This geocache is divided into four sections. You will begin and end at the Chamber of Commerce, however, there are four stages that must be completed. Each stage has its own history and little question that will provide you a digit. After completion, return to the Chamber of Commerce and utilize the four-digit code assembled from the four digits, and unlock the final geocache! The coordinates for each of the locations are provided in the waypoints section. Please note that to complete the geocache, you will be required to enter the Chamber of Commerce. This stage is only accessible from 9 AM - 5 PM on Monday - Friday.
STAGE ONE: Whitefish Presbyterian Church
Not long after the Great Northern Railway announced its plans for a division point in Whitefish, Presbyterian missionary E. M. Ellis and Kalispell minister Alexander Pringle traveled by bicycle and rowboat to visit the site. Soon after, Reverend Pringle canvassed logging and railroad camps for donations of cash and labor to construct a sanctuary. By December 1903, Whitefish had its first church. The First Presbyterian Church moved several times in the early years. By 1919, it had once again outgrown its building; to accommodate congregants, the church held services in the Masonic Lodge while planning a new house of worship. Under direction of physician and active church member W. W. Taylor, the building committee devised detailed drawings, which the Spokane architectural firm Rigg and Vantyne modified only slightly. The building committee chose a Romanesque Revival style design, considered less ostentatious and more appropriate for a Protestant church than the competing Gothic tradition. Romanesque Revival churches featured masonry construction, heavily arched windows, bands of stylized decoration, and towers—in this case a Norman style square tower that serves as the building’s main entrance. The one-story building featured a large daylight basement with a high ceiling, designed to provide clearance for a full-sized basketball court. Community members donated the large art glass windows ornamenting the sanctuary. Among them are two purchased by Japanese railroad workers for $700 in honor of churchwoman Elizabeth Peck, who taught the men English. A tribute to Peck, the windows also commemorate Whitefish’s once-thriving Japanese community and the church’s long history of community service.
The first digit of the code is the first digit of this church's numeric address, which can be found near the north entrance.
STAGE TWO: Whitefish City Beach
Take a swim!
Whitefish Lake Geologic History
If you were standing here 12,000 years ago, you would have been buried below an advancing glacier nearly 3,000 feet deep. Originating in Canada, this "Stillwater Glacier" flowed south-southeast into the Flathead Valley. As the glacier moved forward, it deposited huge piles of sand, gravel, cobbles and boulders known as glacial till. As temperatures increased in the late ice age, the ice melted but continued moving forward at the same rate, which created the dam—or glacial moraine that impounds Whitefish Lake today.
When the area became ice free around 10,000 years ago, it revealed Whitefish Lake and the surrounding landscape. Since its formation, Whitefish Lake has been a cold, clear lake with very good water quality. European settlement around the lake began approximately 125 years ago, representing about 1% of the lake's geologic history. Ongoing recreation and development continues to place pressure on the lake and may compromise water quality.
Fun Fact: This location was actually the site of another Boy Scout Eagle Project in 2014!
The second digit of the code is the amount of piers at the lake, as visible from the information sign
STAGE THREE: Whitefish Trail System
The Whitefish Trail currently consists of seven trailheads and 25+ miles of natural surface trail comprised of stacked loops, scenic overlooks, single‐track trails, and gated logging roads. It is the gateway for hikers, bikers, runners, skiers, and equestrians to beautiful forests, prime wildlife habitat, sweeping vistas, pristine lakes, and inter-connected recreation areas. The cornerstone of Whitefish Legacy Partners’ work, the Whitefish Trail is a regional, multi-partner project established in 2010 to develop a 55+ mile recreational trail system encircling the community of Whitefish and Whitefish Lake.
The third digit of the code is the length of the Lion Mountain Loop in miles according to the sign at the trailhead
STAGE FOUR: Whitefish Train Depot
One of the most historic locations in Whitefish, the Whitefish Train Depot is home to the historical society. In this stage, you will be making a detour, provided that the historical society is open. If it is not open, an alternative riddle is provided.
Whitefish served as a division point for the Great Northern Railway from its founding in 1904 until 1955. In 1925, one railroader called it “the most distinctively railroad town on the whole Great Northern system.” The second floor of this 1928 Tudor style building, designed by railroad architect Thomas McMahon, housed the railway’s division offices. Serving as a hub for passenger and freight transportation, the first floor housed the yard office, freight and baggage rooms, warm room, ticket office, general waiting room, telegraph office, men’s smoking room, and ladies’ restroom.
Competition from automobiles and trucks had already begun to decrease railroad traffic, so not many depots were built in the 1920s, the height of Tudor popularity; thus Tudor style depots are rare. This depot’s Tudor features include its high pointed roof, stucco and decorative half timbering above clapboard, and multiple groups of tall, narrow windows. Its decoratively carved brackets and rafter tails and second-floor balconies echo similar detailing at Glacier National Park chalets, visually connecting Whitefish to Glacier, a tourist destination widely promoted by the railroad. In the 1980s, Whitefish preservationists worked to preserve this magnificent building, which still serves as a passenger and freight depot. Railroad depots are one of the few types of buildings for which the back (facing the town) is as important as the front (facing the tracks). The stylish façades on both front and back of the Whitefish Depot continue to welcome travelers and reflect the town’s railroad history.
Inside the historical society that this cache is located at, there is a flag for a Boy Scout Troop. The fourth and final digit in the code is the second digit of this troop's number. If the historical society is not open at the time, go to the decorative (life-sized) train outside the depot and count the letters in the second word of the famous train line it is from. Add two to this number and there is the fourth digit in the code.
