Treasure hunt caps Chinese New Year's festivities

by Ronitte Libedinsky

Sleuths dash into a dark alleyway on the hill by the intersection of California and Powell streets while drums from the Chinese New Year Parade are beating in the distance. They are frantically searching for "a quick little fellow for whom a typewriter was named."

Light from flashlights dart across the alley and shine on the answer to the riddle: a statue of Hermes, the Greek messenger god and the name of a '50s typewriter company. But, there are more clues left to decipher, so the answer is quickly jotted down on a score card and the team of detectives rushes out into the night to solve the next mystery.

This is a typical scene during the annual Chinese New Year Treasure Hunt, organized by a modern day, trench-coat-wearing private investigator named Jayson Wechter. He originally started the hunt, the largest in the country, as a party for his friends. Today, it is a benefit for the Circus Center and San Francisco Food Bank and attracts more than 1,500 participants each year.

"I've been treasure hunting since I was a kid in Brooklyn," said Wechter, a tall, lanky man with wavy gray hair. "I have a magnificent enjoyment of cities. I love their history and discovering little-known alleyways and hidden stories."

The Chinese New Year Treasure Hunt covers Chinatown and North Beach, neighborhoods that are visually rich with a variety of people, signage and architecture. Some of the oldest buildings in San Francisco are in these neighborhoods.

"I see the vestiges of the Gold Rush Era, the ghosts of San Francisco and all the immigrants who have come here. These places have stories to tell," Wechter said.

Running the treasure hunt every year on the day of the big Chinatown parade adds intrigue and an air of mystery to the hunt. Wechter also organizes smaller treasure hunts in different neighborhoods for private groups throughout the year. When he is not planning treasure hunts, he is gathering evidence and information for his job as a private investigator.

Participants in the Chinese New Year Treasure Hunt form teams of four to nine people and chose between three levels of difficulty, although less than 5 percent qualify for the master's division, the highest level. The hunt starts at 4:30 p.m. at Justin Herman Plaza when the clues are handed out to each team. The hunt ends at 9 p.m.

The top five teams in each division with the most correct answers are the winners. Most of the participants are from Northern California, but there are people who come from the East Coast just to participate in the treasure hunt.

Wechter plans and writes all the clues. Even though the three months before the hunt are the most intense, he thinks about the hunt throughout the year.

"I know the City so well that things will just come to me without necessarily thinking about it," Wechter said.

A visit to the Louvre in Paris inspired a clue connecting the Mona Lisa painting to a Nat King Cole song and finally to the North Beach restaurant named after the painting. He also finds inspiration from film noir and detective stories based in San Francisco.

"I work for that 'Aha!' moment when something new is discovered and it all comes together and makes sense," Wechter said.

The prizes for the winners in each category are a cake, baked in the shape of a key, and a bottle of champagne.

"But the real prize is the experience you have with your team discovering things about San Francisco that you didn't know about," said Dennis Calloway, 52, who has participated in the treasure hunt for 13 years.

Wechter also awards prizes for teams with the most original names, many of which are based on the year of the Chinese zodiac. Some participants, such as Calloway, who has been in the master's division for eight years and has won three times, take the hunt very seriously and are highly competitive. Others stop for a drink or a bite to eat along the way.

Anybody can participate in the treasure hunt "but the common characteristic is that they're curious and they like to use their brains," Calloway said.

"So bring friends who love to have fun, and bring your wits."

For more information on Wechter's treasure hunts, visit www.sftreasurehunt.com.