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Jack-In-The-Green and Beltane's Flower LbNA #10367

Owner:Adoptable
Plant date:Aug 23, 2004
Location: 21800 Novelty Hill Road
City:Redmond
County:King
State:Washington
Boxes:1
Found by: otasco
Last found:Jan 13, 2021
Status:FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF
Last edited:Jan 4, 2016
Placed by Curt

Clues - Easy. Very easy landmark riddle included
Distance - Approximately 2.4 miles (round trip)
Time to complete - 1 hour
Trek - Easy. Typical dirt hiking path, well maintained, with manageable inclines.
Weather Factors - Muddy and slippery in places when wet.
Kids and Dogs - Lots of horses. No dogs. Good hike for kids.
Stamp - commercial

Notes:
This lush mixed forest of deciduous and coniferous trees was logged about 100 years ago. The noise of birds and frogs dominates the forest, and the preserve's many beavers have constructed several ponds. Coyote, deer, black bear, woodpeckers, wood ducks and many other species of birds have also been seen in the preserve.

Restrooms, water-fountain and picnic tables near parking area. No pets are permitted (except guide dogs). Horses and bikes permitted on designated trails. Park closes at dusk.

Directions:
Take Highway 520 to its eastern terminus, as it empties out into the town of Redmond to become Avondale Road. Turn right in 1.25 miles onto Novelty Hill Road. In 2.4 miles, turn left into the park across from 218th Avenue Northeast.

Jack-in-the-Green's Tree House Letterbox and Picking Beltane's Flower

The purpose of this quest is to get one of Jack-in-the-Green's beautiful Beltane's Flowers, that he uses to help bring about spring every year, so that next spring you can use the flower's petals at home to make your trees bloom beautifully and grow strong. Each year, at the height of spring, Jack picks some of the most beautiful Beltane's Flowers and stores them in a secret place for use next spring.

During this trek, remember that Jack is guarding the forest, so you must be careful, quiet and considerate of the woodlands, or he will find you, and watch you carefully, and then use his magic to cause you to become lost in the woods. If you're attentive, you can often hear him rustling in the brush when he has spotted you. But pretend you don't hear him and he'll move on and leave you alone.

To find Jack's house, begin at the Northwest end of the parking lot near the "Connector Trail" sign. Follow the trail North. Very soon you'll come to a crossroads under some power lines. Go straight thru the intersection past the No Bicycles sign. Continue North along the trail. You'll travel a long distance. Eventually you'll reach another crossroads with a split log bench, where Jack will often leave morning dew in leaf or acorn cups for thirsty travelers. Have a seat and wait until no one is in sight.

While sitting on the bench, look over the top of the broken stump in front of you, and across the trail you will see the path to Jack in the Green's house. Get up and walk up the path.

Along the way, on the right, you will see two chairs where Jack often meets with other creatures of the woodlands.

Farther along are two old, hewn lions of the forest, one on each side of the trail, that guard the entrance to Jack's home. They are old, tired and sleeping, so if you are quiet, then you can sneak past.

Continue along Jack's trail. There is a sharp curve ahead, bending from left to right.

From here you will have to look carefully for his hidden home. It is not hard to find, but Jack is cunning, and may use tricks to hide it from you.

Look all around you as you walk. From a single stump rise a dozen trunks that reach the treetops as a crown. One trunk ascends for each month. Counting them correctly can often be difficult. That is one element of Jack's magic. One of the trunks, the trunk for January is broken at three times the height of a man. January is a harsh month for Jacks-in-the-Greens. If you count around the tree from the top of the broken trunk you should be able to find all twelve, though, because of magic, some can only count ten or eleven of the months.

Jack has made other crowns of trees near the path, but no other has a trunk for each month of the year.

When you find his home, wait a moment and listen for Jack or any other creatures that may be present. When all is silent and the paths are clear, then carefully creep around to the back of the tree, and find Jack-in-the-Green's house, and his soft bed, nestled in the center of the tree. Quietly and carefully lift the mossy floorboards to find his storage box, where he keeps his magic flowers, and pick one from the box to use next spring when awakening your garden. Leave Jack your mark, so he knows that someone else who loves the woodlands has taken a flower for good use. Carefully replace the box, then the floorboards, and sprinkle them with a few leaves so Jack will be unaware of your visit, and the peace of his home is protected from those who are less respectful of Jack's treasure.

If you miss his house, you will come upon the end of the trail and some signs made by the hand of man. From the signs, turn around, and walk back thirty-five paces. (A pace is two steps.) Jacks home should be off the path, on your right.

Keep your Beltane's Flower safe. Make your way back home, and store it safely. In the spring, before the first of may, pick a few petals from the flower, and sprinkle them under your favorite tree, or even in your garden. The petals will bring Jack's magic to those living things around your home that do not have his daily protection in the woodlands. And Jack won't mind. You helped him work his endless, tireless magic by helping him take care of the green things he loves so dearly.

Jack-in-the-Green
(pl. Jacks in the Green) (The Hidden One - The Cylenchar) The Woodland spirit who, like the Wood-Wose or Wild Herdsman, guards the greenwood and the green forests of Britain. He appears in many kinds of folk art, as a multi-foliate head peering through the leaves. He was often portrayed in church decoration, usually as a roof-boss, where he was a constant reminder of earlier beliefs.

Across rural England the key symbol of May Day is fresh spring growth, and the general hope is for a fertile harvest. Traditionally villagers would disguise one of their number as Jack-in-the-Green by enshrouding him with a portable bower of fresh greenery. Jack and his followers danced around the town collecting money from passersby for later feasting. Today he can often be seen accompanying traditional morris dancing groups.

The chimney-sweepers of London have also singled out the first of May for their festival; at which time they parade the streets in companies, disguised in various manners. Their dresses are usually decorated with gilt paper and other mock fineries; they have their shovels and brushes in their hands which they rattle one upon the other; and to this rough music they jump about in imitation of dancing. Some of the larger companies have a fiddler with them, and a Jack-in-the-Green, as well as a Lord and Lady of the May, who follow the minstrel with great stateliness, and dance as occasion requires. The Jack-in-the-Green is a piece of pageantry consisting of a hollow frame of wood or wicker work, made in the form of a sugarloaf, but open at the bottom, and sufficiently large and high to receive a man. The frame is covered with green leaves and bunches of flowers interwoven with each other, so that the man within may be completely concealed, who dances with his companions, and the populace are mightily pleased with the oddity of the moving pyramid. This seems charming, but realistically, it was bordering on pathetic, and just an excuse for the poorly paid chimney sweeps to do a bit of begging.

When in the late 19th century they outlawed the use of boys in chimneys, and this was combined with the conservativism of Victorian values whose interest was in less bawdy drunken revelry, and the modernization of festivals, the celebration disappeared quickly, and was replaced with the May Pole ceremony instead.

Have you seen Jack-In-The-Green?
With his long tail hanging down.
He quietly sits under every tree ---
in the folds of his velvet gown.
He drinks from the empty acorn cup
the dew that dawn sweetly bestows.
The rowan, the oak and the holly tree
are the charges left for him to groom.
He taps his cane upon the ground ---
and signals the snowdrops it's time to grow.
He wears the colours of the summer soldier ---
And carries the green flag all the winter long.

Beltane's Flower
Beltane (Bright Fire) or May Day is the first day of summer, and once marked when cattle were taken to pastures to graze after being blessed with protective bonfire smoke.

This Letterbox is for Emma, my neice, who visited this summer and wanted to go letterbox hunting.