Geocaching Terms
Learning the Basics

Geocaching terms, as in every sport, has their own lingo, jargon and play with words. To label certain rules, items used in an activity or replace a mouthful of gaming or playing terms, interesting terms and acronyms replace these terms to make them interesting to the ears and easy to retain and use.

GeocachingSolutions.com and Geocaching.com are two dedicated websites that maintain a complete list of commonly used terminology with timely updates whenever new terms emerge.

Let us start with popular geocaching terms. First, let us get what exactly geocaching means. Common definition states that geocaching is a worldwide game of hiding and locating treasures, which are put inside a geocache or container. Geocaches are used to contain the treasures and serve as markers for geocaching locations.

Now, geocache is a term used to call the container that carries the treasures and logbook in which the participants can sign in their name to inform the cache owner that it has been found. Now, you will notice that the terms geocache and cache are used interchangeably. They are in fact the same. Cache is but a shortened version of the term geocache.

In the geocaching or cache hunting game, multi-cache or offset cache is a term used to describe several caches, which marks two or more locations. Multi-cache works this way; the first cache gives hints about the location of the second cache, then so on. The final cache basically marks the final location where the physical container will be found.

Geocaching is said to be a treasure hiding and seeking game. Now the ‘treasure' part is somewhat tricky. Geocaching for kids use items such as treats and toys, while big girls and boys use geocoins. A geocoin is a trackable item that resembles a coin, usually created as a signature item of geocachers.

Now if you happen to have located a cache, perhaps containing a geocoin, you are said to be at ground zero (GZ). Ground zero is declared when a geocacher achieves to locate a cache. This literally means that the geocacher is zero meters away from the cache.

This activity basically involves everything you have learned in geography. So once in a while, terms like latitude and longitude will appear. Latitude tells about the angular distance of a location measured from the earth's equator. Latitude tells about the angular distance of a location measured from the prime meridian of the earth.

Cache locations may be told using waypoints. Waypoints are named coordinates, which represent a particular location on the surface of the earth.

The fun part of geocaching terms would be the acronyms. These terms uses fun arrangements of letters, which stand for a particular meaning. For instance, the ‘GPS' in portable GPS receiver stand for ‘global positioning system'. BYOP is translated into ‘bring your own pen'. When the word swag means treats and fun items, the acronym SWAG stands for ‘stuff we all get'. Other popular acronyms include CO (cache owner), CITO (cache-in-trash-out), DNF (did not find), TNLNSL/TNSL (took nothing, left nothing, signed logbook/took nothing, signed logbook).

If you are interested to learn more about geocaching terms, check out Geocaching.com and GeocachingSolutions.com or buy a geocaching book today.

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