Schinderhannes

The Schinderhannes geocache (GC23VXF) was hidden on 11 February 2010 in the forests of the Hunsrück, in Germany. At the end of the trail waits a large wooden sculpture of the brigand the cache is named after: it is the sculpture that guards the drawer where the container sleeps. Geocaching HQ made it its geocache of the week in July 2013, under the title “Meet the German Robin Hood”.

The character really existed. Johannes Bückler roamed both banks of the Rhine during the French occupation before being captured and guillotined on 21 November 1803, at about twenty-five years of age. His reputation as a thief with a big heart was born after his death.

The cache, made entirely of wood by hand, is a true masterpiece. The only instruction the owner gives: do not force it open.