I got the general drift of the clues eventually...but I too have Sackett as a no longer St. Paul Park so I would have never gotten there. I suppose one would have to ask the Boys and Girls club if they have possession of that whole area, but my guess is that it's property for their use or they own it.
LL - Sorry about the house hold up. Hope things get smoothed out and done with soon.
Okay, I'm back from work. I'm beat. I've been getting up at 6am the past few mornings to go dig in the light at Sackett. Sunday I was out touring the parks, trying to figure where things fit. I was basically touring parks, getting an idea of what parks I liked. I was actually driving around the perimeter of Prosperity Park when I realized I was being followed by some car. I was afraid of getting carjacked or something else bad. I made it to the White Bear intersection when I looked back in my rearview mirror and realized it was Cocorosie and Nick. That was amusing. We drove back to Prosperity and talked clues. I continued going to more parks, one of which was Sackett. I sat in my car in the parking lot, but didn't get out to look. If I did I probably would have seen the stone and realized it was there. Later that night with the clue that came out, I was set on Sackett.Â
I got up very early the next morning and went to the park. I saw the stone, saw the stream, saw how things fit and realized it was there. I didn't have anything to dig with though, and the area I initially liked had snow covering a good portion. I checked around various spots but gave up. I went out after work to use what little light was left to see if anything could be turned up. I was only gone 5 minutes because nothing struck me, but when I came back two ladies in a car parked near mine asked if I was looking for something. They had seen me leave and come back. I told them I was just looking to see what was back there. I figured I couldn't really explain a treasure hunt.
This morning I got up again really freaking early to go out. This time I brought a rake. I raked and raked a bunch of stuff, finding nothing. I moved to a different area, raked there. Me2 was going to meet me out there. She eventually got there, and we walked around the area as I explained how things fit. We were walking back down the path there, towards the Boys & Girls club when I saw the two cut trees standing up. I had vaguely noticed them earlier, but for some dumb reason never thought to dig it until that very time. I put my rake right in between, took one swipe, and saw a blue rectangular package which looked like an eclipse gum wrapper. Sure enough it was the poker chip!
Thank you everyone for the congratulations. I'll be trying to come up with a good hunt for this spring/summer time. I can't say when I'll have it, I just want to make it a good one.Â
Thank you AW and Jake for the hunt and the clues.
Thank you to my beautiful green M&M for the company and good luck that you bring.
my take on clues....Like anybody cares...but I gotta write it...
Â
Clue #1
Come make your bet on the trickiest hunt yet. As you sometimes take not one step, but two. You’ll be all set and not have to get wet If the same, only different is what you do.
A treasure renowned, one lost, another found Ponder if we were the animals as you stroll To be treasure bound, search on the ground And score a payday if you make a field goal
I was sold on Jimmy Lee for a while was the only Field Goal that I know of....(not 2 just one)
But I gotta agree with Leelabel..the sign at Linwood is unreal!!! It is a gold mine if you wanted to compare....Not just one thing but two!!!
Clue #2
A Bicycle ride will be your guide To what you are looking for And in the park a moment of dark Will hold the way to keep score
At Linwood there is a very tiny bike path. Moment of dark?- woods? Keep score=I was looking for a pace count like a "beat".
Clue #3
The spinning roulette wheel is a hint to the deal As is a famous west coast educational place Lucifer’s lair helps reveal what we sought to conceal Seek unmapped terrain and it will make you an ace.
Ace = Tennis courts
Lucifer's lair had me sold on GROTTO - street stops less then a block away=concealed??
Also at this point I was thinking "roulette wheel" is going to spin fake parks around the center...needed to find the real park in the middle.
Clue #4
Head west going straight from sides numbering eight Around midway enjoy some barbecued cuisine. Look south of Crosby’s gate and you’ll do simply great If you find you can roughly duplicate this scene.
Well I was sold that this was crosby for a few days....can't blame me....but I had no better place to look just yet and I wanted to dig.
So..I looked for a park inside the "wheel" and looking South like the directions told me to do.
At Linwood there is a hockey rink with 8 sides.
Clue #5
Neither factors of thirty-six, nor a city in the Michigan sticks, Nor quoting all the sweet serenity of books Will show what this park depicts. Rather on the middle transfix. Then down and dirty is how a wise hunter looks.
I looked as this as a park killer!!! I thought more then one park...But the key parts I honestly thought was important was middle transfix going back to the roulette clue...Down and dirty refering to going down the stairs to dirt (not concrete).
Gave me more parks to form a circle around linwood.
Clue #6
Fifth and sixth are no fun, go for number one When the clock strikes come near to warn her. And though it’s no fun, clean up when doggy’s done Then take your clue from that running corner to corner.
MEARS ...another park in the "wheel"
Did you know there is a mirror on the playground at Linwood?
Did you know there is two sign that say you need to pick up dog crap?...I thought this was the corners of where I needed to look.
Clue #7
A tunnel, not a vent, oh is that where they went? The cornerstone would be too high to tell you. So even if it’s bent, you should think of a descent Although instead of a dozen it’s less than two.
I thought MUCKY ACED THIS ONE!!! Even PROUD OF A COMPLETE SLAM DUNK!!!
Just off St. Clair the cars have to drive into tunnel/garages to park their cars. RIGHT above the same spots is "cornerstones" that look exactly like the one at Swede. (BUT THEY ARE ELEVATED!!!)
BENT steps in the woods near the tennis courts at Linwood.
(east of the tennis courts is unmapped).(not near tennis courts but close)
Clue #8
A saintly place that sits above grace Yet lies below a nearby scenic ledge Will help this race as an exemplified case Of what runs along the southernmost edge.
Linwood clue but I missed where Itsa park killer (I figured the madness had to stop)....I was now sold this was just the "gimmie" park clue. I figured this was the edge near the tennis courts as its a small ledge.
Clue #9
View the river and sky, see a suburb going by But the planes will require a certain visibility You’ll have to be sly, the treasure’s not nearby Unless you find a building of proper suitability
Can see the planes...but already considered that with ACE clue.
building of proper suitablity just was telling me to look for a landmark.
then I thought LANDMARK...oops...
Â
I hated to say this....but I wanna get it outta me. AW I seriously respect your hunts/clue writing and want them to continue. I love the hard work you put into your hunts. Maybe I'm typing right now with a ton of "bitterness" in me...but I wanted to point out what I saw.....
I believe that if you get some honest views of what others saw in the hunt it will help you for writing future hunts....as I know you have this talent.
TMK I don't want to take anything away from you........nice job!!! (btw TMK gives me faith back into you as you dragged me away from ORCHARD last year to go to another park--which was sackett or hayden)
FWIW (not much...but I'm venting....more pissed at myself)
also....Like I told TIM on AIM....I have seriously gotten myself up to PAR on my park knowledge....If I can just get my noodling skills up.....mostly due to this hunt....(granted I still don't know COMO like I should....I'm leaving this up to the crew)
I will have a hunt so something to remember for the future. I am thinking about a Lucky_Strike Hunt sometime this fall. I want to have a large hunt so will ask for donations as AW suggested and am going to seek some local companies to sponsor the event. I think the bigger the prize the more you will attract. Don't get me wrong, I love to figure out clues and have fun, but the bigger the prize the bigger the crowd. So keep this in mind Cooler Crew. I will post messages a month or two to remind everyone of my upcoming hunt. Please let me know if November 1st would interfere with any other planned hunts. Thank you for the hunt AW, I had fun, and meeting people was half of the fun. ;-)
Yes KC I think it would also be a good warm up for King Boreas in January. So unless someone else has November 1st taken I am reserving the right to hold a hunt November 1st. I figure if we dont have snow there's always leaves to use...lol, anyways please look for future post's from me as I certainly will let everyone know months before the event, ty ;-)
Picture test, if it works this is an actual picture of the Pioneer Press Medallion. I was able to hold it and take pictures of the medallion shortly after it was found at Lake Phalen.
Kitch, you're right, I did think that it was not at Orchard for a while there at Me2's hunt. So yeah, don't get discouraged about things. I know I've made mistakes. One thing I find interesting about the Sackett not being a park thing is that Jake helped out with this hunt, and if anyone would know things about parks it would be Jake.Â
Aw -great hunt. Your clues were great. The first clue telling us to take a 2nd step was great and hard, but doable. sorry I could only lurk this hunt but it was fun to see everybody else thinking it was in so many different parks . I liked the fact that you needed to be a great noodler, but if you were in the right park it would all make sense.
TMK congrats you did some fine noodleing and hunting.
note to self on all future mock hunts don't even look at large parks.
Phalen, Hidden Falls, and Battle Creek were large parks. I know Lilman hid his in Indian Mounds and maybe someone else did too. I wanted to use a small park for this hunt because I didn't want to have to use a lot of clues narrowing down the park. I wanted this hunt to be mostly about figuring out the right park.
I think it would be a good idea to be sure the park is indeed a park for future hunts. I believe what once was a park at Sackett, is held now by the Boys and Girls club. All St. Paul Parks have signage that states they are part of the St. Paul system of parks. Regional Parks are also so marked. There are other areas designated as parks that aren't part of the St. Paul system. One example is Horton Park at Minnehaha and Hamline. But there is clear signage that it is indeed a park.
Again, Congratulations to TMK for correctly noodling the clues and to you too, Allison, for getting us all noodling at all. It was a very good concept and the clues were very well written.
I slogged through most of the past messages. Did you ever decide upon a time to get together? I would like to meet you all. This is a lot of fun -- extend the insanity out over the year...Â
Also, I would be interested in putting together hunt for late summer (August-ish) -- called the spOCK hunt. It is sometimes fun to have something to do during those "dog days". Would this be interfering with anyone else's plans? Still learning how things work around here...
I think it would be a good idea to be sure the park is indeed a park for future hunts.
But who ever heard of a park ceasing to be a park, and yet still sitting there looking like a park that it would even occur to someone to check such a thing? Plus it was still in the *updated* THG I just got in January.
Just another reminder everyone. I am having a treasure hunt in the begining of November. I am getting started with some things now and hopefully if all goes well will have a big hunt, and more importantly, a FUN hunt. Thanks again for the Moch Hunt AW...
But who ever heard of a park ceasing to be a park, and yet still sitting there looking like a park that it would even occur to someone to check such a thing? Plus it was still in the *updated* THG I just got in January.
So, we can't blame Kitch on this one? Gotta blame Mappy Gooey! :D
I had a great time noodling. Still think my sundial thought was pure genius. :D Don't know if I would have gone out had I been in town... Prolly... IF I'd ever decided on a park. But I never got that far.
Still, it was great fun noodling. I LOVE noodling! Do anuuder one, Allison! I wanna keep noodling!
I seem to remember, when I played baseball at Duluth and Case, back in the day, that we used to play a few games at/against Sackett, every year... could be wrong though... its been a while...
I dont know if that means anything... like maybe it used to be considered a rec center, or something??? or if it still is, and has just been adpoted as one, kinda, but is just run by the Boys & Girls club??
So anyway, I got the idea for this hunt after reading "The Da Vinci Code". I thought it would be kind of cool if instead of each clue just telling you one more aspect of a park, it would actually just lead you to another clue and put you on more of a chase as it were. I suspected the first clue wouldn't really tell people very much at first unless they figured out Ames or recognized the animals comment. But I knew later on, once someone got to Sackett, they would know without a doubt this was the right park. And in fact Clue #1 is just about the only clue aside from #12 that actually tells you where in the park to go.
Clue #2 was just the what it's hidden in clue. I decided to make that the second clue so it wouldn't get in the way of what would be a streak of two step clues.
I figured clue #3 would send everyone to Newell. I was a bit surprised people were having so much trouble figuring out the part of the park I was referring to, especially since someone did mention where the Devil's Den was and someone else posted an arial view of the park which one only had to compare to the map to see which part was unmapped.
Clue #4 is where I thought things would get interesting. I figured once the possibility of Como came up, people would realize the clue had to be talking about Como. With the gate, the eight sided gazebo (which I never saw mentioned until pretty late in the hunt) and Midway all referenced in the clues, I didn't think this clue could be mistaken for anything else. I assumed people would then be confused as to whether it was in Como or Newell.
I didn't think clue 5 would be that hard to figure out. It didn't take long for people to get Longfellow, but I was surprised they didn't then get 94 and Ann Arbor to also fit Merriam once they started thinking along those lines. I thought by the time a third park was being referenced people would realize something different was going on. I thought saying "what this park depicts", "duplicate this scene" etc. would be enough of a hint that the park itself wasn't important, but rather was just giving you a clue about the real park. Things didn't quite seem to go that way though.
I figured Clue #6 was obvious that it was talking about Mears with the talk of the clock and being near Warner. If you start thinking Mears, tying in 5th and 6th and the number 1 would be easy enough, and the dog park should be an obvious indicator. Of course this was to still be tricky because if you got a stream out of it like you were supposed to, the stream at Sackett isn't in the THG and so it might actually deter people from the right park unless they went to check it out anyway (which is what TMK did).
Clue 7 had to be Swede Hollow and I think most people got that. I think people even understood that it was about stairs. I wasn't sure though if it was just this clue people were getting or if they were starting to understand that every clue was really just picking out one thing. It's hard to tell since in a hunt like this people don't post all their ideas.
Clue 8 seemed to end up being easy enough but it had the unintended effect of convincing people of Linwood even more than they had been. It was the clue though that convinced TMK to check out Sackett more thoroughly since it fit everything but the stream clue. But he didn't find it in the limited time he had to look.
Clue 9 I knew would be tricky, but I thought it would be doable with some research. If you went through the Guide looking at parks bordered by streets with suburb names, you wouldn't have to go far to get to Belvedere. If you then look at the description, it talks about Skyview park and Riverview elementary which should have confirmed this was the park in question. The only building has a boys and girls club. One would have to be a bit clever to realize a club was a building of proper "suit"ability, but I didn't think that would be too hard if you already knew it was talking about Belvedere. If you'd figured out by now the clue meant you needed to find a park with a boys and girls club, that only left you with two and it should have been easy to guess from there.
When you know the answers it's kind of hard to tell how difficult the clues really are. You don't want them to be so easy there's no challenge and you don't want them to be so hard that they can't be solved. I did want them to be a little harder than average in this case though as I knew the treasure would be found pretty quickly after someone got to the right park. I still think the idea was sort of neat. But as many of you know the flavor of this hunt changes every year so next year it will be a different kind of challenge.
Allison, as always, the clues were well written and well planned. I always enjoy your hunts.
I did get what you were doing, but I would have never gotten Sackett as it was not on my list of parks any longer, and my hunting time got very limited due to some real life stuff that got in the way.
"But what if he shot you in the face?"
greatest line from dumb and dumber
Hi KC, that was just on ...yesterday? funny movie
Hi LL- sorry about the house crap!
I have two grandchildren born on your birthday, Nick.
Congratulations Kids!
I got the general drift of the clues eventually...but I too have Sackett as a no longer St. Paul Park so I would have never gotten there. I suppose one would have to ask the Boys and Girls club if they have possession of that whole area, but my guess is that it's property for their use or they own it.
LL - Sorry about the house hold up. Hope things get smoothed out and done with soon.
Okay, I'm back from work. I'm beat. I've been getting up at 6am the past few mornings to go dig in the light at Sackett. Sunday I was out touring the parks, trying to figure where things fit. I was basically touring parks, getting an idea of what parks I liked. I was actually driving around the perimeter of Prosperity Park when I realized I was being followed by some car. I was afraid of getting carjacked or something else bad. I made it to the White Bear intersection when I looked back in my rearview mirror and realized it was Cocorosie and Nick. That was amusing. We drove back to Prosperity and talked clues. I continued going to more parks, one of which was Sackett. I sat in my car in the parking lot, but didn't get out to look. If I did I probably would have seen the stone and realized it was there. Later that night with the clue that came out, I was set on Sackett.Â
I got up very early the next morning and went to the park. I saw the stone, saw the stream, saw how things fit and realized it was there. I didn't have anything to dig with though, and the area I initially liked had snow covering a good portion. I checked around various spots but gave up. I went out after work to use what little light was left to see if anything could be turned up. I was only gone 5 minutes because nothing struck me, but when I came back two ladies in a car parked near mine asked if I was looking for something. They had seen me leave and come back. I told them I was just looking to see what was back there. I figured I couldn't really explain a treasure hunt.
This morning I got up again really freaking early to go out. This time I brought a rake. I raked and raked a bunch of stuff, finding nothing. I moved to a different area, raked there. Me2 was going to meet me out there. She eventually got there, and we walked around the area as I explained how things fit. We were walking back down the path there, towards the Boys & Girls club when I saw the two cut trees standing up. I had vaguely noticed them earlier, but for some dumb reason never thought to dig it until that very time. I put my rake right in between, took one swipe, and saw a blue rectangular package which looked like an eclipse gum wrapper. Sure enough it was the poker chip!
TMK wants to be a princess.
Thank you everyone for the congratulations. I'll be trying to come up with a good hunt for this spring/summer time. I can't say when I'll have it, I just want to make it a good one.Â
Thank you AW and Jake for the hunt and the clues.
Thank you to my beautiful green M&M for the company and good luck that you bring.
TMK wants to be a princess
Don't we all Tim? Don't we all?
oooh... me too! does that mean I get a tiara?
my take on clues....Like anybody cares...but I gotta write it...
Â
Clue #1
Come make your bet on the trickiest hunt yet.
As you sometimes take not one step, but two.
You’ll be all set and not have to get wet
If the same, only different is what you do.
A treasure renowned, one lost, another found
Ponder if we were the animals as you stroll
To be treasure bound, search on the ground
And score a payday if you make a field goal
I was sold on Jimmy Lee for a while was the only Field Goal that I know of....(not 2 just one)
But I gotta agree with Leelabel..the sign at Linwood is unreal!!! It is a gold mine if you wanted to compare....Not just one thing but two!!!
Clue #2
A Bicycle ride will be your guide
To what you are looking for
And in the park a moment of dark
Will hold the way to keep score
At Linwood there is a very tiny bike path. Moment of dark?- woods? Keep score=I was looking for a pace count like a "beat".
Clue #3
The spinning roulette wheel is a hint to the deal
As is a famous west coast educational place
Lucifer’s lair helps reveal what we sought to conceal
Seek unmapped terrain and it will make you an ace.
Ace = Tennis courts
Lucifer's lair had me sold on GROTTO - street stops less then a block away=concealed??
Also at this point I was thinking "roulette wheel" is going to spin fake parks around the center...needed to find the real park in the middle.
Clue #4
Head west going straight from sides numbering eight
Around midway enjoy some barbecued cuisine.
Look south of Crosby’s gate and you’ll do simply great
If you find you can roughly duplicate this scene.
Well I was sold that this was crosby for a few days....can't blame me....but I had no better place to look just yet and I wanted to dig.
So..I looked for a park inside the "wheel" and looking South like the directions told me to do.
At Linwood there is a hockey rink with 8 sides.
Clue #5
Neither factors of thirty-six, nor a city in the Michigan sticks,
Nor quoting all the sweet serenity of books
Will show what this park depicts. Rather on the middle transfix.
Then down and dirty is how a wise hunter looks.
I looked as this as a park killer!!! I thought more then one park...But the key parts I honestly thought was important was middle transfix going back to the roulette clue...Down and dirty refering to going down the stairs to dirt (not concrete).
Gave me more parks to form a circle around linwood.
Clue #6
Fifth and sixth are no fun, go for number one
When the clock strikes come near to warn her.
And though it’s no fun, clean up when doggy’s done
Then take your clue from that running corner to corner.
MEARS ...another park in the "wheel"
Did you know there is a mirror on the playground at Linwood?
Did you know there is two sign that say you need to pick up dog crap?...I thought this was the corners of where I needed to look.
Clue #7
A tunnel, not a vent, oh is that where they went?
The cornerstone would be too high to tell you.
So even if it’s bent, you should think of a descent
Although instead of a dozen it’s less than two.
I thought MUCKY ACED THIS ONE!!! Even PROUD OF A COMPLETE SLAM DUNK!!!
Just off St. Clair the cars have to drive into tunnel/garages to park their cars. RIGHT above the same spots is "cornerstones" that look exactly like the one at Swede. (BUT THEY ARE ELEVATED!!!)
BENT steps in the woods near the tennis courts at Linwood.
(east of the tennis courts is unmapped).(not near tennis courts but close)
Clue #8
A saintly place that sits above grace
Yet lies below a nearby scenic ledge
Will help this race as an exemplified case
Of what runs along the southernmost edge.
Linwood clue but I missed where Itsa park killer (I figured the madness had to stop)....I was now sold this was just the "gimmie" park clue. I figured this was the edge near the tennis courts as its a small ledge.
Clue #9
View the river and sky, see a suburb going by
But the planes will require a certain visibility
You’ll have to be sly, the treasure’s not nearby
Unless you find a building of proper suitability
Can see the planes...but already considered that with ACE clue.
building of proper suitablity just was telling me to look for a landmark.
then I thought LANDMARK...oops...
Â
I hated to say this....but I wanna get it outta me. AW I seriously respect your hunts/clue writing and want them to continue. I love the hard work you put into your hunts. Maybe I'm typing right now with a ton of "bitterness" in me...but I wanted to point out what I saw.....
I believe that if you get some honest views of what others saw in the hunt it will help you for writing future hunts....as I know you have this talent.
TMK I don't want to take anything away from you........nice job!!! (btw TMK gives me faith back into you as you dragged me away from ORCHARD last year to go to another park--which was sackett or hayden)
Â
http://www.ci.stpaul.mn.us/depts/parks/recprograms/recreationmap.html
http://www.boysandgirls.org/eastsideclub.htm
Â
FWIW (not much...but I'm venting....more pissed at myself)
also....Like I told TIM on AIM....I have seriously gotten myself up to PAR on my park knowledge....If I can just get my noodling skills up.....mostly due to this hunt....(granted I still don't know COMO like I should....I'm leaving this up to the crew)
I will have a hunt so something to remember for the future. I am thinking about a Lucky_Strike Hunt sometime this fall. I want to have a large hunt so will ask for donations as AW suggested and am going to seek some local companies to sponsor the event. I think the bigger the prize the more you will attract. Don't get me wrong, I love to figure out clues and have fun, but the bigger the prize the bigger the crowd. So keep this in mind Cooler Crew. I will post messages a month or two to remind everyone of my upcoming hunt. Please let me know if November 1st would interfere with any other planned hunts. Thank you for the hunt AW, I had fun, and meeting people was half of the fun. ;-)
That'd be cool, I love the fall and thought it'd be a great time to have a hunt.
I hear theres a party tonight at the bar just northeast of the Landmark dowtown...anybody going? I forgot the name, but some brewery place...lol
Yes KC I think it would also be a good warm up for King Boreas in January. So unless someone else has November 1st taken I am reserving the right to hold a hunt November 1st. I figure if we dont have snow there's always leaves to use...lol, anyways please look for future post's from me as I certainly will let everyone know months before the event, ty ;-)
I was going to post enough to get to "69" but I wouldn' call it a "un-joe"Â lol
Nov 1st is always a good time for a hunt-between holidays
are we looking for a THG?? who's got the clues???
Â
are we looking for a THG?? who's got the clues???
yeah I guess we are.... clue! clue! clue!
Picture test, if it works this is an actual picture of the Pioneer Press Medallion. I was able to hold it and take pictures of the medallion shortly after it was found at Lake Phalen.
The treasure site
[Edited 2 times. Most recently by on Mar 16, 2005 at 05:37am.]
Where it was found
[Edited by on Mar 16, 2005 at 05:40am.]
The treasure and what it was in
[Edited by on Mar 16, 2005 at 05:42am.]
Think if we were the animals...
[Edited by on Mar 16, 2005 at 05:44am.]
we'd be very happy to have a green M&M on us!
She even gets posted on her own Joe without me even trying.Â
[Edited 2 times. Most recently by on Mar 16, 2005 at 05:52am.]
Kitch, you're right, I did think that it was not at Orchard for a while there at Me2's hunt. So yeah, don't get discouraged about things. I know I've made mistakes. One thing I find interesting about the Sackett not being a park thing is that Jake helped out with this hunt, and if anyone would know things about parks it would be Jake.Â
Hello there Diggin'
watching from my "death bed"
Everything OK?
can you say collusion?>
NICE!!
Another great hunt from AW=)
 ÂÂ
  note to self on all future mock hunts don't even look at large parks.
 ÂÂ
[Edited by on Mar 16, 2005 at 10:48am.]
Aw -great hunt. Your clues were great. The first clue telling us to take a 2nd step was great and hard, but doable. sorry I could only lurk this hunt but it was fun to see everybody else thinking it was in so many different parks . I liked the fact that you needed to be a great noodler, but if you were in the right park it would all make sense.
TMK congrats you did some fine noodleing and hunting.
[Edited by on Mar 16, 2005 at 10:45am.]
Haha ESD, that was the largest note to selfI think I've ever seen.
note to self on all future mock hunts don't even look at large parks.
Phalen, Hidden Falls, and Battle Creek were large parks. I know Lilman hid his in Indian Mounds and maybe someone else did too. I wanted to use a small park for this hunt because I didn't want to have to use a lot of clues narrowing down the park. I wanted this hunt to be mostly about figuring out the right park.
It could be in a large park again.
I think it would be a good idea to be sure the park is indeed a park for future hunts. I believe what once was a park at Sackett, is held now by the Boys and Girls club. All St. Paul Parks have signage that states they are part of the St. Paul system of parks. Regional Parks are also so marked. There are other areas designated as parks that aren't part of the St. Paul system. One example is Horton Park at Minnehaha and Hamline. But there is clear signage that it is indeed a park.
Again, Congratulations to TMK for correctly noodling the clues and to you too, Allison, for getting us all noodling at all. It was a very good concept and the clues were very well written.
Hey All,
I slogged through most of the past messages. Did you ever decide upon a time to get together? I would like to meet you all. This is a lot of fun -- extend the insanity out over the year...Â
Also, I would be interested in putting together hunt for late summer (August-ish) -- called the spOCK hunt. It is sometimes fun to have something to do during those "dog days". Would this be interfering with anyone else's plans? Still learning how things work around here...
Peace out -------Â spEAGLE
I think it would be a good idea to be sure the park is indeed a park for future hunts.
But who ever heard of a park ceasing to be a park, and yet still sitting there looking like a park that it would even occur to someone to check such a thing? Plus it was still in the *updated* THG I just got in January.
[Edited by on Mar 16, 2005 at 08:54pm.]
Just another reminder everyone. I am having a treasure hunt in the begining of November. I am getting started with some things now and hopefully if all goes well will have a big hunt, and more importantly, a FUN hunt. Thanks again for the Moch Hunt AW...
But who ever heard of a park ceasing to be a park, and yet still sitting there looking like a park that it would even occur to someone to check such a thing? Plus it was still in the *updated* THG I just got in January.
So, we can't blame Kitch on this one? Gotta blame Mappy Gooey! :D
I had a great time noodling. Still think my sundial thought was pure genius. :D Don't know if I would have gone out had I been in town... Prolly... IF I'd ever decided on a park. But I never got that far.
Still, it was great fun noodling. I LOVE noodling! Do anuuder one, Allison! I wanna keep noodling!
sackett is listed here under rec centers
http://www.ci.stpaul.mn.us/depts/parks/environment/park-partners/parklist.html#top
Hmmm, so it is. Curiouser and curiouser.
I seem to remember, when I played baseball at Duluth and Case, back in the day, that we used to play a few games at/against Sackett, every year... could be wrong though... its been a while...
I dont know if that means anything... like maybe it used to be considered a rec center, or something??? or if it still is, and has just been adpoted as one, kinda, but is just run by the Boys & Girls club??
My understanding is that it used to be considered a rec center.
To make this more curiouser and curiouser...it's not listed at this site: http://www.ci.stpaul.mn.us/depts/parks/recprograms/recreationmap.html
well...now I'm interested...
If nobody calls b4 I get home...I'll call the park and rec. dept. and get the scoop...
might need to call boys & girls club 2
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If nobody calls b4 I get home...I'll call the park and rec. dept. and get the scoop...
HEH
You just want to place an AW letterbox/hybrid cache ...
You just want to place an AW letterbox/hybrid cache ...
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NAH...already got that Icon on my profile...heh
lol wonder how many cachers would end up anywhere but at the spot it's at? I'd have the offset coordinates at Linwood somewhere.
So anyway, I got the idea for this hunt after reading "The Da Vinci Code". I thought it would be kind of cool if instead of each clue just telling you one more aspect of a park, it would actually just lead you to another clue and put you on more of a chase as it were. I suspected the first clue wouldn't really tell people very much at first unless they figured out Ames or recognized the animals comment. But I knew later on, once someone got to Sackett, they would know without a doubt this was the right park. And in fact Clue #1 is just about the only clue aside from #12 that actually tells you where in the park to go.
Clue #2 was just the what it's hidden in clue. I decided to make that the second clue so it wouldn't get in the way of what would be a streak of two step clues.
I figured clue #3 would send everyone to Newell. I was a bit surprised people were having so much trouble figuring out the part of the park I was referring to, especially since someone did mention where the Devil's Den was and someone else posted an arial view of the park which one only had to compare to the map to see which part was unmapped.
Clue #4 is where I thought things would get interesting. I figured once the possibility of Como came up, people would realize the clue had to be talking about Como. With the gate, the eight sided gazebo (which I never saw mentioned until pretty late in the hunt) and Midway all referenced in the clues, I didn't think this clue could be mistaken for anything else. I assumed people would then be confused as to whether it was in Como or Newell.
I didn't think clue 5 would be that hard to figure out. It didn't take long for people to get Longfellow, but I was surprised they didn't then get 94 and Ann Arbor to also fit Merriam once they started thinking along those lines. I thought by the time a third park was being referenced people would realize something different was going on. I thought saying "what this park depicts", "duplicate this scene" etc. would be enough of a hint that the park itself wasn't important, but rather was just giving you a clue about the real park. Things didn't quite seem to go that way though.
I figured Clue #6 was obvious that it was talking about Mears with the talk of the clock and being near Warner. If you start thinking Mears, tying in 5th and 6th and the number 1 would be easy enough, and the dog park should be an obvious indicator. Of course this was to still be tricky because if you got a stream out of it like you were supposed to, the stream at Sackett isn't in the THG and so it might actually deter people from the right park unless they went to check it out anyway (which is what TMK did).
Clue 7 had to be Swede Hollow and I think most people got that. I think people even understood that it was about stairs. I wasn't sure though if it was just this clue people were getting or if they were starting to understand that every clue was really just picking out one thing. It's hard to tell since in a hunt like this people don't post all their ideas.
Clue 8 seemed to end up being easy enough but it had the unintended effect of convincing people of Linwood even more than they had been. It was the clue though that convinced TMK to check out Sackett more thoroughly since it fit everything but the stream clue. But he didn't find it in the limited time he had to look.
Clue 9 I knew would be tricky, but I thought it would be doable with some research. If you went through the Guide looking at parks bordered by streets with suburb names, you wouldn't have to go far to get to Belvedere. If you then look at the description, it talks about Skyview park and Riverview elementary which should have confirmed this was the park in question. The only building has a boys and girls club. One would have to be a bit clever to realize a club was a building of proper "suit"ability, but I didn't think that would be too hard if you already knew it was talking about Belvedere. If you'd figured out by now the clue meant you needed to find a park with a boys and girls club, that only left you with two and it should have been easy to guess from there.
When you know the answers it's kind of hard to tell how difficult the clues really are. You don't want them to be so easy there's no challenge and you don't want them to be so hard that they can't be solved. I did want them to be a little harder than average in this case though as I knew the treasure would be found pretty quickly after someone got to the right park. I still think the idea was sort of neat. But as many of you know the flavor of this hunt changes every year so next year it will be a different kind of challenge.
Allison, as always, the clues were well written and well planned. I always enjoy your hunts.
I did get what you were doing, but I would have never gotten Sackett as it was not on my list of parks any longer, and my hunting time got very limited due to some real life stuff that got in the way.
There's always the next one!
sounds like TerryV and I were on the same page!!
As always a hunt has created me to be more skillful in my park knowledge...
which this is all about for me....just one more chapter in my book...someday I know its going to provide a LARGE payoff...
which this is all about for me....just one more chapter in my book...someday I know its going to provide a LARGE payoff...
OR a very large book ...
Kitchie Does St. Paul