GC3GAHD SwtM - South Manitou Island (Unknown Cache) in Michigan, United States created by The Mitten Crew

This cache has been archived.

The Mitten Crew: Thanks to all who visited the 2012 SwtM series.

GC3GAHD ▼

A cache by The Mitten Crew Message this owner

Hidden : 5/30/2012

Difficulty:

Terrain:

Size: Size: regular (regular)

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Geocache Description:

The cache is not hidden at the posted coordinates. To solve for the location of the cache view the above image of a ship being guided by lights. Use the details below to determine the location of the cache.

N 42 51.ABC W085 37.XYZ

A = Number of Ships
B = Blue Lights multiplied by Two
C = Yellow Lights Multiplied by Three
X = Number of Lights
Y = Number of Ships minus Number of Green Lights
Z = Number of Lights plus Number of Ships

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

Located just off the mainland coast of Lake Michigan’s east coast, a group of islands known as the Beaver Archipelago form a chain which marked the western edge of a tight passage along the coast. Known as the "Manitou Passage," vessel masters taking this narrow passage were able to reduce the travel distance between the ports of Lake Michigan’s southern shore and the Straits of Mackinac by sixty miles, as opposed to taking the more circuitous route through open water to the west of the islands. As the most southerly of this chain of islands, South Manitou also featured one of the areas safest natural harbors, and with 5,260-acres of fine timber growth covering the island, it is not surprising that a few enterprising settlers arrived during the mid 1830’s to sell firewood to steamers taking shelter in the harbor when things turned sour out in the lake. By the late 1830’s it was commonplace to find upward of fifty vessels crowded into the harbor seeking refuge and taking-on supplies.

This is the third lighthouse built on the island. Construction of the first began in 1839 and the 1-1/2-story lighthouse with a lens in the cupola first went on in 1840. Deterioration of the building led to the lighthouse being completely rebuilt in 1858. Over time this light was found to be deficient, and the current lighthouse was built in 1872. The site is currently under the control of the National Park Service, in conjunction with the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. It is listed in the National Register of Historic Places. The lighthouse was decommissioned in 1958, and is presently a museum.

In the 1980s the towers foundation was reinforced to protect it from erosion at a time of high lake levels which threatened to topple the structure. The Park Service restored the lantern room and the tower's spiral staircase in the summer of 2008, and a replica of the light’s original third-order Fresnel lens was installed in the lantern late that fall. The light was reactivated in May 2009 and is lit from May to November.

The light has been the sight of a number of accidents and fatalities. Keeper Aaron Sheridan, his wife and their infant on March 15, 1878 died in a boating accident near the light. The Three Brothers shipwreck is within sight of the light.

Visit 14 geocaches in the SwtM series. At each geocache collect a letter and number combination. Insert them into the phrase FiTS LIKe A GlOVE. Use the coordinates from the phrase to find the final geocache and become a Mitten Master
2012 Smitten with the Mitten caches

Whitefish Point	Sturgeon Point	South Manitou Island	Grand Island
Rock of Ages	Point Betsie	Old Mission Point	Little Sable Point
Holland Harbor	Gull Rock	Seul Choix Point
Crisp Point	Big Sable Point	Au Sable Point	Mitten Master