Exciting news on the armchair treasure hunt, The Golden Apple Tale, which was first published in 1982, was shared on the Secret Podcast. George Ward, along with other members on his team, solved a piece to the hunt – one which has never been known for over the 40 years this hunt has been in progress.

With this incredible new information, the status of the hunt, which was unknown, has returned to ACTIVE. Let’s hear straight from George about this discovery!

Six Questions with George:

  • 1Q) How exciting to hear a breakthrough has been made on The Golden Apple Tale! Congrats on cracking open this case of the lost apple and sharing it with us all. So please, what is the news?!

The Golden Apple is alive and well and living in Grand Rapids! Since this book was published in the early 80’s two questions have been unanswered. Where in America is the apple, and who is Cam Kaskgn? The author of this book used a pseudonym when publishing AND when having the treasure created, no one… not even the jeweler who made the apple knew his name (trust me, we asked). After some careful thought, and not so careful sleuthing, a team I work with discovered the authors identity and Martin Smith of readandseek.com was kind enough to knock on Cam’s door to verify it was him.

  • 2Q) Are you able to share any details about how you discovered this information? Was there a code to crack within the Tale itself, providing his name, or did you track him down by some other method-following a path not directly within the PDF itself? Why do you feel no one discovered this until now?

The answer to both of those questions is YES! There is a code to crack within the book, however it’s pretty difficult to figure out unless you already know what his name is. The internet made finding Cam a lot easier. As far as why he wasn’t found sooner? Well, it’s the same reason there are so many unanswered questions about old hunts. Because no one was looking.

Community involvement is the only thing that keeps old treasure hunts alive. One person working alone in their basement does nothing to further the life of a forgotten hunt. That’s why forums like MW and podcasts like Live from the Codebar are so important. They allow these hunts to remain fresh in our minds, and give us a dedicated place to work through them with other like minded people.

  • 3Q) Can you share the story of how it has been confirmed the Golden Apple Treasure remains yet to be found, according to the author? Did he provide any additional details on its value or the way it was hidden/buried?

He did not, other than to say it is exactly where he left it over 40 years ago. He said he drives by and sees it very often. He said he had been worried about construction in the past, but that nothing has put the apple in any danger. It’s still there. By the way, he never mentioned it being buried. In fact it would be quite difficult to drive by and see something which has been buried. Make of that what you will.

  • 4Q) The Golden Apple Tale is a tad older than The Secret, which was also released in 1982. We know from the Boston Casque of The Secret, which was found in 2019, that these hidden treasures can be unearthed after decades of being in the ground. But they have obstacles caused by the passage of time– such as lost landmarks used as clues or even the depth it was originally buried. Do you feel the Golden Apple might have some of these obstacles as well? Are you confident there can be an unearthing of The Golden Apple?

The Golden Apple seems unique in that it uses logic puzzles and riddles to give rather straightforward information. Unlike the Secret it doesn’t rely on history, so there are no monuments to be moved, no historic events to misinterpret, no obscure lines to assign some vague meaning to. You only need the calculations and deductions you make from the information the book gives you. Given what we have discovered about the puzzle so far… No, there doesn’t seem to be much danger of clues being removed.

  • 5Q) From what you have found within The Golden Apple Tale so far, how would you rate the difficulty of the clues to solve?

The clues are fairly simple to solve. Free Whey = Freeway. Doesn’t get much simpler than that. The complexity ramps up once you have to figure out how to apply the answers to the clues and build a path which will allow you to recover the apple.

A lot of subjective reasoning will go into that. You have to place yourself in the position of a man in 1980, using information and tactics available in 1980. This will be the biggest pitfall for modern armchair treasure hunters. Can you get off the internet, grab a pen and paper, and actually work out a puzzle? I hope so. Let’s all find out together.

  • 6Q) With your experience of working on The Secret, and many other hunts, what advice would you offer new searchers?

Get a library card and use it to do most of your searching. If you can’t find the answer you are looking for in a library right now… odds are some kid in the 80’s wouldn’t be able to find it either. But the library isn’t the only place to get period specific information. Don’t be afraid to call around and ask questions. If you have a question about the history of a building, or a road, or a monument, call that city’s building department. You can get the blueprints for the building, a list of all changes since the building was constructed. If you have a question about the history of some such thing, call that city’s historical society. Have a question about a road? Call public works, or the city’s road department. Remember that these departments and facilities exist to provide you with information. Take advantage of them.

But most of all, remember to stay humble. Contribute to the community if you can, because people who contribute are always remembered in the history of any hunt.