Verified solution
The shortest route from ITCH
ITCHETCHEACHMACHMUCHMUCKLUCKLOCKLOOKLOOPPOOP
- 01ITCH → ETCH1st letter, I to E
- 02ETCH → EACH2nd letter, T to A
- 03EACH → MACH1st letter, E to M
- 04MACH → MUCH2nd letter, A to U
- 05MUCH → MUCK4th letter, H to K
- 06MUCK → LUCK1st letter, M to L
- 07LUCK → LOCK2nd letter, U to O
- 08LOCK → LOOK3rd letter, C to O
- 09LOOK → LOOP4th letter, K to P
- 10LOOP → POOP1st letter, L to P
First moves
What happens after the opening word?
ITCH has 2 legal one-letter moves. These are the best routes after move one:
ETCH9 leftINCH11 left
Answer notes
Why there can be more than one answer.
This opening has 64 distinct paths at the minimum length of 10. The route shown above is one complete answer, not the only valid sequence. Any route reaching POOP in 10 moves is equally short.
Calculate a route from a different word →