On tonight’s exciting Expedition Unknown on Discovery, it’s a bit of The Curse of Oak Island meets Cooper’s treasure as host Josh Gates takes us off the more active and wild Atlantic side of Florida for the hunt for the Spanish Fleet, documented as being off the eastern coast of Florida.
Gates has a fresh lead on the still largely unclaimed lost treasure of the shipwrecked Spanish fleet. The big wreckage occurred back in 1715, when eleven of the twelve ships heading out from Cuba up the Florida coast and over to Spain, were lost in a hurricane near Vero Beach, Florida. They were loaded with silver and other precious items.
In the clip below, Gates is suited up in scuba gear as he and his partner Greg are looking for any signs of metal in the silty sand, not an easy feat as the currents and the wave action is making their hunt a difficult one as the sediment kicks up with every motion.
The two are shown looking for anything metal and they are using underwater metal detectors to aid them in the search.
This is not his first time exploring the area. Josh returns to these volatile and stunning blue waters of Florida’s Atlantic coast and he is diving with a new expedition crew that uses high tech equipment to locate the fleet’s flagship which is still undiscovered.
“If a ship did sink here, the ocean floor has had 300 years to hide it. There are thick layers of silt and vegetation that kick up clouds as we search,” says Gates as he surveys and scans the cloudy area and hopes to catch a bit of metal detection.
He adds: “It’s amazing to think there might be a ship down here and we might not even be able to see it.”
Then suddenly Greg lets out a yell. He tells Gates that there is a cannon spied under vegetation and barnacles. It’s an exciting moment as Gates now knows he is diving in the right area.
The Guardian covered this auspicious wreck on its 300th anniversary back in 2015, as great fortunes have been found and many great fortunes are left to be discovered, which is exactly why Gates is there tonight.
Make sure to tune into Discovery Channel and to watch tonight, as we see what unfolds as the Gates’ exploration underwater continues.
Expedition Unknown airs Wednesdays at 9/8c on Discovery Channel.