Full Decipher of Forrest Fenn's 'Not Far But Too Far to Walk'
14 January 2018 | Mri Grout
The second clue in Forrest Fenn’s poem, (or at least, my interpretation of what the second clue is) concerns how far you should go after finding where warm waters halt and taking it in the canyon down. There is so much debate on what NFBTFTW means, especially since Forrest Fenn himself has written a memoir with that as its title Too Far to Walk. I have not read this as he said himself, all you need to find his $1,000,000 treasure hidden in the Rockies is by following the nine clues to his poem. So after much research based around my interpretation of the first clue, this is what I came up with.
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How Far is 'Not Far'?
As a hiker and visitor of many countries, I know that this phrase varies widely from person to person, probably even to identical twins. Because of this reason, I don't think this part has any substenance on its own. However, if you want to get technical, 'not far' is normally supposed to mean 'within shouting/spitting distance' or 'within eyesight or earshot.' So one could say it's supposed to be very close to WWWH, but then if it's that close how come it's too far to walk?
How Far is ‘Too Far to Walk’?
If something is within spitting distance, then the only way that is too far to walk is if you physically can't walk there. So does this mean you must climb or crawl? Fly or bike or drive? When does walking change to hiking or into scrambling? However, just because it means you must go down a cliff, doesn't mean you actually have to go DOWN THAT CLIFF right where you are. There might be a long drive around or 'not far but too far to walk' might just be another direction you need to go in and there is no need to actually follow it step by step, instead merely jumping to the next clue NOTE: DO NOT DO ANYTHING STUPID AND NEVER GO ANYWHERE DANGEROUS. Remember, an old man did it twice, carrying a chest full of treasure. He also didn't die while doing it, so if it's that sketchy, you're probably barking up the wrong tree. But if it does mean 'to walk,' then what is 'too far to walk' now? People constantly go on twenty mile day hikes - something that the average person will clearly think is too far to walk. I might walk that over a mountain, but I sure as ain't going to walk that into town. So again, who is judging this phrase? Is it you? Me? Forrest Fenn? Or someone from history? I think it's the last as you'll soon see in the section of my interpretation.
Definition of 'To Walk'
There are two definitions of 'to walk' that would make sense in this hunt for Forrest Fenn's treasure. The first being to place one foot in front of another and so on and so forth. The second being to guide, escort, or steer someone/something from one point to another. Who/what is this second identity though? A child? A flock of sheep? Or is it just hinting at the path being only wide enough for one?
What if it's not a distance at all?
This phrase is on its own, with a period before and behind it, cutting it off from connecting to WWWH and the HOB. Punction is everything in a poem, and if Forrest Fenn really did slave over it for years until it was prefected (which, why wouldn't you believe if you're here in the first place), then every single one of those marks means something. And as one who likes to write poetry from time to time, a single period can change the entire meaning of the message just like a comma can do the same for "Let's eat(,) grandma!" By making this phrase into its own sentence, Forrest has declared it to be separate from everything else. It will still have a connection between it and the sentence before and after it, but it can still be taking on its own, meaning that it might not be a description of distance at all, but rather a description of another turn. If one went not far, but saw that it was soon too far to walk, then found the home of Brown off to the left... But what do I know? I'm just a girl traveling the world, currently without a job (unless you count the $6 I made publishing a recent book: Elemental Claim: War of the Myth Book One which I don't).
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My Personal Interpretation
As I've mentioned before, I'm totally happy with my lot in life and so though $1,000,000 would be nice, it's the challenge I like more. So here is my honest personal interpretation of Forrest Fenn's 'not far but too far to walk.' I did tons of research for this, trying to make the pieces fit and maybe I overstretched my hand, desperate to do so. However, when I got to 'the home of Brown' it fit too much to be a coincedence and so I ran with the idea that 'not far but too far to walk' was steeped in history. You see, the Sweetwater River was thus named by travelers from the east coming to find gold in the west (fitting, yes?). The origins of this isn't important, but what I found fascinating was that they believed the river to be so windy (and indeed it is), that even at a time where water was precious, these travelers decided to cross its bends, not once or twice, put near twenty times. Surely this makes the river 'not far, but too far to walk.'
If this is truly the solution to not far but too far to walk, please let me know via email or a personal message through my Facebook if you find the treasure. Would totally make my day.
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