Hint #476

Ahh, sorry about being slow on the uptake. Confusion reigns.

Anyway, the hint: It just looks as if its not going anywhere, but it does, connecting two countries.

Contest #475: Kakslauttanen Igloo East Village, Finland

The hotel website: http://www.kakslauttanen.fi/en/

From the Wiki article: “Igloo Village in Kakslauttanen,the Ice Hotel in Jukkasjärvi, Sweden is the first ice hotel in the world, built in 1990, and the Hotel de Glace in Duschenay, Canada, melt every spring and are rebuilt each winter; the Mammut Snow Hotel in Finland is located within the walls of the Kemi snow castle; and the Lainio Snow Hotel is part of a snow village near Ylläs, Finland.”

Without snow and clouds:

The view from inside:

Northern Lights!

Interior:

 

 

Those who found it:

  • Eloy Cano
  • hhgygy
  • Garfield
  • steve willis
  • RicardPG

After the hint:

  • Phil Ower
  • Lighthouse

Contest #474: Pando, Fishlake National Forest, Utah, USA

Pando (Latin for “I Spread”), aka “The Trembling Giant” is considered by many scientists to be the heaviest (at 6,000,000 KG) and oldest (about 80,000 years) single living organism on the planet. It is a 106 acre or 43 hectare clonal colony of a single male quaking aspen tree with each trunk or “tree” sharing a common root system.

Pando

In 2012, it was announced by scientists studying Pando that the organism appears to be dying — not replacing trunks that wither and die with new shoots, though efforts by the National Forest Service to jump-start the organism’s regeneration processes appear to be having some minor successes.

Pando

Those who found Pando before the hint:

  • hhgygy
  • Phil Ower

And after the hint:

  • Glenmorren
  • Lighthouse

Contest #473: the Smart Car test track and factory

Back in 1994, Daimler-Benz and the watch maker Swatch built this Smart Car factory complex in Hambach, France. It opened in 1998 and have built the majority of Smart cars in existence.

It takes about 4.5 hours to assemble a Smart car in the Hambach factory that is set up in such a way that parts are delivered just when needed. Most suppliers are located close by.

Building a Smart car:

Smart enough to find it without assistance:

  • Glenmorren
  • Eloy Cano
  • hhgygy
  • steve willis
  • Garfield
  • Phil Ower
  • Lighthouse
  • Luís Filipe Miguel

Others took the Smart hint and ran with it:

  • Declan
  • Chris Nason
  • Robin
  • Skip
  • Ben S
  • Joe9000