Stage 1: Camoed container loaded with treasure! FTF gets $2 and STF gets $2! Stage 2: Camoed container loaded with treasure! FTF gets a 1oz Silver Eagle and STF gets $2! Final: Ammo can “treasure chest” filled with treasures the likes of which you may never have seen in a cache! FTF gets a 1oz Silver Eagle, STF gets a 1oz Silver Eagle, TTF gets a 1953 $2 bill, 4TF gets a 1957 silver certificate $1 bill, 5TF gets a 1982 Washington silver half dollar, 6TF gets a 1/10oz Silver Eagle and 7TF gets $2! Good luck mates (you will need it)!
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Ahoy landlubbers and sailors alike! Do you seek adventure!? Want to sail on the high seas and discover treasure!? Well then mates, you have come to the right place!
Before we begin our hunt, here is a history and background of what you seek and how it got there! Everyone knows about pirates, but do you know what it takes to be a privateer!? A privateer was a private individual holding a government commission or “letter of marque” authorizing the capture of enemy ships. Cargo or “booty” was divided up among the commissioner and the crew.
Privateers were not well known in history, but history would have been a lot different without them! Take for example John Paul Jones, no not the band member from Led Zeppelin, but one of America’s first privateers and considered the father of the United States Navy! His harassment of British shipping caused much suffering for British troops! He, and other privateers like him may have even secretly won the war!
Jean Lafitte was one of these privateers operating at first as a pirate out of Barataria, Louisiana. He, and his crew, racked up a long list of crimes until the Battle of New Orleans in 1815.
Short on men and supplies, Andrew Jackson accepted Lafitte’s help for a full pardon! Jean supplied men, ammunition, powder, but more importantly, flints for the guns! Also, his knowledge of the area helped secure Jackson’s victory! He then moved his base of operations to Galveston setting up a colony called Campeche and building an elaborate mansion called Maison Rouge or red house which could be seen for miles around! Here, under a letter of marque from Spain, he preyed on shipping in the Gulf of Mexico during the Mexican War for Independence.
They say "There is a thin line between pirate and privateer" (-Sir Michael), and it all ended when one of his men attacked an American vessel! The captain was hung, but the ranks were growing restless and hard to control and it wasn't long before another American vessels was seized! Accident or not the damage was done, and he was given an ultimatum by the U.S. Navy to leave the island! History tells he threw a big party with his store of spirits and burned down the colony along with maison rouge before he left.
One thing is for sure, Lafitte was here, and he left an amazing history. Did he also leave something else behind as well? Legends on the island tell that Jean Lafitte buried "treasure" somewhere here on the island before he left waiting for a return that never happened! Some say he died down South but his death has never been confirmed! ******UPDATE: As of May 2021 it has been proven in a new book titled "Jean Lafitte Revealed" that he changed his name and died in North Carolina at the age of 96! A must read book for any Jean Lafitte fan!*******
So, do you have what it takes to hunt Lafitte’s treasure!? Fortune favors the bold, the brave and the strong you know, and you will need all three to take on this challenge! You will see it as Lafitte did and brave the wilds of two islands and the mainland with waves beneath your feet as you take to the high seas (yes, you will be on a boat)!
************************************* Wear long pants and preferably boots for this adventure! MOSQUITO SPRAY is a must, trust me! Bring water and a hat or tricorn (eye patch is optional). There is also a small drive involved as you explore the island. I placed these in 100+ degree heat and was pouring sweat! I also have never seen so many spiders and mosquitos so be prepared for a true treasure adventure!***************************
BE CAREFUL, TAKE YOUR TIME, AND ABOVE ALL, HAVE FUN!