Kriti Mehrotra
As a documentary series that shines a light upon all aspects of the epic, real-life hunt for Forrest Fenn’s treasure, Netflix’s ‘Gold & Greed: The Hunt for Fenn’s Treasure’ is unlike any other. The truth is that more than 300,000 individuals took part in this adventure, but for some, it ended up becoming much more as they realized that securing it could change their entire life trajectory. Amongst them was actually the Hurst family from Cody, Wyoming, with patriarch Chris Hurst and his son Christopher Hurst especially becoming obsessed with the entire quest for years.
Chris and Christopher Hurst Gave the Treasure Hunt Their All
Although not much is known regarding the Hursts’ familial background or experiences, we do know that they have struggled a lot to keep their family just afloat. As per the documentary, they hail from a trailer park and thus never really had any real chance to transform their lives for the better. Instead, while the patriarch Chris ended up going to prison five times for different offenses, his eldest son Christopher was also going down the wrong path. He quit school to just smoke, party, be involved with drugs, and drink.
It was actually Christopher who first heard of Fenn’s treasure through a friend, just for him to see it as a way to improve his familial situation and decide to actually make an effort to look for it. Yet, because he didn’t really have much money at the time and his local library wasn’t checking out Forrest Fenn’s book since it was the only copy they had on hand, he photocopied every page. Forrest himself had once claimed all major clusters were in his book, so Christopher devoured it in a single night to pinpoint all possible clues and decipher his poem.
When Christofer told his father about it, Chris wanted to step out of the house and immediately jump in searching, but his son managed to make it clear that they needed a plan. Chris may have failed English in 9th grade and dropped out of school, but he knew that if he gave it his all, he might be able to crack it, and he truly believed it did. Not only did he think the code was written in synonyms, but another treasure hunter’s key gave him directions, so the father-son duo set out for the old mining town of Kirwin. Little did they know their dedication to the hunt would ultimately do them more harm than good.
Chris and Christopher Hurst Looked For the Treasure Even at Financial and Personal Risks
Since Christopher’s decoding had narrowed his playing field from the entire Rocky Mountaintains to Lower Sunshine Reservoir, that’s where they began the hunt. They ultimately zeroed in on the area around Cascade Creek, where other clues led them to a boulder right beside the side of the mountain. The duo truly believed the treasure was underneath or behind that boulder, so they spent the next two years essentially living in the forest and working on the boulder to remove it without messing up whatever was around.
In the end, they actually used dynamite to blow the boulder up just to be disappointed, as there was never anything there. However, instead of giving up, the Hursts doubled down on their efforts, even going as far as to devour anything Forrest said on his site or in any interview – per their accounts, he lived in their mind, rest free all the time. But alas, this took a massive toll on not just Chris’ marriage but also the family’s financials, and at one point, his wife actually left him. She took their other kids and separated from him since he was wasting all their resources, but she eventually did return.
Chris did dial down his efforts for a while, but he still traveled to the mountains in the hopes of finding something, anything, just to then believe he had found the treasure inside of a rock shaped like a bear head. He immediately emailed Forrest about it, and mere hours later, the now-late art collector announced his treasure had indeed been found. The Hursts genuinely believed Forrest was referring to them, but no, he was referring to Jack Stuef, who allegedly located the nearly $2 million treasure in Yellowstone National Park.
Chris and Christopher Hurst Are Now Seemingly Doing Their Best to Move On
According to records, the Hursts lost tens of thousands of dollars in their efforts to find Fenn’s treasure, which ultimately meant they blew through all their savings and had to work more to pay for it. In fact, even though they did receive community help, they had to sell off many of their assets and even downsized their home before moving to Kentucky for good so as to start anew. Nevertheless, the devastation of not being the ones to find the fortune was such that they once even considered hiring legal representation, claiming Forrest owed them a payout for their efforts and their possibly finding the chest first.
In the end, Chris and Christopher realized that while financial gain was a big part of the hunt, Forrest thought of it because he wanted to spread joy and bring out the adventurous spirit of others. They also realized he had succeeded in this because by just focusing on the task at hand, they stayed away from trouble for years, and Christopher even managed to kick his drug habit to the curb. So, of course, they never really filed an official complaint against him.
Since then, from what we can tell, the Hursts have been doing their best to move on in life while residing in KentuckyWhile Christopher prefers to keep the details of his personal life well away from the limelight, we do know Chris is a car enthusiast and mechanic. In fact, the married father of three has been working in a garage for the past few years, doing everything in his power to provide for his family, especially his daughter, who has Down Syndrome. His sons definitely help him, so he is glad that, if nothing else, the hunt for Fenn’s treasure brought his family closer than ever.
Read More: Cynthia Meachum: Where is the Treasure Hunter Now?
