Our Experience Completing the Where’s Odi? July 2026 Challenge
After completing our passport for all 37 library stamps, we were so excited to receive our Grand Champion medallions!
Why search for Odi?
This summer, we discovered that the San Diego Public Library holds a yearly scavenger hunt challenging brave searchers to visit all 37 branches of the library and find the SDPL mascot, Odi the Coyote, hiding somewhere at each branch. The event is sponsored by the Library Foundation SD and lasts the entire month of July. In addition this blog post, I’ve compiled a page where you can find our table of Odi visits (including photos of Odi’s hiding places, the pins for each branch, and other details), an infographic summarizing our adventure, and a link to our Google Maps bookmarks of every library.
I’ll be honest: I’m not even sure exactly how I decided to pursue search for Odi. Maybe I saw it at our local Oak Park branch or on social media. Either way, I had initially thought that we’d collect 10 stamps to obtain our lanyards and then we’d be satisfied.
Oh, how wrong I would be. Type A Personality: activated. There’s just something so satisfying about completing a lengthy challenge, finding new places, and meeting new friends. What better place to discover than a new library?
Our Biggest Challenges
Taking a Toddler to Every Branch
I’m not sure much more has to be said about this. It’s a doozy. On top of that? Keeping a toddler happy on trips, especially to far away branches. The good news was that he often fell asleep on the way home.
Time Constraints
Now that my child goes to daycare full time, we couldn’t plan visits during the weekday. That left us with around an hour to get to branches when closing time was 6 PM, but as many as 3 hours when branches closed at 8 PM. Saturdays were the prime day for checking off multiple branches!
A Late Start
We didn’t start the challenge until July 7th. To be fair, most folks didn’t have a lot of time prior to July 7th, either, because the Independence Day holiday was celebrated on a Friday, then also the first Saturday of the month, both of which were days when branches would typically be open.
Our Favorite Discoveries
Besides the excellent Odi Decoys, we made some incredible discoveries about the SDPL along the way:
Children under 5 can get a library card!
We did not know this! This is how we were introduced to Odi’s story. The lovely staff at the children’s area at Central Library asked us if my child had a library card; when I told them that I thought he was too young for it, they quickly set us up with his children’s account.
SDPL branches have more for small kids than just books.
We were thrilled to find so many toys and pretend play sets at SDPL branches. The toys and play sets were all very educational: wooden building blocks, LEGO and Mega Bloks bricks, Magna-tiles, activity tables, play kitchens, puzzles, animal figurines, dolls, and more. I’m no expert, but I know that pretend play and imitation are huge elements of how children learn. It makes sense that so many branches have toys like this available – not just because it enables healthy learning, but because it encourages more visits and contributes to enjoying the library experience. My child spent plenty of time with both books and toys on our library visits, and I’m sure that the toys will help him want to return.
There are a ton of incredible IDEA Labs at several SDPL branches!
I had only been aware of a single IDEA Lab, and that was at the Central Library. IDEA Labs – which stand for Innovate, Discover, Experience, and Achieve – have extra equipment and resources to allow for makerspace technologies like 3D printing, vinyl cutting, laser printing, embroidery, and so much more. Some IDEA Labs also have digital media tools and studios, encouraging education for advanced skills in Media Arts.
Books can be returned to any SDPL location.
While I was somewhat certain of this before, I did have to look up the rules again when we signed up the toddler for his card. I’m so glad for this, because we encountered books at distant branches that he really wanted and I decided to check out. While I don’t have an easy excuse to go to those areas again, I can return them near home – but I’m sure we’ll find ourselves at some distant branches again knowing what interesting events and labs are at various branches.
Our library cards and lanyards; the toddler exploring the North University branch; loving the computers at Logan Heights; finding Odi at Rancho PeñasquitosDecoys: Finding the Different Versions of Odi
One of the best parts of the Where’s Odi? challenge was seeing the different manifestations of creativity at any given branch. Many branches created Odi ‘decoys’, challenging visitors to also seek out the impostors in exchange for a small prize. We accumulated a number of additional stickers, bookmarks, and pencils while searching for the many decoys that a good amount of libraries had created.
The decoys that we caught were at Mission Valley (making some great local references with their decoys!); the staff replicas at Ocean Beach and Paradise Hills; and the incredibly creative decoys at Logan Heights and Point Loma. I think there were also some decoys at Kensington, but all of their Odis were crocheted!
We saw a lot of Odi decoys! These are just a few of our favs.While Supplies Last
I was well aware that not all locations’ buttons were promised and that the Golden Buttons would be found quickly. We accepted that we wouldn’t get any Golden Buttons; most of them were gone within the first few weeks, and we had to spread out our visits throughout the month.
The ‘regular’ buttons were thankfully not that elusive. We visited almost all of the locations before finally encountering a branch that flatly said, “We’re out.” They said they wouldn’t be making any more buttons.
Right, I know. That’s what “While Supplies Last” means. Being the persistent completionist I am, I still asked a ton of questions. Are you sure you aren’t going to make more? Does anyone have a button that I could photograph for my project?
I’d seen employees making buttons at other branches throughout the month. Surely they could make more, right?
“There’s only a few more days of the event,” said one staffer. Well, darn.
I had trouble letting go. I even sent an email to the branch, volunteering myself to make more. I posted on social media to see if anyone had extra buttons or would send me photos of their buttons. I had time – I could find extras.
That afternoon, we headed to North Clairemont for the Clairemont stamp (due to an auto accident that damaged the Clairemont building). By habit, I struck up conversation with the staff about the challenge. It turns out I was speaking with the branch manager, Jessica, and she was not going to let us finish the challenge without the missing buttons. She made some calls, took down my information, and explained that she’d get ahold of the artwork so she could use her location’s supplies to make the missing buttons for me!
The other branch sent the artwork much faster than expected and one of the staffers waved me down as we were about to exit the parking lot; they’d be able to make the buttons in minutes. We had them in hand with enough time to get to one more location before closing time. I was so glad I mentioned it to Jessica and her staff!
A few days later, I got a call from the branch that had been out of buttons. The person who called said that there would be more at the branch if I was still interested in getting them. She was super apologetic and I felt bad explaining that someone else had gotten me buttons. I just hope I didn’t ruffle too many feathers, make anyone feel bad, or cause needless stress about the whole ordeal. (I’m sorry! I’m just very, very persistent!)
If you’re reading this, SDPL or Library Foundation SD, I’m happy to volunteer some time for the event next year!
The Finish Line
As the final week developed, we began to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Between distance from home and opening hours, I planned our last two visits for San Carlos and Allied Gardens on the last Tuesday of the challenge.
However, we hit a small snag on Tuesday when we were only able to get to a single library that evening. We decided to save Allied Gardens for Wednesday and visit the Library Shop at the Central Library to turn in our passports. While it meant extra effort to get to the Library Shop – due to a baseball game, parking was unavailable and we had to take the trolley – it was absolutely worth it to take our time on our last day of the challenge. Larry at the Allied Gardens branch was fun to chat with, loved talking about the challenge, and made our final Where’s Odi? visit such a delightful one!
“I am not the Odi you are looking for!”
The Odi display at the Allied Gardens library. We did indeed find the ‘actual’ Odi elsewhere.
After completing our passport at Allied Gardens, we went home to relax before taking the trolley to Central Library to turn in our passport at the Library Shop. The staff members we met were fun and welcoming. We didn’t realize the Champion Medallion was so cool! We used our 37% discount for a couple of fun items, entered our names in the raffle, and are crossing our fingers for some good luck.
Even if we don’t have any luck in raffle, we absolutely feel like winners.
Our Best-Of List
We couldn’t do a rundown of our experience without highlighting some of our favorite pins and Odi sightings.
Best 2026 Branch Button
Oak Park
This button features Mark, the newly-retired branch manager, as Odi. We loved the very personal touch to this button, and how they really made Odi resemble Mark!
Best 2026 Branch Button, Runner Up
College-Rolando
Odi is pictured sitting at the distinctive working space at the College-Rolando branch. Another button that makes reference to something unique to their library!
Most Creative 2026 Odi
Kensington-Normal Heights
I almost had to make this category just for this one branch because I think it was the only Odi that wasn’t the 2D Odi we were all familiar with. This Odi was crocheted!
Most Creative 2026 Odi Hiding Location
Allied Gardens
The most creative Odi hiding location had to have been Allied Gardens. Odi’s disguise wasn’t initially planned – a young patron worried that Odi would drown!
Most Challenging 2026 Odi Hiding Location
Mission Valley
While Paradise Hills was challenging, at least the general advice to ‘look up’ helped us find Odi. At Mission Valley, Odi was hidden on the top side of a window sill (so, on the underside!) that was alongside a wall behind shelves and below the waist. Phew! That was a tough one!
Best Odi Side Quest
Logan Heights
Logan Heights had a great side quest to find Odi decoys, and we had so much fun looking around the branch to identify them! I particularly loved the pirate!
We were sad that we got to Paradise Hills too late to participate in their decoy side quest, where they had a claw machine to pick a prize if you found all of their decoys
Best Odi Decoy
Mission Valley’s Ron Burgundy Phony Odi
Mission Valley also had a Tony Hawk Phony Odi and a Padres Fan Phony Odi! But this one was our fav. We also loved the decoys modeled after branch employees, which I believe were Paradise Hills and Ocean Beach.
The Best Reward of All
The Grand Champion medallions are SO, so super cool, and all of the buttons are absolutely amazing. I can’t wait to pin them on a bookbag for my child! I’m also really excited to share my rundown with people I met on this journey.
But the biggest reward was not something I expected. I might lament how difficult it is to haul a toddler to every single library – and yes, it’s part of why I so desperately wanted every single button – but all of that effort to introduce my child to three dozen libraries was absolutely worth all the growth I got to witness over the month of July.
My toddler is a sponge for information. He doesn’t currently have any significant developmental delays; he’s had ear tubes put in, so some of his language is catching up to his clearer hearing – but other than that, he’s a curious, bright, and typically-developing child.
Searching for Odi started with little understanding of what we were doing. Why were we going to places with lots of space to run, only to leave so quickly? After a few days of visits, he understood that we were visiting to look for something. After a week, he started looking with me more than he didn’t. After two weeks, he recognized Odi and said “Ellie” – our dog’s name, which is what he calls all dogs – and by the end of the challenge, he started naming Odi and pointing them out himself.
My child even picked up Odi (more than once!) and ran the figurine to the front desk, proud of finding Odi! Thankfully, these staffers were not phased; I can’t imagine that’s the wildest thing to happen to Odi at any given branch.
Finding Odi at the University Community branch
My sweet child, showing me that he found Odi.
What We Should’ve Done Differently
First of all, we should’ve started sooner.
Not starting until July 7th definitely kept us out of finding Golden Buttons, but also made it harder to make it to every location.
July 1st and 2nd were perfectly good library days, but for whatever reason we waited until after the holiday – plus the Monday after, during which some libraries are open! – to get started. We missed 3 days right off the bat!
Secondly, we skipped a weekend trip because of World Cup.
Having time constraints on weekdays meant that Saturdays allowed us the entire day, outside of naptime, to make our visits. Because of the Independence Day holiday, we also missed searching for Odi on the first Saturday of the month.
I honestly don’t regret skipping a Saturday for World Cup – but if I had planned better, we could have visited a few locations around games and gotten on top of our stamps a lot sooner.
And finally, I wish I had taken photos of the buttons as we went along.
Taking photos of the buttons as we went along could’ve helped me remember which button came from which location. Not all of the button designs have obvious locations! However, it was fun to guess the locations based on the art or on something I might’ve seen during our visit. Eventually, a social media post with all the buttons placed on their passport locations helped me figure out a few mystery buttons and also confirm ones that I’d guessed.
One of our completed passports.
Shoutouts
Thank you to everyone who made Where’s Odi? possible!
This is clearly such a big, fun event for everyone involved, and everybody at the San Diego Public Library, the Library Foundation SD, and each and every branch deserves a big thank you and a ton of credit for pulling off such a popular and fun event. My son and I were rarely the only people searching for Odi on any given visit and we had so much fun doing this. It’ll be a core memory for me as a mom and it has warmed up my wild toddler to be a forever patron of the libraries.
Jessica, the branch manager at North Clairemont, and her staff are rock stars.
Because of the great experience with Jessica and her staff helping us complete our button collection, we’ll be working our way over to this branch for an occasional visit – even though it’s mostly out of the way for us. Nothing beats great customer service and making patrons feel appreciated. While I understand the many reasons a branch may not have wanted (or been able) to keep making buttons, I thought it was a truly great effort to keep up the spirit of the challenge. Jessica, you’re the best!
Brooklynn and Teresa at the Oak Park branch inspired us to take on the challenge.
It is so tough wrangling toddler at the library. Mine is especially wild; he’s always bringing chaos to our local Oak Park branch. Brooklynn has reassured me that the best way to teach a kid to love the library is to bring them regularly – how are they going to learn if you don’t take them? Teresa leads Dance Pants and my son adores her, so I’m continually grateful for her patience too.
Thanks to the Denny Sanford Children’s Library staff for baby’s first library card!
We had no idea that children under 5 can get their own library cards. We had the best time getting my son’s first library card; now we read Odi’s Library Day on a regular basis. We’ve checked out a handful of books on his card and can’t wait for more library trips once we’ve had a little breather from our Odi adventure.
And finally, thanks to our ‘guests’ who joined us for a handful of our trips.
We had two passports for the challenge: one for my toddler and one for me. But because this is my husband’s busy month for work, he wasn’t able to join us for the entire challenge. Thankfully he was able to join us for several stops at the beginning and the end!
We also had three more people tag along. My cousins from out-of-state, Ray and his son Luke, accompanied us to the Central Library; we were happy to share with them why this location is so magical. For four locations on the coastal side of the city, we brought along Auntie Rebecca, who has long been one of my child’s favorite people.
Thanks Ken, Ray, Luke, and Rebecca! You’re the best!
Running the Numbers
Here are the numbers that I felt were most representative of our experience.
For miles driven, I calculated the miles round trip from our house to the destinations, in the order we went, excluding any additional driving (like grocery stops or daycare visits). I did not count our visit to the Library Shop at Central Library to turn in our passports.
Counting our time in hours was not going to happen. I went with trips taken and days of participation instead!
We visited 35 unique locations but walked into a branch 36 times for 37 total stamps. We visited one location twice (North Clairemont) and another branch hosted 2 Odi searches (Mira Mesa, hosting Scripps Ranch Miramar).
Our Where’s Odi experience in an infographic
What Happens Next Year?
Barring any unforeseen circumstances, we’ll search for Odi again next year. My toddler absolutely adores Odi! He continues to alert me every time he sees Odi and loves looking at our passports, pointing and asking if Odi is there. He even dragged out our buttons just this afternoon, which resulted in a mildly frantic search to make sure we weren’t missing any (all of them were recovered!).
Next time, I hope we don’t run into any hurdles getting our buttons. Maybe we’ll even get a Golden Button! We’ll be much more prepared and I’m excited to bring along a bookbag with our buttons on it. Now we know some good routes from our home and what to expect when we visit each location.
I hope this helps anyone interested in doing the challenge. It helped us to be organized and think of it as as project.
Will you be searching for Odi next year? We hope to see you along the way!
