June is here and that means that the Geocaching community is recovering from the fun and frolicking that is GeoWoodstock III. Everyone heads home for some caching and what the workday life has in store. That's the case everywhere but in the Midwest. Here, hundreds of people are getting packed, planning their camp site decorations, bartering for excess ground space and preparing for the biggest thing to hit Fulton County, Ohio, since the Amish rolled into town.
July 15th through the 17th is when Geocachers will collide at Harrison Lake State Park for the Midwest GeoBash, a social event that crosses borders and unites a region. The schedule is loose, the activities are optional and, for some reason, there will be flamingos.
There are an endless number of questions people have about this event in the Great Black Swamp and hopefully we can answer them here.
Q: How did this event start?
A: In September of 2004, Pipanella turned 29 (again, we think) and someone threw her a birthday party. A bunch of people invited themselves, including some folks from Michigan, Indiana, Illinois and Ohio. Hardly any of these people a) knew Pip; b) lived within an hour of the event; or c) knew why they went. This Sunday morning breakfast forged bonds only known to geocachers. Out of that bond came an idea. "Why not have an event where Ohioans and Michiganders have a campout and call it the 'Oh-Mi' (Oh, My!) event?" But the site we chose was in Indiana, so it became the "Oh, My! Indianians!" Event. After some careful research, our chosen site told us that they didn't want our business, so we moved where we knew we'd be loved and we renamed it the "Midwest GeoBash". An event was born.
Q: What's happening at the GeoBash?
A: A little bit of everything is the best answer you'll get. It's turned into a Geocaching Community Festival. Anyone can sign up to give a demonstration or lead an activity at the pavilion on Saturday. Already, we're having some hands-on Hi-Tek demonstrations, a "Meet the Reviewers" session, a couple sessions related to Park managers and policies, and the list is still filling up. Saturday night at the Pavillion is the Main Event. We'll have a potluck dinner with some sort of program to end the day's festivities. Anticipate the extraordinary. At "Base Camp" we'll be having a party 'round the clock. There will be a game going on around a campfire on Friday. This is likely to be the site of a "Crazy Hat" contest on Saturday, as well. Around the campground, Geocachers are decorating their sites with themes. Flamingos seem to be a big theme here in the Midwest and it sounds like a couple sites are pulling all the stops in pink. Friday night is also bringing out the chefs. Several sites are preparing an evening meal to be shared with local and exotic themes. Some sites are hiding caches on their lots for cachers to find and trade signature items.
All the while, cachers will be cachers. Caching expeditions will leave every day to sample the local hides and see what makes this part of Ohio so great. At the same time, non-cachers will probably not get converted. For the "Cacher's Spouse", there are several nearby attractions, including the Sauder Village, a historic village highlighting the Amish woodworking crafts that built the Sauder Furniture Company. There is so much to see and do, you'll need to keep up with the GeoBash Forums and the Event Page.
Q: Is this limited to people from the Midwest?
A: Certainly not! It just happens to be in the Midwest. If you can reach us, you can get in.
Q: What does this cost, and what do I get for it?
A: The event is free. For that, you get all of the activities, probably some free firewood, some snacks at Base Camp and some other stuff we haven't decided on yet.
Q: How is this happening? Who pays your bills?
A: We are proud to say that we are supported by the generous work of volunteers and the proceeds from a few merchandising efforts. We're selling some T-shirts and coins and letting people contribute what they will so that the weekend can be fun for everyone. The thing that gets in the way is figuring out how to use what we have without having anything left over after the event.
Q: I read that this is sponsored by Geocaching organizations. How does that work?
A: Once a group has more than five members registered for the GeoBash, the group can be a sponsor. It's the least amount of work any group has ever had to do to host an event. Sponsoring groups can have an information table at the pavillion if the space allows us to make that happen.
Q: Who's coming?
A: A decent and mostly accurate list is being kept on the event page.
We are very excited that more than 70 camp sites have been reserved by Geocachers. This accounts for about 300 Geocachers who will be staying at the camp. We anticipate many more to be coming in for Friday or Saturday as "Daytrippers" and more staying at hotels and other campgrounds nearby.
Once GeoWoodstock is over this is the next big thing. Be there or be hearing about it from your friends!