This is the second in a series of caches related to Canada's Prime
Ministers.
"It is what we prevent, rather than what we do that counts most
in Government." -- Mackenzie King, August 26, 1936
This statement sums up best the secret of Mackenzie King's
success as prime minister, and perhaps, the key to governing Canada
effectively. King's record as prime minister is sometimes difficult
to assess. He had no captivating image, he gave no spellbinding
speeches, he championed no radical platform. He is remembered for
his mild-mannered, passive compromise and conciliation. Yet
Mackenzie King led Canada for a total of twenty-two years, through
half the Depression and all of the Second World War. Like every
other prime minister, he had to possess ambition, stamina and
determination to become prime minister and, in spite of
appearances, his accomplishments in that role required political
acuity, decisiveness and faultless judgement.
[from Canada's Prime Ministers, 1867 - 1994: Biographies and
Anecdotes. [Ottawa]: National Archives of Canada, [1994]. 40
p.]
To find the location of the cache, one needs to do a little
research about Canada's 10th Prime Minister. To find the
co-ordinates of the cache, you will need to solve the following
puzzle.
N 45 ab.cde
subsitute the letters for the numbers in the answers to the
following:
a - Number of terms as Prime Minister
b - Last digit in the year Pat (the first) passed away
c,d - year he entered studies at the University of
Chicago
e - last digit in the year the convention photo (below) was
taken
W 75 fg.hij
f - Number of constituencies he held in his career
g - The number of times the letter z appears in his
name
h - The number of letters in the modern name of his
birthplace
i,j - The reverse of the digits of the day of the month on which
he was born
The cache is well hidden off one of our favourite trails in
Gatineau Park, which was an area well known and loved by
King.
The above co-ordinates are for nearby parking. In the winter,
snowshoes or skis are popular, and dogs are not permitted on the
trail. In summer, it is a nice hike or bike ride, and our four
legged friends are welcome. Beyond the cache on the trail there is
shoreline access to Meech Lake, and a little bit further there are
ruins of an old mill.
Have fun!
Cheers,
5Newfs