Geocaching

This cache series is designed to give you an introduction to the world of ciphers. It will not cover every type of cipher out there, instead focusing on a small variety of different ciphers. Hopefully, you will walk away from solving this series with a new set of puzzle solving skills. And maybe, just maybe, you'll be able to go to that puzzle that's always bothered you and begin to see it with a new pair of eyes.

I have designed this series such that you will not be able to solve them all in one swipe. How you may ask? Outside of the first two caches, all of the caches in the series will require clues left within previous caches. I recommend that you keep track of these clues, and which cache they were found within, as you work your way through the series. That information will be useful even after you solve the cipher it is used with. On to the cache.

Cryptography is defined as the practice and study of hiding information. Cryptograms, the commonly seen puzzles found in puzzle books, is as far as most people will get into the subject. Yet cryptography has a rich history dating back to early Egypt. Methods of hiding information include codes, ciphers, even lemon juice and light bulbs (okay, that one doesn't go back as far). Codes require detailed code books to solve, and I'm not writing on my computer monitor with lemon juice for you to hold up to a light bulb. So we'll focus on ciphers, which you've already learned by reading the CACHE TITLE...aren't I brilliant? Hold off those responses, it's a rhetorical question.

For your first lesson, we'll use a cipher that I am certain ALL OF YOU have used already. To find the final cache location, just decipher the following set of coordinates:

abeguguveglrvtugqrterrfsvsglsbhecbvaggjbbarguerr
jrfgavarglsbheqrterrfguveglguerrcbvagmrebsviravar

You are looking for a small lock 'n lock container. Approach the area from the South to find a small parking lot close by. Be careful if snow or ice are on the ground as the hill going down into the lot might make it tough to get back out. There are houses near the parking lot, so be careful of muggles, especially in the evening. This isn't recommended at night.

Need a refresher on a previous lesson? Here's the complete list (updated as the lessons become available):