This is the sixth cache in an ongoing series, and will spark some
friendly competition amongst cachers across the entire GOWT region.
The basic idea is patterned on the First To Find Challenge series
of caches, which has enjoyed a successful two-year run in the
Houston area, and which is now up to the 35th cache in the series.
The premise is pretty straightforward: the first finder of this
cache can take this custom-engraved FTF Pirate travel bug trophy to
enjoy for awhile — snapping pictures and gloating a bit along
the way, I would imagine.
There
are, however, some key stipulations:
- Within 30 days, the FTF cacher must hide a new cache, title it
"FTF Pirate #7," and place the trophy inside for the next lucky FTF
cacher to enjoy.
- The new cache must be hidden within a 100 mile radius of
Jackson, Tennessee, which seems like a reasonable distance that
will cover most of the area catered to by the Geocachers of West Tennessee
organization.
- The hider must mention the series in the cache description, and
must provide clear instructions so that the next winner of the
trophy will know what is expected. Feel free to cut-and-paste the
text from this description, if you'd like.
- Follow the normal travel bug rules by retrieving the FTF Pirate
trophy from this cache and dropping it into the inventory of your
new cache hide (the travel bug tracking number is affixed to the
back of the trophy). And while it's permissible to carry the trophy
to events, and to otherwise show it off before moving it along to
your new cache hide, nobody but the actual FTF finders should log
the travel bug. The travel bug page will thus serve as a handy
record of everyone who has nabbed FTF on one or more of the caches
in the series.
- Have fun and be creative on your new hide!
Whoever grabs the trophy next time around will do likewise, and so
on ad infinitum. The trophy is five inches tall, so it should fit
in most regular-size cache containers, including small ammo cans
and medium or larger Lock-n-Locks.
Since this is the sixth in the series, there are six stages. I know
what you’re thinking - good thing it’s not the 100th.
This is, by the way, my very first hide, so I wanted to make it fun
and challenging.
In each cache of the first five stages there are a pirate action
figure and a miniature treasure chest for the FTF. And to give you
an incentive to push on to the end, I’ve packed the final
cache full of valuable pirate items. In addition to the Pirate
Trophy, the FTF has first dibs on some neat pirate stuff:
- Pirate bandana
- Pirate earrings
- Pirate eye patch
- More pirate action figures
- Pirate hook
- Pirate playing cards
- Pirate flags
- More miniature pirate treasure chests
- Double barrel pirate pistol (which kinda broke while I was
playing with it, but one barrel still fires using the trigger
– the other you have to use the hammer)
- Real pirate doubloons retrieved from sunken treasure (hey, they
look real)
If the FTF doesn’t go wild and clean out the cache, there
should be plenty of stuff for everyone. In addition to the logbook,
I’ve also put a camera in the final cache to keep a photo log
of all the finds. (Please don’t take it thinking it’s
an authentic pirate camera.) So, take a great shot of you and your
booty – uh, treasure.
Now, about the stages. Four of them will require some extra effort
to retrieve, and thus the terrain rating of five. The others should
be relatively easy for an Olympic gymnast with a backhoe.
I’ve posted all six puzzles and you can solve them in any
order. They are somewhat in order of difficulty, although some
people are better at solving certain types of puzzles than others.
In any case, you'll have to find the caches in order. You'll
understand once you get going. The best advice I can give is to
start with Stage One. Simple, easy to remember.
When you find a cache, please try to put it back pretty close to
the way you found it, so that the next cacher will suffer the same
level of frustration that you did.
Oh, and this is hardly worth mentioning, but I’ve chained a
large tiger near one of the stages. Don’t worry - he
won’t bother you unless you startle him. And don’t try
to get any help from him. It just makes him mad when someone asks
him where the cache is hidden. He might give you a hint, though;
he’ll probably start growling when you get close to the
cache. To play it safe, it’s probably best to go when
he’s asleep.
Well, enough blabbering, let’s get started! I hope you have
as much fun solving and finding as I did creating and hiding. The
treasure awaits ye, mateys! Arrrgggg!
Stage
1
The pirate has
escaped with the treasure and I am in pursuit. He is clever, but I
know that I will outsmart him. He is leaving directions behind for
his crew who are planning to meet up with him at the treasure. They
have the keys to decipher the clues, but I don’t; so I must
decode each one before continuing on.
I find a note and a table of numbers he has left behind. I read the
note through several times and study the table. The words and
numbers don’t make any sense. Are they somehow connected? Is
the note a key to deciphering the table?
I’m certain his crew has already deciphered this message and
is enroute to the next stage. I must solve this quickly and stay
one step ahead of them. What does it mean?
No one realizes that hunting treasure hardly requires extra
effort. First, integer values equal divisible entities. Go right -
east eleven steps. One number equals eleven if giving higher total.
Positive odd integers negate totals. Subtract every value except
nine. First ones usually require totals with one.
We escaped south to northern intersection. Numerical entities that
you divide equal greater remainders. Entities equal sums that have
remainders equaling eight. Plenty of important numbers, those
erased in great haste, together fall on us, revealing new
identities not expected.
Stage
2
I‘m hot on the trail of the treasure. Its sheer size is a
hindrance, and I know I am gaining ground. To slow me down, bags of
doubloons were left behind. It's only a fraction of the entire
treasure, but a small fortune nevertheless. They will impede my
progress, but I must have them.
The coins are unevenly distributed among ten bags, each bag
containing a different number. I open the bags, count the doubloons
inside and mark the quantity on each bag; there are 1000
coins.
Why do the bags contain different amounts? Surely an even
distribution would make them easier to carry. I see no reason for
this.
I arrange them in ascending order and study the quantities for a
few minutes. After a few calculations, I realize that with this
distribution, it is possible, by combining unopened bags, to get
any number of coins from 1 to 1000. I fail to see any significance
in that. Perhaps in haste the coins were thrown into the bags
randomly.
I now possess a small fortune, but I must press on in search of the
remainder of the treasure. Where do I start? Are there any clues to
direct me to the next location? I carefully search all the bags
again and find a small scrap of paper at the bottom of the bag
containing the most coins. On it is written a set of
coordinates:
N 26° 32.147 W
057° 12.149
Strange coordinates to a distant location. Is the treasure located
there? Or is this still another clue to the actual location?
Strange coordinates, indeed! Would they lead me far astray or
directly to the treasure?
Stage
3
Avast, me lads!
Seek ye still the treasure? Looking landward leads ye not to the
prize, for there nothing matters, neither this nor that. Fix yer
gaze seaward, but seek ye well. Beware the cutting edge of coral,
for thar be the truth in the death reef.
Shiver me timbers! Ye are the best, mateys - thar be none better!
Tho’ thar be degrees of skill and spirit, that won’t
scuttle our ship. Appoint me captain of me vessel only if
I’ve shown no fear on every sea and shore.
Avast, me lads, we
stand strong! Yer eyes even show the wrath ye cast upon those what
dare to steal yer treasure. Thar be strength that would bring the
victory, for thar be also degrees of courage and bravery! If ye
fail to find the treasure, may the curse of the Black Pearl be on
every head.
Me point be clear – hop to it, dogs! Take no action that
won’t bring us closer to the prize. Condemn me not if I vex
ye, or if our travail sends us to ruin and deep into the graveyard
of the sea. Arrrrggggg!!!!
Stage
4
“Rum, rum,” I murmur.
Murder for a jar of red rum.
Red rum, sir, is murder.
Red rum, eh? ‘Twas I saw the murder.
Oh, who was it I saw, oh who?
Is it I? It is I!
Now, sir, a war is won.
Draw, O coward!
Now, I won!
Revered now I live on. O, did I do no evil, I wonder ever?
Stage
5
N ACº DE.GHK
W MNPº RS.WXY
x6c28p496y8128k33550336h8589869056w137438691328n2305843008139952128d265
845599156983174465469261H953842176s191561942608236107294793378084303638
13099N321548169216a131640364585696483372397534604587229A022347231838694
3117783728128r1447401115466452442794637312P0859884815736774914748358890
66354349131199152128m23562723457267347065789548996709904988477547858392
6007101430275975D633728317862223973036553960260056136Y25556646250327017
505289257804321554338249842877715242701039E4969186640286445341280338314
39790236838624033171435922356643219703101720713163527487S98747400647801
9395871659364R1087419375649057918549492160555646976g1410537837067120690
6320795808606318988148674351K7156678388386759999548677426523801141M4193
3290376902515619505687098293271640877243663700871167312681W931365248745
065243980587729C2072974467232951666582288469268077866528701889208678794
5147836456931392206037069506473607357237869517G473055266826253284886383
7150729743244638353000531X8429460296575143368065570759537328128e
Arrrgh! Blistering barnacles!
Another clue left behind.
What be the meaning, mateys?
Avast, ye demon puzzler!
I fix me gaze on yer jumbled jargon.
Will ya be plungin’ me patience deep into Davy Jones'
locker?
Avast, ye crossed me eyes with yer confusing crypto!
But I’ve plundered yer mangy madness!
Aye, I see it, the perfect solution, off me port bow!
Prepare to be boarded!
Taste the wrath of me cold steel!
It’s the plank for ye, ye mangy cur!
To arms, me lads!
The treasure shall soon be ours!
Stage
6
Heller Rondeau tore through the woods like a madman. He hardly felt
the stinging of the branches as they whipped across his face.
Everyone who knew him could attest to his calm nature. In fact, his
stability was really the key to his success. When other men
panicked, Rondeau was even and steadfast, always dependable to
remain calm in any situation, regardless of the stress thrust upon
him.
But this was different - he was running for his life. The box he
grasped contained clues to the location of the treasure. He had
come so far; and now that he was so close, he must not let it fall
into the wrong hands. He searched frantically for a hiding
place.
There! He saw the perfect spot! A log that in some ways seemed
unique. It appeared to be almost artificial, but was in fact
natural. A small opening at the base might be just large enough. He
worked quickly, but carefully, making every effort to conceal his
valuable container.
He struggled to make it fit, but something still wasn’t
right. He tried inverting it, but saw that one thing was still
missing. That added, it was still not right. Suddenly, he realized
the power was the item itself.
He was exhausted and approaching his limit. The box hidden, he
continued his frantic pace through the woods in an effort to elude
his pursuers. He was spent and knew they were gaining ground. It
was only a matter of time. If only he could put some distance
between them and himself, his prize might remain safe.
He had gone only a few hundred yards when he felt a sharp pain
between his shoulder blades. The well-aimed dagger had hit its
mark. He fell to the ground hard and instantly knew his journey had
ended. He struggled to regain his footing, but it was no use. His
number was up.
Moments later, his nemeses, Captain Johann Pire and First Mate Jean
Orphin, stood over him. “Where is the cache?” Pire
sneered through clenched teeth. Rondeau, in spite of his pain,
managed a faint smile. “You’ll never find it,” he
gasped with his last breath.
“Spread out and start searching!” Orphin cried out. His
men began combing the woods for the box that Rondeau had hidden
– the box that contains clues to the location of the
treasure:
“Ye seek pieces of a puzzle that will direct ye to the
treasure. The first two most significant are to ye of no
importance. Journey on, past the point, to the water’s edge
and beyond. Make sail and set yer heading north. Precise navigation
will bring ye good results. Sail to first land and go ashore.
Continue north 194 paces where ye will find the first two pieces.
Retrieve them and continue on another 347 steps where ye will find
the second set of two. Fifty-six paces and ye have three more. Now
turn west and steady yerself, for there are yet long legs to
traverse. Count carefully now as ye stride 1304 paces, picking up
three more pieces. A leg of 335 brings ye to two more; then a final
leg of 881 brings ye the last three. The treasure now lies before
ye!
Avast, Mateys! The treasure be now within yer grasp. Can ye find it
first? Persevere only a little while longer and the prize be yours!
Arrrrrggggg!!!!