The Matterhorn

So, by the Third clue, a past hunting peer of mine named Jake had pulled a $10,000 chunk of ice out of Hidden Falls. Absolutely fantastic work, Jake! I usually don’t even leave the house to look until the Thursday of the hunt!

http://www.twincities.com/…./treasure_hunt/16529938.htm

With this record breaking feat of skill, zeal, and a little luck, a flustered Par Ridder announced to the mob during the awarding of the giant check to Jake Ingebrigston:

“In 1953, that was the second year of the Treasure Hunt, and the clues were written by my great-uncle Dan and my great-uncle Robbie,” said Ridder, holding the same small weathered chest his uncles once used to stash their prize. “What they did in 1953 is what we’ll do this year.”

At that precise moment the second medallion was being tucked away safely somewhere. They must have known I hadn’t taken the opportunity to look yet and felt bad.

2007 Treasure Hunt II - Today’s clue
Posted: Wednesday, Jan. 24

Congrats to the finder, to all a reminder
To hunt hard from first to last clues
Medallion I is history. Now a new mystery
Begins — strap on your hunting shoes

To some its demented, for all unprecedented
But hunters’ thirst must be quenched
Tell sister and brother we’ve hidden another
In a park where a body can be benched

Our 2nd prize? Don’t laugh — 10-thou cut in half
So get out there even if it’s snowy
And as a special bonus — some might say an onus –
A meal with our own Clueless Joey

Good hunting to you, let this be the first clue
Think of a woodsy retreat
It won’t be so hard if you channel the bard
You’ll get warm and smell pretty sweet

While I’m sure glad I’ll be able to take a shot at retrieving a prize this year I’m not totally sold on the idea of the consolation hunt. I reckon the real hunt of the year is for all the guts and glory; the consolation hunt, even if you’re the finder, will only measure second to the primary event. Pessimist, yeah, but when one cooks all the impurities off of the idea there really isn’t much to say otherwise.

I’m also a little disappointed that I had done so well on the initial hunt (specifically regarding container, terrain, park location..) but was unable to get any hunting action before it was found.

OH WELL, not to draw out my complaining for any longer, let’s chop this one up:

Congrats to the finder, to all a reminder

While I am indeed backfilling analysis well after the fact due to other fun stuff that went on this weekend nullifying my sit-on-my-butt-at-the-computer time, but I’ll do my best not to make statements which take the future clues into account.

To hunt hard from first to last clues

…

Medallion I is history. Now a new mystery

…

Begins — strap on your hunting shoes

This one might hold a little piece of mystery for the lucid thinkers, but I personally don’t think so.

plausible info: terrain

To some its demented, for all unprecedented

Sounds to me like they didn’t have enough time to cook up a snappier poem! While I like to think this ought to be “just starting over” I must say that given the lack of perspective with a second hunt that I’m very carefully acknowledging any big words.

plausible info: wordplay

But hunters’ thirst must be quenched

Gatorade? This sounds like a reasonable token to grab on to as it’s sounding like it will be relevant, no matter how early in the new hunt this is coming up.

plausible info: landmark, orienteering, container

Tell sister and brother we’ve hidden another

More feathering and mystical banter.

In a park where a body can be benched

This line does intrigue me though I reckon the actual meat of the clue comes to the final lines below. There are many concepts, from “the park has benches,” to any elaborate interpretation of the term. I misinterpreted the phrase initially and thought it might actually be referring to a graveyard of some kind. In any event I need to put this one on to boil as I simply don’t think they’re going to refer to the park with such a vague tone… but maybe this is just a broad brushstroke get people primed and ready. I’d like to know what you think this line means, if anything.

plausible info: orienteering, landmarks

Our 2nd prize? Don’t laugh — 10-thou cut in half

No complaints here… I’d almost prefer there be a lot less reward so those that feverishly hunt for the money instead of the challenge might feel inclined to stay home.

So get out there even if it’s snowy

…

And as a special bonus — some might say an onus –

Hmm! An onus! I had to look this one up:

Onus (pronounced: ‘O-n&s) is a literary and legal term meaning burden or legal obligation of proof. It is the Latin word onus, which means “burden”.

A meal with our own Clueless Joey

Well, I’d sure enjoy lunch with Soucheray. I’ll be trying hard for this prize alone.

Good hunting to you, let this be the first clue

…

Think of a woodsy retreat

Well when I heard about this clue I immediately assumed they’ll throw it in Como so there will be a fine chance of it living through its clues this time around.

plausible info: terrain

It won’t be so hard if you channel the bard

Cue Wikipedia:

Etymology

While some contend that the word is a loanword from Proto-Celtic *bardos, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *g^werh₂: “to raise the voice; praise”, it is actually from the lesser-known Latin ‘bardare’, meaning “to wear breeches”. Bards are often seen wearing breeches and, to a lesser extent, funny hats. The first recorded example is in 1449 from the Scottish Gaelic language into Lowland Scots, denoting an itinerant musician, usually with a contemptuous connotation. A Scots ordnance of ca. 1500 orders that “All vagabundis, fulis, bardis, scudlaris, and siclike idill pepill, sall be brint on the cheek”. The word subsequently entered the English language via Scottish English.

Secondly, in medieval Welsh and Gaelic society, a bard (Scottish or Irish Gaelic bard, Welsh bardd) was a professional poet, employed to compose eulogies for his lord (see planxty). If the employer failed to pay the proper amount, the bard would then compose a satire. If the satire failed to produce the desired results, he might sing the “Symphony of Misfortune” or “Aria of Bad Tidings” to bring sorrows upon his employer. (c. f. fili, fáith). In other European societies, the same function was fulfilled by skalds, rhapsodes, minstrels, etc.

Bards were those who sang the songs recalling the tribal warriors’ deeds of bravery as well as the genealogies and family histories of the ruling strata among Celtic societies. The ancient Celtic peoples recorded no written histories; however, Celtic peoples did maintain an often intricate spoken history committed to memory and transmitted by bards. Bards facilitated the memorization of such materials by the use of poetic meter and rhyme.

During the era of Romanticism, when knowledge of Celtic culture was overlaid by legends and fictions, the word was reintroduced into the West Germanic languages, this time directly into the English language, in the sense of “lyric poet”, idealised by writers such as the Scottish romantic novelist Sir Walter Scott. The word was taken from Latin bardus, Greek bardos, in turn loanwords from the Gaulish language, describing a class of Celtic priest (c. f. druid, vates). From this romantic use came the epitheton The Bard applied to William Shakespeare and Robert Burns.

What all this means to me is a long guess at first glance. My cursory idea was to associate bards with singers, as is seemingly stereotyped, which prompted me to think of landmark locations such as ampitheaters or other performance venues. This seems reasonable for now..

plausible info: lots; term association, landmarking, orienteering, park region, intra-park navigation

You’ll get warm and smell pretty sweet

Collecting my thoughts for this line shows me more of the same techniques that I attribute to early clues. Stating the obvious: ice rink or other styled warming houses, park restaurants, nearby bakerys, etc.

plausible info: landmarking, orienteering, park region, intra-park navigation