The Main Hunt in the Masquerade Tribute 2025 has ended! Congrats to THE JACK PACK who has won the Cash Bounty and Additional prizes – total value approx. $1000!

Over $2000 was donated to the National Park Foundation during the course of the Masquerade Tribute 2025. I’ll have a full run down – of all the creators – Forgotten History Hunts, Riddle Me This, Find Nobody’s Treasure, Orginovel, Este’s Quest, and MW. They and YOU have made it another great success. Thank you.

Join discussions on the MW Discord and other MW Social Channels! Treasure the Adventures! Now let’s get to the Masquerade Tribute main hunt solution:

Here is the PUZZLE HUNT’s pages and story.

There were some clues with layered meanings, and then numerous pieces in the puzzle all worked together to give the location:  Virginia, rt 64, 483 Three Notched Mountain Highway, Blue Ridge Tunnel Trail – West Side, Behind Post, Second from the top. 

Searchers could send this end location/solution and/or go BOTG to find the BUTTON with MW Medallion at this location to claim the prize.

Clues to the location:

First Page:

Clock: Time is 10:24

  • 10 in roman numerals is X  
  • 24 is X (24th letter in alphabet)  

The clock had a few connected meanings:

  • It was first a Clue for Virginia – VA was the 10th state admitted to union.  X marks the spot.
  • The VA clue worked together with or connected to the ‘4 of 13’.  One of the things the number 13 is known to relate to is the first 13 states admitted to the union. (more on this later)
  • It was yet another clue that 2 X’s may be needed (which also tied into the 4 of 13)

Underlined letters:  TREASURE    

Second Page:

3 Notched letters:  MAP     (hint/confirmer to address on map: Three Notched – Mountain Highway)

Green Cipher at top left:  FOR TEN     

  • Green color matched the color of the numbers on page 3 (hinting to connection). FOR TEN was solved by a Polybius cipher using the 25 letters as a key from that other green solution AND it was a hint on how to solve that Riddle found: END TWO AWAY FROM THREE ADD ONE
  • On the 4th Page, Line 10 (for ten) is the strange sentence:  “On guard! After….” 
  • Do as the riddle says: take the last two letters away from AFTER (three/third word) – add ON (one/first word)
  • AFTON –  hint to AFTON MOUNTAIN  (location of tunnel)
  • MOUNTAIN in the border letters utilizes the GREEN color for another connection/confirmer

Third Page:

Green string of numbers are a Book Code applied to the poem on page 5:

  • Answer:END TWO AWAY FROM THREE ADD ONE
  • (The word KEY is in the sentence before the poem on page 5– hinting that it is used as a key for something – with 25 letters, a Polybius would be suspicious since that is 5×5)
  • FOR TEN, as mentioned from pg 2 uses this solution, but is also a CLUE on how to solve it. 4th page/Line 10 – FOR TEN

Morse at bottom – MORE IN   

Fourth Page:

Morse at bottom continued: TEXT

  • FLOWER =  DASH    BEE = DOT
  • MORE IN TEXT was a hint to look for more Morse Code in the text.  The text mixes up Jack Hare and Frog a lot. Three variables. They are used to represent DOT, DASH, and SPACE. 

WEST SIDE x  –  was found in text using JACK/DOT, HARE/DASH, and FROG/SPACE. X indicated stop. This is found on the first 3 pages. Images below show MORSE and another code using FIRST TOO/first two letters after the word TOO. (note: NOT TOO indicated NOT to take that TOO letters)

Main Hunt Solution - Old Jack Hare & Frog

Fifth Page:

Number Code:  4 of 13 reveals clue

It’s well known there were 13 states first admitted to the union.  4 of those are used to reveal a clue. 

MA – NY    and RI – DE   also supported ‘train’ – many ride.

Sixth Page:

Cryptogram: 

  • TRAIL AND LINE
  • POINT AND CROSS
  • FIND A WAY
  • BY WHAT’S LOST

The Appalachian TRAIL, SkyLINE drive, and Blue Ridge parkWAY all intersect (point and cross) near the Blue Ridge Tunnel.   Getting VA, route 64, and other clues would hint to area and be noticed on a map.

The key to the Cryptogram revealed: BEHIND POST.     With B – E, H – I, N – D, P-O, S-T.    This was in order BHNPS.  EIDOT were in YELLOW.

  • In the text is the sentence: SECOND FROM THE TOP – which is the button he lost.
  • The Button location with MW Medallion was BEHIND POST – SECOND FROM THE TOP – WEST SIDE (trailhead).

Map showing POSTS: It was at 2 mile post – or from west end – .25 down trail.

Seventh Page:

Atbash Cipher at top right:  FIRST TOO

Chess board: 64 squares on a chessboard.  Hint for main highway in VA –  Route 64

The TUNNEL trail is right off exit 99 on 64 in VA.

Border Code:  TRAIL   (found by providing the number in the word given by method: Underlined, Colors, Notched)

The phrase on the page hinted to not only the ATBASH cipher being used (since A=Z/Z=A) but also to the fact that a Tunnel is similar – end is beginning/beginning is end. 

LIGHT is the LAST WORD/end of the story – to be taken:  LIGHT AT THE END ….. continue with famous phrase: OF THE TUNNEL.

FIRST TOO had a few intended meanings: (Images of where in text found – above)

  • Hinted to sound for TOO/ TWO  which then also hinted towards FOR / FOUR in the other clue of FOR TEN (4 page, line 10)
  • Was at the FIRST Too/Two POSTS down from West Side
  • Hint to FIRST states and their abbreviations – TWO letters   (to use with 4 of 13)
  • First Too –  The text uses TOO a lot.  If you take the first two letters after each TOO in the text,  this gives the letters to anagram as either: EAST LOCATION NEAR   or    A EASTERN LOCATION

Both would work – WEST SIDE x is found via Morse Code within the same section of text. So placed together would yield:  EAST LOCATION NEAR – WEST SIDE x

In the text is written – ‘IT’S TIME TO MIX THINGS UP!”  –  this is where the TOO ends.  The line hinting to an anagram.

The Morse Code ends here as well – hinting they are connected. Image of MORSE and TOO code above.

All these clues work together:

VIRGINIA, 64, AFTON MOUNTAIN, ROCK FISH (Gap), LIGHT AT THE END (tunnel), TRAIL, WEST SIDE, SECOND FROM TOP, BEHIND POST.

In the text are also hints to needing a light (for the tunnel trail) and other things. And then there were the clues: