Welcome to another Daring Chix Multi! This edition of the Daring Chix series is all about geocaching in public places and being around lots of people, so we're going to go explore the mall! The geocache is not in the mall, but it is nearby. However, you will have to explore inside the mall to get the answers to the Certitude questions, which you will then put into Certitude as one long string to get coordinates.
I don't know about you, but personally, I'm not a huge fan of going to the mall. I think it's too busy and overcrowded, and the number of people around just makes it hard for me to focus and feel comfortable. I'll go if I need something, but it's never a "fun time." I'm always a little squeamish about doing really stealthy caches too - like those ones where you have to do things surrounded by muggles, and it's impossible to escape them. So if you're like me, this cache will dare you to dip your toes into more "public caching" without making you do anything too eyebrow-raising. On the other hand, if you like the mall, then feel free to enjoy solving this cache as a treat during your next excursion!
Since the questions part of this multi cache takes place inside, please adhere to the regular operating hours of the mall. As of publishing these are:
Monday - Thursday 10:00 AM - 8:00 PM
Friday - Saturday 10:00 AM - 9:00 PM
Sunday 11:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Anyways, on to the cache! For your convenience, I have included in the gallery a 3-D map of the mall with locations of the reference points marked. Hopefully this will help make it clearer where to go and everything.
There is no need to go to the posted coordinates; they are just some satisfying numbers within the mall area. I recommend you start your journey by parking in the Pink parking lot off of Solar St (see waypoint); you will then enter the mall via the ingress near that waypoint. Ascend to Floor 2 using either the escalators or the elevator, and you will find yourself at the beginning of the Elevated Walkway.
1. How many diagonal beams do you see across the windows inside the walkway bridge? (2 digits.) You can ignore any beams that are angled away from the walkway proper. If you see any beams crossed in the shape of an X, count that as 2 beams.
At the end of the Elevated Walkway, walk through the doors into the mall. This area of the mall is known as The Canyon. It contains trees and tree-like art, the largest indoor suspended ropes course in the world, and several restaurants. Just in front of you is an I❤️NY sculpture, and to your right is the Central New York Welcome Center.
2. A blue canoe and two pillars form an archway with several plaques honoring outstanding individuals from Central New York. Find the third individual in the rightmost column of plaques. What is that person's middle/maiden name? (6 letters.)
Continue onward towards and up the escalators or elevators, onto Floor 3. Look around, and somewhere nearby you should see a building in the neoclassical revival style (not sure what that means? It's all Greek to me, too...) that appears to be experiencing a perpetual natural disaster. Find your way inside that building - keep a good grip, could be some strong winds! lol - and look for a directory sign.
3. Find the word "Bridge" on the directory sign. What name precedes it? (8 letters.)
Staying on the third floor, make your way towards the movie theater. You're looking for the regular cinema to the west of the Central Atrium and elevators, not any special kind of theater. There are a couple ways to get there, but if you take the route I took, you will pass several interesting establishments within the mall, including a trampoline park, an arcade, and a racetrack. This hallway then continues up a slight incline and leads directly to the east side of the Central Atrium, where you will find the ticket booth for the cinema. There is no need to buy a ticket; you only need to go as far west as you are allowed without a ticket. They do change where that line is, but the question should still be answerable from the furthest point I've seen them block off.
4. Look to the left/south of the big word "CONCESSIONS" to find a digital sign with all the movie and theater listings. According to the very top of that sign (the permanent, non-digital part), what are the theater numbers on that side? Write this as 3 digits with no punctuation (e.g., if it were 4 through 51, write 451). NOTE: If for any reason you cannot get the answer to this one, simply use HELP as your answer to this question. When you put the full string into Certitude, if your other answers are correct, it will help you figure out the solution to this one.
Now, head back down to Floor 2 via either the nearby escalators or the elevators in the Central Atrium. Head all the way through the food court towards the Carousel at the far west end of the mall. Carousel No. 18 was built in 1909 by the Philadelphia Toboggan Company, and formerly resided at Long Branch Park (Syracuse) and then at Roseland Park (Canandaigua). In 1985, the Pyramid Companies saved the Carousel from disrepair, working on restoring the handmade craft for two years. In 1990, the Carousel moved to this spot, where it has lived ever since. The Carousel runs 11AM - 2PM and 3PM - 6PM every day.
5. There is a spot for wheelchair users to ride the Carousel. What is the first and last name of the dedicatee? (7 letters; 5 letters.)
6. How many horses are currently on the Carousel proper?
Next, head back to the Central Atrium, and take an elevator down to Floor 1. From there, head down the hallway to the east - it should be the one with a noticeably different floor - and somewhere soon you should find a circular Award resting on a small plinth. This Award was conferred in 2012, and there are small color-changing lights shining into it from below.
7. What is the third word around the outside edge of the Award? (6 letters.)
And that's it! If you continue down the hallway, either staying on this floor or going up a floor (you'll need to go up a floor eventually to get back to your car if you parked at the waypoint), you should find some couches where you can rest and gather your answers for Certitude, if you like. Simply string all your answers together, in order, and put that into Certitude to get coordinates! To my knowledge, Certitude does not care whether you use capitalization or spaces, but if you want to be on the safe side, I did not put spaces. I hope you enjoyed the tour of the mall, and good luck finding the cache!
You can validate your puzzle solution with
certitude.