2023 Manitou Days Medallion Hunt Winners
Congratulations to the 2023 Manitou Days Medallion Hunt Winners!
Left Jeremy Phipps
Middle Jeff Toensing
Right Dan Moritz!
Medallion Found
Attention Treasure Hunters! The medallion has been found. It was located underneath the leaf of a milkweed plant at Polar Lakes Park this evening. Information about the finders and explanation of clues will be posted later.
Congratulations
to the winning team!
Clue #10
Clue #10
Take the 11-4-7 to land a piece of heaven
Where metal is chaotically cockeyed.
Seek a companion boon for our cocoon
And carefully inspect each underside.
Explanation:
Final directions to our treasure trove.
Clue #9
Clue #9
We promise it’s no con so if you haven’t yet caught on,
Polar Lakes is a place offering you utter pleasance.
Guide your feet from where three levels of government meet
Past elm, raptor, and a historical presence.
Cage and stage will lead to regretful rage
So from that thinking you’d better wean.
So with all this combined you’ll surely find
Value in the spaces that lie between.
Explanation:
This clue places the medallion in the middle section of the park
away from the north soccer fields, the Town Hall, batting cages, and the amphitheater stage. Hunters were told to look in a spot between these zones.
Clue #8
Designed to protect, it’s the 3.2 you should select
As it possesses a very precious gem.
Embrace ascension over concession
Clearly channel grass, leaf and stem.
To grasp a small arbor of your quest.
Hate the hobble to find our bauble
Come to the commencing west.
Explanation:
The signage around the ballfields talks about the restoration of the area to make the current park we enjoy. One of them speaks to the 3.2 acres up the hill from that location designed to protect the wetlands. So, hunters were to ascend from this sign and the concession building and look among the plantlife. The second stanza referred to the classic song Don’t Fence Me In by pulling in some lyrics. The “arbor” in the song is a cottonwood tree. A cottonwood tree was due west (as also mentioned in the clue) of the hiding spot.
Clue #7
Peek a boo! And there: cell tower in view
For all bears to reflect upon and consider.
On epic salsa dine; where structures align
Mighty Hunters abbreviate to beat the Riddler
As toward treasure you tweedle, the avians tweet-le
But the songs do change over traveled terrain.
For a fun twist, perhaps a screenshot will assist?
As heard when moving from wet to plain.
Explanation:
The first stanza, if decoded, brought you to the site. “Peek a boo” referred to the White Bear Lake water tower to the south of the site. The cell tower was seen to the east. “Reflect” pointed to the White Bear Township water tower to the northeast. We chose a spot where all could be seen (“where structures align”) . “Mighty Hunters” can be abbreviated to M.H. A small sign labeled M.H. was due west of the spot. Finally, “epic salsa” can be anagrammed to Asclepias — the scientific name for milkweeds. Those ornithologists among you likely noticed from our screenshot a selection of birds that like wetland habitats and others that prefer grassland — with the star residents being the ospreys nesting on a light in the north soccer fields.