Verified solution
The shortest route from ARIA
ARIAARIDGRIDGRIPDRIPDROPPROPPOOP
- 01ARIA → ARID4th letter, A to D
- 02ARID → GRID1st letter, A to G
- 03GRID → GRIP4th letter, D to P
- 04GRIP → DRIP1st letter, G to D
- 05DRIP → DROP3rd letter, I to O
- 06DROP → PROP1st letter, D to P
- 07PROP → POOP2nd letter, R to O
First moves
What happens after the opening word?
ARIA has 2 legal one-letter moves. These are the best routes after move one:
ARID6 leftAREA8 left
Answer notes
Why there can be more than one answer.
This opening has 3 distinct paths at the minimum length of 7. The route shown above is one complete answer, not the only valid sequence. Any route reaching POOP in 7 moves is equally short.
Calculate a route from a different word →