Silver Coins on Woodlark Island / a Pofitable Adventure in the South sea Islands

[jeff of pa]

The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.), 21 Oct. 1906.











The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, October 21, 1906, 2d Section, Page Page [Nine], Image 9 « Chronicling America « Library of Congress

 

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Agony and Death on a Gold Rush Steamer: The Disastrous Sinking of the Side-Wheeler Yankee Blade - Grab it through Amazon!

[jeff of pa]

The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.), 21 Oct. 1906.







The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, October 21, 1906, 2d Section, Page Page Thirteen, Image 13 « Chronicling America « Library of Congress

 

[jeff of pa]

Woodlark Island, known to its inhabitants simply as Woodlark or Muyua, is an island in Milne Bay Province, Papua New Guinea. Although no formal census has been conducted since 1990, the current population is estimated at approximately 6000 people.
Woodlark Island is a rare place on the planet today. Just a little bigger than New York City, this small island off the coast Papua New Guinea is still covered in rich tropical forest, an ecosystem shared for thousands of years between tribal peoples and a plethora of species, including at least 42 found no-where else.



http://muyuaisland.blogspot.com/

 

[KANACKI]

Hola it been awhile and justly a quick visit...

Thank you for the very interesting post Jeff.

I know Woodlark well. there was a gold rush there around 1900 and remains of an old gold mining battery. I did not know about the Dutch vessel wrecked there. But I know of a Brig gazelle 1856 and another vessel called the Mary in 1845 I think? Both crews was massacred when shipwreck survivors came ashore. That wreck from memory is on the western End of the island off an islet.

In 1998 some young Australian Suba Divers found a the remains of an old chest on the beach by chance. A small sand bank was eroded away close shore and rotten remains of small sea cheat was found with coins scattered around it in the sand. It was perhaps the money chest for one of those vessels as coinage was of mainly English Origin. Sprinkled with several gold sovereign dated from around mid 1850's.

I think it was a vessel called The Mary was a sandalwood trader which sold the sandalwood for huge profits in China was carrying some English and VOC coinage.

Kanacki

 

[Real de Tayopa Tropical Tramp]

G'd day Kanacki my friend,and family, Clear sailing? Still alive and kicking plus slowly working on the Book..

 

[KANACKI]

Hola Don Jose Amigo

Still alive and Kicking and family are okay.

I have no reason or need for a book my friend. All I need is a sailing ship and a fair wind to steer her by. Been sailing the North Pacific during the summer. Been in the Sea of Okhotsk all the way to Valivostock then back to the kuril Islands north of Japan
Then down through the Marianas, Micronesia onto New Britain. The old love Tub is sitting in Rabaul at present.

And you?

Kanacki

 

[marticus]

I have also come across several stories of silver coins. Cannons. Jewlery so forth found around several island of the torres straight and out towarda tonga and somoa. And i beleive there are tons more as well as lot of wrecks chinese trade vessels full of gold and pottery scattered throughout

 

[KANACKI]

Hola marticus

If I was that way inclined Id be looking for the "Fatima"

Kanacki

 

[marticus]

Yes i have heard about it. A watched a doco of a guy called Ben Cropp searches for it.
I know the reef its wrecked on. But as he said there are 7 wrecks on that reef and they have found 6 but not the fatima
Which could be in deeper water. But the gold could be burried deep in the reef by now also

 

[marticus]

Also depends on the gold. If its dust. No luck finding it. Would have to be at least decent nuggets or ingots to be worth the search

 

[KANACKI]

Also depends on the gold. If its dust. No luck finding it. Would have to be at least decent nuggets or ingots to be worth the search

Ah Benjamin. I know Ben pretty well. His son continues on his work. But it is a thankless task in Australian territory as they are a assignee to Historic shipwrecks agreement.Ben came under heavy fire from authorities over the years. Unjustly at that.

Kanacki

 

[KANACKI]

Oh! there is about 30000 gold sovereigns on her estimated value depending on condition and rarity about 9 -14 million.

There is others that suspect she was not of the reef at all?

Kanacki

 

[marticus]

I havnt done much looking into her. Only some spots in books and from Ben. He didnt mention the coins. Only the gold.
Yes the historic law sucks balls. But i figure gold is easier to move and refine then coins so aslong as your not caught you could make a solid profit on the gold

 

[KANACKI]

Hello Marticus

Some discussions should really not take part in public view. If you want a long career searching world for treasures Never leave you self open to sort of speculative incrimination. In this world there are ways and means and there is always cards to keep for yourself until the opportunity to play them arises.

Oh it time for me to go as my crew are changing watch. I have go for now.

Kanacki

 

[Interested Party in UK]

Hello Mr Kanacki!

Good to see you posting again, although I know it shall be briefly before you are sailing into the sunset again my dear friend.

I hope you, Crow, Hard Luck and Amy are well and content in your endeavours.

I recently went on a trip to South America (first time there) and had my first 'result'. Everyone who claims that the world is a much smaller place where nothing is 'secret' or 'private' anymore, has never really travelled or explored. It might be quicker to travel or obtain information, but the globe is still the same size and still harbours more than a few mysteries.

I suppose you can tell I've got the 'bug'.

Good to see you posting and sharing some of your brilliant encyclopaedic knowledge.





IPUK

 

[doc-d]

Tenor Knack, bienvenidos........
How is Señor Crow, his young lovely bride and little crow doing......

 

[KANACKI]

Hola Doc amigo

Old Crow, he as you you know can get into trouble without leaving home. The old deadbeat of a pirate is doing well. He pulled off a little business coup that doubled the net worth of the trio. His island princess is well and his little pirate is a little scallywag. You just know he following in his fathers footsteps.

IPIU

Amigo once bitten by the bug its hard to return to a normal life. It possesses your every thoughts. There are places in this world amigo that very few people has ever visited remote mysterious and some times under the noses of us the so called civilized people. And yet once you taste the freedom of those places its hard to come back unchanged.... Success or failure it does not matter as in the end you will have lived...Not existed but lived....A life people can only dream about.

The others as far as I know are doing okay......I think hardluck is slumming it on some super yacht....Amy expecting her first child in November.

I just caught up with an old friend of mine today from....Irian Jaya helping native resistance fighters fight a guerilla war between Indonesia. He had been hiding out for 15 years or so in the mountains of New Guniea. He had recently slipping through border back into Papa New guinea. Brought a lot of gold with him.

And how was gold operation in South America?

Kanacki

 

[Interested Party in UK]

Hey Kanacki

I am glad the Trio and Amy are good and doing their thing. They have given their time, knowledge and expertise to help many an amateur such as myself to investigate and research things that otherwise would have taken ages or indeed not have been found.

Please check your private messages.

Whilst out in South America, if time had permitted, I had wanted to take a side-trip to Bolivia to checkout Sacambaya. That one has really got me intrigued. Amy was very kind in her support and guidance. Unfortunately it was the rainy season out there.

I know you've been there. What are your thoughts and feelings about the place?

IPUK

 

[KANACKI]

Hello INPK

Its been many years know since I was out that way 18 years ago.So many things may of changed as per accessibility. In regards Sacambaya There are several problems there, while the site only looks small on goggle earth and maps it much larger when your on the ground. . Yet its well known to locals when gringos visit they are normally deemed treasure hunters at the site. It very hard to do things discreetly there without the locals knowing your movements. In the rainy season its impossible to do anything with flooding and landslides. The river flats are full of fleas in summer. The key sites while the more accessible ones have suffered from many illegal excavations. Hardluck and I came to the conclusion that site however interesting to visit. It just did not tick all the boxes to be a viable project to expend too much time and effort. For the trio we have much better prospects elsewhere.

One of the Key factors coming to this decision is Sanders expedition although heavily criticized by outsiders especially investor that thought you just turn up and pick it up. Nothing is that simple. His team over 8 months shifted over 40000 tons of rock to no avail. For the trio that effort once you see the site in person was impressive at that. Other factors we could not quite get any support from the Bolivian government if we went to the expense of major excavation of the site. To bring in heavy plant in without legal agreement was only going burn a hole in your wallet and big one at that. Financial suicide at that.

It late today I am slumming it in wheel house today with a hangover as the rest of crew are ashore. I forgot how much old mad Mick like to drink. I have rather pain in the ass custom port clearance officer at the moment questions my ships past movements. I am hoping to get clearance on Tuesday.Predicted storms as I enter the Solomon sea, I was going to sail Sunday night. The Weather is perfect as present. Strange enough I might just sweeping ark to south just north of Woodlark by Friday.

There are two lonely graves on Woodlark. Australia prospector and adventurer and his Wife. His wife was a Russian noble women actually a cousin to the Czar Nickolas 2 of Russia, who's father was a white Russian general who fled with Czechoslovakian legion and his family as they fled the Russian communists in the Russian civil war after WW1. She ended up a refugee in china then came to Australia in the 1920 destitute and married this Australian prospector adventurer. She it was said fluent in 8 languages live with him on Woodlark while they mined for gold. A blue eye blond goddess the locals called her as it looked so out of place in such a wild place. Just they hit pay dirt after living in destitution on woodlark through the 1930's the Japanese invaded in early 1940's they was both murdered when the Japanese invaded.

Luck was never on their side my friends....

Kanacki

 

[KANACKI]

As for my old friend Mad Mick 15 year in the jungle living rough he average profited 1.6 grams of gold per day. 415 k gold which he got a good deal with Chinese still living in Rabaul. Old and tired my friend. He had a hard unforgiving life. Many years ago He fell in love with women that took him for everything and lost the plot leading him to hit the drink real bad for awhile. He Went feral into the jungles. At one stage we thought he was dead. Until an Indonesian official from west Papua offered to bankroll Crow to take a truce to Mad Mick about 10 year ago to get him out of their territory.

Crow the old bum did a hell of lot to keep mick alive. Even went looking for him. Crow jokes it was a apocalypse now type trip deep into rain forest to find mad Mick living with group of tribal warriors fighting the Indonesia army. Crow had operated on Mad Mick and saved him from losing a leg in jungle many years ago before. The Indonesians knew that mick would come out from hiding to see crow as they was old friends as thick as thieves. Crow told me he had many WTF moments on that journey. In fact it was first and only time he went out into the jungles by himself...You see there was sense of loyalties forged in blood sweat and tears.

Crow played his cards well and BS to Indonesians who said he could not find him even when he knew an Indonesian commando group was following him through jungle for 2 months. In truth contacted Mick via natives of the situation and Crow a free trip around Iran Jaya. In the end Mick escaped an Indonesian trap via using Crow as bait. Mick suffering from malaria shifted further into jungle to where even the Indonesians feared to tread. With no support from the west for arms he was screwed into an uncomfortable stalemate. As today he has once quietly emerged from the wilderness content with gold he has and more peaceful retirement of a rather restless soul.

One thing old mad mick was true to his word if you do the right thing by him he would walk over broken glass to help you.

It is a unbroken code of honor people such as these have.

And yet here he was like a lost soul loitering around Rabaul. He has no identity papers. His Australia passport long since run out. He cannot even go back to his own country as officially he is listed as dead. Even if he manged to convince him he was still alive? They do not want him as he is an embarrassment to Foreign policy and The Indonesian would force them to prosecute him. Yet that is the last thing they would want as the truth what was really going on would have to come out. So a village in new Britain has become his new abode. No longer the jungle threat to those in power in boardrooms of the jungle of glass and steel.

While I was first in port with repairs to the old "Love Tub" He offered strait away without hesitation was use of vehicles and equipment.

It may seem like a dog eat dog world my friends but there are still loyal old dogs still out there that have long ties fostered in blood stronger than notions of self interest.

These people rather rough downtrodden pieces of humanity have more soul and honor, more than many if not all our fearless leaders in power my friends. And perhaps that is good thing that some of these old dogs are still out there living on the fringe margins of society.

Jeff there are treasures out around Solomon, new Guinea and New Britain, small caches of treasure from pieces of history. But the biggest treasure out there is Freedom that we have long since lost in the west my friend,.

Ipuk, Doc, Don Jose and others

There comes a time for this old dog to realize its time to let his son take the role of captain of the old love tub. That last few months you may of been wondering my ongoing issue of leadership style of my son? As all young men do at one stage begin to feel their fathers know nothing. Well apparently I have learned hell of a lot in the last few months. Now my son realizes the old boy knows a lot more than he ever shows. Yet my friends he is ghostly reflection of myself was when I was his age. yet I beginning see him become more attached to the "Love tub" AKA Drumbeat. Her habits and her soul. And the perennial struggle with wind sea and waves. My wife has long since resided her self that I have a mistress, as she has sailed on her many time to far away places and even to her our ship is some thing more than a ship.

It is our home our little country our own little Empire in a spirit of freedom as we wander the earth as roving sea Gypsies.

I will be charting a course to Don Jose old stomping ground and hopefully we will beat the tropical storm in the Channel between New Ireland and New Britain.

Once again I saying goodbye to my old home town, A good by to my parents graves now long buried under the slops of the volcano. If you wants to see a smoking monster looks like this is it.



Adios amigos....

Kanacki