07x06 - Closing In

[bunniefuu]

Tonight on
The Curse of Oak Island...

This looks like a minefield.

-The island

can't keep its secret anymore.
It can't do it.

Ooh! This is a 1700s
ship's spike.

I discovered the Spanish ships
deposited their treasure

on Oak Island,
and they protect it

-with flood tunnels.
-Wow!

Heads up.
Whoa.

Whoa.
Whoa, whoa, whoa!

Hey, there's wood there!

That's a tunnel!

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.

Well, you should be interested
in this, though, Dan.

This is your find, correct?

Uh, yeah.

For brothers
Rick and Marty Lagina

and members of their team,
the recent unearthing

of an old sluiceway tunnel
near the Money Pit site

found with the help
of information

provided by veteran
treasure hunter Dan Henskee

may have put them
one major step closer

to locating the original
Oak Island treasure shaft.

There it is right there.

He's got the wall right there.

Yeah?
Oh, that's beautiful. Yeah.

-Look at that.
-Yeah.

Well, it was there all along.

-That's incredible.
-Yeah.

Oh, the workmanship
was great, yeah.

According to Dan Henskee,

the sluiceway was built in 1863

by members
of the Oak Island Association,

one of the many corporations
that has been formed

to locate
the legendary treasure.

The purpose of the sluiceway

was to siphon water
away from Shaft Nine,

a searcher shaft
that was dug that same year

in an effort to reach
the Money Pit.

Because Shaft Nine
was constructed

at a time when the location of
the Money Pit was still known,

it is the team's hope
that by tracing the sluiceway

back to the main shaft,
it will provide them

with a crucial landmark,

one which they can use
with the help of old maps

to pinpoint the exact location
of the fabled treasure vault.

So, uh, that looks
like my hole there.

And I want to get in there
from the other way

-and just verify that.
-All right.

Dan's gonna work his way.

He wants to go behind there
and take a look.

-Okay.
-He dug a hole right there.

He wants to confirm
that line of sight,

but you...
you obviously are on it.

Whoa, whoa, whoa.

Is that wood,
or is that, uh, stone?

It's stone right now,
but if you... if you got

over there by Rick,
you'd see, like, that much wall.

Is that the bottom there yet,
Scott, or not?

Um, I think we're near it.

Do we want to keep following
this wall back first,

come back to the bank
with this wall,

then see if we can get
the other side?

Well, keep coming to this side,
'cause it's easier

for me to tuck into the side,
and then I won't smash it.

I mean, this is enough for me
to get a line here.

If we can do the same
at the top,

I can calculate a convergence
point rather quickly,

and I can stake out the line.

Yeah.

To assist the team

in locating Shaft Nine,
surveyor Steve Guptill

will take GPS measurements
of the exposed sluiceway

to determine what direction
it should continue underground.

Because of Dan's information,

we uncovered the sluiceway.

Still functioning.

Uh, but now
we're gonna follow...

hopefully follow the tunnel
back and dig the shaft itself.

It's never been more important
to uncover a shaft,

because at the time
Shaft Nine was dug,

they knew the location
of the Money Pit.

I'm just gonna calculate
this line and walk it right now.

I'll think it's pretty cool
if the dots connect uphill.

-Yeah.
-Okay, so here's what we'll do.

Billy will dig the other side
of this...

-sluiceway to expose it.
-Yep.

We'll get some
really good photos of it,

and then we'll, uh...
we'll take Doug's advice

we'll go up about 20, 25 feet.

Steve, we'll put you on the mark
on the west side of the road.

We'll dig a test pit,
see if we can find

the connection where it transits
from sluiceway to tunnel.

-Yeah.

Later that day...

Okay, here we are.

...Rick, his brother Marty,

their partner Craig Tester

and surveyor Steve Guptill

head to the area
known as the Cave-In Pit,

located west of Smith's Cove.

They are eager to begin
what will be

the team's most extensive
and ambitious

seismic operation to date,

one that will allow them to
chart any underground anomalies

or tunnels that might exist
on the entire eastern half

of Oak Island.

Look at all those receivers.

This looks like a minefield.

-Yes.
-How many are you gonna sh**t?

-Tonight?
-Yep.

Ah, tough to say.

Probably close to a thousand.

-Yeah, tonight.
-Good to see you guys.

Working once again
with Eagle Canada,

the geophysical
exploration company

that conducted previous surveys

in the swamp and Money Pit
last year,

this new test will involve a
record 18,000 expl*sive charges

to map areas
never scanned before,

starting with Smith's Cove
and the Cave-In Pit.

This sand could be
the manifestation

-of a bygone tunnel.
-JACK: No way!

It was here, during a recent
core-drilling operation,

that the team obtained evidence

of one of the island's
legendary flood tunnels,

believed to feed seawater
into the booby traps

-guarding the Money Pit.

The alignment is great, too.

Uh, there's a line all the way

from the center
of the U-shaped structure.

There's a perfect alignment all
the way back to the Money Pit.

Wow.

Here comes our next core.

Unfortunately,
because the flood tunnel's

precise angle of descent
is unknown,

follow-up efforts
to continue tracking it

proved unsuccessful.

There is some sand in this.

But so far, nothing
that resembles what we believe

was the tunnel.

It is the team's hope
that tonight's seismic scanning

will help them track the tunnel
all the way to the Money Pit,

while avoiding invasive and
costly exploratory drilling.

- Wind's dying down.
You got to like that. Well, you know what?

Every evening is
kind of like that.

That's one of the reasons why
we decided to sh**t at night.

If you guys are ready,
we can, uh...

-We're ready.
-We're gonna sh**t

the Cave-In Pit here right away,

so maybe that spot is
a good, uh...

-it's a safe spot and you got
a good view... - That'd be great.

-...on what's happening.
-Where? Show... show us where. Yeah.

Due to the sound interference

created by the team's search
activities during the day,

the Eagle Canada team
has chosen to begin

the seismic test at sunset.

This will ensure
that the images captured

are as clear and accurate
as possible.

-So, how many you sh**ting? Five?
Just five.

Five at a time, yeah.
-Okay.

How many geophones are active?

Tonight, there'll be
6,000 active.

It'll be interesting to see

what the data shows here,
you know?

We know there's
a hydraulic connection,

-and it might show up.
- Yes.

That's what we're doing.
That's what the exercise

-is all about.
-Well, that and...

the tunnel leading off of it

-towards the Money Pit.
Yeah, the 196. 181.

Here we go.

As each expl*sive charge,

filled with 20 grams
of dynamite, is detonated,

specialized geophone receivers

will measure the sound waves
created by the blasts

as they reflect off
possible voids or structures

up to 300 feet deep
beneath the surface.

Todd. 204. 174.

Here it comes.

Cool.

80. 198. 179.

Ian. 96. 175.

Eagle Canada

has done a fantastic job.

This shallow-depth seismic,

they're on the cutting edge
of this.

They're pushing
the envelope here.

This is not a small undertaking.

-You can feel that.
-Oh, yeah.

That's cool.

202. 179.

That one blew.

Ryan. 202. 181.

That was a good one.

Ryan. 202. 183.

It's stunning
the amount of work.

I mean, it's a huge area.

And the hope is that
it'll show us something.

Yeah, it's real cool.

You know, I'm eager and curious

to see the results.

It would be fantastic

to verify the flood tunnel.

If we find the flood tunnel,

we can follow it it's gonna go
directly to the Money Pit.

We've been trying
to do that for...

I don't know, ten years.

Okay, the island
eventually has to...

give up its secrets.

I mean,
look what you're doing here.

It can't keep
its secret anymore.

It can't do it.

Wow. Look at the size
of that thing.

-Whoa!
-Whoa, whoa, whoa!

Water's coming in now.

-Found the tunnel!

Let's take it easy on that.

I see it.
What the heck is that?

It is an early morning
on Oak Island,

but already the day's progress
is well underway.

Having concluded
their seismic blasting efforts

at Smith's Cove
and the Cave-In Pit,

the team from Eagle Canada

is now preparing to continue
their massive operation

in the area between
the triangle-shaped swamp

and the Money Pit
also known as the Highlands.

Meanwhile,
as members of the team continue

to trace back the old sluiceway
in search of Shaft Nine...

-We left off
right about here, right? -Yeah.

Peter Fornetti

and metal detection expert
Gary Drayton

arrive at Lot 32,

located southwest
of the Oak Island swamp.

So, I'll go
from the water's edge

up to the top,
and we'll just hit it,

-zigzagging.
-And I'll walk down the middle.

All right, mate. Well,
hopefully, I'll keep you busy.

After making a series

of compelling new discoveries
in the swamp this year,

including
a possible paved wharf,

a mysterious
circular rock formation

at the so-called
Eye of the Swamp

and a 200-foot-long anomaly

revealed by last year's
seismic scanning,

Gary is convinced
that while Rick and Marty

wait for the necessary permits

required to drain
and excavate the swamp,

the surrounding area

may still yield
a number of important clues.

-Is that something?
-No.

I'm getting something,
but it seems to be

all over the place.

-Yeah, let's go for this, mate.
-Okay.

I have no idea what it is.

I think you might have it out.

-Where?
-Right on the top.

-Oh.
-Yep.

Dang, look at that.

That's a nice little surprise.

Yeah, this looks like, to me,
with that lip,

this is a typical decking spike

with the lip
for trapping the wood.

This is definitely 1700s, mate.

This spike reminds me

of the one that we found
in the swamp.

I mean, this is cool
because we found

-a similar one in the area.
-Mm-hmm.

An iron decking spike?

From a ship?

Possibly dating back
to the 1700s?

-Oh, yeah.
-Oh, look at that. That's nice.

That is old.
It's an handmade spike.

Three years ago,

while metal-detecting

in the swamp, Gary Drayton,

along with Jack Begley
and Alex Lagina,

discovered a similar object.

An object that was later

identified by antiques expert
Dr. Lori Verderame

as a decking spike from
a 17th-century Spanish galleon.

This spike has spoken volumes.

The spike is called
the barrote type,

which, in Spanish,
just means "iron bar."

And a barrote type spike

would have been similar
to a finishing nail

on a Spanish galleon ship.

-Wow.
-Oh, man.

Could this iron decking spike
found near the swamp

be further evidence
to support the theory

that the swamp
was artificially created

to hide a large sailing vessel

along with the valuables
it contained?

And, if so,
could it also be related

to the massive
ship-shaped anomaly

revealed by seismic scanning
earlier this year?

This is what
we want to be finding,

-ship spikes.
-Mm-hmm.

That means there's been
some ships coming here.

If a ship went down
in this area,

there's probably some more.

Yeah, it could be.

This is fantastic, mate.

This is what
we want to be finding.

On to the next one.

Off to a great start.

Meanwhile,
back at the Money Pit site,

the team continues to unearth
portions of the sluiceway

in search of Shaft Nine.

-Starting to see wood?
-Not yet.

I don't know why
it hasn't hit it yet.

You expect to see the top
by now.

Yeah.

So the question is,
are we off a little bit?

Well, did it move?

Are-are we deep enough?

Maybe it's deeper.

He's in the right spot.

What's that there?

Big stone, maybe?

- A rock.
-Yeah.

Doug! What are you thinking?

Keep going or...?

Can you get any deeper?

I can go deeper, yeah.

There's something.

Oh, we got water, Billy!

Oh, wow, look at that.

-We got water to that side.
Yeah.

The ground keeps falling out
to that side.

-See the wood?
-Yep.

Is that wood on the side there?

Look, right-right there.

Looks like it, Billy.

I-I'd dig into it.

The whole way down or...?

All the way down, yeah.

-Oh, look at that.
- There it is.

That's the top of it, probably.

You got some wood in...
You got some wood in the bucket.

In with the teeth.
-Yeah.

Does look like it.

He brought some wood
right there.

Yeah.

It's too small for the tunnel.

It's definitely got to be
the sluice.

That looks like the size
of the sluice.

I don't know if there's sense
taking any more out, is there?

-No. I think we're done here.
-Yeah, I think we're done.

He's-he's taken it out.

Yeah, I guess we know
where it is now.

Yeah.

I have coordinates on it,
so we're good, so...

I've tagged it along the way
so we know where it's at now

-so it's easy to find.
-Yeah.

So I can stake to it
at any point,

-and we can open it up.
Yeah.

All right, let's go.

Good work, guys. Good day.

- Yeah.
Yeah.

It's gone quiet.

Yeah, let's stick
to the same line,

and then we know
we've covered this area.

Well, we went metal-detecting,

and we are detecting
a lot of metal, mate.

I see rusty sand.

We should be getting close.

Let's take it easy on that.

I see it.

What the heck is that?

Interesting.

Wow.
Looks like one of those spikes

we pulled out near the slipway.

That's all wrought iron.

-It is?
-Yeah.

This is hand-forged.

Yeah, it's got that grain...

that wood grain look about it.

Oh, yeah.

-It's an unusual shape.
-Mm-hmm.

But the thing that stands out
to me is the length.

Same as the slipway
cribbing spikes.

A cribbing spike?

Similar to those
found last year

in the 18th-century
wooden slipway

or ship wharf unearthed
at Smith's Cove?

Could it also be evidence

of seafaring activity
at Oak Island

prior to the discovery
of the Money Pit

in 1795?

We haven't found many
of these anywhere else.

Slipway's the only place.

So, what would they be used for?

Well, cribbing,
which would have meant

even, like, doing a dock
or a slipway.

They would have just been
hammered into those logs.

You know,
they had multiple uses.

Mm-hmm.

What is all this stuff
doing here?

And I've heard stories,

walls, gates in the swamp.

-It's for sure something
we should get cleaned up. -Yeah.

For the date, maybe we take that
to Carmen Legge.

I mean, we have a lot of iron,
and we can

-figure out
if it's pre-Money Pit. -Yeah.

-It's a good thing to know.
-Good idea, mate.

That's why we're tagging
and bagging it.

Awesome.

Good digging, mate.

-Let's keep going.
- Okay.

Maybe before the end
of the day,

-we'll have an "X" on the spot.
-Whoa, whoa, whoa!

Water's coming in now.
-We found the tunnel!

Yep, there it is.

Before another day

comes to an end on Oak Island

and as the seismic test
continues

across the island's
entire eastern half...

Rick Lagina,
his partner Craig Tester

and other members of the team
meet in the w*r room

with Canadian journalist
and author D'Arcy O'Connor

and his daughter Miranda.

Also joining them
via video conference

is Rick's brother Marty
from his offices

in Traverse City, Michigan.

Hello, D'Arcy.

-Hello, Miranda.
Hi, Marty.

-How are you?
-Been a while.

-Been 12 years, Marty.

I distinctly remember,

D'Arcy, you giving a talk

called "Debunking the
Debunkers." You remember that?

That's right, yeah.
-Yeah.

And that's when
you introduced yourself,

and that's why we were
calling you the Michigan Mob.

-That's right.
Because we had no idea.

We knew you were from Michigan.

-That's it.

Here comes the Michigan Mob.

I was keenly interested

-in what you have
to say today, too. -Oh, thank you.

D'Arcy O'Connor
has spent over 50 years

researching and writing
about the Oak Island mystery.

His fascination
with the 224-year treasure hunt

began in 1970
while writing a feature

for The Wall Street Journal.

Since then, he has published
numerous books on the topic

and has conducted
extensive firsthand research,

which includes
personal interviews

with notable
Oak Island treasure hunters

such as M.R. Chappell,
Fred Nolan and Dan Blankenship.

He's one of
the early researchers

who really did
something different,

and that is he spoke to locals.

He met these people,
he talked to these people,

and his books

are not only engaging
but highly informative,

and he believes in his facts.

Having recently published

a new edition of his book,

The Secret Treasure
of Oak Island,

D'Arcy has come to share
information he believes

could be valuable to the team.

I obviously was always curious
about the who,

what, when, where,
why and so on.

And so,
I looked at all those facts

and asked myself, "Well,
who had this sort of treasure

"that would be worth
all of that time,

"all of that effort, and would
have the engineering ability

and a large enough workforce?"

I started doing a lot of reading

about the Spanish conquest
in the New World,

and then discovered
that their galleons went back

loaded with, uh, goodies

from, uh, South America,
Central America and Mexico.

Following
Christopher Columbus's

so-called discovery
of the New World in 1492,

the Spanish Empire began a vast
campaign of rapid colonization

throughout North, Central
and South America.

For three centuries,
Spanish conquistadors

including Hernán Cortés
and Francisco Pizarro

seized the lands and enslaved
the native peoples,

such as the Aztec
and Inca empires,

plundering billions
of dollars worth of gold,

silver and priceless gemstones
in the process.

These treasures were then sent
back to Spain

on large sailing vessels,
known as galleons.

I found out
that after about 1525,

these galleons discovered
the Gulf Stream.

The Gulf Stream comes up
the North American coast

and heads straight to Europe.

And that route would take
those ships within 300 miles

off the coast of Nova Scotia.

Wow.

Then I started reading
about, uh,

various galleons
that didn't make it home.

Hey, D'Arcy?

-Yeah.
-How many ships disappeared,

if you did the research?

Uh, I came across at least 200.

Wow.

That disappeared on their way

from Havana back to Europe.

-No kidding.
-Oh, yeah.

200 disappeared?

Yeah, and, uh,
they carried large crews,

as well as engineers
who had been

opening up the new silver mines
in Bolivia and other places.

So they had intelligent
people aboard,

and so I came up with a theory
that maybe one

of these ships got caught
in a storm as they were coming,

following the Gulf Stream,

and was driven all the way north

to a little island
in Nova Scotia.

Maybe Oak Island.

And this ship then

finds itself being beached,

full of plunder
from the New World.

-Mm-hmm.
-And to sail home

would be prey
to privateers, pirates,

or the navies of, uh,

France and, uh, England.

So, then they realized

that, uh, they want
to hide it on this island,

and they protect it
with flood tunnels.

Well, D'Arcy,
in association with your theory,

there's been a lot of Spanish
artifacts found on the island.

-I believe this is a coin.
-No!

Although numerous British

and French coins and artifacts

have been found
on Oak Island over the years,

the Laginas and their partners
have also unearthed

compelling evidence of possible
Spanish activity on the island,

dating back as early
as the 17th century.

In addition to finding
an iron spike three years ago,

which was identified
as similar to those used

in the construction
of Spanish galleons,

the team also found
a Spanish maravedi coin

dated 1652.

These finds corroborated
discoveries previously made

by veteran Oak Island
treasure hunter Fred Nolan,

who, after draining the swamp
in 1969,

found what he believed
to be wooden parts

from a Spanish galleon,

including scuppers
and a portion of a mast.

It ties in with the time frame.

It ties in with a lot
of the carbon dating.

It's a hypothesis,
but it-it fits a lot

of what's been found
on Oak Island.

The coconut fiber, for example,

was commonly used
by the galleons

as packing material
so the car-cargo doesn't shift.

Miranda, do you buy
into your father's theory?

I mean, I've grown up
with that theory.

No, I definitely think
something happened.

I mean, there's something
very elaborate

that happened on this island.

Somebody went to great lengths
to do something.

But you think it's still here?

Oh, yeah. I don't think
you're chasing empty holes.

D'Arcy's significance to me

is that he's seen something
that he wants to investigate,

and he is investigating.

So, you know, I'm looking
forward to reading the book

and, uh,
drawing my own conclusion.

We just want to say
with all... all respect,

which you have certainly earned,
a great big thank-you.

It's been our pleasure.
I want to see it solved, too.

-Yep. -Okay.
-Thanks.

Thanks, D'Arcy.

Okay, thanks, Marty.

The shaft should be close
to the surface.

Whoa.
- That looks like

-it's part of the shaft.
-I think this is a wall here.

It points us very close

to the original Money Pit.

One day after
the team's meeting

with author and journalist
D'Arcy O'Connor,

Alex Lagina and Gary Drayton
head some 20 miles

north of Oak Island
to the Ross Farm Museum,

located in the nearby town
of New Ross.

They have arranged

for blacksmithing expert
Carmen Legge

to examine the possible
18th-century decking spike

found near the swamp,

in the hope
that he can determine

whether it was once part
of an ancient ship,

such as a Spanish galleon.

Well, hello.

Hey, Carmen.

-You, as well.
-Hello, mate. How you doing?

And you, mate.

It's been going great.
We've been finding

a ton of stuff on Oak Island.

Yeah. This came from the beach

just at the corner of the swamp.

Lot 32 beach.

And we don't normally find a lot
of iron on that beach,

but recently,
we've been finding little things

and we don't know what they are.

Uh, we've got, like, an idea,

but we figured
we'd bring them to you.

Check 'em out.
See what they are.

Okay, mate.

Uh, we're hoping you can shed
some light on this one.

Okay, mate.
Here's an interesting artifact.

Yes.

It's in bad condition

because of the saltwater
corrosion off the beach.

And what piqued our interest,
even though

it's a corroded iron spike,

it was found close to the swamp.

And, of course, we're looking
for a boat in the swamp.

And this is the type of thing
you would expect to find

in the planking, in the decking.

Yeah.

Yeah, that's
the only one so far.

Yes, but...

A scupper... for shipbuilding?

Could this iron spike

be connected
to the wooden scuppers

discovered in the swamp
nearly five decades ago

by veteran Oak Island
treasure hunter Fred Nolan?

Scuppers, which Fred believed

were once part of an ancient
treasure ship, or galleon?

And, if so,
could it be further evidence

to support D'Arcy O'Connor's
theory that a fortune

in Spanish gold and silver
was buried on Oak Island

centuries ago?

Would it be possible
in the condition it's in

to put a date on that, or...?

Yeah.

With all the stuff
that we've now found

in the swamp, I'm thinking
that we're in the right place.

This is a place for boats

to come in and unload,
hopefully, treasure.

Well, so we got a deck spike.

-Yeah.
-Um, and then a mystery item

that we need to do
a little bit more work on.

So we won't keep you any longer.

-Thank you for your time.
-All right. All right, mate.

Thanks for the I.D.

- Very good.
- Cheers.

Following his visit

with blacksmithing expert
Carmen Legge...

-Hey, Gary.
-Hey, mate.

-You think I'm gonna let you
have all the fun?

...Gary Drayton
arrives at the Money Pit area,

where members
of the Oak Island team believe

they have finally calculated
the most likely location

for Shaft Nine.

Well, it's always gratifying

when one discovery leads
to another, leads to another.

So we followed a trail,

we tracked the sluice
to the tunnel,

but now we're gonna hopefully

dig the shaft itself.

As soon as I heard you was...

you was digging a big hole here,

I'm like, "Got to be here."

Well, we've got a lot
of dirt over

on the other side there
if you want to, uh,

start working on it.

So, how far are you
digging down?

How deep are you going
to expose this shaft?

The shaft should, hopefully, be
relatively close to the surface.

Well, one thing for sure
you got a lot of spoils

-for me to detect.
-Exactly.

- Well, mate, I'm gonna

get around that side
so I'm nice and safe,

and I'll tell... I'll give you
a shout if I find anything.

-Okay.
-See you in a bit.

As Billy Gerhardt continues
to dig using the excavator,

Gary Drayton
will scan the spoils

for any important clues
or artifacts

that might be unearthed
in the process.

Hey, guys.

Charles, how are things looking?

We dug this trench here,
but we didn't find anything,

so we're gonna move over
a little bit to the south here.

The last crew that really knew

where the Money Pit was
was in 1867.

After that,
it was just, uh, their guess

at what the Money Pit was.

-This pit was dug in 1863.
-Okay.

And they tunneled over
to the Money Pit 100 feet away.

So, if we can define
the parameters of this pit,

then we can be reasonably sure
the Money Pit's

about 100 feet away,
the original one.

Yeah.

I'm confused as to why
we haven't hit wood.

I think he needs
to back up a little bit.

I think it's
right under his tracks.

Nothing so far.

Whoa.

Hey, Billy!
There's wood there!

That's a crossbeam
right there, right?

Whoa!
Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!

-Found the tunnel!
- There it is.

PAUL:
This is going to lead right

to the Money Pit,
so it's important information.

Near the Money Pit area,

members of the Oak Island team

have called Rick Lagina
and Craig Tester

to see what they hope
will be one

of this year's most
important discoveries.

Thanks to information
supplied to them

by veteran treasure hunter
Dan Henskee,

they have unearthed
what they believe to be

an 1863 searcher structure
known as Shaft Nine.

I'm looking forward
to seeing this thing. Yeah.

Wow.

Look at the size of that thing.

So, where are we?

We have one of the uphill
corners, I think.

I cleared over there, so it
should be further that way.

I would dig all four out.
Why not?

-Yeah.
Yeah.

We'll want to measure it,
that's for sure.

-You know?
-Well...

It's one way to corroborate,
you know,

-if it really is Nine.
-Right.

Okay.
Well, we're getting in your way.

Yeah.
Yep.

Is that wood stuck in...?

He's got a ton of...
Hey. Tell him to stop. Stop.

- What? - He just drug
a ton of wood.

Right here.

That looks like
it's part of the shaft.

The shaft,

it should be 6 by 12.

So it will be interesting to see

what the sizes
turn out to be on this.

Yeah.

I think this is a wall here.

Yeah.

There's big timber here,

but there's wood
coming out of here,

and there's
a big post right here.

- Yeah. Look at that.
- So I don't know if this

is an outside wall and that's
an inside corner or what,

but you can take
some off of here

-and off this bank right here...
-And this.

...to this depth to this height.

Yeah. Both sides of that wall.

I think that might be
the corner.

I'd say you're right.

I'd say it's a corner.

You guys want a tape measure?

Yep.

Coming in.

Your 6-by-12 measurement

may not be too far off, Doug.

It looks extremely well built.

12 feet inside.

Is it? That is huge.

Now we got the edge of it here,
6 by 12.

Well, we got those
1850s accounts that say

that all the open shafts
were 6 by 12.

- Let's keep digging.

Bill, just keep pecking away.

Yeah.

Although the team
is encouraged by the fact

that the wooden structure they
have uncovered appears to match

the historical dimensions
of Shaft Nine,

they are also understandably
wary, as, over the centuries,

the Money Pit has been the site

of more than 40
tunneling operations.

Want to try and expose
a little more of it, or...?

This is the edge of it here.
It must go back this way more.

Well, I can use
the other machine

-to get to the other side.
-Yeah.

It's really cool whenever we
unearth one of these shafts.

Rick and I did one
a couple years ago,

and now Rick basically
did this one.

Every time I look down
into a pit like that

and see those massive timbers
and see how hard it was

to do with an excavator,

and then realize it goes down
another what, 90 feet?

-11 stories.
-Yeah.

And it's timbers and...

I mean, I was in awe
of what these people did,

and these were the searchers.

Forget about
the original depositors.

-Find anything yet?
-I think we're getting closer now.

The tunnel that goes down
into the sluice

goes through
that bank right there.

Where's it going to appear,
though, Scott? In that way?

-Diagonally like this.
-Yeah. Kind of like this.

Whoa!
-Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!

Water's coming in now.
-PAUL: Wow, look at that.

Yeah. There's water coming in
over in the bank,

right here, coming down through.

That's a crossbeam right there.

We found the tunnel!

Yep. There it is.

The team has finally unearthed

a connection linking the shaft
to the sluiceway.

This proves
they have successfully

discovered Shaft Nine.

Not too often you see a tunnel,

you know, a horizontal tunnel
like that, right?

Yeah. No.

And you can see the-the beams,

crossbeams on top of it
right now, so...

Yeah. -This here was nice
to see, though,

because now we know the tunnel
comes back to this shaft.

-Right.
-So, beyond a doubt,

it's the one Dan Henskee
read about.

It's an aha moment

in the history of Oak Island.

We're staring at a shaft

that was done over
a century and a half ago.

It's incredible to stand there

and look at what
they accomplished.

They persevered.
They were committed.

They wanted answers.

We do, too.

So, hopefully, their work

will allow us to finally do
what they sought to do:

find the Money Pit,

understand what's there
and hopefully retrieve it.

This information
is critically important

to coming to an understanding
of what me might do here

in the Money Pit
in the near future.

The best information
is physical evidence.

-Physical information
that we have. -Absolutely.

-Yeah.
-We got to take this data

and bring it back to the
research center and analyze it.

Have Steve input it.

Let's go do that right now,

and maybe before
the end of the day

we'll have an "X" on the spot.

Okay. Sounds good.

Following their discovery

of Shaft Nine
at the Money Pit site...

Certainly are done.

...Rick Lagina, Jack Begley

and historian Doug Crowell
meet once again

with the team
from Eagle Canada,

after receiving word
that the seismic test

across the island's
eastern drumlin

or eastern half of the island
has been completed.

I-I know it's been a long haul.

20,000 sh*ts, you know,

I mean, that-that's incredible.

Oh, yeah. No. The guys worked
really hard, you know what?

They did.
-And everything went good,

but the guys are ready
to go home now.

Yeah. I'm sure they are.

It was a beehive of activity on
the eastern drumlin this year.

-Your guys were everywhere.
-Uh-huh.

I can't wait to see
what results you get.

Oh, yeah. Yeah.

The one drawback, if you will,

is there's this lag time
between data acquisition

and processing the data.

We're like this, right?

-Waiting to-to drill it.
-Yeah. No, for sure.

Although Rick and the team

are excited and hopeful

that the new seismic test

could reveal significant data

about what really exists

deep below
the island's surface,

they will have
to wait several weeks

for the data
to be fully processed.

Eagle Canada, they've done
a tremendous job.

They've taken all the sh*ts.

I think they're very happy,
and as are we.

And now the proof's
in the pudding, right?

Can they show us something?

I think of particular interest,
of course,

is that supposed
tunnel connection

between the Money Pit
and the Highland anomalies,

and the other area of interest

is Smith's Cove,
Cave-In Pit area.

Are there tunnels there?

Hopefully, it'll show something.

How shallow can we see?

You know what,
starting at ten feet.

Uh, really good at ten feet.

And then pretty much down to...?

Oh, yeah. Down to-to 300 feet.

But our zone of interest
is really, like,

from that ten feet
to that 100 feet.

You know,
if there's "X" marks the spot,

that would be the best scenario,
but look,

just get us some targets
that are worth investigating,

and we will do the hard work
to investigate them.

-Excellent. Sounds like a deal.
-All right. All right.

-Please tell everybody
thank you. -I will.

Appreciate it.
Thank you. Bye.

All right. Take care.

After a week that saw Rick,

Marty and the team
make promising discoveries

both at the swamp
and the Money Pit site,

they are more convinced
than ever

that they could soon find
the place

that has been lost
to treasure hunters

for more than six decades:

the original treasure shaft,

first discovered
by Daniel McGinnis

and his friends in 1795.

But as they move forward,

will they be able to avoid

the booby-trapped
flood tunnels?

And if so, what then?

Will they find
an underground chamber

filled with gold and jewels?

Historical documents?

Priceless artifacts?

Or will they find the reason
that something was buried

on Oak Island
more than two centuries ago,

and buried so deep,

is because it was not meant
to be disturbed?

Next time
on The Curse of Oak Island...

Here we go.
Floodgate's about to open.

Here it goes!

I think it's time
to get our feet wet.

-Let's do it.
-There's a structure down there.

It's ten feet under water.

We found Nine.
I think this disturbed area

in this photo
might be Shaft Two.

Steve can triangulate
and see where it intersects.

"X" marks the spot.

- Look at all the wood.
-Oh, look at the wood.

Looks like we're in the middle
of a shaft.

Ooh! Look at that.

I don't know why this is here.

I don't know what this would be.

This might be bigger
than we thought.