According to legend, in 1854 a Victorian gentleman hiked over the
moors and put his calling card in a bottle near Cranmere Pool, in a
remote part of Dartmoor, England. Thus began a pastime which has
intrigued devoted letterboxers over the world, and which has
inspired another pastime, that of geocaching. Letterboxers use a
personalized rubber stamp, either hand-carved or commercially made,
to log their finds. As a memento they use the letterbox's stamp to
record their discovery. In geocaching there are letterbox hybrids,
which require the use of a GPS as well as traditional letterbox
clues.
Starting at the posted coordinates, cross the wooden foot bridge
and continue in an easterly direction along a paved sidewalk to a
fluted vessel. Peer inside the vessel - does what it contain
surprise you? Nevermind. To the southeast is a single metal lamp
post. From there, and looking southeast again you will see another
lamp post - this one bearing two lamps. Proceed thence across the
walkway to a fountain. On the other side of the fountain an opening
frames a grass lawn, along the side of which a brick wall runs.
Walk along this brick wall, all the while observing landmarks on
the ground. The letter 'S' is forged upon an iron cover nearby.
From the cover continue southeasterly along the brick wall for 10
to 20 steps, then stop and face north. In the distance is a tall
pine tree, from which you should continue directly to a concrete
path. Proceed southeast on this path until you have passed eleven
men, walking, dressed in blue. The tenth surmounts a storm.
After the eleventh, bear right at the black lamp post and
proceed directly across 4 drains. Thence ahead a winding brick
walkway leads to a small plaza. At the center of the plaza, from a
southern aspect and at eye level note the No. Next, proceed along
the walkway to the southeast, then bearing left. Continue as
pedestrians do...but what's that? A little voice, it seems, directs
you across blue diamonds...now, a roadway is on the right hand.
Then the walkway branches - continue to bear left, and look for
Harper, like the diamonds, on the ground. Harper passes below and
to the right between you and the roadway.
Continue to bear left. Seven concrete steps lie ahead. At the
base of the first step, on the left hand side, a loose brick if
gently removed will reveal a cavity. In what year did the brick
become loose enough to be easily removed? Here's how to find
out:
Calculate the four digits of the year in this manner: (1) count
the number of facing bricks, excepting the two corners, on the top
edge of the same brick wall where the loose brick is - it is a two
digit number; (2) add the two digits together to get a single digit
number; (3) multiply the single digit number by ten to get another
two digit number - these are the last two digits of the year on the
coin.
The first two digits of the year on the coin will be obvious
enough. If you would like to cross check, then take the single
digit number in (2) and add ten.
Congratulations - you've completed the first stage. You're a
right fine letterboxer. Perhaps it time for a cup of tea, during
which time you may occupy yourself in preparation for the second
stage:
Concatenate the year and the No. together to form a six digit
number. For example, if the year is 1234, and the No. is 56, then
the six digit result is 123456. Divide this number by 10000, which
in this example would yield 12.3456, and derive the decimal minutes
of the latitude and longitude of the letterbox by adding 7.8648 and
28.1488, respectively. The degrees of latittude are 33, and the
degrees of longitude are 88. In this example the coordinates would
be: N33*20.2104', W88*40.4944'. The final coordinates are perhaps
an half of a mile from where you started.
This is a letterbox. Please stamp or sign in only - there are no
items for trade (though an occasional TB is okay). The letterbox is
an ammo tin that contains a stamp, a pad of ink, and a log book.
Bring your personal stamp to mark the log and your book on which
you can stamp this letterbox discovery. If you don't have a stamp
or personal book, then just sign in like a normal geocache.
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