Best of 2014: I am the God of Leaky Caches and Soggy Log Books

Number 8: GCBB8F - I am the God of Leaky Caches and Soggy Log Books
Hidden by JoeCthulhu
164 Favorite Posts
Washington, District of Columbia
Found on December 11, 2014

Washington, DC is not only the seat of a world power and a cultural hub, it is a geocaching paradise: particularly if you love virtual (and, increasingly, earthcaches). Areas in and around the National Mall and the various presidential and military monuments it is possible to find caches that have accumulated thousands of favorite points. This is particularly handy given the increasing popularity of challenge caches that demand finders to have found combinations of caches with sometimes as many as 8000 favorite points with as few as 10 to 20 caches.

Being tucked behind the Capitol at the steps of the Library of Congress, this virtual cache is comparatively off of the beaten path of tourists eager to gather as much of “DC” as they can in the short period of time that they have to experience it. Perhaps this is how it was overlooked when I lived in the DC area in the latter half of 2009 and on my numerous trips back in the years since. Frankly, those who try to experience the best of DC in a few days are deluded, I had months and I couldn’t even penetrate the surface. There are still countless museums I dream of visiting.

Let me hop off my high horse, geocaching is an excellent way to see DC. I first noticed this trend when I was checking out geocaches in Baltimore, but caches tend not to be placed in areas that are particularly unsafe for outsiders. Obviously, if you’re in an unfamiliar environment you should be vigilant and careful, but that should be common sense. Geocaches, especially virtual and earthcaches, are also often placed in interesting places. Also consider caches with ample favorite points and you can pick out some places that you probably really want to visit.

A quilt that hung in the now-retired Senator Jay Rockefeller's office in the Hart Senate Office Building

Immediately prior to finding this cache I solved the coordinates for a mystery cache, U.S.S. to CinC. This cache took me through the halls of the Senate office buildings where I not only had the opportunities to see where some of our greatest presidents had their offices when they were members of the Senate but I also had a chance to meet the staff and talk to the people representing my interests as a resident of West Virginia in the Senate. After I found this virtual cache, I continued on to an earthcache at the National Museum of the American Indian, where I spent hours among the exhibits, watching the films, and binging on the delicious cuisine.

But back to the Library of Congress, on a cold December morning, it is deserted. I had the place to myself to answer the questions necessary to log the find. Tightly gripping my coffee to keep my hands warm, I spent just a few extra moments with Neptune, knowing that of all the wondrous and inspiring statues and monuments in DC he is easy to miss and that in such company I would want the visit, too.

Neptune with some of his friends from the sea on a cold and dry December morning