39 and holding... Letterbox Hybrid
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Difficulty:
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Terrain:
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Size: 
(regular)
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A quick puzzle cache that can be completed in less than 15 minutes (if you go fast) and has been placed in plain view in my yard meant to be a safe harbour for your travel bugs and coins. If you're just passing through town the walk takes you through downtown and past quite a few decent lunch places.
I decided to place this cache on my birthday. It seems to be turning into a tradition. I’ll let you guess which birthday it is...
Why here and why this type? First, a bit of history....five years ago I travelled to Europe and was looking for something fun and cheap/free to do and discovered something called Letterboxing. Sadly, I discovered it too late in the trip to do anything about it, but was intrigued so did some research when I got home and that’s when I found Geocaching. When I decided to place this cache here I thought that it should be locked since we are so near the downtown core and we have some late night traffic from the local watering holes That raised the question of how to get the combination or key for the Cachers to get into the Cache. That’s where the puzzle idea came in. Then I decided to plant a Letterbox because I’ve been fascinated by them since I first heard about them and haven’t had the opportunity to find one. Now I have my own. Yay!!
This yard is right underneath a street light so you will be able to see it without too much trouble. I've also placed a sticker with the Geocaching Logo on it so you won't have any doubts. It is accessible to everyone at any time.
Here we go!!
1) The starting point of this journey is at the Clock Tower.
2) From here head east to the first intersection. Count the number of financial institutions at this intersection and remember this number. It’s the first number in the combination.
3) Now you should head east one block and then south one block. To the west you will see a wall standing all by itself near some flags. Stand on the west side of this wall and look east. There are two digits in the second number of the combination. The first digit is the number of “E” ‘s you see along the top of the mural. The second digit is the number of air planes flying in the sky in the mural.
4) Next head north on the street that is behind you. On the east side of the street there is a business that has set their street number in tile on their doorstep. This is the final number of the combination.
5) You should now head south. At the first intersection you come to head west one block then south again. You will find the cache on the west side of the street in the yard of the house with the blue tin roof. The cache is mounted in plain view from the sidewalk by the stairs.
**edit** we got a new gate, it's tall so the dog doesn't escape (she's tiny, it didn't work, lol) the gate has a black mail box on it with gold numbers **edit**
6) The combination lock is just like the ones that are on lockers in high school. Start at “0” turn the dial right/clockwise and stop on the first number the third time that you get to it. Next turn the dial to the left/counter clockwise and go past the second number once and stop at it the second time. Turn the dial right/clockwise and stop at the third number the first time you come to it. Pull on the body of the lock and it should open.
7) If you left a vehicle at the start point to get back to it you can just head north. When you get to the second intersection you will see the Clock Tower to the east.
**A few things about entering the yard**
Three small dogs live here. They are more noise than anything else (expect to get barked at). They are kept in the house or in the back yard. However, on the odd occasion they do get into the front yard so please be cautious when opening the gate and make sure it gets closed both times you go through it.
There are also some Muggles that live here. One of them can often be found smoking in front of the house with other Muggles. Don’t be afraid, they’re friendly and have been trained not to bite! The other Muggle can sometimes be found enjoying a cup of tea in this area depending on the time of year and time of day. If you do see someone in the yard please make sure you say hi and introduce yourself.
Cache contents:
Letterboxing supplies (stamp, ink pad, stamp log book)
Log book
Pen
First to Find Prize
Fun birthday party favour miscellaneous stuff ****************************************** FTF goes to DuckFaceDawe STF goes to lynger2 Congratulations on everyone being so stealthy!! Most of you come and go without notice. You're all amazing!
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This cache is ten years old. I'm so over-the-moon with happiness to see that people are still making there way here to find it.
*further amazed that the original padlock has stood the test of time and elements and is still in great working condition.
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
Gur lneq unf n yvynp urqtr nybat gur fvqrjnyx naq ynetr jbbqra tngr jvgu na nepu.