The Arundel Treasure Hunt. A West Sussex Gem.

The Arundel Treasure Hunt. A West Sussex Gem.

Posted on: 23/09/2020

I feel a bit guilty setting up a treasure hunt in Arundel after such a long time. After all, William the Conqueror didn`t mess about getting Arundel Castle built in 1067, just a year after defeating Harold across the county in Hastings. It is a compact town with a low population, but a pleasingly large amount of attractions and things of interest. I can only point to the town`s bypass, which is well used, as a reason for pushing on to Chichester,Midhurst and Petworth for Black Cat Treasure Hunt`s other inland, West Sussex treasure hunts. That is a flimsy excuse really as Arundel is a popular place to visit and it should have been on our map years ago!
The treasure hunt starts by Arundel Museum next to Mill Rd car park, which is spacious and decent value. I quickly peaked inside the museum and the people there helpfully and speedily gave me a town map. I had done my research in advance, but I felt this was a promising sign. Arundel Castle is the `go to` topic of conversation if you are wondering what else to do after the treasure hunt and it`s entrance was close to the museum. However, I temporarily left that behind...actually you never leave the castle behind when you are in Arundel, as it`s visible from just about every position.
The Blackfriars ruins crop up quickly and for me unexpectedly. The River Arun too is literally a stone throw from here and runs through the bottom of the town. I had a brief gaze either way before tackling the nitty gritty of the treasure hunt and the walk up the High Street. A nice looking shop called The Tea and Biscuit Club caught my eye, but I was strong willed on this day and carried on. Two colourful, ornamental elephants were to be found too, down a hard to see alleyway. I knew fairly early that I would not have a problem finding enough things to include in the hunt,more a case of covering all the streets to ensure I got a good cross section.
At the top of the town there is a great view back down and an intriguing glance through an archway, that you are not allowed access into the castle through. Continue on round and you come to the Cathedral and St Nicholas church too, just before it. Question options clearly for the hunt and more reasons why Arundel normally rates highly in `best places to live` polls.

     
                                                                                                                                                                                                Coming back down I realised that those in wheelchairs and with pushchairs maybe would not be so keen . However, the mood of the locals, even in these testing times, seemed pretty buoyant and I think assistance would be given to anyone in need.
After a few false attempts at changing the route,I headed back to the middle of the High St via Tarrant St. This proved to be a good choice as interesting shops such as a picture restoration one and a wierd stone sculpture of an animal or bird come thick and fast. Once again I was tempted by some very nice looking chocolate , but I carried on. Turning back down the High St, I nipped over to the war memorial and then forward to an aquamarine walled, Butchers. It was at this point that I discovered the Greek play about sausages! Not only that, but the Butchers had a special delivery bicycle outside too. I was tempted to finish the hunt there, but I had committed to returning to the river and so it was.
Nineteen questions and a maximum of fourty points put it in the useful category of a hunt that should take about 1.5 hours to complete and gives you a chance to get up our leaderboard.
Arundel has a Wetlands with birds to view and a nice little pub on the way to it called The Black Rabbit (an obvious choice for a Black Cat Treasure Hunt). These two are the other way from the route I took so I thought it was only fair to mention them. All in all though it feels good to right the wrong of missing Arundel off our list of hunts.
With the `Rule of 6` causing big problems for organising teambuilding events, Black Cat has a bit of time to consider hunts in places like Arundel for things like birthday or anniversary treasure hunts for small groups. Do you have suggestions? Let me know at info@blackcattreasurehunts.co.uk  Are Horsham and Burgess Hill options for the next town or is there a hidden gem I have glaringly missed out like Arundel!?




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