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Lab Cache Guide for Builders


mamabear

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The purpose of Lab Caches is to create an engaging and educational experience for the geocaching community by using a temporary series of geocaches that are unique and achievable for all participants. We have created this forum to help Lab Cache builders share their ideas and tips for creating the best experience for others. Show off your photos, insights, and stories here!

 

Frequently asked questions:

 

What are Lab Caches? A Lab Cache is an experimental and extremely rare geocache type. These geocaches are a way for Geocaching HQ to innovate and test new ideas to make geocaching even better. By building a great experience you are helping us shape the future of Geocaching!

 

How does a Lab Cache work? These mostly work the same as regular geocaches: navigate (using the web-based app) to the location, find the cache and sign the logbook, solve the riddle, or answer the question. However, these differ in that you must use the find code in order to mark the geocache as found. The URL for Lab Caches should be shared by event hosts with participants ahead of time.

 

Does a Lab Cache have to involve a container? A container is preferred, but not necessary. It can even be indoors. The finder just needs to discover a code to unlock the find. At a large event, it is better to have a crowd-friendly geocache. Have fun and be creative, these are temporary hides with a lifespan as long as the mega event.

 

Are Lab Caches reviewed by a reviewer? No. The general geocaching guidelines do not apply to Lab Caches and the caches do not go through a formal review process. We assume you are using your expert local judgement for locations and ensuring the player will have the best experience. Geocaching HQ is happy to skim through the Lab Caches before your event. Approval may be withheld if Geocaching HQ deems the series to be inappropriate.

 

Are Lab Caches replacing virtual geocaches? No, because there are no special logging requirements other than entering the find code.

 

For more frequently asked questions visit this link.

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Does this mean lab caches are going to be more available to make for us normal people?

 

I must say if so, it would be nice. In August, there is an annual event weekend in my city, and the ability to make lab caches would, I believe benefit us. One of the events is a tour of the city, and surrounding area. Promote tourism, and take people to places that have some significance. However it can't be a cache since it is only one day, so we had to make it an event. Which is where the problem comes in-it's not really an event. I can say, thanks to our reviewer we have worked something out, but I believe we had to sacrifice some important things to meet guidelines. As it is, it's pretty much go here, go here, go here, and look at this, this, and this. There is more to it, but that's the basics-almost like a puzzle cache.

 

Having the ability to make a lab cache, would allow us to use more of the area's historical buildings, including some that would be classified as commercial content, even when there is no such content (after all the reviewer can only trust what we say so much, and use what they know for sure)

 

For example, the city I live in, Medicine Hat, Alberta being older than the Province( which is 109 years old) naturally has several historical area's and even buildings which are older than Alberta as a province. Many of these are not geocache friendly, but we could have a a lab cache with them. A historical tour of the city of sorts. I guess a cross between a virtual and a puzzle cache with a little bit of event cache thrown in, as it is temporary after all.

 

One of our local cachers has attended the Mega in, I believe Yuma, Arizona, and they said the lab cache there was a big hit. I don't see why these can't be used similarily (Is that a word?) to other annual events. While, obviously not available just willy nilly, it could fill in a gap.

 

This was just meant to be a quick why, and what, but I guess I ended up rambling on. Anyway I could provide more details on what it would be used as/for, since we are basically doing a lab cache this year, and last year.

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