Absolutes

This is not to be confused with “Absolut”. One is to calm you’re nerves so you don’t bang you head against the wall and the other is something you don’t find very many of in treasure hunting.


I have said it many times on a few of the forums and to hunters I meet in person but I will say it again; there are very few absolutes in treasure hunting.

I am always hearing people say that things are a certain way and that there were rules about putting down treasure and hiding mines. Ain’t so I tell ya, it just ain’t so.

When it comes to the outlaws and how they put down their treasures the way they did it was varied and mind-boggling. Even the same group of outlaws or an individual outlaw put down treasures in different ways and marked them in different ways. If you did a study of the treasure maps in existence known to have belonged to and been made by just Jesse James you will quickly see that he had several styles of maps. One may be a pictograph type map, another may have the terrain drawn on it with different spots marked and yet another may have an actual code on it that you have to decipher.


Keep in mind there is a BIG difference between deciphering an actual code and interpreting symbols on a map. They are completely different in the way you approach them and solve them.


This is where the big believers in the KGC mega-million dollar myths (which I am not one of) fall short on there theories. Thinking logically now, if you have a group of several individuals and they all need to be able to get back to the same spot by themselves then you have to have a code, an actual decipherable code, that anyone with the key can read. If the different individuals are wondering around the woods trying to interpret symbols on a map then they will very likely never find what they are looking for. This could be attested to by the late Frank James who spent many years trying to find all of the treasures Jesse had hidden.


I would say that this is one of the very few absolutes in treasure hunting. If you have an organized group putting down several treasures then there has to be a way for all of the members with the proper authority to find the treasures. This is done with actual codes and not interpretation of symbols.


If you are looking for Spanish treasure then you have the people that will tell you the King had rules about marking mines and treasure trails. This is somewhat true but not to the extent that everyone says.


The Spanish traveled in groups and each group had it’s own way of marking things. This “way” may follow the general rules of the King but not be the same way that another group would mark a trail. How can this be you ask?

The map makers had the power. They were the ones in each group that determined how something was marked and where. Each group had their own map maker and they took direction from him as to how and where to place a marker, carving or map.


This means that although the general rule of the King may have been followed in that they marked the trail, the trail was marked based on how each individual map maker thought it should be marked, using his own style of markers and symbols. This is kind of like the current day politician who interprets a law so that it fits his needs the best.


I can guarantee you that if you hunt enough Spanish trails you will see a pattern but rarely will anything be exactly the same. This is partly due to the map makers themselves and the rest to the terrain and what they had to work with at each site. There are sites where very specific measurements will come into play and there are others that are general in nature and will get you really close to the hole but not give you an exact spot.


Pirates, Arggggggg! (I just can’t help myself) bootleggers and the like were more in line with the outlaws. They had more than one method of hiding and marking a treasure. A lot of their methods were based on the terrain around the treasure location.


Don’t get me wrong here, if you are going to be successful at treasure hunting you need to learn as much as you can about your chosen line of treasure hunting. Each type of site, be it outlaw, Spanish, French, pirate Argggggg!, etc. will work a little to a whole lot differently than the other.

I personally prefer to hunt outlaw and Spanish sites because I am more familiar with how they did things and let’s face it, there weren’t too many pirates sailing around the middle of Oklahoma!


You have to keep in mind that for the most part, there were no rules. Everything will change some to a lot from site to site, even if it was the same group at each site. It’s a learning experience and eventually you will have the kind of knowledge that will help you move quickly (weeks instead of years) through a site to the end.


Think logically, keep past experiences fresh in your mind and don’t be afraid to think outside of the box every once in a while. I also think you should keep the K.I.S.S. theory in mind. Usually, although it seems difficult at the time, a site turns out to be fairly simple once you get to the end and completely understand what was going on. This always helps you in the future.