Culture Compass Treasure Hunts!
About the Culture Compass Treasure Hunts
How do they work?
Culture is all around us and is a great way of connecting to a place and nourishing the mind and spirit! From public art and galleries, to heritage buildings and theatres, explore cultural gems across the North Shore, picking up clues along the way!
Choose your themed treasure hunt and print out the cluesheet.
Follow the clues and collect your letters. Depending on which treasure hunt theme you pick, clues can be found in person and sometimes online via the northshoreculturecompass.ca, and sometimes both!
Once you’ve found all the clues, unscramble the letters to find your code word and complete the treasure hunt!
All of the Treasure Hunts can be completed any time and can be found on the North Shore Culture Compass or through the links below. We sometimes will launch a new treasure hunt to be completed within a certain timeframe with prizes (aka treasure) involved! We will post details here on this webpage.
Who are they for?
The questions and clues included in the Treasure Hunts require the ability to read in English. The activities are appropriate for all age levels, and are most fun in groups of family and friends. Get your Treasure Hunt group ready and go!
WHERE LAND MEETS SEA
This section of the spirit trail where land meets sea is full of clues to the past, stories about the present, and looking to the future – industry, transportation, leisure, art, immigration, and first nations. Once you’ve completed the hunt, head to the North Shore Culture Compass online to discover more about this fascinating area.
BREWING NORTH SHORE CULTURE
Did you know that Canada’s first ever microbrewery opened here on Vancouver’s North Shore in 1982? It was only in 2013 that breweries were permitted to operate tasting rooms and since then craft breweries have hopped boldly into North Shore culture. Clues are located online and in person and can be found in any order. This treasure hunt is designed for adults of legal drinking age and is most fun completed as a group, or even in teams. Remember to drink responsibly and pace yourself. These clues do not have to be found all in one go. Take your time and enjoy the unique atmosphere that each brewery has to offer.
Seven of the clues can only be found in person. Check brewery opening times before embarking on the hunt. In-person clues are in walking distance of each other. Some clues can be found either in person or on the online culture map – northshoreculturecompass.ca.
Download and print a copy here OR collect a hard copy at CityScape Community ArtSpace, participating breweries or at select hotels across the North Shore while supplies last.
Vancouver’s North Shore sponsored this treasure hunt and it was brewed to celebrate Craft Beer Week 2022 but can be completed at any time! To find out more about the history of craft beer in the province, visit bcaletrail.ca.
SINCE TIME IMMEMORIAL
Note: This treasure hunt is designed to be completed by bike, transit or car, or walking within sections (not a walkable route in one day).
What is today called the North Shore represents a small part of Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh territory, but can reveal a lot, if you know where to look. Consider the thousands of years the Coast Salish people have inhabited and stewarded this land, their deep connections to this place, and their dynamic culture. We invite you to bike, or drive across the North Shore to learn more about the people who have lived here since time immemorial, the Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish) and səl̓ilwətaɁɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) people.
Additional resources:
- North Shore Culture Compass
- Squamish Nation
- Tsleil-Waututh Nation
- Takaya Tours
- Chief Joe Mathias Centre
- Wild Bird Trust (Maplewood Flats Conservation Area):
FOREST FRIENDS
Let’s celebrate that we live in a city that has urban forest and trails! We have recently added a selection of trails with cultural significance to the northshoreculturecompass.ca. Explore one of these trails located at the heart of the City of North Vancouver, Mahon Park. Discover the history, public art, forest friends and conservation and rehabilitation initiatives that this green oasis has to offer.
Additional resources:
T’uy’t’tanat Cease Wyss’ Walking Garden Tour Vignette
City Park Stewards (City Parks Rehabilitation Project) StoryMap
ART AROUND TOWN
Art is all around us! From public art, to galleries, to opportunities to get creative yourself, explore Art Around Town in the Ambleside neighbourhood.
Additional resources:
SALMON & STREAMS – COHO TREASURE HUNT
This Treasure Hunt takes place in Ambleside, West Vancouver and online on the northshoreculturecompass.ca
Over four decades, the Coho Society of the North Shore has worked on many exciting salmon conservation and habitat protection and enhancement projects, all with the aim of protecting salmon for future generations. Salmon have an important role in the local ecosystem. The Squamish name, Tem Cháyilhen (tum chai-yay-lhen) can be broken down into ‘schay’ (meaning ‘to fast/sacrifice’) and ‘ilhen’ (‘to eat’) so the word means ‘the salmon are sacrificing themselves for us to eat in September’. The Salmon & Streams Treasure Hunt was created in September 2021 as a new addition to the Coho Festival.
Thank you to our partners:
