"A Sail of Two Cities" - June 18, 2021

[otlaolap]

On Shore.

[jhseeman]

Really confident on starting part and possibly next but think I"m staring at the answer, but I"m blind to it...... time for a blanton's then look at it later.

[sanmilton]

I must admit I'm not onshore yet! I believe I'm moving in that direction, but I've been floundering for a few hours now. I did stop puzzling over it long enough to have dinner! I suppose it is tougher than usual, seeing that there have been only forty comments on Thursday!

UPDATE (Friday evening): I have found my way to shore. See post 105.

[Richard]

Count me in with those who are confident of starting in the right direction but n ow floundering.

[RPardoe]

Solved and submitted.

[Mister Squawk]

Like many others, frustratingly partway there...

[minimuggle]

I am right there with all those who are confident on the first two parts, maybe even three parts, but the answer is not revealing itself to me yet.

[RDaleHall]

Sailed around in some circles last night before returning to the deck this morning. And it clicked in. On shore. My Gaffney Gulp is now a Gaffney Smile. Tough grid and clever meta. On to sip some Highland Park as we catch Scotland vs. England in the Euro today.

[Dplass]

Paddling around in circles, mostly lost at sea. Making my way back to the boat for some Isaac-therapy.

[TeamDoubleTow]

Took a while, but we are on shore. Definitely needed some help from Mr. G!

[Gman]

On shore. Easy start, hard finish.

[JPMalone]

I think I'm nearly there, just waiting for what must be the last "aha!" moment

[minimuggle]

I think I may have gotten it but I am checking with someone who definitely solved it. I really enjoyed this one.

[SReh26]

I think I'm nearly there, just waiting for what must be the last "aha!" moment

me too

[DrTom]

I've been becalmed....the only air is the hot air that I seem to be blowing when I tell people I know how to do these things. Step 1 moderately hard, step 2 (assuming I did it right) moderately hard, Step 3 or more - must be beyond my horizon, I'll have to keep sailing. No shore for me.

[Janet]

I think I am also becalmed, in sight of the shore. I've decoded the clues and numbers, have all the information I think I need, but not getting a good five letter answer. I have today off unexpectedly, so that gives me more time to solve. I think I will get it.

[JPMalone]

Landed ashore... last step had me caught up for ages...

[ChrisKochmanski]

Ashore. BUT … another vessel had to tug me there so diligently that I don’t feel I should submit for the mug.

My oh my, some of the rabbit holes I went down …

I really overcomplicated this one.

[Franklin.Bluth]

SAFELY ASHORE!

Wow. That was brutal. Like many of you, I made it quickly to step 1, sailed right along to step 2, and then came to a screeching halt (or, as the trout said when he slammed into a wall in the Colorado River: "Dam!").

Someone previously mentioned backsolving. I actually guessed the right answer, but couldn't backsolve to it. So I felt that much dumber when the answer began to appear in front of me a day later and I realized I had guessed correctly.

The star rating at the top is misleading. We should score puzzles solely on how quickly page 1 is filled up, which in this case took more than two hours. This is a solid 4.

[SReh26]

Elatedly ashore! Thanks to nudgers in all points of the globe! no that is not a hint!

lmk if you want a used nudge, just tell me how far you’ve gotten and if you want a light nudge or a shove