THE LITTLE
KNOWN LEGEND OF THE FLOWER KING
Once upon a time,
many, many centuries ago, there lived a selfish king. Evil
and vicious in his quest for more, he forgot the joys to be found
in simple things, and began rampaging the countryside, looting and
burning villages, taking all for himself and leaving nothing but
hurt and fear in his wake. His dreadful reputation spread to
the ears of every citizen in his kingdom, invading their hearts
with horrid premonitions of when they, too, would fall prey to his
lust for power and destruction.
After many months
of fighting and running to no avail, the villagers had all but
given up hope. Only one village stood between the evil king
and total annihilation of all that was beautiful and lovely.
As the king and his dark army approached the city, they jeered
among themselves about the simple conquest that lay before them,
eager to once again see the weak and helpless fall at their
powerful hands. However, totally surprised by the fate they
met at the city gates, their lives were never the same.
Finding the doors wide open, there stood before them, not a
militia, but a girl. One small girl with one tiny
flower. With tears in her big, innocent eyes, she extended
the flower to the king, and uttered but two hopeful words, “Please,
sir…”
The sight of this
small child and her beautiful flower pierced his heart quicker and
deeper than the straightest arrow. The delicious smell
reached his nostrils, enlightening his soul to the wonders of life
contained in a small seed of beauty and love. Suddenly, he
knew that life was much more than a quest for power and
possessions. Taking the delicate flower into his mighty hand,
tears of repentance flowed. Where he cried, a flower grew and
blossomed, bringing eternal peace and joy to the
land....
...Today, the legend
continues with us. We, too, can bring beauty and healing to
our land, spreading seeds of love and acceptance wherever we
go. And that’s what this unique cache is all about- bringing
joy in the simple things to all people everywhere.
Soooo, to best
enjoy this cache, we recommend that you make a bike trip out of
it!! Of course, you can walk, or even roller blade (Note:
you’ll need regular shoes for the last hundred meters!), but biking
through the forest and quaint villages is very refreshing!
And… if you really want to make a great day of it, first make a
quick trip to Wissembourg, France to grab a delicious treat at
Rebert’s (7 Place du Marche´ aux Choux), the best chocolate/ pastry
shop in the world, or simply pack a lunch, and after you’ve found
the cache, head to the picnic area on the river, just a few meters
further down the main bike path (Wieslautertalradweg). Or,
for the die-hard bikers out there, do a round trip to Dahn and
back!
And finally, on
to the cache!
Parking:
Your journey begins at the parking area located at:
N49°02.590´ E007°54.186. Here you will find the
first clue (Note: Sometimes the clues are letters, sometimes
numbers, but after you have found them all, you should easily
figure out how to solve the puzzle.).
Across
the street is a little chapel. What is the fourth letter in
its name (Hint: Don’t include the word “Chapelle”)? 8 =
______
Waypoint
1:
N49°02.824´ E007°53.555
On the left side is
a small white sign with a three-digit number. What is the
second number? S = ______
Waypoint
2:
N49°02.731´ E007°52.885´
How many rows make
up the floor of the longer bridge? W = _______
(To check your
answer, count the number of all the wooden steps on the
largest staircase and divide by 2.)
By the way,
welcome to Germany!!! Even though you’ve only gone a couple
K, here’s a really inviting place to take a nice little wade in the
creek. =O>
Waypoint
3:
N49°02.942´ E007°52.702´ (Note: Don’t let your GPS fool
you. You will curve back around.)
What is the second
digit of the number of the highest measurement written on the
yellow water-level ruler? L = ______
Waypoint
4:
N49°03.565´
E007°51.724´
Thanks to the steep
hill, you have to work for this clue, so we’ll give you
two!!! =O>
What is the
24th letter written on the sign? 5 = ______
How many out-door
enthusiasts need to go on a diet? F = ______
Waypoint
5:
N49°03.784´ E007°51.486´
Do the
water-spitting creatures have opened or closed eyes? Take the
first letter of the correct answer (in English). 1 =
______
THE
CACHE:
N49°0a.bc1´ E007°d1.2ef´
a = (R / L) +
F
b = (L * F) –
(E + F + S)
c = (W * L) – (R * (O + F) ) –
F
d = E (thought you
might like an easy one!! =O>)
e = F + L + O + W + E + R + S –
(E * E)
f = (R * W) – (W * W)
Happy hunting!!!... and
planting!