Super Blind Trail

Equipment: Ball of string, blindfolds

Description: A trail is made by running the string around, through, under and over certain objects, trees etc. Have the trail come full circle and eventually meet the start point. At certain places have a junction where the trail splits into 2 or more directions.

You Can't See Me!

Equipment: A Nature Trail

Description: The object of this game is to allow the players the opportunity to pretend they are animals, trying to hide from Man. The group walks a given distance down a nature trail, while the leader explains the rules:
Each player is given time to hide along the trail. They may travel no more than 15 feet from either side of the trail, and may use anything in the natural environment to provide camouflage. The leader waits about five minutes until all players are hidden. He walks the distance of the trail once only, and tries to find as many players as possible. After his walk, he calls out, and watches to see where all the successful ‘animals’ hid

Notes: This game can be repeated many times, with different players taking the role of the searcher. It is fun to talk about the hiding places that were the most successful, and how animals might protect themselves from predators.

 Deer Stalking

Equipment: None

Description: The leader (the Deer) stands in a given spot and the players ( the panthers) run off. The payers try to creep up on the deer, stalking it. If the leader spots a player they call out their name and they must move out a certain distance and start again. If a panther manages to touch the deer he shouts out and all the other panthers jump from their hiding places and set upon the deer! After a certain time if no panther has touched the deer the one that is nearest wins.

 

 Peddlars, Smugglers,Police

Equipment: Small cards numbered from 1 to 10. Identity cards for the police. Receipts for the peddlars.

Description: The players are divided into three even teams. The peddlars stand at the far end of the field. The police in the middle and the smugglers at the near end by a leader. The smugglers are each given a low numbered card. they have to avoid the police and meet up with a peddlar. The police try to stop the smuggled items being transferred. The police must tag a player and show them their card. Then that player must surrender their card to the police. The police keep all the cards they capture. The smugglers try to give an item to a peddlar without being caught. If they pass on their item to a peddlar they are given a receipt. The police cannot capture receipts. If they pass on their item or have it taken from them by the police they return to the leader for a new one. Those that are successful and can show their receipt are given a higher numbered card. Those that had their item confiscated are given a lower numbered card. Play continues until a set time. Alll teh players return to the leader. The peddlares hand in the items they manage to get and their score is added. The score of any cards captured from the police is then deducted. The score is noted down and the teams swap jobs.

 Stalking Kims Game

Equipment: Different articles hung from a tree or bush. Pencil and paper.

Description: The players are divided into teams and start an equal distance from the tree. They try to creep around the bush and identify the objects. A leader stands near the tree and if any of the players are spotted by the leader they must return to their base and start again. They memorise all the objects and after a set time the whistle is blown and they have 2 minutes to return to their base and write down all the objects they have seen. The winning team is the one with the most correct items.

Notes: Some of the objects must be quite small and difficult to spot from a distance or else the game will be too easy.

 Postbox

Equipment: Set of small cards, sticky paper, 'post box'

Description: A post box is made from a cardboard box. One leader is chosen to be the stationer and other leaders take the part of a stamp machine and the post box. The players go to the stationer to buy a card, they then have to find the stamp machine where they are given a certain coloured stamp (different for each team). They stick this on the card and try to place it in the post box. The stationer, post box and stamp machine are all moving around and hiding. After a set amount of time the leader calls them together and checks to see which team has posted the most letters.

Hunt the Banderlog

Equipment: Stiff white card cut into monkey shapes

Description: A collection of monkeys have escaped from the local zoo and are hiding in the area. A stockade has been built to hold the monkeys. The players go out and search for the monkeys which are hidden throughout the area and bring them back into the stockade. At the same time a small team (e.g. a Six) take the monkeys out and hide them again. The game contains for a set time and the number of captured monkeys are counted.

 Buried Treasure

Equipment: Treasure hidden in location

Description: The players told a story about some 'buried treasure'. In the story are some instructions as to find the treasure. They then work in teams to try and discover the location of the treasure.

Notes: The instructions should be fairly generic. e.g. 20 steps from teh oak tree and 35 steps northeast of the holly bush.

 Hare and Hounds

Equipment: whistles

Description: Two players are chosen to be the hares. They are given a whistle and set off with a two minutes head start. The rest of the players are the hounds. The leader blows a whistle to signal the start of the 'hunt'. From then on the hares must whistle every minute or so. They must attempt to evade teh hounds for as long as possible using every 'tracking' trick they know, but they must blow the whistle every minute. The hares try to reach a certain area about half a mile away without being caught. If the hares are caught they should blow a long blast on the whistle to signal everyone to head back to the start area for another game.

Explorers

Equipment: Paper, pencils, compass

Description: The group splits into two sections. One, the explorers, leave with a leader and leave tracks and reports so that the second group can follow them (e.g. every 20 metres or so). All messages and tracks must be clearly visible. After about a quarter of an hour the second section set off, with a leader, and follow the trail.
The trail should be about a mile or so long. When the first group reach the end they can sit down and quietly swap stories about their exploration.

 Capture the Flag

Equipment: 2 Flags (or Lanterns)

Description: The players are divided into two even teams. Boundaries for the game are set out in a large rectangle or square. A line is drawn through the middle of the playing zone to divide the two teams. Each team then choose where they want their flag and jail but they have to show the other team where they are and both teams have to agree on the placement of the flags and jails. Once this is done, each team goes to their own side of the playing field. When the game begins, the teams are free to go at the others flag. If a team member is caught on the other teams side, (To be caught you must be “tagged” by a player on the opposite side on his own territory), he will be sent to jail. This player must sit in jail until either the game ends or he is freed by a member of his own team. To be freed, you have to be touched by a “free” member of his own team. The freed player gets a free walk to his own side of the playing field. The person freeing the player is on his own, he may still be tagged and put in jail. To win the game you must capture the other teams flag and return it to your own side with out being captured

Notes: For small teams, instead of a jail, create a ‘Check Point Charlie’ at the centreline. Captured prisoners can then be exchanged

Variations: For a night game, use lanterns to mark the centre line, while two lanterns are used to show the approximate area of the team flags. Flag guards must remain at least 5 metres from their flag. Flag must be completely exposed.

 

Jail Break

Equipment: None

Description: Two players are designated ‘cops’, one a ‘jailor’ and the rest are ‘robbers’. A central location is designated as ‘jail’. All robbers are given some designated time to go and hide. Then the cops can go looking for the robbers. The jailor must stay and guard the jail. The cops catch a robber by one the methods below When a robber is caught, they are taken to jail by the cop. A ‘jail-break’ can occur if a player manages to step into the jail without being caught by the jailor and shout “Jail Break!”. At this point all the players in the jail are free. The jailor must give them a little time to get away

Notes: The jail should be fairly out in the open and the boundaries definite.

Variations: The robber may be tagged, hit with a light beam, pull a wool armband off, hit with waterpistol, person identified correctly, or combinations of these

 

Elephant Hunt

Equipment: Coloured Wool, Talcum Powder, Plastic Plant Labels

Description: Tell a story to the players about the elephants who have escaped from the local circus, who have asked for the players help in getting the elephants back. The circus tell us that each elephant is wearing a coloured mat on it’s back, each mat matches one of the teams colours. So each team can look for the elephant wearing their teams colour on it’s back. The players then follow a trail of wool, picking up their colours as they go. They must not pick up any other colours. You could tell them how many pieces they should find. The trail divides and finally the coloured wool disappears. All that can be seen is large (talcum powder) elephants footprints on the ground. These all lead to one place where the elephants can clearly be seen, wearing tatty mats on their backs, (parents or leaders). But the elephants have been caught by a gang of thieves who will sell them back to the cubs for #200 no more, no less.
The players are then told that they can gather this money from around a certain bush. This money is the plastic plant tabs, stuck into the ground around the bush. Each label is marked with an amount of money. Each team must only take labels to exactly #200 and pay the thieves for their elephant . They then take their elephant back to the circus where there is sure to be a reward

 

Switch

Equipment: A wooded area with several varieties of trees

Description: Players are divided into three or four groups such as Sugar, Maple, Beeches, Yellow birches, ironwoods. In an appropriate and defined area, players stand touching their trees - only one per tree. ‘It’ stands at the centre spot and calls the name of a group.. ‘Beeches’ for example. At this signal, the designated group changes place with on another, running from one beech tree to another. ‘It’ tries to claim a tree of his own during the interchange. If ‘It’ is successful in claiming a tree, the player who is left without a tree becomes the new ‘It’. If ‘it’ calls ‘FOREST’, everyone is required to change to another tree of his team’s name

Notes: To end the game, it is fun to have 'it be it' for four or five rounds of the game calling 'FOREST' every time. As 'it' beats a player to a tree, that player is eliminated. In this way, some trees may be altogether wiped out from the forest, as could happen in our natural environment

 

Water Pistol Fight

Equipment: Water Pistol (or washing up bottle), Newspapers

Description: The players are divided into teams. Each player is given a water pistol and a ‘Flak Jacket’ made from a double sheet of newspaper with a hole in the centre for the players head to go through. During the fight, any players with wet patches on their flak jacket are not allowed to fire on an opponent and must return to their home base for a replacement flak jacket. Play continues for a set time. The team that has the most dry flak jackets at the end are the winners

 

Smugglers and Spies

Equipment: Tiny Pieces of paper with the following smuggled items and point values written on each;
Chocolate - 50 points. Quantity: 10
Sugar - 75 points. Quantity: 8
Animal pelts - 100 points. Quantity: 8
Gunpowder - 150 points. Quantity: 6
Designs for new secret weapon - 300 points. Quantity: 3
Map to buried treasure - 500 points. Quantity: 1

Description: Divide the players into two teams. Have each team puts on its own armbands. One team becomes the smugglers - the other the spies. After the rules of the game are given, each team retreats to separate ends of the playing area (3-20 acres with open woods is ideal for the game.)
The smugglers each receive the tiny pieces of paper, which they are going to try to carry into enemy (spy) headquarters. The spies set up their headquarters inside a 10’ by 10’ square area that has its definite boundaries. The scorekeeper sits inside spy headquarters. After each team has been given the opportunity to devise a strategy, play begins. The spies fan out away from their headquarters and try to intercept smugglers as they attempt to take their goods inside. When a smuggler gets caught (tagged), he must stand still and permit a one minute search of his person by the spy who caught him. If the spy cannot find the piece of paper within one minute (paper has to be hidden in external clothing layers), the smuggler is free to try to advance again into the headquarters. If the spy does find the ‘loot’, he takes the piece of paper into spy headquarters and gives it to the scorekeeper, while the smuggler returns to his headquarters to receive another piece of paper. If a smuggler penetrates inside the spy headquarters, he gives his goods to the scorekeeper, and is escorted back to his own headquarters by a staff person or leader supervising the game. The game continues for a set period of time. When it ends, goods (points) are totalled, and a winner is declared

 Man Hunt

Equipment: None

Description: One person is it and has to wait 1 minute so everyone can hide in a large well known area. After 1 minute that person must find people.  When someone is caught they have to help the person who found him/her.

Notes: Played at night

Variations:Players are divided up into teams so that each team is equal in playing ability.  the rest is played like regular man hunt

Submitted by Chris Tanock