Skip to content

The Slide Rule Mystery Cache

Difficulty:
1.5 out of 5
Terrain:
2 out of 5

Size: Size:   regular (regular)

Join now to view geocache location details. It's free!

Watch

How Geocaching Works

Please note Use of geocaching.com services is subject to the terms and conditions in our disclaimer.

Geocache Description:

Listed coordinates are for parking, the cache is a short hike away.

An easy cache for mature engineers, all others may need Google.

Do you remember seeing your first computer, I do. During my Senior year at Northeastern we had our only computer course. The computer took up an entire room and utilized foot long vacuum tubes. All Data was input on stacks of key punched "IBM" cards.

For that course I wrote my first program in Fortran. The program consisted of hundreds of fortran statement, each on an key punched IBM card. So the entire program was a stack of 3x8 inch punched cards that was run on the schools computer overnight. Remind me to tell you about a friend who dropped his stack of program cards on the MTA tracks in February in Boston.

So how did we do calculations back then? Remember this is before electronic hand calculators. By hand and with slide rules using trigonmetric and logarithm tables. Remember the CRC Tables?

To find the coordinates to this cache you must use a slide rule. Set the values and read under the hairline.The cache is at N41 MN.PQR W072 XX.YYZ where:

What is the value on the A scale when you set 5.5 on the D scale. This is M.

When you set 3 on the C scale, what is the value on the B scale. This is N.

When you multiply Pi times 283, what is the value on the K scale. This is P.

When you cube 55, what is the value on the A scale. This is Q.

When you set .5 on the L scale, what is the value on the A scale. This is R.

When you set 8.2 on the A scale, what is the value on the K scale. This is XX.

When you multiply 14 times 206, what is the value on the L scale. This is YY

When you multiply 147 times Pi, what is the value on the K scale. This is Z.

Note Answers are single or two digit numbers. Ignore decimal point.

Check out the interesting single grave on the left as you walk to the cache. John Nolion died of small pox at age 26 on March 20, 1777.

Placed near bike trail so please replace cache carefully.

You can check your answers for this puzzle on Geochecker.com.

Additional Hints (Decrypt)

Qba'g or fghzcgrq ol guvf rnfl uvqr.

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)