Can you help me solve these 10 Boston Location Riddles?
August 6, 2022 8:44 AM Subscribe
I'm in a competitive scavenger hunt that takes me across boston, to be the first to find a small token. They are placed in the last few days and just released. It's fun, but I'm in a competition where we are supposed to "use all of our resources". Askmi is a resource, right?
I'm posting it here - even if you aren't familiar with Boston, often the right keywords into Google can certainly help!
I need to go to the location, and then actually find the token.
I've been told they can be referencing businesses, statues, murals, streets, anything around boston. Usually the first half of the riddle leads to the general spot, and then the second half leads to the specific spot. But, sometimes it doesn't follow those regulations.
Rules: They are usually outdoors. They aren't in cemeteries. You don't have to pay to enter. No treasures are hidden anywhere near train tracks or in train stations.
Here are the 10 riddles. I've numbered them for easy reference later.
81
The din beneath the yellow awning’s loud—
All yelps and high-pitched arfs and growling sounds.
It’s enough to contend with all the swiping paws
Without worrying about the pinchers and the claws.
82
For those who delight in intellectual truths,
There is a place under a little roof
Where one can gain an ampler world view
While looking out upon the avenue.
83
You’ll have to throw your share of bricks to get
Up to the level of this Boston great.
But making something happen does take skill,
So run your repetitions and your drills.
84
Three figures lounge and unwind by the pool,
All enervated, indolent, and nude,
And though they’re not concerned with modesty,
The Goose might recommend a holly leaf.
85
There are railings that you use to climb the stairs,
And there are railings that you shred until threadbare,
And the difference between the two is not so stark
Inside this concrete park within a park.
86
Though you might be inclined to think they’re his,
Be mindful that the stony, engraved words
Are from an ancient book, and they imply
There’s meaning in the furrows of mankind.
87
Although the moat is shallow, and it’s got
A a rail to keep you steady as you cross,
The fortress has lowered a wooden ramp
To keep the visitors’ shoes from getting damp.
88
A major win for people in the city
Was won within a place that’s dense and leafy,
And this achievement was made even better,
When gold was found behind a big green letter.
89
The setting for the show is beautiful,
The curtains ironed, and the backdrop full
Of painted, spacious skies and birds and fountains,
And how should I describe the purple mountains?
90
October with its mighty blasts regarded
The peasant farmers, and their deeds departed.
The land’s become expensive, but you can be
Assured the words to speak of them are free.
I'm posting it here - even if you aren't familiar with Boston, often the right keywords into Google can certainly help!
I need to go to the location, and then actually find the token.
I've been told they can be referencing businesses, statues, murals, streets, anything around boston. Usually the first half of the riddle leads to the general spot, and then the second half leads to the specific spot. But, sometimes it doesn't follow those regulations.
Rules: They are usually outdoors. They aren't in cemeteries. You don't have to pay to enter. No treasures are hidden anywhere near train tracks or in train stations.
Here are the 10 riddles. I've numbered them for easy reference later.
81
The din beneath the yellow awning’s loud—
All yelps and high-pitched arfs and growling sounds.
It’s enough to contend with all the swiping paws
Without worrying about the pinchers and the claws.
82
For those who delight in intellectual truths,
There is a place under a little roof
Where one can gain an ampler world view
While looking out upon the avenue.
83
You’ll have to throw your share of bricks to get
Up to the level of this Boston great.
But making something happen does take skill,
So run your repetitions and your drills.
84
Three figures lounge and unwind by the pool,
All enervated, indolent, and nude,
And though they’re not concerned with modesty,
The Goose might recommend a holly leaf.
85
There are railings that you use to climb the stairs,
And there are railings that you shred until threadbare,
And the difference between the two is not so stark
Inside this concrete park within a park.
86
Though you might be inclined to think they’re his,
Be mindful that the stony, engraved words
Are from an ancient book, and they imply
There’s meaning in the furrows of mankind.
87
Although the moat is shallow, and it’s got
A a rail to keep you steady as you cross,
The fortress has lowered a wooden ramp
To keep the visitors’ shoes from getting damp.
88
A major win for people in the city
Was won within a place that’s dense and leafy,
And this achievement was made even better,
When gold was found behind a big green letter.
89
The setting for the show is beautiful,
The curtains ironed, and the backdrop full
Of painted, spacious skies and birds and fountains,
And how should I describe the purple mountains?
90
October with its mighty blasts regarded
The peasant farmers, and their deeds departed.
The land’s become expensive, but you can be
Assured the words to speak of them are free.
Best answer: I think the first is the Barking Crab. Yellow and red awning. References dogs and lobster.
posted by cocoagirl at 8:54 AM on August 6, 2022 [9 favorites]
posted by cocoagirl at 8:54 AM on August 6, 2022 [9 favorites]
82 - Possibly the Mapparium at the Mary Baker Eddy Library? The building isn't "a little roof" but inside the mapparium the "roof" is small. The building faces Mass Avenue.
posted by cocoagirl at 9:01 AM on August 6, 2022 [2 favorites]
posted by cocoagirl at 9:01 AM on August 6, 2022 [2 favorites]
89- possibly the Majestic theater at Emerson? Sounds like a theater being described, and Purple mountains are indeed "majesty"....
posted by griffey at 9:02 AM on August 6, 2022 [2 favorites]
posted by griffey at 9:02 AM on August 6, 2022 [2 favorites]
85 - I think tangosnail is right. The most likely is the Lynch Family skatepark. How strict is the "Boston" part of the assignment? Might things be in East Boston, Dorchester, Cambridge, etc?
posted by cocoagirl at 9:03 AM on August 6, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by cocoagirl at 9:03 AM on August 6, 2022 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: Neighborhoods:
For the purpose of the hunt, the "neighborhoods of Boston" are defined as:
Allston
Back Bay
Bay Village
Beacon Hill
Brighton
Charleston
Chinatown (including Leather District)
Dorchester
Downtown
East Boston
Fenway-Kenmore
Hyde Park
Jamaica Plain
Mattapan
Mission Hill
North End
Roslindale
Roxbury
South Boston (including Wharf District)
South End
West End
West Roxbury
posted by bbqturtle at 9:12 AM on August 6, 2022
For the purpose of the hunt, the "neighborhoods of Boston" are defined as:
Allston
Back Bay
Bay Village
Beacon Hill
Brighton
Charleston
Chinatown (including Leather District)
Dorchester
Downtown
East Boston
Fenway-Kenmore
Hyde Park
Jamaica Plain
Mattapan
Mission Hill
North End
Roslindale
Roxbury
South Boston (including Wharf District)
South End
West End
West Roxbury
posted by bbqturtle at 9:12 AM on August 6, 2022
Response by poster: I have solved 84! I'm checking leads for 83, 81, and I'll check 85 next!
posted by bbqturtle at 9:14 AM on August 6, 2022
posted by bbqturtle at 9:14 AM on August 6, 2022
84 - Brewer Fountain in the Common has two sets of nudes reclining in a "pool" of water (naked cherubs above, gods and goddesses below). The Ducklings statue is next door in the Public Garden, but they're ducklings, not geese. Maybe there's a goose sculpted in the Brewer Fountain.
posted by cocoagirl at 9:14 AM on August 6, 2022 [3 favorites]
posted by cocoagirl at 9:14 AM on August 6, 2022 [3 favorites]
83, likely the statue of Bill Russell by city hall.
posted by Jacen at 9:30 AM on August 6, 2022 [3 favorites]
posted by Jacen at 9:30 AM on August 6, 2022 [3 favorites]
86 - possibly the bas-relief in the Boston Public Library of the 10 commandments. People might mistake the words for Moses' but they're not his, and they're for all mankind? Something tells me it's not that, though.
posted by cocoagirl at 9:52 AM on August 6, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by cocoagirl at 9:52 AM on August 6, 2022 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: 84 has been found, by trillium brewery:
https://www.studiointernational.com/index.php/nicole-eisenman-groupings-of-works-from-fountain-review-401-park-boston
posted by bbqturtle at 10:02 AM on August 6, 2022
https://www.studiointernational.com/index.php/nicole-eisenman-groupings-of-works-from-fountain-review-401-park-boston
posted by bbqturtle at 10:02 AM on August 6, 2022
Response by poster: No luck at barking crab by me or 3 other hunters :/
posted by bbqturtle at 10:21 AM on August 6, 2022
posted by bbqturtle at 10:21 AM on August 6, 2022
I think 88 may be Fenway Park, and the gold beneath the green letter a reference to Johnny Damon, who was acquired from the Oakland A’s.
posted by Rube R. Nekker at 10:29 AM on August 6, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by Rube R. Nekker at 10:29 AM on August 6, 2022 [1 favorite]
90 may be the Irish famine statue.. Washington & School St.
posted by sammyo at 10:42 AM on August 6, 2022
posted by sammyo at 10:42 AM on August 6, 2022
#82 sounds like BU. The colonnades on either side of the Marsh Chapel having a sort of roof look out on Comm Ave.
posted by BobTheScientist at 10:56 AM on August 6, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by BobTheScientist at 10:56 AM on August 6, 2022 [1 favorite]
Oh nice, they're not going for all the super-touristy iconic locations. But it means a way bigger range, as does the neighborhood list, crikey. I'll keep thinking.
posted by cocoagirl at 11:17 AM on August 6, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by cocoagirl at 11:17 AM on August 6, 2022 [1 favorite]
I think bowbeacon has a better answer for 81, but if that fizzles, it also reminded me of the Greenway Carousel. It’s got a yellow top and a wider variety of animals than a typical carousel.
posted by tchemgrrl at 11:59 AM on August 6, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by tchemgrrl at 11:59 AM on August 6, 2022 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: Hi All! Update so far:
81 - many people thought the barking crab - 4 of us searched and didn't find it yet. I may check the greenway carousal.
82 - many people have checked in/nearby the mapparium. Unfortunately, it doesn't appear to be there. I might check BU but the roof doesn't really look small like I'd expect.
83 - tried bill russell and a coach nearby. It could be by some shoes. High traffic area, could have "walked off".
84 - Found! By trillium brewery.
85 - We checked lynch family skatepark - no luck. We might check roxbury skatepark or east boston skatepark next.
86 - No perfectly compelling answers for this that make it worth a long drive and search. It sounds like a statue with engraved letters nearby - but not by him. That's so unique and hard to google.
87 - We checked really hard at Armory of the First Corps of Cadets - which had a ramp across a "moat" - it seemed perfect. but... didn't find it!
88 - I like the idea of Johnny Damon, but I couldnt' find any statues or images of him around fenway or in boston. It doesn't really fit with the trees idea either. No real leads.
89 - checked Majestic theater at Emerson - but no luck. Could be indoors (and it was closed) but more likely there's another theater or video store or something that fits the clue more closely. There wasn't a lot of hiding spots there.
90 - no compelling clues. My wife says october reminds her of baseball but that's it. I think it's likely to do with freedom of speech or protesting but no leads there.
Would love to search for any other leads anyone has!! Thanks so much for your help so far!
posted by bbqturtle at 12:33 PM on August 6, 2022
81 - many people thought the barking crab - 4 of us searched and didn't find it yet. I may check the greenway carousal.
82 - many people have checked in/nearby the mapparium. Unfortunately, it doesn't appear to be there. I might check BU but the roof doesn't really look small like I'd expect.
83 - tried bill russell and a coach nearby. It could be by some shoes. High traffic area, could have "walked off".
84 - Found! By trillium brewery.
85 - We checked lynch family skatepark - no luck. We might check roxbury skatepark or east boston skatepark next.
86 - No perfectly compelling answers for this that make it worth a long drive and search. It sounds like a statue with engraved letters nearby - but not by him. That's so unique and hard to google.
87 - We checked really hard at Armory of the First Corps of Cadets - which had a ramp across a "moat" - it seemed perfect. but... didn't find it!
88 - I like the idea of Johnny Damon, but I couldnt' find any statues or images of him around fenway or in boston. It doesn't really fit with the trees idea either. No real leads.
89 - checked Majestic theater at Emerson - but no luck. Could be indoors (and it was closed) but more likely there's another theater or video store or something that fits the clue more closely. There wasn't a lot of hiding spots there.
90 - no compelling clues. My wife says october reminds her of baseball but that's it. I think it's likely to do with freedom of speech or protesting but no leads there.
Would love to search for any other leads anyone has!! Thanks so much for your help so far!
posted by bbqturtle at 12:33 PM on August 6, 2022
85 The Jamaica Plain Skatepark is directly over the Orange Line rail track. I am not sure how that might fit the riddle.
posted by Short End Of A Wishbone at 1:07 PM on August 6, 2022
posted by Short End Of A Wishbone at 1:07 PM on August 6, 2022
88, Boston Garden? I mean, TD Garden? (symbolic trees) Big green letter, Celtics? I'm terrible at this stuff.
posted by TWinbrook8 at 1:17 PM on August 6, 2022
posted by TWinbrook8 at 1:17 PM on August 6, 2022
89 seems to have references to America the Beautiful which may be associated with the Boston Pops Orchestra.
posted by Short End Of A Wishbone at 1:18 PM on August 6, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by Short End Of A Wishbone at 1:18 PM on August 6, 2022 [1 favorite]
Good call on the Pops; they play every summer at the Hatch band shell.
I'm worried that these tokens have just been taken. Barking Crab has to be the answer to 1! Boston's so busy in the summer -hard to imagine anything lying around looking cool staying put for long.
83 has track references and maybe hints at Bricklayer Bill. A Boston Marathon location?
87, the Aquarium?
posted by Miko at 3:44 PM on August 6, 2022
I'm worried that these tokens have just been taken. Barking Crab has to be the answer to 1! Boston's so busy in the summer -hard to imagine anything lying around looking cool staying put for long.
83 has track references and maybe hints at Bricklayer Bill. A Boston Marathon location?
87, the Aquarium?
posted by Miko at 3:44 PM on August 6, 2022
Could 90 have something to do with Shay's Rebellion, which happened outside of Boston and influenced the Constitution? Perhaps someone familiar with Boston knows if there are particular monuments or documents related to that.
posted by earth by april at 4:02 PM on August 6, 2022
posted by earth by april at 4:02 PM on August 6, 2022
88 - the Arboretum in JP? JP's pretty dense. Or the monument in JP. Or Monument Square in Charlestown. I don't think of Charlestown as leafy but the square itself has trees.
posted by cocoagirl at 4:57 PM on August 6, 2022
posted by cocoagirl at 4:57 PM on August 6, 2022
82: bus- or T-shelter roof little enough for you? Came to me in a dream last night.
posted by BobTheScientist at 11:07 PM on August 6, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by BobTheScientist at 11:07 PM on August 6, 2022 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: A week later, the update:
81 was found at the barking crab. Everyone was right. It was just hidden so well! It took the 5th person to search to find it!
84 Was found by my wife within 5 minutes of the clues being posted! Solution above.
85 was found at the Reservations skate park in reservation park. "park within the park!" doh!
posted by bbqturtle at 7:53 AM on August 13, 2022
81 was found at the barking crab. Everyone was right. It was just hidden so well! It took the 5th person to search to find it!
84 Was found by my wife within 5 minutes of the clues being posted! Solution above.
85 was found at the Reservations skate park in reservation park. "park within the park!" doh!
posted by bbqturtle at 7:53 AM on August 13, 2022
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This is fun - if you think of it, please share the answers with us when you've got them!
posted by tangosnail at 8:53 AM on August 6, 2022 [1 favorite]