Tuesday, May 31, 2016

FC4R43S: Like Ma Bell Used To Do It ANSWER

Did this week's Mystery Monday puzzle require you to call the party line? Answer after the break!

FC4R436 Like Ma Bell Used To Do it HINTS

Have you reached the operator on this week's Mystery Monday puzzle? Here's some hints to help.

I will give you five hints, each getting progressively more revealing, but they will be encoded in ROT13, just like the hints on geocaching pages. You can copy and paste the hints here to decode them. HINT 5 will be nuclear level, so only look at it as a last resort!

HINT 1: Lbh arrq gb xabj na "byq snfuvbarq" pbzzhavpngvba zrgubq.

HINT 2: Cubar ohggbaf unir zber guna ahzoref. 

HINT 3: Vs lbh jrer n grrantre va gur rneyl 2000'f lbh jrer cebonoyl dhvgr nqrcg ng guvf. 

Hints 4: Bar cerff, gjb cerffrf, be guerr? 

Hint 5: Va cer-fznegcubar grkgvat vg gbbx zhygvcyr cerffrf bs gur ahzore xrlf gb trg n yrggre. N fvatyr cerff bs gur gjb ohggba rdhnyrq N, gjb cerffrf jnf O, guerr jnf P. Rgp. 

Answers tomorrow!

Monday, May 30, 2016

FC4R43S Like Ma Bell Used To Do It

It's Memorial Day here in the US, but I'm stuck at work all day so... let's do a puzzle!




Please don't spoil the answer in the comments! Hints published tomorrow, and the answer on Wednesday.

Happy Puzzling!

Friday, May 27, 2016

Resource: Cribbage Scorer

Boulter may be best known for their coordinate conversion system, but they also have several other pages that geocachers, especially puzzle geocachers, might find interesting. The one I'm featuring today is their cribbage scorer. There are several puzzle caches out there that have descriptions of cribbage games, and the coordinates are hidden as scores. The scoring system can be a bit arcane if you've never played, so a tool is always welcome!

Happy Puzzling!

Wednesday, May 25, 2016

Tuesday, May 24, 2016

FC31415: What Three Circles HINTS

Going in circles with this week's Mystery Monday puzzle? Here's some hints to help.

I will give you five hints, each getting progressively more revealing, but they will be encoded in ROT13, just like the hints on geocaching pages. You can copy and paste the hints here to decode them. HINT 5 will be nuclear level, so only look at it as a last resort!

HINT 1: Lbh'yy arrq n gbby. Cbffvoyl zber guna bar.

HINT 2: Oryvrir vg be abg gurer ner guerr frgf bs pbbeqvangrf va gung grkg.

HINT 3: Gung gurencvfg fher qbrf ercrng uvzfrys n ybg.

HINT 4: Gur xrl gb gur jubyr chmmyr vf "Jung guerr jbeqf." Tvir vg n Tbbtyr.

HINT 5: Hfvat gur Jung Guerr Jbeqf pbbeqvangrf nf gur pragrecbvagf, svaq jurer guerr pvepyrf bs gur tvira fvmrf zrrg.

Answers tomorrow! Good Luck!

Monday, May 23, 2016

FC31415: What Three Circles?

The pages on the calendar have turned, and Monday has arrived again... that means it's time for a new puzzle! Let's take a look!




The checksum will be a bit tricky this week because your answer will be "soft," not a definitive single set of coords You'll see why. That said, what you are looking for is over 1000' wide, and pretty obvious in satellite view. If you get zoomed in and don't see anything... you are probably not doing something right.

As usual there will be hints tomorrow, and answers on Wednesday! Happy puzzling!

Friday, May 20, 2016

Resource: Spam Mimic

On Fridays I try to share a resource that you might find useful in puzzle solving. This week I have SpamMimic, a website that creates a single type of code. It embeds coded information without a block of text that is designed to mimic SPAM emails. For instance it would encode the coordinates 43° 40′ 9.5″ N, 92° 58′ 28.5″ W as the following:


Dear Colleague ; You made the right decision when you
signed up for our club ! If you no longer wish to receive
our publications simply reply with a Subject: of "REMOVE"
and you will immediately be removed from our mailing
list ! This mail is being sent in compliance with Senate
bill 2416 ; Title 2 ; Section 306 ! THIS IS NOT A GET
RICH SCHEME . Why work for somebody else when you can
become rich within 62 weeks ! Have you ever noticed
most everyone has a cellphone plus people love convenience
! Well, now is your chance to capitalize on this !
WE will help YOU process your orders within seconds
and sell more . You are guaranteed to succeed because
we take all the risk ! But don't believe us ! Ms Ames
of Georgia tried us and says "My only problem now is
where to park all my cars" . We are a BBB member in
good standing . Don't delay - order today ! Sign up
a friend and your friend will be rich too ! Thank-you
for your serious consideration of our offer . Dear
Salaryman ; Especially for you - this cutting-edge
announcement . If you no longer wish to receive our
publications simply reply with a Subject: of "REMOVE"
and you will immediately be removed from our directory
. This mail is being sent in compliance with Senate
bill 2716 ; Title 7 ; Section 308 ! This is NOT unsolicited
bulk mail ! Why work for somebody else when you can
become rich inside 32 MONTHS . Have you ever noticed
nobody is getting any younger plus people will do almost
anything to avoid mailing their bills . Well, now is
your chance to capitalize on this ! WE will help YOU
turn your business into an E-BUSINESS & SELL MORE !
You can begin at absolutely no cost to you . But don't
believe us . Prof Simpson who resides in Tennessee
tried us and says "My only problem now is where to
park all my cars" ! We are licensed to operate in all
states ! We implore you - act now . Sign up a friend
and you'll get a discount of 70% . Thank-you for your
serious consideration of our offer . 
Not that this text can ONLY be decoded using the same website.

Wednesday, May 18, 2016

FCST4FF: It's All About The Base ANSWER

Did this week's Mystery Monday puzzle have you singing along? Or did you find yourself hexed and unable to pick up the tune?

Answers after the break!

Tuesday, May 17, 2016

FCST4FF: It's All About The Base HINTS

Too overwhelmed by the earworm of the title on this week's Mystery Monday puzzle to actually solve it? Here's some hints to help.

I will give you five hints, each getting progressively more revealing, but they will be encoded in ROT13, just like the hints on geocaching pages. You can copy and paste the hints here to decode them. HINT 5 will be nuclear level, so only look at it as a last resort!

HINT 1. Vg’f nyy nobhg gur onff:  svefg lbh’yy arrq gb ernq gur zhfvpny abgrf sebz gur onff pyrs.
HINT 2. Vg’f nyfb nyy nobhg gur onfr.
HINT 3. Jung zngurzngvpny onfrf hfr gur yrggref ercerfragrq ol gur abgrf?
HINT 4. Ybbx sbe n pyhr va gur grkg.
HINT 5. Pbaireg rnpu fgevat bs 4 yrggref sebz urknqrpvzny (onfr fvkgrra) gb qrpvzny (onfr gra).

Answers tomorrow!

Monday, May 16, 2016

FCST4FF: All About That Base

This one's a bit rougher than the last few, I hope you guys are ready for it!

This week's puzzle was written by Jennifer Kidder of the Geocaching Puzzle Of The Day Blog.




Please don't spoil the answer in the comments! Hints published tomorrow, and the answer on Wednesday.

Happy Puzzling!


Wednesday, May 11, 2016

Tuesday, May 10, 2016

FC1SL35 The Cat Came Back HINTS

Does this week's Mystery Monday puzzle have you reaching for the whiskey? Well, Charlie... I've got good news...

I will give you five hints, each getting progressively more revealing, but they will be encoded in ROT13, just like the hints on geocaching pages. You can copy and paste the hints here to decode them. HINT 5 will be nuclear level, so only look at it as a last resort!

HINT 1: Oryvrir vg be abg, guvf vf n pvcure.

HINT 2: Fbzr bs gubfr jbeqf ner cerggl havdhr.

HINT 3: Gur ercrngrq jbeqf ner rfcrpvnyyl vagrerfgvat.

HINT 4: Tbbtyr fbzr bs gur ercrngrq jbeqf gbtrgure naq frr jung lbh svaq.

HINT 5: Ybbx sbe gur "ANGB Cubargvp Nycunorg."

Bonus bragging rights... can you tell me why I chose the location for the final?

Answers tomorrow!

Monday, May 9, 2016

FC1SL35 The Cat Came Back

Get your shoes on, it's time to go puzzle hunting!




Please don't spoil the answer in the comments! Hints published tomorrow, and the answer on Wednesday.

Happy Puzzling!

Friday, May 6, 2016

Resource: OptiMap Route Mapper

So, you have 10 new puzzles solved and the coordinates are saved but you have no idea how to plot out a route between all the various destinations? Welcome to OptiMap, a route mapping system that will chart all of your destinations and then give you the most efficient route to travel between them. The routes can be exported to Garmin or TomTom or saved to Google Maps where it can be sent to the various Google owned apps for use on a smartphone. It can take latitude and longitude as an input as well, so no need to convert to street addresses.

Tuesday, May 3, 2016

FCFR13D: Wakey Wakey Eggs & Bakey! HINTS

Hungry for a hint on this week's Mystery Monday puzzle? Gather round the table!

I will give you five hints, each getting progressively more revealing, but they will be encoded in ROT13, just like the hints on geocaching pages. You can copy and paste the hints here to decode them. HINT 5 will be nuclear level, so only look at it as a last resort!

HINT 1: Bar bs gur vgrzf va gur vzntr vf n irel qverpg uvag.

HINT 2: Gur chmmyr vf n pvcure.

HINT 3: Vairfgvtngr gur Onpba Pvcure. Rttf rdhny bar yrggre, onpba rdhnyf nabgure.

HINT 4: Nsgre qrpvcurevat vf gurer n jnl gb ghea gur erfhygvat yrggref vagb ahzoref?

HINT 5: Gur Onpba Pvcure tvirf lbh gra yrggref. Na N rdhnyf 1, n O rdhnyf 2, rgp. M'f ner sbe "mreb."

Answers tomorrow!

Monday, May 2, 2016

FCFR13D: Wakey Wakey Eggs & Bakey!

Hope you've had a good breakfast and are ready for a new puzzle, because here it is!


 And here's a closer look at that graphic, in case you need it.




I'm trying something new with the puzzle stats this week following an issue that a couple people had with last week's puzzle. Each direction of the coords have their own checksums. Remember, the checksum is the result of adding all the individual digits of the coord. For more information on using puzzle stats see this post.

Please don't spoil the answer in the comments! Hints published tomorrow, and the answer on Wednesday.

Happy Puzzling!