The French Connection
A devastating winter storm washes away the South Shore Road and cuts off vehicle access to the Money Pit, but the team regroups and launches an unprecedented Geotech drilling operation: 38 six-inch boreholes arranged in a grid pattern to map the underground at depths up to 200 feet. Borehole H-8 produces the season's most dramatic finds, including pottery fragments, old book bindings, and two fragments of human bone, one carbon-dated to the Middle East. At Smith's Cove, Gary Drayton and Rick Lagina recover a hand-carved lead cross that Templar researchers connect to the 14th-century prison at Domme, France, where imprisoned knights carved nearly identical symbols into the dungeon walls. Rick travels to France to see the carvings firsthand, deepening the Templar connection that will drive future seasons.
Key Discoveries
Medieval lead cross (pre-1500s, Southern France origin), human bone fragments with Middle Eastern DNA, garnet brooch, Domme prison visit, bone dating 1650s-1780s
Key People
Rick Lagina, Marty Lagina, Craig Tester, Alex Lagina, Dave Blankenship, Dan Blankenship, Gary Drayton, Charles Barkhouse, Doug Crowell, Laird Niven, Dr. Christa Brosseau, Jack Begley, Terry Matheson, Dan Henskee, Peter Fornetti, Vanessa Lucido (Irving Equipment)
All Episodes
18 episodesForever Family
Season five opens under a cloud of tragedy and destruction.
Dead Man's Chest
The Geotech drilling operation begins in the Money Pit area, with the team planning to drill 38 six-inch boreholes in a grid pattern to depths of up to 200 feet...
Obstruction
The Geotech drilling operation advances through the Money Pit grid, with geologist Terry Matheson logging the cuttings every five feet while Craig Tester and Ja...
Close Call
With 16 Geotech boreholes completed, Rick Lagina, Dave Blankenship, and island historian Charles Barkhouse oversee the drill as it advances into the area of the Chappell Shaft, where M.R.
Bone Dry
Geophysical engineer John Wonnacott, who helped design the Geotech grid with his partner Les MacPhie, joins the team at the Money Pit to review progress after 16 completed boreholes.
Remains of the Day
Jack Begley and Dan Henskee spend days washing and sorting the Borehole H-8 spoils from the Money Pit area.
The Lot Thickens
With 44 Geotech boreholes completed and Borehole H-8 confirmed as the primary target, representatives from Irving Equipment Limited return to Oak Island to insp...
Dan's Breakthrough
In the War Room, Craig Tester delivers the carbon-14 results from Beta Analytical on the two human bone fragments recovered from Borehole H-8.
The French Connection
While the Irving Equipment crew continues advancing the H-8 shaft toward its 150-foot target depth at the Money Pit, Rick Lagina travels to France with nephews Alex Lagina and Peter Fornetti.
The Signs of a Cross
The 60-inch caisson in Borehole H-8 grinds through thick wood that Rick Lagina and Charles Barkhouse identify as remains of the Chappell Shaft, the searcher tunnel M.R.
Moving Targets
In the War Room, archaeologist Laird Niven examines the lead cross Rick Lagina and Gary Drayton recovered from Smith's Cove.
A Key to the Mystery
In the War Room, the team connects by phone with Jerry Glover, the Templar expert who guided Rick Lagina, Alex Lagina, and Peter Fornetti through the 14th-century prison at Domme, France.
Unhinged
The DMT shaft advances quickly through undisturbed ground, with project manager Vanessa reporting 32 feet of casing and no wood from previous searcher activity.
The Templar Connection
The episode features an extended examination of the Knights Templar theory and its connection to Oak Island.
Steel Trapped
Author and Templar researcher Kathleen McGowan Coppens visits Oak Island at the invitation of Rick and Marty Lagina to examine the lead cross in person.
Seeing Red
With the DMT shaft stalled on a mysterious obstruction at 77 feet, Rick Lagina and the team arrange a video call with veteran diver Mike Huntley.
A Family Album
This special documentary episode chronicles the multigenerational family bonds that define the Oak Island treasure hunt.
Amazing Discoveries
Gary Drayton reports to the War Room that the deep red gemstone discovered on Lot 8 has been identified by a certified gemologist in Halifax as a rhodolite garnet, not a ruby.