YMCA of Greater Pittsburgh has planned a scavenger hunt in order to get families out of their homes and into the parks this spring.
The hunt is throughout April. Participation is free.
“We were trying to find ways to get families to go outside together,” said Todd Brinkman, YMCA vice president of youth enrichment. “I think everybody needs a little break.”
The game is based on points accumulated throughout the event. The winner gets a one-year family membership to any of the five Pittsburgh area YMCA branches, a free week for a child at a YMCA of Greater Pittsburgh day camp, free fall guides and a campout for a father and child, pool passes from the parks and other YMCA merchandise. There are smaller prize packs, too.
Participants can log in to a gameplay database through pittsburghymca.org/scavengerhunt.
There are tasks such as finding historical landmarks, learning about wildlife and uploading photos of the discoveries.
The more parks people visit and the more tasks that are completed, the better chance they have of winning.
People can also get game packs with extra worksheets, coloring sheets and more at the local branches for bonus points.
There is a running scoreboard to encourage friendly competition.
The included parks are as follows:
• North Park, 303 Pearce Mill Road in Allison Park.
• South Park, 3730 Buffalo Drive in South Park.
• Settlers Cabin Park, 608 Ridge Road in Robinson.
• Allegheny Park, 810 Arch St. in Pittsburgh.
• Sampson Family YMCA Park, 2200 Golden Mile Highway in Plum.
• Avonworth Community Park, 498 Camp Horne Road in Pittsburgh.
YMCA offered a virtual, one-day scavenger hunt last year with people finding and using items around the house. About 500 people participated in that effort.
“I sat on my Zoom call and people ran around their house looking for aluminum foil alien hats and making up songs they sang and took videos of themselves,” Brinkman said. “This year, we figured if we did it all month, people can really get out and enjoy it and make a whole event of it. It was one of our best attended events, and it really kicked off the virtual programming we did at the Y.”
All of the selected parks are home to YMCA summer day camps.
“Parents can explore and see where their kids can go for the summer,” Brinkman said. “Maybe get them excited for doing something for that. Our launch for day camp registration has already gone on, so people can do that. People are really excited about having live, in-person day camps this summer.
“We’re really preparing to make sure we have one of the best summers ever because kids need it. They’ve been cooped up on screens inside away from their friends. We’re really looking for ways to get them back together and start rebuilding what’s been broken for these kids for a whole year.
“We want to be that strong partner for these families.”
Go to pittsburghymca.org/scavengerhunt for more information and to register for the hunt.
Michael DiVittorio is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Michael at 412-871-2367, mdivittorio@triblive.com or via Twitter .