Geocaching - Terminology

Terminology

There are various acronyms and words commonly used when discussing geocaching.

General:

  • Cache – A box or container that contains, at the very least, a logbook.
  • Geoswag – The items that can be found in some larger caches.
  • Georing – A term first coined by the South GA Geocachers group in 2011. It's the term used to refer to a notification tone made by a smartphone when a new cache is published.
  • Muggle – A non-geocacher.
  • Muggled – Being caught by a non-geocacher while retrieving/replacing a cache; also, a muggled cache has been removed or vandalized by a non-geocacher, usually out of misunderstanding or lack of knowledge.
  • Smiley – A cache find. Refers to the "smiley-face" icon attached to "Found It" logs on some listing sites.
  • BYOP – (Bring Your Own Pen/Pencil) The cache in question lacks a writing device for the logbook.
  • CITO – (Cache In Trash Out) Picking up trash on the hunt.
  • CO – (Cache Owner) The person who is responsible for maintaining a cache, usually the person who hid it.
  • DNF – (Did Not Find) Did not find the cache container being searched for.
  • FIGS – Found in good shape.
  • FTF – (First To Find) The first person to find a cache container; less commonly one may see STF (second to find, or TTF, third to find).
  • FTF Hoover – Cacher who races out once they have received the Georing usually to collect all the FTF's on a full series.
  • FTL – (First To Log) The first person to log the find of a cache container online.
  • GPS – Short for Global Positioning System, also occasionally refers to the receiver itself.
  • GPSr – Short for GPS receiver.
  • PAF – Phone-A-Friend.
  • SGC – (Senior GeoCacher) An experienced participant of the pursuit.

Logging a hunt:

  • TFTC – (Thanks For The Cache) This is often used at the end of logs to thank the cache owner.
  • TFTH – (Thanks For The Hunt or Hide or Hike) It shares the same purpose as TFTC, but can also be used when the cache was not found.
  • TN – (Took Nothing) no trade or traveling item was removed from the cache.
  • LN – (Left Nothing) no trade or traveling item was added to the cache.
  • XN – (eXchanged Nothing) combines the previous two acronyms; nothing was removed or added.
  • SL – (Signed Log) used when the participant visited the cache and signed its logbook.
  • TSIA – (The Streak Is Alive) used when the participant has an active streak of continuous days finding a cache.

Note: the various acronyms in this section are often combined in various ways, such as "TNLNSL, TFTC!"

Location description or hint:

  • GRC – (GuardRail Cache) used in the description on where a cache may be hidden.
  • GZ – (Ground Zero or Geo-zone) refers to the general area in which a cache is hidden. For Example:- The cache is hidden at N50 35.195 W003 27.961
  • ICT – (Ivy Covered Tree) used in the description on where a cache may be hidden.
  • LPC – (Light/Lamp Post Cache) used in the description on where a cache may be hidden. In European countries also often used to indicate a "Lost Place cache" (a cache hidden in an abandoned structure)
  • MKH – (Magnetic Key Holder) used in the description on the type of container used for the cache.
  • P&G – (Park and Grab) used to refer to a cache that is fairly close to the nearest parking spot, does not require hiking more than a tenth of a mile
  • PLC – (Parking Lot Cache) used in the description on where a cache may be hidden.
  • POR – (Pile Of Rocks) used in the description on where a cache may be hidden.
  • POS – (Pile Of Sticks or Stones) used in the description on where a cache may be hidden.
  • SL – (Skirt Lifter) refers to the metal or plastic skirt at the base of a lightpole, and used in reference to LPC caches (see LPC).
  • SOOP – (Something Out Of Place) used to refer to a natural or other object that seems out of place, indicating a geocache is hidden in that spot
  • TOTT – (Tool Of The Trade) can refer to any out of the ordinary tool needed/used to retrieve a cache. Most often used tongue-in-cheek to refer to the use of a ladder to get to an out-of-reach cache.
  • UFO – (Unnatural Formation of Objects) a pile of material that obviously did not form naturally and is a likely cache hiding spot.
  • UPS – (Unnatural Pile of Sticks) a pile of sticks that did not form naturally and where a cache may be hidden.

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