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Words Search Mystery Cache

Difficulty:
5 out of 5
Terrain:
1.5 out of 5

Size: Size:   micro (micro)

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Geocache Description:

CACHE IS NOT AT THE POSTED COORDINATES (nor is anything useful there).


This cache was originally published for the 2016 MIT Mystery Hunt in Cambridge, MA.  The event was held on January 15, 2016 (a date that may come into play later).  I was unable to host a permanent hide in Cambridge for various reasons; among them, I live in CA.  I debated for quite a while about redoing the puzzle to solve to CA coordinates.  Eventually, however, wisdom/time/difficulty of doing so/etc. has convinced me to post the original version.  Accordingly, ​you will be solving for a location in Cambridge; original listed coords were N 42 21.585 W 071 05.524, and the solved coords will lead to a point within 2 miles of that location.  If you submit the proper answer, Certitude will provide proper coordinates for the location in Pleasant Hill.

It should be noted that answers to the MIT Hunt get published online following the event.  This means that a little internet searching could lead you straight to the solution.  I can't and won't stop you from doing that, but I encourage you to attempt the puzzle by yourself first.  One of the other reasons this is being posted in its original state is that I love the puzzle as presented.  I think there's a difficult but quite satisfying solution path along the way with an aha or two.  Solving according to the intended method will give some insight into the preparation that goes into some of the puzzles used for the Hunt (which itself is an event that takes teams up to 150 people up to 72 continuous hours of solving to finish).

Since I can't control your method used to find the solution, I'll ask that you state your path in your log.  FTF's should be claimed by both the first finder overall and the first finder who solves the puzzle without resorting to research or asking people who've solved it for hints/answers.  FTS will be awarded for only the first who does it without assistance. Be honest!  And special consideration will be given to anyone who found the original cache in Cambridge.

As one other note, this was made before a certain craze made a certain type of geocaching puzzle a dime a dozen.  (Though this wasn't the first of its kind and was in part inspired by another hide in the Bay Area.)

Feel free to ask me if you get stuck along the way.  I think this is likely a 4.5-5.0 star puzzle; only about 10 teams solved it originally at the Hunt.  It's a 2.0 star difficulty if you look up the answer.

Puzzle: Geddy of Rush
Investigate for prints
Emir's coffee-cup holder
Name of 2013's Preakness-winning horse
Time period of unspecified length
Original Blankety Blank host Terry
Trice
Type of code
Tethered (to), in a way
Birdbrain
Favorite, at a sports book
Hived off, in British parlance
"C'mon, you expect me to believe that?"
Kidder of Pakistani descent featured in Der Koch
Tarkington satire of first love
After-title inclusion
Ties to powerful people
Quipped
Doorways in the Sand author
Payette tributary's tributary
Regularly consumed foodstuff
Justification by mathematical example, perhaps
Litigant's solicitation during discovery
Musical categorizations found in hymnals


You can validate your puzzle solution with certitude.

Additional Hints (Decrypt)

Uvqr uvag va Pregvghqr.

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)