It only took Lance Davis three clues to find the KOGT Mardi Gras Treasure this year. And he was able to find it and collect his winnings before the rest of Wednesday was ruined by torrential downpours, thunder and a nasty wind.
Davis used the three clues and creativity to end up at the train depot where he found the certificate behind a sign on the fence that borders the property.
Davis explains the route he took. “Clue 1 started at the KOGT Radio station. The clue mentioned Meeks (Drive), sixteen hundred, and the sponsor (KOGT),” Davis said.
“Clue two took you down Allie Payne (Mig Alley) to MLK (a dream) and then south over (Adams) bayou.”
“Clue three took me past the fire station then under the overpass at Edgar Brown down South/Main to Lions Park. Then I started picking up on smaller clues like the words conduct(or), ticket, the word mirth which there used to be a “World of Mirth” carnival that traveled by train. I even thought maybe that since it started at a radio station it would end at a train station. Then when we got here we saw the sign of KOGT’s call letters “Gateway to Texas” and we started looking.”
Davis not only beat the weather to the treasure, but also two young ladies who drove up and started looking as he was explaining to me where he found it.
Congrats to Lance Davis, the 2023 KOGT Mardi Gras Treasure Hunt winner!
-Gary Stelly, KOGT-
HISTORY OF ORANGE
CLUE 1
The annual Treasure Hunt in the Greater Orange area is a tradition that has challenged seekers of the hidden certificate for close to forty years or more than sixteen hundred weeks. The original Treasure Hunt was conducted in 1985. That first hunt was all wet as the secret ticket was found on the very first day. After a brief hiatus the quest to find the treasure got a new sponsor who injected renewed enthusiasm for the hunt and boosted the treasure’s reward considerably. That sponsor to this day has in various ways spread the good news of the Gateway to Texas for decades. To find the treasure you must follow the clues. So, where do you start? Just remember the meek shall inherit the mirth.
CLUE 2
The themes for each year’s Treasure Hunt clues have varied throughout the many years the searches have been undertaken. The clues will usually follow a certain criteria pertaining to a theme such as names of famous people. These have included identifying baseball players like Ted Williams who flew jets over Mig Alley, or presidents like John Adams who was a signer of the Declaration of Independence before becoming the second president of the United States. Movie titles have also been a theme like “A Bridge Too Far” about the Allies trying to capture a route across a river. Every treasure hunter has a dream that one day they shall be exalted when they find the orange certificate.
CLUE 3
In approximately forty years of composing clues for the Treasure Hunt it has been a challenge to give the seekers of the hidden certificate enough of a hint on which way to go without giving away the exact location where the treasure is hidden. A memorable year was when the clues had the Fearless Frog hopping around town avoiding dangerous predators to finally find his treasure at a fire station on Friday. A not so good set of clues allowed the search to end early when the card was located under an overpass. We hope this year’s clues will help you and not leave you pining for more information or have you driving around in circles trying to find the secret location of the prize.
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