MO Trees: Close But No Cigar Multi-Cache

Tree name: Northern Catalpa (Catalpa speciosa)
Nicknames: Catawba, Cigar Tree, Indian Bean

Identification

Two things immediately stand out about the Northern Catalpa tree. First are the large, heart-shaped leaves that can range from 6 to 12 inches in length. They cover branches all the way up to a rounded crown between 50 to 75 feet from the ground. Second, one can't help but compare the plentiful fruit to elongated, twisty cigars. These green beans turn brown when mature splitting cleanly in two. Perhaps these are more like trick cigars from a 1940s cartoon?

In the winter, this tree can be a little difficult to point out! All you have to go by are remaining seed pods (if they are still attached) and the tree itself. These trees have a single trunk with light brown bark. The outer covering is deeply furrowed with flat-topped ridges.

The Geocache

The Northern Catalpa at the coordinates is a great specimen but is difficult to approach. Several vines of poison ivy have claimed the surface disproving the old adage about bark being worse than bite. Instead, we will investigate a fixture often frequented by creatures that bark. A small, red fire hydrant can be found just to the east of the tree. On one side near the bottom is the following text:

You will notice that the word "BEAN" isn't actually on the hydrant. We're going to use substitution to locate the geocache! For each letter in BEAN, assign its associated number on the hydrant. For example, if the second line is D14x9, B would equal 9.

Do you have your numbers? Great! Substitute bold letters with numbers in the following coordinates: N 38° 56.EB9N W 92° 21.EA9N. This is where the cache is hidden! Answers can be checked via this link.

Permission was obtained to place this geocache.