The Shovel is hidden away in Sons Of The Forest, and you'll need to collect both the Rebreather and Rope Gun before you can even access it. This step-by-step guide walks you through how to get everything you need to acquire this handy item.

Some key items you'll need before attempting this perilous mission include grenades, medicine, weapons, armor, a flashlight, and plenty of other supplies. Acquiring the shovel is not an easy task.

Updated February 27, 2024, by Sean Murray: You won't get far without a shovel in Sons of the Forest. This guide will tell you where to find it alongside a few other helpful items. We've also refreshed this guide's formatting and given it more links to other Sons of the Forest topics.

How To Get The Shovel

The shovel is located on the southern side of the mountain, inside the cave at its base. There are three people stuck up on poles outside the entrance to the cave. You will need the Rope Gun to access the zipline inside which will take you to the next part of the cave.

Once there, you'll need to use the Rebreather to head underwater and follow the tunnels. As you exit the water, you can head up the small incline, past a few mutants that you will need to deal with (grenades work brilliantly here), and then slide down the stream into the next part of the cave.

After that, swim up to the base of the stream, face the way you've just come, and head left through the cave. Here you'll need to deal with more mutants, including a bunch of really horrific-looking ones with their torsos ripped open.

Again, grenades work great against these mutants.

Continue underwater, and you'll emerge in one final cave passageway - beyond that, you'll see the fallen miner, and the trusty shovel at last.

How To Get The Rebreather

The Rebreather is located in a cave on the northern shore of the map.

There are mutants inside so come prepared.

Smash through the wooden barricade, then head inside. If you head down the passage to the right, you can follow it through to a room with more mutants and eventually, get your hands on the Stun Gun.

Head left, and you'll have to pass through very narrow cave passageways until you reach a large room with water in the middle. You can see the Rebreather just on the edge of the water. Collect the other loot, then dive and follow the caves to return to the surface.

How To Get The Rope Gun

The Rope Gun is another fairly long cave sequence. Head to the entrance shown in the image above. Come prepared; the first room has multiple mutants inside. Clear them out, then head to the left of the cavern and down a narrow passageway.

Here you'll need to use a Grenade or improvised explosive to destroy the Sluggy that is blocking the path to the next area.

Once past the Sluggy, you'll need to head down multiple paths with many mutants. Grenades are advisable, although you can clear these out with melee weapons and a bow. Keep following the natural progression of the cave (past the hanging men), until the very end, where you will at last find the Rope Gun. Use that to zip across (look up, there's a line above your head) to exit the cave.