The name of this cache, Sikhs, is the Chinook Jargon word for friend. Since I live in Scappoose (the Chinook word for gravelly plain), I thought it would be fun to name my caches in Chinook. This is my 11th hide, celebrating my 110th find.
In 1805, Lewis and Clark visited this island and called it Wapato Island for its abundance of potato plants. At that time, there were approximately 2,000 Chinook Indians living on the island in 15 villages. Today there are just over 1,000 residents who have established several farms, a grocery store and a school. On May 4, 2013, there was a confirmed cougar sighting on the island. Four residents saw the cat at about 8:30 pm, near Milepost 4 on Reeder Road. The next day, Fish & Wildlife representatives found tracks. ODFW gets reports of cougar sightings on the island about once a year, but this is the first time they have been able to confirm the animal’s presence.
The cache is not at the posted coordinates. The posted coordinates will take you to an informational sign where you should try to answer one of the following questions. You can visit the stages in whichever order you like, but the final cache is closest to Stage 4 and approximately 100 feet off the trail. Enjoy your exploration of the greenway.
Stage 1 Oak Savannah
N 45° 39.857 W 122° 50.902
How many acres of oak savannah once covered the Willamette Valley?
The first two digits of this number will be = A ( __ __ ) __ __ __ __ __
How much oak savannah remains in the Willamette Valley?
This number will be = B __ percent
How many acres of oak savannah remain in the Willamette Valley?
The first two digits of this number will be = C ( __ __ ) __ __ __
Stage 2 Bottomland Forest
N 45° 39.396 W 122° 50.571
Which species has invaded the riparian habitat around the wetland?
This answer will be = D __________ ________________
How many letters are in the Latin name of this species?
This number will be = E __ __ (checksum = 4)
Stage 3 Hadley's Landing
N 45° 39.346 W 122° 50.550
How long did Jim Hadley serve as director of the state marine board?
This number will be = F __
Stage 4 Kathy's Bench
N 45° 39.588 W 122° 50.626
How old was Kathy Williams when she died?
This number will be = G __ __ (checksum = 9)
A = __ __
B = __
C = __ __
E = __ __
F = __
G = __ __
Checksum: A + B + C + E + F + G = 102
Final = N 45° 39. @ # $ W 122° 50. % ^ &
Final = N 45° 39.__ __ __ W 122° 50.__ __ __
@ = F + F
# = C - A - A
$ = G - C - E - A - F
% = B + B
^ = F + F
& = E - A
Checksum @ + # + $ = 14
Checksum % + ^ + & = 13