Skip to content

Hillside Surveyors Mystery Cache

Hidden : 5/13/2017
Difficulty:
3 out of 5
Terrain:
1 out of 5

Size: Size:   micro (micro)

Join now to view geocache location details. It's free!

Watch

How Geocaching Works

Please note Use of geocaching.com services is subject to the terms and conditions in our disclaimer.

Geocache Description:


The cache is not at the listed coordinates. But this intersection (Hillside Road & Surveyors Place) did give this cache its name, which in turn is a somewhat fitting description of successful finders. Beginning geocachers will learn about a related activity and pick up a new skill.

Quite simply, the cache is 629 meters from GPS 41 (HV9645) and 862 meters from GPS 41 AZ MK (HV9646). Some intuition and/or the cryptic hint should help with the rest.


November 2023: I was just reading something, and it made me wonder about this cache. Turns out that Google no longer turns up the information that it once did. Not sure when that happened, but I'd say that it made this cache quite a bit harder than intended. Geocaching made some changes too, about a year ago, which probably didn't help matters. The bit above about a "related activity" is technically still true, but it's an activity that no longer has the support of geocaching.com.

To restore some sanity to this puzzle, I decided to locate for you two files that still have the necessary information. This one doesn't have the information in a format that we've become use to as geocachers. And this is more true for the other one. So, a few more steps are required compared to before. I'm therefore bumping up the difficulty rating a half notch, for maybe learning a skill you haven't learned before (or rather, finding a tool that you don't currently have in your geocaching toolkit). If you need a nudge or two, or want to know more about what I'm cryptically alluding to, feel free to contact me.

July 2025: Google is still not particularly helpful, but I realized that I could be significantly more helpful than the links I previously provided. Relative to the original experience, I'm essentially ridding the puzzle of the initial hunt for information. But I am adding back a glimpse into geocaching's past. Courtesy of the Wayback Machine: HV9645 and HV9646

 

Additional Hints (Decrypt)

|./ | / | / | / |

Decryption Key

A|B|C|D|E|F|G|H|I|J|K|L|M
-------------------------
N|O|P|Q|R|S|T|U|V|W|X|Y|Z

(letter above equals below, and vice versa)