Abstract
Geocaching is an activity which libraries of all types can use as an educational and promotional tool. It is a variation on a scavenger hunt and allows libraries to showcase their services and facilities to people who may not be regular users of the library. Geocaching can also be used by libraries as an educational tool, and examples of educational outcomes related to geocaching are provided. The placement of a geocache within the Macquarie University Library building is used as an example of a library using geocaching as an educational and outreach tool. The geocache has received a very positive response from the local geocaching community. This article provides some background to geocaching, as well as examples of library-related geocaches from around the world.
Highlights
Geocaching is an activity which libraries of all types can use as an educational and promotional tool
Geocaches can provide ‘a way of making the library more fun to our users as well as attracting more folks to our library’ (Musser 2008, 131). Musser reported that their geocache had been found by people who regularly passed by the building but had never gone inside
This book has been hollowed out to allow a container to be placed inside it to hold the logbook and trinkets. It is shelved as the last book in the collection, so finders need to make their way through the whole building in order to find it
Summary
Libraries are always looking for ways in which they can attract people into their facilities and showcase the services and resources that they offer. Geocachers who wish to find a geocache can obtain the coordinates of its hiding place from the listing website, and go and search for it. When they find it they sign the logbook inside the geocache to prove that they found it. Geocaching is an activity which people of all ages can participate in – from families with children, to retirees travelling around the country. This makes geocaching an ideal way for all types of libraries to showcase their services and facilities, and engage with their community
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
