I ALWAYS stress over what to call my new hides. This one was easy but I'm sure many of you are wondering how in the world I came up with the name for this one. Actually, it was e!)asy. The Michigan Geocaching Organization, also known as MiGO, has a bingo contest going. You can either find geocaches that start with the letters they assign you, or you can hide geocaches that start with the letter they assign you. I looked and looked (and looked for a multi that started with an "N" and couldn't find one, so voila!
If you're not used to doing multi caches, this would be a good one to start with because they won't get much easier than this! Stage one coordinates will take you to an intersection in the trail. You will need to do some very basic math, using these signs, to find stage 2. (And when I say basic I mean it.....addition and subtraction only.)
At the southeast side of the intersection you will see a pair of signs sharing the same pole. You will need to use those signs to fill in the appropriate numbers to get N 43° 6.ABC' W 83° 36.XYZ'. Count the number of letters on the top sign and subtract 13. Add that number to the north coordinates. (I know I could have made it easier for you, but really? You wanted a 1/1 cache? LOL.)
For the west coordinates, you'll have to count the number of letters on each sign. Subtract the lower number from the higher number, then add two to your total. Subtract that new number from the posted west coordinates and soon you'll find yourself at stage two.
I have marked this as wheelchair accessible because you are on a paved trail. The intersection where you start is a bit rough though, so please be careful if you're in a chair. Also, I used the "stealth" attribute because, at times, this trail can be EXTREMELY busy. Please watch for muggles to avoid any problems, so others can enjoy the game.
There are SEVERAL other caches along this trail and it is paved for several miles. If you head east there is another huge park to ride through (Richfield Park) with lots of cool things to see, including an amazing stone bridge, stone pavilions, old water pumps, playgrounds, a BMX track, etc. If you traverse to the west you will soon come upon the park headquarters and a gadget cache (compliments of PeePaw) and then cross the street to a veteran's memorial....and then continue on to more trails. (If you are a tourist and not familiar with the area, I would suggest you go no further west than Coldwater Road.)
For more info on the entire trail, that stretches over 48 counties and over 2,000 miles, check out this link: IRON BELLE TRAIL