The Philosopher's Stone (HP#1) Letterbox Hybrid

This cache has been archived.

brady32: It's gone and it's time. This was one of my favorites. Sad to see you go, old friend.

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Hidden : 7/4/2007
Difficulty:
1.5 out of 5
Terrain:
2 out of 5

Size: Size: regular (regular)

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Geocache Description:

The first cache in celebration of the 7th Harry Potter book release.

Harry picked it up and stared at it, his heart twanging like a giant elastic band. No one, ever, in his whole life had written to him. Who would? He had no friends, no other relatives -- he didn't belong to the library, so he'd never even got rude notes asking for books back. Yet here it was, a letter, addressed so plainly there could be no mistake...

--Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, 1997
--J. K. Rowling



I recently found this note:

Hagrid-
As I mentioned, our owls are having trouble delivering Harry Potter's admittance letter to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. You must get his letter to him, as it would be a tragedy for the "Boy who lived" to not attend the finest wizarding school in the world. I need you to retrieve one of the extra letters and hand deliver it as soon as possible.

To protect the letters from falling into the wrong hands, I have hidden them well and enchanted the location. You must follow my instructions precisely to unlock the spell.

The enclosed device is a portkey. Muggles call it a GPS. It will take you to a sign that will tell you about the local rivers, which are very magical. It is from this spot that the counterspell begins.

Here you must turn to 120 degrees and begin your journey. Up and down. To your right as you walk, you will notice a box on a pole that Arthur Weasley calls a girll for some reason, near a table. Up and down again, and past a resting spot. And up and down again. As soon as you are down, turn to 180 degrees. 77 steps down the path is another girll on your left. Muggles use these as crude fire boxes. Tap this girll twice with your umbrella (I know what's inside!) and say the incantation for Gryffindor House - "Nitwit".

Continue in the same fashion, up and down. Past another sitting spot and an old enchanted tree. As you approach, the path will veer towards 240 degrees, One last time up and down. Here you must climb 25 steps, to the air. Your wand (I mean, umbrella) will point you at 300 degrees. You can see your path. The Ravenclaw house incantation is "Blubber." Remember the swish and flick, and clearly speak the word.

25 steps down and follow the path you saw. As you walk, you'll notice many magical creatures and their homes. The path is straight. But at two points along the way, there is a stopping point. Stop at the second, and see the water of Slytherin House. Tap thrice the rail and say the magic word: "Oddment".

Before the next part of the spell, you must first descend to a lower wooden way, and turn North. When the path becomes less wooden, take an easterly course over the earthen course. At near 70 steps, you should near the lucky number 16. Stop here, spin once to the left, and once to the right, and speak Hufflepuff's incantation: "Tweak!"

Continue on your way, where the path forks, go left a few feet. Stop when you see a cluster and signs of prohibition. If the signs of prohibition were the bottom of a Muggle's clock, find 3:00pm and enter. If you've correctly performed the counterspell, you will find the letters at the center.

Sincerely-
Albus



Cacher's notes:

I clocked the hike at about 0.8 miles from start to finish, not counting distance from your parking place.

Don't trade the stamp! I included a few extras for you to use if you didn't bring one.

The letterbox is full of trade items, so feel free to trade.

The park is closed from Dusk to Dawn. It can also be very busy, so keep an eye out for Muggles. Keep an eye out for the swans too!

The hike takes you near stages of another cache in the park, so you might as well kill two birds with one stone.

GC13BT4 - The Philosopher's Stone
GC18T18 - The Chamber of Secrets
GC13BTA - The Prisoner of Azkaban
GC13BTC - The Goblet of Fire
GC13BTE - The Order of the Phoenix
GC13BTH - The Half-Blood Prince
GC13BTK - The Deathly Hallows

Additional Hints (Decrypt)

Qba'g genqr gur fgnzc!

Decryption Key

A|B|C|D|E|F|G|H|I|J|K|L|M
-------------------------
N|O|P|Q|R|S|T|U|V|W|X|Y|Z

(letter above equals below, and vice versa)


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