The Gene Pool
The location of this cache is home to many creatures. I have
only recently discovered the area since it was mostly destroyed, as
is often the case, for development of new businesses in the area.
There used to be beautiful gardens here designed by local artist
and architect Ludwig Blake. You could picnic here, paddle around in
canoes and hold your wedding reception too. I've learned that
goldfish used to inhabit the waters as well. In my own exploration,
I've seen many different plants and birds, as well as squirrels,
rabbits, groundhogs, and even deer.
All of these creatures and ourselves exist in their forms
because of genes encoded into our DNA. The DNA is transcribed into
RNA which is then translated into protein in all living cells.
Proteins are chains of amino acids that perform specialized
functions in the cells. In order to find the cache you will need to
translate the RNA code, shown below, into the correct amino acid
sequence. The single-letters representing each amino acid in the
sequence will then need to be substituted for their corresponding
numerical position in the standard alphabet. It is those numbers
that will lead you to Mr. Blake and the first stage of the
cache.
The posted coordinates for this cache are for parking at a
trailhead near the cache location.
Translate the following RNA sequence into the correct amino
acids using the RNA
codon table
North GAC-GCC° GAU-UGU.GAC-GCU-GCA
West CAU-UUC° GCG-GAA.GCC-GAG-UGC
Now that you have the amino acid sequence, you can use the
following table to change the names of the amino acids into their
corresponding single letter code:
| Amino Acid |
3 Letter Code |
1 Letter Code |
| Alanine |
Ala |
A |
| Arginine |
Arg |
R |
| Asparagine |
Asn |
N |
| Aspartic Acid |
Asp |
D |
| Cysteine |
Cys |
C |
| Glutamine |
Gln |
Q |
| Glutamic Acid |
Glu |
E |
| Glycine |
Gly |
G |
| Histidine |
His |
H |
| Isoleucine |
Ile |
I |
| Leucine |
Leu |
L |
| Lysine |
Lys |
K |
| Methionine |
Met |
M |
| Phenylalanine |
Phe |
F |
| Proline |
Pro |
P |
| Serine |
Ser |
S |
| Threonine |
Thr |
T |
| Tryptophan |
Trp |
W |
| Tyrosine |
Tyr |
Y |
| Valine |
Val |
V |
Next, convert the single letters to their numerical positon in the
alphabet (please note that the alpha-numeric substitution is not
the same as in the table below since that would be far to easy for
you now wouldn't it?). These resulting coordinates should take you
to the first stage and what remains of Mr. Blake's Gardens.
You can confirm your answer by clicking on the evince link
here:
Once you have located Blake's Memorial, fill in the correct
information in the spaces below:
| Born |
___ |
___ |
___ |
___ |
| |
A |
B |
C |
D |
| Died |
___ |
___ |
___ |
___ |
| |
E |
F |
G |
H |
| Gardens Built |
___ |
___ |
___ |
___ |
| |
I |
J |
K |
L |
| Gardens Destroyed |
___ |
___ |
___ |
___ |
| |
M |
N |
O |
P |
With a little addition and subtraction, the cache itself can be
located here:
North A+E+K H-P° F-G
N-P.J-L O-P P-K
West B P° M
G.A J-G B
One more thing......the cache is also
locked! You will need to use the dates found to solve the
combination: KMC
Although you can park quite close to the 1st stage, it's
probably better to park at the posted coordinates and walk the
short trail to the ruins.
First to Find prize is a Starbuck's Gift
Card.
The cache was initially stocked with many items including:
Bicycle tire repair kit, sewing repair kit, jeweler's screwdriver
set, card games, and more!