Washington Heritage Geo-Adventure

Find 25 hidden geocaches in five different regions across Washington State in four months or less and participants in The Great Washington Heritage Geo-Adventure could win the grand prize. Find all five in one of five different regions and heritage adventurers will receive a custom pathtag specific to that region. Collect all five to earn the complete set.

In celebration of the Washington State Historical Society’s 125th year of service, the organization has selected 25 locations around the state that have received financial support from the society’s Heritage Capital Projects Fund and hidden geocaches somewhere near the site. The contest runs from June through Oct. 3, 2016 – exactly 125 days – and culminates with the grand prize drawing at the Historical Society’s 125 birthday bash on October 8.

“What better way to showcase the state’s amazing heritage than a contest that invites participants to visit these often underappreciated locations to learn more about our communities’ shared history?” said Erich Ebel, the society’s marketing and communications director. “Each of these twenty-five partners has been chosen for its unique cultural value as well as its dispersed geographic location. It’s probably not often that people get up to Entiat or over to Kettle Falls or down to Dayton but with caches hidden nearby, these areas will hopefully see a few more visitors this summer. This adventure gives Washington residents yet another reason to experience all our great state has to offer.”

In addition to the unique collection of five custom pathtags, visitors to all 25 locations will be entered into a drawing to win the grand prize: a limited-edition wool Pendleton blanket commemorating the journey of Lewis and Clark and the Corps of Discovery. This collector’s blanket had a limited run of only 1,805 produced - commemorating the year Lewis and Clark reached the Pacific - and is one of the most prized bicentennial collectibles. All contest participants are invited to attend the Washington State Historical Society's 125th birthday celebration event on Oct. 8 at the Washington State History Museum, 1911 Pacific Ave. in Tacoma.

More information on The Great Washington Heritage Geo-Adventure can be found at www.washingtonhistory.org/geoadventure. Geocaching is a worldwide game wherein a participant with a global positioning system (GPS) can locate hidden "treasures" called geocaches. The exact coordinates are published at www.geocaching.com so GPS users can find it. Those who find the caches are encouraged to take a trinket left inside as long as they leave a similar trinket for the next finder, and all cache discoverers must sign the provided logbook. After the contest ends Oct. 3, the geocaches will remain in their locations indefinitely to encourage the public to visit new heritage locations around Washington State.