GC26P1E - Look at ALL them PURDY PURDY COLORS!

GC26P1E - Look at ALL them PURDY PURDY COLORS!

By:  Hayward Cheezehead

1.  Here is the puzzle.

Posted Coordinates: N 46° 04.065 W 091° 24.023

Geocache Description:

**The cache is not at the given location**

Additional Hints (Encrypt)

Try not to reSiSt all the Purdy Purdy ColorS. They will not Shock you. *SNIFF SNIFF*

2.  Solve the puzzle.

This puzzle is an alphabetic cipher.  The number of color blocks and the CO's penchant for ciphers led to our assumption that an alphabetic cipher was the most reasonable puzzle solution.

When all is said and done, each color will represent one letter of the alphabet.  The numeric color chart will simply confirm your assumptions with regard to the exact color of each block.

There are two "errors" in the puzzle:

1.  B16 should be the same color as A16 

2.  I15 should be Color #6 - Yellow

Start by placing Numeric Labels on the Rows and Alphabetic Labels on the Columns.

Then use Microsoft Color Code charts to match the colors.






This is the color code chart that was used to design this puzzle.

Treat the puzzle like a Cryptogram, but instead of replacing letters with other letters, replace the colors with letters.  Remember the Crypto Quotes that used to be in the newspaper?

THIS IS A CRYPTOCOLOR PUZZLE.

Here is the same text as a cryptogram.

BQPK PK H YFZWBLYLSLF WAJJSR.

Here is the same text written with cryptocolors.  Every color corresponds to a letter.  Solve this cryptocolor puzzle just like you would solve a cryptogram.

 .  .  .  .   .  .   .   .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .   .  .  .  .  .  . 



Now, look for strings of color that can be easily converted to words.  Keep in mind that the CO likes to have his puzzles read in any direction and start in unusual places.  

Start by looking for the letters that would be used Least Frequently:  C and Z.  I like to start with C, because the CO loves to sign his ciphers, usually with HCH or Cheeze, and there aren't any C's in the numbers 0-9.  Next, I look for Z, because of the leading 0 (Zero) in 091; the minutes in the CO's area often start with zero; and the only number 0-9 that has a Z in it is zero.

Next, look for the letters that are used most frequently:  E and N.  Most of the numbers 0 - 9 have one or both of these letters.  Then you can look for easy patterns like ZEro, NiNE, oNE; or the number sEvEN or thrEE.

Here are the observations that helped us solve this puzzle.  

1.  There are very few #35 blocks, and one #35 block was at the end of the puzzle where cheeZe would be located.

2.  There are a lot of #14 blocks, and three of them are located at the end of the puzzle where chEEzE would be located.

Once you have Z and E, you can look for ZEro and the string 091.  Here is the color pattern you are looking for:  ZExx NxNE xNE.  You have the colors for Z and E, so look for a pattern of colors that would support 091 with the N colors in the proper locations.  We think this is why Cheezehead has so many spelling "errors" in his puzzles.  The spelling errors interfere with this type of analysis.


Now print the puzzle color grid and start filling in solved letters.

Z = 35 - Light Green
E = 14 - Teal
R = 6 - Yellow
O = 13 - Violet

N = 41 - Light Blue
I = 3 - Red
N = 41
E = 14

O = 13
N = 41
E = 14

C = 12 - Dark Yellow
H = 16 - Gray-50%
E = 14
E = 14
Z = 35
E = 14

When you are finished, the completed puzzle should look like the following grid (we have corrected the 'errors').  Now, start at the top right corner and read the solution, zig zagging right to left then left to right as your read to the bottom.

3.  Put together the Solved Coordinates.

Solved Coordinates:

   N 46 05.428, W 091 24.836   

4.  Verify the Solved Coordinates.

Use GeoCheck to verify the solved coordinates.

GeoCheck - solved coordinates

Happy Caching!