06x07 - Rock Solid

[bunniefuu]

NARRATOR: Tonight
on The Curse of Oak Island...

A special two-hour event.

Whoa-ho! Not since Moses

has the water
been held back so well.

The stars align to the island.

This is a star map

to where
the actual treasure is.

JACK:
This is one of your points.

There's a huge boulder
over here.

-JACK: It could be a landmark.
-Look at that.

CRAIG:
Almost all of them are leaking.

Oh, we're severely compromised.
We can't function like this.

DOUG: I think we've got
something over here.

Oh, look.

There's something carved there.

Holy smokes.

I do think this
is the 90 Foot Stone.

NARRATOR: There is an island
in the North Atlantic

where people have been looking
for an incredible treasure

for more than 200 years.

So far, they have found
a stone slab

with strange symbols carved
into it,

mysterious fragments
of human bone,

and a lead cross whose origin
may stretch back

to the days
of the Knights Templar.

To date, six men have d*ed
trying to solve the mystery.

And, according to legend,

one more will have to die

before the treasure
can be found.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

NARRATOR: It is the start
of another promising day

on Oak Island,

as Rick Lagina calls his
brother Marty from the w*r room

to report on the team's
recent progress.

Morning.

Hey, Rick.

-How's it going out there?
-Really good.

Uh, you know how we hate
to say that, but the last

of the sheet pile should
go in today in Smith's Cove.

-Uh...
-Yes.

You know, we're on the brink

of starting that project,

and it's exciting.

And it's actually up in the air.

MARTY:
Wow,

look how fast they're going.

NARRATOR:
Four weeks ago,

Rick, Marty and their partners,

along with the team
from Irving Equipment, Limited,

began construction
on their most ambitious

and costliest project to date.

A 525-foot-long steel cofferdam
surrounding Smith's Cove.

Quite impressive.

NARRATOR: So far, nearly all
of what will be

117 interlocking steel sheets

have been driven some
25 feet deep into the seabed.

This will allow the team
to effectively

seal off Smith's Cove
from the Atlantic Ocean,

drain the area,

and then conduct
an intensive excavation.

It's very exciting
to be able to really excavate

in Smith's Cove, and I think

the sheet piling system
is gonna do it.

RICK
And the hope, of course,

is that we will find
whatever there is

to find in Smith's Cove.

My hope is, who and when
those answers will be...

dealt with.

MARTY:
Hey, Rick, it occurs to me,

you know,
we had a lot of trouble

just washing
the hammer grab stuff

last year and we're gonna be
looking for anything

we can find in Smith's Cove.

NARRATOR: In past years,
all of the team's spoils

had to be painstakingly washed

and then carefully
sifted by hand.

GARY:
I'm not seeing anything.

Back to the spoil piles.
Come on, baby.

NARRATOR:
The process was not only messy

but was so painstakingly slow

that much of the material

couldn't be examined
for several days.

Or in some cases, months.

You know, any thoughts about
the massive amount of material?

You know, uh,
the good news about that

is there's a wash plant,
turns out,

for sale at a quarry.

So, uh, I'm gonna go look at it.

It's still in operation,

so we can actually fire it up.

Well, good on you, Rick.

Because it's gonna be
a logistical issue,

handling all that material.

Especially since, you know,

the exercise would be pointless
if we don't search it all.

-Absolutely.
-MARTY: Good.

Can't wait to go and join you.
I'll be out there tomorrow.

Appreciate that, we miss you.

-So get back here.
-All right.

See you tomorrow then,
big brother.

RICK:
All right, see you.

NARRATOR: Following the call
with his brother Marty,

Rick Lagina, Charles Barkhouse,
Dave Blankenship,

and Dan Henskee
head to Smith's Cove,

where the team
from Irving Equipment, Limited

is about to complete
construction

of the massive steel cofferdam.

RICK:
I think we're just about done.

-How many more sheets, Mike?
-That's the last one.

-That's it?
-Yeah.

RICK:
How far are these e-embedded?

MIKE J.: Uh, well, you see
the 20-foot mark right there,

so we've got about 17 feet
of embedment into the dirt.

Tell you what,
it couldn't have gone better,

given all the potential
problems.

No, it-it went quite well, yeah.

RICK:
But you do believe we've got

to put two six-inch pumps
on there?

You have to draw
the groundwaters out of it

because if you don't,

you'll have a continuous flow
just trickling in

all the time that you're
gonna be battling against.

And you have to get that out
to be able to maintain it.

Right, right.

NARRATOR: Before the team
can begin their excavation

of the cove, the entire area

must be completely drained
of more than

100,000 gallons of seawater.

To accomplish this,
the team will be using

two 12-horsepower sump pumps,

each running 15 hours a day.

And we have the possibility
of finding some,

hopefully, some culturally
influenced artifacts

that will answer some
of the who, what, when,

-where, why, and how questions.
-MIKE J.: Yes.

No, I think you're gonna uncover
a lot of information here

that's gonna really help.

I think you
and your team should be

very proud
of what you accomplished,

-and we're very grateful for it.
-Yeah.

-Thanks, Mike. Appreciate it.
-Great, guys. Good luck.

RICK:
We could use some.

NARRATOR:
Later that day...

as the team begins preparations
to drain Smith's Cove...

JACK: All right,
where do you want it, Charles?

CHARLES: Well, look, I got
a couple blocks over here.

-Why don't we set it up
on those?
-Okay.

NARRATOR:
Jack Begley, Charles Barkhouse,

and researcher Doug Crowell

install a new artifact
for display

at the Oak Island
Interpretive Center.

Everybody be careful...

'cause this thing is heavy.

DOUG:
Charles has asked Jack and I

to come over and help
him move a stone that, uh,

Fred Nolan had found years ago.

Fred thought it was
a boundary marker

or perhaps a pointer stone

that pointed into the swamp,
in Fred's opinion.

It definitely was a stone
that was worked by man.

It was triangular in shape;
made it really unusual.

I wish I had seen it in
its original location, but...

I think it's gonna find
a fitting home

on display for the public.

CHARLES:
I know Fred put great importance

on this stone
as a survey monument.

And it's been in storage
for quite a while,

and I've been quite anxious
to get it in the museum.

JACK:
Well, it's nice that we have it
next to the 90 Foot Stone.

DOUG:
Yeah, when you think of elements

in the original legend
and the lore of Oak Island...

-Yeah.
-the 90 Foot Stone
is pretty prominent.

NARRATOR:
For more than two centuries,

the 90 Foot Stone
has been the subject

of numerous theories,
speculations, and myths.

It was discovered in 1804

while treasure hunters
were excavating

the original Money Pit.

At every ten feet,
they found evidence

of wooden platforms made
of oak planking.

But when they reached
a depth of 90 feet,

they discovered
a large olive-colored slab

with a series of strange
markings carved into it,

markings which,
when later translated,

were believed to read:

"Forty feet below,
two million pounds are buried."

When the stone
was first removed,

it seemed to trigger
a booby trap

which flooded the Money Pit,

a situation
that continues to plague

that area of the island
to this day.

You know,
I'd really like to get back

to the bookbindery
and take another look.

I feel like when we were
in the basement there

and exploring around,
that we never fully got

under all of the foundation
of the bookbindery itself.

I don't think we did.

ALEX: This photo
is the last known location

-of the 90 Foot Stone.
-KEL: This is it.

And we're looking at it,
I can tell right now.

-Right there.
-That's it.

NARRATOR: Two years ago,
Doug and Charles,

along with Alex Lagina,

visited the Nova Scotia
College of Art and Design

in nearby Halifax,

the place where
the 90 Foot Stone

was last seen
nearly 100 years ago.

They were hoping to find,
if not the actual stone,

information that might lead
to its current whereabouts.

DOUG: Careful
of the debris on the floor.

ALEX:
Yeah. Geez, look at this place.

NARRATOR: But after searching
through a virtual maze

of basement corridors
and crawl spaces,

they found no sign
of the mysterious artifact.

ALEX:
I think it's a bust.

If we can bring
the 90 Foot Stone back home,

-that would be a good day.

-Mm-hmm.
-Yep.

I think it'd be worth
contacting the bookbindery

-and have another look.
-Yeah.

About time I made that call.

CHARLES: We'll lock up
and get out of here.

JACK:
Let's get back to work.

owing his review
of operations at Smith's Cove,

Rick Lagina,
along with Dave Blankenship

and geophysical engineer
John Wonnacott,

travel some 20 miles southwest

to the town
of Bridgewater, Nova Scotia.

There's Rhodes Corner Quarry.

They have come to check out
an industrial-sized wash plant,

one they hope will be able
to process the massive amount

of spoils that
will be dredged up

during the excavation
of Smith's Cove.

I mean, we know
that Smith's Cove presents...

certainly,
a variety of problems.

One of which is:
how do you process

such a huge volume of material?

And the hope is that this is
something that we may be able

to utilize
as part of our process.

RICK:
That's the machine, I take it?

BILLY:
That's the machine, yep.

Can you just give us a basic
rundown of the operation?

I mean, I get the point--
the material goes in the hopper.

But then exactly what happens?

Well, it is very simple, Rick.

You put it in the hopper,
like you said.

It kicks it up at that point,
and it takes it up

to the screener deck, and
it does the screening process

-as they are shaking.
-RICK: Do you think

you can get this started for us,
so we could take a look at it?

-I can start it up if you want.
-Yep.

♪ ♪

(engine starts)

(loud rumbling)

NARRATOR: As each load
of excavated material,

or "spoils,"
is fed into the hopper,

they will be transported
by way of a conveyor belt,

up and into a heavy-duty grate

which will filter out
any large rocks or debris.

The remaining spoils
are then distributed

onto two separate shaker decks

where they are then sorted
according to size.

Soil and bits of sediment
are literally shaken off,

as a series
of fixed spray nozzles

wash the spoils clean.

They are then deposited
into uniform piles

that will be further examined
by hand for possible artifacts

or, hopefully,
evidence of treasure.

(engine turns off)

RICK: We can't do it
as we have done before,

hand-washing the material.

The volume of material is
far too great.

It's very simple--
the wash plant will allow us

to move material, wash it,

and then get Gary Drayton
to metal-detect it.

I'll be honest, I think we
should pull the trigger on this.

I think we should really do it
and get it set up

-and get going.
-Yeah.

I know one thing--
Gary Drayton's gonna be

-on a pogo stick.
-Yeah.
-(laughter)

NARRATOR:
Later that same day...

GARY:
Just here now, please.

Alex Lagina and Peter Fornetti,

along with metal detection
expert Gary Drayton,

head to Lot 24,

located on the western side
of the island.

This lot's got a lot
of potential.

We'll follow you.

Now that the wooded lots

have been largely cleared
of brush,

Gary will be able to use his
metal detector to scan the area

in search of potentially
important artifacts.

And you can see
how thick this is.

Yep.

I mean, before,
you couldn't even swing

a metal detector in here.

Right.

Going through these areas

that were previously forested

and difficult
to metal-detect in,

we're really hoping
that this trip

is gonna net us
some pretty cool stuff.

(beeping)

GARY:
That sounds good.

Should be able to just clear it
and get closer to it.

(beeping)

(beeping)

(beeping)

(whispers):
Oh, man.

Oh, man, this is interesting.
Look at that.

-Whoo-hoo!
-ALEX: What's that?
-What is it?

That definitely looks
like a ramrod to me.

NARRATOR:
A ramrod? An object used

in the loading
of muskets and early r*fles?

PETER: How old
do you think this would be?

If that's a ramrod to,
like, a Brown Bess musket,

that would put it
at late 1700s, early 1800s.

ALEX:
Wow.

NARRATOR:
From the early 18th...

-MAN: Fire!
-to mid-19th centuries,

the Land Pattern musket--
nicknamed "Brown Bess"--

was standard issue among
members of the British army.

Holy smokes.

Look at these.

These are all British coppers.

-All in one spot?
-Yep.
-Yeah.

NARRATOR:
In the past two years,

Gary and the team have found

a number of artifacts
on Lot 24,

including British musket balls
and uniform buttons,

which indicate
that Oak Island was once used

as an 18th century
m*llitary encampment,

probably during the time
of the American Revolution.

GARY:
Oh, man, that's sweet.

We'll show that to Laird.

Right.

See if there's
anything else in the area.

(beeping)

GARY:
Yeah, we can't pass on this one.

ALEX:
Okay.

(beeping)

(electronic squealing)

ALEX:
Under a rock?

(beeping)

GARY:
Just to the side of it.

-I'll use my little trowel.
-(beeping)

(beeping)

Wow, that...
that's a freaking bone!

That's a bone, isn't it?

ALEX:
Yeah, it looks like it.

GARY:
Wow. Keep that to one side.

See if there's
any more in there.

NARRATOR:
If the bone is determined

to be of human origin,
it could be

one of the team's
most significant finds.

It could provide
an important clue

as to who was on the island

prior to the discovery
of the Money Pit in 1795.

GARY: Is that a bone as well,
or is that a rock?

Oh, a pottery!
A piece of pottery!

-Really?
-Yeah!

-ALEX: Oh, yeah.
-GARY: Wow.

Now we're getting interesting.

A bone and a bit
of blue-glazed pottery.

-'Cause this is the old stuff.
-Yeah.

Pretty confident saying this is
more than likely early 1700s.

-ALEX: You think so?
-Yeah.

NARRATOR:
Pottery?

Possibly from the early 1700s?

And found buried
with a piece of bone?

Prior to the discovery
of the Money Pit,

not much is known
about the history of Oak Island

or details about
the area's early inhabitants.

In addition
to the indigenous peoples--

known as the Mi'kmaq--
Portuguese and Spanish sailors

were known
to frequent the waters

of Nova Scotia's Mahone Bay
as early as the 16th century.

Later visitors included
the French and English,

many of whom settled here
and began to develop Oak Island

as a place for farming
and grazing livestock.

If the bone
and pottery fragments

can be definitively dated

to some time
before the late 1700s,

it could give insight not only
to who may have inhabited

Oak Island
hundreds of years ago

but what they were doing here.

Wha...? Ooh! Look at that!

This is crazy-- we've got
this high-tech metal detector...

ALEX:
Yeah, we would've missed this.

...and then we're putting
our hands in the hole

pulling out old pottery.

ALEX: Gary's reaching
into this-this hole

that we've dug,

looking for a metal object.

Next thing you know, he's
pulling out shards of pottery

from the hole-- every handful,
it seems like, that he's

pulling out of this hole, he's
finding something significant.

And we haven't even found
the metal object yet.

-(beeping)
-All right, let's see
what else is in here.

-(beeping)
-Yeah, I'm on it.

It's definitely there.

Where the heck is it?

Must be deeper.

(beeping)

Oh. I see something.

-ALEX: Oh, great.
-Yep. What the heck is that?

That looks like a little latch,
doesn't it, to a door?

-ALEX: It does, yeah.
-PETER: Oh, yeah.

This is nice.
I mean, look at this

-as a group.
-Yes. Yep, all in the same area.

GARY: What these different
pieces of materials tell me,

I believe this is a new site.

And that
would really be fantastic.

-Yeah. Call Uncle Rick?
-Yep.

I think with the potential
British m*llitary encampment

so close by on the island,

it's totally possible
that we've actually found

a little bit more evidence that
maybe this part of the island

was a staging point
for something else,

and, potentially,
even the original works.

In this fresh territory, we're
thinking this is potentially

another game changer.

(line ringing)

Hey. I'm out here
with Gary and Alex.

We found something
pretty interesting.

We're on Lot 24.

-Awesome.
-Okay, mate.

RICK:
Hey, guys, where are you?

Over here!

NARRATOR:
After discovering

what could be
a significant new search site,

Alex Lagina has asked
his uncle, Rick Lagina,

to come and examine
the team's recent finds.

ALEX:
We've got some good stuff here.

Check this out.
We put 'em on a rock

so that we could keep 'em...
separate.

So, this all came out
of that hole right there.

-Really?
-Yeah. This is

what we were
originally digging for.

-What looked like a...
-GARY: An old latch.

...an old door latch
or something.

RICK: It's a curious...
and eclectic number of finds.

-I mean, that's
quite remarkable.
-Yeah.

RICK: It's significant, because
we've just been able to access

the entirety of Lot 24

by this mulching program
we've undertaken,

and Gary can finally
get into these areas,

which have been inaccessible
all these years. It's exciting.

So we thought
we would stop digging here

and maybe get Laird.

-RICK: Yeah, I think
you did the right thing.
-Yeah.

I think we need
to move off of here

-Yeah.
-and let Laird render
an opinion.

NARRATOR:
Although the team would like

to continue searching
for artifacts on Lot 24,

they are required
by the province

to suspend
further exploration of the area

until they are joined

by authorized archaeologist
Laird Niven.

It'll be interesting
to see what Laird thinks.

Yep. We'll bag it up.

(wind whistling)

♪ ♪

NARRATOR:
The next morning...

(horn honks)

Here it comes.

RICK: Oh, yeah. That would be
the wash plant proper.

...Rick Lagina joins
Craig Tester at Smith's Cove

to supervise
the arrival of the new

50-ton wash plant.

It's a beast.

RICK:
Yes, it is.

Oh, my God, what an armada.

What's different
about Smith's Cove

is there's important
information there.

We have to be able
to process this material

as effectively and efficiently
as possible.

Without this plant,
I think we're dead in the water.

Hey, Billy.

-How you doing?
-CRAIG: Good.

RICK:
So, what's the plan?

How do you intend
to lay this out?

So, that truck will
pull in first,

and we'll unload the conveyors
next, then the, the, uh,

wash plant will come off last.

BOTH:
Okay.

NARRATOR: For generations
of treasure hunters,

Smith's Cove has been
the starting place

for the entire
Oak Island mystery.

It is here that a baffling
network of stone box drains

were discovered in 1850,

and although their purpose
is still not entirely known,

the box drains are believed
to be the entrance point

for the ocean water that fuels

the booby-trapped
flood tunnels.

It is also
at Smith's Cove where

Rick Lagina and Gary Drayton
made what is arguably

one of the team's
most important discoveries,

a lead cross.

One that eerily
matches a carving

that Rick found on the wall

of a 14th century
Templar prison last year.

This is what we've come to call
the Templar cross.

NARRATOR: If the elaborate
wash system is successful

at retrieving more
important artifacts

during their excavation
of Smith's Cove,

then all of the hard work and
millions of dollars invested

will have been worth it.

Billy, how long do you think
it's gonna take

to put this all together?

I would think that this week
should put it all in place.

Well, we'll see what
Smith's Cove has for us,

whether it's gold or...

-Yeah. What other hidden secrets
are in there, right?
-Yeah.

It's exciting, but it's-it's
gonna be a lot of work.

-It's a lot of work.
-A lot of work, but it's a...

a good plan,
and-and just implement it

-and get going.
-Yup.

-Absolutely.
-Okay.

-Okay. Sounds good.
-We got our marching orders.
Thanks.

NARRATOR:
As the team begins assembling

the massive wash plant
at Smith's Cove...

JACK: I tend to believe
the 90 Foot Stone has to be

somewhere in Nova Scotia still.

I still believe
it's out there somewhere.

NARRATOR: Oak Island historians
Doug Crowell

and Charles Barkhouse,

along with Jack Begley,
head to Halifax,

back to the site
of the bookstore

where the 90 Foot Stone
was last seen.

It is now the home
of the Nova Scotia College

of Art and Design,

otherwise known as "NSCAD."

Here's why the 90 Foot Stone
is so important

to the Oak Island mystery.

It was one of the earliest
artifacts described

right from the beginning
of the hunt,

and it stands as a message
of some kind

from the original diggers.

Exactly.

So that's why it's important.
If we can find it

and we can determine
what the characters really were,

then it will help us
determine what message

they were trying to impart.

So we have a little bit
of a hunt on our hands today.

Yeah.

JACK: This is it
right up here, right?

DOUG:
Yeah.

CHARLES:
Yes. Yes, it is.

Where do you want to start?

Go up and see Joe.
See this, Jack?

This was the old bookbindery
right here.

Yeah, right here. This is it.

Well, this looks exactly
like the bookbindery picture

that I saw.

One of those two windows
is where the stone

would have been displayed
back when it was a bookbindery.

NARRATOR:
According to reports,

the so-called 90 Foot Stone

was taken to the city
of Halifax in 1865,

where it was put on display

in the window of the Creighton
& Marshall's bookstore,

in an effort to draw investors

to the Oak Island
treasure hunt.

But when the
combination bookstore

and bookbindery closed in 1919,

the stone seemed to vanish
without a trace.

Well, let's get in there
and see what we can find.

Hi, good to see you again.

-Great to see you again.
-Yes.

-Good to see you, Joe.
-Hey, Joe.

-Well, here we are.
-Yes. Again.

Yes.

DOUG: As I was telling you on
the phone, you know, I just feel

we haven't really explored
all of the basement.

It's a real maze down there,
that's for sure.

DOUG:
Yeah, it sure was,

but we didn't find the stone.

I'd really like
to get down there

and explore and see if
we can get in under

the actual bookbindery itself.

Okay, well, let's have a look.

-Awesome.
-Lead on.

So, how big is, like,
the bookbindery?

'Cause... did it
used to be much larger?

No... it was about this size,

but on the other side
of the building.

Yeah, and it was back more
in line with the gray unit here.

Well, why are we
going down here?

Well, the basement-- entrance
to the basement starts here

and then moves, uh, north.

You'll see when we
get down there, Jack,

it's really hard
to get your bearings.

Like, you'll get disoriented
pretty quick.

JACK: I think there is
a really good chance

that Doug's correct,
that the 90 Foot Stone

is hidden somewhere at NSCAD.

It's worth at least
a second try

because to be able to bring
one of the major pieces

of this puzzle
back to the island

would be really rewarding.

-DOUG: Ooh.
-JACK: Oh, this looks creepy.

CHARLES:
What do we got here, Joe?

We have a series of basements
underneath the, uh,

where the bookbindery
would have been.

So we're directly under
the bookbindery right now?

Yes, that should,
this should be the space.

We-we haven't been
in here before.

No, this doesn't look
familiar at all.

-No. No, this is a...
-I'm going down.

-Shall we have a look, Jack?
-Yeah.

OR: At the Nova Scotia
College of Art and Design

in the city of Halifax...

DOUG:
Oh, man, be careful.

There's all kinds of stuff
all over the floor down here.

...Jack Begley,
Charles Barkhouse,

and Doug Crowell

are exploring the basement
of the building

where Oak Island's
infamous 90 Foot Stone

was last seen
more than 100 years ago.

JACK:
That's really creepy.

Geez.

JACK: This is
a really gross basement.

It's musty.
There's cobwebs everywhere.

I mean everywhere--
covering the walls,

covering everything.

Oops.

And there's a lot
of just forgotten stuff.

I don't remember us
being in here at all.

No. We weren't in any
crawl spaces like this.

No, this is not familiar at all.

There's a crawl space back here.

There's a stone
back here, but...

it's definitely not big enough.

DOUG: That building seems
to be ever-changing.

We've been looking
through the basement,

and again, there's new
additions, new partitions.

It really is like a maze,
and we haven't found the spot

I feel is directly under
the bookbindery yet,

but, uh, we're gonna
keep looking.

You see anything, Doug?

No. Rock wall
and lots of old brick.

This corner's kind of
interesting, though,

'cause it looks like it
might've been open at one time.

Yeah, there's a lot
of loose brick right there.

There's a lot
of wires here, Charles.

Just make sure
you don't come in contact

-with a bare one or something.
-Oh, God. I know.

Anything interesting, Jack?

Yeah, there's a bunch
of spiderwebs over here.

There's spiderwebs everywhere.

There's junk everywhere.
You can tell

no one's been down in this part
of the basement

for a really, really long time.

Hey, guys. You seeing
anything yet?

-Watch out for rats.
-That's for sure.

(creaking)

What was that?

(chittering)

I think something
just crawled back there.

NARRATOR: As Jack, Doug, and
Charles continue their search

for the 90 Foot Stone,

Marty Lagina returns
to Oak Island,

eager to get a first-hand look
at the team's progress

while he was away.

MARTY: All right, Rick,
I've been gone a long time.

What did you accomplish?

Everything is in place
right now.

MARTY:
I'm just back on the island,

and I'm very eager to see

what's been accomplished
in Smith's Cove.

The guys have done a lot
since I've been gone,

so I want to put
my own eyes on it.

MARTY: All right, well, I guess
things have changed here, Rick.

-Whoa!
-Yup.

MARTY:
Whoa-ho-ho!

-Wait till you see it.
-I do see it.

No, no, you don't.

-Wowzer, wowzer, wowzer.
-Not until you walk
in the crane pad

-will you...
-No, that is really cool.

'Cause we're at mid-tide.

-Look at that.
-Mm-hmm.

(chuckles):
Not since Moses has the water

been held back so well.

-Wait till you stand
up there, though.
-Very impressive.

You'll not know the scope of it.

Very impressive.

I say we're ready to dig.

We could hold off the pirates
with this thing.

I knew the cofferdam
was gonna be a massive project,

but when I came down that hill
and saw it,

I really thought, "Wow,
that is quite a structure."

And I know Rick did an enormous
amount of work to perfect it.

It's very impressive.

You know, when you get out here,

it looks a lot bigger,
doesn't it?

Back there it looks
like a small area.

RICK:
Yeah.

Just stand here.

Stand here.

Oh, yeah.

-Water out there.
-Mm-hmm.

MARTY:
Man, you've done a lot of work.

Yep. We all have.

MARTY:
This is gonna be fun,

but it is going to dish up
a load of problems.

RICK:
Problems are easily dealt with.

It's the surprises and the finds

and the story of what
that U-shaped structure is,

what's underneath it,

what we might find
in association with it.

Every time
we do something out here,

-it's amazing what
the people before us did.
-Mm-hmm.

-'Cause they didn't have
any of this... these resources.
-Nope.

NARRATOR:
In the early 1970s,

Oak Island resident and veteran
treasure hunter Dan Blankenship

conducted his own large-scale
excavation of Smith's Cove.

It was then,
while searching for evidence

of the legendary
flood tunnel box drains,

that Dan made an unusual
and astonishing find:

a 65-foot-long
wooden U-shaped structure

located some ten feet deep.

And on it were carved a series
of Roman numerals.

But before Dan
could carefully examine

his mysterious new discovery,

severe storms
destroyed the cofferdam

and once again buried
the U-shaped structure.

It hasn't been seen since.

Quite a project
you got going here,

big brother.

We. We have a project, yes.

NARRATOR: As Rick and Marty
finish their inspection

of the cofferdam
at Smith's Cove,

some 50 miles northeast
of Oak Island...

I think this crawl space
has been a catchall

for things for decades.

...Jack Begley,
Charles Barkhouse,

and Doug Crowell
continue their search

for evidence
of the so-called 90 Foot Stone.

-Anything, Jack?
-Oh, I'm headed back over
towards you guys.

I'm not seeing anything
except for just old junk.

Lots of broken glass on the...
on the ground, too, guys.

Oh, look at that, guys.

I think we've got something
over here.

What do you think that is?

-JACK: Look at that.
-DOUG: Man, if that isn't close

to two feet,
I don't know what is.

JACK:
Does it have any markings on it?

DOUG:
Oh, look.

There's something carved there.

It's a stone close
to the right dimensions.

-Close your eyes, Jack.
-All right.

(blows)

There's a... there's a couple
of letters, by the looks of it.

(blowing)

Charles, it looks to me
like an L.N.

-L.N.
-Charles, it's even got
rounded corners.

There's no sharp corners
on this thing.

CHARLES:
This may be the stone.

CHARLES:
Let's get this up on the deck.

JACK:
All right.

-DOUG: You ready?
Yep.

I'm ready.

CHARLES:
Here we go.

RICK: The reason why
we actually did bring

-a Cat rental unit here...
-Hi, guys.

-Hey, guys.
-Hey.

DAVE: What the hell
are you lugging in here now?

CHARLES: We got
a little something to show you.

MARTY: Wow.
It doesn't look very little.

-DAVE: Little something?
-CHARLES: A little something.

RICK: Looks like
a little heavy something.

-MARTY: Heavy something.
-PAUL: That's a big something.

-DOUG: Quite heavy.
-Whoa.

Holy smokes.

All right, we're ready.

Can I touch it?

-It's a smooth rock.
-(man laughs)

-What am I supposed
to be seeing?
-CHARLES: Doug?

Well, gentlemen,
this particular stone

came from the bookbindery
in Halifax.

It was in a crawl space

in the NSCAD building right
where it was supposed to be,

in my opinion,
because I do think

that this is the stone
that Bowdoin saw

in the bookbindery.

The one... Wait a second.

The 90 Foot Stone?

The supposed 90 Foot Stone.

Well, where's
all the inscriptions?

-DAVE: There was writing on it.
-Right.

Remember what Bowdoin wrote
about it in 1911.

He wrote
that he had saw the stone,

that the inscription
was worn off of it

due to b*ating leather on it in
the book-- in the bookbindery.

So supposedly the symbols
were worn off it.

NARRATOR:
In 1909,

upon hearing reports
that the 90 Foot Stone

was on display
in a Halifax bookstore,

Oak Island treasure hunter
Captain Henry L. Bowdoin

traveled there
to see it firsthand.

He was hoping that,
by finding the original stone

and carefully examining the
carved symbols and markings,

he might be able to find clues
in the stone

that had been
previously overlooked.

Unfortunately, when he arrived,
he was horrified to discover

that the stone was being used
as a slab

for b*ating and cutting leather

and that years
of repeated blows

from the bookbinder's hammer

had left the inscription
so damaged

that it was
almost completely worn away.

The only carvings on the stone
that Bowdoin could make out

were the initials "L" and "N,"

but nothing similar
to the symbols

that had earlier been reported.

Bowdoin left the bookbindery

both disappointed
and empty-handed.

How long between
when it was found,

and how long was it beaten on
to get...

Because it would take a lot
to get rid

-of carvings.
-Yeah.

The literature says
they weren't deeply carved...

Mm-hmm.

...even when they first found
the stone.

-E-Etched or lightly engraved.
-Yeah.

DOUG: But Bowdoin said
there were only two initials

-left on it that he could see
at that time.
-MARTY: Mm-hmm.

And if you look right there,
gentlemen,

you'll see
two well-carved initials.

MARTY:
L.N.? Is this an "L"?

DOUG:
That's right.

It has the appearance of a L.N.

-RICK: That's interesting.
-DOUG: Yeah.

-Well, sounds good so far.
-Yeah.

The statement said
it was close to 200 pounds.

I'm pretty sure it's close
to 200 pounds. Isn't it, Jack?

The other things that he said

in his statement about the stone

was that it was flat
on two sides,

that it had rounded corners,

that it was
about ten inches thick,

about 15 inches wide,
and about two feet long.

The dimensions
are almost exactly.

RICK:
Is it indigenous to Nova Scotia?

If it's not,
that's very interesting.

Because if you're gonna get
a replica,

you're gonna get a stone,

-a local stone.
-Exactly.

MARTY:
What they brought in

fits a lot of the descriptions
of the stone.

RICK: It checks all the boxes:
same size, same dimension,

same weight.

There appear to be
some very faint carvings

in the face of the stone.

MARTY:
It could be the original stone.

It could be
a huge breakthrough.

It's exciting.
It's just the beginning.

Okay, well, do you know
that in Stonehenge,

just very recently,
they did some kind of laser?

And they found
all kinds of ancient carvings

that you can't see
with the naked eye.

-Is that right?
-Mm-hmm.

NARRATOR:
In 2002,

a team of researchers

from Wessex Archaeology
and Archaeoptics

in Salisbury, England,

conducted a high-tech
examination of Stonehenge.

Using high-resolution
laser scanners

capable of recording details
as small as half a millimeter,

they discovered
numerous carvings

that had been impossible
to detect with the naked eye.

Could this same technology

allow the team
to recover markings

on the suspected 90 Foot Stone

that could help them find
the Oak Island treasure?

MARTY:
There are techniques

used at Stonehenge
that can find carvings

that have been obliterated.
You can see where they were.

Look, we tracked down a stone
that was seen

-almost 100 years ago.
-That's true.

That's encouraging.

This is a real mystery,

and we're trying to apply
hard science to it

and a real science
with real professionals,

and I think this begets that.

There is information out there.
We just have to find it.

-Can we see
if we can have that done?
-Yeah, we need to.

-That would be interesting.
-See if there's any remains?

-DOUG:
Because there are so many marks.
-MARTY: Yeah.

If that really is
the 90 Foot Stone,

and if we can apply
some technology

and actually see
the inscription,

I'm gonna be pretty excited.

And let's get Laird
to look at it.

-Yes.
-RICK: Absolutely.

Scanned over the top of this.

RICK: No question about it,
and I would

-like a geologist.
-DOUG: Yeah.

RICK:
I think there's a consensus

this is the stone
that was in the bookstore...

MARTY: Which means it could be
the 90 Foot Stone.

CHARLES:
Oh, absolutely.

NARRATOR:
The next morning...

RICK:
Let's take a look.

...Rick Lagina and Craig Tester

head to Smith's Cove.

They are eager to see
if efforts to drain

the newly enclosed area
have been successful.

RICK:
All right.

Cross your fingers.

NARRATOR:
Once dry,

the team will be able
to safely excavate the cove

in hopes of rediscovering the
mysterious U-shaped structure.

CRAIG:
It doesn't look too bad.

This is high tide, right?

RICK:
This is high tide.

Well, remember what it looked
like at low tide.

CRAIG: Yeah.
It looks quite a bit the same.

Oh, look at that.

Right here, too.

Pouring through there.

NARRATOR: What Rick and Craig
have noticed

is not a good sign.

Any leak, no matter how small,
will force the team

to shut down the entire
Smith's Cove operation.

That's not going to work.

It seems like

all the water's coming
in right there, doesn't it?

Just those two alone
introduce a lot of water.

That one's significant,
right there.

We've got three major leaks.

We see several locations
in the sheet pile works

where water is literally flowing
in, uh, at a substantial rate.

Almost all of them are leaking.

If you look at where the
watermark is coming through.

You can't be de-watering this
every single day.

No, not that much.

I expected some water coming in,

-for sure, but...
-I didn't expect that.

CRAIG:
No. No, that's pouring in there.

NARRATOR: Finding what now
appears to be several leaks

in what was supposed to be
a watertight barrier

is a devastating development

for Rick, Marty,
and their partners.

It could mean that,
after one year of planning

and more than one million
dollars invested,

the operation at Smith's Cove
is over before it begins.

We're severely compromised

if we fail to staunch
the incoming water.

I mean, it's just,
it's... we can't proceed.

You cannot do a dig
at the U-shaped structure

and properly expose it.

If we're chest-high
in liquid mud,

it's just not gonna happen.

But there certainly is
a significant problem

at this point.

It's a call.
We have to call Mike and see how

-we can address this.
-Yeah.

-We can't function like this.
-No.

(wind gusting)

NARRATOR: Shortly after
the devastating discovery

that the steel cofferdam
at Smith's Cove has developed

a large number of leaks,

Rick Lagina and his partner
Craig Tester

have placed an emergency call
to representatives

from Irving Equipment, Limited.

MIKE J. (over phone):
Hello.

RICK:
Hey, good morning, Mike.

This is, uh, Rick and Craig.

We did as you suggested. Uh,

we did run the perimeter inside
and out, and there is...

there's more than a few
of what we consider to be

substantial leaks.

Well, any kind of leaks,
there was over 30.

Um, and more significant ones,
this is coming inward,

there was, like, five or six,

but that was what we could see
above the water level.

We don't know how many were
below the water level.

RICK:
The prime directive,

as you well know, Mike, was
to get it as dry as possible.

We can't be down there

and, you know, dig ten feet deep

and have water sloshing
around our hips.

I mean, it just can't happen.

Uh, we're wondering
if there's some way

that, you know,
you can address that.

It's the typical
emotional roller coaster ride

on Oak Island, right?

It's, it's, um,
beyond frustrating,

beyond disappointing. It-it...

But it just is,
and you have to deal with it,

and you have to move on.

NARRATOR:
With applications

ranging from common
home repairs

to commercial construction
and manufacturing,

silicone is a rubber-like
adhesive capable of creating

a flexible bond.

It is also highly resistant
to water,

friction
and extreme temperatures.

On the face of the lock,
not down the lock.

Right.

Well, we appreciate you
working with us, Mike.

I mean, we're quite
inexperienced in this arena,

so we're relying
on your expertise.

-All right. Thank you, Mike.
-CRAIG: Thank you, Mike.

-Take care, bye.
-MIKE J.: Thanks.

NARRATOR:
The next morning,

Rick Lagina,
along with his nephews

Alex Lagina and Peter Fornetti,

join metal detection expert
Gary Drayton

and archaeologist
Laird Niven on Lot 24.

-Okay.
-Here we are.
-Here we are.

So, this is what we found,

and, uh, we had
a metal detector hit here

and we started investigating,
looking for the metal object.

-Yeah.
-Pretty soon we started seeing

little chunks of other things
in the dirt

that he had pulled out,
which is in this bag here.

GARY: Every time I put
my hand in the hole,

pulled it back out,

there was something else
interesting

-in the area.
-LAIRD: Okay. Yeah.

ALEX: So, we've got a few
different kinds of pottery.

GARY: Yeah, there's glazed
and unglazed pottery in there.

Yeah. Yeah, so that's
hand-painted pearl ware.

-So that's 1780s.
-ALEX: Okay.

That's nice.
That's what we like to see.

That's like a little bit earlier
than the other stuff

-we've been seeing. Yeah.
-Yeah.

And there's this metal object
that we ended up finding.

I'm not sure exactly
what to make of that.

-(clears throat)
-I thought that was probably
like a latch.

LAIRD: Yeah, so it means
it's decorative iron, right?

-It's been twisted.
-Yeah.

So, this does make
your toes tingle?

-Yeah, absolutely.
-(chuckling)

(chuckles): It does. It does.

NARRATOR: Although the ultimate
goal of the Oak Island team

is not to find pottery
and pieces of antique metal,

they are hoping that,
by carefully searching for

and examining
man-made artifacts,

they can piece together
a virtual timeline

of what might have happened
on Oak Island

prior to the discovery
of the Money Pit in 1795.

So far,

the team has found evidence
not only of British

but also French and Spanish
activity on Oak Island

dating as far back
as the 17th century.

-It's a variety of finds.
-Yeah.

And that's
what made it interesting.

And we can feel rocks in there.
So, who knows

-what else is in the hole?
-RICK: I haven't explored

that at all or put my hand down
there, but you're indicating

-there's a substantial amount
of rock in there.
-Yeah.

Why-why would that be?

LAIRD:
It could, in theory, be a well.

I mean, there's only one way to
find out-- is to delineate it.

-RICK: I think we're all
intrigued enough to-to wonder

-what else is down there.
-No, absolutely. I mean, it's...

-it's seemingly
in the middle of nowhere.
-ALEX: Right, right.

So, how-how would
you grid it out?

LAIRD: I'd clean it off first,
and then we delineate

a one-meter
by two-meter kind of grid.

-Yeah.
-So why don't we--
why don't we do that very thing?

-Okay.
-Do you want to stay here
and start this process?

-LAIRD: Sure. Sounds good.
-ALEX: Cool.
-RICK: All right.

-Yeah, mate. See you in a bit.
-All right.
-Good luck.

All right. Thank you.

RICK:
Lead on, guys.

RRATOR: While area
archaeologist, Laird Niven,

begins to carefully excavate
the mysterious site on Lot 24,

brothers Rick and Marty Lagina

head to the w*r room,

where they have called
an important meeting

with members
of their Oak Island team.

MARTY: Well, gents,
I have had the opportunity

to make contact with
an incredibly well-credentialed

person in the field of seismic
and actually

a whole bunch of other stuff.

His name is Travis Taylor.

And to that end,

Charles, hit the screen.

Travis,

uh, you are now in the w*r room.

-Welcome.
-Wow, thanks.

Nice to see you guys.

Why don't you give 'em,
real briefly,

what your background is.

Right, okay.
Well, uh,

I've worked
with the, uh, aerospace

and-and defense industry
and the intelligence community

for, you know, 25 years.

Pretty much
since I was a teenager.

NARRATOR: Dr. Travis Taylor
is an astrophysicist

and aerospace engineer
with degrees

in the fields
of optical sciences,

quantum physics, and astronomy.

He has also spent
more than two decades

working closely with
the United States government

on numerous classified programs
for both NASA

and the Department of Defense.

So, uh,
I like to solve problems.

Uh, in fact, that's what I do--

is, uh, I find hard problems
and solve them and--

or at least attempt to.

-And...
-Well, you've found one.

-(chuckling)
-TRAVIS: Yeah, this looks

like a very interesting
conundrum. And, uh,

I've kind of watched
what you guys have done,

and I know you've done,
uh, one seismic test

and some ground-penetrating
radar.

RICK:
Yeah, we ran

EM61s, we ran Megs,

we ran, um... GPR.

-Right.
-You know, we've had problems

interpreting the data.

Yeah. Not-not real happy
with the data.

Okay.

Ready to go?

-Roger.
-Here it comes.

NARRATOR:
Earlier this year,

the Laginas and their partners

commissioned Eagle Canada,

a geophysical
exploration company,

to conduct
extensive seismic testing

on Oak Island.

The process involved
the detonation

of more
than 1,500 dynamite charges,

which sent shockwaves
deep into the earth.

After these waves
were carefully

recorded and measured...

This anomaly here--
very interesting.

...the team was presented
with a virtual map

of possible tunnels,
chambers, and anomalies

that might lie as much
as 200 feet deep underground.

Is that consistent
with a chamber?

-Yeah, it is.
-Wow.

-Oh, whoa!
-CRAIG: Oh, that's
definitely vertical.

Oh, that's a whole piece!

I think you hit
the tunnel from Shaft Six.

NARRATOR: Although the seismic
maps have led the team

to discover
incredible new evidence,

the precise whereabouts
of the treasure vault

remains a mystery.

I mean, it's all been
valuable data, but...

-but none of it has unlocked
the riddle like we wanted to.
-Not-- Right.

-It's not yielded
the results that we sought.
-Yeah.

It's all about information.
I was hoping we would get

some relevant information.

And it's not done yet,

so that's the hope.

MARTY:
We're kind of eager to know

what you think you might be able
to help us with.

Well, uh, I have worked
on a seismic program before.

If I could get a look
at the seismic data

that you guys have taken,

maybe we can compile it and do
something called data fusion,

where we use all the sensors
and compile

that information together.
Sometimes

it shows you something
that you don't realize is there.

MARTY:
I'll tell you right now, I--

if you're willing to help us,

or at least try to help us,

um, I don't see...

We-We'd be foolish not to.

Yeah. It's like bringing in
a team, with all his degrees.

(laughter)

Well, you know,
I can't promise anything,

'cause it's possible that
there's nothing in the data,

-right?
-Yeah, I understand.

No, listen, I would have
discounted you right away

if you promised me anything
on Oak Island.

(laughter)

Seismic has not worked so far,

in terms of results,
but we hope

to refine it,

give it another go, and...

you know, see if we can--

-see if we can get something.
-Oh, yes.

Okay, well, I think we--
I think we have a plan here.

-TRAVIS: Okay.
-And we thank you
for wanting to be involved.

Oh, well, I appreciate you guys
giving me the opportunity,

-and maybe we can find
something.
-Yep. Perfect.

-Thank you.
-Thank you very much.

-See you guys.
-MARTY: Thank you. Bye.
-RICK: Bye.

Well, that's great. Um, you
know, look forward to the data.

But, um, let's get back to work.

Yeah.

NARRATOR: Following his meeting
in the w*r room...

-RICK:
Hope he's found something.
-PETER: Yeah.

...Rick Lagina and his nephew,
Peter Fornetti,

return to Lot 24.

RICK:
You've been busy.

Hey. Yeah.

How's the process coming?

Well, lots of rocks.

RICK:
Does it go that way

-or does it end?
-I ended at the trees.

Goes further that way,
and there's a rock...

just in here. There.

So you can see
the higher area here

was filled in,
and then the artifacts

we were finding
are from the later occupation.

RICK:
What is it telling you?

LAIRD:
Well, I think the fact that

you found artifacts means
that humans

were probably occupying
this place.

The larger stones
could be structural.

The smaller stones
could be fill.

So, it could be a shaft
or a tunnel that was filled in.

NARRATOR:
A shaft or tunnel?

Could the team have found
what was once the entrance

to secret man-made workings
underground?

But, if so, who built it
and for what purpose?

RICK: We're always looking
for clues, you know, about

underground work having been
done on this end of the island.

There's Dan's belief
and Fred's long-held belief

-that there was
extensive work done here.
-LAIRD: Right.

Right.

RICK: One of the rare times that
Dan Blankenship and Fred Nolan

were able to agree
on something,

they agreed on this:

that the underground workings
were very complex

and they were not limited
to the Money Pit.

They extended
into the western drumlin.

Here we now have Laird
indicating there is

a possibility that there's
an underground structure

here on the western drumlin.
I mean,

that's what we're looking for,
tunnels under Oak Island.

How would you approach it?
If we wanted

to explore this further,
i.e., deeper...

-Mm-hmm.
-how would we

go about that process
to see if it is

a-a shaft or a tunnel?

LAIRD: Probably try
to section it. That way,

we can see
the stratigraphy vertically.

And then proceed to record
and remove the rocks.

RICK:
I see.

So, right now,

-you're intrigued.
-Oh, absolutely.

PETER: So, the next step
is sending that off to get

-the permitting?
-Yeah,

-before you explore it
fur-further.
-Mm-hmm.

Yeah, I apply
for another permit.

RICK:
When Laird indicates to us that

he feels this is important,

that it needs to be
under his supervision,

that's a good thing,

because there's something
going on here.

What it is,
it's too early to say.

This could be
a significant find.

Yeah. It's certainly starting
off with more promise

than-than last year.

(wind blowing)

NARRATOR: After the discovery of
a possible tunnel on Lot 24...

-Hey, guys.
-Hello, Marty!
-Hey.

...Rick and Marty Lagina,

along with other members
of the Oak Island team,

gather at the Mug
and Anchor Pub

in nearby Mahone Bay.

RICK: So, the update is,
Laird explored the Lot 24 area.

He dug a site about--

it's about the size
of two tables.

And there's a substantial amount
of rock in the hole.

The majority of them
appear to be

laid or perhaps placed there.

And because
of what he has found,

he feels it's a-a tunnel.

MARTY:
A tunnel? To what?

RICK:
Well, we don't know yet.

But everything is good.

He will be back next week
to continue that dig,

and hopefully
we'll get some answers.

MARTY:
Well, if it gets

an archaeologist's attention,
it's clearly significant.

GARY:
And if those guys

hadn't have cleared
that track down there,

we would never have found that.

And we're finding new areas
on Oak Island,

undiscovered areas,
because of the clearing.

It certainly has opened up
the lots that you were--

-that were inaccessible before.
-And I haven't

finished yet. We have got
a lot of area to cover still.

Okay. Well, good.

Keep it coming.

Yeah.

MARTY:
This is a previously unknown,

ancient-- in the sense of at
least several hundred-year-old--

structure on Oak Island

that might be
archaeologically significant.

And the reason I say that
is because Laird thinks

it's archaeologically
significant.

His conjecture is that it
could be a tunnel of some sort.

So, he's going
to investigate it the way

archaeologists do--
that means with a trowel.

Uh, so it's gonna be a while
before we have answers there.

RICK: So, new information
coming every day.

MARTY:
Good.

One of these discoveries
is gonna be a breakthrough.

Yeah.

Thank you for the news, guys.

-To the hunt!
-(clinking)
-GARY: Cheers!

NARRATOR:
With a new day ahead of them,

Alex Lagina and Peter Fornetti
begin the process

of patching the massive steel
cofferdam at Smith's Cove.

Because the silicone-based
caulking compound

must be applied
on the ocean side

of the wall, Alex
and Peter need to work quickly

while the tide is low.

All right, Peter,

according to Uncle Rick, this is
leaking pretty bad out here.

So we're gonna go around
and caulk up all the seams here.

Maybe seal 'em off
a little bit better

and keep it a little dryer
in there.

All right.

I guess

if it looks inadequate,
then we'll hit it.

-PETER: Yep.
-'Cause we don't have
a lot of time out here.

I think most of it
is probably underground, but...

-The seepage?
-Yeah, but anything we can do

to slow it down is gonna help.

NARRATOR:
As Alex and Peter

continue caulking
the steel cofferdam...

MARTY:
Guys, I'm very pleased

to have Travis Taylor
with us today.

...brothers Rick
and Marty Lagina,

along with their partner
Craig Tester

and other members of
their Oak Island team, welcome

aerospace engineer
Dr. Travis Taylor

to the w*r room.
He has come

to present his findings
after reviewing

the underground seismic data

the team received
earlier this year.

So you've done
some investigative work,

-and you have some stuff
to show us, I understand.
-TRAVIS: Yeah, I do.

So, to start with, I'll, uh,
show you the analysis.

Now, uh, the seismic data
that you guys sent me,

there was a lot of it that was
kind of much ado about nothing.

Uh, so then I did some more
post-processing

on the data specifically
through the Money Pit area here,

and you can see clear anomalies

between 20 and 30 meters
of depth.

RICK:
When you say "clear anomaly,"

are you indicating vertical
structures?

Uh, there are, uh, vertical
striations in all of it,

uh, which suggests to me

that there might be some shafts
or voids

that are vertical along places.

CRAIG: When you say voids,
are you meaning an open area,

or just a density contrast from
a hard rock to, you know,

water, air,
or maybe just soft material?

TRAVIS: Yeah, so, from the data,
all I can really say is

it was a-a complete, uh,
opposite in densities.

-Okay.
-Right.

So I-I don't know
if it was granite

-or if it was empty, right?
-Right.

There's clearly something there.

-Mm-hmm.
-But all I can say is,

it's an anomaly in the density
of the material, right?

This anomaly here,
very interesting.

Is that consistent
with a chamber?

-Yeah. It is.
-Wow.

NARRATOR: Because seismic
scanning detected what appeared

to be a mysterious
underground chamber

located some 50 feet deep in
the so-called mega-bin area,

the team employed
sonic drilling

in an effort to find it.

I think I'm gonna have
to operate, Craig.

NARRATOR:
Unfortunately,

what everyone had hoped
was a man-made chamber

turned out to be nothing more
than a thick layer of sand.

TERRY: Oh, yeah.
It's just sandy till.

CRAIG: To me,
from a seismic standpoint,

this may be the anomaly
they were seeing.

At this point, it's no longer
science; it's an art.

And the artistry of seismic is
the interpretive.

It's a-a talent
and quite unique.

All right, so this is a-an idea
that I had

on how you might could search
the island

for voids, uh, underground.

I mean, if you look
at this chart,

there's a lot of uranium that's
found very close to the island.

Now, the key to that is,
when uranium decays,

you get a bunch of products
from it.

And radon is specifically
the one.

This is a way that we find
uranium on the moon,

and we've found it on Mars--
is looking for radon gas.

NARRATOR
Radon is a radioactive gas.

It forms in trace amounts
when deposits of uranium,

which is naturally found
in rocks and soil,

breaks down underground.

In recent years,
radon detection

has been used experimentally

as a way to map
subsurface features

in the energy and mining
industries.

TRAVIS: Well, the idea is,
if you have a void,

uh, under-underneath
the surface,

over time, the uranium
is gonna cause this to, uh,

fill with radon gas,

especially if there's no
ventilation in it, and...

This would occur in a
fluid-filled cavity, too?

Oh, absolutely.
It-- Actually,

radon is soluble
in most materials.

MARTY:
I think what we've learned

is that seismic
isn't gonna work

in the Money Pit area;
it's too jumbled up.

I always love when somebody
thinks of something

that had just
never occurred to me.

That's the best kind
of information there is.

And so, Travis Taylor came in
with a whole new perspective

on maybe how to find cavities
through radon testing,

and I don't know if we're gonna
have time for that this year

or not, but I'd like
to pursue that.

So, uh, as I started doing this,

I started reading more
about Oak Island

and-and looking at, uh,
what it's all about,

uh, I-I came up with sort of
my own theory

as to what may
have happened here.

Almost everybody
that's been involved

in investigating it
are Freemasons.

-Mm-hmm.
-Exactly.

NARRATOR
Beginning with Daniel McGinnis,

the man who first discovered
the Money Pit in 1795,

the ancient fraternity
of master builders

known as Freemasons
have played a large role

in the Oak Island
treasure story.

Prominent Masonic symbols,
such as the letter "G,"

which represents
the "Grand Architect,"

as well as the triangle
or pyramid,

have been found
on numerous carvings,

both in and around the island.

TRAVIS: So, I started looking
into the Freemasons,

and, uh, one of the first things
that jumped out at me

was, uh, Hiram Abiff's
Freemason Drawing Template.

There are actually meanings
on this map

that are based on astronomy.

NARRATOR: According to the
teachings of Freemasonry,

Hiram Abiff
was the chief architect

of King Solomon's Temple
in ancient Jerusalem.

His so-called
"drawing template"

is presented
to all Freemasons

who join the order's third
and highest degree.

It depicts many well-known
sacred images,

such as Jacob's Ladder
to the heavens,

and the Holy Grail.

So, if you continue to look at
this, uh, drawing table,

you see at the top,

the Hand of God is holding
a chalice,

or the Holy Grail
or the Cup of Life.

But what the Freemasons
used that as a symbol of

is "as above, so below."

-Right?
-Mm-hmm.

And you can, you can use that
metaphorical or whatever,

but if you use it literal, then
the way they would draw maps

is by "as above, so below."

The stars would be their guide

on how they created the map,
if they were gonna make one.

The star on the upper right
is actually-- if you count,

there are seven stars there.

It looks like the Pleiades,
which is part of Taurus.

I got to thinking,
is there something

that archaeoastronomy might have
to do with the island?

So I overlaid the constellation
on-on the island.

What we have are all of the
stars aligned onto the island,

and then we have the Pleiades
somewhere between the beach

and Frog Island,
and the point-star where that,

where this piece would be,

actually overlays perfectly
on Apple Island.

This is a star map.

NARRATOR:
A star map?

One matching the constellation
Taurus to points,

not only on Oak Island,
but two neighboring islands?

But, if so,
to what does it lead?

What it also suggests to me
is that we should see

if there might be points
of interest

where the stars are
from the constellation.

If we follow the right
procedure,

we might be led to the point

on Oak Island where
the actual treasure is.

So you think
there's something here?

You know, there's too much
history to it.

There's too much
anecdotal clues.

Somebody was
doing something here.

But what?
You know, I don't know.

What the hell was all
the works on Apple Island?

Well, it might be
a starting point.

It could be that

there's a clue there
that tells you how to start.

That could be where the key is.

A trail of information.

Absolutely. Right.

RICK: I don't know what to make
of the possible connection

between Oak Island
and Apple Island.

What does that mean?
I don't know.

Is it a potential target zone?
Absolutely.

There's a lot more that needs
to be done on that

if we are gonna pursue it.

Travis, thank you very much
for all of this data.

I mean, very interesting.

-Yeah, I've enjoyed it. Thanks.
-So let's do this, Travis.

Um, Gary,
if you're available, Jack,

let's take Travis, and we'll
show you around the island.

-So, let's go have a look.
-Oh, that sounds great.

ATOR: Following the team's
informative meeting

in the Oak Island w*r room,

Marty Lagina, Jack Begley
and Gary Drayton

take Dr. Travis Taylor over
to Lot 2,

located on the western side
of the island.

Travis, why don't we check out
your first target spot?

-Right here. Right, Jack?
-Okay.

Y-You have a better idea
of where Lot 1

-and 2 meet, do you not?
-Yeah.

Yeah, just a little bit further.

NARRATOR: They are eager
to investigate

various points on the island

that are indicated on what
Travis believes to be

a massive star map.

A map which may point
to important clues

that could help the team solve

the Oak Island
treasure mystery.

So which way is it?

-Follow him.
-Well, based upon your map,

Travis, you can very lightly see
the lot lines.

And it looks like the first star
would be located

near the lot line
between 3 and 2.

-Lead on, maestro.
-All right.

So, how do you know where
the lot line is?

-Is there a marker?
-Stone walls.

MARTY:
Travis Taylor is a bright guy.

He's a physicist
in many disciplines.

So when you add all that up,
he might be able

to bring a new perspective to
the hunt here on Oak Island.

Watch yourself here, mate.

We're getting into the deep part
of the lot.

JACK:
That rock wall right there,

that's the border
of Lot 2 and 3,

so it should be just on
the other side of that.

All right, it looks like we've
reached the destination

that you pointed out
on your map.

TRAVIS: Wow. With the moss, and
the mulch, and the underbrush,

it's real hard
to see anything, right?

On the map
you've created for us,

this is just a relative idea.

-At least a hundred-foot
air bar radius.
-Okay.

I'd say anything...

So... there's a huge boulder
over here.

JACK:
It could be a landmark.

-Well, we should look
at it, right?
-Yeah.

This is a big rock.

JACK:
That is a pretty big boulder.

MARTY: This boulder is actually
pretty close to your spot.

JACK:
I don't see any other

large boulders like this
around here.

TRAVIS:
Not just s-sitting there, right?

Well, that's interesting.

Yeah, the first point
that we came to,

there's a large boulder at.

That is intriguing.

GARY: So, we'll see if there's
a pattern develops

-when we go to the next place.
-Yeah, right?

-Right. Let's go do that.
-TRAVIS: All right,
let's do that.

NARRATOR:
Having found a stone marker

that appears to correspond with
one of the places indicated

on Travis's star map,

the team heads to
a second location

just south of
the Money Pit site.

MARTY: You're batting
a thousand, so far.

Ha.

One-one interesting spot,
one big boulder.

Yeah, right there.
This would be one of your spots.

There's the stone triangle on
the right-hand side.

Oh, yeah. Yeah, this is
one of the spots.

NARRATOR:
In 1897,

while exploring on the island's
southern shore,

treasure hunter,
Frederick Blair,

discovered a mysterious group
of round stones

that formed a perfect triangle.

Even more astonishing,
was the fact

that the apex of the triangle

pointed directly towards
the Money Pit.

Unfortunately, during a massive
excavation conducted

by treasure hunter
Robert Dunfield in 1965,

the so-called "stone triangle"
was destroyed.

And, although a replica has
been built in its place,

the precise orientation
of the triangle,

as well as the location of
the original Money Pit shaft

remains unknown.

I'm not even gonna get
my metal detector,

-'cause I've hammered this area.
-TRAVIS: I'm sure it's been

-detected to death, right?
-GARY: Oh, yeah.

JACK:
This is one of your points,

and there was
a stone feature here.

-A very obvious one.
-That's, that's wild.

-Right? So two for two.
-Two for two.

-You're on a roll, mate.
-(laughter)

(laughs)

When you were building your map,

did you specifically use

the stone triangle
as one of the points?

-How did you orient it?
-MARTY: Well, you lined the...

No. I-I just tried to make sure
that the leg of the bull

-fit on the island.
-Oh.

It just happened--
It is what it is.

And in your defense, in terms of
what you're looking for here,

this has all been
heavily bulldozed.

Yeah, you can't deny

that you're hitting on all
cylinders, so that's cool.

On to the next.

JACK: And this is another point
where there's some sort

of large boulder or a stone
monument on Travis's map.

Maybe it is, actually,
finally getting connected

the way it was supposed to be.

NARRATOR:
Having already marked

two potentially important
locations on the island,

Travis Taylor now uses
his star map to lead Marty,

Jack and Gary to Lot 13, where,
if his theory is correct,

they will find another
stone marker.

Is that a dirt pile?

Is that not a giant stone,
right there?

-TRAVIS: No, that's a rock.
-JACK: Oh, it is.

Well, it would be nice
to clear this out

and look at it better,
wouldn't it?

Yeah.

TRAVIS: This one
has a flat side back here.

We are in the general area

of where this point's
supposed to be.

Well, it's amazing
that we've run

into big boulders at each point.

Yeah.

MARTY:
Could those stones

that we saw be markers

that were put there by some
human beings

a long, long time ago to
correspond with a star map?

The answer is,
of course they could.

We need to get corroborative
information, first of all.

And then we'll draw, you know,

what conclusions we can draw
from that.

What else do you see for
feedback exchange?

Uh, well, I would like to see

GPS coordinates to the rocks
we've been to.

-Yep.
-Uh, then that would--

might help me anchor
the map better.

-You could move it around. Yeah.
-JACK: Yep.

-Anyway, thank you very much.
-Yeah.

-Okay, thanks for having me.
-It's been a great day.

-It's been fun.
-Been a great day.

-Pleasure to meet you.
-Yeah, good to meet you.

We'll look forward to this
feedback exchange

-and, uh, see what we can find.
-All right, great.

Hopefully we'll find something.

NARRATOR:
Before another long day

on Oak Island comes to an end,

Rick Lagina
and Dave Blankenship meet

with representatives
from Irving Equipment, Limited,

who have come to inspect
the structure.

At stake is whether or not
the team's ambitious plan

to excavate the cove
can continue.

MIKE J.: Looks like you got it
quite dry there now.

RICK:
Yeah, it doesn't look bad.

We did do substantial caulking.

-Okay.
-All the way around
the perimeter,

-or most of the way around.
-Yep. Yep.

We've reduced the water
infiltration by a lot,

but you can see some of the--
See those wet spots there?

MIKE J.:
Yeah.

RICK:
So, water is coming in.

There's no question about that,
and, uh, you know,

-maybe we should walk the
perimeter and take a look-see.
-Sure.

RICK: We initially had some
concerns about the amount

of water that was infiltrating
through the sheet pile locks.

And Mike and his team
had suggested

a couple of different ways
to-to-to keep that water

from infiltrating,
but at this point, you know,

we're getting a bit more water
than we would like to see.

And, uh,
the whole project relies

on getting that ground
as dry as possible.

So, we've called Irving,

and Mike Jardine and Scott
are gonna come in today

and, uh, visit the site and
take a look at the problems,

and, hopefully,
make some suggestions

that we can implement, and that
will mitigate that problem.

-Hey, like here?
-Yeah.

That's, that's definitely
a leak.

-RICK: Mm-hmm.
-And I'm sure there was,

there was more of those
along here.

RICK: Oh, yeah, there were.
I guar-- I guarantee you.

And they were like a garden hose
on several of these

-just coming out.
-Yeah. No, that's...

and that's very common
to see that.

From what I'm seeing
right here now,

you've got more water coming
this way than you have this way.

Because right here again,

you've got a flow of water

that's coming towards
your sheets.

-It's not going away.
-Right.

Obviously, the water is coming
from back here somewhere.

-Mm-hmm.
-Um, you know, uh,

we all know that drops off
back there.

-Yep, yep.
-Um...

You're gonna want to put
a small trench along there.

If you were rigging-rigging here
with-with your trench...

-Mm-hmm.
-...you know, come across.

-And-and then go right across.
-Go in there.

Stay out about six
or eight feet.

-RICK: From sheet to sheet?
-I would. I would.

NARRATOR: Because Mike Jardine
believes the water

is not only coming in through
the cofferdam,

but from other, natural sources
on the island,

the Oak Island team will need
to dig a trench

on the inside perimeter
of the cove.

This will allow water
to collect inside it,

before being pumped out
of the area.

I think we'll implement
your idea here,

interdict this water
coming from the upland.

-Yep.
-And then we'll see

how that affects
that water level.

MIKE J.: Yep. With that,
I think you're gonna see

a significant difference.

By controlling the water
back there,

it's very manageable here now.

RICK:
Because of our efforts

to staunch the incoming water,

we've been more successful
than we,

perhaps, had even anticipated.

There's work to be done.

We're gonna have to put pumps
on this,

but we can't wait
to start digging.

It-It's incredible to think
that this has been done.

I'm ready to get in there
and start digging right now.

MIKE J.:
Oh, no, absolutely.

♪ ♪

MARTY: Rick, I have this
really good feeling.

NARRATOR: It is a moment
of great anticipation

for brothers Rick
and Marty Lagina.

MARTY: I woke up this morning
thinking, okay,

it's time to,
time to figure out this island.

-So...
-RICK: Good.

NARRATOR: Today, months
of careful planning

and tireless effort,

as well as an investment
of over $1 million,

are finally about to pay off,

as the team prepares
to break ground

on their massive operation
at Smith's Cove.

Smith's Cove, I think,
will go a long way

towards answering two
of the Ws, right?

Who? Possibly.

-And when. Yes.
-And when.

MARTY:
Whoa! Look at that.

NARRATOR: After successfully
sealing the leaks

in the cofferdam wall,

and digging trenches to collect
and drain out the water...

That is quite a structure.

NARRATOR: ...the nearly
12,000 square foot area

is now dry enough for Rick,
Marty and their team

to being excavating.

-Why isn't this thing running?
-Well, you tell us.

Let's get goin'.

Push the buttons,
start moving dirt,

finding coins, come on.

MARTY:
As the dig in Smith's Cove

is about to commence with that
huge structure in place,

I am realistically optimistic.

RICK:
It's unlike any other project

we've endeavored to do
on the island,

but I very much look forward
to it.

Once we find the east log,

or the north or south log,

we'll be properly oriented,
and the dig can proceed.

MARTY: I was thinking,
we could start digging

right where that water is

because Rick wants
to go parallel

-to that U-shaped structure.
-Yep.

NARRATOR: Guided by photos
and surveys taken

during Dan Blankenship's
excavation

of Smith's Cove
in the early 1970s,

the team's beginning their dig

on the northwest side
of the beach.

It is here they hope to uncover
what Dan dubbed

a "mysterious U-shaped
structure"

that reportedly lies buried at
a depth of some ten feet.

RICK:
Hopefully, we can find

the south arm of the
U-shaped structure.

I mean, I'd love to find a piece
with a Roman numeral on it.

-That would be cool.
-Oh, yeah.

I mean, as soon as that's
exposed, I want to get in there

-and take a look at it.
-Craig?

And get down to
the very bottom of it

to see what else is down there.

-There may be broken tools
and stuff like that...
-Exactly.

...which, which can date
what time this is.

RICK: The pictures
where Dan excavated,

those soils at ten, 11 feet down
could be at surface.

CRAIG:
Oh, on some of it.

Yeah, where he dug
and dumped it over. Yeah.

So, we have to pay attention
from day one up here.

NARRATOR: As the team dredges up
tons of earth and material

in search of the
U-shaped structure,

they will also carefully sort
through piles

of spoils by means of their
newly installed wash plant.

The plant will automatically
clean and sort

the spoils according to size,
in hopes of uncovering

historically important
artifacts,

or possible treasure,

such as the medieval cross
that was discovered

by Rick Lagina and Gary Drayton
just last year.

I can't speak to whether or not

there's actual "treasure"
discovery in Smith's Cove,

but there's certainly
gonna be lots of clues.

We now are accumulating a very
big box of puzzle pieces,

and it's about time

we start putting
the puzzle pieces together.

CRAIG:
Find anything?

Just found that.
Just that odd thing.

I don't know what it is.

-Could that be like a hinge?
-Yeah. Of some sort.

Yep.

CHARLES:
Exciting.

NARRATOR: For Rick, Marty
and the Oak Island team...

Holy schmoly, all right!

-RICK: That's a cross.
-GARY: That's a cross.

NARRATOR: ...what began
with the discovery

of a small lead cross...

has led to their most ambitious

and most expensive
engineering project

ever conducted at Smith's Cove.

But as their excavation efforts
finally get underway,

what will they find?

More incredible
religious artifacts?

The U-shaped structure
discovered

by Dan Blankenship
nearly half a century ago?

The stone box drains that have
thwarted searcher efforts

to dig in the nearby Money Pit?

Or will they find
something else?

Something so incredible

it will help them solve

a 223-year-old treasure
mystery...

once and for all?