For this "Brought to You" cache, I bring to you a concept rather than a container. When visiting Helsinki last September, my favorite cache find during our "free time" afternoon was Helsinki tourist tour GC6EGF0. Check it out for interesting historical information about that city's street names.
First a little story about caching in Finland if you are interested - or just skip a few paragraphs to learn how to solve this field puzzle.
During our tour, we had an afternoon free to do as we wished. A bit after noon we met NH82, economic advisor to Finland's parliament. I had been in communication with his friend who couldn't meet us and asked NH82 to meet us instead. During those brief lunchtime minutes we met, he gave recommendations about special caches, including Helsinki tourist tour before rushing back to work.
Things became even more interesting as we returned from our afternoon of caching. NH82 just happened to meet us as he left work and we were arriving back at our hotel. He said, "If you'll come with me, I'll take you to Sun Gear, Finland's oldest cache." We caught a train out of the city to get to his car and drove to the cache trailhead.
It was dark by the time we got on the rocky trail out to Sun Gear, and NH82 had the only flashlight. As we started the lengthy walk, we could see lightning and hear thunder rumbling nearby. Shortly we were in the midst of a wild thunderstorm's deluge without any rain gear. I will never forget going after that cache! Before driving us to our hotel, he stopped to show us his favorite cache in the area, GC3NVWE, and Finland's first earthcache, GCQV6G. Both are great caches. Back at the hotel, it was two wet, tired, yet very happy people who shared farewells with NH82 before racing to our room to begin drying out.
Back to my version of the Helsinki tourist tour. I'll try to stay as true as possible to the original description.
First - this is not your typical multi-cache where you get coordinates at each stage to take you to the next stage. It is more like a field puzzle where you hunt down the information needed to solve the final location. The stated coordinates are Waypoint D. That leaves three more to the north and three more to the south. You can start at the north, the south, or work both directions depending on where you park. The total walking distance will be similar no matter where you park.
Parking is free for two hours in the green zones all along Columbia St. or at parking meters before 8 am, after 5 pm, and on weekends and holidays.
A very short, tourist friendly walk (about 1.5 km round trip), shows you beautiful sights along the Olympia waterfront. No calculations needed. Bring your own pen.
Your task is to visit 7 different sets of coordinates listed from south to north to find out which animal can be seen at each location. For your convenience, all 7 waypoints are listed so that you can download them. They are labeled with corresponding letters from south to north; however, you may do them in any order.
At each site look up, down or at eye level. Find the animal and circle the correct number for each letter. The stages you need to visit are also marked as waypoints for your convenience. You can visit the stages in any order you wish. Remember to enjoy the views along your tour! After you have collected the needed information you can figure the cache coordinates as follows:
The final coordinates are N 47 0A.BCD, W 122 54.KLM. The micro container is attached to an object to make it easier to find. Please behave stealthily at the final location.
Waypoint A:
Which animal do you see here?
- if an eagle, A = 3
- if an orca, A = 2
- if a pig, A = 1
Waypoint B:
Which animal do you see here?
- if a pig, B = 7
- if a clam, B = 9
- if a dog, B = 8
Waypoint C:
Which animal do you see here?
- if an eagle, C = 6
- if a fish, C =7
- if a turtle, C = 8
Waypoint D:
Which animal do you see here?
- if a gull, D = 5
- if a crow, D = 6
- if an orca, D = 4
Waypoint K:
Which animal do you see here?
- if an eagle, K = 2
- if a porpoise, K = 0
- if a seal, K = 4
Waypoint L:
Which animal do you see here?
- if a clam, L = 6
- if a crab, L = 8
- if a bird, L = 7
Waypoint M:
Which animal do you see here?
- if a fish, M = 3
- if a pig, M = 2
- if a seal, M = 1
Enjoy your time along the water. You may even want to stop someplace to eat, or head farther north to the market if it is open.
November 11, 2025: The final location has been changed. If you solved previously and didn't find the final, enter you solution into the checker and you will be given the updated final coordinates. Alternatively, look for the new numbers assigned to the animals you find at each waypoint. The waypoints and animals have not been changed, only the numerical values assigned to them.
For confirmation of coordinates and an added hint, here is a checker you may use.
