There are times when the enormity of this project seems daunting. Well it is. The frustration of the search grows yet so does my conviction to succeed. The true difficulty has been to fully understand the challenge of the stream flow change after one hundred and nineteen years. Simple as that. I would really be down cast if it weren’t for the pieces found that are directly connected to the robbery. And the rugged barriers of forest debris didn’t allow Roderick to wander very far from the robbery site. Nor did he have to. His chosen hiding place proved a wise choice, obviously.

Modern metal detectors are a great tool and without them the evidence to date would not have been found. But even they have limitations. Even though neither the TDI Pro nor the Sierra Madre have detected what I seek, the greater problem might simply be the depth of the treasure. Perhaps the bars have slowly worked deeper into the earth as time passed. Or maybe I’m an old fool; I’ve considered that option too.

I read some of Joseph Conrad’s novels decades ago. In “Nastomo” from 1904, he wrote there is no getting away from a treasure that once fastens upon your mind. I am the living proof. Damn he wrote great words. Despite occasionally being difficult to read, I think I may have to read that one. After all, I’m living the hunt…..