Who has not imagined himself Indiana Jones or Scrooge McDuck - travelers who are able to find treasures, survive in mortal danger, find cherished paths that no one else can find. Do you think there are no places in the real world where you can stumble upon gold deposits?
In the Arizona desert, USA, among the picturesque volcanic peaks, jagged canyons, the Mountains of Superstition stand out, which attract not so much beauty as the legend of the Dane's lost gold mine, of the cursed gold of the native Indians, which can be found but cannot be taken.
Open-air museum director George Johnston says more travelers disappear or die in the Superstition Mountains than in other areas of the national park. There is statistics: every year 4-5 people disappear without a trace.
Sacred Apache Mountains
The string of deaths began with the family of a wealthy Mexican farmer, Peralta, who grazed cattle in a vast area around the sacred mountains for the Indians, and found a way out of gold ores, delving into the Indian territory. The good news: there was a lot of gold. Bad: The Apaches killed all members of the Peralta family.
The next person who was lucky enough to see a scattering of large nuggets was an American doctor. The scientist lived for several years among the Apaches not for profit - he healed and studied their customs. As a reward, they blindfolded the doctor and took him deep into the mountains, where they showed their treasury, and were allowed to take as much as they could carry. The doctor collected stones for 6 thousand dollars. You can't hide wealth in a sack, and the news greatly provoked the seekers of money and fame, who from all over the world were drawn to the Mountains of Superstition.
This is how the gold digger Jacob Woltz, nicknamed the Dane (although he was originally from Germany), and his partner Jacob Weisek became famous. By chance, they saved one drunkard from being beaten, who then introduced himself as Miguel Piralta, and told where to find a stone with a map inscribed to the mines. The Germans themselves later said that it was the ghost of one of the members of the Piralta family. The partners found gold, got rich, but could not spend it: Weiser died under mysterious circumstances, and Woltz was found dead in a bed, under which was a bag full of nuggets.
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The bloody harvest began. The whole XX, even the XXI century, greedy people are drawn here. The 66-year-old A. Ruth disappeared, they found only a note in a bottle on the trail with the text “I broke my leg, I need help. PS I found the Dane's mine. Helicopter pilot James Cravey was found decapitated in a valley in 1947, his scalped head resting on a stone a little further away. In 2011, the mutilated bodies of three searchers who disappeared in 2010 were found.
Is there a chance to get rich and stay alive
The Apaches believed that gods lived in the valley. Contemporaries believe that the treasures are protected by the spirits of the Indians, destroying everyone who approaches the spool. The staff of the American Museum of the Occult claim that there is a portal to the world of the dead at the top. There are many testimonies of people who heard strange voices, saw the dance of shadows on top of Mount Superstition.
So is there gold in the American mountains? Not a single living witness remained. But isn't this a good reason to pack up your backpack and go on a journey to test the truth of the legend first hand, as Indiana Jones would have done?