the book. There were so many possibilities. This was where the hard part came in. In coming to Jackson and purchasing the old Manning ranch, he’d felt he would have a better chance at finding the location of the legendary treasure. Instead, he’d only run into frustration. The valley was too long, too wide, to make this an easy task. Just the trails alone roamed over fifteen hundred miles, all put together. And there was nothing to say the treasure was buried anywhere near a trail. After all, many of those trails had been developed over recent decades. They wouldn’t have existed one hundred years ago.
One possibility, Jake had thought, was a trail that looped up past Taggart and Bradley lakes, located about fifteen miles north of town. Another he had considered was an area behind Emma Matilda and Two Ocean Lakes. This area seemed less likely to him, in that it was approximately thirty miles north of town. Still, whoever hid the treasure may have felt more secure keeping it at a distance.
The area that had intrigued Jake the most, though, was up against the Grand Tetons, behind Jenny Lake. Here the possible hiding places were almost endless, as the trail wound up through Cascade Canyon and branched off at a fork, leading in one direction to Lake Solitude and in another to Hurricane Pass. Just to arrive at Hurricane Pass was over eleven miles one-way, not to mention the elevation gain of 3500 feet. Taking the other fork involved a distance of about nine miles total to get to Lake Solitude, with an elevation gain of about 2300 feet. And this didn’t include any searches he’d need to do off the trails themselves.
Jake thumbed through the trail guide a little more, looking over other options. Static Peak, accessible through Death Canyon, was another possibility. Nor had he ruled out Delta Lake, reached by trail out of Lupine Meadows. The truth was that it was a huge mountain range with a seemingly infinite number of possible hiding places. Finding the correct one would be a monumental task. But it was not an impossible dream, Jake told himself. He was determined to see it through. He owed it to his grandfather, as well as to himself.
He placed the trail guide by the front door, alongside a pair of well-worn hiking boots. A quick glance around confirmed other ready supplies – a bright flashlight, a small compass and a warm, but lightweight, jacket. It would be easy later on to grab everything quickly and head out to begin exploring some of the trails. At least he could work on ruling a few out. The more he was able to narrow down the search, the closer he’d be to his goal.
Crossing the room, he pulled out the book that held the crumpled map and sat back down in the chair. There had to be something he had missed the first time he looked at it, some other marking or a line that was more obvious than he thought. Turning the three-way light up to its brightest level, he held the map up and peered through the paper. With the exception of the smudged spot just to the right of the center, there didn’t seem to be anything hidden. He squinted, attempting to see through the spot, but it was heavily stained and the light did nothing to reveal anything that might be underneath.
The sound of a sudden crash outside brought Jake immediately to his feet. He switched the light off quickly and stuffed the map under the cushion of the chair, then crossed quietly to a front window, pressing his back against the wall to the side of the window sill. He waited to hear more sound, not moving, his heart pounding inside his chest. It didn’t seem possible that anyone could know why he was here, what he was searching for. But it made sense to be cautious anyway.
When several minutes passed without any additional sound, he pulled the edge of his front curtains aside and peered outside. Only then did he realize that the sun was almost down, leaving behind only the partial
One possibility, Jake had thought, was a trail that looped up past Taggart and Bradley lakes, located about fifteen miles north of town. Another he had considered was an area behind Emma Matilda and Two Ocean Lakes. This area seemed less likely to him, in that it was approximately thirty miles north of town. Still, whoever hid the treasure may have felt more secure keeping it at a distance.
The area that had intrigued Jake the most, though, was up against the Grand Tetons, behind Jenny Lake. Here the possible hiding places were almost endless, as the trail wound up through Cascade Canyon and branched off at a fork, leading in one direction to Lake Solitude and in another to Hurricane Pass. Just to arrive at Hurricane Pass was over eleven miles one-way, not to mention the elevation gain of 3500 feet. Taking the other fork involved a distance of about nine miles total to get to Lake Solitude, with an elevation gain of about 2300 feet. And this didn’t include any searches he’d need to do off the trails themselves.
Jake thumbed through the trail guide a little more, looking over other options. Static Peak, accessible through Death Canyon, was another possibility. Nor had he ruled out Delta Lake, reached by trail out of Lupine Meadows. The truth was that it was a huge mountain range with a seemingly infinite number of possible hiding places. Finding the correct one would be a monumental task. But it was not an impossible dream, Jake told himself. He was determined to see it through. He owed it to his grandfather, as well as to himself.
He placed the trail guide by the front door, alongside a pair of well-worn hiking boots. A quick glance around confirmed other ready supplies – a bright flashlight, a small compass and a warm, but lightweight, jacket. It would be easy later on to grab everything quickly and head out to begin exploring some of the trails. At least he could work on ruling a few out. The more he was able to narrow down the search, the closer he’d be to his goal.
Crossing the room, he pulled out the book that held the crumpled map and sat back down in the chair. There had to be something he had missed the first time he looked at it, some other marking or a line that was more obvious than he thought. Turning the three-way light up to its brightest level, he held the map up and peered through the paper. With the exception of the smudged spot just to the right of the center, there didn’t seem to be anything hidden. He squinted, attempting to see through the spot, but it was heavily stained and the light did nothing to reveal anything that might be underneath.
The sound of a sudden crash outside brought Jake immediately to his feet. He switched the light off quickly and stuffed the map under the cushion of the chair, then crossed quietly to a front window, pressing his back against the wall to the side of the window sill. He waited to hear more sound, not moving, his heart pounding inside his chest. It didn’t seem possible that anyone could know why he was here, what he was searching for. But it made sense to be cautious anyway.
When several minutes passed without any additional sound, he pulled the edge of his front curtains aside and peered outside. Only then did he realize that the sun was almost down, leaving behind only the partial
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