Woodland Treasure Hunters Blog

Hello, world! Or, more likely, hello to the three people who accidentally stumbled across this blog while searching for something entirely unrelated. Either way, welcome! I’m Chelsea Woodland, and this is the chronicle of my family’s latest escapade—treasure hunting. Yes, real treasure hunting, but we doubt we’ll ever find anything!

Mom of 2 boys and trying to figure out what else I want to grow up to be. Maybe a treasure hunter? The nerdy kid inside me hopes so.  My husband, Jacob, is the practical, engineering-minded member of the group, which is great because I tend to overcomplicate things.

So, why treasure hunting? It all started with a book: There’s Treasure Inside by John Collins Black. One glance at the cover, and we were hooked. Who wouldn’t want to uncover hidden gems, solve riddles, and live out their Dungeons and Dragons fantasies? Okay, maybe our kids are more about the “digging in dirt” aspect, but the rest of us are very intrigued by the idea of adventure, mystery, and maybe (just maybe) some actual treasure. (Clue: the book states, in the PostScript, that no digging will be required for any of the treasures 😯😲🤔🧐).

We’ve barely scratched the surface of the book, but already the gears are turning. Jacob is mapping out possible search areas in excel, I’m buying hiking backpacks for the kids so I don’t have to be the family pack mule on the next family “treasure hunting” hike, and the kids have declared every nearby rock a “clue.”

We’ve started reading the book aloud as a family, and while some parts are clearly over the boys’ heads, their excitement is contagious. Every page feels like the start of a new possibility, and every misheard word a “clue””. 😆

Of course, we’re realistic. For us, the treasure is in the journey, not destination (yes I’m still the nerdy kid). Really though, it’s just to make the outdoors and exploring nature feel even more magical for our kids while they are young.

If nothing else, we’ll have some great stories to tell—and possibly some pretty rocks for the the Rock polisher we got our youngest for Christmas this year.

Let the hunt begin!