Medallion Hunt

Congratulations to the 2023 Manitou Days Medallion Hunt Winners!

Left Jeremy Phipps

Middle Jeff Toensing

Right Dan Moritz!

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.

to the winning team!

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

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.

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. 

Don’t yell “Fore!” but 18 holes (and a door)

Reveal a feature quite finespun.

When it’s time to play, they’ll illuminate your way:

Upward of 40 – supporting a minus one.

And dearest John and Lena, from the original schema

They  spelled your sake so wrong.

Here you did pass and now fields of grass

Do taylor you a memorial so strong. 

Explanation:

The first clue pointed out the 18 holes that are seen directly above the main entrance to the Town Hall building. Also mentioned are the 40 individual lights that illuminate Field 1 of the baseball complex. Those venturing down to Field 1 may have noticed that the sign had slid sideways; now it looks like a minus sign, as stated in the clue. The second stanza named the families owning the land at the time of the image shown on the historical placard: Hammon and Taylor. Hammond Road is named for John (and Magdelena, but she went by Lena) Hammon but was, in the process, somehow misspelled. Both would die at their home in White Bear Lake and are now buried at Oakland Cemetery in St. Paul. 

Enthusiasm will spark-y, if you find our park-y

And seek a different variety of prize.

Gather as you roam but before you get home

Of 55 dots we also strongly dogmatize.

Boot up your minions, warp to our dominion

And discover a strange, strange world.

Leash up your pet, elude the dragnet

Seek an object both porous and curled.

Explanation:

One feature of the new playground equipment is a game to help a dog (“dog”matize) named Sparky (“Spark-y”) locate six treasures before he returns to his doghouse. “Fitting quantity” connected this number of prizes to the clue number. “55 dots” referred to another feature of the playground that presents the numbers 1-10 along with their braille counterparts. If you add up all of the braille markings, you arrive at 55. The second stanza made mention of the four movies being shown at Polar Lakes this summer: Minions, Strange World, Super Pets, and Puss in Boots. The last line of the clue referred to our medallion, which was made of cork (“porous”) and curled up into a cocoon-like shape.

A couple of days provide some ways

To help you anchor the boat.

Sort through the batch where day and week match

That would be our casting vote.

When pioneers came, the land they did claim

And the rest, well, is history. 

Head for the sticks and let your focus affix

On solving this checkered mystery. 

Explanation:

The “couple of days” referred to in the clue were Township Day (first stanza) and Hockey Day Minnesota (second stanza). Township Day, celebrated March 10, lands during the 10th week of the  year (“where day and week match”) and it is when Township residents vote on representation and procedures. Hockey Day Minnesota, held at Polar Lakes Park in January, saw Hill Murray (the Pioneers) come to White Bear and beat our hometown team. “Stick” and “check” (in checkered) hinted at hockey. 

By the third rhyme, it’s certainly time

To stop being such a square.

Play some six on six but when making your picks

Let nine by sixteen be your lucky pair. 

Seeking royal perfection? Forward’s the direction

In this beautiful game on recur.

From earthen heat to cold –a retrofit of the old 

For just under 60 you’re bound to say, “Brrrr!”

Explanation:

The first stanza made reference to the original township plat, which is shown on one of the historical placards near the historic Town Hall. When constructed, all townships were divided into 36 sections in a six by six configuration. They were also numbered. The treasure site is located on the very southern end of plat number nine – very close to the border with plat number 16. The second stanza referred to Pelé, one of the best soccer players to ever grace the field. Pelé died in December, 2o22. He played forward, was dubbed “The King” (“royal”), and very famously referred to soccer as “the beautiful game.” Many soccer fields can be found at Polar Lakes Park. Pelé is also known as the Hawaiian goddess of fire and volcanoes. But, we wanted to pivot to things much chillier. “Retrofit of the old” referred to the new A/C unit added to the historical town hall in the past year (visible from hiding spot), a billboard to the south advertising an A/C tune-up for $59 (“under 60”) and the cocklebur (“Brrr”) to which the medallion was carefully taped. 

If orange is the zone, accompanied by cone

That’s not the pad you seek.

For our officials, please – (we’re on our knees)

Lazybones: ditch garden tools; use simpler technique.

A rainbow connection and bridging connexion

Cleanse the palette and lend assistance.

Come by the park, keep low, and hark! 

107 here; a semi-easy cacophony in the distance. 

Explanation:

The opening stanza informed hunters that the medallion wouldn’t be hidden in any construction zones. At the time of the medallion’s hiding, the park playground was nearing completion but hadn’t yet been opened to the public. Yet, we wanted to pull clues from the new material (see second stanza)! The final part of the clue begged hunters to please use their hands or maybe even a stick from a dead tree to poke around for treasure. Garden tools are unnecessary and most public lands in the city/township contain native plantings or beautiful gardens. We cannot continue this event if the optics of our event is people going through them with garden tools. The second stanza referred to equipment within the new playground. “Rainbow connection” referenced a colorful xylophone and the playground contains bridges connecting different sections of the equipment together. “Keep low” and “107” referred to the 107 parking spaces in the lower parking lot at Polar Lakes Park. A loading dock can be seen to the east of the parking lot containing many, many wooden pallets (“palette”). In the distance – to the east – is interstate 35E. You likely noticed the noise (“cacophony”) and a couple of those lanes belong to the EZ pass (“semi-easy”) program.

Our alarm is ringing so now we’ll be bringing

All devotees this brand new brainteaser.

As the moon does wane, brave all sorts of terrain

And you’ll emerge our next crowned Caesar.

Fauna, flora, and numbers pandora

All ready to perplex your mind.

So round up your battalion to hunt for medallion

Memories jumble; Year 43? Make it your time.

Explanation:

“All sorts of terrain” referred to the varying scene that is found at Polar Lakes. To the south, is wetland and as one walks north, the scene becomes more like a prairie grassland. “Crowned” and “Caesar” vaguely pointed to Interstate 35E, which according to Google Maps, is referred to as the Monarch Highway. The terms “battalion,” “jumble,” and “43” also referred to Interstate 35E as it is also dedicated to the 34th Infantry (Red Bull) Division. “Fauna, flora, and numbers” hinted at the puzzles to come, which would have hunters identifying plants, birds, and counting objects in the park. 

The Medallion Hunt begins Thursday, June 15 at 6 pm. Watch this space for clues!