At the end of last week’s episode of The Curse of Oak Island, the boys were celebrating.
They had confirmed the discovery of the elusive Shaft 2, built in the 1790s by Dan McGinnis and his team of men, this structure is the oldest searcher structure on the island. Its discovery means that the guys just need to find another tunnel leading off from this shaft, and then they will be a mere 14-feet from the hallowed Money Pit.
As the closing credits scrolled across screen last week, the narrator, Robert Clothworthy, spoke of how this could be a truly “historic breakthrough” and that the end of the Lagina brothers “decades-long quest could be just a few weeks away.”
However, Clothworthy dampens expectations a little when he asks will the team find the buried treasure in the Money Pit or “simply another clue.” He finishes by reminding us that this is a mystery that has endured for two centuries, seen the expenditure of billions of dollars and six deaths.
In the next episode, we can expect the guys to double down and focus on finding that 14-foot tunnel that leads to the Money Pit. From the show’s preview, it appears that they do find a tunnel leading off from shaft 2. We even hear one of them shouting, “that’s the shaft, and we gotta tunnel coming off it to the west.”
Whether or not it’s the tunnel we all want remains to be seen, but it does seem that Rick Lagina might be correct when he says, “the pieces are getting bigger and the picture’s getting smaller.”
Meanwhile, it looks like this week’s expert will bring attention back to the swamp. In the preview, we see the guys huddled around the War Room as an expert digitally superimposes an image of a pentagon over the marshy area. The expert points out that the center of the pentagon is right in the eye of the swamp, in what appears to be another X marks the spot scenario.
We also hear an expert mention the date 1220 AD in relation to the swamp, which leads Gary Drayton to exclaim, “it’s Templar baby.” This will be one of many experts that have come up with a theory linking medieval Europe to that section of the island.
The episodes description states:
“New evidence suggests the swamp may be man-made on a scale the team never could have anticipated.”
So while the discovery of Shaft 2 with the possibility of locating the Money Pit through it definitely remains the most exciting avenue of the show just now, it’s also clear the guys should be getting into that swamp, pronto. There’s plenty still to find all over this island.
Also this week, we will see metal detectorist, Gary, get very excited over a log as we might now expect from the enthusiastic Englishman, “wow, that’s one heck of a log, innit?” he says.
The Curse Of Oak Island airs Tuesdays at 9/8c on History.