How to Complete the Treasure Hunt in GTA Online

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To complete the Treasure Hunt in GTA Online, wait in one session for an email from vanderlinde@eyefind.com, match its photo to the first clue spot, read the note there, find three more clues, then open the chest for the Double-Action Revolver. Get 50 headshots with that revolver and you earn GTA$ 250,000.

The hunt went live on December 15, 2017 as a promotion for Red Dead Redemption 2, and it is still in the game according to Rockstar Support. It needs no documented rank, so it is worth watching for if you are following the beginners' roadmap, although Rockstar says it may not trigger before more recently introduced campaigns. Below you will find the Treasure Hunt locations with pictures, a map of all 20 opening spots, and a simple way through the headshot challenge.

On this page

Treasure Hunt quick facts

Quick facts

Details

How it starts

Email from vanderlinde@eyefind.com

When the email arrives

After a long stay in one session (aim for at least one in-game day)

Rank requirement

None documented

Opening clue

1 of 20 random spots, shown in the email photo

Fixed clues

3, the same for every player, in any order

Treasure

Double-Action Revolver (chest location is random)

Cash reward

GTA$ 250,000 for 50 headshots with the Double-Action Revolver

Bonus unlock

Exclusive revolver variant in Red Dead Redemption 2

Time

Under 40 minutes for one player, plus driving between clues

Added

December 15, 2017

How to start the Treasure Hunt (the Van der Linde email)

The hunt begins with an email from vanderlinde@eyefind.com, a nod to the Van der Linde gang from Red Dead Redemption. When it lands, the game tells you: "You have received an email to begin a Treasure Hunt. Open the email app on your phone to view it." The email holds a black-and-white photograph of the place where the first clue is.

There is no known way to start it on demand. Rockstar Support's current advice is to stay in a single session for a prolonged period, at least one in-game day, and it may take longer. A few things affect it:

  • It may not trigger before more recently introduced campaigns.

  • Completing other missions may improve your chances.

  • The email disappears if you change sessions or enter a building, and then you have to wait for it again.

Once you read the email, a yellow "?" with a very large search radius appears on the map, and "Treasure Hunt" shows up in the map legend. Head there, and as you get close the game says you are nearing the location pictured in the email.

Bring the right ride. Many of the spots are off-road or up on mountains, so an off-road bike, an ATV or a helicopter will save you a lot of time.

All 20 Treasure Hunt locations with pictures (map)

The email photo shows one of 20 possible spots for the opening clue, picked at random. Compare your photo with the map below: each thumbnail is one of the 20 locations, so you can match the picture and drive straight there instead of sweeping the whole yellow circle.

These 16 spots are the well-documented ones, along with where players report the note is attached:

Location

Where the note is

Del Perro Pier

A wooden support pillar under the pier

Hill Valley Church graveyard, Pacific Bluffs

A gravestone

Hill Valley Church graveyard, Great Chaparral

At the graveyard

Marlowe Vineyards, Tongva Hills

A rock under the small bridge

Los Santos Golf Club

A post at the end of the wooden bridge over the pond

Small island off the Palomino Highlands coast

A boulder

Procopio Promenade, Paleto Bay

One of the broken bridge's support pillars

Alamo Sea Marina breakwater, Sandy Shores

By a washed-up boat

Sandy Shores Airfield area, Grand Senora Desert

Near the airfield

Two Hoots Falls, Tongva Valley

The owl totem

Mount Chiliad summit

The viewpoint sign board

Catfish View mountaintop, San Chianski Mountain Range

The wooden cross on the peak

Abandoned Mine, Great Chaparral

A pole at the mine gate

Tataviam Mountains coast, south of the Palmer-Taylor Power Station

On the shoreline

Cassidy Creek, Raton Canyon

A tree trunk by the stream

Raton Canyon, above Cassidy Creek near the Raton Canyon bridge

A large rock

The other four are on the map, including the Cape Catfish jetty and two spots in Senora National Park.

How to find the first clue note

Once you reach the spot, get on foot and turn your game sound up. The clue is a handwritten paper note pinned to a rock, post, tree or other object, and near it you will hear a wind-chime sound that gets louder as you close in. Follow the chime until you find the note.

After you read it, the game tells you: "The treasure has been moved. Find and investigate the remaining clues." Three more clue markers then appear on the map. These three are the same for every player, and you can visit them in any order. The HUD keeps count as you go ("1/3 clues discovered" and so on).

Clue 1 of 3: the cave in the Tongva Hills

The first fixed clue is a small cave near a creek in the Tongva Hills, north-west of Los Santos. Walk inside and you will find a dead body.

Clue 2 of 3: the bloody shovel at Sandy Shores

The second clue is a bloody shovel inside a wrecked building on the Sandy Shores beach of the Alamo Sea. Look for the fenced-in, ruined yard on the shore.

Clue 3 of 3: the empty gun case in Grapeseed

The last clue is an empty gun case at the base of a tree on Joad Lane in Grapeseed. Once all three are done, the HUD reads "3/3 clues discovered".

Where is the treasure chest?

After the third clue, the game says the final location of the treasure has been revealed, and a gold chest icon appears on the map. The chest location is random. It is reportedly one of three spots: Richman Glen, the north shore of the Alamo Sea by North Calafia Way, or Paleto Cove. Either way, just follow the gold icon.

At the chest you will find more bodies, a shovel and a case marked Boles Overland Stagecoach Company. Open it and the game confirms: "TREASURE FOUND: You now own the Double-Action Revolver".

The chest gives you the revolver, not the GTA$ 250,000. A lot of players expect the money here, but it comes from the headshot challenge.

The 50 headshot challenge (GTA$ 250,000)

Rockstar calls this the Headshot Challenge in Freemode: get 50 headshots with the Double-Action Revolver and you earn GTA$ 250,000. NPC and player headshots both count, but they must be with this revolver. Finishing it also unlocks an exclusive variant of the revolver for Red Dead Redemption 2: log into Red Dead Redemption 2 with the same linked Social Club account to claim it.

Any NPC headshot counts, so the simplest approach is shooting pedestrians in free mode. Busy pedestrian areas help, because you never run short of targets. One player reported needing less than 40 minutes. A few tips:

  • Shooting pedestrians draws a wanted level, so expect police. Lose the wanted level before you start again, or work through quieter groups so the heat builds more slowly.

  • Use auto-aim to lock on, then nudge your aim up slightly to the head.

  • Stay in free mode. Whether headshots in missions or Jobs count is disputed, so don't rely on them.

You will reportedly get a progress notification every 10 headshots, and you can reportedly check your count under Pause Menu > Stats > Weapons > Double-Action Revolver. The challenge is reportedly shared across your two characters, so the GTA$ 250,000 pays once per account, although both characters can still find the revolver.

All that shooting is also a decent way to raise your shooting skill.

Problems: no email, a reset hunt or no payout

The email never arrives. Rockstar Support suggests staying in one session for at least one in-game day and says completing other missions may help. If the email arrived and then vanished, you probably changed sessions or entered a building: stay put and wait for it again.

The hunt reset. Reportedly, if you quit GTA Online or close the game before the hunt is finished, the whole thing resets and a new opening spot is assigned the next time you play free mode, so you wait for a new email. Plan to do it in one sitting.

No payout after 50 headshots. Some players have reported finishing the 50 headshots without getting the popup or the money. First check that every headshot was with the Double-Action Revolver. If the count is right and nothing paid out, the only suggested route is contacting Rockstar Support.

Treasure Hunt vs treasure chests, Shipwrecks and Hidden Caches

Several GTA Online activities sound alike, but they are separate from this hunt:

For everything else you can hunt down in Los Santos and Blaine County, see the collectibles hub.

Treasure Hunt FAQ

How do you start the Treasure Hunt in GTA Online?
There is no known way to start it on demand. Stay in one session for a prolonged period (aim for at least one in-game day) and an email from vanderlinde@eyefind.com will arrive with a photo of the first clue location.

Where is the treasure in GTA 5 Online?
The chest location is random and only appears as a gold icon on your map after you find all three fixed clues. It is reportedly at Richman Glen, the north shore of the Alamo Sea by North Calafia Way, or Paleto Cove.

Does the treasure chest give you GTA$ 250,000?
No. The chest gives you the Double-Action Revolver. The GTA$ 250,000 is the reward for 50 headshots with that revolver.

How long does the Treasure Hunt take?
There is no official figure. One player reported needing less than 40 minutes, plus the drive between clues. The email itself can take an in-game day or longer to arrive, so start the wait early.

Can you do the Treasure Hunt again?
Reportedly, both of your characters can find the revolver, but the headshot challenge is shared across the account, so the GTA$ 250,000 pays only once.

What happens if you leave in the middle of the hunt?
Reportedly, quitting GTA Online or closing the game before you finish resets the whole thing, and a new opening spot is assigned the next time you play free mode, so you wait for a new email.

Do you need Social Club for the Treasure Hunt?
A linked Social Club account is what unlocks the exclusive revolver variant in Red Dead Redemption 2. Log into Red Dead Redemption 2 with that same account after finishing the challenge.

Is the Treasure Hunt still in GTA Online?
Yes. Rockstar Support still documents it, with a support article updated in August 2025.

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