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The Circle of Fifths Mystery Cache

Hidden : 9/5/2010
Difficulty:
3 out of 5
Terrain:
1.5 out of 5

Size: Size:   micro (micro)

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Geocache Description:

Posted coords will take you to the marquee at the old Circle Star Theater. The cache is hidden a bit away...

When I was a little girl, my Mom taped two diagrams on the wall next to the pillow of my bed for me to study if I couldn't fall asleep. One was a multiplication table. The other was a "Circle of Fifths". Both were hung sideways, so that when my head was on the pillow, they seemed right side up.

I've found 3 pages that describe the Circle of Fifths in a much clearer way than I ever could. They are:

All you have to do is refer to the pages, and answer the questions below to find the cache.

When your answer is a "note" or "key", "A" is 1, and "B" is 2, etc. If your answer has a "sharp" or "flat" in it, just ignore the "sharp/flat". An answer of "E flat" is 5.


  1. The note that is a perfect fifth higher than F
  2. The number of half steps in a perfect Fifth
  3. The note that is a fourth higher than F.
  4. It would be "madness", but if there were a key with 9 sharps, what o'clock would it be?
  5. At what o'clock is the key with 4 flats?
  6. What o'clock represents a fifth up from D flat?
  7. If a key has sharps, what is the first sharp?
  8. In the key of B major, what is the last sharp you have added?
  9. What is the first flat that appears in a key with flats?
  10. What is the seventh sharp that is added in a key with 7 sharps?
  11. There are 4 flats. What key is it?
  12. There are 4 flats. What is the last flat?
  13. At what o'clock is the relative minor key for G major?
  14. What is the relative major key for the key of A minor?
  15. A minor key has the same number of sharps or flats as its relative major key. What minor key has only 1 sharp?

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

UPDATE 8/21/2011. Cache has been slightly moved. After you solve the puzzle and confirm your answer with the checker, add .010 to the N minutes, and add .002 to the West minutes to get your FINAL FINAL answer.

Geocachers of the Bay Area


Additional Hints (Decrypt)

#12 - be #11, qrcraqvat hcba ubj lbh ybbx ng vg.

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)