GCV9KJ Jungle Fever! (Unknown Cache) in Oklahoma, United States created by JamGuys

This cache has been archived.

JamGuys: After giving it some thought, it's with some sadness that I've decided to go ahead and archive this cache - just two finds this year so probably not worth the effort to relocate. This was my very first cache hide and will be the first one I'm archiving too. However, the good thing is that this will definitely spur me to put out a new cache to replace it - probably before the end of November. Thanks to those of you who solved the puzzle and were able to visit - I hope you enjoyed the experience! [^]

GCV9KJ ▼

A cache by JamGuys Message this owner

Hidden : 4/9/2006

Difficulty:

Terrain:

Size: Size: regular (regular)

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Geocache Description:

ATTN: The co-ordinates posted above are FALSE! You’ll need to solve the puzzle to obtain the TRUE co-ordinates!

This is our first hide and it’s a puzzle cache that combines the board game Scrabble with the natural history of the region where my wife and I were born. The container is a 7.62 mm ammo can filled with rain forest-related items.

Congrats to mike/marytreenut for being FTF!!
*************************************************************

JUNGLE FEVER!
Two Sooner State zoologists, Brad West, an OU small mammal specialist, and his fiancée, Jennifer North, an OSU ornithologist, are engaged in a highly competitive game of Scrabble on the fifth night of a one-week visit to the Iwokrama rain forest conservation center in the small South American nation of Guyana. After five days of hiking, bird watching, night boating, and otherwise exploring one of the last pristine rain forests in the world, Brad and Jen (mere coincidence this) have, in rather remarkable fashion, managed to spell out on the travel Scrabble board before them the names of many of the fascinating animals and birds they’ve encountered so far. After recalling the weasel-like tayra he’d spotted in the bushes close to the field station on the first morning, Brad had led off the game with WEASEL for 26 points. Without so much as batting an eyelid, Jen had unloaded HOATZIN, EH, and LO for a combined score of 79 points and the game was on! Now, after some pretty inspired wordplay on both sides, Jen holds a slim 27-point lead and is next to play. Your task is this. Using the 7 tiles located at the top of the board (N_UAHSP), find Jen’s HIGHEST SCORING PLAY. Then, using the 7 tiles located at the bottom of the board (IR_APEE), find Brad’s subsequent HIGHEST SCORING PLAY.

Why do this, you ask? Well, you see, the cache co-ordinates are:

N 35° 38.ABC; W 097° 27.XYZ

where

ABC is Jen’s HIGHEST SCORING PLAY + 372

and

XYZ is Brad’s HIGHEST SCORING PLAY + 95
You’ll DEFINITELY have solved the puzzle if EACH player’s highest scoring word maintains the overall puzzle theme .......... ENJOY!!

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
SCORING: Usual Scrabble scoring rules apply, including factoring in the contributions of any premium squares (double letter, double word, triple letter, triple word) used during a turn. A bonus score of 50 points is earned if ALL seven tiles are used in one play! If multiple words are created during a play, the individual scores for each word must be calculated before being combined to arrive at the final score for the turn. While having no individual point value of their own, the blank tiles may be substituted for any letter of the alphabet and must retain that letter designation for the duration of the game.

SOLUTION: Please rest assured that this puzzle has been very carefully analyzed. While there are many word options, there is only one acceptable solution which you can now check using the Evince co-ordinate verification tool at the bottom of this listing.

DICTIONARY AND 2-LETTER WORDS: The reference dictionary used in the creation of this puzzle was the Official Scrabble Players Dictionary (4th Edition). However, with the possible exception of some of the 2-letter words, you should be able to find all of the words used in this game in any decent American English dictionary. Since they’re often of vital importance in making big scores, here’s a complete list of currently acceptable 2-letter Scrabble words:

AA AB AD AE AG AH AI AL AM AN AR AS AT AW AX AY BA BE BI BO BY DE DO ED EF EH EL EM EN ER ES ET EX FA FE GO HA HE HI HM HO ID IF IN IS IT JO KA KI LA LI LO MA ME MI MM MO MU MY NA NE NO NU OD OE OF OH OI OM ON OP OR OS OW OX OY PA PE PI QI RE SH SI SO TA TI TO UH UM UN UP US UT WE WO XI XU YA YE YO ZA

CACHE LOCATION: The container is hidden on the side of an embankment leading down to a creek bed that was mostly dry at the time the cache was placed. The terrain is fairly steep and there are many thorny obstacles to negotiate, especially close to the cache itself. In fact, the final approach to the cache would probably not be suitable for small children.

The cache co-ordinates were accurate to within +/- 18 feet on our GPSr. However, the clue provided should help steer you in the right direction! Please try to cover your tracks as you leave the cache site, especially if you're heading down to the creek bed - I've realised that it's all too easy to leave a visible impression in the dirt that can be traced back to the cache.

INITIAL CACHE CONTENTS: FTF reward (this is a beautifully designed and superbly finished Route 66 Series OK geocoin that's trackable on gc.com with its own unique icon!), log book and pens, finger puppets, wind-up toys, CD games, mini fans, stickers, and more! We're also releasing our very first Travel Bug .... Roy the Globetrotting Golden Spider Monkey!

Although it's not absolutely required, it would be much appreciated if you could help to maintain the cache's tropical rain forest theme by leaving appropriate trade items .... feel free to use your imagination!

FEEDBACK: Any advice or feedback you'd like to offer about this cache listing is welcome. We'd especially like to know your views on the difficulty and terrain ratings we chose ... thanks!

Additional Hints (Decrypt)

Chmmyr pyhr # 1: Cnl na bayvar ivfvg gb gur pbafreingvba pragre lbhefrys. Chmmyr pyhr #2: Obgu cynlref' jbeqf ner glcrf bs znzznyf. Chmmyr pyhr # 3: Oenq'f znva jbeq pbagnvaf gjb P'f, arvgure bs juvpu vf pheeragyl ba gur obneq! Pnpur pyhr: Onfr bs gerr bireunatvat gur perrx.

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)