Was Man Rescued In Yellowstone Canyon Seeking Buried Treasure?

Earlier this week we reported on a man who repelled down 850 feet into Yellowstone Canyon, got stuck, and had to be rescued.

As it turns out he may have not been just some casual tourist.

His name is Dave Christensen, 55 years old, and apparently he was on a treasure seeking mission.

In an email, Christensen tried to make the case to Yellowstone superintendent Cam Sholly that he was in the area seeking Fenn’s Gold.

“I am not a quack, nor have blind lust for hidden treasures,” Christensen wrote. “I’m sending this so you can analyze the information, hopefully understand its validity, and thus, potentially circumvent a ‘Mad Mad World’ or ‘Rat Race’ of searchers in the near future, or spring when Yellowstone opens to wheeled vehicles.”

Over the years, some 250,000 people have followed the poem and sought the gold in Yellowstone. Some have even died trying.

Apparently Christensen was not alone. He worked his way into the canyon while a friend helped from above and talked to him on a two-way radio. It might have been the wrong time of year to do all of this, as the area was heavy blocked with snow.

Special thanks to Mark Davis of the Powell Tribune Via Wyoming News Exchange for digging into this interesting story.