Birds, Horses and Coins Mystery Cache
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Difficulty:
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Terrain:
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Size: 
(regular)
Related Web Page
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There is nothing hidden at the cache coordinates, the location is a recommended starting point with a nice view (see “Julia Bird horses” in the gallery), and sets you up for access to Stage 1. The difficulty of the hides is 1.5, but we are at least doubling the difficulty to reflect the puzzle. If the path down the stairs is too wet/muddy, gain access via the dirt road past the fire hydrant, you may walk past the white gate.
This is an easy 3-stage multi-cache in much the same vein as two other caches of ours, GC2H53G King of the Hill (easy 5-stage multi-cache) and GC31HV1 Gore Four (just to the south of here, not so easy). You will be well acquainted with this pretty property once you’ve completed this cache. The Related Web Site link above takes you to the relevant part of the ECGA web site for a trail map. Parking is limited to 2 (or 3) cars. Beware of two-headed, eight-limbed muggles!
This cache has three themes, BIRDS (for Julia Bird), HORSES (you’ll see why), and NUMISMATICS (coins and currency). I've been collecting coins for a long time, so we hope to inspire others to appreciate numismatic beauty. If at all possible, please trade swag or trackables with these themes, thanks!
March 2013: We've changed the name of this cache from Julia Bird Reservation to avoid logging confusion with the neighboring Greenbelt geocache GC3RBGP.
The puzzle: Elementary, my dear Watson, it’s all about primary composition for the world coins (unless noted). For USA coins it’s the ordinal value of the mint mark letter (unless noted). Consult the images in the gallery. You will need the answers for all 12 letters before you strike out to find this cache. To confirm that you understand what we’re looking for, the answer for Stage 1 can be checked here: (visit link)
STAGE 1: N 42° A.BC W 070° D.EF
A = 2011 bullion DIVIDED BY two
B = 2000 coin PLUS one
C = 2011 bullion
D = 1981 is Bronze, commonly an alloy of Copper with ______? PLUS one
E = 1855 coin
F = English “bird” with St. George and the dragon MINUS one
STAGE 2: (The key awaits you at Stage 1)
G = 1916 Winged Liberty Head’s common nickname PLUS one
H = 1903 coin DIVIDED BY three
J = 1933 is one of the world’s most famous coin designs, a Double Eagle. How many dollars would a single Eagle be worth?
STAGE 3 final: (The key awaits you at Stage 2)
K = 1980 coin PLUS 1855 coin PLUS 1916 coin. The mint mark of the 1916 coin can only be one of two letters (what exactly IS a mint mark?). A or W are both incorrect, they are the initials of the designer, Adolph Weinman.
L = 1965 is Brass, commonly an alloy of Copper with ______ MINUS another famous coin, 1913 which is 75% Copper and only 25% ______, despite this denomination’s common nickname
M = 1996 coin MINUS 2004 coin PLUS one
All of the stages are micros, except for the final stage which is an ammo box, with a 10”x6.5”x3.5” interior. The first and second stages are 100% winter friendly, the final stage has partial shelter, and is available during winter assuming there is 12 inches (30 cm) or less of snow on the ground. When you find the final stage, please DO NOT MOVE the protective “shelter” that (sort of) permits the “Available in winter” attribute. The shelter is 100% biodegradable and environmentally friendly, and thereby somewhat delicate. Thanks in advance!
So how much do you really know about ammo boxes, so ubiquitously used as cache containers? This one is a 7.62 NATO ammo box and more about this historically significant ammunition is here: (visit link) Developed in the 1950s, this ammunition was refined for the Vietnam conflict.
The original numismatic swag will range from Australia to Zimbabwe (10 cent Lyrebird coin and $5 billion banknote, respectively). Our First-To-Find prize is a Susan B. Anthony dollar coin (in a deluxe viewing box), the first US coin to feature an actual woman (Lady Liberty graced our coinage generations ago). This coin has a woman on the the obverse and a bald eagle on the reverse, we thought “Julia Bird?” so it goes well with the theme of this cache. For more interesting coin lore, please consult “Double Eagle: The Epic Story of the World’s Most Valuable Coin” by Alison Frankel. There will be some non-numismatic swag here as well. FTF goes to birds-of-a-feather HostaHead (LasaCana), WINDWAKER1, WolfTamer!, and Froedo Bagginz.
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
Uvag sbe gur chmmyr: Vs lbh svaq lbhefrys "crevbqvp"-nyyl punyyratrq ol gur jbeyq pbvaf, srry serr gb rznvy hf.
Uvagf sbe gur fgntrf: Fgntr 1 vf 65' bss gur genvy jvgu zvabe ohfujunpxvat. Jr erpbzzraq lbh jnyx gur genvyf arnerfg gur evire gb trg gb Fgntr 2. Trbqbyynef naq trbfrafr jvyy uryc lbh ng gur svany fgntr, n 65’ ohfujunpx. Rawbl!