“Accept the challenges, so that you may feel the exhilaration of victory” George S. Patton.
A number of Challenge caches have been published nearby recently, and they have piqued my interest. While I’m sure the point is to get us out onto the trails collecting new finds to meet these challenges, there is something to be said for using prior finds on cold, dark, wet evenings when you’d rather stay indoors where it’s warm and dry.
You know what I’m talking about. You get to sit comfortably at your computer, enjoying a hot beverage while you sift through your geocache logs, hoping to meet the challenge requirements with caches you have already found. As with a lot of challenge caches, the posted coordinates ARE for the actual location of this container, but you may not log your find without first satisfying the requirements.
Please note, any and all logs for unsubstantiated finds for this cache will be deleted.
Fulfilling this challenge will be a unique journey for each cacher who attempts it. Your challenge is that you must spell out your caching nickname by using the first letter of the geographical region where you find a cache. Here are the guidelines, and some explanations:
- It is preferable that you spell out your own nickname, but if that is not possible or practical then you may use the nickname of a favourite caching companion. Please make it clear which nickname you are trying to spell!
- The caching nickname you use must be a MINIMUM of 12 letters in length. That means someone whose name is only 4 letters long could use their own name and repeat it 3 times, or a cacher whose nickname is 6 characters long could use their name twice. Remember, 12 letters is a minimum. If your caching name is 27 letters in length, go for it! (and potentially earn a ton of bonus karma points!)
- In order to spell out your chosen name, you must find and log a corresponding number of different & distinct caches where the first letter in the name of the geographical region where the cache is located matches each letter in the nickname. For example, if my caching name was 15 letters long I would need to find 15 different caches.
- An acceptable geographical region would be an area whose name is visible on a map, such as a country, province, state, county, region, district, territory, city, town, village, neighbourhood, or park. No street names please - caches are not allowed on a street!
- In the event your chosen nickname contains numbers, you have two options. You may choose to spell out each digit and match the first letter of the spelling, or you can seek out a cache in a suitable location with a matching digit in its name. (more bonus karma points!)
- If your chosen nickname contains spaces, punctuation or underscoring you may ignore them. However, these special characters do not count toward your total number of letters. (although you would deserve bonus karma mega-points if you were able to find a cache in a geographical place name that matches the punctuation! I wonder if there's an Ampersand, Alberta?)
- You are encouraged to actively go outdoors and find caches to complete this challenge, but you may also make use of caches you have already found. Each logged cache may be used only once, and each place name may be used only once. For example, New York could be used only once, whether in reference to the state, the county or the city. However, both Vancouver, BC and Vancouver, Wa would be eligible.
- Any cache type is acceptable (traditional, multi, virtual, unknown, letterbox, event, etc.)
- Caches can be located anywhere in the world as long as I can access and read the cache page, locate your “found” log, and verify the place name.
In case things are still a little unclear, here's an example. Let's say I intend to fulfill this challenge using my own nickname, Highlander 71. Ignoring the space between the Highlander and the 71 leaves me with exactly 12 letters which meets the requirements very nicely. I could then go find caches in places like
Harrison Hot Springs
Ioco
Grantham's Landing
Hope
Ladner
Ambleside
Nakusp
Dawson Creek
Esquimalt
Richmond
Now here’s where it gets tricky. For the numbers in my nickname I could match the spelling and choose places like Squamish for seven and Osoyoos for one. Or I could match the actual digits and find caches in places like 70 Mile House and 12 Mile Creek.
Caches do not have to be found in any particular order. The sequence is entirely up to you, as long as you find and log at least one cache for each letter in your chosen nickname.
You will find this cache hidden off a popular walking trail. The hint will reveal more details if your initial search does not go well.
Special Regulation #10: In the event the caching nickname you wish to spell contains a letter that cannot be matched by any existing geographical area name, you may request a Cache Owner's Pardon/Exemption (COPE). Simply send me an email describing your dilemma, and I will spin the big wheel of letters to come up with a substitute letter for you to use.