I didn’t expect Life Between Weekends to turn into a scavenger hunt blog, but the feedback I’ve been getting is: KEEP THE IDEAS COMING! (So urgently, in fact, that all caps is required.) Well, as someone whose wild nights in high school involved organizing group scavenger hunts—yup, I am not even joking a little about that—I’m happy to oblige. The latest edition? Backyard scavenger hunt ideas that will help you look at your own space in a whole new way.

How to Host a Backyard Scavenger Hunt:

Gather your crew, divide everyone into groups (or have them search individually), hand out this list, and set a timer for 20 minutes. Try to find as many items as you can, either by taking photos of them or physically collecting them. In the end, you’ll appoint a judge, assigning one point for every item found, and three points for the most creative find for each category. Whoever has the most points wins…bragging rights? A pool of money? A cookie? I’ll let you decide that.

How to plan a hunt via Zoom:

Send everyone the list and let them go into their own backyards for 20 to 30 minutes, setting a time for everyone to log onto Zoom (or the video chat service of your choice) and share their findings. Easy as that!

Our Top 25 Backyard Scavenger Hunt Ideas:

Ready, set, search for…

1. The best part of backyard cookouts
2. A leaf that looks like something else (be it a celeb, an animal, anything)
3. A cloud that looks like something else
4. A bottle cap
5. A flower
6. A weed
7. Something that reminds you of summer
8. Something that reminds you of winter
9. Something that reminds you of childhood
10. A rock that’s larger than your fist
11. A pebble that’s smaller than a dime
12. An acorn
13. A twig
14. Something that doesn’t belong outside (like a pen, a cup, etc.)
15. Water
16. A squirrel
17. An ant
18. An anthill
19. Bark
20. A clover (bonus points if it’s four-leaf!)
21. A lizard
22. A feather
23. A pinecone
24. A spiderweb
25. Something with a cool texture or pattern

Lead photo by Jennifer Marcus on Unsplash