MnGCA

King Boreas · Posted: Mon Dec 16, 2002 2:13 am Post subject: 1st Annual Winter Cache Bash

I plan to use this site for discussion concerning the St. Paul Winter Carnival, Pioneer Press Medallion Hunt, CoolerCrew Re-Hash Bash, and the 1st Annual Winter Cache Bash.

I have had this addiction since 1998: In late January-early February I am somehow able to survive for ten days with very little sleep, spending hours upon hours outside, often in sub-zero weather, voluntarily moving mountains of snow, or chopping ice, and doing this willfully.

There are many skillful clue interpreters, and they share their thoughts online. It's because of the internet that I have become more involved in this event. In earlier years (1976-1997) I thought my wife was nuts, to drag us out looking for a hidden medallion.

If you have questions, that's a good start. As I find, or remember, information to share I will post it.

The first clue is in 34 days.

Jillibean · Posted: Mon Dec 16, 2002 5:27 pm Post subject:

Boreas,

I am really looking forward to this event. As a kid growing up in St. Paul, I've been an on-again, off-again medallion hunter. I have memories of puzzling over the clues and digging in the snow in Como park with my mom and my sister.

A couple years ago some friends and I were so sure that the latest clue pointed to a specific playground in a specific park, that we were looking under the slides and teeter-totters at 2 in the morning! (But that may be just part of the season to you.) We certainly weren't the only hunters there.

I've always been a little proud of how we as Minnesotans can get outside in sub-zero weather, eat ice cream, look at ice castles, and watch parades. It's a little crazy, but what choice do we have? At least it's one way to beat the winter blues.

Anyway, geocaching and medallion hunting seem like they'd complement each other very well, and the idea of interpreting the clues as part of a group is intriguing to me. Thanks for sharing your passions for medallion hunting and geocaching, and organizing this event.
_________________
Jillibean

King Boreas · Posted: Tue Dec 17, 2002 8:44 am Post subject:

My wife used to take our two sons, a nephew, and two nieces out medallion hunting on the second Sunday of the hunt. It would be the 8th clue, and this was in the late '80's. No matter what the clues were, it HAD to be at Como.

Of course, I stayed at home with the guys, the brews, and the football games.

I have put a web page link in my profile. It will be updated almost daily, adding resources, photos, info, etc. Hopefully, anything you want to know about the Winter Carnival will be available there, or here.

The first thing to do, if you have ANY intention of looking for the medallion, is to get a button and REGISTER it. The button is $3.00 and you'll need a stamp for the postcard. It could make a difference of a few thousand dollars.

There is a link on the Winter Carnival site with locations to buy the buttons. Most Saint Paul SA's and Holiday's have them.

The first clue is in 33 days.

King Boreas · Posted: Wed Dec 18, 2002 6:23 am Post subject:

It's never too early to register and check out the 2003 Medallion Hunt forum. You will have to enter a valid e-mail address and reply from that address for your posts to appear. It's possible to not register, and just read, but there is a very important benefit if you register, introduce yourself in the CoolerCrew Check-in forum, and post in the Hunt forum. I will not say more than that, but it's simple to do, and if you plan to hunt the medallion, you will definitely benefit.

There is also a geocache forum I started a few months ago. There may be some info and links you have not seen before.

The first clue is in 32 days.

towlebooth · Posted: Wed Dec 18, 2002 7:05 am Post subject: Buttons

I noticed this morning that the Winter Carnival folks have set up a shop of sorts in the St. Paul Skyway between Marshall Fields (Dayton's) and the old location of Norwest/Wells Fargo.

They have cloth banners from past years (they look OLD) and at times it is staffed so you can buy buttons there too.

King Boreas · Posted: Thu Dec 19, 2002 5:12 pm Post subject:

Have you ever been close to where the medallion was hidden?

Sadly, yes.

2002: 100 feet away, one day prior, not actively searching
2001: 50 feet away, 8 hours prior, not actively searching
2000: 75 feet away, one day prior, switched search area
1999: 30 feet away, 4 days prior, switched search area
1998: 40 feet away, 3 days prior, switched search area

In 1989, the medallion was in the hands of a friend's daughter, and my friend told her daughter to put it back. It was hidden in a pair of earmuffs. "The person who 'lost' them may come back for them." The daughter has not hunted since.

The first clue is in 31 days.

[/b]

Jillibean · Posted: Thu Dec 19, 2002 6:09 pm Post subject:

You're getting farther away than when you started, that's not the way to win the big money!
_________________
Jillibean

15Tango · Posted: Fri Dec 20, 2002 3:14 am Post subject:

Who has contacts with the Pioneer Press? Wouldn't it be neat if they placed the medallion in an existing cache? But then, that would probably disqualify whoever owned the cache from finding the medallion.
_________________
There comes a time in every young boy's life when he gets an irresistible urge to seek buried treasure.--Mark Twain

jonsom · Posted: Fri Dec 20, 2002 10:44 am Post subject:

I hope non-geocacher's don't find any caches hidden in Ramsey Cty and remove's or destroy's them.

towlebooth · Posted: Fri Dec 20, 2002 1:09 pm Post subject:

I would think that mediallion hunters who stumble across the caches would open them up, see the message from geocaching.com which is in the majority of caches and either:
--Leave them alone
--Or, like kingboreas, find in caching another sport that they can really enjoy.

I'm not at all worried by medalion hunters.

Chad

King Boreas · Posted: Fri Dec 20, 2002 3:05 pm Post subject:

Think of any three caches in Ramsey County.

Think about where they are placed.

Don't peek ahead.

Some of them may be hard to find, and YOU have coordinates.

Don't peek ahead.

90% ++ of medallion hunters spend the majority of their time clearing snow, leaves etc. away from buildings, picnic tables, fire rings, trees, etc etc. EXACTLY the places where a cache would not be placed.

The first clue is in 30 days.

King Boreas · Posted: Sat Dec 21, 2002 1:19 pm Post subject:

Winter Carnival documentary newsletter (.pdf)

Winter Carnival history (.pdf)

The first clue is in 29 days.

King Boreas · Posted: Sat Dec 21, 2002 5:35 pm Post subject:

Cherished Bounty

Obviously, with GPS, we know this cache is located at Highland Park. The cache page has ten clues from a previous medallion hunt. Each one has a specific meaning.

Clue 1: the cache is in a park.

Clue 10: tells us it's Highland Park

Anyone wanna play along and figure out clues 2-9 ? The link for the .pdf map should help.

King Boreas · Posted: Sun Dec 22, 2002 9:40 pm Post subject:

The first clue is in 28 days.

King Boreas · Posted: Mon Dec 23, 2002 6:54 pm Post subject:

If you're serious, this is a book you'll want to have. It could also have benefits for geocaching.

Why the author wrote the book.

The first clue is in 27 days.