Rock Islands frying Pan Tree

The Rock Islands frying Pan Tree geocache (GC6VVF3) hides on top of one of the two rocky hills that overlook the woods of Sparta, New Jersey. From the road, in winter, you catch metallic glints between the branches: hundreds of frying pans and saucepans hanging from the trees, chiming like wind chimes.

Nobody knows where the tradition comes from. Local accounts waver between a former scout camp nearby and teenagers from the area. A first frying pan tree had offspring until the whole summit was covered, and the utensils hang so high that you have to haul yourself up on a rope to add one. The place broke through at the end of 2023, when videos of this "frying pan forest" went round social media; the cache became geocache of the week in February 2024, then made the selection of the year.

"I always wanted to take geocachers somewhere unique, not just put a container in the woods," says its owner treequest, a regular of caves, cliffs and abandoned places.