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Raleigh is a gold mine for geocaching

Join this worldwide treasure hunt from your own backyard.

Small treasures laid out on a tree trunk.

Some of the treasures City Editor Cat recently found on a geocache hunt.

Photo by RALtoday

Raleighites, are you up for a little adventure? The City of Oaks is chock-full of thrilling treasure hunts organized by community members through apps like Geocaching. There are around 1,100 geocaches (read: hidden treasures) in Raleigh waiting to be discovered. Let’s get right to the nitty-gritty for the thrill of the hunt.

Geocaching is a free, worldwide scavenger hunt where participants use GPS coordinates to find hidden containers in outdoor public spaces.

  1. Create a free account to search for nearby geocaches.
  2. Select an intriguing cache to find.
  3. Navigate and follow the clues to its location.
A screenshot of a map with tons of geocaches ready to be found.

There is enough treasure to go around.

Screenshot from Geocaching.com

Geocaches come in different shapes, sizes, colors, and difficulties, but are typically hidden in plain sight. The contents of each cache varies — some only contain a log to sign, others house tradeable items and the occasional cash prize. Pro tip: Bring a fun item to trade just in case (think: stickers, key chains, and bouncy balls).

Once you’ve found your treasure, sign the log book (bring a pen), trade knickknacks, and document the find online.

Respect the game. After you’ve relished in your victory, put the cache back where you found it for someone else to find. Geocaches are meant to remain hidden, so the hunt can go on for years.

Bonus: Are you already a pro seeker? Sign up to hide a cache.

Happy hunting… and remember, there could be treasure hidden right under your nose.

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