It was a busy summer for found treasures of Armchair Treasure Hunts. Some treasures had been hidden and waiting for years to be found; others waited only for a short time. In this segment, MW shares Six of the found treasures in the summer of 2020 .
It seemed the discovery of Forrest Fenn’s Treasure in early June spurred the hunt on for many others. That also sparked the creation of lots of different types of armchair treasure hunts to be released. It should be mentioned the definition for an armchair treasure hunt does not exclude the need for going ‘Boots on the Ground’. I think those new to armchair treasure hunting often get confused on this.
The first armchair treasure hunt, which coined the name and created the genre, was Masquerade in 1979. Clues were found within a book, which once solved, and understood, led a person to a location of a buried ‘treasure’. Boots on the Ground was required after clues were solved from the ‘armchair’. Hence the name. NOT that BOTG was not needed.
It is true, the genre is expanding, with multiple methods now on how to solve and claim the prize. Many give the ability to solve and claim the treasure straight from home. So today, a simple definition for an armchair treasure hunt is that it is a produced hunt with clues to solve to claim a treasure (which can happen multiple ways!)
Following are Six found treasures of Armchair Treasure Hunts in Summer 2020. All of these required the traditional method of claiming the treasure. Boots on the ground was needed to retrieve and claim the treasure! (Links below to Six Questions with the finders of the Treasures- Don’t miss those! They are inspiring)
1.The Cowboy Armchair Treasure Hunt
The Cowboy treasure hunt was released in July of 2010 by Domino Ireland. For years, searchers worked on the puzzles contained within the book. The exact spot of a buried treasure eluded them. It was not until summer/ June 2020 when the hidden cache of $1000, (and an extra 100) of hard cash was found! It was hidden in Kentucky. Congrats to Wade V! With his persistence and determination to put this hunt to rest, a decade old hunt was ended. Read about his discovery in Found Treasure: Six Questions on the Cowboy Hunt!
2. The Outlaw Cache
Miles up into the hills of Keating, PA, above the Ghost Town of Wistar, it was known the Outlaw Cache of the H Charles Beil, of the Treasureman Hunts, was hidden! The path to the hidden cache could not be driven! It had to be hiked! Those who went in search of the treasure knew it was not going to be any easy task or afternoon stroll to pick up of a treasure.
The hunt was rated a 4 skull hunt (where 1 is easy, and 5 is most difficult/dangerous), Kevin Cramer and his gang finally landed the treasure in June 2020. They had made multiple trips to the location since the hunt’s release in 2017, by following clues on a map, and eventually brought the outlaw cache in! Congrats to the whole team!
3. Trove Armchair Treasure Hunt
The Trove armchair treasure hunt was released in September of 2019. Sandra Miller shared her personal lens on life through her writing of Trove. She then encouraged searchers to use her book to answer 8 clues, released about every two weeks, until Christmas, to find a treasure! The treasure was a jeweled bracelet valued at around $2,200.
Many searchers were on the mission to find the hidden proxy to claim the treasure hidden somewhere in New England. On July 16 2020 it was found. Read the full story of how Deb and Gary put the clues together and came away with the stone! Congrats to great teamwork!
Armchair Treasure Hunts 
Tablet Rock 
FOUND!
4. The Secret Copy Cat
The Art of Hidden Messages releases hunts all throughout the year. They are beautifully and skillfully crafted. Often times they are meant to be solved relatively quickly, providing searchers with an exciting few weeks (or months), filled with those satisfying ‘aha’ moments and adventurous fun! Who doesn’t like to follow clues and find treasure!
The Secret Copy Cat was solved by Steve W. in July. Congrats to Steve! He shares his journey of how he discovered clues within the image and verse that lead him to an exact location of a hidden proxy. The painted proxy, a treasure itself, was then used to claim the prize: the original artwork of the hunt, and a valuable gemstone!
5. The Golden CD
Congrats to Elyse and Brian, who from across the continent worked together to discover the Golden CD and claim the $2000 cash prize of the hunt. The Golden CD was released in the fall of 2019 by BornTalent. Hidden within the lyrics of six songs were clues to a hidden treasure.
In the Six Questions, Elyse shares the incredible story of researching the clues, and the ups and downs of the journey to claim the treasure. It’s one which shares many of the emotions involved in armchair treasure hunting! The Golden CD was found in August 2020. (link below)
6. Parish Armchair Treasure Hunt
In June 2020, Natalie Nelson released Parish: A Treasure Hunt. The prize was a hoard of gemstones valued at over $5,000. The clues for this hunt were free for anyone wanting to take up the challenge. Many searchers did! The six PDFs holding the clues consisted of numerous codes and ciphers. However, the images held many clues as well! Putting these together, Amber discovered the location in late August! With her hunting partner, Delyse, they flew from Texas to Maine and picked up the treasure soon after! Don’t miss the full and incredible account in Six Questions!
Treasures are out there to be found! Get your quest on with MW! There are lots of armchair treasure hunts yet to be solved, and their treasures claimed! With lots more coming!