend. At the Saturday Night event we are providing each attendee with a Roast Beef Roll but if you haven’t logged a “will attend” here you might miss out! Rotary will also be selling sausages so bring a chair and some loose change!
Check out the full Schedule so you can plan your weekend.
First of the Lab Caches
The first of the Lab Caches will be released in just a few days time on Monday November 4th and this Lab will close on Sunday November 24th. That means you can do them pre or post Mega if you are coming for longer than the weekend. The first tour is a Historic Buildings of St Arnaud Lab Adventure where you can discover some amazing history and learn a little about the town we are calling home for the weekend.
If you’ve never done a Lab Cache before or haven’t done since last year you will need to make sure you download the “Adventure Lab” app onto a mobile device. Simply download and login with your geocaching account and you will be good to go! Remember Lab Caches are now logged live on the spot through this app so you must be within range of the location to claim the smiley. They cannot be done through the regular geocaching app.
Merchandise
The Shirts have now all been ordered but we are still taking orders for post-mega delivery. This is the same for our fantastic event geocoin which sold out after everyone got to see how spectacular they look. We are ordering more for post-mega delivery so pop online and place your orders now.
We still have some of the limited edition geocoins in stock. The Limited Edition coins come in three different colours and aims to depict the farming communities that are located within the St Arnaud district. Get in quick as these are limited in number! This coin is 3 inches in size so nice to add to the collection. Limited edition coins are $34 each. Order here.
And whilst in the store don’t forget to purchase your St Arnaud Pathtags too!
St Arnaud Raillery Hub Gallery
Geocachers have the chance to find many rare and collectable coins and stamps with localised historical stories attached among the many prizes in the lucky dip.
Trade it on or keep as memorabilia of your St Arnaud Mega Event experience and support a local community group.
The Gallery will be open from Friday to Monday between 11am and 4pm and is also hosting a Textiles and wood artisan exhibition during the Mega Event. Follow them on Facebook to find out more here.
Stand out! Add an ORANGE ribbon to your car!
Travelling to St Arnaud for the MEGA Event? Tie an ORANGE ribbon or two to your car so we can all see each other.
Accommodation still Available at Camp Seed
Camp Seed, Stuart Mill (Only 15 mins from St Arnaud with plenty of caches in-between) have some accommodation bookings still available. Booking options are offered on either a per bed or per room rate:
$70 per adult for 2 nights in a shared room (4 single beds each room)
$250 for the 2 nights for a room (4 x single beds)…
You will have access to a large commercial style kitchen to store and prepare food as well as a large dining hall and recreation hall. These facilities allow you to continue nurturing your social connections within the Geocaching community.
Camp Seed is only accepting bookings for people participating in the Geocaching event so you will be residing with a like minded community. They don’t have lockable doors to the bedrooms so you need to bear in mind that your valuables need to be cared for under your own responsibility.
Please call Donna on 0403 810 614 to make a booking.
Geocaching in St Arnaud – Original Road Series
The Original Road Series takes you to many of the old ‘original’ roads that lead to St Arnaud from various directions. These day the roads are used for local council, Vic Roads or for bluestone/gravel storage for future road repairs. Curated by local FUF009, the series began back in 2013 with additions in 2016 including one bonus cache from AnyMules – GC6QN3B ”Original Road” 02.5.
With the exception of GC48TXH ”Original Road” 01 which starts you off with a trad, the remainder are puzzles with a 1.5-2 difficulty rating. Get solving before you head to the St Arnaud Event so you can add your name to the existing 1,146* logs on the series of 12 geocaches.
*Statistics current as of 27 October 2019
First to Find (FTF) Raffle
We know people love chasing FTFs – how would you like a MEGA Event FTF? This raffle supports the amazing work done by The St Arnaud Agricultural Society (whose premises we are using and who do an amazing job of coordinating the St Arnaud Show). So if you are a FTF hound, or you just want to support a really great charity, then you can go in the draw to earn the right to call yourself the FTFer of The St Arnaud Event, 2019. Tickets are only $2 and you may win FTF and an unobtainium geocoin… You can purchase your tickets in this wonderful raffle by following this link!
Fun & Games
Like most other Victorian MEGA Events that have gone before us we are continuing on with the tradition of having a “few games” run throughout the weekend. Some forms will be handout out at registration so to be in with a chance of winning – you need to grab the forms and get hunting! The following games are on offer:
- Social Bingo – fill the WHOLE sheet.
- Far & Wide Game – fill in a LINE with the specific stamps allocated in the cache. The more lines you fill the more chances you get to win.
- Letterbox Game – find all FIVE new Letterbox caches (yet to be released) and stamp with the special GVI stamps.
- Receipts Game – collect any receipts from when you shop in St Arnaud in the week prior and post the Mega and pop your caching name and a mobile number on the back.
Sponsorship
It’s thanks to amazing supporters that make a MEGA event possible. This includes GeoStuff who will be on site during the Mega. We’ve also had donations from our mates in South Australia who are organising a MEGA event there – GeoVenture2020, Caching Supplies, Sssafe and Sistema so a big thanks to them too. It’s also important to note that this event isn’t possible without the support of the Northern Grampians Shire Council so thank you NGS – your support in invaluable! And we can’t forget the amazing support from PathTags and Geocaching HQ who help to make this dream a reality! Thanks guys!
