Top 10 of 2013: The Grand Finale

Number 1: Evolution of the Rest Stop !
Berkeley County, West Virginia
397 Favorite Points 

The cache with the most favorite points we found in 2013 was found by us in January. However, it did set the tone for an excellent year of geocaching and definitely solidified our membership in the WVTim fan club!

This geocache is the one with the most favorite points in the entire state of West Virginia and there are several characteristics that, I think, have enabled it to become such a well-loved geocache. I’m going to describe these characteristics without, hopefully, giving too much away because I think they are important considerations when deciding to develop a well-loved, popular geocache.

The first is simple: access. This cache is located in a rest area off of an interstate highway. Lots of people pass by this location every day and it is not difficult for the cache to be found while stopping to use the rest room facilities or even just stretching your legs on a long haul.

The second characteristic is the terrain rating. There seems to be a parabolic relationship between favorite points and terrain. A geocache with an easy terrain rating is accessible to more people so if it is clever the masses will flock to it. A geocache with a difficult terrain rating is often placed somewhere that’ll take your breath away (be it through a strenuous hike, an exhilarating paddle, or rappelling off a cliff-side). In this case, even though it was dark and the ground a little slick, we had no trouble making the find with the help of a flashlight.

The third characteristic is the container. Almost everyone has found a film canister or Altoid’s tin under a lamppost skirt or tucked in the end cap of a guard rail. These are caches that typically have lots of access and a low terrain rating, but no one really cares. These can be fun if you’re visiting a new area, just getting into geocaching, or trying to achieve some kind of goal (e.g. finding one cache per day for a month), but they’re not about to steal your heart. A clever container can bump a mundane location up to a geocaching destination.

Though when I reviewed the most popular geocaches from 2013 by the favorite points, there were some glaring omissions. My personal favorite was another WVTim cache, Bike Maryland. This cache was so good that it inspired my hide, Bruceton Mills Lake and Dam.

I tried to compile a list of “honorable mentions” for the 2013 cache year, but there were really too many to count. If I had to choose one state and region that I enjoyed the most through caching in 2013, it would have to be Maryland. Visiting the highest point in Maryland (Hoye Crest) was stunning, taking in several state parks (thinking of Swallow Falls State Park and Rocky Gap State Park in particular), and enjoying the communities of Garrett and Allegany counties generated so many wonderful memories.

So far, 2014 has been a slow year for geocaching. Between the cold and the snow it’s been difficult to get out much. I’m hoping that’ll change this weekend! Happy caching!