WSGA Header
 Member NewsletterNovember 2010 

November days are shorter and wetter, but that doesn't dampen our enthusiasm for caching in the Pacific Northwet. A brisk walk to grab some caches can help burn off that turkey drumstick, maybe in one of our park success stories, and or attend an event and share your thanks for our favorite activity. WSGA recently showed our thanks for Northwest Trails by donating to this worthy mapping project.


We hope you haunted the spooktacular Halloween happenings around the state, and if winter's not your thing, you can look forward to Summer 2011 - we've set the date for the Summer Campout and are making plans for Going APE...All Over Again. Need a gift for your favorite cacher? Consider an APE Trackable.


As the new year approaches, it's time for Board elections - be sure to vote! - and membership renewals. In response to member feedback, we've created a new Family Membership option that will be phased in for 2011. And if anyone asks you "what is geocaching?" or "why join WSGA?", we have answers. Cache on!

familyNew: Family Membership Option
At our October meeting, the WSGA Board voted to begin offering two types of Full Membership in 2011: Individual and Family.

The new Family Membership was created in response to member feedback, and to help match planning and finances with demographics. In the past, Full Memberships were treated as if they were one person (hydnsek), but in fact, many are couples (lucyandrickie) or families (jcar). After gathering input from a cross-section of members around the state, we're splitting our Full Membership into two options:

Individual Membership: $12. One person; identical to current Full Membership. One name tag, one member bonus, etc.

Family Membership: $18. Two or more people under the same account. Name tags for each person and double member bonuses.

Full details, transition plan, and feedback. The new membership format is not live yet - it will be phased in with 2011 renewals. Stay tuned!
electionWSGA Elections Coming Soon
It's almost time to elect the 2011 WSGA Board of Directors: the four officers and seven chapter representatives who manage the statewide organization and individual chapters. WSGA Board members serve one-year terms, with elections held each December for the following year's Board.

WSGA represents geocachers and geocaching across Washington state, and we welcome your participation. Thanks to those candidates who agreed to run during the open nomination period, which closes Nov. 15. The slate will be published Nov. 17, and elections will be Dec. 1-15. You will receive email announcements for both the slate and election.

Our current Vice President, Lucymogus, is in charge of the election process. If you want to learn more about how the club operates or the duties of Board members, please read our Bylaws or contact us. We look forward to hearing from you!
parksParks Update: Bellevue and North Cascades
WSGA has two recent parks success stories, both the result of months of work by hydnsek, our Parks Advocacy chair, and part of our Park Liaison Program effort.

 

First, after a year of negotiation, Bellevue City Parks has finally issued its Geocaching Guidelines. Overall, they are quite reasonable, and WSGA heavily influenced their final form. We came a long way from Bellevue's early ideas of banning caches or requiring preapprovals. All caches in Bellevue parks must comply with the new guidelines, so please review them and make any necessary adjustments if you are a cache owner there. More info.


Second, North Cascades National Park Service Complex recently became the first NPS unit in the western U.S. to allow physical caches. A great win for geocachers! The initial placements - Cascade Pass Trailhead and Gorge Dam Overlook - were approved after two years of relationship-building and geo-indoctrination. More info.

spookSpooktacular Events

From GeoBoo (North Olympic Peninsula) and the Halloween Whodunnit (48 North) to the Ghoul-n-Grub Spooktacular (Inland Empire), geocaching ghosts and ghouls were everywhere in October.










































apetrackHoliday Gift Idea: APE Coin or Cachekinz
What are you getting the geocacher on your gift list? How about an APE Trackable - the APE geocoin ($10) and/or APE cachekinz ($5 each, or 5-packs for $22).

The APE trackables celebrate our "Tunnel of Light," the only remaining APE cache in the U.S. The geocoin features the "dancing ape" on the front and the Tunnel of Light (glows in the dark!) on the back. More info.

Cachekinz are trackable aluminum tags with custom icons - way cooler than standard TB tags. Our Going APE cachekinz features the ape and the text on the back reads "Project A.P.E. / Mission 9: Tunnel of Light" with the tracking number. More info.

And get this: One of our APE Cachekinz is now in Mission 4: Southern Bowl in Brazil! Check it out.
campoutInland Empire to Host 2011 Campout

The WSGA Board has accepted the recommendation of acfunk and his Campout Planning Committee and awarded the 2011 Summer Campout to Inland Empire Chapter. The Campout will be Aug. 5-7, 2011, at Chief Timothy Park (Asotin County). Quadsinthemudd presented a great proposal and is the designated Campout host, supported by IE Chapter. More info.
apeeventGoing APE...All Over Again

Unofficial word from WA State Parks is that Snoqualmie Tunnel will reopen next summer, possibly in June 2011. Woo hoo!

If so, WSGA plans to celebrate by hosting Going APE...All Over Again, a follow-on to this year's very successful Going APE event. We'll throw a big tunnel-warming party at Hyak, and folks can bike or hike through the tunnel to the APE cache. No buses or fees this time - we'll foot the bill for the park permits and refreshments and just enjoy ourselves.

Read more, and give us your feedback on event date.
nwtWSGA Supports Northwest Trails

WSGA has donated $100 to Northwest Trails, the public-domain mapping effort by Moun10Bike, a founding member of WSGA. The Northwest Trails mapset, which is free to download and use, is an invaluable resource for those with Garmin GPS receivers and we feel it deserves our support. More info.

Northwest Trails relies heavily on volunteer mappers, so consider mapping and contributing some trail data as part of the community effort.
whyWhat is Geocaching? Why Join WSGA?

Why join WSGA? What does our organization do? How do we support geocaching? What benefits do members receive?

If you've been asked these questions, or wondered yourself, check out our WSGA Benefits flyer. Feel free to distribute this document - you can print it for events, or forward it to others.

Or maybe you need a handout to explain geocaching itself for an event booth or presentation. WSGA now has a customized version of Groundspeak's Guide to Geocaching brochure, available in b/w and color.
eventsUpcoming Events
Join WSGA
Your annual dues help support geocaching in Washington.
From the President's Desk
hydnsek
 

As another year draws to a close, I'm thankful for my family, the many wonderful geocachers I call friends, and the great caches they place for me to enjoy.


Thanks also to our 350 members for your support of WSGA during our busiest and most successful year yet. Here's to even more fun in 2011, and I hope to see you at a geocaching event soon!


Contact hydnsek

Activation Codes  for Trackables

Looking for the activation codes for the WSGA coin,  APE coin or cachekinz? Here they are:

APE cachekinz - CACHE
APE coin - TUNNEL
WSGA 2010 coin - SALMON

Board Minutes

The Minutes of Board meetings are accessible from the WSGA home page (lower left column), and an archive of Board Minutes back to 2007 is also available.

Board Meetings
for 2010

WSGA's Board of Directors meetings are open to all members. The meetings are normally held online the 4th Thursday each quarter at 7:00 p.m., plus an annual general meeting at the Summer Campout. To join an online meeting, simply click Live Chat in the menu bar on the WSGA site.

For 2010, the Board meetings were:
  • Jan. 28
  • April 22
  • June 10
  • Aug. 14 (Campout)
  • Sept. 9
  • Oct. 28
Questions and agenda items may be sent to the President up to one week before each meeting.

boardContact WSGA Board Members
Who We Are

WSGA LogoThe Washington State Geocaching Association was founded in September 2002 to support geocachers and geocaching throughout the state of Washington.

The WSGA exists to:
  • Promote geocaching as a fun, family-oriented activity that increases awareness of the outdoors and our parks and trails.
  • Provide opportunities for the community to enjoy geocaching and to socialize with other geocachers.
  • Increase awareness and support of geocaching through interaction with other outdoor groups, geocaching clubs, and the public.
  • Educate geocachers about low-impact geocaching and promote stewardship of our natural resources.
  • Represent geocaching interests in public forums and to land managers.
  • Promote CITO activities to help maintain parks and trail systems.
Safe Unsubscribe
This email was sent to jac_bertrand@msn.com by contact@wsgaonline.org.
Washington State Geocaching Association | P.O. Box 850 | Marysville | WA | 98270