The Whittlesea Puzzles for Beginners geoart is designed for cachers who are new to puzzle solving. In this series, we explore a number of common puzzle solving techniques and highlight some online resources. These beginner puzzles will help get you started in tackling those mysteries on your geomap, and hopefully boost your confidence to tackle more.

Many of the online puzzle solving tools can be found on the following page: Puzzle Resources.

Don't forget to collect the clues inside the cache for the bonus puzzle - GC9Z4DN - Whittlesea Puzzles for Beginners - Bonus Cache.

The cache is NOT at the posted coordinates. To obtain the coordinates, solve the puzzle below.

Puzzle #04: Coordinates and Conversions

Geocaching uses the WGS84 datum for all caches. We are familiar with coordinates written this way:
S37 32.000 E145 09.000

These same coordinates written as Decimal Degrees would be:
-37.533333, 145.150000

There are several online converters available including Geocaching Toolbox, boulter.com/gps/ and CacheSleuth just to name a few.

The above image is taken from Cache Sleuth. From the index in blue on the left hand side panel, scroll to Map Tools, then click on Coordinate Conversion. Enter the coordinates in the format you have been given and click convert, to automatically translate these into various other notations.

The Puzzle

Now try to convert the below UTM coordinates into Degree Decimal Minutes and enter those coordinates into the checker.

55 H 336715 5840893

We have chosen locations for caches where it is safe to pull off the road within a short distance of GZ. Under NO circumstance should driveways and gates be blocked or used for parking. With nearby property owners in mind, these geocaches have been placed out of view and away from private residences, so as not to cause alarm. Please be mindful of the local community, and have a friendly chat with them if they stop by.