Treasure Hunt: Prospect Hill
Created by Harvard Girl Scout Troop 898
Breanna McHugh, Cassie Ostertag, Kara Kennedy, Sarah Eldredge, Maddy Heittich, Alyssa Johnson
Botton Row:
Anna Lee, Katie Frost, Arpitha Hayes, Janet Sorrells
This treasure hunt starts behind the Depot Road soccer fields.
A rusty contraption,
From long ago,
Used by the farmers,
Who raked and hoed.
Yellow blazes,
On the trees,
Follow this trail,
And see what you can see.
Cross the swamp,
There are berries and trees,
Look at the cattails,
And feel the nice breeze.
Rusty delivery truck,
Up ahead,
If you look closely,
You'll see it doesn't have a truck bed.
Pass the swamp,
And follow the trail,
Don't scare the animals,
Don't stomp or flail.
Wintergreen on the ground,
Witch Hazel in the air,
Stay straight ahead,
Follow the yellow trail.
A boulder splits,
The trail does too,
Stay on yellow and take the right,
To follow through.
Go up the steep hill,
On your left a rock wall,
Going out of sight,
With rocks big and small.
You may see some beech
Trees with smooth, gray bark.
They have lots of branches,
But their trunks have few marks.
Look out for some sassafras,
With leaves like mittens,
Break off a twig,
It smells like lemons.
Take the left at rock cliff,
A rare thing to see,
Boulders covered with lichen,
It's fungus and algae.
You're now on the blue blazes,
And up ahead,
A laurel forest,
Whose leaves may be gold, green, or red.
Look for an American chestnut,
Struck with a disease one's dead,
Alive ones around and growing,
Until they get as high as your head.
Keep going down the trail,
And up a small hill,
There's a tree you can sit on,
In case you feel ill.
Don't feed the horses,
They'll be on your left,
Some calm, some bold,
So hide your food from them or there'll be a theft.
Go through a birch grove on the blue trail,
They are big and tall all around.
Some are as old as your ancestors,
Listening and hearing your every sound.
A small trail takes a right,
But the best path is ahead.
Keep your eyes open,
Don't be misled.
At end of the birch grove,
There is a turn,
Bear right, find a yellow blaze
And sometimes see fern.
Cross two small wooden bridges,
Another blue trail on the right.
But stay with the yellow,
It's a much better sight.
Go up the trail, just a little bit more.
On your left there's a stone wall,
Don't walk off the yellow trail,
Or into a hole on your right you'll fall.
Surrounded by cliffs,
Covered in lichen all around.
Stop and listen.
Can you hear any new sounds?
A fork and blue trail on your left,
Don't get confused,
Stay strait on the yellow,
You will see it's been well used.
You have been here before,
Mountains of lichen and the blue trail.
You saw Laurel not long ago,
Now take the yellow or else fail!
You're almost to the treasure!
On your right a boulder all bright and green.
It's covered in moss,
And looking pretty keen.
You're so close to the treasure!
Keep your eyes peeled,
You've passed the rock wall before,
It's becoming more clear.
Turn right and find where,
There's a break in the wall,
The treasure is hiding here,
Look down it's not tall!
Turn around and head back,
Follow the yellow blazes.
You are back on the trail where you started,
With its twisting and turning phases.
You've found the treasure,
We hope it was fun,
When you're back at the fields,
You know you are done.
