Fri Aug 29, 2008 11:13 pm
I am a kid trapped in a 45-year-old body. I lived in New Jersey for a long time, and moved to Florida 3 years ago, which is where I am now. I get involved in lots of games and puzzles. I also do bankruptcy law on the side.
I consider this site a wonderful retreat, and hope to keep returning often.
Fri Feb 22, 2008 1:52 pm
I’m a 57 year old government employee living in NE Ohio, with sub-specialties in writing, art, occult studies and religion. I’ve been treasure-hunting since the first Nancy Drew Mystery books came out and I tried guessing the ending and solution before the end of the story.
That would be in the Dark Ages…er…the fifties. Kuh-Lai-Bah-Ti is my son and for someone who has only been introduced to this puzzle in the past week, he’s come light years ahead in a really really short time–reading old posts and making new ones.
Ask me about the treasure hunt film I made once, Ringo! Starring my older son and myself as two chess-playing wizards. A whole new experience!
Anyway, now I feel I’ve caught up.
Fri Jul 24, 2015 2:13 am
Fri Jul 24, 2015 6:39 pm
I feel like a senior citizen now.
Welcome little bro.
Fri Jun 15, 2007 4:31 am
Fri Jun 22, 2007 2:41 pm
Fri Jun 22, 2007 8:01 pm
Ya know, we have all been convinced about “this and that” at one time or another, but the only things we can be convinced about are Chicago and Cleveland. Glad to hear all your ideas.   Boogie
Fri Oct 19, 2012 4:44 pm
Fri Oct 19, 2012 5:37 pm
Fri Sep 01, 2006 4:08 pm
Fri Sep 01, 2006 5:32 pm
amymisha
Fri Sep 29, 2006 3:43 am
M’name is Rob, and I’m an intermodal operations coordinator for a domestic shipping company. Before this career, I taught high school English. I came upon the secret when i was bored at home one day and was looking for a “scavenger hunt” type of event in Chicagoland.
I’m not sure what else to say, so i’ll shut up now.
r
Mon Aug 28, 2006 1:06 am
Mon Aug 28, 2006 1:07 am
I am a troll i really live under a bridge and scare the children that come my way……..really….ok so i am lying ..
Among other things i like to read and am a paramedic supervisor for the town of Cicero here in chicago.. been a medic going on 16 years now.. managed to find a treasure or too.. lol.. like to read.. have a extensive library that has alot of ancient and out of print books from the late 1800’s foreward on occult and religion .. using that now on the Maranatha treasure which i started about the time i started to post here..i am into kendo and Iaido… and when time permits i blade smith at my forge..
Mon Aug 28, 2006 6:07 pm
Mon Feb 04, 2008 9:22 pm
Mon Feb 04, 2008 9:24 am
meow please go find the casque at boston common! lol
ringo where do you live now?
i can feel myself being drawn back to the boston hunt….
i’m in pinehurst, nc, don’t get to travel very often, too many animals and stuff.
i think i read that shadowrunner, one of the finder’s of one of the casques, went more or less by the picture in the book, so being familiar with the area you have a big advantage.
The Secret is still new to me so i love to hear anyone’s ideas, i just hope if someone finds one, they will let us know!
good luck!
Mon Feb 25, 2013 2:54 pm
I started with ATT and went all in looking for the Beetle. Then I took some time off and returned to hunting with TCWAF. I explored a lot of far fetched ideas in my typical fashion and racked up about 11k miles (4500 in air miles) searching rest areas but found nothing. I picked up the Silver Key music based hunt and hiked some 1 mile elevation areas…only to enjoy the best red herring. Then Cowboy, fun fun hunt, learned more about cryptography than ever before. Now I’m committed to solving the Secret.
I have some college level education (5 yrs or so) mostly in chemistry. Now I manage a recycling company. Not a boring moment working to keep up with all facets in waste management.
Mon Jan 08, 2007 5:37 am
Again….Welcome to “The Secret”
Mon Jun 15, 2015 5:48 am
Mon Jun 22, 2015 5:36 pm
I live in Milwaukee, so it would really cool if one was there.
Mon Jun 29, 2015 1:50 am
Mon Oct 15, 2012 7:51 pm
These sorts of treasure hunts pop up at intervals, sometimes in book form and sometimes as a set of online clues. Too many of them fold before the treasure is found, and some take years of dedication to solve. Occasionally a great hunt is a success, which is why people keep returning to try “just one more”. In the USA, the most recent success was “The Clock Without A Face”, and before that was “A Treasures Trove”. The latter’s sequel “Secrets of the Alchemist Dar” was a flop, and the current hunt for the Golden Eagle called “The World’s Greatest Hunt” is floundering. One never knows going in at the beginning whether a new hunt will be worth the effort, but it is rarely worth it to join a hunt which has gone unsolved for decades.
But who knows? You may be the one(s) to have the best insight. Have fun, and when it stops being fun, find a way to keep having fun.
Mon Oct 15, 2012 8:23 pm
I always thought you were on to something in your picture to image pairings.
thank you Catherwood. it is a daunting hunt. I consider my first hunt the 80s classic Treasure: In Search for the Golden Horse.
I was only five or so but I bugged my parents to rent me the vhs every Saturday so I could find the horse.
But i love The Secret, I’m hooked. After I dug in City Park NewOrleans I thought I would get discouraged but I was so wrong. I’m already planning my second Houston trip. I just think this hunt needs good old fashioned detective work and a little technological help. Oh and patience. lots and lots of patience.
Sat Aug 30, 2008 5:55 am
Egbert
I get involved in lots of games and puzzles. I also do bankruptcy law on the side.  🙂
Glad to see you have your priorities straight.
Sat Jun 09, 2007 12:33 am
My first experience in organized treasure hunting began with A Treasure’s Trove. I prefer the slower pace of The Secret. I enjoy the continuous discovery and clue building. I‘m looking forward to working with you all on a wider scale team effort.
Sat Jun 27, 2015 3:03 am
Surely we have been stuck in a time envelope or something…
Happy Secret Anniversary, FB!
AP
Sun Aug 27, 2006 11:37 pm
– Frishkie
Sun Aug 27, 2006 4:27 pm
I just came over from Tweleve after ordering my book from Amazon.
Don’t know how much I can contribute, but we’ll see. This looks like fun, anyway.
Okie
Sun Aug 27, 2006 4:52 pm
4 hours to High Cliff State Park to look for Pook, anyway, I am looking forward to the rest of the casques, and “Secrets of the Alchemist Dar”
–Â Â -regulus
Sun Aug 27, 2006 5:56 pm
I started treasure hunting back in 1980, a book called “Masquerade”…..ever heard of it?
I didnt find the answer to it until about 10 years ago, I bought the answer book from Amazon.com and then 2 days later found it on the internet for free……im pretty smart
Most recent hunt was “Mysterious Stranger” preceded by “The Merlin Mystery” both of which were a HUGE dissapointment. The lady that “solved” Mysterious Stranger was in the forum which I was a part of, I still think that was rigged, the solve was doable but not by me…..Merlin mystery was impossible in my opinion but the most fun of both were the people you get to know….I think I enjoy that part of it the most.
Im still looking for the clue that puts one of the casques in S.E. Kansas……
Sun Feb 03, 2008 11:13 pm
I have a BA in Theatre and Film. My film work is all indie films that will never see the light of day, and on two documentaries that lost their finding and went uncompleted. Theatre work is more enjoyable, and more exciting. I like the arts, including the written word. While working backstage on weekends I spent nearly two years as an apprentice to a used and rare book dealer. My enjoyment in books was the quest for rare books in dusty corners of old New England stores. When I first ran across “The Secret” on website I was convinced that I had seen the cover of the book somewhere and dropped an e-mail to my rare dealer friend [she specializes in Genre fiction]. When she said she had never heard of the book, the treasure hunt, and that the cover was unrecognizable to her I became even more enthralled.
I wish I had discovered this a few years ago. I used to do a lot of setting up events at hotels in Boston, and spent my breaks in the Copley area. IF there is a casque there I was in the perfect place to have provided digital photos to this group. I do think observations I have of the area may still be helpful. I spent a lot of time in Boston as a kid, my mother and I used to be down there once a month and although I HATED history I loved the sight of the USS Constitution, the Tea Party Ship, the Freedom trail, etc. History books are names you forget and easy to forget dates. Boston is full of exciting sites and old buildings that are pretty. As a child in a “foreign city” you see and notice things that adults who live there have forgotten that they see. I must admit when I first heard that Boston MAY be a location I had a brainstorm I already know is wrong, or at the least if right not why I thought was right. Verse 3’s line about “A green tower of lights” I thought “That’s the beacon in Boston.” After doing a quick search I realized that it’s not. The weather beacon uses blue and red not green and red. Yet I could have SWORN that my memory was of a green light. Despite having learned Longfellows poem years ago, I didn’t connect verse three with Revere until I read it elsewhere on these boards, and I had one of those “oooooohhhhh I seeeee” moments. Still rings Boston to that verse…. Anyway. Memory of certain things is certainly not enough.
My only other observation to share in this overlong intro is that I have a feeling BP never intended this to go so long unsolved. He obviously thought they would have been found years ago. I am currently most interested in learning more about the two found casques. I saw the thread about anagramming. There also may be some kind of other “pattern” to look for such as simple cryptogram, or a number pattern [using number of letter, number of lines in a verse, number of words per line, etc… dozens of things to try]. Basically if a rule can be found in one of the two it MUST be able to be repeated in the SECOND one. If any pattern can be repeated between the two that should be more than coincidence. Nothing leaps out YET, but that’s the avenue I wish to peruse while waiting to get a copy of the book.
–Ringo
Sun Jan 07, 2007 9:43 pm
I live near San Francisco, just getting into “The Secret”. Received the book yesterday, but have been studying the scans and verses posted here. I will be attempting to visit Golden Gate Park as often as possible.
Thu Aug 31, 2006 7:16 pm
Thu Feb 21, 2008 8:01 pm
Thu Feb 28, 2008 6:53 am
Thu Jul 23, 2015 2:57 pm
I’m in middle school LOL. I study to be a game dev and have a video game addiction.
Thu Mar 16, 2006 3:11 am
My mom bought me The Secret for my birthday in 1982 (ok, I was 27). Been searching for treasures ever since. Went to Lake Santa Rosa with my son to look for the Bee from ATT a day late, but it was a great trip.
One day the Houston casque will be mine and I will be happy.
wilhouse
Tue Apr 11, 2006 11:00 am
Used to own a share in a computer company until we were bought out and then redundacncy ate all my redundancy money (I guess that’s what it’s supposed to do).
Now work as Systems Manager in a High School in
Carmarthen
(Wales) home of
Merlin
! I look after the network, PC’s and phone system and am starting to develop a VLE with
Moodle
.
Started TH by just missing Masquerade, bought the book only to find out that it had been solved a month later.
Was an early member of
The Armchair Treasure Hunt Club
and spent many a long hour writing articles with the club founder
Dan james
.
I wrote
A Pirates Legacy
for TATHC.
I like the slow plod TH, probably because I am slow and plodding.
Got a copy of The Secret from a TH friend in the US however my favorite TH book was The Golden Key by Don Shaw.
Oh and I run this place.
with help from Phil!
Mark
Tue Apr 11, 2006 6:16 am
I maintain a fansite for Kit Williams’ Masquerade and I do a little puzzle creation here and there when I can find people who will let me do it, such as the two hunts I wrote for GamePro magazine, both of which were humbling learning experiences. I found The Secret when I got serious about building a puzzle book/treasure hunt library and was stunned to find that there was a US-based hunt that had gone unsolved and forgotten.
And if it weren’t for catherwood I wouldn’t know what the hell was going on.
Tue Feb 05, 2008 12:07 am
our
little theater Ringo. We sure have a lot of class acts around here
. I’m still amazed how much interest this quest draws after all these years. A good mind, and fresh eyes are always welcome. Just so you know, we don’t care who digs one up or who gets credit for a solve. Any find will be enjoyed by all. I can tell you this, any recon where you think you may be close to a casque gets real exciting. You will see when you get to Copley. Here’s a task for you, nail the line “
a green tower
of lights”.
Tue Feb 05, 2008 12:41 am
“a green tower of lights” struck me the first time I read that line. It just screamed out at me, and my memory jogged up an image of the Weather Beacon that sits on top of the old John Hancock Tower. Watching it glow red in a snow storm is one of my favorite “winter images” of the city. I “remembered” it as being green in good weather, but my research says that it’s blue, and in fact ALWAYS has been blue. According to the wkipedia [which MAY be inaccurate ] the beacon was shut off between the years of 1973 & 1983… Which if accurate would mean it could not be the tower of light. Others seem to think it is a reference to light reflected in the glass of Hancock Place [New Hankcock Tower] and I’m SORT OF inclined to agree, but still racking my brain for alternative ideas.
Tue Jun 26, 2007 8:18 pm
) and I also designed a few unpublished card games — and by the amount of misspellings probably still left in this entry, I have been up WAAAAAAAAY too late.
Don’t think I will find a physical casque, but am hoping to stumble across more underlying puzzle styles.
Currently, I have no cats.
Tue Jun 26, 2007 8:40 pm
Great to have you aboard.
Hope you bought the book and not just relied on things here online.
Being in Worchester, as you mentioned, I want to point out to you
the
belief
that a casque is buried in the vicinity of the Boston Public
Library… see the verse three (Lite by Lamplight, In truth, be free)
The verse has a unquestioned reference to Paul Revere.
The In truth – is the reference to the history of the ride verses the poetic version.
You are close enough make the final stages of this one pan out.
Tue Oct 03, 2006 10:13 am
Tue Oct 16, 2012 12:37 pm
Tue Oct 20, 2015 3:56 pm
Tue Sep 24, 2013 3:29 pm
TJ
Tue Sep 24, 2013 6:40 pm
Tue Sep 24, 2013 9:33 pm
tjgrey
Wow…I’ve been surfing the forums here for probably the better part of a year now and just saw this thread. Anyway, if anyone is still interested, I am a 30-something systems/security engineer with a few degrees. I currently work in defense and live in the Charleston, SC area. I stumbled upon the Secret somehow looking for hunts around the southeast (I have always been interested in TH), and look at what I got into! I don’t get around to posting much…just trying to keep up with all of the proposed theories is daunting enough! Great to meet everyone and if I can gather any local info, I would be glad to help!
TJ
Any degrees in electrical engineering by chance?
Wed Aug 30, 2006 5:05 am
Wed Feb 27, 2008 5:19 pm
Kuh-Lai-Bah-Ti
If I may ask, where does the name forest blight stem from? Are you saying that you yourself are a gypsy moth? Or have you contracted Dutch Elm Disease? (This is another joke, by the way, but I am curious)… Did you just pick something that no one else had, or is it a favorite for you in some way? If it is a take on your real name, you need not explain, unless you feel comfortable doing so.
I took it from the plot of
A Treasure’s Trove
, the hunt that got me hooked on armchair treasure hunting.
The Secret
remains my favorite, though.
Wed Jun 27, 2007 2:14 pm
Fox… so so funny.
Wed Jun 27, 2007 3:29 am
Don’t mind me Meow…just a little playful banter w/ my good friend Trohn.
Welcome to the madhouse
& a few droppd letters here and thre won’t bother us a bit.
Wed Mar 15, 2006 12:55 pm
CPA in El Paso – not publicly practicing anymore, thankfully, but controller of a real estate company based here. Got started on treasure hunts a little over a year ago after seeing ATT. That was more like a frantic dash compared to the marathon called The Secret. But Secret is my favorite.
Wed Mar 15, 2006 1:26 pm
Seriously…..
I am currently living in western Pennsylvania, just south of Penn State. I am an accountant
working at a College and I deal with the Federa Government on a daily basis. (Red tape is my friend.)
I grew up in New Jersey, went to school in Chicago, worked in New York City for fourteen years
(Columbia Unversity) and I met my wife in Kansas. I have one five year old and another on the way.
I started this obsession with Games magazine Scavenger Hunts (back in 1982) and then again in 1985.
I help found a now tradition of the University of Chicago Scavneger Hunt (which is now twenty years strong)
I was a vocal participant in the David Blaine, Mysterious Stranger, contest. (flying out to Tombstone
Arizona twice)
My method as those of you who have worked with me is I firmly am convinced that
nothing can be hidden or unsolved in this day and age and all you have to do is run through
all of the wrong solutions until you stumble upon the one that isn’t.
I am never insulted and I never mean to insult, but life is about kicking the stones and getting
your toes stubbed. (and if you haven’t noticed, I tend to ramble
)
Wed Mar 15, 2006 2:07 am
I am a quantitative psychologist finishing up a three-year postdoc at UNC Chapel Hill. Starting this August, I will be an assistant professor in the Quantitative Psychology program at the University of Kansas (about as geographically far from a casque as one can be and still be in the U.S.).
My interest in treasure-hunting came by way of Michael Stadther’s
A Treasure’s Trove
. These days,
The Secret
is by far my favorite hunt, but I have my finger in several.
Wed Mar 15, 2006 2:16 pm
I also have a side business doing custom home design. Just “officially” started that about a year ago.
Married with three kids (5, 3, 1) so far.
Got into armchair treasure hunting by finding an old copy of
Masquerade
while sorting through some of my wife’s childhood books in the middle of ’04. Her aunt had given it to her. Read it, thought the concept was pretty neat, and started looking around the internet for active ones. Found
The Secret
. Also have looked into
ATT
,
The Golden Apple Tale
, and
The Buried Treasure Game
. Just received
The Hunt for Confederate Gold
, but haven’t started reading it yet. I’ve actually made site trips for
The Secret
(St. Augustine) and
ATT
(Tennessee Pass).
Pine
Wed Mar 15, 2006 3:30 am
Wed Mar 15, 2006 4:03 pm
Wed Mar 15, 2006 4:18 am
One wife, three kids. I guess I analyze, question, diagnose and solve as well. Just with a little wider margin for error then you two guys. Working with trains is a lot easier then treasure hunting, that’s for sure. I read the article in The Newark Star Ledger back in June of 04. Local boy makes good. Way to go Egbert. (not bad, for a lawyer LOL)
Wed Mar 15, 2006 8:17 pm
I started treasure hunting with The Secret in 7th or 8th grade. My father and I were close to the Chicago find (a month late and a casque short).
Wed Oct 24, 2012 1:40 am
We Lost Our Gold
, the one treasure chest of gold coins buried somewhere in one of the 5 bouroughs of New York City. It’s gone well past two years without anyone finding it, but it is surely not impossible.
Wed Sep 25, 2013 12:38 am
rookhunter
Any degrees in electrical engineering by chance?
Rook- almost…how about electronics, computers, and intel?
Wed Sep 25, 2013 2:34 pm
tjgrey
Rook- almost…how about electronics, computers, and intel?
Perhaps. I am looking to put together a GPR to finds these things. I know it can be done but it requires some electronic know-how.
This guy made a similar device that I think can be modified to be a GPR
http://www.glcharvat.com/Dr._Gregory_L. … l_SAR.html