Upcoming Events

May 29 – GCB73XH Stammtisch Klizich (Anchorage)

May 31 –GCB6JA5 Celebrate and Discover Potter Marsh! 2025 (Anchorage)

June 1 – GCB4KGT KMTA GeoTrail 2025 Season Kickoff  (Seward)

June 1 – GCB6GQZ  The Far Country (Skagway)

June 5 – GCB69A9  Visiting from Pennsylvania on Cruise Ship (Juneau)

June 7 – GCB70XR Discover Reflections Lake- but first, CITO  (Reflections Lake)

June 15 – GCB6WA9 Meet the Cachers from Netherlands (Anchorage)

June 20 – GCB6VC5  Visiting from Virginia (Sitka)

July 7 – GCB6NXN Teamwork Required: Montague Island (CITO Event) (Montague Island)

 

Upcoming Souvenirs:

Celebrating 25 Years: no time limit

     (Find all 5 treasures in “Celebrating 25 Years” Treasures collection to qualify)

June Solstice – June 20-22
     (Find and log any geocache, Event, or Adventure Lab location to qualify)

International Geocaching Day – August 16

For a full list of upcoming souvenirs, visit: 2025 Confirmed Souvenirs on the Geocaching Blog

 

Kickoff the 2025 summer caching season on the official KMTA GeoTrail!

 

Join GeocacheAlaska! and KMTA at the Branson Pavilion at the Seward end of the KMTA GeoTrail for a fun social event to celebrate the third year of Alaska’s first GeoTrail. GeocacheAlaska! is providing food to all attendees, with pulled pork being the centerpiece. Please post a “Will Attend” log and include the number of people in your party so we can bring enough for everyone! There is no charge for this event or the food. Attendees are encouraged to bring a side dish or dessert to share with the group. Please bring your own beverages!

Anyone who has completed the Passport requirements of the KMTA GeoTrail before the event may pick up their KMTA GeoTrail pathtags and geocoin at the event. You’ll need to have submitted your online passport form or bring your completed passport with you to the event.

The KMTA GeoTrail has 23 cache locations including 16 traditional caches, 4 multi-caches, 2 field puzzles, and an Earthcache. One of the puzzles is the bonus cache at the end of a 5-stage Adventure Lab in Seward. The cache locations approximate the locations from the official KMTA Field Guide, which follows the history of the KMTA region from Girdwood to Hope to Cooper Landing to Seward.

 

To RSVP, submit your “Will Attend” here:  GCB4KGT – KMTA GeoTrail 2025 Season Kickoff

 

 

About the KMTA GeoTrail:

Welcome to a geocaching trail exploring Alaska’s only National Heritage Area. In 2009, Congress designated the Kenai Mountains-Turnagain Arm (KMTA) region of Southcentral Alaska as a National Heritage Area (NHA). This designation formally recognizes the history of an area that has deeply shaped the legacy of Alaska and the nation. It is the history of the Alutiiq, Sugpiaq, and Dena’ina people—the original stewards and inhabitants of the Kenai Peninsula. It’s that of the Iditarod National Historic Trail, Alaska Railroad, Gold Rush, Seward Highway, and local industries that give KMTA its character. KMTA’s geographic footprint bridges Cook Inlet and Prince William Sound via mountains, glacial valleys, and productive rivers. Throughout this landscape are communities and stories that connect us to our past and future. It includes the small and vibrant communities of Bird, Indian, Girdwood, Whittier, Hope, Cooper Landing, Moose Pass, and Seward, and all the wilderness between them. As Alaska’s only National Heritage Area, KMTA aims to enhance, preserve, and share the region’s natural and cultural resources— in essence its heritage. Above all else, KMTA strives to foster pride of place and an enduring stewardship ethic for this special place. As you travel through the Heritage Area to complete this GeoTrail, we encourage to keep that stewardship ethic front of mind as you learn about and enjoy the richness of the region.

As you search for the geocaches making up this GeoTrail, you’ll be asked to complete a passport that qualifies you to purchase the KMTA GeoTrail Geocoin. For more information on the Passport and GeoTrail, please visit KMTA-GeoTrail.GCAK.org

KMTA field guide link: https://kmtacorridor.org/field-trip-guide/

 

 

Looking for GeocacheAlaska! merch? Check out our storefront on Printify! Tees, hoodies, hats, and other goodies can be printed-to-order with our logo and shipped straight to you.  Shirts are available in several styles and colors, and in a full range of sizes.

And check back later in the summer, as we’ll be adding new product offerings!

 

 

By Emily Accipiter Stewart (eaccipi)

 

Happy May! The sun is beginning to shine, the tourists are beginning to come, and the GeoTrail we have on the Kenai Peninsula is gearing up for it’s third summer!

 

I personally am inviting you to join us in Seward on June 1 st for our Third Annual picnic kick-off for the GeoTrail – a series of 23 geocaches located in the historic Kenai Mountains Turnagain Arm region, highlighting history, geography, and cultural sites from Girdwood to Seward to Cooper Landing. If you haven’t worked on finding the caches in this series, I highly recommend it! Each cache is an ammo can, so it’s perfect for a family friendly adventure.

 

I also recommend checking out the  “Cache Odyssey – Alaska” cache, located inside the Kenai Chamber Visitor Center during business hours. It’s part of the official Northwest Cache Odyssey GeoTour series, and an incredibly creative gadget cache! If you’re more in southcentral, a trip to Wasilla will bring you near the “Cache Across America- Alaska” cache – one of 50 as part of a tour across America.

 

We’ll also start seeing more events! We love whenever visitors come to Alaska, either as a cruiser or independent. Since we’ve got such a bounty of caches that are incredibly accessible, I recommend going to the events hosted by visitors to share your favorite cache spots with them!

 

Overall, I hope you get to play tourist in your own state. Go to a festival, visit a new city, or find a new cache on a trail you haven’t seen before. Let’s enjoy our gameboard!

 

Yours,
eaccipi
Emily Accipiter Stewart, GeocacheAlaska! President

On April 16, few brave souls sported pajamas on a chilly afternoon at Kaladi Brothers Coffee in Anchorage to celebrate Geocache in Your Pajamas day. Here’s hoping that it becomes a fun annual tradition! Pictured are the WOCM family team, hyfolks26, and freeweez.

 

Upcoming Events

May 2 – GCB39FR  A Toast to Davidaknz! (Juneau)

May 17 – GCB5CZ7  Seward Alaska Mermaid Festival  (Seward)

June 1 – GCB4KGT KMTA GeoTrail 2025 Season Kickoff  (Seward)

June 5 – GCB69A9  Visiting from Pennsylvania on Cruise Ship (Juneau)

 

Upcoming Souvenirs:

Cache In Trash Out, Season 1: through May 31
       (Log a CITO event to qualify)

Blue Switch Day: May 2
      (“Finder” Souvenir: Log any geocache, event, or adventure lab stop to qualify)

      (“Hider” Souvenir: Hide any non-event geocache, having it published between May 1 and May 31 to qualify)

GeoGuessr Partnership Challenge: through May 9

     (Complete 25 GeoGueser puzzles, and log the trackable code that you’re given to qualify)

Celebrating 25 Years: no time limit

     (Find all 5 treasures in “Celebrating 25 Years” Treasures collection to qualify)

By: Sarah Pace (RSPace)

 

 

The GeoGuessr challenge, in a limited-time partnership with Geocaching, is back! Until May 9, get a free preview of the GeoGuessr game, discoverer some unique and beautiful places around the world (each near a real-life geocache location), and earn a souvenir.

GeoGuessr drops you on a completely random Google Streetview-style map, and your job is to navigate around a bit and try to figure out roughly where in the world you are (within about 1,000 miles), before the 3 minute timer runs out. You might find yourself in the middle of a busy city, a quiet town, or on a completely deserted rural road… but look around for clues!

• Can you spot any known landmarks?
• What is the scenery and geography like? Are there plants or trees? A coastline? Mountains?
• What side of the road are you driving on? Are your fellow vehicles specific to a certain region?
• What language are any signs and advertisements in?
• Do any of the local businesses, buildings, or directional signs have words or names that you can Google? (we won’t judge!)

Once you have a guess, click on the world map to drop a pin and see how close you came! Complete a few puzzles, then look for a trackable code that you can use to claim your Geocaching souvenir.

Check it out at the Geocaching Blog!

President

Emily Accipiter Stewart, eaccipi 

Emily first joined the GeocacheAlaska! Board as a member-at-large, later serving as Vice-President. She chairs the Membership and KMTA Geotrail committees. You can reach her at eaccipi.

 

Vice President

Wes Skinner, NorthWes

Previously serving 10 years as President, Wes is now Vice-President, with a focus on leading the advocacy, education, and nominations committees. You can reach him at NorthWes.

 

Treasurer

Lisa Williams, wocm

Lisa is a new Board member this year, and we are so excited to have her! Lisa is also the Fundraising committee Chair. You can reach her at wocm.

 

Secretary

Sarah Pace, RSPace

Sarah continues to keep us organized and is responsible for the GeocacheAlaska! Newsletter. She also chairs the recently revived CACHE committee, which recognizes our members and their accomplishments. You can reach her at RSPace .

 

Webmaster

Scott Aleckson, SSO.JOAT

Scott continues to serve as webmaster, working on new projects for updating our website, membership management,  and newsletter process. He is also chair of the Communications committee. You can reach him at SSO JOAT

 

Member At Large

Bill VanCouwenberghe, AlaskaVans

Bill is serving his second term as a Member At Large. You can reach him at  AlaskaVans.

 

Member At Large

Blake Stewart, JackCat14

Blake is serving his second term as a Member At Large. You can reach him at  JackCat14.

 

Member At Large

Trish Fredieu, AKLoisAndClark

Trish is returning to our board as a Member At Large. She chairs the events committee. You can reach her at AKLoisAndClark.

 

Member At Large

Susan Bartel, getatm

Newly elected, Susan is joining our board as a Member At Large. You can reach her at getatm.

 

Committees

Got ideas, but no time to join the board? We would love to invite our members to join the committees of GeocacheAlaska! And make your voices heard! Below are the committees for GeocacheAlaska! And their general purpose. Please reach out to the committee chairs to get involved.

• Advocacy Committee – handles blanket permits and works to improve outdoor access
• Education Committee – supporting geocaching and outdoor education with the youth
• Events Committee – Plans engaging and educational events for the geocaching community
• Fundraising Committee – Finds creative ways to fund our organization
• Communications Committee – Monthly Newsletter and Social Media
• KMTA GeoTrail Committee – supports our GeoTrail on the Kenai Peninsula
• Membership Committee – grow our membership and find what adds value
• Nominations Committee – prepares for the annual election
• CACHE Committee – recognizing our members and their accomplishments

Upcoming Events

May 2 – GCB39FR A Toast to Davidaknz! Event Cache (Juneau)

The GeocacheAlaska! events committee had a fantastic meeting this past week, filled with amazing event ideas! Look for lots new events publishing soon, and get ready for a very busy summer Event Cache season!

 

Upcoming Souvenirs:

Cache In Trash Out, Season 1: March 1–May 31
       (Log a CITO event to qualify)

Geocache in your Pajamas Day: April 16
      (log any geocache or event to qualify. Don’t forget to wear your bunny slippers!)

Blue Switch Day: May 2
      (“Finder” Souvenir: Log any geocache, event, or adventure lab stop to qualify)

      (“Hider” Souvenir: Hide any non-event geocache, having it published between May 1 and May 31 to qualify)

 

By Emily Accipiter Stewart (eaccipi)

 

April is just around the corner as I belatedly write this for our GeocacheAlaska! Members; I hope you’ll forgive me for the delayed timeline – sometimes life gets really busy and it’s hard to do everything that needs to be done.

It’s also hard to find time to fit the things we love in our lives together when time is limited and the to-do’s are piling up. So, I’ve been trying to work on ways to combine things that need to get done with the things I want to do.

 

For example, the weather has been so nice and sunny, and I’ve been wanting to spend more time outside. When a co-worker asked me if we could meet to go over some of the details about an event we had coming up, I asked if we could take the meeting on a walk. Since we didn’t need laptops, we just brought our phones and made notes as we talked, doing a 30 minute lap on the trails around our office. We got 2 miles under our feet, fresh air, and finalized the plan for the event. Three birds, one stone!

 

We’ve now started making daily walks a part of our workflow. But, I feel like I’d been neglecting geocaching, which I wanted to do – especially with the new Treasures released! Looking at my geocaching.com map, I noticed the route we’d been taking had 5 caches along the route, and there were another half-dozen if we made slight modifications. So, on one of our walks this week I asked the group (which has now grown to 4!) if they would mind if we stopped and found one geocache on our walks each day. They were game to see what it is I’m always talking about, and helped me make the find – a multi-cache I had attempted alone previously during a snowy winter and had never gone back for. With their help, I was able to find the cache, introduce my favourite activity to them, and add a smiley to the map.

 

As I write this, I find myself in Los Angeles for work. I’m not too far from the airport, but I’m seeing a fair amount of caches that I could make a 15 minute or less walk to go get (which is my plan, after I finish this off and get it to our Newsletter Editor!). I’m excited because it’s the perfect way for me to explore when I’m on a work trip and get out of a hotel or conference space.

 

I know there’s not an easy way to add geocaching to every activity in a busy life – sometimes there is only an opportunity to do the priority task and move on, but if you’ve been in a bit of a busy season, I hope you take the time to take a deep breath and find a chance to do something for yourself. It can be geocaching, taking a walk, finding 10 minutes a night to make progress on a book, or even one DuoLingo lesson a day (hey, those international geocaches don’t always have an english translation!) – Take the time for you!

 

Let’s cross our fingers for a beautiful Spring that gets us all outside! I know the Events Committee has some great ideas in the works – I hope to see you out there!

 

See you on the trails,

Emily Accipiter Stewart
President, GeocacheAlaska!

eaccipi