Cyril, board game publisher: “The Golden Owl fulfilled my desire for adventure”
Collected by Armelle Camelin
Published on
Board game publisher Cyril Blondel traveled 80,000 km in his quest for the "golden owl," the largest treasure hunt in France. Lucie Pastureau for La Croix L'Hebdo
Since 2009, Cyril Blondel, board game publisher at Flip Flap Éditions, has been participating in France's largest treasure hunt, "On the Trail of the Golden Owl." Buried 32 years ago, the famous bird of prey was discovered in 2024 by an anonymous owl hunter. Narrowly missed, Cyril looks back on the 80,000 km he traveled during his quest, while the solutions to the puzzles will be revealed on May 2.
La Croix L'Hebdo : How are you?
Cyril Blondel: So far, so good! I've been a owl hunter since 2009. That means I'm looking for a bronze owl, buried somewhere in France 32 years ago by Max Valentin, the inventor of the hunt. Whoever manages to find it can exchange it for the real treasure: the golden owl! I discovered this hunt sixteen years after it was launched. When I read the first riddles, I told myself that it wasn't that complicated, and I quickly became totally addicted to it, and in a totally exaggerated way... It's all-consuming: I think about it night and day, I have flashbacks, I think I'm Champollion . I traveled more than 80,000 kilometers to find it. Today, I experience this hunt in a more reasoned way.
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