How to Set Up a Pirate Scavenger Hunt

Fly a pirate flag at the site of your scavenger hunt.

Plan an outdoor pirate scavenger hunt for your next party. Chart your playing field and send invitations in advance and invite enough guests for at least three teams of three people or more. Get volunteers to referee each team. Designate a place your party will start and decorate to match your pirate theme. Your scavenger hunt becomes a family affair when clues, riddles and games involve a variety of ages. All pirates must follow your map to find buried treasure. Tension escalates when members walk the plank or get a black spot.

Things You'll Need

• Decorations
• Clues
• Riddles
• Games
• Map
• Chest
• Shovel

Instructions

1. 

   Use pirates as decorations.

   Select a picnic table as neutral ground for your pirates. Throw a red or black table cloth over the table. Decorate with balloons, pirate and ship centerpieces and include a little fog. Hang a banner or wave a pirate flag from a pole.

2. 

   Place clues inside bottles.

   Stuff your bottles with clues or riddles and float them in a shallow pool. Stick clues to walls, under tables, chairs or plates with tape. Hold papers in place with rocks or limbs; hide them in piñatas and balloons. Leave these along the trail at specified places.

3. 

   Fill pirate balloons with air.

   Hang one pirate-shaped piñata and have one wooden sword per team. Set up a relay race area for another clue along the trail. Fill balloons with water and hide them along the scavenger hunt path to bomb the team with cannons while they fish their bottle from a pool. Make a team walk the plank by taking a five-minute timeout.

4. 

   Use a pirate map as a guide.

   Supply one map without an X per team at the start of the scavenger hunt. Give the pirates a new map and a paper with an X marked on it at the end of the trail of games. Your pirates must consider a clue or riddle and place the paper with the X over the map correctly to discover the site of buried treasure.

5. 

   Fill a basket with treasures.

   Fill your treasure chest with worthwhile items. Add old watches, locks and keys that still work, costume jewelry, coins old and new, collectible baseball cards, stamps, dollar bills, trail mix, granola bars, jerky, candy rings and necklaces. Use a shovel to bury your treasure chest. Remember that X marks the spot only on your map, not over the buried treasure.

Tips & Warnings

• Bury your treasure chest first if you are running late or are afraid some guests will arrive early. Place paper items in a resealable baggy to stay clean and dry.

• Include black spots in piñatas, bottles and balloons. If a team gets three spots, it's out of the scavenger hunt.

• Collect money from your guests before your party date. Excite your pirates with the prospects of real wealth.

• Battle on a playground for clues. Shoot hoops, play tetherball or jump the farthest out of a swing competing for clues.

• Age your map. Wrinkle and wet your paper. Open the paper allow it to dry and then draw your map.

• Consider neighbors and local laws when setting up your scavenger hunt in residential communities or business districts.

References

• Creative Kids at Home: Treasure Map-how to make a treasure map
• Diva Girl Parties and Stuff: Pirate Scavenger Hunt