Puzzle Solving 101: Lesson 10 - Brute Force Mystery Cache
Hidden : 9/19/2019
Difficulty:
1.5 out of 5
Terrain:
3 out of 5

Size: Size: small (small)

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Geocache Description:


? ? ? ? ? This cache is not at the posted coordinates ? ? ? ? ?

See Intro to Puzzle Solving Series on Lesson 1.

Be sure to record the code for the Final Exam / Bonus Cache. It is written inside the cap and on the log.

Lesson 10 - Brute Force
Brute Force is not really a puzzle solving method, but a puzzle cache finding method. Using various clues available can lead to actually knowing where the cache is located, or perhaps close enough to aid a solution. Typical clues might be: distance between a sequence of caches (remember the 528' minimum distance rule); data embedded in photos; spoiler comments or photos; logs of where the Cache Owner was when the puzzle was hidden; hiding style of the Cache Owner.

Example
Check out the photo below. Using what you have learned in a previous lesson, look at the metadata to find the location where the find took place.

Using an on line program to get the coords from the metatada, will give you Latitude 45.028767 North and Longitude 92.798456 West, which is within about 35' of an actual cache.
Permission granted by Team Dennis (Brute Force Expert) to use this example.

The Puzzle
If this were a puzzle that you really wanted to Brute Force, you would ignore the puzzle and go with other information. So here are the items to follow:
  • Method 1: Look at the caches in the puzzle series. Which others were hidden by the same Cache Owner the same day as this one? Solve and find those and calculate the midpoint between them by hand or using an online tool such as Geocachingtoolbox.com.

    This will put you about 75 feet from the correct location, which will be in an obvious direction. If you were really Brute Forcing, you could go hunt for it with that information, and use a photo in the image gallery to help.
    Otherise, for this example, put the calculated coordinates into this checker and it will give you the actual (exact) coordinates of the physical cache.

    You can validate the exact coordinates with the Solution Checker at the bottom of the page.

  • Method 2: You might already know that there have been caches on this section of the trail which were archived. Using a tool called "Map Compare" on Project-GC.com, look for a cache that might fit in an expected spot, and use those coordinates. You can validate those with the Solution Checker at the bottom of the page.

GC5F0CA. Brown's Creek Trail - Hillside Tree

Additional Hints (No hints available.)



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