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Junior sleuths society
Veteran's Day 2008.
Lauren headed to Cambridge with three friends (on the subway! by themselves! huge rite of passage right there) to go to the Harvard Natural History Museum as part of a big Biology project.
Greg was at work, talking on his phone and doing what he does at work, where he is usually found on Tuesdays. (His company doesn't take those kind of holidays off. Moment of silence for absent G.)
That left the three of us (Maddy, Sam and me) for the day. I took a break from homework & projects in the morning and we decided to go letterboxing.
It's no secret that Sam loves everything to do with sleuthing and puzzles and mysteries so he loves it when we go on a letterboxing adventure. Plus it gets us out in the fresh air at the same time...just right for a day off from school. We hadn't been for a year or two (I know I've posted about letterboxing before but somehow can't find it in my archives) so we clicked here for a refresher.
[You could really make this two days of activities: the first day you could make your stamp notebook and even carve your own stamp from a rubber eraser. The next day you could follow the clues to the treasure. I'm just saying.]
Letterboxing is basically a treasure hunt arranged by kind and interested strangers. At each site, they bury a box with a notebook (for you to sign or stamp with your own stamp), a stamp (to stamp your own notebook like a passport book), and an inkpad. On the website, you can search for a location near you and download the clues to find the buried box. We chose the one in Sleepy Hollow cemetery in Concord.
"you will pass a sphere on the right and a hollow stump on the right"
The box is under the rock."
to a cemetery
(would he want to dig anything up?)
but he was very well behaved
{Let me know if you try this...I'd love to hear about
other sleuthing adventures}
p.s.
Lauren successfully navigated the city and the subway
and finished her assignment.
She came back spilling with stories of getting a bit lost
(she did some sleuthing of her own after all)
and loving the glass flowers
and the stuffed llama.
Sunday, November 16, 2008
Reader Comments (15)
This sounds like geocaching. My friend takes her kids all the time to do these treasure hunts. So fun! How cool for you guys to be surrounded by so much history.
Exactly! Just like geocaching. I think the difference is that you don't have to have the geocaching equipment (compasses, GPS) for this. This must be geocaching lite.
I have never heard of this before. It sounds like a ton of fun. It might even make a good FHE activity or YM/YW activity. Thanks for getting the word out.
i think i am going to cry.
i want to live with you. i miss new england so much i can hardly stand it. i'm sure i would die if my kids wanted to ride the T by themselves. but i did it all the time.
are there letterboxes all over the world? country? what? i'll have to click your link to learn more. sounds like fun.
What a wonderful adventure. I had no idea that this was possible. Thanks for sharing. I only wish I HAD BEEN THERE! Looks so fun and exciting.
But would it be as fun without doing it in a literarily famous graveyard with one of the world most famous authors buried there?
We aren't cool like that, here in Spokane.
You've inspired me. I'm going to do something fab when the kids have the day off this Friday (instead of the usual sit around the house and fight).
We don't get Veteran's Day or Columbus Day off like you do-- it must be that your schools are closer to the history.
That is awesome! My kids would love this. We go Geocaching, but this is something I could do with out my husband (I can never operated that geocaching machine!)
This sounds a really fun activity and just the sort of thing Jessica would enjoy. In England letterboxing can be done on Dartmoor in the South West. We once read an article about it in a magazine but my husband said Dartmoor was a bit remote to go wandering about on as people could easily get lost in the fog!! We would still like to give it a try some day.
Lindsay
I love this! What a fun day, why haven't I ever heard of letterboxing before??
That is very cool. We are going to try that. I think I may have to take a little trip to your neck of the woods-I want to visit that cemetery.
looks like great fun Annie--can't wait to try it with my boys!
I have never heard of this, which is not something I get to say often. I wonder if people do this kind of thing overseas...doubtful, but you never can tell. What a marvelous way to spend one's time.
Your life is just so much cooler than mine.
I have never heard of it, either. But I am totally looking it up.
p.s. Your dog is super cute!
I have heard of geocaching, but not letterboxing. This is great - I'm so glad you posted about it. I went to the website you linked to and there are a ton of them right here in Nashua, so if we get a nice Saturday here anytime soon we could do this! Otherwise we will wait until Spring, but it's definitely on the to-do list!