Princeton Perceiver Mystery Cache

Solving this puzzle will get you out for a very pleasant walk in Salt Lake City's Harvard/Yale neighborhood.  This is one of the most beautiful parts of the city and, with tree-lined streets, classic architecture and lots of sidewalks, it is a fantastic place for walkers.  My parents both grew up in this neighborhood and I can remember my dad relating how, as a child, he would watch horses being used to excavate the foundations of new homes.  Those homes are still in great condition today.  I have spent a lot of time in this area, and walked many thousands of miles through its streets over the years.  I hope you will enjoy the experience as much as I have.

A good place to start your walk is at the posted coordinates which are for Davis Park.  Be sure to print the cache listing and bring it with you.  Plan to come during the day, as it would be difficult to see the needed features at night.  Also, note that two of the questions below require some computer-assisted preparation in advance.

With a friendly nod to you Google Earthers, of which I am certainly one, please include one of the following statements in your "Found" log☺:

Although I probably could have, I chose NOT to use Google Earth to solve the puzzles (with the exception of the two that require measuring). Thus, I enjoyed a fantastic walk through a beautiful neighborhood, got in an easy cardio workout and some great fresh air.

 

OR

 

I DID use Google Earth for some of the above puzzles (in addition to the two that require measuring). In so doing, I sat slumpily in an office chair, breathing stale indoor air and had a small increase in arterial plaque buildup as a result. Gee, sure wish I had gone for a walk instead!

The following questions are in what should be an efficient order for walking.  Note:  Since the locations for the "Feeling Lucky?" question are spread throughout the area, it may prove beneficial to keep a list of those handy for checking out along the way.

◄◄◄◄◄  Warmup  ►►►►►

Here's an easy start.  From Davis Park, walk south to Hubbard Avenue and then west on Hubbard.  You should be able to spot the photo below in the block between 2000 East and 1900 East:

When you find it, enter the house number here:

A = __ __ __ __

◄◄◄◄◄  Michigan Motif  ►►►►►

On 1900 East, walk one block south to Michigan Avenue.  Starting at Michigan Avenue and 1900 East, take a two-block stroll down the south side of the street to 1700 East.  This is one of the most beautiful streets in Salt Lake.

• As you walk, consult the six photos below, which were taken along your route (all on the south side).

• Include the houses on the corners (such as 1900 and 1700 East) for consideration.

• Watch for a pattern as you spot the houses in the photos.  If houses were letters, examples of patterns would be:

  • YNYNYN

  • YNNNYNNNYNNN

  • In these examples, a "Y" house would have a photo in the list and an "N" house would not

  • If your aren't a college professor, it might be helpful to write your own list of Ys and Ns as you walk

• Once you have determined a pattern, you should be able to tell which house would come next.  Which would the seventh house be?

• Examine that house and answer the question:

Multiply the house number by the number of window panes in the FRONT door and enter your answer here:

B = __ __ __ __

 Here are the first six houses, in order from east to west, in the pattern:

◄◄◄◄◄  X Marks the Cott(age)  ►►►►►

This one will require some quick (and fun) homework before heading out.  Using everyone's favorite satellite imagery application, draw an "X" as follows:

• Draw a line from 9th South and Diestel Road to 19th East and Princeton Avenue (see pointers below).

• Draw a second line from 15th East and 13th South to 19th East and 9th South.

    (All 4 endpoints should be in the approximate middle of the intersections.)

• Locate the spot where the two lines intersect, which should clearly identify a particular house.

• Take a walk to that house and obtain the needed information:

Multiply the house number by the number of times the house number appears on the front of the house (NOT including the curb) and enter your answer here:

C = __ __ __ __

Here are pointers for drawing the "X":

• Locate the starting point for a line in the satellite image.

• Click "Tools" and "Ruler".

• Using the mouse, locate the bull's-eye on the center of the intersection.

• Mouse click.  It may take more than one try.

• Use the mouse to draw a yellow line to the other intersection.

• Mouse click.  You should now have a line.

• In the Ruler box, click "Save" and give the line a name.

• You should now have a red line.

• Repeat for the second line, using a new name.

• If you don't want to save the lines permanently, just click "Discard" when you close the application.

◄◄◄◄◄  9 To 9 ►►►►►

First, another bit of fun homework:

• Using satellite imagery, locate the two major public institutions of elementary education in the Harvard/Yale area.

  • Roughly the area from 1500 East to 2100 East and 800 South to 1300 South.

• Locate the 9-square area on each playground.

• Using methods described earlier, draw a line from one school's 9-square grid to the other school's grid.

• For the endpoints of the line, use the outside corners closest to each other (so that the line is the shortest possible between the two grids).  Be sure north is oriented up!

• For greatest accuracy, zoom in to a low altitude and center the corner before clicking your mouse to start and end the line.

• Switch the length measurement to yards and note the "Map Length" distance of the line.  Drop any decimal part.

Now for the fieldwork part:

• On your walking tour, pay a visit to very beautiful Military Drive (about 1650 East).

• Locate a house whose number matches (or is very close to) the length of your line in yards.

• Study the house, and identify which of the photos below was taken there:

• Write the number below the photo you chose here:

◄◄◄◄◄  Princeton Vs Harvard  ►►►►►

It's Princeton Vs Harvard and the competition is:  Who has the most arches?  Some houses on these two avenues have arched front doors and some have traditional rectangular front doors.  Your job is to determine the winner.  Here are the details:

• For Princeton Avenue (1155 South), consider only houses on the south side of the street between 1700 East and 1800 East.

• For Harvard Avenue (1125 South), consider only houses on the north side of the street between 1700 East and 1800 East.

• Include the houses on the four corners, even if their front doors open onto 1700 East or 1800 East.

• You can walk up one street and down the other.  The direction doesn't matter.

• Arched doors have rounded tops, or rounded tops that come to a point.

• Rectangular doors are completely flat on top.

• Consider the actual door only, not the area surrounding a door.

• Consider only the main front doors, not side doors.

• Keep a count of the number of arched doors for each street, then fill in the blank below.

If Princeton Avenue has the most arches, multiply the number of arches on Princeton by 2,598 and write your answer below.

If Harvard Avenue has the most arches, multiply the number of arches on Harvard by 2,629 and write your answer below:

E = __ __ __ __ __

The photo was taken at one of these addresses:

How lucky were you?  Got it in one?  Let us know in your log!

Write the last two digits of the house number below.

F = __ __

◄◄◄◄◄  Giving Back (Revenge) ►►►►►

This is an Extra Credit project that does not need to be done to find the cache.  Feel free to post it later as a "Note" after logging your "Found it".  Have an idea for your own puzzle in the Harvard/Yale area?  Post the details for the cache owner and solvers of this puzzle to work on.  No need to hide a cache - just the puzzle to solve, perhaps similar to those above.  Include any photos or other material as needed in your post. 

I spend lots of time walking these streets and would really appreciate having a puzzle to solve while doing so.  If you solve a puzzle posted by another cacher, just write a "Note" to this cache and let us know how it went. 

Your chance for revenge for all the walking you've just done!  Make it hard!  Thanks!

The Coordinates:

Suggestion:  Walk to Laird Park (1800 East and 1155 South), have a seat and relax while calculating the solution.

Now that you have A through F, it's time to build the coordinates and get the cache.  Here's how to proceed:

    XXXXX = A + B + C + 33,579

    YYYYY = D + E + F + 25,644

The cache is at:

N 40 XX.XXX

W 111 YY.YYY

Checksum:  To verify your work, the 10 individual digits that make up XXXXX and YYYYY should add up to 51.