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Ginger Island inStardew Valleyintroduces plenty of unique and interesting puzzles to keep fans engrossed. Many fans notice a rock-bound Mermaid whenthey get toStardew Valley’s new area, and some wonder how they can solve her puzzle.
By figuring out the puzzle correctly, the player will earn someGolden Walnutsfrom the mermaid herself. Here’s how to do it, step by step.
Updated July 11, 2025 by Michael Christopher:We’ve refreshed this guide to keep it clear, helpful, and up to date.
The Mermaid of Stardew Valley
The Mermaid Puzzle can be found inPirate Cove, where a line of rocks rests along the shore, one carved with the shape of a musical note. If the player can make music with these rocks and match the Mermaid’s song fromStardew Valley’s Night Market, they will be rewarded withfive Golden Walnuts. In order to solve the puzzle, players will need to have access to Ginger Island and will need to know how to makeFlute Block.
How to Make Flute Blocks
The Flute Block is afurniture piece inStardew Valley.They are made from the following materials:
Players will need to makefive Flute Blocksfor this puzzle. In order to get the recipe, players will have to level up their friendship withRobinand activate her six-heart event. Players can also earn a singleFlute Blockby donating theBone Fluteand two other artifacts to the Museum.
Solving the Ginger Island Mermaid Puzzle
To solve the puzzle,Stardew Valleyplayers must takefive Flute Blocks to Pirate Cove on a rainy day. Players can ensure a rainy day with the use of theRain Totem; with this item, the next day will always bring showers. However, it’ll only activate rain where it is used. If it is used in Stardew Valley, it won’t cause rain on Ginger Island.Be sure to activate it on Ginger Island so the rain appears there instead.
The key to the puzzle is found inJournal Scrap #9, particularly the line that reads, “Aye… stones as big as pennies and stones as big as nickels were they…” The rocks on the shore indicate the number of clicks required to tune eachFlute Blockto the right note, so this line in the Journal Scrap tells the player that small rocks represent one click (a “penny”), and the large rocks represent five clicks (a “nickel”).
Fans may notice that aFlute Blockautomatically begins to play the first note as soon as it’s placed. This counts as“one,”so each pile of rocks requires a number of clicks equal to their clue minus one.
For example, thefirst pile has just two “pennies,”meaning the player must lay a Flute Block, then click the block one time. The second has two nickels, and one penny, so the total is 11 clicks, minus the first one, making it ten total hits to tune it to the right note.
The Ginger Island Mermaid’s Song
The solution to the puzzle is as follows:
The Flute Blocks will play the Mermaid’s Song as the player runs past them. The Mermaid will smile and wave and then reward the player with five Golden Walnuts!
With the task complete, players are free to return to their farming or to search out more puzzles to tackle. Be sure to check outour guide to the locations of all Golden Walnuts on Ginger Island!
StardewValleyis available now for PC, Mobile, Nintendo Switch, PS4, PS Vita, and Xbox One.
