Welcome to the 2019 Edition of Cache Across Maryland, hosted by the Maryland Geocaching Society. This is one of ten geocaches placed throughout the "Old Line State" in locations chosen to showcase Maryland's diverse beauty, history and terrain.  From the mountains of Western Maryland to the Atlantic Ocean, Cache Across Maryland 2019 will again demonstrate that Maryland truly is “America in Miniature”.

Each of the ten geocaches contains a code which you will use to determine the location of the CAM 2019 Picnic to be held on May 4th, 2019. The code can be found on the inside of the cache container and on the inside front cover of the logbook. Don't forget to record this code! Any geocacher who has completed all TEN of the CAM geocaches and attends the CAM Picnic on May 4th will receive a Certificate of Completion and a Cache Across Maryland 2019 commemorative geocoin in antique copper. We hope you enjoy CAM 2019!

BOOM! - MGS!

Way back in July of 2001 a geocache was placed by THE DAM TROLLS along the Susquehanna River near Conowingo, and was named DAM CACHE II.  It was an ammo can out in the woods along an old fishing trail.  There were a few other caches nearby, some up the river and some in the nearby woods.  This cache was found by 15 seekers in about 8 months, but in February of 2002, something happened...

It's the one email a hider does NOT want to receive - YOUR CACHE HAS BEEN BLOWN UP!  Upon reading this, the owners were shocked that a non-cacher had found their cache and reported it to the Park Rangers.  The Rangers responded, police and Feds were called in to investigate and determine if the box was a true hazard, and recommended that the bomb squad be called.  Being that it was a Sunday night, the bomb squad arrived on Monday morning.  In the interest of safety after x-raying the ammo can, they decided to render the cache inert by placing some C-4 on the side of it and exploding it.  The cache container was removed and everyone left the location.  Below are photos of the actual blasting cap used to neutralize the suspicious container, and the remains of the contents of the cache left on site.

The cache owners were notified of these events through Doc Sarvis' log on the cache page, and they subsequently contacted the park office about this.  They were told that all caches in the State Parks were removed because of this incident.  The COs were told to contact all other hiders to inform them of these events.  In the early days of geocaching, no one really knew each other's actual names, so all contact was via email.

At this time, it became evident that all geocaches in the Maryland State Parks were in jeopardy of being removed, with no future for new placements.  Certain Maryland cachers decided then that they needed to open a line of communication with the park system. 

Meanwhile, The Maryland Geocaching Society had been organized to represent geocachers within the park systems.  The first official meeting of the MGS Core was held at a restaurant in Laurel not long after the bombing event.  Attendees included Davros, Team OUTSID4EVR, Tedoca, Birdsfans, and Klause Von Kuhn (KVK).  Discussions centered on a summer picnic to be held at Patapsco State Park.  The Core were hoping to invite park officials to explain geocaching and smooth relations with them.  Public relations were initially handled by Davros and KVK, but were soon turned over to Birdsfans, who were very good at talking with park managers.

One of the results of the cache bombing was that MGS founding member Randall J. Berry, known as Davros, organized his first (and perhaps Maryland's first) event, Bag-A-Load-A-Cache, in March 2002. Nineteen cachers logged attendance and made a day of collecting finds on nearby caches, while meeting like-minded players for the first time.

Through the continuous efforts of Members and Officers of the MGS throughout the past seventeen years, many park officials, property managers and law enforcement officers now have a better understanding of geocaching and have accepted the game as a meaningful recreational activity.  Maryland is the only state to have an event like Cache Across Maryland, which is now in it's 16th year!  The MGS continues to promote geocaching throughout the State and all over the country.

Park Regulations/Information:

• Park is open dawn to dusk
• No entrance fees.
• Pets are allowed on the grounds.  All animals must be leashed; clean up after your pets.
• No alcoholic beverages.