๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐? ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐โ๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐! ๐
As Cheryl and I were leaving Old Orchard Beach, fresh off a successful recovery, my phone rang. On the other end was Jennifer, and she was looking for some urgent help from The Ring Finders of Maine.
I asked her what happened, and she explained that her husband, Paul, had just lost his wedding ring at Point Sebago. The tricky part? He wasn’t entirely sure where it came off. It could have been in the dry sand around their beach setup, or it could be somewhere out in the water.
๐ ๐๐ก๐ ๐๐ฅ๐ฎ๐๐ฌ & ๐๐ก๐ ๐๐ก๐๐จ๐ซ๐ฒ
Here is what we knew: Paul had been lounging around his beach chair, but he had also been out in Sebago Lake Maine, throwing a football around with his sons. Around lunchtime, as the family gathered to grab a bite to eat, Paul looked down and realized with a sinking feeling that his ring was gone.
The family immediately sprang into action. They searched all around their beach chairs and waded through the water where the football game had taken place, but they came up empty-handed.
When Jennifer told me the story, my immediate thought was that the ring had to be in Sebago Lake. In my experience, rings donโt just fall off your finger while you’re lounging around in a beach chair. They come off when you are active and doing something with your handsโlike catching or throwing a football in the cool lake water!
๐งณ ๐๐๐๐ซ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐ฉ ๐๐จ๐ซ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐๐ญ๐๐ซ
Knowing this was likely going to be a water search, I told Jennifer I would absolutely get up there, but I needed to make one quick stop at my house first. If I was going into the lake, I needed the right tool for the job: my Minelab Excalibur II. This machine is a beast for water recoveriesโfully waterproof and submersible up to 200 feet deep, it’s the same detector used on heavy-duty dive sites.
Once I retrieved the Excalibur and made sure we had every piece of gear required for a thorough water hunt, I called Jennifer back. I let her know we were officially on the road and that it would take about an hour to get there, aiming for a 3:30 PM arrival.
With the vehicle loaded up and a plan in place, Cheryl and I hit the highway, heading straight for Point Sebago.
โณ ๐๐๐ ๐๐ซ๐ซ๐ข๐ฏ๐๐ฅ ๐๐ญ ๐๐จ๐ข๐ง๐ญ ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐จ
Once we arrived, we were promptly met at the main gate by Jennifer and her son, who got us checked in with visitor passes. From there, they drove us right down to the beach and lake in a golf cart. Wow, I really like this placeโno walking required, lol!
Down at the water, we were met by Paul. He showed us their exact beach setup and pointed out the area of the lake where he had been standing while tossing the football around. I got my gear on, fired up the Excalibur, and walked straight into Sebago Lake with Paul leading the way to his exact spot.
๐งญ ๐
๐จ๐ซ๐ฆ๐ฎ๐ฅ๐๐ญ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐ซ๐ข๐ ๐๐๐๐ซ๐๐ก
Once I could see the entire layout of the area, I told Paul my strategy: I was going to start my grid search just a little further out and deeper in the water. I always over-grid an area to make absolutely sure I donโt miss a single spot where a ring could possibly be hiding.
Thatโs when Paul gave me one more piece of informationโhe mentioned that he had actually swum out to retrieve the football a few different times, and on those swims, the water was over his head. There wasn’t much I could do about those deep-water spots at that moment, but I could certainly search every single inch of the rest of the area.
I set up my grid lines vertical to the shore, locking my eyes onto an onshore landmarkโa specific tree at the back of the beach area. Keeping my focus on that tree would ensure I walked in a perfectly straight line.
โก ๐๐ฐ๐จ ๐๐ข๐ง๐ฎ๐ญ๐๐ฌ ๐ญ๐จ ๐๐ฅ๐จ๐ซ๐ฒ!
With the plan locked in, I waded out until the water was approximately armpit deep and started making my way back toward the shore. I hadn’t even been searching for two minutes when I reached belly-deep water and a strong, clear signal hit my headphones. My first target! Could this really be Paul’s wedding ring already?
I plunged my long-handled beach scoop deep into the sand, lifted it up, and dumped the contents into the floating sifter I use out in the water. As the water cleared and I looked inside, I COULD NOT BELIEVE MY EYES.
A gold ring was sticking right out of a clump of sand!
I turned, looked right at Paul, and said, ยซย I got it.ย ยป
๐ ๐๐๐ฅ๐๐๐ซ๐๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง ๐จ๐ง ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐ก๐จ๐ซ๐
Paul immediately made a beeline to me, and Jennifer and one of their sons rushed right out behind him. I told Paul he could have the honors of removing his ring from the sifter himself. As he grabbed it, the sheer relief on his face was incredibly evident.
Suddenly, everyone in the family was smiling, shaking hands, and hugging. But the magic didn’t stop there. Once the other vacationers in the area realized what had just happened, a massive wave of applause, clapping, and cheering started filtering out to us from the shore and from people in the water. It was an absolutely awesome moment to experience!
๐๏ธ ๐ ๐๐๐ญ๐ก ๐๐ง๐ง๐ข๐ฏ๐๐ซ๐ฌ๐๐ซ๐ฒ ๐๐๐ฏ๐๐
As we were walking out of the lake, Jennifer let me in on a huge secret: she and Paul would be celebrating 30 years of marriage this upcoming October! Recovering Paul’s wedding ring was an unbelievable relief for their massive upcoming anniversary.
Jennifer and Paul continued to praise me for making the trip out to help them, and as we stood there talking about 30 wonderful years of their lives together, my phone rang yet again.
๐ฉ ๐๐๐ ๐ญ๐จ ๐๐๐ง๐ง๐๐๐ฎ๐ง๐ค๐ฉ๐จ๐ซ๐ญ ๐๐จ๐ซ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐๐ญ ๐๐ซ๐ข๐๐ค!
The next call was for a lost wedding ring down at Goose Rocks Beach in Kennebunkport Maine. Paul and Jennifer were incredibly generous and offered to buy Cheryl and me a round of drinks to celebrate the win, but we had to politely decline. A wedding ring had to be found, and as we always say:
ยซย If it matters to you, it matters to us.ย ยป โค๏ธ
So, with two successful ring recoveries already under our belts today, Cheryl and I hopped back into the vehicle and headed straight to Kennebunkport Maine. Let’s see if we can make it a hat trick! ๐ฉโ๏ธ๐๐๐ ๐ฌ
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