cache puzzles

[+AriEthan]

I have come across some mystery caches that I have no Idea how to solve, but the owners say they are very easy. What is the "primmer"?

 

can anyone help me???

[+fizzymagic]

I have come across some mystery caches that I have no Idea how to solve, but the owners say they are very easy.

Many puzzles are easy once you know how they work. Before, however, not so much. I would not take the owner's word for how "easy" or not it is.

 

There is a huge diversity in the ways people hide coordinates in puzzle caches. There is no single primer on how to solve them; experience is the best teacher. You may have to ask for help on your first few; most hiders who are not jerks will help you through the process of solving their puzzles, especially ones they consider "easy."

[+delphic]

Some more info might help. Is it some type of puzzle requiring local knowledge or using the surroundings? Is is some type of cipher like the ROT-13?

 

Short of added info, I agree with fizzy...most owners will usually offer hints or clues.

[+trainlove]

Somewhere within these forums there are other topics on puzzle caches. Some of those topics have links to lots of kinds of codes, and other puzzling things. I'd call that a primer, but I don't think anyone has called that within the posts themselves so a search for that will come up empty.

 

I'd search for +codes +trainlove and see some of the other topics I've replied to, perhaps some of those are the ones I'm thinking of.

[+the hermit crabs]

I have come across some mystery caches that I have no Idea how to solve, but the owners say they are very easy. What is the "primmer"?

 

can anyone help me???

Here are a few threads that might help you:

 

Puzzle Caches: Tips

Puzzle Caches

Puzzle Caches: Any Tips, Tricks, or Help

Solving Puzzles

Brain Buster: Good luck solving

 

These two posts from those threads point to a couple of cache pages that are themselves a sort of how-to intro on solving puzzle caches:

 

The Puzzle Solving 101 Series by ePeterso2, will take you through much of what's out there in the way of puzzles. Represents an excellent puzzle primer

 

ePeterso2 puzzle caches with Puzzle Solving 101 series

Check out this cache. It gives lots of tips for solving Puzzle caches.

 

The way I solve the Unknown caches around here, where the "puzzle people" are brilliant, it to ignore the caches with a

[+WatchDog2020]

Amazing how nice everyone is when the answer isn't directly asked for

 

The ones from ftwaynecacher ?

Edited November 29, 2008 by WatchDog2020

[+Unkle Fester]

The Preciouse hates puzzles, We hates them!

[+Walts Hunting]

I find the best solution for puzzles is two margaritas and the ignore button.

[+NYPaddleCacher]

I find the best solution for puzzles is two margaritas and the ignore button.

 

It's too bad that so many people choose to categorically ignore all unknown caches. Not all puzzle caches are created equal. Some hard, some are easy, and some are even educational. I've got one that is actually quite easy, provides some information about some other interesting caches in the area, and is an ammo can which (I think) is nicely hidden along a trail which many don't know exists. To me, ignoring a certain type of cache or a certain container size is like putting your hands over your eyes so that you can pretend that they don't exist.

[+Prime Suspect]

I have come across some mystery caches that I have no Idea how to solve, but the owners say they are very easy. What is the "primmer"?

 

can anyone help me???

Google everything.

[+SSO JOAT]

I have come across some mystery caches that I have no Idea how to solve, but the owners say they are very easy. What is the "primmer"?

can anyone help me???

 

Sure, but not in "public". I can help you solve a few of my own puzzles to give you a few ideas of what is involved. Shoot me an email if you're interested (my email address is listed on my profile). I'll help you work through the process on some of my "easy" ones. My puzzles are listed Premium Member Only, so I'll have to email you a copy of the cache listing so you can see it.

 

Also, you might post or email a list of the GC#'s of the puzzles you are looking at in Indiana and I might be able to give you some "tips" on where to start looking (but naturally I won't solve them for you).

[+AriEthan]

Here is a small list of some Mystery Caches near me that I am having some trouble with.

 

Thank you for all your suggestions.

 

GC1HHR6

 

GC19CT6(this one I actually solved...I enjoyed solving it too)

 

GCYBVM

 

GCTE869I (I dont know moarse code!!!)

 

GCRNPR

 

GC17GWG

 

GC19XHA(Hate the new math)

 

Just to name a few.

 

Thanks

[+SSO JOAT]

Just glanced through your list, and the Morse Code one is actually GCTE86. You can naturally get a Morse Code translation via Google. May take some effort to solve it since it uses an audio file, but it sounded to me like it would be easy enough to just start making dots, dashes, and spaces on a piece of paper as you listen to it over 4 minutes and 21 seconds. Good luck with that, or maybe find some "older" person (HAM radio guy) who actually knows MC? I didn't try to solve any of these, but just gave them a quick look over to see what jumped out.

 

So, looking at some of the others, it appears they all use different methods, so there is no single primmer that will assist. But the general methodology to start with is to look at the title of the cache, the published coordinates, and carefully read every bit of info on the page. Look at the hints, also. Usually the title will give some clues. Look for words that are spelled funny (like "Kash" instead of "Cache") and words that are emphasized in some way (italics, bold, etc). These may be clues or even the actual key to a substitution cipher. Puzzle makers generally choose their words very carefully to either assist with the puzzle, or in some cases throw you off track.

 

Realize that the published coords are going to typically be within 2 miles of the actual cache and most often much closer. So in the case of your puzzles, they are probably going to start with N41 W085 and the whole minutes may be pretty close to the published minutes (within a couple minutes one way or the other). Knowing this, look for things in the puzzle that give away the 41 and/or the 85 as the start of the coordinates. One of those word puzzles clearly had these numbers "hidden" within the text.

 

Look for an overall theme of the puzzle. One of those clearly had placed the names of colors all over the puzzle text. So I'd start by looking at that. When you talk about colors, you need to explore numerical values for colors. Look at things like RGB and HTML code values for certain colors used in graphics programs or web editing. Basically, just clue in on these repeating patterns or themes and try to separate that out from the rest to see what you are looking at.

 

While we're talking about separating the clues, let's not forget to always check for some of the simple ways to hide data. Look at the first letter of each key word and see if these spell out anything. If not, look at the last letter of each key word. And don't forget to reverse the letters to see if something was spelled backwards. A very common cipher trick is to write your message out backwards, then encode it by whatever means they are using. Even if you start to decipher it correctly, if you don't recognize that it's backwards it will still look like gibberish and you'll think that's not it.

 

Don't always think that you're looking for numbers. Sometimes you're looking for words and often the numbers are put into words and then encoded. When you have obvious letter substitution puzzles (which one of yours is), you can see the structure of the words and that the letters have been replaced. There are many ways to jumble up the letters, but always start by looking at ROT encoding. The hint on the cache listing uses ROT-13, so you should be familiar with how that works. However there are many variations on the ROT method. Google it to learn more. Remember that "A" doesn't always have to equal "N" as the alphabet can be shifted to any starting position. Also, there are ROT versions with include numbers and ASCII characters, so there are many version.

 

Speaking of characters, when you see a code that includes or is limited to these characters: !@#$%^&*() you'll want to take a look at the top row on your keyboard for the means to change them into numbers. A pretty simple code, but there are a number of twists available on these QWERTY keyboard codes too. I can't provide more info on those other versions since I use them myself.

 

Well, this ought to get you started. There's plenty more, but I don't want to write a book in this forum. I'll leave off by saying that if you Google "cipher" and start reading about them, you'll find all kinds of ways that the letter substitution codes are created, which in turn might help you solve them (and you'll find online tools that will speed up the process).

 

Good luck!

[+edscott]

I find the best solution for puzzles is two margaritas and the ignore button.

 

It's too bad that so many people choose to categorically ignore all unknown caches. Not all puzzle caches are created equal. Some hard, some are easy, and some are even educational. I've got one that is actually quite easy, provides some information about some other interesting caches in the area, and is an ammo can which (I think) is nicely hidden along a trail which many don't know exists. To me, ignoring a certain type of cache or a certain container size is like putting your hands over your eyes so that you can pretend that they don't exist.

 

Yes.. the big blue "?" doesn't always mean "puzzle" it means unknown. There are some that don't require solving anything.

[+Tequila]

The first thing I do is "Select All" on the cache page in case something is written in a white font and is invisible until you highlight it.

 

Next, run your cursor over everything to see if there are hidden url's.

 

Check the source code for hidden information.

 

Look at the file names of any pictures that are included.

 

Look for anything that is 6, 10 or 15. That is the most common used number of digits in the coordinates. 6 gives you the decimal portion of the minutes for caches close to posted coordinates. 10 gives you the entire minutes.

 

Look for things written strangely. Maybe a phrase that can be googled.

 

It has been my experience that a large percentage of puzzles can be solved by googling the right words. For that reason, I have chosen to put several of my puzzles in the field where you have to think once you get out hiking. For example, in one cache I give a pile of stones with numbers on them and a message that says the cache is 217 meters away. The cacher has to sort the numbers into the correct sequence that puts them on the 217 meter proximity circle. Easier to do than it sounds.

[+NotThePainter]

GCTE869I (I dont know moarse code!!!)

That's not really a good excuse now, is it? At one time you didn't know how to geocache and you learned how to do it, right?

 

I have a cache that has Morse code in it. (And no, you can't really tell by looking at the cache that there is Morse in it, you find it somewhere in the middle while exploring the puzzle.) I don't expect you to know it. I do expect you to learn it. Learn how to decode enough to pass the test? Nope, just enough to hand decode 12 letters or numbers.

[+Isonzo Karst]

It's too bad that so many people choose to categorically ignore all unknown caches

 

Yes, many people do. Many people think that geocaching is about using a gps to arrive at a set of coordinates and hunt for a cache.

 

Not all puzzle caches are created equal. Some hard, some are easy, and some are even educational.

 

Yes, but all of them involve some component that ISN'T using a gps to arrive at a set of coordinates and hunt for a cache; hard, easy educational - none of it is running a gps to get to a set of coords.

 

Please note, I own and hunt for puzzle caches. I just am entirely comfortable with the notion that cache type ?Mystery is gonna go on the Ignore list of many. It's not "too bad", it's fine.

[+GrateBear]

The first thing I do is "Select All" on the cache page in case something is written in a white font and is invisible until you highlight it.

 

Next, run your cursor over everything to see if there are hidden url's.

 

Check the source code for hidden information.

 

Look at the file names of any pictures that are included.

 

Wow, those are some interesting things to look for. Especially the idea of a white font. Is that something you've come across frequently? Would you mind sending a cache that's used that? It's a great idea that I might use.

Thanks for the info!

[+Gipsie]

Well here it is!!!! What we have all (well maybe not all) have been waiting for...

 

PMC - The Final by Puzzle Masters Challenge Team (GCZZZZ) New Jersey

[+m.austin]

I have a puzzle cache that has gotten good reviews. It is a puzzle cache because I wanted to hide it in plain site. The coords lead you right to the cache, and if you are observant you can solve this puzzle in no time at all.

[+SSO JOAT]

Yes, but all of them involve some component that ISN'T using a gps to arrive at a set of coordinates and hunt for a cache; hard, easy educational - none of it is running a gps to get to a set of coords.

 

This is a very funny POV... So far, ALL puzzle caches that I've worked out required a GPS to find the cache. And ALL other caches that I've found, regardless of the icon, have required additional skills and tasks that DIDN'T use a GPS to find them.

[+team_goobie]

Blog with a great primer

 

This blog is a great place to start. Have a great time!

[Skippermark]

I find the best solution for puzzles is two margaritas and the ignore button.

LOL.

 

I actually like puzzles, but when someone says a puzzle is "easy," that's because they know how to solve it. They're always easy when you know how to do it.

 

The good puzzles that aren't designed to be super difficult can usually be solved by reading the cache description and doing some research.

[+SSO JOAT]

...when someone says a puzzle is "easy," that's because they know how to solve it.

 

These puzzles are what I call "easy":

 

History Search

 

Dmitri 69

 

Shifting Migrations

 

Cache Flow

 

These I feel are "moderate":

 

Zoinks!

 

Fire Mission

 

These are what I call "difficult":

 

KB Elementary Retreat

 

Stone Pillars

 

But that's just my opinion as I know how to solve them all!

[Skippermark]

I peeked at a couple of the puzzles, and they look well designed and nicely written up.

 

The easy ones aren't that difficult if someone wanted to solve them. The problem is that so many people just automatically ignore them. My wife works at night, so after my son goes to bed, I'm bored at home, and that's when I like to take the time to work on them. I realize a lot of people don't have much spare time and understand that they don't want to use what little time they have to work on puzzles.

 

Shifting Migrations is neat! History search isn't hard but would take some time.

 

Fire Mission...I knew what it was referring to when I saw it. For someone who doesn't know, the hints would point them in the right direction. So while, it may not be "easy," it wouldn't be that hard either.

 

Totally didn't understand Stone Pillars.

 

Now, when to get out to Alaska to find them.

Edited December 12, 2008 by Skippermark

[knowschad]

Just glanced through your list, and the Morse Code one is actually GCTE86. You can naturally get a Morse Code translation via Google. May take some effort to solve it since it uses an audio file, but it sounded to me like it would be easy enough to just start making dots, dashes, and spaces on a piece of paper as you listen to it over 4 minutes and 21 seconds. Good luck with that, or maybe find some "older" person (HAM radio guy) who actually knows MC?

 

Here's a site that can translate from a digital audio file!

[+AriEthan]

I need a little help with this puzzle.

 

How would you go about solving the puzzle on this cache. GC1HHR6

 

You dont have to give me the answer, just a clue on HOW to solve it.

 

I would appreciate any help.

Edited December 18, 2008 by ariethan

[Skippermark]

I've found that if you email the owner, most are willing to offer a hint to get started. Sometime just pointing you in the right direction is all you need to change your thinking and the answer can come to you after thinking and doing some research.