As a new shop owner, I was amazed at some of the things I found in my store. The previous owners had left quickly, so I had a lot of things to organize and a few things to clear out. The most curious item I found was an old journal wrapped in a plastic bag. I opened it gently because it looked like it was ready to fall apart. However, I was soon to find out that looks can be deceiving.

I removed the book from the bag, and set it on a table. It was about the size of weekly newspaper. The leather was well-preserved, and the pages inside were beautifully handwritten. The first page claimed the book to be the Journal of Seamus McClenaghan, Captain of The Archer. As a lover of books, I was immediately drawn into Seamus’ story. The journal had the standard logs of a ship’s captain, including inventories, weather, and daily reports from officers, but the writing in between those required items was beautiful. It was clear that Seamus was no ordinary captain.

I did some research on Seamus to find out more about him, but there was precious little to be found in the Oregon histories. I was lucky enough to stumble across one newspaper clipping from a New York paper that claimed Seamus was responsible for a series of raids had taken place on ships in the Pacific Northwest. They dubbed the pirate “The Librarian” because his ship ran silent, his crew used no guns, and the first thing he removed from his victims were their books – diaries, log books, and tomes of all kinds. As I read further into the journal, I realized that the crew of the Archer was adept at using bows and arrows. Seamus mentioned constructing a version of Leonardo da Vinci’s giant crossbow and using several ballistae. They would use the cover of fog to sneak up on their victims and decimate the crew of the other ship with arrows that would seemingly appear out of nowhere.

Like all pirates, Seamus had a secret hoard that he hid along the coast. He left the coded map in his journal with a note about how the greatest treasure would be found in his chest.

That chest has been discovered and awaits the one who can open it. However, the process isn’t as simple as breaking a lock. Seamus created a test for the one who would take his treasure. Only an archer with true aim could get inside the box without destroying its contents. First, the archer must strike the captain’s golden coin to reveal the lock. Then the archer must hit in the dead center of the keyhole. Any other hit to the lock will disable the mechanism.

We’re looking for the archer who can recover Seamus’ treasure. If you’re ready to get your share of the pirate’s booty, come to Lincoln City Archery on Sep. 19 and 20 to shoot some arrows and learn about our archers league.