Allison Wonderland 2008 24-hour hunt

A bold murder. A hidden stash of lost secrets. A series of puzzles that must be solved in 24 hours. Such is the story behind the Second Not Exactly Annual Twin Cities Treasure Hunt to take place starting on Saturday, September 13th. Get some friends together and take up the challenge put on by the Como Park Mason Lodge of St. Paul. 

The event starts at 10am when all the teams will assemble at the Lodge, located at 1044 Front Ave., a block east of Lexington and just south of Como Park between Gabe's and the Half Time Rec. Breakfast will be served to all the teams (with a limit of 5 members per team). Then at 11am we will call up one member from each team, hand them the packet of clues, and the race is on. 

The story is that the Freemasons chose Como Park Lodge to hide some of their ancient secrets. They are kept secure there under lock, key, and booby trap. Only the Grand Master knows the password. But in a shocking development, the Grand Master was just murdered and it is believed his killer was after these documents. The killer and his accomplices were caught, but the police lack evidence and will have to release them in 24 hours. Since they might have gotten the password before killing the Grand Master, it is imperative that the documents are recovered before they are released. 

Even though no one else knew the password, the Grand Master did have a backup plan and left a clue to it through a series of puzzles. It is believed he knew his life was in danger and consequently he set these puzzles throughout his home. The Masons know the password is eight letters. However there are 10 puzzles. One of them is a series of pictures, each relating to a letter. The Masons believe they have figured out that 8 of the puzzles each lead to a location. If you can find the item in one of the pictures at that location, that must mean the corresponding letter is part of the password. Each of these puzzles has a symbol on it and they think the symbols must somehow tell you the order of the letters. The last puzzle, with no symbol on it, has eight items. They suspect it must offer hints as to how to solve the other puzzles. 

Unfortunately that is as far as they have gotten. Consequently they have put out a call for help, offering $500 in reward money to the group of people that can help them solve the puzzles and be the first one to recover the documents. 

This is a fundraiser for Como Park Mason Lodge. Consequently there is an entrance fee of $100 per team. Teams are limited to 5 official members. Only official members are allowed into the Lodge. However you are free to solicit help from other people if they wish to contribute. 

The hunt starts at Como Park Mason Lodge when the clues are distributed at 11am. They will lead you to 8 different locations around town. These locations are limited to an area bounded on the east and west by the two donwtowns and bounded on the north and south by the city limits of St. Paul and Minneapolis. All locations should be accessible around the clock. Once there, you will need to figure out which of 24 pictures was taken there which will then tell you that the letter corresponding to that picture is in the password. Each puzzle also has a symbol on it and if you can figure out the order of the symbols, that will tell you the order of the letters. Once you know the password, return to the Mason Lodge. Someone will be there around the clock. Try the password on the padlocks and if they open, you may then attempt to disarm the final booby trap. 

The first team to disarm the final booby trap and recover the documents will win $300. Also, at each location there will be a padlock. Each team will get one key that opens half the padlocks and another key that opens the other half. Teams will then get a $25 prize for every padlock they return to the Lodge which should prove they were the first one to get to that location. 

Teams that do not win, but still manage to complete the challenge within 24 hours will get a certificate for each member of the team to document the accomplishment. Teams should register by September 6th to David Allison at AllisonWondrland@yahoo.com. To register simply provide your team name and a contact person (and their contact information). Registration fees will be collected the day of the hunt and we will verify the final team membership at that time. 

Our first hunt was quite a success with every team saying they really had a lot of fun. So don't let another one go by without participating! 

David Allison 
Master, Como Park Lodge #324