A geocaching guide to West Bend

One of the best places in the country to go geocaching is closer than you might think. West Bend is the Geocaching Capital of the Midwest™, home to more than 1,600 caches carefully hidden across the city. If you’re new to geocaching, it’s a high-tech treasure hunting game played with a smartphone—and it’s a great way to discover the outdoor beauty of West Bend. Here’s a quick guide to your next geocaching getaway in West Bend.

Get started

What do you need to go geocaching? Just your phone and a sense of adventure. There’s a free app that you can download at Geocaching.com. It’s available for Apple and Android devices, and you can use it to navigate to nearby geocaches. There’s a bit of searching and intuition involved in geocaching—clues will help get you close to each cache but, ultimately, you may find yourself looking behind trees and under benches. Geocaches are typically small waterproof containers that contain a bit of “treasure” like a small toy. When you find a geocache, there will be a log book you can sign before placing the cache back where you found it.

Take the tour

The West Bend Four Seasons GeoTour is a great way to take in West Bend’s scenic beauty and attractions. Twenty special caches have been placed around the city in historic sites and parks, along trails and near museums. You’ll collect points for each cache you uncover as well as each meal you eat and night you spend at participating businesses. Log your points on a special GeoTour passport. Collect 25 points and you’ll receive a limited-edition West Bend Four Seasons GeoCoin, trackable on Geocaching.com! Learn more.

Get ready to party

Every summer, the West Bend $1,000 Cache Ba$h attracts geocachers from around the world. The event features a cash raffle totaling $1,000 as well as other great prizes. It attracts more than 700 teams and a lot of serious geocachers, but it’s welcoming to people who are new to the activity as well. The event features geocaching vendors and special classes, and there are even new geocaches created for the event! Learn more.

Find history

Just 15 miles from West Bend, you’ll find Wisconsin’s oldest geocache. Codenamed GC3B1, it’s located in the Pike Lake Unit of the Kettle Moraine State Forest and was hidden back in 2001. Have fun finding this bit of geocaching history!