By Kate Bartlett
Kristen Vanderwarker and Shaun Thomson are the founders of the Enchanted Mountain Challenge, an exciting scavenger hunt event in and around the Franklinville and Ellicottville areas. Participants hike trails, solve clues and riddles and interact with members of local towns to gather the information needed to solve a mystery. The storyline is based upon a true historical event/family in Franklinville.
Kristen describes the challenge as “part scavenger hunt, part geocaching, part escape room and part ‘Amazing Race’ (all tied in to a history lesson). We took some liberties to make a fun mystery out of it, but the foundation of the story is rooted in true history. The facts and the fiction of the story will also be revealed at the end of the Challenge in September.”
Shaun and Kristen moved to Franklinville about 3 years ago. She spent her career in the field of senior living, but decided to sell her companies this past December in order to focus more on her creative endeavors. Shaun had a career in banking, and started his own company in the outdoor sporting goods field called Antler Ice. He is also the co-owner of a company called Bone Cold Media which films and produces a hunting television show. “We both have an entrepreneurial spirit and what we would like to think is a bit of creativity and we wanted to channel that energy into something new and exciting for our community.”
“We really wanted to create something that could be fun for everyone. We hear people say, “oh I’m not good at riddles or puzzles”, but people would be surprised to learn no matter their background, they will have useful life experiences, knowledge and thought processes that will contribute to solving the mystery! That’s why we recommend forming a team; many brains will make light work!! It isn’t “easy” necessarily, but it is very solvable, and a lot of fun!!”
The Challenge is continuously growing in popularity and enrollment. Participants have until September 5th to finish. Participants can enroll as a team, or family (a slightly abbreviated version, taking about 3 hours to complete). Once enrolled, information is sent via email, and can begin at any time. While it can be completed in a day, they encourage participants to take the weekend to enjoy the towns, the environment, and the history. It is best recommended to complete during normal “business hours”, as local shops are a part of the event. Coupons for local restaurants and local accommodations are induced. “We hope we have made the process very user friendly and we are always there to lend a hand if people need assistance. There is hiking involved with the Challenge and we have heard from some people who, for a variety of reasons may be unable to complete the hikes. We have figured out a way to let those with any mobility concerns still have the full experience without having to do the hikes. Just let us know when you arrive at your first location that you have health or mobility concerns that will restrict you from hiking and we will make sure you can still have a full experience.”
“We decided not to make it a timed event because our focus is on creating a fun experience that isn’t stressful. However, there will be a cash prize which will be based off the number of entries, as a portion of the entry fee will be dedicated to the cash prize. A portion of the proceeds will also be donated to three local historical societies. Our partners and sponsors are also offering some great prizes. But, if I tell you what they are, it just might give away some clue locations! We truly hope the greatest prize of all is completing the Challenge and the memories made with friends and family. We wanted to have prizes to keep the Challenge somewhat competitive to encourage people to keep their progress through the Challenge a secret so that other people can enjoy the fun and mystery!”
“We love playing the Escape Room game at home with our kids, and we have participated in scavenger hunt type events that sparked our interest in creating one of our own. We have also created some really fun games for the kids involving shooting clues out of balloons with crossbows and pulling up messages in a bottle at the bottom of our pond with a fishing pole. We didn’t have any internet service available at our home until about a month ago, so our kids are outside a lot. We spent a lot of time developing fun creative things for them to do. We would make fake court cases, compete with “evidence” and we would serve as the judges and the kids would go head-to-head as either the plaintiff or defendant. We would also research the craziest inventions we could find and the kids would have to “sell” the invention to us as if they were on Shark Tank looking for investors. It was a great way for them to think on their feet but it mostly was a lot of fun and laughter for us all. The memories we made with the kids through some of this fun creative stuff was definitely the inspiration for the Challenge, coupled with our experience participating in escape room style games/events.”
“My favorite thing about the Challenge is the participation of our sponsors. The premise of the Challenge is that participants are solving a historical mystery with secrets that have been passed down in our towns for generations. That’s why certain townspeople have specific information that, when assembled, will allow participants to solve the mystery. This has taken a lot of coordination and we could not be more excited to have incredible partners who really want to make this a success.”
“We have a lot of really intelligent, vibrant people in our town of Franklinville who want to see responsible growth in the town and who support local businesses. We are in the process of opening another small business in Franklinville, a bakery and charcuterie Grazing board store called Sugar Goat Baking and Grazing Co. The amount of support we have received has been overwhelming. Franklinville is a growing area that is super friendly to small businesses. Ellicottville is so close to us and has such incredible entertainment and restaurants and people who have done so much to make sure it is truly a year-round destination. The towns are different, but they both have some really wonderful and unique offerings that we want to introduce to even more people!”
“My favorite quote is “history is truly hidden in plain sight”. We all see big old houses in our towns or villages, or churches with intricate stained glass, old cemeteries, or little features here and there that have just become part of our landscape, our drive to work or the grocery store. We don’t think about them at all. But if you just stop for a quick minute and really look at these places? They are filled with incredible stories just waiting to be discovered. We hope the Challenge will inspire more people to learn about and tell those stories!”
To enroll in the Enchanted Mountain Challenge visit https://enchantedmountainchallenge.com/ and follow on social media.