About South Shore Quests
South Shore Quests was formed in 1998 by Dick Norton to encourage exploration of the outdoors through the use of clue-directed walks through local public lands and parks.
Check out this great video to learn more about South Shore Quests. Thank you to Hingham’s Community Access Channel. After you’ve watched the video try out a quest for yourself. You can locate free quests on the Try a Quest page.
Our People
The dedicated people that make South Shore Quests possible are individuals that love the outdoors. They volunteer their time to make the quest books, write the trail clues, create the quest boxes, and promote use of the quest trails so that we all can share the beautiful surroundings of the South Shore.
The History of Letterboxing
It started in 1854 in Devon, England, when a gentleman hiker told his friends, “I have placed my calling card in a bottle at Cranmere Pond (a good 6 miles across Dartmoor, each way), and I advise you find it. Just leave your own card when you get there.” The game gradually caught on and today there are over 10,000 organized treasure hunts. In Devon, the hunts are called “Letterboxes”. The idea was brought to northern New England by David Sobel in 1993, in response to a plea from friends far away to increase people’s appreciation of their communities. At present, there are over 200 Quests in the Upper Connecticut River Valley, in Vermont and New Hampshire.