Search for latest $25,000 Utah Treasure Hunt is underway

An image from David Cline's Instagram page advertising the Utah Treasure Hunt, posted on May 27.

An image from David Cline's Instagram page advertising the Utah Treasure Hunt, posted on May 27. (David Cline and John Maxim)


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SALT LAKE CITY — Breathless, sweaty and smiling, Utah Treasure Hunt winners in 2022 stood on the Ben Lomond Trail near North Ogden, holding a dusty chest. The chest didn't contain jewels or gold — but it did have a sizable bounty of $20,000.

Now, after last year's success, event organizers John Maxim and David Cline plan on fine-tuning the 2023 hunt while hiking the reward to $25,000, a $5,000 increase from last year's $20,000. The pair released their first clue on May 26.

An image of the treasure hunt's first clue.
An image of the treasure hunt's first clue. (Photo: David Cline and John Maxim)

The hunts began during the COVID-19 pandemic, when Cline and Maxim decided that searching for treasure while getting outdoors and spending time with loved ones could be a welcome distraction.

"When we originally started, we had no idea what kind of impact this would have on people's lives. It's just kind of a side effect that we never could have imagined," Cline said. "The impact was amazingly positive."

Since the hunts have started, Cline said they've received several messages about how parents have bonded with their children during the hikes, or how individuals have become much healthier as a result of searching for the treasure.

"We got a lot of messages from people that have like lost like 20 pounds looking for this thing just on hikes every day and rediscovering their love for the outdoors," Cline said.

Since 2020's successful run, Cline and Maxim have created a treasure hunt every year, increasing the prices by $5,000 to $10,000 with each annual event.

"You always try to outdo yourselves the next time, try to make it a little bit better, a little bit bigger. And plus, inflation is like 15%, and so with inflation, it's probably just the same as last year," Cline said, laughing.

Maxim and Cline self-funded the first two hunts, wary about losing creative control of the clues or treasure if they received funding from third-party corporations. However, this year's hunt was funded by a few of their friends' companies, including Utah's Favorite Fireplace Store and Element.

Last year, the hunt took 10 days. Cline said that this year, the clues will be much harder — he and Maxim spent three months writing the first clue's poem, which he said will hopefully allow the search to take longer.

"Me and John, we always joke that it's us versus the internet. That's one of like the common themes that run throughout all of these hunts is we always underestimate just how clever and smart people are," Cline said.

Until this treasure is found, the organizers plan on releasing clues every week on their social media accounts.

The location of the treasure is not in any dangerous or precarious location, Cline stressed, noting that he and Maxim have emphasized the hikers' need to remain safe during their search.

"We picked this year's location with safety in mind. You follow a trail almost the entire way there. Once you step off the trail, it's not dangerous whatsoever. No rock climbing, mountain goating, crazy bushwacking, or digging is necessary at all. You should have cellphone service the entire time," the Utah Treasure Hunt website said.

The precautions followed a few injuries in the hunt's previous years, including a 49-year-old hiker who injured his foot so badly in Ferguson Canyon that he had to be rescued. Salt Lake County Search and Rescue has since issued warnings to the hikers.

Cline noted that, despite the fun of the hikes, participants should avoid stressing about the hunt.

"There's something that we call 'treasure hunt burnout.' And it's these people that just drop everything in life to just like focus on the treasure hunt," Cline said. "But I would say, just pace yourself. The whole purpose is to have fun — it's the adventure. It's the meeting of people on the way."

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Kris Carpenter is a student at Utah State University in Logan, Utah.

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