Behind the Scenes of BIMA’s Treasure Trek!
Before you find a glass orb hidden during Treasure Trek, many hours and many hands have already been at work to get that single orb there.
If you haven’t participated in Treasure Trek before, its BIMA’s annual glass float seek and keep, where 200 handmade orbs are hidden across Kitsap County for you to discover. Treasure Trek has been an event that perfectly fuses our values together: it supports local makers at Hilltop Artists, it makes art accessible to all, it infuses art into everyday lives, and it celebrates our beloved Kitsap community!
Ever since the first orb hit the trails, we’ve loved bringing this event to life and wanted to give you a sneak peek into what it takes to make it a reality:
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Planning
Like every good event, the planning begins far in advance. From picking the color (always a lively debate on staff) and swearing to secrecy on that color, to connecting with park services and picking safe public lands for the hunt, each one of these early steps builds the foundation needed for a successful Treasure Trek. This includes coordinating with Hilltop Artists!
PREP
While we train and coordinate staff and volunteers on the hiding process, Hilltop Artists are in the heat of it all–literally!
Hilltop Artists is a youth development nonprofit that, since 1994, has served thousands of students through programming, providing tuition-free glass instruction, mentorship, and collaborative leadership opportunities. It’s in their hot shop in Tacoma that the 200 glass orbs are blown! Students handmake every orb, meaning that each one is truly unique and entirely its own.
Step into the hot shop with us:
LAUNCH
The orbs get picked up from Hilltop, are organized, and are distributed to our hiders who go into incognito mode as they carefully hide the orbs across Kitsap throughout June. We spend the month coordinating drops and loving all the fun we see when you post your finds and tag us!
Treasure Trek is such a special time of year for us–we love getting out into our local Kitsap community and spreading art far and wide! This year is especially meaningful because it’s also our year of craft at BIMA. As part of Handwork 2026, we are honoring the handmade through multiple exhibitions, programming, and events. And since every Treasure Trek orb is handmade by a Hilltop student, the Trek connects perfectly into this yearlong celebration.
Whether you’re a first time hunter or seasoned trekker, brush up on our Dos and Don’ts of Treasure Trek on our blog and happy hunting!
