The Agents of F.L.A.S.K.

[Hurricane Jack]

I grew up in Southern California and my dad was into the legend of the Lost Dutchman Mine. When I was a pre-teen we’d take family vacations into the California and Arizona deserts. He was not a serious treasure hunter, but we did bring home collections of odd quartz and other rocks. My dad had a couple of books on the Lost Dutchman Mine. The one I specifically remember was The Sterling Legend: The Facts behind the Lost Dutchman Mine.

https://www.amazon.com/Sterling-Leg...528716097&sr=1-1&keywords=the+sterling+legend

Could such a mine really exist? The tale has certainly been embroidered with a lot of colourful lore; Indian curses, the Peralta Stone maps, the very real character of Jacob Waltz and his gold and his stories (backed up by several witnesses) Not to mention the wonderfully named Superstition Mountains and the fact that many people have gone missing or died hunting for the treasure, including in just the last few years. (My advice: don't go treasure hunting alone in the Superstition Mountains.)

Here is a pretty good blog on the topic of “is there any evidence that the mine really exists”. Most interesting is the claim that some samples of Waltz’s gold were analysed with the result that they did not come from any known deposit in Arizona. Also the fact that Waltz was able to save a friend’s struggling business by paying off her debts in gold says something!

https://oroblanco.wordpress.com/2015/05/02/is-there-any-evidence-that-the-lost-dutchman-gold-mine-really-exists/

About those stone tablets:

https://www.desertusa.com/lost-dutchman/lost-dutchman-1.html

It is all really fascinating stuff. And –as far as treasure stories go--- the location is fairly accessible to anyone.

Do I believe? Well, it seems unlikely… but there is so much good detail to the story that you have to wonder if it’s not built on some tiny kernel of truth. If I lived in Phoenix, I’d probably become a hobbyist on the subject (that and also talking to witnesses of the Phoenix Lights!)

TT, thanks for the reply. As I said I'm a bit unprepared since it has been a while since I studied & researched the mystery. I have read several books but am unfamiliar with the Sterling Legend, at least by that name. But I may know the legend/theory.

I'm sure Waltz told a lot of stories in his day to protect what he had found, if the mine is in fact real. If it's not real are we to believe that Waltz spent all those yrs just prospecting? Correct me if I am wrong but I believe there is a part of the Superstition Mountains that is closed to the public by the US government to this very day? If there was a cavern filled with gold just waiting to be transported out (going back to the Peralta's?) then I'm quite sure the gov't has confiscated it & has probably sealed off the source by locating the mine. Just like I'm sure the gov't has the missing gold Buddha from Manila & other treasures.

I was recently reading where actor Kurt Russell has finally said for the record that he was the private pilot on approach into Phoenix that night & reported seeing the Phoenix lights. At the time he was interviewed at length confidentially & it has long been suspected that he was the pilot/witness (along with his son) but his identity was never confirmed publicly until he did so recently.

I have personal friendships with some people involved as witnesses & in the reporting of the Stephenville, TX lights. I have always thought most of these types of sightings are unknown/domestic & in the case of Stephenville, was meant to send a message to the resident of Crawford, TX (since moved). Being strong Texan's my friends just don't want to believe that, & they make a very strong point in their belief that no worldly enemies or allies have a craft that can be up to one mile long.

It would appear now that someone is using scalar weapons against US diplomats in both our embassies in Cuba & China to send us home. So who knows what other countries are capable of?

 

[Blowtorch]

So, what is the most plausible outstanding mystery that you’d like to dig into?

Don't know about plausibility, but I'd like to know what the true happenings were concerning both Roanoke and Oak islands

 

[Tiki Tom]

It seems that Arizona is FULL of mysteries...

The photo looks authentic enough. The main problem is (according to the article below) where is the original photograph? As with many of these cases, there is just enough evidence to make you scratch your head, but not a lick more.

https://www.kgun9.com/entertainment/legend-or-lie/legend-or-lie-tombstone-thunderbird-sighting

A late addition after a little more digging. Quote:

"In any event, we now know that the article appeared in the April 26, 1890 Tombstone Epitaph and a microfilm photocopy is displayed on the right. [Click on the clipping at right to read the Epitaph article.] The article is fascinating, but there is no photo accompanying it, nor does the article mention a photograph." Source below.​

http://www.strangemag.com/strangemag/strange21/thunderbird21/thunderbird1_21.html

 

[Blowtorch]

TikiTom, much thanks! Although I've been reading lately about supposed pterosaur sightings, I'd not seen/read about that one!

 

[Tiki Tom]

Honestly, I had no idea that this is a thing that exists; that there are people out there claiming that pterosaurs still survive in North America! And that there are supposed sightings to this day. Well, I guess that’s what this thread is all about: pondering strange mysteries and ancient riddles.

That said, I love this article I found in which someone describes a RECENT pterodactyl sighting, and in which a respected paleontologist responds very politely by saying that the odds that pterosaurs are still among us are very long indeed.

http://amp.thestate.com/latest-news/article194148849.html

 

[Hurricane Jack]

Honestly, I had no idea that this is a thing that exists; that there are people out there claiming that pterosaurs still survive in North America! And that there are supposed sightings to this day. Well, I guess that’s what this thread is all about: pondering strange mysteries and ancient riddles.

That said, I love this article I found in which someone describes a RECENT pterodactyl sighting, and in which a respected paleontologist responds very politely by saying that the odds that pterosaurs are still among us are very long indeed.

http://amp.thestate.com/latest-news/article194148849.html

Several programs have been done on Native American thunderbirds & pterosaurs. It is claimed that a young boy was picked up by one. Monster Quest did a couple of episodes I think.

 

[Tiki Tom]

Getting back down to earth, I just saw this. It seems that in 1944 some coins were found that indicated that Australia was discovered by traders from East Africa several hundred years before Europeans arrived. However, the coin discovery was maddeningly poorly documented. Now —since 2013— a club of amateur archaeologists has been trying to find the location of the original discovery. This week, it looks like they may have found success: after much searching another coin has been found. History might be rewritten! And, even better, these amateur archaeologists look the part. Nice hat!

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-07-10/suspected-kilwa-coin-discovered-off-arnhem-land-coast/9959250

There is probably a lot of “hidden history” out there; just waiting to be (re)discovered.

 

[3fingers]

An acquaintance of mine worked with a group who sifted through literally tons of soil samples on a 4 lane highway project a few years back. One of the things they found were several Spanish coins from long before anybody but Indians were supposed to be here. There was a lot of debate at the time among people who were supposed to know about these things, but it all quietly went away. I was fascinated with the idea that maybe a bunch of wandering souls slipped through the cracks of history.

 

[Tiki Tom]

Mysterious tropical island unspoiled by western civilization. Unfortunately, the locals will kill you if you try to visit them. Sounds like a far-fetched adventure plot from a golden era pulp magazine. It is, however, straight from today’s news headlines.

https://www.stuff.co.nz/world/asia/...world-north-sentinel-island-remains-a-mystery

Normally, as a fedora-wearing F.L.A.S.K. Member, I’d be all in favor of exploring mysterious unknown islands, etc. But in this case (and also in the case of uncontacted Amazon tribes) I guess I am sympathetic to the view that they should be left alone. (Unless they are hiding a secret Nazi base and relics with mysterious powers, of course.)

 

[3fingers]

^^^ It is well known that they don't take to visitors. It is also true that contact with outsiders would probably kill most of them. Sounds like he committed suicide. Play stupid games, win stupid prizes.

 

[Tiki Tom]

That’s creepy. Another mystery island inhabited by… monsters?
It’s a bit like a real life version of “The Island of Dr Moreau”.

Anyone up for an expedition to rescue the fair maiden who must surely be a prisoner on the island? Strike that… in this day and age, the task is to help the strong independent woman who is trying to save her misguided scientist father who is a prisoner on the island. What plot elements am I missing? Oh, yes: Really the chimps turn out to be wise and benevolent and an object lesson about humanity’s despoliation of nature. It’s a wrap! See you on Netflix.

https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/7893314/monkey-island-liberia-lab-tested-chimpanzees-2/

 

[Tiki Tom]

...Another Pterodactyl sighting...

https://www.pjstar.com/x1868842431/Luciano-In-search-of-the-Springdale-pterodactyl

 

[3fingers]

Another Pterodactyl sighting..

That's about 60 miles east of me.
That's not the first claimed giant bird sighting over there.
Also seem to recall a Nessie like creature supposedly sighted in Peoria Lake.

 

[Tiki Tom]

February 2019. Need a three minute break from winter?

Relax and imagine yourself, drink in hand, on your sailboat in this particular harbour. The view is fantastic, in the true sense of the word:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PJi8FdOu648

Tomorrow there will be plenty of time to go ashore and explore the mysterious stone gods, find where Thor Heyerdahl lived during the 1930s, and investigate the rumours of not-quite-gone-yet cannibalism…

https://christoph.today/dodging-german-eating-cannibals-in-the-marquesas-islands/

Looks like a beautiful place to hole-up through January and February, eh? Adventure awaits!

 

[Tiki Tom]

Winter break in paradise is over. Time for a little serious treasure hunting.

This sounds interesting.

But the article makes no mention of how deep the water was where the anchor was found. Probably a closely guarded secret. But the fact that it was trawled by a fishing boat makes me suspect that it is not too deep.

https://www.cornwalllive.com/news/cornwall-news/mystery-anchor-found-seabed-cornwall-2602090

 

[Tiki Tom]

Abominable snowman tracks sighted (and photographed) by Indian Army Mountaineering team at Makalu Base Camp in Nepal.

https://www.foxnews.com/world/indian-army-claims-it-found-abominable-snowman-footprints

Those are some enormous tracks, unless somebody made a typo.

There are still plenty of strange mysteries in the world, and that's a good thing for those of us who get depressed by the normal news.

 

[The Jackal]

That's about 60 miles east of me.
That's not the first claimed giant bird sighting over there.
Also seem to recall a Nessie like creature supposedly sighted in Peoria Lake.

I remember some years ago I spent an entire afternoon looking at various claims of Nessie type creatures. I think I found something like 22 different countries where there were multiple sightings of either Nessie or pterodactyl type creatures, including a handful in the US. I have my theories, but I sound like a genuine crackpot trying to explain them.

I'm of the mind that mysterious creatures like Nessie, bigfoot, or aliens can never really be proven as nonexistent, and therefore have just as likely a chance as being real as anything else that I've never seen in person.

 

[fireman]

Jackal....share your theory. I would love to hear it. Some of these stories seem to have a reasonable amount of legitimacy.

 

[Benny Holiday]

The Dharruk people, traditional custodians of large swathes of land in the west and southwest of Sydney, have legends of a creature living in the Hawkesbury River they call 'Mirreeulla'. Their descriptions of the creature sound eerily similar to that of other lake monsters sighted around the world, and cryptozoologists have gathered quite a few stories of sightings by Europeans since Colonial times, many in the last 20 years. Could there be something in the river? It's 75 miles long, very deep and quite wide in places (I know at least one bridge has to cross a section more than half a mile wide), and 25 away miles from Sydney.

It's strange that descriptions of lake monsters are consistent wherever they are sighted in the world.

 

[Tiki Tom]

Unknown lake/river creatures? Couldn’t possibly exist…

Lough Foyle (Loch Foyle), Ireland, April 2013:

Thanks for the tip re: the "Mirreeulla" of Hawkesbury River. Never heard of it. But a google search tells me it has quite a history. Would love to hear if there is any evidence supporting the legend.