The Harbour Master's Missing Lantern
Lines show the order of stops, not the route — you choose the safe path between them.
A salty seaside adventure around a make-believe harbour. Five stops, a lost lantern to track down, and a code hidden in the tide. Perfect for a breezy afternoon by the water.
Start here
The red anchor statue at the top of the harbour steps (fictional sample location: ///story.quest.sample)
Your guide
The Harbour Master
My lantern's gone missing somewhere along the quay. Follow the railing and we'll find it before dark.
Preview mode — no personal link detected, so nothing on this page is recorded.
Start at the big red anchor. The Harbour Master last saw his lantern near the boats. Walk along the railing until you reach the wooden post painted with blue and white stripes. Stop there.
Good sailing. That striped post is a mooring post — fishing boats tie up here at dawn.
Not quite — have another go. Open a hint if you'd like a nudge.
Type one thing you spotted right here
Look down at the boats bobbing in the water. How many have a flag flying from the top? Count them together and hold that number tight — the lantern's hiding place needs it.
Sharp eyes — three flags. Remember that number.
Not quite — have another go. Open a hint if you'd like a nudge.
The Harbour Master left a riddle on a brass plaque by the lighthouse: 'I have a light but I am not the sun, I warn the ships when day is done.' What am I?
Type your answer
A lighthouse — exactly. Its light once kept every boat in this harbour safe.
Not quite — have another go. Open a hint if you'd like a nudge.
Close your eyes for ten seconds. What can you hear at the harbour? Listen for three different sounds — maybe gulls, maybe water, maybe a clinking rope. Tell each other what you heard.
That is the sound of the sea going about its day. The Harbour Master loved it too.
Not quite — have another go. Open a hint if you'd like a nudge.
Type one thing you spotted right here
Final stop: the old fish market doors. Remember how many flags you counted? Walk that many steps from the doors towards the lighthouse. Look down — the Harbour Master's lantern is painted on the ground right there. What colour is its glass?
Type your answer
You found it — the lantern glass glows golden, and the Harbour Master can sleep easy tonight.
Not quite — have another go. Open a hint if you'd like a nudge.
Hunt complete
Mystery solved, sailors. You followed the railing, counted the flags, answered the lighthouse riddle, and tracked down the missing lantern. The harbour is safe again — time for an ice cream by the water.
Storywalker
The Harbour Master's Missing Lantern
SQ · SAMPLE · 2026 · 0142
Did your child ask to do another one?
How was it, out of 5?
Answer the first question above to finish. (The rating's optional.)
Founding members
Thanks — that really helps.
Would you use StoryQuest with your family?
Hold your founding place?
£5, authorised but never charged — it releases on its own within a week. It's how we know who's genuinely in.
Sorry — that didn't go through. Please try again in a moment.
All done
StoryQuest · Founding-member preview · No child data collected
Build 11/08/2026 09:27 · dc81d78