Somewhere in the middle of New Mexico, there’s buried treasures to be found. Seriously. Hundreds of people are on a real life treasure hunt, guided by Forrest Fenn, who’s memoir, The Thrill of the Chase, includes a poem with 24 verses that apparently holds the key to the mysterious buried treasure. Fenn alleges the treasure is worth $2 million and is comprised of “265 gold coins, hundreds of gold nuggets, hundreds of rubies, eight emeralds, two Ceylon sapphires, many diamonds, two ancient Chinese jade carvings, pre-Columbian gold bracelets and fetishes, and more.”
Some people have spent years trying to find it, according to The New York Times, and if I didn’t have bills to pay, I think I’d be right there with them. According to Fenn, there are nine clues, all cryptic as fuck, like look for a place “where warm water halts.” I mean, that could be anywhere. What’s sort of funny is that it’s possible Fenn is just making all of this up to amuse himself, though the 87-year-old was a successful art dealer, and it’s possible he actually, at one time, possessed rubies and emeralds and all of that good stuff. I mean, anything is possible, right?
There are some dedicated people out there, too, looking for the treasure, so you might want to steer clear of anyone you see digging around in New Mexico. You don’t want to fight a guy who’s got rubies on the brain.
Some searchers have had to be rescued in Yellowstone Park and one man, Randy Bilyeu from Colorado, has been missing since January after searching somewhere along the Rio Grande.
Fenn better not be making this shit up, as some people claim. Naysayers think he made it all up, just to sell his book, but Fenn says that’s nonsense and that he buried the treasure to get people “off their couches,” according to The New York Times.
Fenn has said the treasure is at least 8.25 miles north of Santa Fe, somewhere in the Rocky Mountains and “higher than 5,000 feet above sea level.” That’s it. Fenn fields thousands of emails a week from dedicated treasure seekers but he doesn’t respond right away. Instead, every week, he logs onto this website and answers people’s questions and reassures them that deciphering the clues is possible and that the treasure is theirs for the finding. Because if you spend your life wandering New Mexico looking for rubies, you need a little reassurance now and again.
I mean, there are lots of ridiculous ways that people spend their time. If there’s $2 million to be had, why the hell not?
Original by Karen Fratti @karenfratti
