BEND, Ore. — The 2026 Oregon Hidden Bottle Hunt bottle for Central Oregon was found by a father and son from Sisters. But did artificial intelligence also figure out where it was?
By our test, AI was off by nearly 70 miles.
Kellen and Rhys Klein found this year’s bottle at Metolius Preserve near Camp Sherman, Bottle Drop posted to Facebook Saturday. They were able to find it with just three clues out of the five that could have been released.
The Roberts family from Bend wrote this year’s clues for Zone 4, which includes Deschutes, Crook, Jefferson and Harney counties. They won the bottle hunt in 2023 and 2025. One of the things the family considered was how to make sure AI didn’t generate an accurate location.
“Part of our clue writing has bene writing the clues, getting all the information we want in the clues and then plugging it into AI and making sure we’re messing them up. And so far, I do not think AI will help too much with our clues this year,” Crystal Roberts told Central Oregon Daily last week.
We decided to put it to the test. Using a paid version of Claude — so that we could get all of its computing power — we gave it the following prompt:
“Learn everything you can about Deschutes County, Crook County, Jefferson County and Harney County in Oregon. Use any sources you find, no matter how obscure. I will be using this skill to post some random clues. Use this skill to try to find a specific location or landmark in one of these counties that you think the clues indicate.”
We made sure to input each clue as soon as they were released so that Claude couldn’t scan the internet when the bottle was found and claim it figured it out on its own. As we input each clue, Claude gave us long-winded responses — thousands of words — as it worked out each step.
Here is a look at what Claude came up with, clue-by-clue. We’re leaving out Claude’s whole thought process in this summary, but you can read all of it at this link.
CLUE 1
Welcome to the 2026 Bottle Hunt, Zone 4!
When added to their sum, that is Y2K more.
Where am I? In national popularity, I only lose to one.
But if your symptoms include a gaze like through a frosty pane,
You are equally as off as if you chose to approach the sheriff with no refrain.
I surmise this Pursuit will sprinkle Happiness in your Life,
And I challenge you to take Liberties and seek treasures rich and rife!
CLAUDE’S GUESS:
My recommended search area: Pioneer Park, 300 block of NE Third Street, Prineville — particularly around the Pioneer Log Cabin and the park structures/benches near the Courthouse.
CLUE 2
Founded in ‘95, their story began when 63 was bestowed.
30 years later, more than 75% gold it showed.
In the namesake the treasure is missing, but have faith in the plot.
Still need help? Zac’s ride will lead you to the bounty sought.
CLAUDE’S GUESS:
The Wildland Firefighters Monument area and the adjacent Prineville Bike Park at Ochoco Creek Park (NE Elm St / NE Juniper St), Prineville. I’d focus on the monument path, the bike park features, and the surrounding park structures. The bottle will be outdoors and concealed but not buried.
CLUE 3
Gather round the campfire my friends, here are your clues:
Dr. Seuss knew that One Fish will guide you through.
Defend and protect will lead to the end,
Not to a town nor river shall you seek or wend.
What, Zac didn’t help? Mirabel knows the way,
Follow her fluttery fashion and 600 and you won’t go astray.
CLAUDE’S GUESS:
My best guess for the specific hiding spot: somewhere at Walton Lake Campground or along the Walton Lake Trail (#809), approximately 600 feet or 0.6 miles from the campground entrance, near the mariposa lily-rich meadows. The bottle is hidden outdoors, concealed but not buried, in this campground setting.
If forced to pick a single spot: Walton Lake Campground, Ochoco National Forest, Crook County — specifically near the fishing pier (One Fish) and along the Walton Lake Trail in the butterfly/wildflower area, approximately 600 feet from the entrance or at the 0.6-mile marker on the trail.
How Kellen and Rhys found the bottle
Here is Bottle Drop’s post about how Kellen and Rhys found the bottle.
“They followed a trail of clues, from pinpointing Deschutes Land Trust land in Jefferson County, to decoding a Zach Brown Band nod that led them down Highway 20, to a kid-approved ‘Mirabel’ hint that revealed the butterfly preserve, to a Dr. Seuss reference that brought them to the water. The Kleins pieced it all together like pros and zeroed in on an interesting-looking stump near a creek, where they searched inside and discovered the hidden bottle!”
Claude ended up being off by 67 miles, due east, of where the bottle was hidden.
To be fair, Claude could have given us a different answer if we asked it to start from scratch every time a new clue came in. The specificity of a question can ultimately change what kind of answer AI spits out.
We also wanted to run this through ChatGPT and Google Gemini. Both of them responded they couldn’t do the requested prompt without going to their paid tier, which we declined.