Having made the last couple of puzzles and hides a little trickier than normal, this month I've gone back to an old favourite of mine which has always seemed popular amongst other cachers. The topic for this edition is American states.
- The first stage is to find the names of the U.S. states described by the descriptions A to J below. Some of them are general knowledge, some of them might need a quick search online, but none of them should be difficult. Make sure you get the spellings correct or you'll go awry at the next stage!
- Calculate the value each of the names using standard UK Scrabble tile values. For example, my name, Carasek, would be worth 13 (3 for the C, 5 for the K and five lots of 1 for the other letters). No double or triple letters involved though! This will give a numerical value for each clue, A through to H.
- Substitute those values into the following formula to find the final co-ordinates:
N: 50º (F + H) . (E / 2) C
W: 003º [(A * 2) + G] . (D / B)2 [(H + J) * 2]
The cache itself should not be difficult to find and is accessible at all times. There are no official parking spots at GZ, but there is large off-road gateway opposite which can be used for the few minutes you'll likely be at GZ. You could also park in the nearby village and have a stroll.
The clues:
A) East coast state named after the wife of King Charles I.
B) The only state which borders exactly one other state.
C) The states whose flag depicts the 'Big Dipper' constellation and the star Polaris.
D) Popularly known as the Bluegrass State, this land-locked region became a state in its own right when it was ceded by Virginia in 1792.
E) Despite being the tenth largest by area, this state is the least populous of all fifty states.
F) The only one of the 'Four Corners' states to have a two-word name.
G) Calvin Coolidge, the only President to have been born on July 4th, was born in this state.
H) This state has the longest name of all of the states with single word names, and is also home to the place with the longest name in the entire country.
J) This state is home to The Space Needle, an observation tower built for the 1962 World's Fair and which features in the opening titles of the sitcom Frasier.