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Metal Detecting the Treasure Coast Beaches: Dry Sand
Posted by: TimothyT on: 01/02/2011 06:53 PM in , Metal Detecting [ Print ]
Metal Detecting the Treasure Coast Beaches: Dry Sand
Rule #1: I have learned this from detecting and from other enthusiasts; there is no perfect solution. You just never know. Use a little common sense and create your own scenario. That said there are some basic guidelines to follow.
If your metal detector can only detect dry sand, then you are mostly after modern coins and jewelry meaning things people dropped recently and the occasionally lucky items that might have washed back ashore. If you turn the sensitivity down, you might be able to detect where the high tide had dropped off and the sand is still a little wet, but results vary here and tend to be poor. Let’s apply the knowledge that we are on dry sand and make the most of it.
Tide schedule and timing
You might want to watch the tide schedule and wave height . If you have 4-5 foot waves and the high tide is coming in when you want to detect, you won’t have a lot of beach to cover. Low tide gives you the most beach real estate.
Where people sit
This might seem obvious, but it’s not. You need to go out during the peak of a beautiful day and see what people are doing on the beach. You are looking for where they are sitting. Typically you will see that they tend to sit about 5-10 feet from where the latest tide is. In other words they sit where they won’t get splashed by waves. This is where they sit and drop change and jewelry. Since kids usually bring plastic toys this has been a great area for me but expect to find a lot of beer cans and tabs. A lot of people sit in the area of a lifeguard station, so don’t forget to look around there. As mentioned, items could also be there from last week, last month or washed in on the latest high tide. As the photo on the right shows, the kids are in the water and the parents are sitting up higher with their belongings.
Where people party
I have had great luck with this. People goofing off and\or drinking can drop good items. A couple making out on the beach could easily lose something and not know it. I have been told that behind hotels are typically bad areas to search because many people come down from the hotel without their jewelry and coins but I have found people tend to sit anywhere and I have had some good finds behind hotels. Don’t forget to survey the area like always. Detect around chairs that the hotel leaves out; this has been great for me as well. One time while detecting at the Sebastian Inlet I found a pile of puke. You bet I did. I got some change and a brand new working cell phone. The people were camping there and the girl was unaware she even lost the phone but it is always nice to return something that was lost, even if they didn’t know it yet.
When people use the beach
Most of the time people come out to walk on the beach as early as 6:00 AM and most people tend to show up around 8:00 AM to get a good spot for the day. Typically many leave towards dinner time. This means the early morning hours or the early evening hours are the best time. If you go out when the beach is crowded you have numerous issues to deal with that should be obvious, but here are a couple problem scenarios… Obviously you have a lot of people and you have to detect around them. Headphones or not, people will want to watch you, especially when you dig a hole. A big problem might be if you find some really nice jewelry. Someone could approach you and claim they lost it. When you dig a hole, people will watch. I drew attention today retreiving a silver ring and it can make you nervous as to their intentions. Most people just want to hear a story. Some of us save and carry a few crusty coins to show people if they ask, rather then show them the goods.
Learn to grid
This is a game of research and patience. It sucks to do all your research and not find a single penny. Your best bet is to pick a favorite spot using the tips above and decide to work an area. Typically you have no more than a couple of prime hours to do this, so make the most of it and grid an area. To do this, pick a large square area you think will be a good place. Then detect down the beach and then back up while lightly overlapping where you came down. There are hundreds of miles of beach and I often see amateurs just strolling all over the place. Yes, you can get lucky, but I would maximize my time. When you find a coin or handful of coins on the beach, be sure to stop and observe your surroundings and look for a pattern nearby. Be sure to detect around that area. See the photo to the left for an example. On dry sand I will simply drag my feet occasionally to mark where I just was.
Remember
I will mention this in the wet and dry sand sections; do NOT go into the water. They are protected by admiralty claim meaning NO metal detecting is allowed in the water. If you think you might get a trespassing citation, you would be mistaken. I recently was chatting with a guy at 7-11 who had a Parole jacket on and when I mentioned I was metal detecting he said he had just come from a parolee who was busted metal detecting the water and found treasure. Last I checked parole was for after prison. You can dive wrecks but if you have a waterproof detector, leave it home.
The guide is split into 5 sections:
Metal Detecting the Treasure Coast Beaches: Introduction
Metal Detecting the Treasure Coast Beaches: Equipment you need to bring with you
Metal Detecting Dry Sand (You are here)
Metal Detecting the Treasure Coast Beaches: Wet Sand
Metal Detecting the Treasure Coast Beaches: Locations
Metal Detecting the Treasure Coast Beaches: Links
You can always email tim AT majorgeeks.com with your ideas or suggestions.
Rule #1: I have learned this from detecting and from other enthusiasts; there is no perfect solution. You just never know. Use a little common sense and create your own scenario. That said there are some basic guidelines to follow.
If your metal detector can only detect dry sand, then you are mostly after modern coins and jewelry meaning things people dropped recently and the occasionally lucky items that might have washed back ashore. If you turn the sensitivity down, you might be able to detect where the high tide had dropped off and the sand is still a little wet, but results vary here and tend to be poor. Let’s apply the knowledge that we are on dry sand and make the most of it.
Tide schedule and timing
You might want to watch the tide schedule and wave height . If you have 4-5 foot waves and the high tide is coming in when you want to detect, you won’t have a lot of beach to cover. Low tide gives you the most beach real estate.
Where people sit
This might seem obvious, but it’s not. You need to go out during the peak of a beautiful day and see what people are doing on the beach. You are looking for where they are sitting. Typically you will see that they tend to sit about 5-10 feet from where the latest tide is. In other words they sit where they won’t get splashed by waves. This is where they sit and drop change and jewelry. Since kids usually bring plastic toys this has been a great area for me but expect to find a lot of beer cans and tabs. A lot of people sit in the area of a lifeguard station, so don’t forget to look around there. As mentioned, items could also be there from last week, last month or washed in on the latest high tide. As the photo on the right shows, the kids are in the water and the parents are sitting up higher with their belongings.
Where people party
I have had great luck with this. People goofing off and\or drinking can drop good items. A couple making out on the beach could easily lose something and not know it. I have been told that behind hotels are typically bad areas to search because many people come down from the hotel without their jewelry and coins but I have found people tend to sit anywhere and I have had some good finds behind hotels. Don’t forget to survey the area like always. Detect around chairs that the hotel leaves out; this has been great for me as well. One time while detecting at the Sebastian Inlet I found a pile of puke. You bet I did. I got some change and a brand new working cell phone. The people were camping there and the girl was unaware she even lost the phone but it is always nice to return something that was lost, even if they didn’t know it yet.
When people use the beach
Learn to grid
Remember
I will mention this in the wet and dry sand sections; do NOT go into the water. They are protected by admiralty claim meaning NO metal detecting is allowed in the water. If you think you might get a trespassing citation, you would be mistaken. I recently was chatting with a guy at 7-11 who had a Parole jacket on and when I mentioned I was metal detecting he said he had just come from a parolee who was busted metal detecting the water and found treasure. Last I checked parole was for after prison. You can dive wrecks but if you have a waterproof detector, leave it home.
The guide is split into 5 sections:
You can always email tim AT majorgeeks.com with your ideas or suggestions.
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