The Labors of Circules: Horseshoe Lake
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Difficulty:
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Terrain:
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Size: 
(regular)
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A cache placed on Labor Day, 2004, in honor of the labors of Hercules, at a popular site in Mammoth Lakes.
**The container needs to be replaced; if you plan to find this and would like to bring a new container with you, please do, and make a comment in your log. I am unlikely to get to it in person in the near term.** If you know Greek Mythology, you may remember the labors of Hercules--he had to perform 12 superhuman feats in the servitude of a cruel king as pennance for going berserk and killing a few ancient Greeks. One of those Labors was to clean the stables of King Augeas, who owned thousands and thousands of horses, cattle, sheep and goats--more than anyone else in antiquity--and who didn't pay his stablehands to rake the muck themselves. (Hercules accomplished this fine feat in a single day, by diverting a nearby river through the stables, washing them clean without getting his hands dirty.) Well, so much for Greek mythology; what do you know about Geocaching legends? What may surprise you is that Hercules had a half brother, Circules, who was not one of Zeus's prouder progeny. Circules was constantly getting lost, to the point that his cousin Hermes gave him a magic compass to always point his way. For this reason, Circules is often called the God of Geocaching, though he was really only a demigod, and a pretty inept one at that. Circules had his own sets of labors. In one, he had to find a set of horseshoes that would fit Pegasus, the flying horse, and that were located at the bottom of a deep lake. Circules of course got lost, but with the help of his magic compass, managed to make it around the lake, find the cache--uh, I mean, horseshoes, and then make it back home. This cache honors that feat. The container is about 2 quarts large, covered in camo duct tape. It is about half a mile walk from the parking lot at Horseshoe Lake, along a lovely path that is accessible (by foot or X-country ski's, at least) all year round. The cache site is visible from the path, so take care of muggles (who even in ancient times were jealous of Circules's ability to compensate for his inability to find the rarest, most hidden items) as you search. The last 30 yards is steep, but easy to manage. The cache is visible, but well camoflauged. Please be sure to re-cover it when you're done. I think the cache should be accessible in the winter, but it may be covered with snow, which would raise the difficulty to a 4.5. Enjoy!
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
Bar bs Pvephyrf' bgure srngf jnf gb cvpx gur sehvg bs gur hcfvqr-qbja gerr.