I buttressed all this with more than a dozen of interviews of my own, tracking down some of Fenn’s old friends and business partners, former members of law enforcement, and churning through hundreds of far-flung documents: press clips, old books, and federal records. He also introduced me to his family, toured me around his gallery, and taught me to dig at the historic pueblo he owns outside of town. Last summer, I profiled Forrest Fenn, the quixotic author of The Thrill of the Chase, who walked me through his decision to secret a chest of gold, jewels, and precious artifacts into the mountains “north of Santa Fe.” He peppered his memoir with clues to the location-including coded directions in a 24-line poem that ends: “So hear me all and listen good,/Your effort will be worth the cold./If you are brave and in the wood/I give you title to the gold.”īut in our days of conversation, he inevitably shared a few more, passing along unpublished autobiographical writings, old newspaper clippings, and copies of prior self-published books, all of which contain personal elements. What gives? Oh, nothing … just a million-dollar marketing gambit, involving an amazing race for hidden treasure and the biggest grave-robbing case of all time. It peaked at number 15 on Tuesday night, trading places with Fifty Shades of Grey and The Perks of Being a Wall Flower, among other hits of the nightstand. Yet The Thrill of the Chase-a silm, episodic memoir self-published by a white-haired retiree in Santa Fe-is now in the upper third of the Amazon 100 List, surpassing books by George Saunders, Laura Hillenbrand, and Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor. Enjoying the thrill of the chase.One of the best selling books in America right now is old, expensive, and as recently as Monday couldn’t outsell a history of library subject headings.
#FORREST FENN THE THRILL OF THE CHASE BOOK FULL#
The internet is full of blogs and stories of people getting out into the streams, mountains, valleys and highways. Now, at 84, I wonder if he really wants his treasure to be found in his lifetime.or if he would rather the satisfaction of it being discovered centuries from now.Īnd many have been searching since 2010 to find it.
Oh, and without even a college degree was able to start from scratch his own art gallery in the heart of Sante Fe.and became virtually a self-made millionaire. Forrest has seen his share of adventures having spent his early years visiting Yellowstone National Park, fighting in combat zones, exploring Native American sites (he actually owns his own archaeological site, even though some might say is controversial) and has battled with and beaten cancer.
He also states in his book that when he buried it (don't get hung up on the word buried, for apparently the box may be "exposed to the elements") he intended the search to be "difficult though not impossible." Forrest has shared in television interviews, as well as, in his book that he wants to encourage people to get outside and to explore in nature.
The chest contains gold nuggets, double eagle coins, ancient relics, Forrest's autobiography, and even reportedly a piece or two of his own hair.among other items.įorrest wrote a book titled, The Thrill of the Chase, wherein he shares a poem he wrote that includes nine clues that if followed "precisely" can lead anyone to the treasure. Yes, there is literally a treasure chest (an ancient bronzed 10x5 box) buried somewhere in the Rocky Mountains north of Santa Fe. Fenn, developed a strategy to be able to leave a part of himself tied to this earth perhaps forever-or at least until some brave, lucky human finds his treasure. Likened to a modern day Indiana Jones, Mr. Whether in romance or treasure hunting there is definitely something found in the thrill of the chase.įorrest Fenn, a retired Airforce pilot turned art and relic collector, surely thinks so.