Verified solution
The shortest route from TEAL
TEALTELLTOLLTOOLPOOLPOOP
- 01TEAL → TELL3rd letter, A to L
- 02TELL → TOLL2nd letter, E to O
- 03TOLL → TOOL3rd letter, L to O
- 04TOOL → POOL1st letter, T to P
- 05POOL → POOP4th letter, L to P
First moves
What happens after the opening word?
TEAL has 15 legal one-letter moves. These are the best routes after move one:
TELL4 leftDEAL5 leftPEAL5 leftTEAM5 leftTEAR5 leftTEAT5 leftHEAL6 leftMEAL6 leftREAL6 leftSEAL6 leftVEAL6 leftWEAL6 leftZEAL6 leftTEAK6 leftTEAS6 left
Answer notes
Why there can be more than one answer.
This opening has 2 distinct paths at the minimum length of 5. The route shown above is one complete answer, not the only valid sequence. Any route reaching POOP in 5 moves is equally short.
Calculate a route from a different word →