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Another Black Hills Treasure Hunt is here! Black 8 Escape Rooms has hidden $500 in treasure somewhere in the Black Hills—a hand-drawn map holds the clues. The hunt launches on Friday, September 19, so gather your crew, and get ready to explore, decode, and hunt. Whether you claim the prize or just enjoy the chase, adventure awaits in the Hills.
In the following Six Questions you can learn more about these awesome hunts- Enjoy!
Six Questions with Max:
- 1Q) Your third hunt of 2025 has launched! Congrats! What are you enjoying most about creating these hunts? Please share how someone can get involved!
Thank you, Jenny! We just started creating treasure hunts this year. And by “we” I mean myself, my wife, and our two small boys who all help out in their own way. We have a small Mobile Escape Room business and have always enjoyed creating and solving puzzles. When we started treasure hunting ourselves, I thought to myself, “I could create a treasure hunt.” We wanted to share the excitement of the hunt with others that have not yet joined the treasure hunting community.
What I enjoy most is seeing the pictures people send us and hearing about the adventures searchers are having getting out there with family and friends and looking for our small treasures. It is amazing how many very cool places there are right here in the Black Hills that people who have lived here for years don’t even know about or haven’t explored. So I really enjoy exposing people to the “treasures” that we have right here in South Dakota.
If someone wants to get involved, they can follow us @black8escape on Facebook or Instagram or visit our website black8escaperooms.com/treasurehunt
- 2Q) You personally draw all the maps – leading to the treasure! How cool! Do all the maps include the exact same clues? Or do you switch them up?
Within each treasure hunt, each map is as similar to the next as I can make them, drawing everything myself. From hunt to hunt, I try to change up the clues and “puzzle types” as much as possible. Everyone approaches puzzles in different ways, and I want to make these hunts feel approachable and solvable for all different types of searchers. After each of our first two hunts concluded, I met up with the finders. I enjoy learning how they work through their solves and try to get a glimpse into how they approach their solves so I can possibly make it more challenging for them in the next hunt.
- 3Q) Could someone NOT from the Black Hills area, and from their home, solve the map? Does having BOTG give an advantage to understanding/solving the clues?
The treasure is physically hidden somewhere in the Black Hills, so it cannot be retrieved without going BOTG. There are a few things that can be figured out from home, but my intention was to get people out exploring the Black Hills.
- 4Q) Can you share a few of your favorite puzzles, and their solutions from your previous hunts? Which puzzles have searchers struggled with most – do you think?
In our first hunt, I had burned holes in very specific places on the map, and when you were at the correct location and aligned your map properly, it was evident what you had to do next. I really liked that puzzle, but it is one of those things I cannot repeat anytime soon, especially after divulging that here.
I try to add a few elements that require BOTG and bring you to a really special place. In my experience so far, searchers can sometimes struggle with what we think are the “easiest” puzzles. They (myself included) have a tendency to overthink everything. For example, in our first hunt, quite a few people struggled to figure out where to start. In our second hunt, I just wrote “erehtrats” (start here) backwards, and almost no one started there.
- 5Q) How would you describe the clues on this hunt’s map? Cipher heavy? Riddley? How long are you expecting the hunt to last?
Our first hunt contained several different ciphers, the second had only one. Hmmm, I guess I will say that I tried to make this hunt a different adventure. Our third and final hunt for 2025 is launching just in time to kick off the Halloween season, and I may have included a relevant element or two.
How long will it last? It’s so hard to say. The hunt is certainly solvable over a weekend but could last a couple weeks or longer. South Dakota winters can be harsh, so I’d like the treasure found before the snow flies.
- 6Q) What advice can you give new hunters of your treasure? Also please share how you got involved in treasure hunting and your plans for any future hunts!
For new hunters: Don’t overthink things. Be safe, but don’t be afraid to explore. Most importantly, have some fun.
We got involved in treasure hunting last year when the JCB book “There’s Treasure Inside” was released. Now between TTI, Justin Poseys “Beyond the Map’s Edge” and our own hunts, we pretty much spend all of our time as a family out searching or hiding.
Due to the harsh winters in South Dakota, we are considering a winter armchair treasure hunt in the near future. When the nice weather returns next year we definitely plan on more outdoor adventure hunts in the Black Hills and maybe even branching out a little further.