How to stage a treasure hunt...
 

It's that time of year again...

JuniorMoonie is having a birthday party and the theme chosen for this year is "Treasure Hunt". Anyone have any thoughts on how to stage an exciting treasure hunt for 2 groups of 10 year olds? MommieMoonie has already nixed using a live tarantula :(

Well, shoot, without the live tarantula you might as well just go to Chuckie Cheese.

Sheesh... Some people have so many rules.

My friend and I did a treasure hunt for his 8 year old cousins and their friends. We went to a park in Mammoth and had a cowboy treasure hunt. Everyone dressed up as cowboys and everyone got maps to the treasure. It ended in a gunfight between he and I and the birthday boy got to walk off with the treasure that he split up between all the kids. The park was ideal, it had an abandoned shack somewhere and a cave. We made up wanted posters with our pictures on it and we posted them on trees beforehand. On the way to the treasure, the kids realized that their hosts (my friend and I) were escaped convicts. Hee hee. By that time, we were far from the campsite. They totally dug that. I was Big Bad Brad and my friend was Shotgun Scotty.
:D

Cool ideas with the Cowboy hunt. That sounds like it was a lot of fun...

OK, so to start with how does this sound...

1. A pencil and paper based puzzle. When your team solves the puzzle you get something like: "Push the button and follow the clue"

oooh - do they still have the payload compartment ones? Because that would be even cooler - the clue could be in there. (Plus, I think those use bigger engines than the weenie As.)

The plan would be to launch them cruise missel style at about a 30 degee angle across the open area behind our house... The weenie 1/2 A's should do fine... ;)

Ohh and before anyone comments: Safety smashty, danger is fun! Especially when small children are involved.

But then there's no danger of it getting caught on a powerline or the nosecone failing to pop open. That takes all the fun out of it!

10 year olds?
Do you know how to make treasure rocks?

Things they can find, but have to be broken to get the goodies inside?
I'll go find them....
That way you could have them find x, and really, you could color code them if you needed to.

<puts on glasses with a chain>

Your local library probably has great ideas for treasure hunts. Books on parties for kids include games that can be incorporated. Even though a lot of kids these days aren't lucky enough to have amazing parents like you, there are still lots of new books on the topic.

<removes glasses>