Nature’s Canvas

The Hike…

This is a long hike in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula that will require most of the day. The exact distance will depend on the route you choose to take to reach the starting point and any side trails you might decide to pursue. You should plan to set out on the trail before 10:00 a.m. to ensure enough daylight hours to complete the hike. The terrain is more difficult than average with many ups and downs on steep, narrow pathways, rocks, roots and stairs. At times the trail follows the edge of a cliff very closely and it is not recommended for children or inexperienced hikers. Once you have figured out the clues, please consult a trail guide for distance, terrain and directional information. Be sure you know what you are getting yourself into when hunting for this box; allow yourself plenty of time, bring food and water and wear proper clothing and footwear. The hike is long, the terrain is tough in places, but the sights you will see along the way are unparalleled and well worth the time and effort required (and the letterbox is a nice little extra reward). Don’t forget your camera!

The Location…

Perform the following set of instructions on the string of letters that comprise the name of this letterbox, disregarding the space and the apostrophe:

1. Move the 2nd consonant from the right to be the first letter
2. Change the 2nd ‘S’ from the right to a ‘D’
3. Switch the positions of the 2nd consonant and the first vowel from the left
4. Change each ‘N’ to a ‘C’
5. Change the middle ‘C’ to a ‘R’
6. Insert a ‘K’ to the right of the first ‘A’ from the right
7. Replace the first consonant from the left with the word for 3.14
8. Insert an ‘O’ to the left of the 2nd ‘A’ from the left
9. Remove each ‘A’

This is Location Clue #1

Now perform the following set of instructions on the string of letters that comprise location clue #1:

1. Switch the positions of the 2nd vowel from the right and the first consonant from the left
2. Change each ‘C’ to an ‘N’
3. Switch the positions of the 2nd consonant from the left and the 5th consonant from the right
4. Change each ‘S’ to an ‘I’
5. Add an ‘A’ after the 2nd vowel from the left and before the 2nd vowel from the right
6. Change the ‘K’ to a ‘L’
7. Switch the positions of the 3rd and 4th consonants from the right
8. Duplicate the center letter, placing it between the 2nd and 3rd vowels from the right
9. Move the 7th vowel two places to the left
10. Move the 3rd consonant to be the 3rd letter
11. Change the 1st vowel from the left to a ‘T’
12. Change the 7th and 8th letters to be identical to the 12th and 13th letters
13. Change the left-most ‘I’ to be a ‘G’
14. Move the last letter 4 places to the left
15. Move the first letter from the left to be the first letter from the right

This is Location Clue #2

Now perform the following set of instructions on the string of letters that comprise location clue #2:

1. Remove the second ‘R’ from the right and the letter proceeding it
2. Change the last letter to a ‘L’ and move it 13 places to the left
3. Change each ‘P’ to an ‘E’
4. Change the sixth vowel from the left to a ‘R’
5. Move the second vowel from the right 3 places to the left
6. Change the ‘D’ to a ‘K’
7. Move the 2nd consonant from the left 2 places to the right
8. Move the rightmost ‘N’ next to the leftmost ‘N’
9. Switch the positions of the 2nd consonant from the right and the 6th vowel from the left
10. Move the 2nd letter from the right 2 places to the left
11. Change the double letter pair to ‘SH’

This is Location Clue #3

The Letterbox…

Use location clues #1 and #2 as the beginning point for this letterbox hunt. Follow [location clue #3] eastward to the place where 3 short sandy paths lead to nowhere off the trail to your left within close proximity of each other, all offering excellent views of the place where you began this letterbox hunt. Pieces of a fallen tree line the right side of the trail here. Follow the pointing piece to its base and find your treasure tucked in an underside crevice.

Note… Please be very discreet when removing and replacing this letterbox; carry the box well away from the hiding spot to stamp in and be sure to cover and hide well when replacing the box!

U.P. Forest Trail

Five friends (Jaime, Becka, Craig, Amber and Bryce) took a camping trip to Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. Each person selected a hike/trail for the group, the name of which referenced their favorite kind of tree (pine, maple, hemlock, cedar and white birch). Each hike was in a different county (Alger, Chippewa, Mackinac, Luce and Menominee), of a different distance (2, 4, 5, 7 and 10 miles) and had a different trailhead location (Salt Point Road, Twelve Mile Beach, Forest Road 3114, Stables Picnic Area and a Campground). From the information provided, determine each person’s favorite type of tree, the county their hike was in, the trailhead location and the hike distance.

Once you have solved the puzzle, only one set of details accurately corresponds to an actual hike/trail in the U.P. The correct set of details will be your key to the letterbox location, and the name of the person who chose this hike will be your key to the clue.

Puzzles Clues…

1. The person whose favorite tree is a pine (who isn’t Craig) chose a 4-mile hike. Craig’s chosen hike does not begin at Forest Road 3114. The person whose hike begins at the campground is not the friend who favors maple trees.
2. The hike that begins at the campground is the next shorter in distance than the hike chosen by the friend who favors Hemlock trees, which is shorter than the Luce County hike.
3. The Mackinac County hike (which was chosen by Amber) is longer than the hike beginning at the Stables Picnic Area (which was the hike chosen by Bryce), which is longer than 2 miles.
4. The hike located in Chippewa County is the next shorter in distance than the hike chosen by the friend who favors maple trees (who isn’t Amber), which is shorter than the hike that begins at Salt Point Road (which was not on the white birch trail).
5. The hike that begins at Forest Road 3114 (which is not 5 miles long) is neither the hike in Alger County (which was not the hike chosen by the friend who favors cedar trees) nor the hike chosen by Becka (which was not in Alger County either).

Letterbox Clues…

NMG EUM IQG ITE FQT YIG DQG GSB QNL ONS TSG VGM

Old Shoe’s Brews #2

This box is part of an ongoing series of letterboxes representing some of OldShoe’s favorite microbreweries.

Letterboxes in this Series…

Old Shoe’s Brews #1
• Old Shoe’s Brews #2

Clues…

Complete the Sudoku Puzzle and use the results to decipher the clues below.

 
| Click here to download the puzzle grid in Adobe .PDF format |

1. {E1*D5*F6} {F9-A4} {A6+G7+H4} {G5+I2} {A2*I4} {C1+C4-C2} {B4*G2+D1} {A3+I4} {F9*H1} {H2*B1} {A4+G5} {B6-H9} {H6+D5+G9} {C2+I7} {G1*H3+B2} {D3-F7} {G7*B8} {A3*F8-A4} {C4*A3*I8} {D5*G2-I9} {D3*F8-A6*D8} {B1*G7} {E8*E2}
2. [D1*I7] mile(s) from {A1-E8} {E4*I8} {H1*F7} / {C4*F7+I2} {C6*I4-I7} {D1*H4} {G8*H1} {F3*B1-B9}
3. [A2*G9+B1] steps toward {A2*F8} {B9*I3} {F3*H1} {B6-H3} {A1*G6} {B8-E5*H3} {A7+H4} {A1/G8} {A2+G9} {F3+D5} {B8*C5+D1} to {C1/B4} {E1*E2} {F4/H6} {D7*G7} {H1+E5} {G5*I4-B2} {H4*A5} {F8*B9} {C2+I4}
4. [B7*F7] steps from {C1*F5+H3} {A7*I7} {F4*I8+H4} {A7*E5*G6} end to {E8*D5} {F4/B2} {C6*A3} {F7+C5} on {D7*E5} {H1*B1-H4} {A4*I7} {A7*G4}
5. [F4*B8*G9-A7] degrees; {C5*H3} {E4*H1} {C3*B1+B2} {A1/H4} {B6/F7} {D8*I7} {B9*H1-H9} {C5+G7} {A2/E4} {F8*G4} {F4+G7} {F7+A7} {G1*B4} {A3-H4-I7} {D8*D5} {H6*F7} {B7*H3} {E1+I2} {D8+B8}

Summer Vacation Mystery

Glen invited his five grandchildren (Cade, Krysta, Casey, Marissa and Patrick) to spend a week with him at the lake during their summer vacation. They awoke to a sunny morning on the first day and Gramps asked them what they wanted to do. Each child had a different suggestion — the beach, visit the USS Silversides, play frisbee golf, the playground and a concert in the park.

Wanting to make each of his grandchildren happy, Gramps thought for a moment and said, “Well, we could start at Pere Marquette Park, head over to the USS Silversides for a bit, then up Lakeshore Dr. to Addison to the park, which has a playground, a band shell and a frisbee golf course. While we are at the park, you kids can help me plant a letterbox that I put together about your summer vacation.”

The kids were pleased with their grandfather’s plan and excited to help him plant his letterbox. Once they were at the park, Gramps settled down with a book and the kids headed off to play frisbee golf. They had decided to keep an eye open for good hiding spots for the letterbox while they played.

After they finished their game of frisbee golf, they reported back to their grandfather with the places they had found to hide the letterbox. Each child had sited one hiding spot, each from a different numbered frisbee golf basket (#8, #10, #11, #17, #18), each a different number of paces (24, 30, 35, 40, 55) at a different bearing (170, 180, 245, 315, 330) to a different hiding spot (a hollow log, a multi-trunked birch tree, a fallen tree, a piece of concrete and a rotted stump).

Using the clues below, figure out each child’s suggested hiding spot.

 
| Click here to open a logic puzzle grid in Adobe .PDF format |

Puzzles Clues…

1. The hiding spots chosen by the two girls — Marissa and the one whose bearing was 315 degrees — were, in some order, the hollow log (which was not sited from basket #10) and the birch tree.
2. The three boys were the child who took 24 paces, the child whose bearing was 330 degrees and Casey.
3. The girl who took a bearing of 245 degrees (who was not the child who took 30 paces) located her hiding spot from the basket whose number was one less than the child whose hiding spot was a piece of concrete.
4. The child who chose the fallen tree as his hiding spot took his bearing from a basket whose number was lower than that of the child whose bearing was 180 degrees (who was not the child who took 40 paces).
5. The basket number from where Krysta sited her hiding spot was the next one lower than that of the child who chose the rotted stump as a hiding spot.
6. The boy who took 55 paces (who is not Cade) sited the piece of concrete from the highest numbered basket.
7. The child who took 40 paces was a boy, but not the boy who took a bearing of 330 degrees (who was the child with the highest basket number).

Finding the Letterbox…

Gramps carefully considered all of the options the kids had presented and after walking through the park to look at each spot, made his choice. To find the spot Grandpa chose, add together the basket number, the # of paces and the bearing for each child’s suggestion. You will find the letterbox hidden in the spot where this sum is 58 less than the next larger sum.

Great Day of Fire

Background Notes…

Most people are familiar with the legend of how Mrs. O’Leary’s cow kicked over a lantern in the barn and started the entire town of Chicago on fire in October, 1871. Upwards of 300 people lost their lives and the city of Chicago, an important industrial and commerce center, was paralyzed.

But what not everyone knows is that equally catastrophic fires took place in Peshtigo, WI and throughout the state of Michigan on the same day. The most significant fires in Michigan were located in Port Huron on the eastern side of the state and Holland and Manistee on the Lake Michigan shoreline, with several lesser fires erupting in forested areas throughout the mid-section of the state.

While Mrs. O ‘Leary’s cow has for years been the scapegoat for the Chicago fire, there are no colorful tales as to how the fires in these other areas were started. Although the entire region was suffering from a severe dry spell that autumn, it is coincidental for so many large-scale fires to have broken out literally within hours of each other, for the most part without plausible explanation. One theory suggest that a meteor shower rained down burning astroids in a “V” shaped pattern, the cortex being Port Huron, MI, and then fanning out toward Chicago, IL and Peshtigo, WI. This theory actually makes a lot of sense and there are several eyewitness accounts in both MI and WI which claim to have seen fire coming from the sky.

The name for this letterbox is taken from both the reference commonly made to that day — the “Day of Fire” and from the popular song title, “Great Balls of Fire.”

To find the box, you must locate the marker shown in this photo, and then follow the clues provided below.

Clues…

You will find the trailhead due east from 140. 8/2=4. At 4, head the opposite direction from the cross. At the next numbered intersection, turn the way where you see a two-track crossing up ahead. When you come to the Eagle’s resting place, begin watching the right side of the trail for a glimpse of a water tower in the distance — if only this had been around in 1871! A faint trail runs through the clearing toward a fence row. Pace along the posts to the SE corner. At 35 degrees find the Great Day of Fire letterbox in a hollow stump.