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The RedHawk Loop Mystery Cache

This cache has been archived.

SixGigahertz: Going to retire this series - it's become too difficult to maintain. Thank you to all that have found this one.

Stay safe, enjoy the moment, and happy caching!!
--Team GreenCorn

More
Hidden : 7/13/2010
Difficulty:
3 out of 5
Terrain:
1.5 out of 5

Size: Size:   regular (regular)

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Geocache Description:

*THERE IS NO PHYSICAL CACHE HERE* - the actual cache coordinates are found by discovering the solution to the riddle below, then doing some basic math to calculate the final coords... Keep reading.

From this point looking south, you can see a marvelous view of the magnificent (and gigantic) sculpture of the RedHawk logo in Temecula. In all the time I've been caching, it has always surprised me that there have been no caches along the great RedHawk loop – and thus I created this Mystery cache, and all of the RHL# caches that follow.

To get credit for this Mystery cache, you must find all twenty "RHL#" caches that will take you (twice) around the RedHawk Loop – once along the outside of the loop, and once along the inside - then you'll have to solve a riddle, which will then give you the ability to calculate the coordinates of the final cache.

I highly recommend you travel in numerical order through the RHL# caches for ease. Driving is easiest, riding a bike is healthier, and walking it will require a lot of sunblock and a seriously big floppy hat (it's nearly 7 miles to do the loop twice, and in the blazing sun it will take its toll).

All caches that you find along the loop will have listed either on the cache container and/or on the log sheet a letter of the alphabet. Collect all letters from all twenty caches, and place them in order next to each other. You will then have a jumble of twenty letters that make no sense – until you apply the ROT-13 rule to find the mystery word.

The solution, or the twenty-letter mystery word that you find, will be the answer to this riddle:

“How does an obsessed Geocacher find a new cache?”

The answer will be self-apparent if you have deciphered it correctly... Once you have obtained the Mystery Word to that riddle, do the following:

1. Starting with the number 1, assign a numerical and sequential value to each letter of the alphabet. For example, a=1, b=2, c=3, etc...

2. Now write down a value for each letter of the Mystery Word that you have already solved. For instance, if the mystery word was "GEOCACHE," its numerical value for each letter, according to the grid in #1 above would be "7-5-15-3-1-3-8-5".

3. The coordinates for the final cache in this series are as follows:

N33 27.ABC
W117 05.DEF

4. Solve for the missing coordinates by answering the following questions about the Mystery Word:

A: The value of the 6th letter minus the value of the 8th letter.

B: The value of the 12th letter plus the value of the 16th letter.

C: The value of the 20th letter minus the value of the 14th letter.

D: The value of the 4th letter divided by the value of the 11th letter.

E: The value of the 16th letter multiplied by itself.

F: The value of the 11th letter minus the value of the 5th letter.

Good luck to all. Stay safe, enjoy the moment, and happy caching!

Additional Hints (Decrypt)

Zntargvp. Chyy gur jubyr guvat fgenvtug qbja.

Decryption Key

A|B|C|D|E|F|G|H|I|J|K|L|M
-------------------------
N|O|P|Q|R|S|T|U|V|W|X|Y|Z

(letter above equals below, and vice versa)