10x15 - Wood You Believe It?

[bunniefuu]

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

TEDFORD:
Whoa!

I could feel the rods
break through something.

Whoa! We got lots of wood.

Wood all through this core.

TERRY: Oh, my gosh.
We're into something.

EMMA: There's some quantities

of gold in the wood.

That's fantastic. Now we have

gold in the wood
and in the water.

This might lead us to
where the treasure may be.

Wow. Look at that.

They found an old ladder.

- SCOTT: It's all handmade.
- This could be

the long-sought-after answer.

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...

man-made workings
that date to medieval times,

and a lead cross whose
origin may be connected

to 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.

♪ ♪

PAUL: This is gonna
be an exciting spot.

CHARLES: DN-11.5?

STEVE: Yep.

- Hey, Mike.
- Hey.

You ready to bring the rig in?

Yeah. Ready to go.

NARRATOR: As another
exciting week begins

- on Oak Island...
- CHARLES: Is that it? -Got it.

For brothers Rick and
Marty Lagina and their team,

they are more
confident than ever

that the answers to a


may soon be within their reach.

Well, this is a location that
we think is a prime target.

Dr. Spooner and
Dr. Michel feel like

they've isolated, uh, an
area of specific interest

based on those water
sample testing results.

This is that area.

Sounds good.

Here's what gets
me really excited.

We don't think
this is geological.

Hmm.

NARRATOR: One week ago,

after conducting water tests

in boreholes across
the Money Pit area

that suggested the fabled
treasure may be located

within a 70-by-25-foot area
just west of the Garden Shaft

that the team affectionately
dubbed the Blob...

FRED: The variety of
objects that are being buried

that contain those metals.

And they're clustered
in this smaller area.

NARRATOR: geoscientist
Dr. Ian Spooner

and hydrogeologist
Dr. Fred Michel

conducted new tests

that significantly narrowed
the search area even more

to a zone measuring
just 20-by-20 feet

and between 80
and 120 feet deep.

Blob version 2.0.

- Baby Blob.
- Yeah, Baby Blob.

[laughter]

So, here's a plan of the area.

It's a very curious area,

because we potentially
have a tunnel sitting at 95 feet,

which comes into this
potential treasure location.

It all leads to this area,

and that area leads
right to that "X."

And that "X" is really
the best sh*t we have

- of covering all of it.
- Yeah.

So, back the rig
in. Let's get going.

- Let's do it.
- All right.

NARRATOR: Now
the team is about to drill

Borehole DN-11.5
in the Baby Blob,

a borehole that they hope will
not only encounter valuables

below a depth of 80 feet

but may also be on
track to intercept a tunnel

believed to run directly
below the Garden Shaft,

where water testing has
also detected evidence of gold.

RICK: There's
palpable excitement.

I mean, we've conducted

an extensive water
sampling program

literally over months.

-TEDFORD: Bam! -This could be

where the so-called
"elusive treasure" may reside.

My hope is that

we will find something there.

Okay, well, Charles,
if you find anything,

- give us a call. -Yep.
- Thanks, Charles.

- You and Terry are in charge.
- Okay.

NARRATOR: As
the drilling operation

in Borehole DN-11.5
gets underway...

a short while later...

ROGER: Go in there
and we'll sign ourselves in

- and get on the way.
- Okay.

Rick Lagina and Oak Island
operations manager Scott Barlow

prepare to personally
inspect the Garden Shaft

now that its reconstruction

is well past the
halfway point to reaching

their target depth of 80 feet.

- All right.
- Okay, so how deep are we, Roger?

So, I'm-I'm estimating
around 59, maybe 60 feet

is where the bottom
of the muck is itself.

So we'll be about
five feet above that.

Uh, that's where
our staging is set.

- Okay.
- You'll see the old landing.

The ladder's
still leaning on it.

So it'll give you
a good idea of,

uh, how they-they
constructed things.

Okay.

- I say we get downhole.
- All right.

- Sounds good. Let's go.
- SCOTT: Go.

NARRATOR: Over
the past several weeks,

the team from Dumas
Contracting Limited

has been excavating tons
of muck and water out of

the dilapidated


and then installing new
watertight wooden levels

every eight feet
known as "sets."

As Dumas progresses
further underground,

they will also be probe
drilling at various angles

for evidence of potential offset
man-made chambers and valuables.

RICK: Scott and I
are lucky enough

to go back down
into the Garden Shaft.

They have found an old ladder.

Look, it-it's a little
part of history.

There we go.

Oh, here we are right here.

SCOTT: Wow.

RICK: Isn't that something?

- SCOTT: Mm-hmm.
- ROGER: Been here a while.

RICK: Amazing.

You see how it's all whittled

- and, uh, it's not...
- Yeah.

ROGER: Def-Definitely didn't
have a wood lathe back then.

SCOTT: It's all handmade.

- Yeah. -You're 100% right.
- RICK: Look at that.

- It's a pretty unique piece. I mean...
- Like you said.

ROGER: Somebody took
a lot of time whittling that.

- That one.
- I'd like... I'd like to speak to the man who built this ladder.

Oh, God. Yeah.

Just to see what he had to
say about this whole operation.

Absolutely.

NARRATOR: Given the fact

that the Garden Shaft
may have been constructed

more than half a century prior

to the discovery of
the original Money Pit,

could this handmade
ladder have been left behind

by someone who deposited
a vast cache of gold?

If so, might that explain the
high readings of precious metals

that the team has
detected in this area?

SCOTT: One thing, Roger,
I'm seeing... it looks like

we're starting to
sink in that corner

in the original structure.

That-that beam
is running downhill.

Is running down... Uh, you
know what, that-that could

very well be. Yeah.

We haven't seen any split
in the timbers anywhere,

so we're not sure
what's going on.

SCOTT: No, you know,
I'm-I'm really curious.

We have a very soft void
that's to the south of us,

- and we see sinking on this corner.
- Yeah.

- That could be what's happening here.
- Yeah.

SCOTT: You know? There
could be potential offset chambers,

who knows what?

It's a... it's a good
point, though.

I'll get 'em to check that.

Because just below
the staging here

we're gonna be setting
up our probe drill.

Who knows what's
outside these walls?

We might be two feet
away from something

- that's just sitting there.
- Yeah.

The proof is in
the drilling, I'd say.

NARRATOR: 12 weeks ago,

while drilling
Borehole A5N-13.5,

located just 18 feet southwest
of the Garden Shaft...

Hey, guys!

Check out the Garden Shaft!

The team
discovered a large void.

This could be the indication
of an offset chamber.

NARRATOR: Is it possible that
the slump Scott Barlow has noticed

at the same approximate
depth in the Garden Shaft

could be related to that void?

If so, what might they find

once they are able to begin
probe drilling in that area?

That's exciting,
because, I mean,

that's the next step
in advancing this.

- Yeah.
- I mean, this is gonna give us the ability to

also see outside the
shaft. If there's some kind

of a chamber or a
tunnel or another shaft

- that's beside it...
- Mm.

This is gonna give
us that information.

- Yep.
- RICK: Okay.

Let's get the ladder
up out of the hole.

Let's get that ladder
down so we get topside

- and your guys can come down and continue to work.
- Sounds good.

Absolutely. I agree 100%.

NARRATOR: As Rick and
Scott finish their inspection

of the Garden Shaft...

GARY: I know you guys
are as excited as I am

about this fantastic artifact.

NARRATOR: in the
Interpretive Centre...

MARTY: All right,
team, what have you got

- for me today?
- Yeah, we found

what I describe
as a bobby-dazzler.

NARRATOR: Marty Lagina
is meeting via videoconference

with his son Alex,

metal detection
expert Gary Drayton,

and archaeologist
Laird Niven, who,

along with archaeometallurgist
Emma Culligan,

have an updated
report to share regarding

a potentially valuable
recent discovery.

It is a fantastic-looking
piece of jewelry.

It's really intricate and,

of course, a top-pocket find.

Excellent.

NARRATOR: The
ornately-designed artifact

was discovered just
one week ago on Lot 26,

less than 100 yards

from a mysterious


a stone well where
Dr. Spooner's water testing

has also yielded high
trace evidence of silver.

All I've been thinking
about is what's it made of

and how old it is.

Okay, what does it tell us?

I'm all ears.

So, I did a really long CT scan

just to get a better
look at the interior.

It is very intricate.

Hmm.

NARRATOR: Over
the past 24 hours,

Emma has conducted a
continuous scan of the artifact

using the computer
tomography, or CT, scanner.

The machine emits
nondestructive X-ray radiation,

which produces
a high-definition,

three-dimensional
image of the object,

revealing its finer details.

GARY: So it was probably
a pin that went across it,

so it probably is
a brooch or a pin.

Mm-hmm.

NARRATOR: In
addition to the CT scanner

Emma has also
analyzed the object

with the X-ray fluorescence
spectrometer, or XRF.

This device can identify the
types of alloys and elements

that artifacts are composed of,

which can help
determine when and where

they may have originated.

So, Emma, I know
you've run the XRF on this.

Mm-hmm.

What is this thing made out of?

So, it's a brass iron alloy,

and then you have this

lead glass, and it's definitely
a lead-potassium glass.

- Leaded glass normally means older.
- Lead is good.

Yeah. That's this
piece right here.

So that's the glass piece.

LAIRD: Yeah, and it's
rather crudely added.

Well, that's good because
crude normally means

something being older.

-LAIRD: Yeah. -MARTY: Laird.

- LAIRD: Yeah?
- How old is this?

- I defer to Emma on that.
- [Emma chuckles]

I'm not seeing any elements
to suggest 1850s-post.

So I'm not seeing any
true modern materials in it.

That's fantastic news.

MARTY: Excellent.

MARTY: How old is this?

I'm not seeing any true
modern materials in it.

NARRATOR: In the
Interpretive Centre,

archaeometallurgist
Emma Culligan

has just informed the team

that a decorative artifact

found one week ago on Lot 26

and not far from the


may also predate the
discovery of the Money Pit.

What is it?

Well, this is where
her artistry comes in.

EMMA: Okay.

So I did separate 3D images.

So you've got two pieces...

You've got this
copper wiring part,

then you have the
floral bit with the glass.

Glass component.

Are those leaves?
Are those fleur-de-lis?

EMMA: They are fleur-de-lis.

Well, that
fleur-de-lis is French.

NARRATOR:
Although its true origin is

debated by scholars to this day,

the fleur-de-lis,
or "flower lily," is

a symbol that was adopted

by the French monarchy
in the 12th century

to represent purity.

However, it was also an
emblem associated with

the medieval order of
the Knights Templar,

who also originated in France

and depicted it on certain
versions of their official seal.

Is it possible that
this mysterious object

was left on Oak Island by
someone of French origin?

And if so, could it
be related to other

French artifacts that the
team has found in recent years,

such as the 14th
century lead cross,

which came from an
area in Southern France

that was known to
have been a stronghold

of the Templar Order?

GARY: This might
go way, way back.

And how do we know
this is not treasure, Marty?

Well, it could be,
but, you know,

it'd be nicer if you were
doing your gold dance

- right now, Gary.
- GARY: Yeah.

- Oh, I'd be on this table.
- [Alex laughs]

MARTY: This thing can tell us

a story yet, I'm sure.

And we're really
looking for the origins of

who was on that lot,

- and what were they doing there?
- ALEX: Yep.

We'll get working on it.

MARTY: Excellent.

- LAIRD: See you later.
- GARY: See you, mate.

♪ ♪

NARRATOR: The following day...

TEDFORD: Good to go.

As the core drilling operation

in Borehole DN-11.5...

ROGER: Coming
down. There you go.

And the reconstruction
of the Garden Shaft

continue in the
Money Pit area...

ROGER: Good.

RICK: So I'm sure everybody
recognizes this area.

NARRATOR: Rick Lagina,
along with Jack Begley

and archaeologists Laird
Niven and Helen Sheldon

arrive on Lot 26,

near the mysterious


RICK: What's curious to me,

because it's an association with

Gary's metal detecting,

this stone wall.

NARRATOR: In light of the recent
discovery of the decorative brooch,

which was found
near this rock wall

on the border of Lot 26,

Rick Lagina has decided to

further investigate
this stone feature

for clues that might explain

just who may have
visited this area

prior to the discovery
of the Money Pit.

It's unlike any of the others.

- It's wider.
- LAIRD: Yeah.

RICK: Thicker.

There's more of
a construct to it.

Regular farmers'
stone walls are just...

You find a stone in the field,

you throw it on the pile, right?

This, if you walk back

you can see a
linearity to this feature

and a squareness
to this structure.

I thought it might be
important to conduct

some archaeological
investigation of that feature.

Every single rock
wall that I've seen

all over the island
is more rounded.

Correct.

But if there was a
large wall here before,

it would have been
used as a lot line.

It's possible.

So, it was 1762,

I believe, when the
island was surveyed.

Yeah.

Charles Morris.

NARRATOR: In


the surveyor general
of Nova Scotia,

divided Oak Island
into 32 four-acre lots.

Although the island
was relatively uninhabited

until the discovery of
the Money Pit in 1795,

curiously, it was the
only island in Mahone Bay

to have been divided
up in this fashion.

Is it possible that this
rock wall contains clues

that could help explain
why Oak Island held

particular interest to the
provincial government?

It seems like it
could have been used

for some other purpose.

I've noticed this before...
Related to the wall possibly...

Is this feature here.

I'd be interested in seeing

if that is indeed the
terminus of the wall...

- LAIRD: Mm-hmm.
- Or if it does indeed extend into the pond.

LAIRD: If the wetland was here,

the wall would
stop right where it is.

RICK: Mm-hmm.

LAIRD: If it was further
away, then perhaps

the wall extended even further.

I think we should
start by just probing

- to see if it continues.
- Okay.

There's no time like
the present to start.

- I think we'll start with probing, right?
- Good. Yup.

RICK: We've never
understood completely

why the stone wall
between Lots 26

and 27 is constructed
differently than

the rest of the stone
walls across the island.

I'm very curious
to see what we find.

♪ ♪

No rock there.

- Ew. No rock there.
- No rock there.

RICK: It doesn't go off

in that direction,
though, does it, Laird?

♪ ♪

No.

There's nothing going that way.

So, what's the next step?

I'd like to put a test unit
hard up against the wall.

So we can get a
good cross section

- and see how it was built.
- Yeah. Exactly, yeah.

I think we'll set
Helen up in her pit,

- along that potential feature.
- Sure.

- And then we can just clear the vegetation.
- RICK: Okay.

There's a lot to do and we
might as well get started.

- Yup.
- RICK: Okay.

NARRATOR: While Rick and
members of the team begin investigating

the rock wall on Lot 26...

♪ ♪

TERRY: Okay. DN-11.5.

Back in the Money Pit area...

- Thank you, Colten.
- Thanks, Colten.

Top of 88, so we got 78 to 88.

Let's see what it's giving us.

Slice and dice.

Charles Barkhouse and
geologist Terry Matheson

are closely
monitoring the drilling

of Borehole DN-11.5

now that it has reached

the possible treasure
zone between 80

and 120 feet deep.

- Hey, Charles.
- Hey, Ian.

Hi, Ian. How you doing?

How you doing, Terry?

Not too bad. Good to see you.

We're down DN-11.5.

We're down 78 to 88 feet.

- We're getting close. Yeah.
- We're getting close, yeah, yeah, yeah.

- [machinery squeaks]
- TEDFORD: Oh, man.

Whoa!

I think I'm gonna pull this off.

It broke through something.

Let's take a
measurement on the pipe.

COLTEN: All righty.

TERRY: What's
going on over there?

COLTEN: Ten.

TEDFORD: Saying we're
open a foot and a half.

TERRY: How we doing?

TEDFORD: Hey, guys.

So, I was doing
my run to a hundred.

- TERRY: Right.
- Right at about 90 feet,

broke through something.

Wow, you got an open
space 90 feet below grade?

- Right. There's a void down there.
- Wow.

TERRY: I can't believe it.

TERRY: You got an open space

- 90 feet below grade?
- Right.

- There's a void down there.
- Wow.

NARRATOR: It is a potentially

critical moment in
the Money Pit area

as the drilling operation
in Borehole DN-11.5

has encountered
a mysterious void

at a depth of 90 feet in
the believed treasure zone

also known as the Baby Blob.

So we're just gonna talk
this over and think about

- how we're gonna proceed.
- Yeah.

We definitely want you to pause.

All right.

I think we better get
Rick and Marty up here.

- Sure.
- Let me give them a call.

Absolutely.

We're on pause, bruh.

[line ringing]

Hey, Rick.

RICK: Whenever you get a call

from the Money Pit drill
program, you're excited.

DN-11.5 is actually within
the so-called treasure zone.

The treasure zone we know has

high gold values,

we know the
introduction of trapped air,

we know voids in the area.

It's exciting.

CHARLES: Rick's here now.

So you found it
and I can go home.

[laughing]

Well, we got something
interesting going on.

- Hey, Mike. Colten.
- Hey.

- Hey, guys.
- Hey, gentlemen.

TERRY: Join the table.

DOUG: Judging by the
people gathered here,

something happened.

When I walked up,
everybody was smiling.

- What's going on?
- Hey.

- TERRY: Come on down.
- What have we got?

Mike, why don't you tell
us what you saw or hit?

At right about 90 feet,

I could feel the rods
break through something.

And, uh...

it was open about a foot
and a half past my rods.

Whatever I cored
through probably fell out

into this void.

MARTY: So, what is this?

This DN-11.5,

it really seems to line up.

DN-12.5 and DN-13.5

all in that east-west
alignment, all have hit

a structure at 94
feet below grade.

Mike hitting this
right now at about 90,

that says perhaps we're
at the top of the tunnel.

NARRATOR: Because the
team has recently encountered

a believed tunnel
at this same depth

in two other nearby boreholes,

which all line up
with the Garden Shaft,

could Terry Matheson be
correct that they have intercepted

another section
of the structure?

If so, could it be related
to the large amount of gold

that has been detected
within the Baby Blob?

We've got to affirm
whether or not it is a tunnel.

- Yeah.
- And the only way to learn that

is to pull the core.

- TERRY: Exactly.
- Let's have at her.

Get us some core.

Time to find some treasure.
Go get it, guys. Thanks.

♪ ♪

RICK: Every time
a bit goes down,

every time we
encounter a void...

your first thought is, "This
might lead us somewhere."

To the long
sought-after answers.

The long sought-after treasure.

TEDFORD: Beauty.

Every single time.

If we were to encounter a tunnel
in close proximity to this shaft

or even at the
base of this shaft,

that's a real aha moment.

- Got something.
- Oh, he's got a big one.

TERRY: Thank you.

All right. Where'd you set down?

Uh, the end is 98 and a half.

MARTY: Where did your void end?

The void ended at 97.

You had that much?

- There's some wood, Terry.
- Whoa! We got lots of wood.

- We got wood at the bottom here.
- Yup.

TERRY: Oh, my gosh.
We're into something.

It's all through there.

There's a pretty solid
chunk in the middle of it.

There's wood all
through this core.

IAN: I'm just gonna squeeze
in there and get a wood sample.

This sample right here.
We don't need much.

That sample should be fine.

We're just gonna send
it in the lab really quickly,

just to see if there's
metals in that wood.

Do you guys still think tunnel?

- TERRY: Absolutely.
- MARTY: Well, you know what?

Why don't we run the
camera down there?

I don't think it's likely, but
maybe we see something.

- Why not?
- Yeah, sounds good.

I mean, we have it right here

and it only takes
a second to drop.

RICK: Yup. I'd
say put it on down.

All right, run it.

I'm happy whenever we
have the chance to actually

put down a camera.

That's as exciting as it gets.
That's as good as it gets.

- STEVE: Ready, Terry?
- TERRY: Ready to rock.

MARTY: That's
something we can see into.

And any time we have a chance,

we're going to do that and
hope we find something new.

STEVE: Recording.

MARTY: Okay, let's
see what we can see.

NARRATOR: In order to
investigate the possible tunnel,

the team will be using

the Inuktun Spectrum


- CHARLES: Oh, there you go.
- TERRY: We're in the water.

Yup.

NARRATOR: This
camera is designed

to withstand depths
up to 1,000 feet

underwater and features a
lens that can rotate 360 degrees.

That double tape is your 89.

TERRY: Thank you.

STEVE: Look how
dirty the water is.

Just the last foot
or two of water.

- TERRY: We're almost there.
- STEVE: Yup.

♪ ♪

MARTY: I don't see a lot.

Wow.

Tell me what you're seeing.

- STEVE: Nothing.
- CHARLES: Nothing.

- RICK: Nothing at all?
- CHARLES: Unfortunately, no.

- STEVE: It's pitch black.
- CHARLES: Yeah.

STEVE: With a light on.

Come on out.

Okay.

We have zero
visibilities with that.

- Okay. So that was disappointing.
- MARTY: Gentlemen,

absolutely no visibility.

It was kind of a long sh*t,
but it was worth doing.

We'll leave this hole
open and we'll go decide

- where we're going next.
- Okay.

MARTY: Oak Island doesn't
give up its secrets easily.

NARRATOR: As a new
day begins on Oak Island...

MARTY: There's
the man, right here.

- Good to see you.
- Nice to see you again.

- Roger. -Hey, Rog.
- Marty.

NARRATOR: Rick, Marty,

and Alex Lagina, along with

Scott Barlow, gather at

the Oak Island Research Center

to meet with Roger Fortin

from Dumas Contracting Limited.

With the recent discoveries

of believed man-made
features near the Garden Shaft,

including a large void...
Some 55 feet deep...

And now a believed
tunnel at a depth of 90 feet,

the Oak Island team is eager
to strategize how to further

investigate those features

and any others that
may be discovered

through probe drilling

as Dumas completes the shaft

down to a total
depth of 80 feet.

This would entail using
a hydraulic drilling device

to create a number of
exploratory boreholes

in each wall of the Garden Shaft

that extend several feet
out from the structure.

SCOTT: So, one thing
that we've learned this year,

drilling around that area, was,
we had encountered a tunnel.

- Okay.
- Initially, we thought

maybe it projected
from the Garden Shaft.

Hmm. Interesting.

So, what is the program?

Mm-hmm.

So, eight more feet,
then you do it again.

That's right.

So, if you encounter
wood in any of those,

we're always interested.

Yeah.

We want to do probe drilling

in various levels as
we go down in the shaft,

so we want to probe
all over in the bottom

and all off to each of the sides
and maybe down at angles

because we have evidence

that there may be a
tunnel underneath it.

We want to learn
all those things

'cause there are a lot
of things that point to

that area being in
the treasure zone.

SCOTT: So what
we're going to do is,

once you've drilled
all your holes,

Steve and I will go down there

and we'll set up some
survey equipment

and we'll take the depth that
you provide for each hole width

and we'll do the projection
on a 3D model and we'll see

- where those land in space.
- Yup.

RICK: The probe
drilling program is

necessary for two reasons.

One is, there may be a
gold-silver component here

in this very shaft,

and one is, is there
a cavity, a void,

or a tunnel in close proximity
to this shaft indicating

a location that a
treasure may be?

Okay, great. Carry on.

- Sounds good, guys.
- Thanks.

MARTY: Let's see what
this shaft can tell us.

ROGER: Absolutely.

NARRATOR: Later
that afternoon...

ALEX: So this is the border

- between 26 and 27?
- Correct.

NARRATOR: Alex
Lagina arrives on Lot 26

to help with the investigation

of the mysterious rock wall

being conducted by Jack Begley,

archaeologist Laird Niven,

and archaeometallurgist
Emma Culligan.

- So, we put one test pit in.
- ALEX: Mm-hmm.

LAIRD: And you
can see Gary's flags,

- so things were happening here.
- ALEX: Okay.

So, what's the plan
moving forward?

Plan moving forward is,
we're gonna excavate that...

I think you and
Emma, if that's all right?

- Sure.
- This, we want to see

how far down the
wall goes, right?

If we can find an
artifact down below

jammed into the wall
that can help us date

- the construction of the wall...
- Right.

- Ready to go?
- Yeah.

- ALEX: Okay.
- JACK: Yeah.

NARRATOR: In
order to systematically

search for clues and
valuables near the stone wall

Laird has prepared two
three-foot-wide search areas

known as test pits.

What's the protocol here?

Like...

are you taking it down to...

the end of this black soil?

- LAIRD: First, I'd flatten it out.
- EMMA: Yeah.

Until you see a
distinct color change

- or a texture change even.
- Okay.

NARRATOR: As
Alex, Laird, and Emma

carefully excavate
the test pits,

Jack begins
clearing away foliage

to search for
other types of clues

such as possible carved
symbols in the rocks

that may help identify
just who created the wall.

It's still pretty clean,
like, not a lot of artifacts.

This has always been
a really interesting area

because we have this wall

that's unlike any other
wall on Oak Island.

[Jack grunting]

LAIRD: So it's a really
active area, and it's our job

to figure out what
went on and when there.

ALEX: Hey, look at this.

LAIRD: What do you have?

It's either charcoal
or just decaying root.

I think this is charcoal here.

LAIRD: Cool.

Yeah, it looks like it to me.

So, if that is, we
can probably get

- a date off that, right?
- Yeah.

- EMMA: That... is charcoal.
- ALEX: Yeah?

ALEX: Finding
charcoal is exciting

because it means you're close to

human activity.

- EMMA: Good eye.
- ALEX: Thank you.

I will find some more.

And we are only
ten feet from the wall.

Hopefully those
will help us put,

like, a date or a
time period at least

to the construction of the wall
and occupation on the property.

JACK: Hey, Laird.

LAIRD: Yup.

Will you come here for a minute?

- Sure.
- I got a question for you.

ALEX: I'll come, too.

JACK: Oh, yeah.
Everyone come on over.

ALEX: Jack, what you got?

So I know we're looking for
evidence to help date the wall.

Look at the size of this tree.

♪ ♪

ALEX: Yeah, it's pretty big.

JACK: And look
at how it's growing.

It looks to be
growing out of the wall.

LAIRD: Out of the wall, yeah.

It might have been here

before the wall
was put in place,

- right?
- ALEX: Yeah.

JACK: So...

either the, you know,
the tree came after it

or they just built a wall with
the tree still standing there.

Yeah, I mean, even if it
grew up through the wall,

which kind of looks like it did,

that still makes the
wall older than the tree.

JACK: Right?

NARRATOR: A fully grown tree

protruding through
the mysterious

stone wall on Lot 26?

Is it possible that Jack

has just found a towering clue

that could prove the
wall's construction

predated the discovery
of the Money Pit?

And if so, could it be
related to the nearby

11th century well where
silver has been detected?

Over there, we're
trying to dig down

to the bottom of the
wall, looking for artifacts

to try to get a date
on this thing, but...

- [chuckling]: It could be right there.
- Yeah.

JACK: Why don't
I give Marty a call?

JACK: This tree
might have a lot to say.

ALEX: If we get an
old date off of this,

you could add probably 50 years

to whatever date
this tree comes back

- to try to date the wall.
- Yeah.

NARRATOR: On
the border of Lot 26,

less than 100 yards from
the 11th century stone well,

Jack Begley has noticed

a massive oak tree

that has grown up through
the mysterious stone wall,

meaning that the tree could be

several hundred years
old and most likely grew

after the stone wall
was constructed.

Well, it looks like actual
work going on here.

[Alex laughs]

NARRATOR: The
questions that arise now are

just who built the wall, when,

and could it be
related to the stone well

where the team has also detected

high trace evidence
of precious metals?

ALEX: If it's old

- and it's growing on the wall...
- MARTY: Yes.

That's also a forest
oak, not a field oak.

And we know this land was

cultivated, so it would
have been open at one point.

So you can add
a little bit probably

to your estimate
of that tree's age

for the surrounding
forest to grow up.

Wh-What does that tell you?

This wall was here
a long time ago.

LAIRD: If it's pre-Ball...

MARTY: Mm-hmm.

That changes things, I think.

ALEX: Yeah, we've
been investigating

the foundation, and
everything we turn up is,

Samuel Ball was here,
he did a lot of work,

but that's largely post

the beginning of
the treasure hunt.

Yeah, that's a very good point.

NARRATOR: Is it
possible the stone wall

predated the habitation
of Samuel Ball?

A man who purchased Lot 26

in 1788 when he was merely
a humble cabbage farmer

and who by the early 1800s had
become mysteriously wealthy?

If so, might the stone wall,

just like the nearby
ancient stone well,

still hold clues
that could explain

Samuel Ball's turn of fortune?

ALEX: Samuel
Ball was living here

at the time that the
Money Pit was discovered.

So the question in our
minds has always been,

was he aware of it,

or did he witness anything?

You know, what is his
connection to the mystery?

And we've long thought
that the walls on his property

were just his work and
he was a farmer here.

The tree may provide evidence

that some of the
features on Lot 26

are not associated with

Samuel Ball and
may, in fact, be older.

JACK: So, what do we
do? Get a core sample?

We need to get
somebody to stick an auger

into that thing and
see how old it is, right?

- Mm-hmm.
- MARTY: Yeah.

NARRATOR: By using a
manual device with an auger drill,

the Oak Island team can
penetrate fully grown trees

and extract core samples

containing small circular
features known as tree rings.

Simply counting the tree rings,

which grow one at
a time every year,

will determine the
precise age of the tree.

MARTY: If we know
how old that tree is,

the stone wall was
there at least that long.

Could've been there
much, much longer.

We'll know the minimum
age that the stone wall is,

and so it's well worth doing.

ALEX: Well, the point is
not just necessarily this tree.

If we get somebody to
come out and core this tree,

any other features
that we're interested in...

Once they're here,
they may as well

- do a bunch.
- ALEX: Yeah.

And then we can build
our dendro record as well.

I mean, how
appropriate would it be

to get an answer like that
from an oak tree on Oak Island?

[laughs] Right?

ALEX: The secret
was there all along

- in the oaks. -Yup.
- MARTY: Great.

I will talk to big brother,

and we'll get that
on the agenda.

Great stuff, people.

- JACK: See you in a bit, Marty.
- MARTY: Yeah.

NARRATOR: Later
that afternoon...

RICK: Laird.

Do we have something to see?

We do, yes.

NARRATOR: Rick
Lagina and Craig Tester

join Laird Niven

and archaeometallurgist
Emma Culligan

in the Oak Island
Interpretive Centre

for a highly anticipated
scientific report.

LAIRD: We've got
the XRF results from

- DN-11.5.
- CRAIG: Oh, good.

This definitely
appears to be a tunnel...

- Mm-hmm.
- And it sure points

towards the Garden Shaft.

And then this
specific area is where,

you know, we've got a number of

the most likely treasure area.

So-called treasure location.

- CRAIG: Yep.
- LAIRD: Really?

CRAIG: This will be interesting

to see what we see on this.

NARRATOR: Over
the past 24 hours,

the wood sample
recovered one day ago

from Borehole DN-11.5,

which came from
a believed tunnel

some 90 feet deep that may be
connected to the Garden Shaft,

was dried out and
then scanned by Emma

using the X-ray fluorescence
spectrometer, or XRF...

A device that bombards
objects with gamma rays

which can detect
additional elements or metals

that may be found
on or within them.

CRAIG: Emma, what are we seeing?

So, we are seeing some
very small quantities,

so I had to do a lot
of double-checking.

So, all those are expected
materials from our Oak Island.

We have a lot of iron,
manganese, titanium,

calcium, potassium, aluminum,
so these are all common things.

Those are all what I
would expect to find.

- Naturally occurring.
- Yeah, yeah, very natural.

- CRAIG: Yeah.
- EMMA: But...

we are seeing some quantities...

of gold.

It shows gold.

Yeah. It-it's there.

[chuckling]

RICK: That's fantastic.

Gold is the outlier?

Gold is a... yes. [laughs]

It's a very big outlier.

- That's-that's remarkable.
- [chuckles]

NARRATOR: In the Oak
Island Interpretive Centre,

archaeometallurgist
Emma Culligan

has just made an
astonishing revelation.

It shouldn't be there, right?

No, it-it definitely
shouldn't be there.

- Yeah.
- But, yeah, it-it's there.

NARRATOR: The wood
discovered one day ago

in a believed tunnel
some 90 feet deep

in the Money Pit area,
which may be leading

toward the Garden Shaft,
has trace evidence of gold

on its surface.

Now we have singularly

unique results from the
application of that concept

in two different
modems, if you will...

In the wood and in the water.

That's fantastic.

- Yeah.
- And this might connect you to

where the treasure may be.

This might connect
you to a direction

that you need to go.

This is becoming very impactful.

The narrative's still going on.

- Absolutely.
- Yeah.

RICK: The gold
sampling of the water

and now the wood is probably

the thing that might
carry the day this year.

I mean, that was the
hope, it was always the hope

that it would lead to a location

where we could do
some exploratory drilling

or digging and hopefully
find the one thing.

Will we find this treasure at
the bottom of the Garden Shaft?

I'm very hopeful.

Craig, why don't
you give Marty a call?

Because there are
two reasons at this point

to call my brother.

One is the word "gold..."

- [both chuckling]
- and the other is,

he does genuinely love a
science experiment, so...

CRAIG: Yeah, yeah.

RICK: Let me,
let me... I'll say...

- You gonna do it?
- Yeah.

[line ringing]

It's a pretty good day today.

We just wanted
to call and say hi.

[laughing]

We're actually in the lab.

Emma's run a test.

Uh, we want to
fill you in because

your almost favorite word has

arisen in the course
of the conversation, so

I'm gonna turn it over to Craig.

Hey, Marty.

It's, uh...

Uh, DN-11.5,

the well in the, you know,
potential treasure area,

that found the tunnel...

Emma did a
preliminary test on it.

- Point scan.
- Yup, a point scan and...

she is coming up with gold.

Yup.

[laughing]

That I don't know.

Yet.

It's helping us
hopefully zero in.

- Patience.
- CRAIG: Yup.

We've got Emma working


it's gonna take a little time.

- Okay.
- [chuckling]

MARTY: It's certainly
positive news.

Maybe the treasure mass itself

is closer to the Garden
Shaft than we thought.

I agree, I agree.

- [chuckles]
- CRAIG: Okay.

- CRAIG: Okay.
- All right. See you.

Take care. Bye.

This might be the
start of evidence.

An evidence trail is
every bit as important

as the water sampling
has been to date.

- Sure.
- So we mustn't falter.

What we always say
is, you won't find samples

in here in the lab.

Here's where you come
up with the answers.

- Yeah.
- So we'll get you more samples.

- Mm-hmm.
- All right.

- RICK: All righty?
- EMMA: Sounds good.

- RICK: Perfect.
- CRAIG: Okay.

NARRATOR: For
more than two centuries,

hundreds of faithful searchers
dug and drilled in vain,

trying to find a legendary
treasure on Oak Island.

But now,

after applying
cutting-edge science

that was never available
to their predecessors,

Rick, Marty, Craig

and their team may
finally be zeroing in

on the fabled riches.

Could it be that
modern technology

is the only way to locate
the Money Pit treasure vault?

Or might it simply be

the destiny of Rick
and Marty's fellowship

to once and for all
solve this mystery?

Perhaps only more drilling,

digging and testing...

will tell.

Next time on The
Curse of Oak Island...

PETER ROMKEY: What if
somebody was trying to hide

the evidence of
underground digging?

The best place

to put it would be in
the middle of a wall.

- TEDFORD: Rod dropped. There we go, Marty.
- Here we go!

We've got to be close
to a tunnel or chamber.

Drill's going in now. Hold it.

BRANDON VANDERHOOFT:
They hit something at 11 feet.

That could be where
the treasure's hiding.

- I detected gold.
- TERRY: Wow!

- Hundred percent?
- Yeah.

- This is huge.
- Well, there you go, guys.

[laughing]