Official Stuff
This cache is located in Sandy Creek Park. As of 5/1/21, there is current a $2/person fee to enter the park. Please obey posted park hours (They vary by season and are available online or posted at the gate). DO NOT HUNT OUTSIDE OF POSTED HOURS. Additionally, please make sure we follow all park rules, including:
- Please respect the property and Leave No Trace.
- Park only in designated areas. Do NOT park on the sides of roads or in non-designated parking.
- Please do not park on the dam.
- Please do not enter the water at the dam.
- Please don’t climb on the rocks at the bottom of the dam or enter dangerous areas.
- Please do not dig in the park as no caches are buried.
- Please respect the property and Leave No Trace (Yes-- we said this twice).
Thank you for being respectful of this beautiful park!
The Series
Do you love mystery caches? Do you love D/T (Difficulty/Terrain) ratings? if so, we have a GREAT series for you!!!
The Jackson County Agritourism Geo-Trail 81 series (JCAT-81) has been placed for YOU! We do have to fess up that the series isn’t actually in Jackson County, but it’s a stone’s throw away and an awesome set of caches. If you complete all 81, you will have completed an entire D/T grid. Total fizzy awesomeness!
The majority of the caches are hidden in Sandy Creek Park. There is an entrance fee of $2 per person to enter. Current park hours are Tuesday to Sunday, 8:00 AM to 6:00 PM, closed on Mondays. (Note: Hours can change-- please check with the park before making your trip plans)
The caches are hidden in a variety of containers and styles. The puzzles will help build your puzzle-solving skills. Be on the lookout for some JCAT-81 Puzzle-Solving events where we will help you solve some of the tougher ones.
This series is a collaborative effort of “The Puzzle Posse”! The Puzzle Posse consists of Bragger407, GeoMonkeyTiger!, LaFavorite Cacher, and poeanne.
This Cache
This cache is rated a 4.5/3.5. The puzzle will be challenging. The physical find won't be too hard, but it will be a pretty good hike to get there. It is a fair way off of the trail. The cache is a unique container, and there is no room for trackables, SWAG, or a pen. Be sure to bring water, bug spray, and possibly a snack! Note that you may see some fences marking private property. Please respect the fence lines as the cache is on the park side of the fences...
This Puzzle
(This puzzle brought to you by poeanne)
The cache is NOT at the posted coordinates.
Farmer MacDonald raised several different crops, but some of his newest were flowers. He had seen limited success in previous harvests, so he contacted the University of Georgia (Go Dawgs!), known for their world-class agricultural science department.
The University was eager to help and suggested using Gas Chromatography analysis to examine the harvest. They explained that often they can take a baseline of a set of well-producing flowers and then make row-by-row adjustments to Farmer MacDonald's own field to yield the desired results.
For the baseline analysis, they decided to use the flower farm run by a nearby, long-time neighbor, Farmer Nonregla. They used five plants for the analysis:
Gas Chromatography Analysis Baseline
At first, Farmer MacDonald was in a state of panic. Would Farmer Nonregla take advantage of this knowledge about his own failing crops to reap a business advantage? He knew it would be very important to carefully construct the message, making sure that he stated his request clearly and verified the order in which the flowers were added to the garden.
Thankfully, the conversation with Farmer Nonregla went well. The University was able to gather and analyze the data, and in just a couple of weeks compiled the following recommendation.
As Farmer MacDonald carefully studied the data, he not only knew what adjustments to make for next year, but realized he was looking at a really great spot to hide a geocache!!
University of Georgia Field Recommendation
Can YOU find the spot?
Solution Checker
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