The treasure secreted away in the wilderness by Forrest Fenn has been discovered — and that search (and the subculture that arose around it) have become the focus of much thought, including a well-received book on the subject. But the legacy of Fenn’s treasure goes far beyond fortune-hunting narratives; there are also practical concerns wrapped up in it. Like, say, that of Mark Lantis, an enterprising treasure hunter who didn’t find Fenn’s fortune — but did require an airlift to get him home safely.
Turns out Lantis now owes $2,880 for the rescue — though he plans to fight the ruling.
Writing at The New York Times, Isabella Grullón Paz and Claire Fahy have more details on Lantis’s case. In the summer of 2018, Lantis arrived at Yellowstone National Park to begin following a lead that he hoped would bring him to Fenn’s buried treasure. Unfortunately, it did not, and Lantis found himself in need of an extraction.
Things compounded from there. Lantis wound up being charged with reckless disorderly conduct. He was found guilty; in addition to the fine to cover the rescue costs, he is also banned from Yellowstone for five years. He appealed the ruling multiple times, but both the U.S. District Court and the U.S. Court of Appeals upheld the initial ruling.
Lantis’s situation is part of a larger debate over whether people rescued from parks should cover the cost of their rescues. In Lantis’s case, at least, the question of whether or not he behaved recklessly was a factor — but then, one person’s recklessness is another person’s determination. Hopefully the subsequent discovery of Fenn’s trove will, at the very least, inspire fewer instances of people being lost in the wilderness.
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