02x06 - The Search for the San Saba Mine

[bunniefuu]

- Tonight...
- It's picking up something.

On Beyond Oak Island...

- Really?
- Have you estimated how much might be down there?

- Whoa.
- This here is

- your face rock.
- That means gold.

Everything's lining up
with Hoppy's theory.

I'm in now.
I want to dig.

- Oh, sh**t, it's a rattler!
- Oh, geez!

- Rick, get out of there!
- Whoa!

All the while
we were growing up,

my brother and I were fascinated
with finding treasure.

Pirate treasure,

cursed treasure.

Civil w*r gold.

Since then,
our work on Oak Island

has shown us
there's a world of mysteries...

- Whoa.
- Waiting to be explored.

So, we like to reach
out to other treasure hunters.

X marks the spot, right there.
Brilliant.

- We want to hear their stories...
- That's right.

- And share our insights.
- "Ill-gotten gains."

- And who knows...
- I got it.

Maybe we can help them
with their search.

Not only in America.

Wow. That is gold.

- But all over the world.
- Yeah!

Beyond Oak Island.

Well, here we are again, guys.
On another treasure hunt.

Man, we are in Texas.
Look at that land.

This is what you picture

when you think of
this part of Texas, huh?

Absolutely.

Just outside
Stephenville, Texas,

brothers Rick and Marty Lagina,

along with Matty Blake...

are about to take part
in a new treasure hunt

of Texas-sized proportions.

Today we're going to
meet a guy named Hoppy, right?

- Hoppy Eubanks.
- Yeah.

I guess Hoppy Eubanks...
God, I love that name...

Says he knows where to find
a lost Spanish mine

of gold and silver.

Well, good. I can't
wait to find out about that.

I know the Spanish took
a lot of treasure out of Mexico.

Did they take a lot
out of Texas?

They were pulling a lot
of precious metal

out of the ground,
right here in this state.

- Really?
- Yeah.

When you look at history, right,

the Spanish come
to the New World.

- They're driven by a quest for territory...
- Yeah.

And to garner wealth.

And they conquered
the Aztec empire.

Their lust for gold increases
by... exponentially, right?

And so what's your
next step then?

Your next step is
where did they get it?

- We're gonna go mine for it.
- Yeah.

In 1519, nearly
three decades after Spain

first began colonizing South

and Central American
territories,

conquistador and cartographer
Alonso Alvarez de Piñeda

claimed much of present-day
Texas for the Spanish Crown.

The Spaniards
came to the New World

and saw the potential of
expanding their territory.

They brought along their
scientists, their geologists,

their mineralogists,
and engineers, because

they had planned on
doing a lot of mining.

The Spanish were
enormously successful in finding silver.

They set up these mining
operations, and something like

two million pounds of
silver every year

would be sent back to Spain.

It actually became the focus
of the Spanish economy.

A lot of the mining was
done by enslaved Native Americans.

They were captured,
they were chained together,

and they worked in the mines,

sometimes 14, 16 hours a day
on poor rations.

The harsh treatment
at the hands of the conquistadors

led to much resentment
among the indigenous people.

Soon, the Spanish
and their mining settlements,

were under constant attack
from the Apache,

Wichita and Comanche nations.

The Spanish, a lot of
times, they would end up losing

the location of these mines
because they start to work it,

then you get the Apaches
or potentially Comanches

attacking them.

And they abandon the mine.

And by the time they're able
to come back,

once the violence has subsided,

they've lost
the location of the mine.

- Okay, so we're looking here for a lost mine.
- Yes.

- I mean, I'm looking forward to it.
- Yeah.

Hoppy believes that there's some

rock carvings and some
other petroglyphs that

show that the Spanish
were there.

They mined extensively.

And the location
of the mine was lost.

So he's done an extensive amount
of work, and he has a pedigree.

I mean, he's found other
treasure elsewhere.

- Really?
- Yeah.

And he has hooked up with
a geologist and a geophysicist.

- Good.
- So he's running real science,

which has corroborated what
Hoppy has deduced,

and the hope is that
we can, on some level,

either clue them into
some new technologies,

or assist them in
part of their discovery process.

Yeah. Or maybe we might learn
something from them.

- Or we might learn something from them. Absolutely.
- Yeah.

All right, fellas, we did it.

Here we are, we made it.

This is so cool.

I'm really looking forward
to meeting Hoppy Eubanks.

I know he's made discoveries.

I know he's a legitimate,
credible treasure hunter.

He takes it very seriously.

- Howdy, sir! I'm Marty.
- I'm Hoppy.

Hi, Hoppy, I'm Rick.
Nice to meet you.

So I'm excited to see what he's
found, and the evidence he has

for where the actual location
of the lost Spanish mine is.

Yes, please. Thank you.

Born and
raised in central Texas,

Alfred "Hoppy" Eubanks

worked as an aircraft
specialist for more than

two decades after serving in
the United States Navy

from 1960 to 1964.

In 1971, Hoppy conducted
independent research

and followed clues that
led to the discovery of

an 18th-century chest beneath a
house in Fulton County, Georgia.

Its contents, including
letters written

during the Revolutionary w*r,

were worth an estimated $50,000.

Hoppy has hunted for
numerous missing treasures

in the ensuing decades.

But now, at age 81, he's focused

on finding the location of
a legendary lost Spanish mine.

Bereket, nice to meet you.
I'm Rick.

All right.

And supporting those efforts

are geologist Curt Champlin

and geophysicist Bereket Derie.

We got a lot of questions.

We want to find out
about you, Hoppy.

Where did the bug bite you from?

I see.

It's in the blood.

I see. Wow.

I love it.

So, Hoppy, tell us what you
think you've found here.

- Wow.
- Really?

That's pretty cool.

On February 17, 1756,

lieutenant governor of Texas,
Bernardo Miranda y Flores,

left San Antonio with 23 men to
investigate reports of massive

silver deposits in the hills
near the San Saba River.

He was stunned by what he
found... a site that would soon

become one of the most lucrative
mines in the New World.

Bernardo de
Miranda is gonna claim

that there's enough silver

for everyone in Texas
to have a mine of their own.

The legend was that
the silver was so pure

and so thick that you
could just scrape it off.

And as it was mined,
of course, they would smelt it,

and it would be made into
silver ingots.

For two
years, the operation thrived.

But in 1758, some 2,000 men from

the Comanche and Wichita nations

carried out a coordinated
attack, burning the Spaniards'

mission and the nearby
military fort, or presidio.

Before their retreat,
the fleeing Spaniards reportedly

covered up the entrances
of the mine to keep

the abundant riches hidden
until they could return.

That opportunity never came,
and the mine's exact location

has remained a tantalizing
mystery ever since.

So the San Saba mine...
it's a big operation.

So, you think you
know where the mine is?

Wow.

Mm-hmm.

- Do you?
- Really?

Could I have a look at that,
Hoppy? Thank you, sir.

Although "waybills"
are often defined as lists of goods,

or passengers being transported
from place to place,

in the world
of treasure hunting,

the term has
a very different meaning.

Waybills is just simply
several pages of directions

going from point A to point B.

Point B being the location
of the mine or the cache.

Sometimes those waybills
are accompanied by a map...

Often a crude map...
But in the end,

fairly useful for
getting at least close.

Although its
original author is another mystery,

Hoppy received this waybill
from a fellow treasure hunter

more than two decades ago.

- Okay.
- Very cool.

After exploring
a location 70 leagues,

or approximately 183 miles

north of San Antonio,

Hoppy was amazed to discover
a number of rock carvings

that he believed could
be of Spanish origin,

and possibly pointing
to the lost mine.

To corroborate his theory,
Hoppy sought out some

scientific help, utilizing
state-of-the-art imaging

technology from
geologist Curt Champlin.

We conducted three
resistivity surveys.

And the first one that
we did conduct was showing

an area that was an anomaly that

we wanted to further
investigate that area.

Are we looking at
a cross section here?

Okay.

- Okay.
- Interesting.

Electrical
resistivity tomography... or ERT...

Works by transmitting electrical
current through the ground

to identify
possible buried objects,

voids or structures.

Right.
You want to drill a well

that proves that
there is a cavity there.

Okay, well, do you have a spot
marked where you want to drill?

- I think I want to go near this spot.
- All right.

Is the silver in an ore,
th-they think in this mine?

Or is it...?

- Oh.
- Oh, really?

Smelters?

Used to extract
precious metal from raw ore?

Could this be further evidence

that the Spanish were
engaged in mining activities

in the area that Hoppy believes

is the location of
the lost San Saba mine?

Have you estimated how much
money might be down there?

Wow.

That's worth digging for.

Wow.

Okay, let's go get it.

In Stephenville, Texas,

Rick and Marty Lagina,

along with Matty Blake,

are meeting with treasure hunter
Hoppy Eubanks and his team...

Who believe they know
the location

of the legendary San Saba mine.

The thing with Hoppy
is, he's very enthusiastic.

He's already added the
science component to the mix.

And thus, he has Curt Champlin
and-and Bereket

to-to do
the geophysical investigation.

And that, I think,
is reason enough

to complement what he's doing.

And the hope is that
we can assist him in some way.

- Do you?
- Really?

- Really?
- So, correct me if I'm wrong,

but you're talking
about two locations here today.

One where you think
you found the mine,

and one is this
king's tax location, correct?

- Oh, wow.
- Wow.

During the height
of Spanish mining in the Americas,

between the 16th
to 19th centuries...

the silver, gold
and jewels extracted

were used to support Spain
and all of its colonies.

However, in every case,
20% of the proceeds

were earmarked for the Spanish
king and the royal family.

The king's
tax, or the Royal fifth,

was 20% set aside
for the monarch.

So the monarch stood
to benefit from this.

We've come across accounts
where some of it was set aside

and buried with the intention
of coming back to get it.

Okay. So, you've got...
We got a place to drill

and you got a place where
you think there's another bunch

of gold and silver, right?

Yeah. Let's... Could you show us?

All right, let's find
some treasure in Texas.

So, Hoppy...

Jim Bowie looked for
the San Saba mine, right?

How far off was he
from where you believe it to be?

180 miles off?

Wow.

In 1831,

American pioneer
and frontiersman Jim Bowie

became so obsessed by the legend
of the lost San Saba mine,

that he obtained
official permission

from the Mexican government to
lead an expedition to find it.

On November 2nd,
Bowie, his brother Rezin

and ten soldiers
set out from San Antonio,

but just six miles
shy of their goal,

they were intercepted
by a raiding party

of 124 Tahuacano warriors.

We call it
the Fight at Calf Creek.

They were under siege,

fighting for their lives,
for about eight days.

They were
outnumbered over ten to one.

Bowie lost one man.
He had three wounded.

Because they knew
how outnumbered they were,

they had
cleared out of the area.

When they came into San Antonio,
they were greeted as heroes.

That Calf Creek fight,

that's what made
Jim Bowie a legend in Texas.

Undaunted, Bowie would return

with a larger force
in January of 1832.

However, after two months
of tireless searching

for the San Saba mine,

he found no signs of it
and had to suspend the search.

Although he never stopped
researching possible locations

of the vast
cache of hidden silver,

on March 6, 1836,

Jim Bowie,
along with Davy Crockett

and many other American patriots

were k*lled
during the Battle of the Alamo.

Hoppy?

Let's say tomorrow you dug up
a billion... with a "B"...

A billion dollars'
worth of treasure

and that evening,
you put it in your bank account.

Would you quit?

What would you buy?

If-if you could buy anything.

- A good secondhand. Not first, huh?
- A good secondhand pickup.

It's amazing you
even found this place, Hoppy.

- Yeah.
- We ain't in Kansas anymore.

- You must be Ted.
- I'm Ted.

How are you, sir?
I'm Marty.

Nice to meet you, Marty.

Pleasure.

I've been working
with Hoppy Eubanks

on the Spanish treasure
for about 13 years.

With all the pieces of
the puzzle put together here

around this place,
and the research we've done,

I know that the king's tax money
is buried here.

Okay.

So we're gonna kind of, like,
follow the clues like you did.

And you're gonna show us

how you got to that point?
I love it.

Yeah.

Hoppy's theory,
that there could be

a treasure trove
quite separate from the mine,

makes complete sense.

- Let's go.
- All right. - Let's go.

If you're in
charge of mining this,

the king's share could cause

your life to disappear,
if it disappears.

So, does it make sense that
there would be a separate place,

a storage area, where they kept

what had to go
to the king of Spain?

Absolutely.

And it's exciting
because that would be

just a treasure vault, you know?

And again,
Hoppy feels he's found it.

All right.

This is where your wall starts,
right here,

part of the top wall.

Uh...

Mm-hmm.

Rick, you've
built a lot of walls.

That's built wall, right?

- Oh, yeah. That's built wall.
- Yeah.

That wasn't just...
That didn't just happen.

No.

I want to point out
this heart rock here to you.

Mm.

As you're standing
there, now you can see it.

Mm-hmm.

That looks like a heart.

That does look like a heart.

The numerous
legends of buried Spanish treasure

around the United States
have gained credibility

among treasure hunters
due to common symbols

that have been documented
during field investigations.

For instance, an "H" is believed
to indicate a nearby tunnel.

An encircled cross
may indicate a booby trap.

And a heart is
an indication of buried gold.

You know, the rock wall's great.

The presence of humans,

humans doing hard things
at high-high elevations,

uh, probably without
a lot of modern tools.

Is it the Spanish?

Uh, does it have anything
to do with treasure?

Unknown. But it-it shows
the presence long ago

of people doing work there.

Very good.
That's a plus.

- All right.
- I want to see more of it.

Oh, sh**t, it's a rattler.

Get out of there, Rick.

- Oh, geez!
- Rick, get out of there!

Whoa!

Get out of there.

We are definitely
beyond Oak Island.

Yeah.
We're not in Kansas anymore.

All right,
let's get out of here.

Yes, sir.

After a close call,

treasure hunter Hoppy Eubanks

leads the team to the location
where he believes

a portion of
the lost San Saba mine treasure,

also known as the king's tax,
could be buried.

Curt, you're a geologist.

Do you see
anything here that says,

"Wait a minute,
this is not natural"?

Yeah, I was out
here with Hoppy one day,

and he was up there digging.

I was taking a break
and went down there

and just looking at
all the geology and everything.

- Yeah.
- Looking for outcrops, all that stuff.

And I came walking around here
and saw this big mound.

And I told Hoppy that. And Hoppy
was like, "You know what,

Ted and I have also
thought about that."

And so Hoppy... they came out...

And it just started going in
and...

Right over here?

Yeah, pretty much right
in the middle there.

And it was just real loose.

And then you'd go outside
this mound, do the same thing,

and it's just solid.

So, it really told us
there's some type of...

- Excavation.
- Yeah.

There's a cavity.

- Exactly.
- Yep.

This here is your face rock.

You can see the face on it.

Here's the nose...

the mouth... the chin...

The biblical
figure known as Matthew

was not only one of
Jesus's 12 disciples

but is often depicted
in religious works of art

as a winged man.

However, he was also
reported to have had

a very intriguing occupation.

Could Hoppy Eubanks
and Ted Underwood be correct

that this carved rock
is an actual Spanish artifact

marking the location of
the so-called king's tax of

the lost San Saba silver mine?

- Here's your "L" rock.
- Mm-hmm.

It means 13.
Either latitude or longitude.

You take your cross and
you take your longest arm,

and you go 13 foot,

- and it puts you right down there.
- Right.

Before it
was altered in the 1990s,

the Spanish alphabet
featured "L" as the 13th letter.

Could Hoppy and Ted also be
correct that this mysterious

L-shaped rock, which
incredibly sits exactly 13 feet

from the mound where they
have started excavating,

is another marker for the
so-called king's tax treasure?

You know, this is 13.
Okay?

And you've got 13 and 13...
All right?

How deep do you think that is?

To the treasure?

- Well... I guess I would say 13.
- There you go.

Hoppy has all these symbols
that he shows us.

They are awfully subtle
to my mind,

and so I'm a little bit dubious,
but I'm here, I'm in.

We're gonna follow this trail.

So, I see your methodology
and I see your signs and stuff,

but isn't the proof of
the pudding in your hands there?

This-this metal detector here
will pick up that treasure.

Okey doke.

Y'all ready to try out
this metal detector?

Yeah, now, now
let's go with the modern stuff.

Hoppy has
deciphered all the clues to mean

that at this site
he should be digging 13 feet;

he's got to about eight.

But I was immediately impressed
because he's hand-digging

this stuff with Ted,
and it was a massive amount

of earth they've moved.

He really, truly believes

that there's treasure
right under there.

So to stand on a site
like that is very exciting.

Yeah.

And this thing has a big
depth of investigation.

You can pinpoint
right where it is.

That makes sense.

Hoppy is
using the White's TM 808

TreasureMaster Metal Detector.

It is designed to identify
both ferrous targets,

such as iron, and also
nonferrous targets,

such as gold and silver,
up to 20 feet deep.

When Hoppy shows
us some of these carved rocks,

my mind immediately
goes back to Nolan's Cross

and the so-called headstone.
And it's subjective.

I mean, I'm not certain, even
now, that it truly was carved.

I want to believe it,
as does Hoppy.

Yeah.

When Hoppy brings out
this metal detector, and it goes off,

that's very compelling evidence.

If that metal detector
is ringing at that site,

then I want to get in
there with a shovel and dig.

Something's there. I
mean, it's picking up something.

Hoppy, what's your best
guess at what depth it is

from where you're standing
right now?

Six foot down below?

Well, you're close.

Huh.

At this point,

I'm pretty actively rooting
for Hoppy. You know?

And I've seen all the earth
he's moved, he's brought us to

this spot he believes
that there's actual treasure.

So, you know...
now I'm getting excited

because everything's lining
up with Hoppy's theory.

I'm in now. I want to dig.

If it were me, I'd grab
that shovel and that pick,

and I would dig that tonight.

How about taking a probe bar

and just pounding it
down five feet?

Why not?

Sure.

You believe that there's
something down there

that is not...

- That's my question.
- Right.

You know, I somewhat apologize
for what I just said

because I'm contradicting
what I've always

- purported to believe on Oak Island.
- Yeah, you are a bit.

You don't want
to damage anything.

Take your time.

Mm-hmm.
Mm-hmm.

And if you take a piece of
equipment and try to rush it,

you're gonna end up missing
something like this...

And destroying it
or just never seeing it...

That you needed to use.

When Hoppy suggests
that a mechanized approach

is not a viable option,

we can affirm that
because of the Dunfield dig.

Dunfield took
a all-or-nothing approach

on Oak Island.

He brought in
a mechanized clamshell digger

and he dug away, literally,

a hole about 140-plus feet deep
and 100 feet wide.

And we know there was some
destruction associated with it.

But Hoppy's concern
is the same as Dunfield's.

It's the same as ours.

That you don't know what
you're digging into,

and thus his advice
to stand down and hand-dig

is very appropriate.

Hoppy, I think, number one,
I want to thank you

for your time and, you know,
explaining to us

what is a pretty amazing story.

I think we've learned
more than a few things.

But I do want to do one thing.

Because I do believe
that you're onto something.

So, with your permission,
what I would really like to do

is take that shovel and just
dig one scoop of dirt in there

and say that I participated in

Hoppy Eubanks's and
Ted Underwood's adventure.

This is where the signals were,
so I'm gonna take a big scoop

right here.

That must mean something.

Here, let me show you
how you do a ceremonial dig

- and throw it out of the hole.
- - Okey doke.

That's a great idea, Rick.

You take about that much,
you see...

and fling it out of the hole.

Right.

Come on, silver.
There's a lot of clay here.

No, it's hard
digging. It's very like Oak Island.

That is.

All right.
It's official.

Hoppy, you took us
on a wild ride today.

Yeah.

Tomorrow!
And let's drill.

All right. We're in.

Let's go.

Yeah, that's enough for today.

The following day,

Rick, Marty and Matty
arrive at the site

where they're going to assist
treasure hunter Hoppy Eubanks

and his team in a drilling
operation to locate millions

in lost silver and gold
from the historic San Saba mine.

Based on previous
electrical resistivity scans,

it is geologist Curt Champlin's
suspicion

that there is a void, or
possible mine entrance,

somewhere between 35
and 75 feet underground.

Hey, guys, I lost
a mine somewhere around here.

Has anybody found it?

I have no idea.

Hoppy has brought
us out to where he believes

is the actual location
of the lost San Saba mine,

where the Spanish pulled
a lot of gold and silver

out of the ground.

If he's right, we'll
expect to hit a void

at the spot we're gonna drill.

If they hit that void,
that means that could be

the lost San Saba mine.

Hey, Hoppy, today's the day.

Perfect.

All right.
Are we ready to make hole?

- Let's do it.
- Darrin, rig ready?

- Rig's ready.
- Let's get it.

Let's fire it up.

Ah, I love the sound
of a drill firing up

when you're treasure-hunting.

- Oh, yeah.
- Whoo!

The Laginas have
arranged for a direct rotary rig

for today's investigation.

As the six-inch-wide sections
of drill pipe

are driven into the ground,

the rig will also
force air downward,

bringing sediment
or spoils to the surface

through an exhaust nozzle.

Geologist Curt Champlin
and the team will then

sift through them,
looking for any evidence

of a possible mineshaft.

So, Curt, we're hoping

the drill works its way
through that limestone cap rock,

and then we're gonna
hopefully see a drop.

- Yeah.
- All right.

The drill's
going. It's exciting.

We're analyzing
the dirt and soil

as it's going through its depths

because if there's
any significant changes

or anything that could indicate

that they're on this void
they've been looking for.

- Limestone?
- Not limestone, no.

So, we're down to 40 feet.

Very dense clay.

Is that a glass?

Oh, it's a leaf.

Well, we saw something green
and shiny.

- I thought maybe it was an emerald.
- Yeah.

- How deep are you?
- 55.

We went from 15 to 55 real fast.

Whoa.

It's blowing.

It's definitely blowing,
but it's blowing nothing.

Could that be a void?

- That could be.
- Exactly.

In Stephenville, Texas,

Rick and Marty Lagina,
along with Matty Blake,

are helping treasure hunter
Hoppy Eubanks in his quest

to locate
the lost San Saba mine.

Having just reached a depth
of 55 feet,

the drilling team is
suddenly reporting

a potentially
significant development.

I wonder if
that hole's taking air.

Is it moving air
or is it just pressuring up?

So, we've lost circulation,

meaning the air is
no longer coming up.

It's no longer bringing
the cuttings up.

Lots of possible reasons
for that.

One that's hopeful,
though, is that

if we're starting
to get into a cavity...

And it really is a cavity...

The air could leak off instead
of coming back to the surface.

- There she goes.
- There she goes.

It looks like
something is coming out.

- What do we got, Eric?
- So, we're going down, uh,

this will be 60 feet right here.

There is water coming in either
above or below a hard zone.

It's not making
a lot of cuttings,

but it's, uh, it's definitely
blowing some mud out.

The moisture down there
sort of is a good sign.

Why is that a
good sign to you, Curt?

- What do you like about that?
- If there was sand down below,

water would've kept
trickling down.

- Right. Okay.
- That sort of tells me that

- there may be an impermeable limestone.
- Okay.

So, it's hitting something
hard and sitting there.

Something hard
and sitting there.

And that could be the,
that could be the cap

- to the void that we're looking for.
- That could be the cap.

- Yeah.
- All right.

Now that the drill
has reached a depth of nearly 65 feet,

the presence of moisture
in the spoils may indicate

a layer of rock
that is causing water to pool.

Could it be a limestone cap

or possible ceiling
for the lost San Saba mine?

So right now, ideally,
in the next couple drills,

you'd want to see
that thing working hard.

Cutting through
whatever it might be.

I'd like to start seeing
limestone powder

- coming out.
- Got it. Whoa.

Something just came up.

Whoa. That was powdery.

Still getting a good airflow.

Yeah, it's blowing.
It's definitely blowing.

Oh, now it's starting
to spit up some material.

We're going down to 65
right now.

So, we're ten foot
off the target.

All right.

So, we're at 70 feet right now.

Five more feet.

Five more feet, we'd like to see

some white smoke, maybe, right?

You want that thing hitting
something hard?

Or some glitter.

Yeah. Or that.

All right.

This is the last one.

- This is it?
- This is it.

I see a little...
Is that a little smoky?

Hitting something hard there?

Or is that just...

Yeah. Probably
sat down on something.

At this point,
we have drilled 75 feet.

And we've hit mostly sand
all the way down.

We were hoping
we would hit cap rock

or some hard sediment.

And at this point in time,

we may be on top
of where the mineshaft is.

- The bucket we've all been waiting for.
- Here it is.

- Come on, baby.
- This could be good.

Here it comes.

Moment of truth, buddy.

Oh, there you go.
There's limestone right there.

Is that limestone?

Isn't it? No?

Soft, soft clay again.
Clay-ish.

Well, we know
where the mine isn't.

It's not right there.

That's right.

Well, guys.

Good news is, we're at 75 feet.

Right.

Bad news is,
we're not seeing treasure.

And it's looking like

we've got rain and lightning
coming our way.

So, you've got to shut down
anyway, then.

We're gonna have to shut down
for safety reasons.

Yeah.

At the possible site

of the lost Spanish San Saba
silver mine,

the Laginas and Matty Blake
had high hopes

of helping
treasure hunter Hoppy Eubanks

make a historic discovery.

But unfortunately

severe weather is
fast approaching,

making their drilling operation
too dangerous to continue,

at least for now.

Ah, that's too bad.

- No.
- No.

- I'm not giving up.
- No, I know he's not giving up.

You're not giving up.
Nobody's giving up.

Except
we're giving up for today.

Unfortunately,
it looks that way.

But I would recommend one thing,
and that's lidar.

We've come to appreciate that.

And I think,
because you have located

what you believe are at least
two smelter locations,

that's your point A.

If the lidar shows...
'cause you're gonna bring

your ore to the smelter...

And it's going to be back
and forth, back and forth.

- Lidar will pick that up.
- I think Rick is dead-on.

It could show you a road

that was used
back when this was used

that's completely invisible now.

That there's no way you'd see it
walking around or whatever.

But it-it'll pick it out because
of the compaction in the ground.

I mean,
i-it might be just this much,

but it'll pick it up.

Thank you.

Mutual. Mutual.

You know, the thing
that strikes me here is,

the glue that holds all of this
together is the story.

Right? The
historical context of this is remarkable.

A-Again, I can't say enough
about it and I thank you both

for allowing us to-to come
and be a part of that.

Appreciate it. Thank you.

It's been a wild ride.

And I want to thank
both of you guys

- for-for the ride.
- Thank you.

And I really like
both your spirits.

I mean, I really do.

But anyway, you stay at it,
and let us know how it goes.

- Guys, it's time to get out of here.
- I believe so.

- I believe so.
- I think Texas is letting us know that we're done here.

Hey, till the next time.

Cheers, guys. Appreciate it.

We will see you again, Hoppy.

Take care, guys.

Don't let up.

Thank you, Texas!

Man, I really started to root
for Hoppy there.

- Uh, I think we all did.
- Yeah.

I-I just was struck
by the similarities

between what he's
attempting to do

and what Dan Blankenship
and Fred Nolan

tried to do on Oak Island.

You know, I was struck by that.

And just like Dan took Oak
Island as his personal Everest,

maybe this is
Hoppy's personal Everest.

- I think it is.
- Yeah.

I love that money
isn't motivating him.

A lot of guys say, "Oh, money.

Money doesn't motivate me
at all."

Most of them are lying.

Uh, but he isn't.

I don't think he is.

- No.
- And, um, that's very admirable.

Yes, it is.

You know, I think
we thought Oak Island was

the end-all be-all
of treasure hunts.

But there's a lot of treasure
and treasure hunts

to-to participate in.

There's a lot beyond Oak Island.

- Yeah. A lot.
- Yes, there is.

- On to the next one.
- On we go. Right?

You got it.