Get a Clue, Texas! Mystery Cache

This is a word puzzle in which you have to think of common phrases or names that start with the letters GC in order to answer the clues. Then, perform simple mathematical expressions on the answers to come up with the digits for the coordinates. Note: Cache is not at posted coordinates.

This cache is in Government Canyon State Natural Area and was placed with the written permission of park management. Please check the park website for entrance fees and operating hours (currently, Friday-Monday 7 am to 10 pm). Entrance fees are $6 per day per person 13 years and older unless you have a state park pass.

As a State Natural Area, the park is home to a wide variety of wildlife, including some that are dangerous to us as geocachers (such as bees, black widows, tarantulas, scorpions, and of course, rattlesnakes). Watch where you step, and look where you are reaching. Be prepared, be aware of your surroundings, and always bring plenty of water.

That said, this cache is not far from the Visitors Center, so no big hike is required. It is covered with brush, so please re-hide it well from passing muggles.

We love listening to the Sunday Puzzle on National Public Radio’s Weekend Edition. The Puzzle, usually created by New York Times Puzzle Editor Will Shortz, is typically a tricky word puzzle that will get your gray matter flowing. Our puzzle below is an homage to Mr. Shortz and his puzzles.

What do you think of when you see the letters “GC”? Geocaching? Geocoin? Gypsy Cuisine? Every single geocache has a “GC number”, including this one, in the upper right corner of its page. In honor of these two letters which mean so much to us geocachers, we’ve created this little puzzle.

Use your brain, or the Internet if need be, to solve the clues below. Each clue (well, most of them anyway) refers to a familiar two-word phrase or a well-known person with the initials GC.

Once you solve a clue, use the number of letters in the G-word and the C-word to solve the corresponding equation and come up with a digit. (All answers are whole numbers; if you're getting a fraction or decimals, something's wrong.)

For the ones with the commas, you're looking for a sequence such as 1, 2, 3, or 5, 6, 7, or 7, 8, 9.

Once you’ve solved all the clues and equations, read the numbers down to see the coordinates for the cache. Be sure to double check your spelling because it matters!

If you like this kind of puzzle, you'll want the FTF prize: a brand new copy of Will Shortz's "Mind Games: 100 Alphabet Riddles."