SANTA CLARITA, Calif. — Since Santa Clarita’s Medallion Hunt officially began on July 14, Katherine Sutton and her two sons have been on the lookout almost every day.
"They know they still can’t play at the playground, but at least they’re saying 'Ok, we’re going there and we have a purpose,'" she said.
That purpose? To find a medallion that’s two inches in diameter and hidden in one of the city’s 35 parks. It's a sleek, black circle adorned with the city of Santa Clarita logo in gold. Sutton and her family usually start in the morning.
"We have that list printed out of the parks. We condensed it to one page, and we highlight which ones we’ve been to," she said.
New clues are posted Tuesday and Friday mornings at 9 a.m. on the Santa Clarita Events Facebook Page, at which point the family consults the list and decides which parks to check out.
The part-time teacher says she’s so glad the city put this together. "I was feeling a little bit down and then I saw this on Facebook, and I was like, 'This sounds so exciting!,'" she said.
For her son Ian, 9, he’s motivated by wanting to win and enjoys the competition. His brother Ben, 6, enjoys running around and does it for the exercise.
Sutton enjoys the fresh air and has used the opportunity to make the parks a little cleaner. No medallion yet, but she has found quite a bit of trash. "I never really noticed it before, I guess," she said.
"It’s fun to hear families are out looking for it and still searching, and get excited about it every time a new clue comes out," said David Knutson, Events Administrator for the City of Santa Clarita.
From what he’s seen on social media, Knutson estimates about 200 people are participating and getting to know the city parks. Each week the clues get a little more detailed.
"The medallion is hidden in a park with resources and where you can cook BBQ courses. There’s decent parking at the site and also lots of space to fly a kite," Knutson read.
He admits it’s a challenging hunt, even for him. "I think I was about 15 clues in before I was like, 'I think I know what park it’s at or at least one of two parks it’s at,'" Knutson said.
"Everybody was motivated in the very beginning, but now that we’re on [park] number 18, I think they’re like, 'Mom still wants to do this!,'" Sutton said.
Still, the family pushed onward as they got into the car to drive to their next stop, Newhall Park. "If it’s not found after we try all of these [parks], we might start again," Sutton laughed pointing to the list. "I'm not a quitter."
They're keeping their eyes on the prize while discovering some of the outdoor beauty in their own backyard.