Every Friday, Tally-Ho Corner’s cleverest clogs come together to solve a ‘foxer’ handcrafted by my sadistic chum and colleague, Roman. A complete ‘defoxing’ sometimes takes several days and usually involves the little grey cells of many readers. All are welcome to participate.
The honeycomb below is a fancy form of wordsearch in which every cell is used, and words can curl and zigzag but never overlap. Each hive foxer has a theme (some past ones: owls, rugby, Egypt, UFOs…). Identifying the theme is a vital part of the defoxing process.
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SOLUTIONS
Last week’s ‘33 Things Wot You Might Find In Or Close To A Fire or Flame’ missing vowels foxer:
1. MP = IMP
2. WXVS T = WAX VESTA (copperbottom)
3. TWTH RDSFCN STN TNPL = TWO THIRDS OF CONSTANTINOPLE (Nutfield)
4. D LGGN = DELUGE GUN (Nutfield)
5. GDFW KSFFG Y = GUIDO FAWKES EFFIGY (Colonel_K)
6. NGRD SR SMT RT = ANGRA DOS REIS METEORITE (copperbottom)
7. TH RFR TYTHR = THREE FORTY THREE (Colonel_K)
8. TL LYHRL L NGPPR = TALLY-HO ROLLING PAPER (Colonel_K)
9. HPHSTS = HEPHAESTUS (Colonel_K)
10. THBT TRSCLD RN = THE BATTERSEA CAULDRON (Colonel_K)
11. T HRHN DRDFXS = THREE HUNDRED FOXES (copperbottom)
12. J NHS = JAN HUS (Colonel_K)
13. STR RPPMP = STIRRUP PUMP (copperbottom)
14. CHRCLT H = CHAR CLOTH (copperbottom)
15. MSSHV SHM = MISS HAVISHAM (copperbottom)
16. HTS HTCRW = HOTSHOT CREW (Colonel_K)
17. RSNST = ARSONIST (Phlebas)
18. CHBK = CHIBOUK
19. MLVSMG RNS = MILVUS MIGRANS (Colonel_K)
20. HWMR S = HAWAII MARS
21. TH MSFR RNRSBKRY = THOMAS FARRINER’S BAKERY (Phlebas)
22. SL MNRS HD SSTN CVRSS = SALMAN RUSHDIES THE SATANIC VERSES (Phlebas)
23. SH = ASH (copperbottom)
24. CPTNBT TY = CAPTAIN BEATTY (Zwack23)
25. NRTM D = NER TAMID
26. MARSHMALLOW = MRSHMLLW (Nutfield)
27. BSN = BASAN
28. MG RSDT ZMN = MAGIRUS-DEUTZ MUNI
29. PTBLL WS = POT BELLOWS (Nutfield)
30. BR THMSN = BERTHA MASON (Nutfield)
31. LVNSLRGG LLRYF LMP RJ CTR = LIVENS LARGE GALLERY FLAME PROJECTOR (Nutfield)
32. BF FLCHP = BUFFALO CHIP (Colonel_K)
33. MXTRFH NT TNDHY DRMG NST = MIXTURE OF HUNTITE AND HYDROMAGNESITE (copperbottom)
M5 – ARGOS
J3 – WINDSHIELD
Hard to think of a link there. They do leave a mess in the bottom left so presumably at least one of them’s wrong.
d3 – quanta, f9 – bottle, g13 – feeler
The BOTTLE lines up well with GAS and SYRINGE at G10 and H9 respectively
A1. LOCUSTA – Roman poisoner, could go with Gas, Bottle and sort of syringe
c/f 6 – overlord
(doesn’t fit with the containers theme, though…)
H5 – SHARED, which presumably would go with some other word.
A5 – DR DRE.
C7 – CHORD
I3 – SARGE
K2 – BRETT
Well, it’s nice to arrive late and everything not be solved. Then again, it’s not so nice to have a migraine earlier, meaning i wasn’t on time. Let’s see if any of my brain is still working…
D4 – Squat, Squad or Squats
M3 seems to be a key letter, I can see an acronym that uses it, MBT – Main battle Tank?
H2 – YEATS
J2 – EGRET
REGRET(s)
I’ve had a few…
.. But then again, too few to mention
Nope, brain not working…
J3. WINTERBERG – one reference is a German WWI tunnel where 250 soldiers were entombed following a French barrage
L3. MBT – one meaning is Mont Blanc Tunnel
G1. CU CHI – Viet Cong tunnels in Ho Chi Minh City
Possibly the clincher: D2. CHUNNEL, though it does steal the U from after the Q
– – – – – –
( Alternatively A5. DANDER and H11. LINT )
– – – – – –
ETA: i5/J6. HARRY – from the Great Escape ?
H1. RYFAST – An undersea tunnel system
D3. QANAT – a water supply system that was developed in ancient Iran for the purpose of transporting usable water to the surface from an aquifer or a well through an underground aqueduct
J8 or K9. DART ?
G8. Ole SINGSTAD – a Norwegian-American civil engineer best known for his work on underwater vehicular tunnels in New York City.
K9. DART
J5. SHIELD as in Tunneling Shield
Actually, rather than J5. SHIELD, it is L7. GREATHEAD SHIELD
L7 leaves the two letter OS, so DART may be wrong.
Well, no DART. I10. INTRADOS
G10. GOTTHARD Road Tunnel – Longest road tunnel in the world at the time of its construction. Now the fifth.
D10. LEE tunnel?
L3. MBT could also be M2. TBM for Tunnel Boring Machine
Reckon it’s the full OLE SINGSTAD starting at H12.
I missed that! I was about to write that it could also start from D8, but that would leave some letters out.
Instead, I will suggest:
H12. OLE SINGDTAD
G13. FEELER HOLE – A small-diameter exploratory hole drilled ahead of the tunnel face in order to determine ground conditions.
Maybe: F9. BASE and E5. BORE
B3. CUT AND COVER tunnel
If this is right, then F9. BASE and E5. BORE may be wrong
Last two:
F9. BASE Tunnel
G6. ROVE Tunnel – This is a currently out-of-use canal tunnel in Southern France. With a length of 7.12 km, it remains the longest canal tunnel in the world.
A7. ERDSTALL
E5. BLESMOL
According to Wikipedia, they are also known as mole-rats, or African mole-rats, are burrowing rodents of the family Bathyergidae. They represent a distinct evolution of a subterranean life among rodents much like the pocket gophers of North America, the tuco-tucos in South America, and the Spalacidae from Eurasia.
To sum up:
J3. WINTERBERG
L3. MBT or M2. TBM
G1. CU CHI
D2. CHUNNEL
I5. HARRY
H1. RYFAST
D3. QANAT
L7. GREATHEAD SHIELD
I10. INTRADOS
G10. GOTTHARD
H12. OLE SINGDTAD
G13. FEELER HOLE
B3. CUT AND COVER
F9. BASE
G6. ROVE
A7. ERDSTALL
E5. BLESMOL