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County Line - Marin Mystery Cache

Hidden : 7/11/2007
Difficulty:
3 out of 5
Terrain:
1.5 out of 5

Size: Size:   small (small)

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Geocache Description:

The cache is not located at the above listed coordinates. They take you approximately to the county line. You must first figure out the puzzle to Marin County to find the REAL coordinates. This is the next in my series of county line caches. Safe parking is available within walking distance of this small sized treasure.

Over the past few years now I have traveled throughout the State with a new perspective. Not like I used to… before I would fly through little burgs and towns without taking a second look. I have always traveled for work but never took the time to “see” where I was going. I would hit a town do my work and go back to the hotel and sit in my room clicking the clicker until the wee hours of the morning.

Now, every new town I pass through is an awakening. I thrive on the new treasures I see… monuments I have whizzed by a hundred times in my life are now new nuggets of knowledge, vista points I passed without a blink are postcard images burned in my mind, and side streets of towns are secret treasures that only non tourists find. Geocaching has made me stop and smell the roses.

Hopefully, this little puzzle will help enlighten you on the County of Marin and maybe make you “stop and smell the roses” too.

N 38° 06.ABC
A = Mission San Rafael Arcángel was founded on December 1(A), 1817 and is located in what is now downtown San Rafael. It was the 20th Spanish mission in the colonial Mexican province of Alta California. The Misson was a medical asistencia ("sub-mission") of the Mission San Francisco de Asís as a hospital to treat sick Indians, making it Alta California's first sanitarium.
B = Marin County is one of the original 27 counties of California, created February 1(B), 1850, following adoption of the Constitution of 1849 and just months before the state was admitted to the Union.
C = The Inverness Branch Library in Marin County is located: (C)5 Park Ave., P.O. Box 160, Inverness, CA 94937.
Checksum for North = 13


W 122° 30.DEF
D = San Quentin State Prison is located on (D)32 acres (1.7 km²) on Point Quentin in Marin County, California, United States, north of San Francisco. San Quentin State Prison was opened in July 1852, and is the oldest prison in California. It was built by inmates who were housed on the prison ship Waban during the construction. On February 2(D), 1969, Johnny Cash played in front of inmates. (Only use one D both should give you the same answer).
E = The City of Nicasio in Marin County has a zip code of 9494(E).
F = California Historical Marker #(F)74 is the GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE. The plaque reads: Construction of the bridge started in 1933. Engineer Joseph Strauss and architect Irving Morrow created an extraordinarily beautiful bridge in an extraordinarily beautiful setting. The designs for the Golden Gate Bridge showed the greatest attention to artistic detail, especially on the two streamlined modern towers. The bridge's 4,200 feet of clear span (from tower to tower) was the longest in the world until 1959. On April 19, 1937, the bridge was completed and the official dedication took place on May 27. Location: Observation area, N end of bridge
Checksum for West = 19


I would like to thank Smilin' Dawg for being my sponsor in the area for this cache.

Fun Tidbit of Additional Information:

Marin county is considered in the California Floristic Province, a zone of extremely high biodiversity and endemicism. There are numerous ecosystems present, including coastal strand, oak woodland, chaparral and riparian zones. There are also a considerable number of protected plant and animal species present: fauna include the Northern Red-legged Frog and California freshwater shrimp, while flora include Marin Dwarf Flax, Hesperolinon congestum; Tiburon Jewelflower, Streptanthus niger; and Tiburon Indian paintbrush, Castilleja neglecta.

America's oldest cross country race, the Dipsea Race takes place annually in Marin County, attracting thousands of athletes.


As always, enjoy.

Additional Hints (Decrypt)

Tbbtyr vf lbhe sevraq thneqrq

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)