Rattlesnake Mountain Blackout Challenge Mystery Cache
Rattlesnake Mountain Blackout Challenge
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Difficulty:
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Terrain:
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Size: 
(regular)
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Rattlesnake Mountain Blackout
Welcome to the Rattlesnake Mountain Blackout Challenge cache!
This cache is another of the now familiar blackout caches located around the Seattle area for which, in order to complete the challenge and find the cache, you must first find all the other active caches within a given area.
About Rattlesnake Mountain
Rattlesnake Mountain is one in a group of six foothill mountains comprising the Issaquah Alps. This alp is largely known due to the very popular destination hike Rattlesnake Ledge located at the equally known and popular Rattlesnake Lake Recreation Area. Rattlesnake Mountain is the most eastern Alp.
Rattlesnake Mountain State Forest Map
Blackout Area
The area for this particular blackout is Rattlesnake Mountain. You may have noticed that the words 'park', 'ledge' and 'ridge' were not included and that’s because I’ve defined the area by the greater geology and geopolitical boundaries rather than the smaller but much more well-known areas that are only parts of the larger mountain.
Boundary Map
In order to complete this challenge you must, for at a least one single point in time, have found or owned all the active caches in the given area as determined by the posted coordinates. At the time of posting there were 46 caches including this one.
The Specific Boundaries
The blackout area is based on the geological boundary of Rattlesnake Mountain which includes the politically defined Rattlesnake Ridge and other locations. To make it easier, the boundary is then modified to coincide with natural or manmade features, specifically waterways and roads.
The boundaries are:
North: The center of I90
East & Southeast: The center of 436th Ave SE and Cedar Falls Rd SE, the center of NF-2252, the center of the Cedar River
Southwest & West: The center of Williams Creek, the low ground between Williams Creek and the Raging River, the center of the Raging River, the center of State Route 18
These boundaries are also shown in the map above which is clickable to take you to an interactive Google terrain map. The map will help clarify the boundary but unfortunately will not identify any caches since it is not possible to have the boundary and current geocaches shown on the same Google map at the same time. The good news is that you can fairly easily determine the included caches using Groundspeak’s map tool. GSAK users can poly filter using these coordinates.
Questions will naturally come up for caches near the boundary or for other reasons so I’ve listed some of them below. Email me with questions you have about any others.
Included:
+ All active permanent caches
GC47EYC Monty Python: The French Taunter
GC4F5K9 Sno-Cone
GC5AZ60 Mid-Lake Micro
GCYGN6 The Other Side Of The Mountain
GC5RP07 Into the Black....the Browncoats Cache!
Not Included:
GC21AY8 Watershed Tour
GC2J54Y this is sparta
- Disabled Caches
- Events and CITOs
Note regarding difficult hides and puzzles:
There are a number of very difficult caches and it’s not reasonable to expect everyone to be able to find and solve them all completely independently. Asking for help and hints or nudges is absolutely fine and even expected but do try to stick to the general intent of the game. For example, make a few attempts at the cache before asking for a location hint and spend a couple hours on the puzzle before asking for help. When you do ask for help try a hint or nudge rather than the full solution or location. There aren't any hint police, give it your best shot.
Logging Requirements
Once you have found all the required caches then you are free to go find the final; there is no need to check with me first. However, you need to show that you completed it by using one of the four methods below. Anyone failing to do so will be subject to having their found log deleted without notice. Be sure to note in your found log the day and time that you blacked out the area since that is a key point.
Bookmark List Method
- Create a bookmark list called "[your name]’s Rattlesnake Mountain Blackout"
- Make the bookmark list public and include this cache on it so that it shows up in the bookmark lists shown on this cache page
- Add to the list all the caches you have found within the boundaries
My Finds Pocket Query Method
- Forward by email your complete My Finds Pocket Query as downloaded from the geocaching website. My email address is shaddow.geo at gmail.com
GSAK GPX Method
- Forward by email a gpx file created by GSAK with a poly filter using these coordinates. My email address is shaddow.geo at gmail.com
Log List Method
- Post a log to the cache page listing the date you found each cache, the cache code and the cache name. Post one cache per line and start each line with a line number. Use a single space between each item. Other than the line number you can sort the list in any way that you want but maintain the given structure as it is very important to make it much easier to import into a spreadsheet. Please post the list only once after completing the challenge. Do not post as you go as each log would generate an email that will spam and irritate myself and the watchers. The list should look very similar to this:
001 5/4/11 GCXXXX The First Cache In My List
002 6/1/11 GCXXXX The Second Cache In My List
003 7/2/11 GCXXXX Another Cache Found By Me
...
203 8/17/12 GCXXXX The Second To Last Cache In My List
204 8/22/12 GCXXXX The Last Cache In My List
The Cache
The cache is at the posted coordinates which will take you to a beautiful area well off of the beaten path. The cache is a .50 cal ammo can placed in the center of a huge cedar stump. The stump is located about 100' up stream from the bridge. Standing in the very middle of the bridge, not near the edge which is sketchy and risky, look up stream exactly perpendicular to the bridge and you'll see it. Not at first, it kind of looks like a rock or just a hill as the stump is so large and cut low. It doesn't look like a 'normal' stump. But once you make it out it's obvious and can't be unseen.
To access the cache, go slightly past the bridge and take the old logging road to the left. Go up about 100' or so. Just past the first 'trap' or trench dug to keep vehicles out, this one has a small stream in it most of the time. At about 10-15' past it then you'll once again be perpendicular to the stump and cache. Go down the steep short hill and work your way over. Watch for a few devils club. The cache is in the hole in the middle of the stump. There is cord tied to the cache and slung over the side of the stump in the case that the cache were to fall further into the hole.
Finishers
Finishers of the Rattlesnake Mountain Blackout
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
Va gur urneg bs gur znffvir erznvavat