The lure of great treasure and fame is not limited to the mount. Plenty of people have sunk fortunes into Egypt looking for a big discovery.
The masonic connection to the templars is not a solid one. Some freemasons would say it is, some wouldnt. TBH it wouldnt bother me if they were connected.
Anyway, if the templars had removed all this stuff in history then why would people go back after about 800 years or so?