Autumn Scavenger Hunt: Ideas, Tasks and Setup

Autumn is a practical season for a scavenger hunt: the ground is covered in materials you can use, the weather is cool enough for walking, and parks and woods are quieter than in summer. You need a phone with the route, a plastic bag for collecting, and a location with trees and a few open spots for reliable GPS. The tasks below are built around things you will actually find in October and November: leaves in different colours, chestnuts and acorns, puddles, mushrooms and bare branches. Pay attention to daylight, wet and slippery leaves on paths, and the rule that mushrooms are looked at but not touched. Set your waypoints on paths and clearings rather than in the undergrowth, so nobody has to push through bushes to trigger a task.

At a glance

At a glance
Group size	4-15 players, in teams of 2-4
Duration	60-90 minutes
Age	5 years and up
Where	park, woods or a tree-lined neighbourhood
Preparation	30 minutes, plus a walk to check the route

Tasks you can use right away

Tasks you can use right away
No.	Task	How it works
1	Leaf colour ladder	Find five leaves that go from green to yellow to orange to red to brown. Lay them in order on the ground and upload a photo.
2	Chestnut shape	Collect at least ten chestnuts or acorns within two minutes and arrange them into a letter or a number given in the task. Photo as proof.
3	Puddle jump	Find the nearest puddle and film one team member jumping over it, or into it if wearing boots. Points for a dry landing or for the biggest splash, whichever you choose when building the hunt.
4	Tree in arm spans	Measure the thickest tree at the waypoint by how many players it takes to reach around it. Enter the number as the answer; the organiser sets the correct value during the check walk.
5	Ground face	Make a face on the path using only leaves, twigs, acorns and stones. Every team member adds at least one feature before the photo is taken.
6	Thirty seconds of listening	Everyone closes their eyes for thirty seconds and stays quiet. Afterwards the team types three sounds they heard, such as leaves rustling, a crow or a dog.
7	Mushroom spotter	Find a mushroom within fifty metres of the waypoint and photograph it without touching it. Bonus question: is it growing on the ground or on wood?
8	Leaf drop timer	Hold a leaf at shoulder height, let go, and count out loud until it touches the ground. Enter the highest count in the team as the answer.

Turn this into your own hunt

Tips for the day

Walk the route yourself a day or two before. Puddles dry up and leaves get cleared, so check that each task still has what it needs at that spot.

Wet leaves on tarmac and wooden bridges are slippery. Avoid putting a running or jumping task on those surfaces.

Bring a pair of gloves for the chestnut task; the spiky husks are unpleasant for small hands.

Make the mushroom rule explicit in the task text: look and photograph, do not touch or pick. Wash hands before eating afterwards anyway.

Phone batteries drain faster in the cold. Start with a full charge and keep the phone in an inside pocket between stops.

Frequently asked questions

Light rain is fine and actually makes puddle tasks better. Shorten the route to 45 minutes, keep the phone in a zip bag or a clear freezer bag, and end at a café or someone's house. Only cancel for heavy wind, because of falling branches.

Yes, but accuracy drops to 10-20 metres under a dense canopy. Place your waypoints at clearings, path crossings, benches or the edge of the woods rather than deep between trees. Set a slightly wider trigger radius so the task opens without players having to stand on the exact spot.

Check the sunset time for your date; in late October and November it can be dark by 5 pm. Start at least two hours before sunset so the route ends in daylight. If you want a dusk finish, keep the last stretch on lit paths.

The tasks below work from about 5 years with an adult reading the screen, and children from 8 can run a phone in a small team. For teenagers, make it competitive: points per photo and a time limit per stop. Adults enjoy the same route with a longer distance and a pub at the end.

No. Every task uses what is lying on the ground or things you already have at home: a phone, a plastic bag for collecting, and possibly gloves. Bring a towel and spare socks if you include the puddle task.

Six to eight stops over 1.5 to 2.5 kilometres is enough for one to one and a half hours with children. Keep 150-300 metres between points so there is walking but no long stretches of nothing. Put the messiest task, like collecting chestnuts, near the end so hands stay clean for the phone.