The Princess Bride

The geocache is NOT at the above coordinates, but you may pass that spot on your way to find the cache, after you solve the easy puzzle, below.

The Princess Bride by S. Morganstern and William Goldman

This KID FRIENDLY cache has: fencing, fighting, torture, revenge, giants, monsters, chases, escapes, True Love, miracles … It doesn’t sound too bad -- try and stay awake. (If you have seen the movie, that should sound familiar).

You DO NOT have to watch the movie or read the book “The Princess Bride” to solve this puzzle and get the coordinates for the location of the ammo can container.

You can use any street mapping computer program (such as Google Maps) to solve the puzzle in under an hour; if you are very familiar with street mapping software, you can solve this puzzle in under half an hour.
A few notes on solving the puzzle by using street mapping software:
Google Earth does NOT have "Labels", or business titles; Google Maps does.
Each puzzle clue is somehow related to the place you will be looking at; if there is no connection, zoom in -- a business may be in a shopping center with multiple labels that may overlap.
We only used Street View twice -- on clue numbers 6 and 9. Details of each are in those individual puzzle clue descriptions, below.

You could go to the 15 locations listed below if you really want to, but that would be quite a bit of traveling, to include going outside of the Colorado Springs area. We recommend the online option.

We will use the “letter equals a number” conversion, where A=1, B=2, C=3, etc.

Example: A famous quote from the movie is “My name is Inigo Montoya, you killed my father. Prepare to die!” If you are the Six Fingered Man, Inigo wants to put you in a location such as the one at N 38 49.050 W 104 47.940 The name of this place has two words; what is the fifth letter of the first word? Answer: The name is Evergreen, and the fifth letter is G, so the answer would be 7. (Inigo Montoya is played by Mandy Patinkin; the Six Fingered Man, Count Rugen is played by Christopher Guest, who in real life has been married to Jamie Lee Curtis since 1984)

On to the puzzle:

The geocache coordinates are IN ORDER, below.

LATITUDE NORTH:

1. N 38° 45.388 W 104° 44.961 Farm Boy Westley could get a job here. The first of two words of this establishment is the family name, which has nine letters; what is the 7th letter of the family name? The 8th letter is also the answer here. (Westley is played by Cary Elwes)
2. N 38° 53.472 W 104° 46.989 Princess Buttercup would be right at home on this street. The second word in the name of this street has four letters and the first letter MINUS FOUR is the answer. (Princess Buttercup is played by Robin Wright)

3. “Is this a kissing book?” Well, sorta. Anyway, if you go to N 38° 53.259 W 104° 51.841 you will be at a golf course that is named for a famous formation in a National Natural Landmark that is very nearby. The second name of this golf course and the formation has six letters and the 4th letter is the answer.

We were going to make a puzzle clue for Prince Humperdinck but since he plays the bad guy, we decided not to. Chris Sarandon does a great job of playing the character we love to hate. (Chris Sarandon is the brother of Susan Sarandon)

4. Fezzik is played by the late, great André the Giant. If Fezzik needed to buy any outfits for his role in the film, he could go to N 38° 50.435 W 104° 45.396 This establishment has 3 words in its title, and the 1st letter of the first word PLUS FIVE is the answer.
5. From the film:
Inigo: Vizzini, he can... fuss.
Fezzik: Fuss, fuss... I think he like to scream... at us.
Inigo: Probably he means no... harm.
Fezzik: He's really very short on... charm!
Inigo: Ah, You have a great gift for rhyme.
Fezzik: Yes, yes, some of the time.
Vizzini: Enough of that!
Inigo: Fezzik, are there rocks ahead?
Fezzik: If there are, we'll all be dead!
Vizzini: No more rhymes now, I mean it!
Fezzik: Anybody want a peanut?
Vizzini: DYEAH!!
At N 38° 50.121 W 104° 50.516 the name of the shop has three words; the 5th letter of the first word is the answer.

Shrieking Eels! Not putting them in our puzzle, either, but did want to mention them.

6. The Cliffs of Insanity! Very scary, especially if you are afraid of heights, like someone we know. There is a historical tourist attraction at N 38° 51.690 W 104° 54.784 that has three words in its title, and the 1st letter of the third word is the answer. IF YOU DO NOT SEE A LABEL FOR THE NAME OF THIS LOCATION, USE STREET VIEW, AND LOOK FOR THE SIGN ON THE NORTH SIDE OF THE ROAD.

7. Inconceivable! Vizzini uses this word several times, but Inigo states: “You keep using that word; I do not think it means what you think it means!” At N 38° 51.885 W 104° 53.847 there is a different formation in the same National Natural Landmark as puzzle clue number 3 (above). This formation is inconceivable! It has two words in its name, and the 8th (last) letter of the first word is the answer. IT IS NOT STEAMBOAT ROCK, but is the one right across the road. (Vizzini is played by Wallace Shawn, which is absolutely, totally and in all other ways inconceivable !)

LONGITUDE WEST:

8. Inigo Montoya’s father Domingo Montoya made his sword. It was initially made for the Six Fingered Man, but that didn’t quite work out. If you need to buy a sword, you could go to N 38° 50.418 W 104° 51.023 The name of this shop has three words and the 3rd letter of the third word is the answer.

9. The famous swordfight between Inigo Montoya and the Man in Black:
Inigo: You are using Bonetti's defense against me, uh?
Man In Black: I thought it fitting, considering the rocky terrain.
Inigo: Naturally, you must expect me to attack with Capo Ferro.
Man In Black: Naturally, but I find that Thibault cancels out Capo Ferro, don't you? (Jumps down)
Inigo: Unless the enemy has studied his Agrippa, (Jumps after him) which I have! (Pause) You are wonderful!
Man In Black: Thank you. I've worked hard to become so.
Inigo: I admit it, you are better than I am.
Man In Black: Then why are you smiling? (Forces Inigo toward the cliff's edge)
Inigo: Because I know something you don't know.
Man In Black: And what is that?
Inigo: I am not left-handed. (Switches hands, they begin to move up the stairs)
Man In Black: You're amazing!
Inigo: I ought to be after twenty years. (Begins to force Man in Black toward a balcony. His body moves the rocks)
Man In Black: There is something I ought to tell you.
Inigo: Tell me.
Man In Black: I'm not left-handed either.
At N 40° 09.496 W 105° 06.901 there is an establishment that any good swordfighter might go to after an exhausting life or death battle. This establishment has four words in its title, and the 2nd letter of the fourth word is a letter that looks just like this number. THIS IS ONE OF THE CLUES WHERE WE HAD TO USE STREET VIEW OR THE BUSINESS ADDRESS TO GET THE ANSWER -- there is a logo on the side of the building, but if you are not familiar with that, Street View also gives you the business address; do an Internet Search for the address to get the business title..

10. Just prior to the Battle of Wits:
Man In Black: You're that smart?
Vizzini: Let me put it this way: have you ever heard of Plato, Aristotle, Socrates?
Man In Black: Yes.
Vizzini: Morons.
Those Greek philisophers could get a meal at N 38° 50.919 W 104° 51.879 This establishment has five words in its title, and the 2nd letter of the third word is the answer.

Iocane Powder – you can inhale this, but do not touch ! (Another important element of the story, but not part of our puzzle)

And remember – NEVER get involved in a land war in Asia, and never go in against a Sicilian when death is on the line !!!

11. Less than a nautical mile (that would be 2000 yards, or 1.15 land miles) from the answer to puzzle clue number 2 (above), is a street where the Dread Pirate Roberts would be right at home – N 38° 52.942 W 104° 47.773 The second word in the name of this street has seven letters; the 1st letter MINUS the 5th letter is the answer.

Westley: “What are the three terrors of the fire swamp? One, the flame spurt. No problem. There's a popping sound preceding each, we can avoid that. Two, the lightning sand, but you were clever enough to discover what that looks like, so in the future we can avoid that too.”
Buttercup: “Westley, what about the R.O.U.S.s?”
Westley: “Rodents Of Unusual Size? I don't think they exist.”

12. Flame Spurt -- nothing like a nice toasty fire to keep you warm. At N 38° 51.391 W 104° 42.876 the name of the business has three words and the 7th letter of the second word is the answer.
13. Lightning Sand – at N 37° 47.371 W 105° 35.677 is a National Park and Preserve that has three words in its title. The 4th (last) letter of the second word PLUS the 1st letter of the third word is the answer.
14. R.O.U.S.’s – You might be able to find some R.O.U.S.’s at N 38° 59.632 W 105° 03.069 This place has three words in its short (common) title, and five words in its full and formal title. The 1st letter of the last word MINUS ONE is the answer (the last word is the same in both the three and five letter titles).

Miracle Max (Billy Crystal) – a great guy, who loves a nice MLT; a mutton, lettuce and tomato sandwich when the mutton is nice and lean and the tomato’s ripe … Anyway, Honorable Mention to Max and his wife Valerie (Carol Kane) but they are not part of this puzzle.

15. True Love is one of the enduring themes of the film. Perhaps Westley and Buttercup should go to N 38° 51.493 W 104° 54.810 The name of this street has two words; the 3rd letter of the first word MINUS the 3rd letter of the second word is the answer.

Check your solution to this puzzle at GeoChecker.com

The cache is in Woodland Park, between the mythical towns of Florin-issant and Guilder Mountain Falls.

Good luck, and watch out for pirates, giants, evil Sicilians, Shrieking Eels, Flame Spurts, R.O.U.S.s, albino torturers, the Pit of Despair, etc etc etc – while on your way to the cache !

Inconceivable ! -- The geocaching team of estes01 and ernie66 were First to Find -- a whole week after the cache published !!!

"Bye Bye -- have fun storming the ~~castle~~ geocache!"

Some Princess Bride trivia:

According to author William Goldman, when he was first trying to get the movie made in the 1970s, a then-unknown Arnold Schwarzenegger wanted to play Fezzik, and he was strongly being considered because Goldman could never get his first choice, André the Giant, to read for the role. By the time the movie was made about twelve years later, Schwarzenegger was such a big star they could not afford him. Andre was cast after all, and the two big men had gone on to become friends.

Mandy Patinkin claims that the only injury he sustained during the entire filming of this movie was a bruised rib due to stifling his laughter in his scenes with Billy Crystal. His attempt at holding back his laughter is obvious from his facial expression during his line, "This is noble sir."

Most of the movie was filmed on location in England. The castle used for the film was Haddon Hall, a fortified country house (not a castle as such) that dates to before 1087 (when it was listed in the Domesday Book). The tapestries in Haddon Hall interiors are original, dating to the late medieval and renaissance periods.

Director Rob Reiner left the set during Billy Crystal's scenes because he would laugh so hard that he would feel nauseated.

There really was a "Dread Pirate Roberts" (Bartholomew Roberts, also known as Black Bart) who operated in the Caribbean in the early 18th century. He is reckoned by many to have been the most successful pirate of all time.

Cary Elwes and Mandy Patinkin performed all of their own sword-fighting after many hours of training. According to Rob Reiner, the only stunt performed by Patinkin's stunt double was one flip during the "Chatty Duelists" scene.

In order to create the Greatest Swordfight in Modern Times, Cary Elwes and Mandy Patinkin trained for months with Peter Diamond and Bob Anderson, who between them had been in the Olympics; worked on Bond, Lord of the Rings, Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981), and Star Wars films; and coached Errol Flynn and Burt Lancaster. Every spare moment on set was spent practicing. Eventually, when they showed Rob Reiner the swordfight for the movie, he was underwhelmed and requested that it be at least three minutes long rather than the current one minute. They added steps to the set, watched more swashbuckling movies for inspiration, re-choreographed the scene, and ended up with a three minute and 10 second fight which took the better part of a week to film from all angles.

Rob Reiner first read the book "The Princess Bride" back when he was starring in All in the Family (1971). His dad, Carl Reiner, was friendly with William Goldman, and thought Rob would like the book.

The names that Inigo and Westley refer to in the "chatty duel" sequence are all actual fencing terms named after their 14th and 15th century proponents. Bonetti's defense refers to refraining from attacking on uneven terrain, Capo (sic) Ferra refers to a linear attack, the best for uneven terrain, Thibault refers to angular defenses /attacks and Agrippa refers to natural short sword movements which cancel out angular defenses and attacks.

Max and Valerie, played by Billy Crystal and Carol Kane respectively, were named after author William Goldman's parents, Max and Valerie.

It is implied that the character of Count Rugen was an adult when Inigo Montoya was a child. Christopher Guest, who plays Rugen, is actually only four years older than Mandy Patinkin, who plays Inigo.

The two rival kingdoms in the movie are Florin and Guilder. These are the names of two former Dutch currencies, the Florijn and Gulden.

Mark Knopfler agreed to write the music for this movie on the condition that Rob Reiner put the hat that Reiner wore in This Is Spinal Tap (1984) in the movie. The hat appears in The Grandson's bedroom.

Liam Neeson revealed on The Graham Norton Show (2007) that he auditioned for Fezzik.

Vizzini tells the Man In Black, "Never go up against a Sicilian when death is on the line." 'Vizzini' is the name of a small town in Sicily.

William Goldman claimed that Carrie Fisher was the ideal choice for Buttercup.

Courteney Cox and Meg Ryan auditioned for Princess Buttercup.

Count Rugen wounds Inigo five times before and during the period of the film: the two cheek scars he inflicted on Inigo when he was a child, sword thrusts to one forearm and the opposite shoulder, and the knife wound in the stomach. When Inigo finally gets the upper hand in their duel, he returns exactly those wounds and no more: first the forearm and shoulder, then the cheek slashes, and then finally he kills Rugen with a thrust to the stomach.

Buttercup is continually referred to throughout the film (and in the film's title itself) as "The Princess," even though she is not yet married to Humperdinck. However, the grandfather states that Buttercup was born on a small farm, and Humperdinck states in his speech to the people that she was once a commoner. The reason for the discrepancy is that in the novel, the law of the land did indeed allow Humperdinck to choose his bride, but that bride was required to be a princess. Humperdinck overcame the obstacle by making Buttercup princess of a nonexistent country, making her eligible to marry him.

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