HoggleA10 recently reached 3000 cache finds! And it’s close to Halloween, so I decided to place another Halloween-themed cache that also honors her.
This letterbox is not at the posted coordinates, but you will start from there. You will have to follow some directions to reach the cache, deciphering a simple puzzle along the way. Unless you decipher it beforehand, which is fine, too. Everything you need to decipher the puzzle will be found in this description. [Edit 10/23/25: Due to trail construction towards the beginning of this letterbox, I am adding a checkpoint for cachers to use as they wish. Some of the clues are obsolete due to the trail construction, so it may be hard to figure out exactly what to do at the beginning of the letterbox, but the trails are more or less the same. Feel free to use the checkpoint if you get stuck, or feel free to start out at the checkpoint and go from there.]
In honor of Halloween, here are some Agatha Christie works that may be of interest, in order of first publishing:
The Mysterious Affair at Styles, novel, 1920, featuring Hercule Poirot.
Poirot Investigates, collection, 1924, featuring Hercule Poirot; includes the following:
“The Adventure of The ‘Western Star’”;
“The Adventure of the Egyptian Tomb”; and,
“The Adventure of the Cheap Flat.”
The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, novel, 1926, featuring Hercule Poirot.
The Big Four, novel, 1927, featuring Hercule Poirot.
Partners In Crime, collection, 1929, featuring Tommy & Tuppence; includes:
“A Fairy in the Flat”;
“The Man Who was No. 16”; and,
“The Gentleman Dresssed in Newspaper.”
Murder on the Orient Express, novel, 1934, featuring Hercule Poirot.
Six Against the Yard, novel, 1936.
Death On The Nile, novel, 1937, featuring Hercule Poirot.
And Then There Were None novel, 1939.
Five Little Pigs, novel 1942, featuring Hercule Poirot.
The Body in the Library, novel, 1942, featuring Miss Marple.
Towards Zero, novel, 1944.
The Rose and the Yew Tree, novel, 1948.
The Witness for the Prosecution and Other Stories, collection, 1948.
Three Blind Mice and Other Stories, collection, 1950, including:
“The Adventures of Johnnie Waverly,” featuring Hercule Poirot;
“The Love Detectives,” featuring Harley Quin;
“The Third Floor Flat,” featuring Hercule Poirot;
“Four and Twenty Blackbirds,” featuring Hercule Poirot; and,
“Three Blind Mice.”
Destination Unknown, novel, 1954.
4:50 From Paddington, novel, 1957, featuring Miss Marple.
The Golden Ball and Other Stories, collection, 1971, including:
“The Girl in the Train”;
“Jane In Search Of A Cache Job”; and,
“Next to a Dog.”
Curtain: Poirot’s Last Case, novel, 1975, featuring Hercule Poirot.
Miss Marple: The Complete Short Stories, collection, 2011 (posthumous), including:
“The Tuesday Night Club,” 1927;
“Motive vs. Opportunity,” 1928;
“The Bloodstained Pavement,” 1928;
“The Idol House of Astarte,” 1928;
“Ingots of Gold,” 1928; (5)
“The Thumb Mark of St. Peter,” 1928;
“The Blue Geranium,” 1929;
“The Companion,” 1930;
“The Four Suspects,” 1930;
“The Herb of Death,” 1930; (10)
“The Affair at the Bungalow,” 1930;
“Death by Drowning,” 1931;
“Miss Marple Tells a Story,” 1934;
“Strange Jest,” 1941;
“Tape-Measure Murder,” 1941; (15)
“The Case of the Caretaker,” 1942;
“The Case of the Perfect Maid,” 1942;
“Sanctuary,” 1954; and,
“Greenshaw’s Folly,” 1956.
The Monogram Murders, novel, 2014, featuring Hercule Poirot, by Sophie Hannah and approved by the Agatha Christie Estate.
The Killings at Kingfisher Hill, novel, 2020, featuring Hercule Poirot, by Sophie Hannah.
From the posted coordinates, follow the [“___shaw’s Folly”] path until you reach a turn. (Hint 1) Turn right and walk [“The Man Who was No. __”] paces, then [“___ Blackbirds”] paces more. Face roughly [“The Adventure of The ‘___ern Star’”] and walk along the trail until you reach a [“The ___stained Pavement”]-colored signpost. [Edit 5/12/25: LOOK DOWN!]
[Edit 10/23/25: CHECKPOINT]
Face [1944 novel] degrees on your compass. Walk [___ From Paddington, taken as a three-digit number (Hint 2), divided by 2] paces, following as the trail curves [the direction suggested by Murder on the ___ Express]. Make a sharp turn [‘___ern Star’ again], and walk [HoggleA10’s aforementioned milestone, divided by 10] paces along the trail, using the following directions to guide you:
During this walk, you will notice the trail narrow as you continue on a [The Killings at Kingfisher ___]. Look for a sign mentioning a place where one might find [1942 novel featuring Hercule Poirot], in a sense? (Hint 3) Count [“___ Blind Mice”] of these signs, ignoring any that are clearly facing away from you.
After the [“The ___ Floor Flat”], look for one more tree with a white trail marking. Turn right, and walk off the trail [number of short stories listed above as included in Miss Marple: The Complete Short Stories] paces. You are no longer [1954 novel]; you will find the cache [“___ a Dog”] a tree.
Please leave the cache as found, and cover with natural geocover.
Advanced FTF honors go to HoggleA10!