So if you aren’t in the USA or haven’t delved into treasure hunting yet, you may not have heard of ‘Fenn’s Treasure’. This is a travesty really.
Fenn’s treasure is the single most exciting treasure hunt of the modern age. It’s one thing to spend millions of dollar scouring the seabed with the latest technology for ancient shipwrecks, it is quite another when some crazy old millionaire hides his loot in the hills. I repeat, there’s gold in them thar hills!
Commercial treasure hunting is inaccessible to many people. The high cost of recovery and significant investment of time is something most people won’t leave their day jobs for. The other thing that usually kills it is the complex legal process often associated with a find. Even if you do find something, there is no guarantee you will get to keep it. Take the case of Odyssey Marine Exploration’s Black Swan Project for instance. The company successfully located and salvaged hundreds of millions of dollars worth of gold and silver coins from the wreck of the Nuestra Señora de las Mercedes off the coast of Cornwall.
Odyssey may have attempted to conceal the identity of the ship, Spain may have illegally boarded Odyssey’s vessels in an attempt to get the gold… pfft whatever, shiz happens on the high seas apparently. Anyway due to some behind-the-scenes action between the United States and Spain, Odyssey eventually lost the lot to Spain despite doing all the hard work. Not a good return on their investment.
Big finds are rare and ownership is often disputed. Sure, occasionally someone finds the odd Roman hoard buried in their backyard, but not all of us are that lucky.
Which brings us back to Fenn- you don’t need to be lucky, you just need to be smart. Forrest Fenn is a very successful American art dealer and amateur archaeologist. Rumour has it he owes part of his fortune to buying up land with native artefacts and pilfering them all to private collectors. Not strictly the most ethical way to make your money, but certainly successful.
So why care? Well apparently Fenn is a little nutty and decided he could part ways with a couple million in coins and trinkets. Here’s where it gets interesting though. He hid it. In the Rocky Mountains… and then told everyone how to find it. Yup, Fenn deliberately started an honest-to-God, free-for-all, old-fashioned treasure hunt. Sounds a bit suss right? Possibly. Some people doubt the treasure even exists. There doesn’t seem to be anything in it for Fenn.
Fenn himself says he did it to promote the ‘thrill of the chase’ and get people outdoors again. He originally had the idea after a bout of sickness in the 80’s which he was not expected to survive. Maybe he wants to leave a legacy? Personally I suspect that the subsequent multiple book releases may have had something to do with it. Incidentally he first detailed clues to the treasure in his memoir, “The Thrill of the Chase” (ToC for short)- which brings us back to being smart.
Decode the clues, find the treasure. Simple. In ToC Fenn wrote a poem alluding to the location, but has since given other verbal clues and released a map so don’t forget to look them up. Kudos goes to Dal Neitzel for the poem – check out his website for further information.
As I have gone alone in there
And with my treasures bold,
I can keep my secret where,
And hint of riches new and old.
Begin it where warm waters halt
And take it in the canyon down,
Not far, but too far to walk.
Put in below the home of Brown.
From there it’s no place for the meek,
The end is ever drawing nigh;
There’ll be no paddle up your creek,
Just heavy loads and water high.
If you’ve been wise and found the blaze,
Look quickly down, your quest to cease,
But tarry scant with marvel gaze,
Just take the chest and go in peace.
So why is it that I must go
And leave my trove for all to seek?
The answers I already know,
I’ve done it tired, and now I’m weak.
So hear me all and listen good,
Your effort will be worth the cold.
If you are brave and in the wood
I give you title to the gold.
So if you want to find more than the odd coin at the beach get yourself to the Rockies. Even if you don’t find the treasure at least you will enjoy the spectacular view (which was Fenn’s point really)!
