Official Stuff
Cache is NOT at the posted coordinates. Don't go there. You won't find a cache there. And you will get wet. And this cache does not have the "May Require Wading" or "May Require Swimming Attribute". Please use stealth when retrieving the cache!
This Cache
To find the coordinates, you will need to decipher the codes below using the info on the cache page.
If you have never worked with Morse Code, Binary Code, or Baconian (BACON!!!) codes before, the cache page below will explain them in more detail...
Numbers 1-5 are examples of Morse Code
1. - .... .
2. ABAB BA ABAB BBBB B
3. 
4. 1101 000 110 01 011
5. AA A
Numbers 6-10 are examples of Binary Code
6. 01001110 01101111 01110010 01110100 01101000
7. XQQQXQXX XQQXQXXX XQQXQXXQ XQQQXXQX XQQQXQXX XQQQQXXQ XXXXQXQX
8. aBCdeFGh iJLkMNOP qRSTuVwX yZABcdEf
9. 
10. .---..-- .--.-..- .----…
Numbers 11-15 are examples of Baconian Code
11. ABBBBABBBAABAAAABBABBAABB
12. 00101011101010010001
13. Use The Baconian Cipher
14. 
15. ?!??!!!?!!?!!?!?!!??
OK- I've told you enough! You will need to figure out 16-25 yourself! The first few should be easy to solve, but they will get trickier as you go along!
16. . .. --. .... - -.--
17. 01110100 01101000 01110010 01100101 01100101
18. AABABABBBABAAABBAABBBBAAA
19. What Is This Code?
20. Stop! Run! Run! Stop! Run! Run! Run! Stop! Stop! Run! Stop! RUN!!!
21. 
22. (41.2 + 56.3 x .684) + (.6 x 147.994) + (4126 – 324.6 + 52.6 – 1209)
23. (This message is encoded with a two-character) (cipher type. You will need to crack the) (code to get the number. It’s going to) (be tricky, but you can definitely do it)!
24. 7, 13, 20, 30, 40, 51, 142, 191, 207, 241, 293, 362, 404, 999, 1048, 1186, 1307, 1401, 1502, 1598
25. One Two Three Four, Seven Thirteen Fifteen, Five Seven Five Six, Nine Seven Two One, Twenty Ten Thirty Forty, Fifty Ten Nine Eight, Four Four Seven, Ten Ten Ten, Four Three Two One
"Two Thing" Ciphers/Codes
Codes and ciphers are quite common ways that coordinates are hidden for puzzle caches. There are literally hundreds of different ciphers a CO can use!! Yikes!! The good news is that some types are used more frequently. By learning to recognize some of these common types, you can more easily solve some of the puzzle caches you see!!
Some ciphers/codes use two characters as the basis for the encryption. Read below to learn about three of the more common ones.
Morse Code
This is probably the most “famous” of the codes that use two characters. The code was created by Samuel F. B. Morse and first used around 1844 (He had developed a slightly different version in 1837). Morse was one of the inventors that helped pioneer the telegraph machine and played the key role in creating the code that would be used to transmit messages with the machine.
The basis of the code was a series of electronic pulses of different lengths. A short pulse and a long tone. These became commonly known as “dots”(.) and “dashes” (-). Original telegraph machines actually made notations on paper, but experienced operators were able to translate the code directly, making the paper unnecessary.
Morse translated the entire alphabet to a series of dots and dashes. In 1848, Friedrich Clemens Gerke made a number of changes, and his code was eventually adopted and is referred to as “International Morse Code” and was made the worldwide standard in 1865.
There are tons of online Morse code translators out there. Use your favorite search engine to search for “Morse Code Translator”. You should have plenty of choices, each with pros and cons. When you find your favorite one, create a folder called “Geocaching Puzzle Decoders” in your favorites/bookmarks and save it there!!
Try it out now. Find a Morse code translator and decode this message:
-- --- .-. ... . -.-. --- -.. .
(You can check your work at the end of this cache page!)
Binary Code
In the computer age, Binary Code is an important concept, so it might be surprising to learn that the invention of the modern binary number system is attributed to Gottfried Liebniz in 1689!! And actually, the binary systems even pre-date that! The Chinese were using a binary system going back to the 9th century B.C.E.!!!
The basis of the binary system is using two characters to encode a message. Most often, the characters are zeroes (0) and ones (1). Binary strings are often arranged in strings of eight digits (or “bits”). Using just 1’s and 0’s, a string of 8 characters can take on 256 combinations, allowing for binary code to translate to a wide number of characters. Making things a bit more complicated, binary can be converted to several different character sets—hexadecimal, octal, decimal, ASCII or more!
One of the most common conversions in Geocaching puzzles is conversion of binary to text. This is often done via the ASCII character set. In ASCII, there are 128 characters defined by a numeric code. So, for example, the ASCII code for “A” is 0065. The number 65, expressed as a Binary number is 01000001. So, 1000001, translating from binary to ASCII is “A”. Note that in ASCII, “A” is a different value (65) from “a” (97).
You can find tons of binary translators using your favorite search engine!! When you find your favorite one, create a folder called “Geocaching Puzzle Decoders” in your favorites/bookmarks and save it there!! Remember that it may take a couple of tries based on the character set you are converting to!
Try it out now! Find a binary to ASCII converter that you like and decode this message:
01000010 01101001 01101110 01100001 01110010 01111001 00100000 01000011 01101111 01100100 01100101
(You can check your work at the end of this cache page!)
Baconian Cipher
The final two-character cipher we will discuss is the Baconian Cipher. Though, I’ll admit, I always call it the “Bacon” cipher. I mean, who doesn’t LOVE bacon??
The Baconian Cipher was created by Francis Bacon in 1605!!! Wow! That’s an old cipher!! In Addition to serving as the Lord High Chancellor of England from 1617 – 1621, he is also known as the “Father of the Scientific Method”! Wow! And he created a code that Geocachers can use!!
His code was based on the idea that a secret message could be encoded in the way text is presented. He would use two different fonts or typefaces, each representing a value of either “A” or “B”. He created an alphabet based on this. “AAAAA” was “A”, “AAAAB” was “B”, and so on. Bacon’s code grouped his letters into groups of 5 characters. He originally based his code off the Latin alphabet, which doesn’t have the letters “J” or “U”. A later change was made to include these two letters.
To convert a message, look for the “A” and “B” characters. Here is a sample message:
This Message Is A Bacon Cipher
You notice that some of the letters are in red and some are in black.
We can assign “A” to the red letters and “B” to the black letters. Doing that, we get this message:
AAAABAAAAAAAABAABBBAABBAB (Note: we have removed the spaces as they are not needed)
Now that you have your code, you can Google to find a Baconian decoder. When you find your favorite one, create a folder called “Geocaching Puzzle Decoders” in your favorites/bookmarks and save it there!!
Note that we guessed as to what “A” and “B” were. We may have guessed wrong. Many of the online decodes allow you to easily “swap” A and B, so if you don’t get a readable message, try that before giving up.
(You can check your work at the end of this cache page!)
Tips for Solving “Two-Thing” Ciphers and Codes
So, now that you know about some of the more common “Two-Thing” ciphers and codes (and yes—apparently, that’s what I’m calling them), Be on the lookout for things that can possibly be broken down into “two” things.
If the puzzle has dots and dashes, it would make sense to start with Morse code. Likewise, a number of 1’s and 0’s, might suggest binary. A’s and B’s, would be a Bacon to start.
But, keep in mind that two characters can be anything!! A’s and B’s could be a Morse code puzzle! Or Binary! You might see a phrase or two repeated (There’s a puzzle that references “LFC” and “HFC” that breaks down and is actually a Baconian cipher!). You might see two different colors, two different fonts, two different pictures—there’s no limit on what can be used!
Some more tips:
- Groups of 5 may suggest either Baconian or even Binary (there is a 5-bit binary alphabet)
- Groups of 8 may suggest a binary code!
- In some cases, ciphers/codes can be interchangeable. If you use a 5-bit binary, the binary and Baconian translation will be the same!
- While Morse code and Baconian are most-often translated to text directly. Binary can be directly translated to text but may go through multiple steps to get there (It may translate to a Hexadecimal, and then text). Be sure to try different options.
- There are two different Baconian ciphers—one with all the letters and the original that is missing J and U
- One of the key steps is determining which character is which (A vs B, dot vs dash, 0 vs 1). If you are unsuccessful at first, be sure to flip the values and try again (Many Baconian ciphers have this tool built right in!).
- A puzzle may try to trick you by presenting a particular cipher to look like a different one. For example, a code may be binary, but the puzzle shows "A" and "B" to make it look like a Bacon cipher!
- A puzzle may had a common cipher in plain sight!! For example, if you see 500-200-100-50, is that really a math equation? Or could that be morse code and ---??
- If you’re really stuck, most CO’s are happy to help—especially after the First-to-find has been claimed. Feel free to reach out for a nudge for help!
So, now that you know a little bit about “Two-thing” codes/ciphers, you’re ready to solve this, and many, more puzzles!!
(Answers to code translations in cache description!)
Morse Code Translation: MORSE CODE
Binary Translation: Binary Code
Baconian Translation: BACON