Dennis Boothby, Author at The Ring Finders | Page 2 of 4

Apple AirPod Found With A Metal Detector on A Beach In Southern Maine

  • from Old Orchard Beach (Maine, United States)

On Tuesday, October 3rd, 2023, I found an Apple AirPod, as I was Metal Detecting a local beach. I didn’t see it at first because it was among the White Sea shells and blended right in with the shells, but the detector kept going off. Once I saw it, amongst the shells, I scooped it up and looked around, hoping to see someone who may have just dropped it. Absolutely no one in the area. The Apple AirPod was not wet at all and must have been lost earlier in the morning.

I then started a grid to see if I could find the other AirPod. I was unable to find the matching AirPod and thought that the owner, may have only lost the one. Now I needed to find the owner.
Once I got home, I placed several posts on Facebook asking if anyone had lost an Apple AirPod. I placed the post on Lost and Found – Maine, and a couple of the local community sites. I had asked if anyone had lost their AirPod and if they had, where did they lose it. I had a few people contact me but the AirPod was no where near the areas that they had lost theirs. Then, on Sunday October 8th, I saw a message from Rita. Rita had lost her AirPod’s and it was exactly where I had found it. Now I had found the rightful owner. Unfortunately Rita had lost both of her AirPod’s but was happy to be getting one of them back, as she could still use the one I found. Rita thinks she lost them while walking her dog on the beach. The dog had broken away from her and she put the AirPod’s were placed in one of her shallow pockets, to chase after the dog. They must have fallen out of her shallow pocket as she chased the dog.
We made plans to meet up a few days later, so that I could return the AirPod. Today, October 12th, we met and I was able to return her AirPod. Now, I will be on the lookout whenever I go to the beach.

Property Markers Found In Saco, Maine With A Metal Detector

  • from Old Orchard Beach (Maine, United States)

I had received a call last week from Kathleen and her husband Bob. They were interested in finding their property markers that they hadn’t seen since the home was built, 30 years ago, here in Saco. We made an appointment for me to search for the markers for today, 10/11/23.

I showed up promptly at the agreed upon time and both Kathleen and Bob were there to greet me. The 1st marker we searched for was the right front corner of the house, as you faced it. When I turned the detector on, it went haywire, with it constantly going off and I couldn’t get a good signal. I was then told all the utility wires were buried there. I made an adjustment to the detector, still no help. I tried another detector, still lots of interference.

So, Bob suggested we check the front left of the home, near the culvert. Thankfully, no interference but lots and lots of iron objects were being dug. Nails, pipes and iron objects we didn’t even recognize. Bob then told me when the house was built, it was the last house on the street and where the property marker was , there was not a road or culvert yet. When the housing development expanded, a road and culvert were put in and those improvements were done with fill. Could the property marker been moved and or buried with all the infrastructure improvements? Not sure but after many, many iron objects and no marker, Bob and Kathleen suggested we go to the back, wooded area of the property and search for those. We started on the right backside of the property and after digging a few iron objects, we thankfully found the marker. We then went to the back left side of the property, the same side as the culvert, and Bob and Kathleen were not very optimistic about finding this one because along the small stream, many large trees had come down and according to Bob, the stream looks like it has been altered some, by the downed trees. We did our due diligence and search up and down the banks of the stream, without any luck. Could the marker be under one of the fallen trees or swept away by the stream changing course? Not sure but it was not in the area they thought it would be.

I decided to try looking for the 1st marker, near the buried utility wires. This time, knowing where the back right marker was, I searched about 10 feet to the left of where I had been searching earlier. This area lined up better with the back property marker and thankfully, there was no interference from the utility wires. Our 1st target turned out to be a nail. Our second target was exactly what we were looking for. The property marker had been found. Bob tells me that the city is coming out in the next month or so to do some culvert work, after all the heavy rain we have had the year. When the city is working in the culvert, Bob will measure from his other front marker and find the exact area of the missing marker. Hopefully when the culvert is being worked on, the city will take some of the fill out. At that point, I will return and see if it is still buried or still to deep from the fill that was placed on top of it. Kathleen and Bob were both very pleased at the outcome and can’t wait until I return.

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Men’s 14K Wedding Ring Lost on Old Orchard Beach, Maine Found With A Metal Detector

  • from Old Orchard Beach (Maine, United States)

I received a call from William on Monday morning, 9/11/23. William had lost his 14K wedding ring, the previous night, as he and his wife Sarah, enjoyed their last evening in Old Orchard Beach, Maine.  After leaving a local restaurant, William and Sarah returned to their oceanfront hotel for their last night in town and decided to sit on the beach and enjoy the fresh air and beautiful views, around 8:30pm to 9:00pm. When they decided to go back to their room, they were covered in sand, from where they were sitting. William brushed off the sand from both his and Sarah’s pants. Once they got back to their room, William noticed he was no longer wearing his wedding ring. He and Sarah immediately went back down to the beach to search for the ring, but with no luck. William then tore his hotel room apart, praying it was in the room, but still no luck. They both searched the beach again, the next morning,  9/11/23, still no success. William then called me after receiving a couple of very strong recommendations and referrals.
I told William that I would be right there to meet him, as I live less than 5 miles from their current location and being retired, I am able to just get up and leave. He and Sarah needed to start their 5 hour drive back to Sherbrooke, Quebec but would stay to show me the location. Once I arrived, about 10 minutes later, William showed me the area where he thought they were sitting but it now looked different because of the daylight and the tide was different. I searched the area where they thought they were sitting but absolutely nothing. He then said they 1st went to a bench and then moved down to the sand. Still nothing around the bench. At this point, I knew I would need to perform a grid of an area of about 75’ X 75’. I started near the bench and searched down to the high tide line, then back up to the sea grass, turn around and back to the high tide line, etc.. I was finding the usual trash of pull tabs and tent stakes but not much else. After about an hour and as I was at the top of the slope, heading to the high tide line. I received a very loud low tone on my Minelab CTX-3030. VDI screen was reading a very solid 12-24. I stuck my pinpointer into the dry sand and found my target. I caught a small glimpse of yellow and I just had to break out in a big smile. I pulled the ring out of the sand, turned around to show William and Sarah, who were now sitting in the sand up near the sea grass and said, “I got it”. As William saw the ring, he jumped up and said “No Way” and broke out in a smile from ear to ear. He then came over to where I was and we shared a nice big enthusiastic high five. The ride back to Sherbrooke, Quebec just became much more bearable. A Beautiful Day indeed

Handmade 14K Wedding Ring with Diamond Chip Lost While Bodysurfing in Scarborough Maine, With A Metal Detector

  • from Old Orchard Beach (Maine, United States)

On Sunday night 9/3/23, which is also Labor Day Weekend, I received a call from Ric. Ric told me that while Bodysurfing at Scarborough Beach State Park, in Scarborough, Maine, his wedding ring fell off, into the very rough surf water. Ric said he was referred to me by members of the lifeguard crew, including Greg, the supervisor.
As it was already closing in on 4:30pm and the State Park closes at 7:00pm, I told Ric that because I wouldn’t be able to make it from my current location, to the State Park until close to 6:00pm, I would go down 1st thing in the morning and perform a grid search, at low tide. Ric was not going to be available to show me the location of where the ring was lost, but gave me a very detailed description of the location. He was just to the left of the webcam pole and approximately 50-60 feet out into the water, approximately “mid chest deep”.
I arrived at Scarborough Beach State Park the next morning at 8:00am and was greeted by Greg. Greg told me that he didn’t see Ric lose the ring but that it was in the general location described by Ric. I decided to overshoot the area by about 30 feet on each side of the Webcam pole, in case the ring was moved by the rough and strong surf. Starting down near the low tide line, I slowly gridded the hard packed sand, up towards the shoreline. I was finding a few trashy targets, like lobster trap bits and small pieces of aluminum, mostly likely from discarded cans. As I worked my way up towards the shoreline, I finally received a great sounding low tone. Looking down at the CTX-3030’s VDI Screen, I saw a reading that put a smile on my face. I had a great sounding low tone and a 12-19 on the VDI screen. Definitely in the gold range. I pressed my scoop into the sand, with my foot and dumped the sand out next to the hole. I ran the coil over the dug up sand and got the signal. I still couldn’t see it so I pulled my pinpointed out and ran it through the sand. Once I found the target, I put my fingers into the wet dug up sand and pulled out a large chunky ring with a small diamond chip in it. I had Ric’s ring. I called Ric and then sent a photo to him. He replied “That’s it, 100%”. We then made arrangements to meet in 20-30 minutes at a local restaurant, on my way home. The exchange was made and Ric explained that the ring was actually handmade, by a friend, and presented to him for his wedding. As The Ringfinders say, “every ring has a story “ and this one has a very sentimental story. Another great happy ending.

Diamond Engagement Ring Found at Old Orchard Beach Beach Maine, With A Metal Detector

  • from Old Orchard Beach (Maine, United States)

As I was detecting a low tide, on the morning of August 21, 2023, in Old Orchard Beach I was approached by 2 men. One of them identified themselves as Brandon. Brandon told me that he and his father were searching for his girlfriends Diamond Ring and asked if could help. Absolutely I can help. After asking Brandon for the details of losing the ring , Brandon gave me the entire story. He and his girlfriend, Larissa, had been enjoying a beautiful beach day and were in the water, when the ring came off her finger. Brando and Larissa tried  to find the ring in the water and waves, but it was a fruitless endeavor.
Once I was showed the approximate location, I told Brandon that I perform a grid search, horizontal to the beach and would start out near the low tide line , working my way towards shore. The horizontal search would run for approximately 100’ to 150’, along the low tide line to the shore. After not finding much and getting close to running out of beach to search, I received a nice loud low signal , with my Excalibur II and sunk the scoop, into the sand. As I threw the sand out of the scoop, I saw a small sliver of silver in the sand. As I brushed away the Sand, I saw the Diamonds and knew that Larissa would be getting her ring back. I then called Brandon, who had left about 2 hours earlier, with his father. I called and told Brandon that I have something for him and that I would send him a photo, to verify it is the correct ring. The reply I received was, “That’s it thank you”. Brandon came back to get the ring and he brought a very happy Larissa, who was so appreciative.  I handed the ring to Larissa and her smiling face said it all. I love my ability to be able to help people.

Platinum Wedding Ring Lost On Goose Rocks Beach Kennebunkport, Maine Found With A Metal Detector

  • from Old Orchard Beach (Maine, United States)

At 11:30am on August 11,2023, I received a text that stated a wedding ring had been lost at Goose Rocks Beach, in Kennebunkport, Maine. And then “Are you able to help”? I immediately called back and told him I absolutely could  help. I asked if the ring had been lost in the water or the dry sand? Up on the beach in the dry sand, was his reply. He then told me that she had 3 rings in the pocket of her beach dress and they had fallen out. Two of the rings had been found already, one in the sand and another had landed on a beach chair. However, a wedding ring was still missing and was not found by anyone in the group. I told him that I would leave immediately and be there in 30 minutes +- a few minutes. He texted me the GPS address and my wife and I were off to Kennebunkport. We arrived at the address in about 25 minutes and was met at the address by Chip. Chip explained that the family was still at the beach, which is just down the block and across the street, a 5 minute walk. Once we arrived at on the beach, Chip and Allie (owner of the lost wedding ring, explained how the rings had been lost and where within the 10’ X 15’ area they thought the ring was lost. I fired up the Minelab CTX-3030 and made my first swing.  At the end of the very 1st swing, I received a nice low tone and a 12-05 reading on the CTX-3030. I then asked Allie what type of metal the ring was made of. Platinum was her reply and I told her that this target was promising. I pulled out my pin pointer and located the target. I then moved some sand away with my hand, felt around and pulled out The Platinum Wedding Ring. Allie was very happy and relieved to have her ring back and I also had a big smile that I am still wearing.

 

Gold Wedding Ring Lost In A Maine Lake Found With A Metal Detector

  • from Old Orchard Beach (Maine, United States)

On Sunday evening, August 6, 2023, I received a text from Andy. In Andy’s own words, “Hi Dennis. I’m Andy. I found your contact info on ring finders. I lost my gold wedding ring today in Bunganut Pond in Lyman. I was hoping you could do the impossible”.  I called Andy back immediately and asked him a few questions about depth of water and if this a private property or public beach. Andy told me it was a public beach and the ring was lost in waist deep water. My concern now was that I would have less than an hour’s worth of sunlight left, once I arrived at Bunganut Pond, in Lyman, Maine. It was a 30-35 minute drive to get there. Andy explained that he lived 2 hours away in Nashua, NH and needed to get back home and would prefer to not stay the night but would, if necessary. I really didn’t want Andy and his wife to have to stay an extra night. I told him we would be there as soon as possible. My wife and I loaded my Excalibur II, my long handled scoop and off we went. We arrived at the pond at 7:20pm and I was in the water at 7:25pm. Andy and I immediately headed to the spot he thought he lost his wedding band. After a few minutes, with only 1 target (a piece of aluminum), Andy asked his wife if the area we were in looked correct from her vantage point on the shore. She told us she thought it was about 15-20 feet to our right, as we faced the shore. Andy’s wife then entered the water and went to the area she thought it was in. As I was working my to the area, still no targets. When I got to the area she thought the ring was in, I received a very solid sounding target. I put the scoop in and pulled it up, shaking the sand out, into the water. I got a great view a a new shiny gold ring in the bottom of the scoop. It took all of 7 minutes , in the water to find it. I had Andy’s ring and his wife and he started screaming with joy. I love this job.
Andy and his wife were very very elated and couldn’t contain their excitement of getting Andy’s ring back. Andy told us that he and his wife were just married, in March, less than 6 months ago. Here is wishing them many many years of love and happiness.

Very Sentimental Gold Necklace Lost In The Water, Waves and Sand, At Low Tide

  • from Old Orchard Beach (Maine, United States)

On Saturday, July twenty 29th, 2023, I saw a post on Facebook, by Kelli,  about a MISSING GOLD CHAIN WITH A CROSS, being lost on the beach. Later that morning, I received a text from Kelli wanting to know if I could help. After talking with Kelli, I found out the Gold Chain and Cross Pendant had been lost 2 days earlier, in the surf, approximately 1 1/2 hours after the low tide. Since it wouldn’t be low tide for another 4 hours, I told Kelli that I would meet her in 2 hours at the Old Orchard Beach, Maine location, where the necklace had been lost, 2 days earlier.
Once I arrived, I met Kelli and her boyfriend, Jake. Jake explained that the waves were really rough that day and the necklace somehow came off his neck and disappeared, into the Waves, Water and Sand. I told them that I would grid the beach, parallel to the water and follow the tide out, hoping the necklace would then appear in just the wet sand and no longer under the water.
I was performing the grid search for approximately 1:20 minutes, when Jake came down to me , near the low tide mark. He explained that he and Kelli had to leave and and were leaving tomorrow morning to go back home, In Massachusetts. I told Jake that I would contact him if I found it and if not, I would be back the next day, at low tide and expand the search. After Jake left, I decided to try the shallow water, as low tide was now upon us. I started a grid search in the water and was working my way towards shore. I finally received a decent low tone signal, reading 12-04 on the Minelab CTX-3030 and put the scoop into the wet sand. I caught a glimpse of 1 gold link of a chain in the wet sand. I reached down, grabbed the link and pulled it out of the sand. I had Jake’s necklace. On 20 minutes had passed since he had left and I immediately called him. Jake and Kelli came right back and I returned the necklace. Jake the told me that the necklace had belonged to his father and that his father just passed away, 6 months earlier. Jake explained that he has  absolutely devastated , the past 2 days and thinking he would never see it again. I am so proud and happy to be able to help people like Jake, in their hour of need.

 

Water Shutoff Valve Found Outside The House In Old Orchard Beach, Maine

  • from Old Orchard Beach (Maine, United States)

On Tuesday August 1st, 2023, I received a text message from Tish. She and her husband needed to find the outside water shutoff valve, at their home in Old Orchard Beach, Maine. She told me they were available until 11:00 am and it was 9:00am now. I immediately texted her back and told her that I would be there in 15-20 minutes. This call out would be a first for me. I had never tried to find a water shutoff, in the past. How hard could it be?

Once I arrived, Tish and her husband explained that their inside water shutoff was rusted and could not be shut off, in the case of an emergency. They wanted to find the outside valve to shut water off to the house, so that a new inside shutoff valve could then be installed. As I started detecting the area, I started getting lots of hot rocks that had been placed over the lawn, and we removed them as I found them. I also found an old, large rusty railroad spike and lots of old rusty nails, but no shutoff valve. As the trash was being removed, I received a very loud signal on the CTX-3030, showing it to be in the iron range and at a depth of 0-1 inches. We scraped back the rocks, dug a very shallow hole and the spade hit something solid. Scraping back a little more soil brought the water shutoff valve into the daylight. Now Tish and her husband may contact the local Water Company to come shut their water off and have their new inside shutoff installed.

Lost Engagement Ring Lost And Found on Ferry Beach Scarborough Maine

  • from Old Orchard Beach (Maine, United States)

After a long but rewarding day (I have already recovered and returned 2 gold wedding rings), my wife pulled up in the car,  to pick me up and I was ready to go home. As  I was loading my detecting equipment in the car, my phone rang and I saw a voice mail had been left approximately 6 minutes earlier. The voice mail stated that the callers name was Robin and that she was with a group of people at Ferry Beach, in Scarborough, Maine and that an engagement ring had been lost in the sand. Robin had performed a “google” search and had come across my name. Robin was wondering if I were available to help them with my metal detecting service. I immediately called Robin back and told her that I absolutely would be willing to help. Robin proceeded to tell me they were out on the Point, at Ferry Beach. Ferry Beach is approximately 12-15 miles north from where I was in Old Orchard Beach, Maine and 10-12 miles south of Portland, Maine. With summer traffic is full swing, along the southern coast of Maine, I told Robin that I would be there in 30 minutes. Once my wife and I arrived, at Ferry Beach, Scarborough, Maine,  we saw Robin waving us down.
There were a group of people there and I learned the person that was missing the ring was Emily. Emily explained that she had applied lotion to herself and that 2 of her rings had slipped off and had fallen into the sand. One of the rings had already been found by the group but the engagement ring was still missing. The group had already marked an area off as being the most likely spot that the ring would be in. As I started a grid of the area, I found a nail and then a pull tab. I then received a nice signal on the CTX-3030. I pulled my pin pointer out, found the target and put my hand into the sand. Out came Emily’s Engagement Ring and when I held it up for the group to see, Applause and Cheers filled the air. I was again very relieved to have been blessed to have found and returned Emily’s Engagement Ring. Emily and her group of family and friends were also relieved and extremely grateful to The Ring Finders.
After finding Emily’s Engagement Ring, and the 3rd recovery of the day, I was ready to go home Wow, it was a day I will never forget. I am so blessed to be able to help people out, in their time of need.