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Ice House Mystery Cache

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Hidden : 8/15/2005
Difficulty:
2 out of 5
Terrain:
2 out of 5

Size: Size:   regular (regular)

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Geocache Description:

The above coordinates will take you to a structure that will assist you in arriving at the final coordinates.
N39 38.(A) W079 07.(B)6
A = From the year the Garrett family bequest 2000 acres of forest at Swallow Falls, subtract 1752.
B = The number of letters in the last line, minus 2.


Before the electric refrigerator, ice from lakes, ponds and rivers was stored in an ice house and used in an ice box to keep food chilled. The icehouse was a valuable building. A well built ice house kept out heat and outside air while draining water from the slowly melting ice.
Ice from the lake at Swauger's dam was stored in a frame building within a building, well-insulated with sawdust or wood shavings. A 12 feet wide by 14 feet long by 18 feet high ice house could hold about 130,000 pounds (65 tons) of ice, worth $1,300 at a penny a pound in 1905. Saw dust was placed on top of the ice, probably 8 to 12 inches thick and on the floor to form a level area, an insulation barrier, and to absorb melted ice water. The saw dust in the walls was most likely replaced when it got saturated with water after the summer and when the ice got low in the early winter. Once the pond froze, new ice was cut in 150 pound blocks, hauled to the ice house by horse and sled, and lifted into the ice house by rope and metal bar hooks drawn tight by horses. The ice was stacked tightly against the inner wall boards in layers, with saw dust between the layers until the ice house was full by end of winter.
Pilings from the old Ice House can be found along the lake shore not far from Ice House cache.

Additional Hints (Decrypt)

Frrx (fyvtugyl) uvture tebhaq.

Decryption Key

A|B|C|D|E|F|G|H|I|J|K|L|M
-------------------------
N|O|P|Q|R|S|T|U|V|W|X|Y|Z

(letter above equals below, and vice versa)