Thursday, February 22, 2018

Curse of Oak Island - They Hit an Obstacle

I don’t know how many of you caught it, but on the Curse of Oak Island, there was a big reveal. Remember, they brought in all this expensive, modern equipment so that they could dig down in what they thought was the money pit. They were lining the excavation with huge hollow, steel tubes, in an effort to defeat the alleged booby traps that had confounded treasure hunters for two centuries plus.

That worked just fine and they drilled down to bedrock and said they couldn’t drill any deeper. They found no treasure. They found no real sign of treasure. Rather than concluding that there was no treasure, they decided, since there was money left over, and they needed to fill out the season on cable’s number one show (at least they tell us that it’s the number one show), they had missed the real money pit. They needed to move some twenty or so feet away and do it again.

Remember that when the original searchers, back at the turn of the 19th century had dug down some 90 feet, the shaft filled with water. No amount of pumping could reduce the water level and they noticed it rose and fell with the tides. The money pit was connected somehow to the ocean (which, when you think about it, suggested that the pit hadn’t been booby trapped, but they had connected to the ocean at the bedrock level…) but, never mind.

So, now they are digging their new shaft and lining it with more steel to defeat the booby traps, but this time, as they dug lower they hit a metal shelf of some sort. They were talking about being unable to easily penetrate it, and had stopped drilling to figure out what to do.

But, before they designed their attack plan, the shaft filled with water. The steel of the tubes had not failed, but the water flooded in. Modern technology was able to pump the water out so that they might examine what they had hit. Again, before they could get a look, the water came back and they decided that the safest way to examine the point of the stoppage was to send down a diver. I’m thinking safest? Really?

That overlooked the real clue. There is no way that a booby trap connected to the ocean would have filled that shaft. They had blocked all the possible outlets with their steel tubes. There was no sign of a failure of that metal. It meant that the water was coming up from below. It meant that they had hit the water table of the island at that point. No booby trap to keep anyone from getting at that nonexistent treasure. No clever design to protect the treasure… no, just the natural geology of the island getting in their way.

That also suggested what had defeated all those other diggers from the past. They had reached a point where the natural water table was tapped and the rising and falling that marked the tides showed that the water was coming up from the bottom rather than from those mythical booby traps on the sides.

So, they had their answer, but it didn’t dawn on them what they had. No, instead they’re going to send down a diver to check out the obstruction and see if there is a way to penetrate it. Sure, I’ll bet modern technology can defeat that obstacle as well, but once they are beyond that, they’ll have another shaft that reaches the bedrock without giving up any treasure.


But then they tease us by saying they have found a gem quality ruby on the island. I might have missed exactly where they found it, but it seemed to be on the surface. I’m getting tired of these little hints of something great that just never pan out. They have pushed this just about as far as they can… I think the viewers are beginning to give up on anyone finding a real treasure there.

7 comments:

couldbebetter said...

As a young boy I recall reading about Oak Island and the elaborate wood-log traps that would
flood in order to scuttle anyone's attempt to claim the treasure. I also recall reading
about the drilling that brought up bits of gold chain as proof that the treasure was down
there. My conclusion today is that if a treasure had really existed it was looted long ago
or someone simply lied about it being there for whatever reason and may have salted the
area to make people believe something was there. Also, as a young boy I was very interested
in the subject of UFO's. I would go to our school library and read any book I could on the
subject of UFO's. As I came across books written by people like Klass or the Condon Report
I would not accept their conclusions that UFO's were bunk. Today, being in my late 50's I
have talked to many people, especially former military and have to conclude that this planet
is of interest to Alien beings. I hope we get absolute proof of that as I don't think we'll
find that Oak Island treasure.

TheDimov said...

I'm amazed at their persistence. They've found keys, hinges, keyhole thingies, a few coins - its as if the treasure (if there ever was any) was long before looted and the worthless scraps left behind to be cruelly found some hundreds of years later. I do find the bones intriguing and parchment - what on earth is that stuff doing so far down? But perhaps its just stuff that came in from the sea because I also thought at Kevin did, couldn't this just come in from the sea somehow down there and not quite necessarily a 'booby trap'?

The cross and the Templar connection, although I am not qualified in any way, I find tenuous to be honest. Its not an 'exact match' as they keep saying, nor is it in my opinion 'definitely' the goddess or whatever Zena proclaimed it to be.

Although I do love watching the show and share the passion the Lagina boys do on the whole possibility of the mystery and the treasure somehow still being intact, the 'clues' they've found to me show there is nothing left, if there was ever anything. I do think there likely was but its long gone now. I get the feeling with the water flooding in that this could be the last straw, just have a feeling. Also with the new Civil War treasure show with Marty involved, I think maybe has moved on, perhaps Rick will continue with the search, who knows. But I think the end is, sadly, nigh. We'll see. They apparently find this gem next week so maybe I'll be proven wrong - and I hope I am!

Unknown said...

Both the above comments? Please. These brothers are treasure hunters. They are spending millions to find some treasure. This ruby could be worth an enormous amount of money.
I would suggest you do some research on the Templar Connection. Read history regarding the Crusades from biblical times. They have history dead on. I know non believers (Christians) question the Bible, the connection is real.
Next show previews showed a table full of treasure laid out. You’ll change your tune in the final episode!
There is years of treasure hunfing ahead in The Curse of Oak Island, plus a new show starting next week staring the Laguna Brothers!

KRandle said...

Richard -

Seems to me that the Templars were destroyed in the fourteenth century and there really is not evidence that made it to the New World.

Seems to me that the theory they were pushing in the last episode was that the treasure might by the French Crown jewels rather than a Templar treasure.

And the alleged ruby (I say alleged because we don't have evidence that it is a ruby other than it is red glass) was not pulled up from any of the money pits dug on the island but found on the surface.

We have the preview that suggests treasure laid out on the table, but in the past we've had previews that suggested great finds that when we finally got there, it was a big disappointment.

I have been rooting for these guys through the various seasons, but they haven't produced much of anything and now they're sliding off into another treasure hunt. How about they chase the Lost Adams or the Lost Dutchman too.

justbelieve said...

I had heard of the civil war treasure years ago. I love this show & will be watching the civil war show too! I know there is always some propaganda to keep it interesting, but how else am I going to live a dream so vicariously!

Unknown said...

The brooch setting showed a greenish-blue patina around the inner circumference when they unearthed it. Precious metals do not oxidize in this color but brass does. 500 years ago a precious gemstone would not have been set in brass. Also, in the closeup photos of said gemstone, on the facet edges you can clearly see where they are abraded like sea glass would be. A real gemstone facet edge would fracture off in tiny flakes. I’m completely unconvinced and unimpressed with this “find”. But it’s do like the show and wish I could be a part of it.

Unknown said...

We, the residents of Muskegon, always knew that something fishy was up with Hackley. Everyone knew that he spent way more money than his logging business warned him. Nearly every bit of the original city is/was connected to him. He could have named this city after him...Hackleyville, Hackleytown, or Hackleyton? Whether or not a boxcar full of gold was dumped into the lake actually happened, is pretty doubtful to me. Boxcars weren't easy to move by hand, and one with gold would be even harder to move. Especially once the first set of trucks went over, it would have landed precariously on it's frame and be nearly impossible to move without a traction engine, back in the early 20th century. I'd love to proven wrong, as I've been rooting for Marty and Rick since season one of oak island!