01x02 - The Mystery of Smith's Cove

[bunniefuu]

Previously on The

Curse of Oak Island...

There it is.

Is this the spot where

they d*ed?

Several generations risked life

and limb and d*ed looking for

something here on Oak Island.

Here we are, borehole -X.

My brother and I want to see

just what is down there.

Whoa, whoa!

Stop!

There's something here.

Look at the films we

took.

That could be the top

of the tunnel.

We need to try and

bring up all the stuff that's

down in that cavity.

Wait.

That's metal, Rick.

Inside a rock.

Very cool.

It all started in

, when three young men

discovered a strange indentation

in the soil which, when

excavated, revealed bits of gold

chain, a small piece of paper

with writing on it, even a large

stone slab with curious codes

and symbols carved into it.

Dubbed "The Money Pit," the

strange hole was eventually

excavated by treasure hunters to

a depth of feet, when one of

them hit a booby-trap which

flooded the shaft with seawater.

What was down there?

Nobody knows.

But three things are certain.

The island becomes an obsession

for all of those who try and

solve the mystery.

Six men have lost their lives in

the process.

And according to legend, one

more will have to die before

the treasure can be found.

So, is this where you

remember this anomaly to be?

No.

Over there.

Rick Lagina has

been obsessed with solving the

mystery of Oak Island since he

was years old.

When I was growing up,

I would read adventure books,

Treasure Island books, Hardy

Boys mysteries, because they're

meant to fire your imagination,

your interest, your passion,

your willingness to explore,

and that's why I've always been

fascinated by Oak Island.

We're almost over

there.

His younger

brother, Marty, is a successful

engineer in the energy

business.

He has spent millions of dollars

of his own money in an effort to

finance his brother's dream.

It has its roots in

our boyhood.

We followed it together.

It was a thing that was exciting

to us in a period that you kind

of want to recreate, right?

Everybody wants to go back and

have that excitement you had

when you're a kid.

So, here's a chance to do that.

Together, they

represent what is probably the

best and possibly the last

chance the Oak Island mystery

has of getting solved.

Wait.

Now, that... that's metal, Rick.

After finding a

strange metal object in one of

the island's many abandoned

treasure shafts, Rick, Marty,

and Marty's son, Alex, are now

investigating Smith's Cove.

Located just feet away from

the original Money Pit, Smith's

Cove has long been thought to be

connected to the Oak Island

mystery.

Years ago, it was discovered

that the cove was man-made and

that at one time, there were

five stone box drains jutting

out to the ocean.

Box drains that may have fed

water to a tunnel that flooded

the Money Pit back in the s.

Coming down!

Okay, guys, let's go

look at some maps.

All right, skipper.

Let's do it.

Show us where we're at.

Maybe go and find some

treasure.

Joining the Laginas

is Tony Sampson, an area

resident and professional

Divemaster.

So, right here, at the

moment, we're in on Oak Island

here.

Tony has been

exploring these waters for

years, and is eager to share

the results of one of his recent

dives near Smith's Cove, when

he found what appeared to be a

series of man-made stone

markers.

And if we flip over

here...

What do you make of

this?

There's so much weird

stuff in here, you could start

up with myths and conjecture

forever.

Yeah.

We've got this anomaly

down here, which we thought may

be a shipwreck, but because of

the depth of the silt in this

area, we're not gonna pick up

anything there without using a

magnetometer.

Mm-hmm.

So what we're going to

focus on today is this anomaly

up here, this square rectangle

sort of shape that comes in off

the shore there.

Mm-hmm.

They possibly are

boulders, so you can see if you

look through the shore, you can

pretty much line her up with

that flat boulder and that

fallen-down tree that's on the

shore there at the moment.

All right.

So, basically, we're

gonna start here at feet,

work our way in through here.

What you're expecting to see

down there is the rock, bearing

in mind it's been down there for

God knows how long.

If there is any little crevices,

any little holes, you know...

Don't go there...

Don't go sticking your

hand in there thinking you're

going to come out with Spanish

gold.

We're all gonna be

swimming like this.

Okay, so, what we're

gonna do, get kitted up on the

back there, run through our

gear, and make sure everything

works.

Then we're gonna splash.

Let's go look at this.

Okay, let's get ready.

Let's get suited up.

While Marty and

Alex prepare to dive off Smith's

Cove, their fellow treasure

hunters, Dave Blankenship,

Dan Henskee and Jack Begley

arrive at the -X shaft.

Yeah, it's nice and

light.

Good seasoned wood here.

What you think we're

going to find, David?

Dirt, rocks.

You want to set up over here?

While efforts to

pump water out of -X continue,

Dave, Jack and Dan Henskee

begin sifting the debris that

has been brought to the surface.

Debris that may contain

artifacts that haven't seen the

light of day for hundreds of

years.

I'm getting out of

the way when I see water coming.

That actually...

That improves it quite a bit.

A lot of wood in this stuff.

Is this a piece of oak leaf?

Looks suspiciously like it.

If it can be

determined that the bits of wood

found in -X are from oak

trees, then it might be a

significant piece of the Oak

Island puzzle.

Oak trees are not indigenous to

the region, although they were

once plentiful on Oak Island.

How did they get here?

It has long been speculated that

Henry Sinclair, whose family

assumed leadership of the

Knights Templar, came to the

island from Scotland in .

He is believed to have hidden

the treasure and then planted

oak trees to serve as a beacon

for other Templar members who

would follow.

The wooden planks that were

found at ten-foot intervals

during excavation of the

original Money Pit in the s

were also made of oak.

If the wooden shards found in

-X are similar to the oak

planks that were used to create

the Money Pit, then Dave, Jack

and Dan Henskee may be close to

discovering another important

clue.

It may be proof that the legends

describing a vast network of

underground mines and treasure

tunnels, all using oak beams in

their construction, are true.

Does this look like

brass or metal to you?

Is it magnetic?

Check and see if

that is.

I think it will be.

It feels like it's more steel

than anything else.

Yes, it is.

It jumped two inches.

I guess it's magnetic.

But do you think it's

rust or...?

No.

No, you can see the

actual color of the steel if

you get it clean and look at it

at the right angle.

What do you think this

steel's from?

There's a tendency to

drop tools, obviously, when

you're working over the hole.

Oh, oh, wait, wait,

wait, wait, wait.

Oh, my gosh!

What does that look like to you?

Looks like a bone.

Small bone.

Oh, oh, oh,

another bone.

Here's what I'm wondering:

if there is the possibility that

these are actually human bones.

Human bones?

Down at the bottom of -X?

If so, how did they get there?

It could be a grave

down there.

What'd your dad see on film

that one time?

He'd seen a hand.

When Dave

Blankenship's father, Dan,

recorded video images at the

bottom of -X back in the

s, he was convinced they

revealed ancient tools...

treasure chests...

and also the headless torso of a

man half-buried in silt,

remarkably preserved by the cold

salt water of the

North Atlantic.

Is it possible that what Jack

found are bones from that

mysterious dead body?

If so, could it mean that the

island legends-- about slaves

being used to dig the tunnels,

then left to die-- are true?

That looks a lot like

a bone.

Oh, my gosh.

Uh, yeah.

That's a nice one!

It's got some distinct markings

on it, so I wonder if there's

someone who can analyze it and

figure out if it's human.

Yep.

Possible.

I'm gonna go package at least

these up that I've found.

All right, you guys

keep looking.

Maybe a little bit

tighter.

Back at Smith's

Cove, Marty and Alex prepare

to dive.

There's an anomaly

underwater that's supposed to

be pretty much right

underneath us.

We want to get down there,

we want to get eyes on it.

How's your mask?

Suck in.

The anomaly's supposed

to be some kind of a square

formation underwater there, and,

uh, but I don't know.

I don't know what it's gonna

turn out to be.

Alex, okay, hand on

your rig, hand on the mask,

then just roll backwards.

How you feeling?

How you looking, Marty?

I'm ready to go in.

I'm really looking forward to

scuba diving.

This will be the first time

I actually dive with the

intent to discover something.

It's exciting.

Unlike his brother,

Marty has always been somewhat

skeptical about Oak Island.

Before he commits the millions

of dollars needed to reexcavate

the Money Pit, he needs proof of

man-made activity that dates

before , the year the Money

Pit was first discovered.

There you go.

Marty, Alex and

Tony begin their descent into

the frigid waters of the

North Atlantic.

Reaching a depth of feet,

they begin scouring the ocean

floor, searching for evidence

of the mysterious stone

anomalies Tony claims he found

during a previous dive.

We're looking for

perpendicular structures, things

that don't seem to be natural.

But the dive conditions out

there are tough.

It's a very silty bottom.

It's very cold.

Visibility is low.

And those are all problems.

Suddenly, Marty

sees a large rectangular stone.

It's covered in dense undersea

vegetation.

Is this one of the anomalies

Tony was referring to?

Or could it be evidence of one

of the five ancient box drains?

Moments later, another

rectangular stone is found,

slightly smaller than the first.

Is it a coincidence?

Or were they placed here

deliberately?

And, if so, for what purpose?

Guy, do you feel

anything on that line?

No.

Marty and Alex are

down there.

I mean, it's, uh, all I see is,

uh, I see the cable.

I have no clue where he is.

I know they're certified

divers, they've done this

before, but if there's any

trouble down there, I'll be the

first one in the water, just

like they would be for me.

I believe, yes, he's coming up.

He's coming up.

But I'm also hopeful that

they'll actually get data back

on the boat.

That's what we're doing it for.

I'm a little worried right now,

because Alex, my nephew, was

buddied with his father Marty,

and, uh...

Oh, there they are

Okay, he made the "okay" signal,

so everything's fine.

Keep going along that

line, Marty.

You're almost there, buddy.

No problem.

Beautiful thing, man:

three go out, three come back.

My day's good.

What did you see?

You know everything's

covered in plant matter

and stuff.

Right.

I was able to see two

rectangular rock structures.

One was larger than the other.

And then the Divemaster saw a

third one.

And apparently, they all

line up, kind of point

towards the island.

Which way is it going?

Large up there,

smaller, small.

It lines perfectly up with

that flat rock that's just

coming up out of the water there

now, and if you go up the hill

from there, towards the

Money Pit.

If you draw a line on the map,

it's almost perfect.

Really?

Yeah.

Three

rectangular-shaped stones lying

off the coast of Smith's Cove

and pointed directly at the

Money Pit?

A coincidence of nature?

Or could it be a link to

another earlier discovery

found here.

In , Oak Island treasure

hunter, Dan Blankenship,

discovered a large stone

with the letter "G" carved

inside of a rectangle, similar

to the Masonic symbol for God.

Could it have been a key piece

of evidence that the Freemasons

played an important role in the

Oak Island mystery?

Or, as many historians believe,

could it prove to be an

important link between the

modern Freemasons and the

Knights Templar of the

th century?

It's very interesting

that it lines up with that rock,

because everything of

significance on the island

relates, seems to relate

to rock.

When I got out of the

water, I really was sort of

shrugging my shoulders because I

thought, "Okay, so why would

anybody make structures

underwater?"

But if you want to hide a

pointer, it would actually work

really well.

Well, that's

interesting, 'cause these

are flat.

What do you think?

A lot more exploration

needs to be done.

Okay, so let's wrap up.

Let's get on in.

Fantastic.

Not a worry.

Thanks so much, mate.

All right, thank you.

At the nearby

Fo'c'sle Tavern, Rick, Marty and

their fellow treasure hunters

have gotten together to review

the day's progress and

strategize their next moves.

The thing that we

really found out that was

relevant, and I think the

Divemaster explained it to you,

was that there were four of

these anomalies in a line, and

what we need to do, what we

should do, is snap a buoy out on

one of them and connect that

line to any known anomalies

on land.

Look, I'm willing to

go down that road a certain

amount, Rick, but I don't get

it.

I don't know.

Let's say they line up

perfectly.

How would ancient peoples have

even done it?

I... (chuckles)

If I had that answer,

we wouldn't be doing this.

(all laugh)

All right, what else?

Well, we've started

Jack on the sediment.

So what's your perception of

where that sits and where we're

gonna go?

It took us a little bit

to get going, but very quickly

we discovered something, and I

actually brought it here, if you

guys want to see.

It might brighten up your day,

Marty.

Yeah, yeah.

Would you do that, please, Jack?

It's kind of weird.

Go ahead and brighten

up my day?

Here's what looks like

metal, kind of like what you had

found earlier.

I know metal is

difficult to date.

Yeah, but it's real

easy to date bones.

We can see if they're actually

human bones, opposed to some

sort of animal's.

How many animals could

have fallen down there?

Well, he said he had a

couple cats, but...

Yeah, I've lost

kittens down -X, you know.

You did?

Yeah, the kittens get

there and they go, "What's

this?" and they don't have any

sense of height, 'cause they're

just little kittens, and down

they go.

They jump in there?

I made a specialty...

a net device for fishing the

dead ones out, but, you know,

uh... we try to keep the thing

covered, but they get in there.

Well, there's a source

of some bones.

Yeah, yeah, as I say,

well, I got...

I think I got

them all out.

(laughter)

I know...

I know Dan

can speak to this.

There's supposedly a body down

in that cavern in, in -X.

That's completely

true.

Basically, Dan Blankenship saw

the hand and, uh, Dan always

said that at that particular

time, the water wasn't

particularly murky and they had

a good image.

David actually believes

that.

Right, David?

Yeah, well, I believe

what Dad said.

Leave no bone

unturned.

I mean, I...

Anything, any bone you find,

yeah, you collect it.

And you give it to a scientist

who specializes in such things

and... it's a human bone?

My excitement goes way up again,

because it would be a, uh, game

changer.

But you know, it is somewhat

disappointing, because what I

wanted you to put on that napkin

is shards of gold.

Me, too.

There's a camaraderie

that, I think, always develops

on a quest.

Charles and Henskee and the

Blankenships.

We've had a bunch of family

members come out here, and it's

like a platoon, all on a common

quest, and that's a neat thing.

All right, do we have anything

else?

With Dan Henskee's

help, we're gonna search for

coconut fiber up in Smith's Cove

tomorrow.

Okay, good.

Anybody else?

Anybody else got anything?

Okay.

Can we get down to serious

drinking here?

All right, guys.

I think this meeting is

concluded.

To success.

Yeah, finally.

Drinking time.

Back at Smith's

Cove, Jack Begley and Dan

Henskee begin looking for

coconut fiber.

You ready for a coconut

fiber hunt today?

You bet.

You think we're gonna

find anything?

I hope so.

You found this coconut

fiber before, right?

Dan is convinced

that he found coconut fiber

several years ago during an

earlier search at Smith's Cove.

Ah, yeah.

I was exploring a magnetic

anomaly, and found a trench.

And, uh, and checking that out,

I found this little swatch of

apparent coconut fiber, and, uh,

it looked exactly like the

picture in the book.

Apparently, coconut fiber was

used for stabilizing cargos and

ships for many years.

But just why is

finding coconut fiber on Oak

Island so important?

When workers in the s

discovered that the water that

flooded the Money Pit was rising

and falling with the tide, it

was thought that Smith's Cove

might be the source.

Digging into the sand, they

found evidence of five stone box

drains covered with several

layers of coconut fiber, each

converging on a point leading to

the Money Pit.

The coconut fiber acted as a

sieve to allow water in while

keeping the drains from becoming

clogged with sand and other

debris.

But how did such a large amount

of coconut fiber end up on the

shore of Oak Island when the

nearest coconut trees are

located some , miles away?

Was it really brought here to

help in the construction of an

elaborate booby trap?

If so, who built it?

And perhaps even more important,

what was it designed to protect?

Let's get started

here.

How far?

Till I tell you to

stop.

I hope this works.

That looks good, there, the way

you got that stake.

Once again, ocean

water is proving to be the

single biggest obstacle the Oak

Island team faces in trying to

solve the mystery.

This is the spot that

I want to mark.

This could very well be the spot

where I was digging, but, uh, we

also have to b*at the tide

coming in, so we'd better get

working fast from here on in.

Let's get to digging.

All right.

Let's see if we can

find anything other than more

stones, gravel, and mud.

Jack Begley and Dan

Henskee are in a race against

the tide.

Dan is convinced they are

getting close to finding a mass

of coconut fiber he remembers

seeing at Smith's Cove years

ago.

Finding it could be an important

step in proving to Rick and

Marty Lagina that at least one

of the many Oak Island legends

is true.

But a lot has changed over the

years, and Dan only has his

memory to rely on.

Heard you guys needed

some help?

Yeah!

You guys good at digging rocks?

As good as you can get

at that, I guess.

We're slowly trying to

drain this down, so we can get

at where, uh, the coconut fibers

are.

Where do you think

they are?

Kind of right by that

big rock.

Just in the water, just past it.

All right.

Yeah.

We only have maybe two

or three hours, because the

tide's coming back in.

So we're under the g*n.

We're digging like crazy, and

we're trying to get the water to

drain, and we know after we do

that, we still have to dig a big

pit and look for coconut fiber.

This what you guys expected,

coming out here?

Did you think you'd be doing

this all summer?

Oh, yeah.

Oh, I love the way

the water's clearing.

I just don't think we

have much time to do this.

By the time we get

done, it will start filling

back in.

How's it look, Dan?

The coconut fiber

should be in this general area,

and if I'm right on the

measurements, this line right

here, and probably right about

here, where I'm finding all this

sand...

So we know this is

the spot?

It's definitely the

area.

This is very much where... where

we should be digging.

We're making progress

here.

Let's keep doing this.

Yeah.

The tide left a lot of

small tidal pools in the area

that we're trying to dig.

So, basically, we built these

little coffer dams and we

started bailing water on our

own.

Dan Henskee's digging a pit

where he thinks the coconut

fiber is.

But we're really just hoping

that we find anything.

Dan, what exactly does

coconut fiber look like?

Well, if you can find

a supermarket that has coconuts

which are not quite as

completely peeled, that's the

fiber that you're finding on

coconuts.

So, we're looking for

the outside of a coconut

in here.

Yeah, it's the

same... obviously the same

color, the same type of fibers,

pretty much like somebody's

brown hair.

Dan Henskee has

been searching for treasure on

Oak Island for more than four

decades.

Along with Dave Blankenship, he

helped Dave's father, Dan

Blankenship, dig -X to a depth

of more than feet.

To this day, he insists he's

seen ghosts, demons and other

strange occurrences on Oak

Island.

One time, several years ago, he

became so frightened he stripped

off his clothes and swam naked

back to the mainland.

All he took with him was a globe

of the Earth, a text book on

advanced calculus and a copy

of Elvis and Me by Priscilla

Presley.

Guys, the tide's

getting close.

We gotta hurry.

Dan and the boys

have cleared enough water away

so they can finally dig, and see

if Dan's plan to find coconut

fiber will actually work.

Oh, what's that?

Let's see if we can

get this down a little farther.

Don't hold your breath, though.

This is Oak Island.

Right there, eh?

Uh, that's quite like it.

Whoa!

Whoa!

Whoa!

Is that the mother

lode right there?

That looks like it.

Yeah, yeah.

Yeah, there it is!

No way!

No way.

I think that is.

Coconut fiber on

Oak Island?

Could it really still be here?

Yeah, that's it.

Buried in the

ocean, sand, and rocks after all

these years?

Looks like it to me.

And just a few

hundred feet from the Money Pit?

It looks like the

fiber, doesn't it?

Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah!

Guys, the tide's

getting close.

We gotta hurry.

I mean, we got maybe

ten minutes tops.

Well, as long as

everybody keeps doing what

they're doing.

This looks like more

right there, right there.

Ah.

Check that out.

That's, uh...

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

Well let's find out.

It's the same.

Is it?

Then, this must be,

too.

That's what I was looking for.

It looks like heavy brown hair.

I was really excited to

find the coconut fiber.

I was really surprised

to see it there.

I couldn't believe it.

(laughs)

Ah, yeah, the water

is rapidly arriving.

I can count the seconds now

until we get flooded out.

Wow.

It's coming in quick.

Now, you suppose that

anybody can walk in here and not

see that if you're looking

for it?

Uh, yeah.

Hey, guys?

All right, guys, get over here.

I gotta say as the skeptic, I

didn't think we'd find anything.

But I can't believe we found

what we did.

So, I mean, I would say this was

a success, guys.

We gotta go tell Uncle Rick.

I mean, he won't believe this.

He's gonna be ecstatic.

Let's go tell him.

Can't wait.

Let's go.

You got everything?

Yeah.

Can't believe it.

Okay.

Nothing but good news, right?

We got good news and we

got bad news.

Uh, I'll take the bad

news first.

We were having some

trouble with the tide.

Yeah, I know that.

And we didn't have a

lot of time.

Even with it cleared out and

draining, you've got water, you

know, seeping out of the ground.

If we want to look there again,

we should get like some kind of

a pump to make it easier to

drain.

We're gonna get a

three-inch pump tomorrow.

And the good news?

You guys actually found

coconut fiber?

It was in the same spot

as Dan thought.

That's incredible.

How deep?

We had to dig about two

feet down.

It's beautiful stuff.

I didn't think we'd

find anything.

Always keep your eyes

open on Oak Island.

You'll never know when the

island gives you a clue.

There's a story here.

I believed it when I was

years old, and I believe it now.

And for me, it's not just the

retrieval of whatever's been

buried on Oak Island.

The endgame is to solve

the mystery.

We got proof.

Yeah.

Cool.

Yes!

Great!

I know, I know!

That is great!

You, sir, are gonna give that to

your dad and make him eat it!

Yeah!

The first words out of

his mouth are gonna be, "Are you

sure it's coconut fiber?"

I guarantee it!

That's cool.

I'm proud of all of you.

It's a great job.

Wonderful day.

We're not giving up.

If you give up, you

know you're not going to

to succeed.

No, I guarantee you

we're not giving up.

Tomorrow's another day.

Let's have at her

and get it done.

After finding what

they believe to be coconut fiber

at Smith's Cove, Alex, Jack,

Peter and Oak Island historian

Charles Barkhouse head to nearby

Acadia University to get the

samples tested.

Oak Island

is like a thousand-piece

puzzle with pieces

missing.

Yeah.

You know, and this

is just one piece that we could

put into the puzzle, you know.

Right.

If the samples they

found do, in fact, turn out to

be coconut fiber, then the

stories of ancient box drains

are very likely true.

It could be the first step in

proving that there were visitors

on Oak Island prior to ...

visitors who might have buried

something of great value there.

So, let's go through

our top theories for this thing.

Okay, one of the

more popular theories is the

Knights Templar.

So, theory one,

Knights Templar.

Yeah,

Knights Templar.

On Friday the th

of October, , several

members of the Order of the

Temple of Solomon-- or the

Knights Templar-- are about

to be put to death.

It seems the Templars have grown

too rich and too powerful

after centuries of fighting in

the Crusades.

They are believed to have

captured millions in gold and

precious religious artifacts.

Now the Templar are seen as a

thr*at, particularly by Philip

IV of France, and with the

blessing of Pope Clement V,

they are rounded up...

tortured...

and b*rned at the stake.

But not before Jacques de Molay,

the Grand Master of the Order

of the Knights Templar, issues

a curse on the heads of both

Philip and the Pope.

Within a year, both Philip and

the Pope are dead, and to this

day, no one has ever found the

hiding place of the vast

Templar treasure.

In , when the

Templars were arrested in France

and throughout Europe, we know

at least to treasure ships

left La Rochelle, France.

And where those treasure ships

went, we have no idea.

They might have gone to Scotland

first, and then from Scotland

they might have come to

the New World.

That's one of the theories

that could be on Oak Island.

Okay, what's theory

number two?

It's a Spanish ship

that ended up in Mahone Bay,

possibly from a storm, did

repairs on Oak Island, and then

buried some of their

treasure there.

That's Dan's theory: some kind

of a conspiracy between Spanish

captains to siphon off.

All right, this looks

like it, .

Here we go.

Hey, how's it going?

Hi.

Good.

Hi, I'm Roger.

I'm Alex, nice

to meet you, Roger.

Hi, Alex.

Dr. Roger Evans is

a biologist at Acadia University

who specializes in the physical

characteristics of plants and

how they reproduce.

And so I hear you have

some fibers.

We do.

Of all things,

coconut fibers.

Yes.

The members of the

Oak Island team are hoping that

he can verify that the samples

they found buried in the beach

at Smith's Cove are, in fact,

coconut fiber.

If they are, it will be the

first time coconut fibers have

been discovered since Rick and

Marty purchased most of Oak

Island six years ago, an

important sign that stories of

priceless treasure being hidden

on this island might very well

be true.

Wow.

Here's everything that

we've found in here, and then,

um, this is some that was

confirmed to be coconut fiber.

Okay.

This was looked at, and

we thought it would be easy to

compare the two that we found

now with that one.

Okay.

These look good and dry.

Fibers are really just normal

cells, and then what happens is,

this chemical lignin enters that

cell wall material, and it makes

it like steel.

Only bacteria and fungi can

break down lignin.

So that's what makes it

so strong.

It's that strong.

Interesting.

And that's what makes

it last hundreds of years.

Okay, this is what

we've got here.

This is wet.

Excellent.

You can choose a sample

out of there, yeah.

This also feels like

hair.

Because I know what the anatomy

of the end of a coconut fiber

looks like, we can take some of

the specimens and look at them

with a scanning electron

microscope and look at the end

of them, to see if we can see

the straw within a straw in the

two samples.

And so I'll show you on the

chalkboard what I mean by a

straw within a straw.

Okay.

All right.

Great.

So we have a bunch of

fibers, right?

They essentially look like that.

So, if you were to take one of

these and look at it end-on--

we'll magnify it-- each

individual fiber is made up of a

number of other fibers.

And we'll see if we can see this

pattern in the fibers that you

guys brought with you.

Great.

I'm ready for that.

Let's go take a look.

Yeah, let's go see it.

Lead the way.

This is the pre-screen

stuff that came from down below,

right?

While waiting for

the results of the coconut fiber

test, Rick and Dave go back to

sifting the debris that has been

collected from -X.

What are you looking

for, Rick?

You know what we're

looking for.

Stuff like that, you know we can

get...

Rust!

Yeah, but who knows

where it came from?

Come on, it's the steel

that's fallen into the water.

You think that.

You don't know that.

No, I know it.

No, you don't.

Yes, I do.

No, you don't.

We're putting all the finds over

here.

No, you don't know it, how would

you know it?

'Cause I know what rust

looks like.

There, look at that.

Chicken bone.

Somebody can look at

that and say, "You know what?"

It's a bottle of

whiskey.

You're wasting your money.

Well, how come, with

you, everything is, you know,

'Cause it ain't!

That ain't true.

All right.

You want to save all

this (bleep) or what?

Yes, we are.

We're saving all of it.

Not only that, but here's the

thing...

I'm gonna go back to

the barn and try to come up with

an idea, something that can sift

this through en masse.

This is not gonna work,

scale-wise.

Come see me two hours later and

I'll have something figured out

that's better than this system,

I guarantee it.

So you design it, and

I'm going for a drink.

Go, off you go.

Right.

Back at the lab,

Alex, Jack, Peter and Charles

are eager to find out if what

they found at Smith's Cove

really is coconut fiber.

First, they look at a sample of

known coconut fiber.

Okay, there it is.

It's in focus now.

We can increase the

magnification.

That is so cool.

Wow.

Yeah.

So the magnification

is now .

Oh, wow.

Okay?

Way better.

You can see it, eh?

Yeah.

So remember, this is

the one that was confirmed as

coconut fiber.

Yeah.

Yep.

You can see the

individual cells and those

bundled together.

So now the real test is...

let's go down to the wet one.

And I would say without a word

of a doubt that's coconut fiber.

Oh!

Yep.

Absolutely.

Yeah.

Yeah, so we found it.

Genuine coconut

fiber!

And found at Smith's Cove!

If it can be dated to before

, the Oak Island team may

have found their first important

clue... one that could

ultimately help them solve this

-year-old mystery.

This'll be a story to

tell the students in my, uh,

second-year course, when they

ask me why they need to know

botany.

That's pretty cool.

All right, so let's

get some pictures.

You guys can take them back to

your skeptics, you can take them

back to your museum, and, uh,

you can show the world that you

found coconut fiber on Oak

Island.

Awesome.

Hello?

Rick, hey, Rick.

Yeah, Alex, what's up?

I'm calling with some

news for you.

Okay.

What do you got?

Well, we, uh, we

checked those coconut fiber

samples out under a scanning

electron microscope.

Yeah?

They're confirmed to

be the same, man.

Really, he told you

that?

That's what he said?

He-he confirmed it?

He actually confirmed it?

You're not... you're not kidding

me, right?

Nope.

This is for real.

Wow.

That's great news!

I'm proud of you guys.

I was proud of you the day you

found it, and you hit a home run

today.

Yeah.

And maybe, just maybe,

the tide has turned.

Maybe we caught a break.

Do you want to tell my

dad or should I?

You make the call.

Okay.

Hurry up and get back,

okay?

Sounds good.

We'll talk later.

All right.

See you.

Hurry back.

It was a tremendous moment.

I could hear the rest of the

boys going, "Yeah!"

So it was a great, great moment.

Because there's skepticism with

my brother, one of our agendas

was, hey, let's find

something... one thing.

Yes!

Finding coconut

fiber at Smith's Cove could be

the first real breakthrough for

Rick, Marty and their fellow

treasure hunters.

It might also be the tangible

proof Marty needs if he is going

to pump more time and money into

his brother's dream.

But three big questions remain:

How old is it?

Who brought it here?

And for what purpose?

Shortly after

getting the lab results which

proved that the dark, fibrous

substance found at Smith's Cove

was, in fact, coconut fiber,

Marty and Rick sent the sample

to Marty's business partner,

Craig Tester, back in Michigan.

All right, guys.

Craig has some results.

So he's agreed to share those

with us.

Craig!

Craig.

Hey, Craig.

Look out!

How you doing?

I'm doing real well,

doing real well.

Craig has been

conducting further tests to see

if the fiber can be dated to

before , the year when the

original Money Pit was

discovered on Oak Island and the

-year search for treasure

began.

Make us happy.

Okay, I got test

results in on coconut fiber

found on the beach.

They're dating it between

and AD.

So, it's old, old, old stuff.

That's what I figured.

Did they give you,

like, a degree of accuracy?

A percentile.

That's what I'm

wondering...

%.

Well, that's good.

I hope you write that

down.

I'm writing it down.

In big letters.

Big letters.

Well, now, here it is.

In your face.

This is real coconut fiber.

What do you think about that?

Just a minute.

I'm digesting it.

That is very, very interesting.

There's no denying this

now.

I don't care how great my

brother's skepticism is, he has

to come around at this point.

That's great news,

Craig.

That's wonderful.

Because if it was , we were

all gonna be hanging our heads

in here.

The coconut fiber revelation was

exciting.

It makes you say, maybe there's

some validity to all this.

And that's fun.

Because what drives me, really,

when I think about it, is I'd

like to have some fun.

I mean, if this quits being fun,

you know, I'm going to try and

talk big brother into... into

getting out of it.

I'll make sure it's

fun.

Yeah.

Look, Craig, thanks a lot.

We'll keep stuff coming your

way, we'll keep you informed,

we'll talk to you later.

See you.

Take care.

Thanks, Craig.

Yep.

Okay, let's go.

We got stuff to do back in the

field, right?

Yep.

For Rick and Marty

Lagina, finding coconut fiber on

Oak Island is a big event.

But getting lab results which

date that fiber to between

to is even more exciting.

It means that the substance was

most likely brought here nearly

years before the Money Pit

was discovered.

Does this evidence validate the

stories of Spanish pirates-- and

possibly the Knights Templar--

frequenting the island back in

the s and s?

But why would they-- or anyone--

bring coconut fiber, and massive

amounts of it, all the way to

Oak Island?

Was it to build the box drains

that would feed flood tunnels?

Flood tunnels that would serve

as booby traps for anyone who

dared to dig here?

And what was so valuable-- or so

dangerous-- that it needed to be

protected in such an elaborate

way?

Those are the questions that

Rick and Marty Lagina...

Join that one to that

one.

...along with their

fellow treasure hunters, are

determined to find out.

I don't see no gold

nuggets.

No gold nuggets.

Questions that have

obsessed those who have dared

try and defy the curse of

Oak Island.

Next time on The

Curse of Oak Island...

Someone's coming to

visit the island.

Her father and her brother d*ed

looking for the treasure.

They were too close.

Oh, God...

I'm just afraid you

might get stuck there.

The spirit of a dead priest

has entered my body.

I feel like I'm constantly

looking over my shoulder.

Like there's something

watching you from behind.