This cache complies with the geocaching policies for Portland Parks & Recreation (PP&R) properties. Please respect park hours when caching.
The cache is not at the posted coordinates. Find the images and solve the puzzle to find the final location.
You do not need to find all 44 picture clues to solve the puzzle. The only ones required to find the final coordinates are #s 3, 8, 16, 18, 21, 26, 31, 35, 37, and 44. The intermediate clues are provided to help you find the others. The 44 pictures found in order trace a route of about 1.6 miles through the Sellwood neighborhood. Each consecutive clue is no more than 500 feet away from the previous clue (most of them are much closer together), so traveling the entire route in order may be the only way to find the clues that matter, unless you know the neighborhood well. Viewpoint #1 is at the posted coordinates and viewpoint #44 is about 1/3 mile away from the final cache location, which is a little over a mile from the starting coordinates. If you found every clue in order and took no detours, walked to the final location and then back to the start to retrieve your car, you would walk about 2.5 miles. Based on the experience of previous finders of the similar puzzles, you can expect to walk an additional mile or two when including wrong turns.
Congratulations to Warnock3d for FTF!
General hints: All viewpoints are visible from inside the area bounded by SE Bybee, SE Milwaukie, SE Tacoma, and SE 7th Ave. Some of the objects pictured may be slightly outside the boundaries, but they are all visible from within the puzzle area. The final cache location is several blocks outside the stated boundaries.
To solve the puzzle for the final cache coordinates, find the solution to the 10 problems below. Each letter A - J will be a number 0-9. Then assemble the clues as follows for the final coordinates: N 45 AB.CDE W 122 FG.HIJ
Note that some viewpoints are from the side or back of a building, but to find the answer you may need to figure out the street address, which might require traveling around the corner to look for the number on the front. Then don’t forget to return to the original viewpoint before beginning to look for the next clue. If street numbers are not visible on the building, we recommend looking it up in a mapping app.
A: Last digit of the street address of image 3, plus 1.
B: First digit of the street address of image 8.
C: Second digit of the street address of image 16, plus 2.
D: Last digit of the street address of image 18. (You’re looking for the street address of the business that this item is the mascot for, the storefront is around the corner from the item itself).
E: Last digit of the street address of image 21, minus 4.
F: Last digit of the street address of image 26, plus 2.
G: The sum of all four digits of the street address of image 31.
H: First digit of the street address of image 35.
I: Last digit of the street address of image 37, minus 3.
J: The Oaks Park ride visible from this viewpoint is called the Rock-O-_______. The number of letters in the missing word in the ride, plus 4 = J.
Checksum A-J: 50
Note that you are trying to get to the viewpoints from which the photos were taken, not get to the items pictured. We strongly discourage everyone from climbing on strangers’ rooftops. Pay attention to arrows, viewpoints from street corners, and foreground/background items in the pictures – they often contain clues about when/where to make a turn.
You can almost always see at least a hint of the next picture from the viewpoint of the previous one. Sometimes you may need to look behind you! When in doubt, continue in the same direction you were just heading and look for the next clue. It is not necessary to enter anybody’s yard to find any of the viewpoints or the final cache.
Accessibility: The route through the picture clues is entirely paved. Some intersections may not have curb cuts. Final location is not wheelchair accessible.
If you'd like to print out the pictures from home, full-size images are available here:
Clues 1-24: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1HfRIW0xNfMjBjWP1Wa8SQK6nT4TKsI-x/view?usp=sharing
Clues 25-44: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1MlNZ4XMkCvr59gtkw7BDdKf6E1LAVBsa/view?usp=sharing
Happy hunting! If you get completely lost feel free to message me for a hint.
The original set of pictures was taken in June 2022. I always appreciate tips from other cachers about repainted houses, boarded-up murals, disappearing lawn art, etc. If you notice that a viewpoint looks significantly different than the picture, I am especially grateful to those who are able to take a new picture and post it in a log or message it to me!
More Little Pictures!
