I should have thought of that

[dalby2020]

With solves now being revealed, have any of you read one that made you say "That's it! I wish I thought of that! How did we all miss it?"

[edgewalker]

About once an hour.

[eddiek73]

It must be the fact that Mr. Fenn said to find the starting point and be confident, but I still believe I was correct with my "solve". Someone else may have also had this, but I have not seen it yet - although some were close. I have not looked too much...anyway, what do you all think? :
1. Begin it where warm waters halt.
- Mr. Fenn said to not read too much into it, just follow like a map (or something along those lines) He also spent his childhood years on the Madison River. If you can recall the best times of your life, I imagine most would say the carefree childhood years. There are also many other great times in life of course, but being a kid seems to be the most carefree and fun times in life based on a person's good memories (memories of good and fun times have been described as personal treasures...."and with my treasures bold".
Mr. Fenn also said that warm waters halt all over the rockies. Be confident in your starting point and go get it. The place where the warm waters of the Madison River actually halted is the Madison Slide. The slide itself is mentioned further down. In reading about that earthquake, one article actually described how the Madison River could not get through the slide and continued to rise very fast. In response, as the article continued, the Army Core of Engineers came in to create the spillway to relieve the pressure and let the river reform beyond the slide. The article actually described it as the Army Core trucks had to move "heavy loads" away to allow the high water levels in the new lake to drain instead of continuing to rise. "Heavy loads and water high."
My starting point, as a result, became the point where the Madison now enters Earthquake Lake. The river "halts" at the lake.
2. And take it in the canyon down. This clue is a bit of word play. Originally I thought it meant go down into the canyon. Beside putting down at the end of the sentence to rhyme it easier, I wondered if there was a little more too it - Mr. Fenn again said it took him a while to write the poem and he chose each word carefully. It hit me that he was not saying go down into a canyon, but he meant it as written: Canyon Down. Similar to the novel "Watership Down" or some catch phrases like "beer down" when a beer spills at a party or "man down" when guys are joking with the groom just before his wedding. The canyon he is speaking about was lost - The Madison River Canyon is what filled with water when the slide occurred as a result of the earthquake. Canyon gone, now a lake. Canyon down.
3. Not far, but too far to walk. This line, which also, as an anagram, contains the word "trout" - remember Mr. Fenn said there is an extra clue in that line - suggests that the treasure will be found in the far side of the lake from entering from Route 287 - Quake Lake Road - a road which is closed or has sections of it closed in Winter: Not impossible, but much more difficult to get to the treasure in Winter. Plus, you know, its Montana so deep snow :-) - not easy to walk in at all.
4. Put in below the home of Brown. With the hidden word in the previous line, it does show he means Brown Trout. If you search for "Brown Quake Lake MT, the first article that came up for me was "The Brown That Survived the Quake". The article from 2011 discusses how there are monster Brown's in the lake that just based on their size, had to be around since the earthquake. Earthquake Lake is also well stocked with Brown's every year.
5. From there it is not for the meek. Two things here although my first thought could just be a coincidence. First, in the Beatitudes, it says "The Meek shall inherit the Earth". Not for the meek could mean not earth. Earth is also used to describe soil or ground. So not for the meek could mean water or air - in water; in a tree, etc. But again, when reading about the earthquake, many of those killed were camping in the grounds now at the bottom of the lake, including those buried by the tons of rock in the massive slide. To cross over the lake to the far or left (nigh) side, you need to get into a boat (too far to walk) and cross the lake - With the campground on the side of the lake by the highway, as well as parking areas around the Earthquake Lake Information Center, the treasure cannot be on the side where you park to begin as any number of adventurous kids (among others) could come back to their parents at the campground yelling "Hey Mom and Dad!!!! Look what we found!!!!"
In crossing to the far side of the lake, you would realize that many of those who died, either by the tons of sliding rock or by the sheer force of the tornadic winds created by the slide, are still buried down there where they perished now underneath you and your boat... Definitely not for the meek.
6. The end is ever drawing nigh. Nigh means "left" which can refer to the far side of the lake or just mean "You are getting close". Left or the far side of the lake from the campground is drawn from the starting point where the Madison River enters the lake and looking towards the canyon down - the right side is the campground; the left is wilderness. But come in from the highway and boat over as walking to that point from the left side is very dangerous, especially for someone who is 70 years of age. I should mention that more than likely you can rent a boat from the campground. It is a lake for fishing - I did not look it up but it makes sense.
7. There will be no paddle up your creek. If you have the chance to read the articles on "The Brown That Survived" (picture at top of website is great) and on the history of Earthquake Lake itself, you will learn that there are tall, dead tree trunks sticking out of the lake in many areas (in the wood) as well as tangled messes of wood underneath the water - which as the article says, frustrates those who are "float fishing" Paddles are not going to be much help getting you across by boat.
8. Just heavy loads and water high - the slide and high water of the lake" - discussed at the beginning of all of this. May also indicate you could also cross at the slide, but it is a much longer route so try the boat first.
8 and 9. The final two clues are the blaze and if you are brave and in the wood. Mr. Fenn states people may not see or identify the blaze, so I do think the "boots on the ground" part is crucial to find it. Brave and in the wood is referring to those dead tree trunks sticking out of the water along various parts of the shoreline on the far side of the lake. The blaze more than likely indicates which one. Two I would have started with are by the far side of the slide and across from the campground. Also, any that may exist along the shoreline where a creek enters the lake.
As Mr. Fenn stated, find your starting point - the rest is a step by step map to get to the treasure. Don't make it too difficult.
Well, that is / was my solve. What do you think? Thanks for reading - it is a long one!!!

[davebakedpotato]

Jun 18, 2020 22:05:25 GMT -5 dalby2020 said:

With solves now being revealed, have any of you read one that made you say "That's it! I wish I thought of that! How did we all miss it?"

Not yet. A lot of people have built up a huge amount of ancillary 'evidence' for their potential solution, so I can see where their confidence comes from. But take the two best solutions you've seen - at least one of them is wrong.

I hope the truth is revealed some day.

[Jenny]

Jun 19, 2020 1:22:44 GMT -5 davebakedpotato said:

Jun 18, 2020 22:05:25 GMT -5 dalby2020 said:

With solves now being revealed, have any of you read one that made you say "That's it! I wish I thought of that! How did we all miss it?"

Not yet. A lot of people have built up a huge amount of ancillary 'evidence' for their potential solution, so I can see where their confidence comes from. But take the two best solutions you've seen - at least one of them is wrong.

I hope the truth is revealed some day.

Exactly.

Each person has their own pet theory or 'solution', and can't see past it, yet. This will take time. If the solution isn't ever revealed, hopefully in time, some can come together, when time allows, and find some agreement. (sort of like the 40 year old The Secret hunt).

But this is assuming the final solution is one that gives the thought of- 'That's it! How did we all miss it!'

It's possible the meaning to the clues are rather ordinary, and there isn't any 'smoking gun', so to say, that will give anyone confidence it is 'thee one'.

Hopefully we get a little more than nothing to go on....which state or is the Blaze still there? something. Because, other than the finder, we all have nothing but ideas and theories. No matter how much 'evidence' you can craft to fit and confirm a 'solution'.

[edgewalker]

Right now everyone is thinking treasure, treasure, treasure. Soon people will be thinking autobiography, autobiography, autobiography. IMO this is all about the untold stories of Forrest. I think the "gossip book" he says is in his computer is also his autobiography. He had a circle of artists, astronauts and actors. The stories he could tell! And I think he did.