Jim Wren, Author at The Ring Finders | Page 5 of 36

White Gold Diamond Wedding Ring Lost in the Dry Sand, Found and Returned Litchfield Beach SC

  • from North Myrtle Beach (South Carolina, United States)
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Shortly before 5 p.m. on April 15, 2026, I received a phone call from Amy saying she lost her ring. She described the Wedding Ring, and I told her I could be there in about 55 minutes to an hour. Enroute, I called her to get more details on how and where she lost it. She explained that she had put her ring in the cup holder of her chair so she could apply suntan lotion. When she packed up to leave the beach, she forgot the ring. She said that she didn’t realize it was missing until she got back to her Condo. As I’m driving, she sent me a text asking, “Do you think we can find it?” I responded, “Yes, if you put me in the right area, we’ll find it!”

When I arrived at the gated resort, I had to get Amy on the phone so the gate guard would let me enter. I kept Amy on the phone, and she steered me to where she was waiting. We walked out on the beach, and she showed me a group of sticks stuck in the sand showing about where she had been sitting. Unfortunately, there was a couple just a few feet away and basically sitting in the search area. Amy must have told the couple what was going on, so they were happy to leave. Amy also mentioned that the ring could have fallen out of the cup holder on her way to the access. I started an east/west grid search about where Amy had put the sticks and worked my way out on all sides. Since Amy told me her ring was white gold, I knew the VDI (visual display indicator) was going to be in the 9 to 11 range, or there about. As I moved closer to the access point, I got a solid 11 on the VDI. I looked down and saw a little edge of what appeared to be a white gold piece of metal. I reached down and pulled out Amy’s beautiful ring. She was standing about 20 feet away, near where she had me start, when I held her ring up. She couldn’t believe it was found and just stood there. I think she said, “Is that my ring?” It took her about 2 seconds to close the distance and retrieve her ring. What a smile I got. It’s moments like this that make it all worthwhile!

Amy – Thank you for calling me and allowing me to help find your lost treasure. All the best to you!

Jim

 

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Rose Gold Floral Band w/Diamonds Lost in a Field, Found and Returned Florence, SC

  • from North Myrtle Beach (South Carolina, United States)
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This adventure started just before 5:30 p.m. on Monday, March 30, 2026, when I received a call from Rick about a lost ring. He said his wife Rona had lost her Engagement Ring somewhere in a field. They were in the process of checking out of a Howard Johnsons Hotel and loading a truck to continue their trip when her ring slipped off her finger. I asked him to send me the address, and I’ll send him my ETA once I got on the road.

It took just under an hour and a half to get to the address; unfortunately, Rick had been given the wrong address to give to me. I quickly asked Siri for directions to the nearest Howard Johnson, which ended up being another 3 miles down the road. Once I drove the 3 miles, I didn’t see a Howards Johnson in any direction. I pulled into a gas station and called Rick. Luckily, he was standing in the field across the highway and saw me walking around the gas station parking lot. We finally met next to the field where the ring was lost, which maybe was half a football field.  He showed me the suspected loss area, where the truck was parked and the area he and Rona had been. Looking at the whole situation, loss was that day, grass was short with bare areas I’m thinking this would be more of a visual search. None-the-less, I turned on the Equinox 800 and tested Rona’s Wedding band, a solid 13 on the VDI (visual display indicator). I started a north/south grid search starting at the curb and working towards the Howard Johnsons. There were a lot of targets, but they were all trash, mostly pull tabs which were ringing up as a 13 on the 800 and bottle caps. Rick was sure of the area it should be in, so I shortened my grid lines. It finally got dark enough to use head lamps for a visual search, thinking that gold ring should shine when the lights hit it. I finished up the area and moved to the far end of one side and started an east/west grid, moving my grid line further out from my original grid lines. Before I did, I talked to Rick and asked him if he would get my other head lamp and start a grid search of his own, going back over my search area. As I got finished with my first east/west grid line, I saw Rick and Rona arm in arm bent overusing their phone flashlight and my headlamp searching like pros. I stopped to see how things were going and as I was talking to Rona, Rick rose up and said, “I just found the ring!” He showed both Rona and me and boom, with the light shining on it, it was obvious as could be. I joked with Rick that he needs to become a ring finder now.

Rick and Rona – Thank you for contacting and trusting me to help find your lost treasure. Best wishes to both of you. Take care!

Jim

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Man’s Silver Wedding Band Lost in Thick Dune Weeds/Grass, Found and Returned North Myrtle Beach SC

  • from North Myrtle Beach (South Carolina, United States)
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This search and recovery started with a phone call from Madison on Thursday, March 26, 2026, just before 8 p.m. She asked if I could help find her husband’s silver wedding band at the beach. She told me that her husband had tossed her his keys and his ring. She caught the keys, but the ring had gone a totally different direction. She also told me it happened in the dune with grass and weeds, and the ring could also be in some bushes. I told her I was tied up until about 9:45-10:00 p.m. and asked if she would be able to meet me. She agreed and told me which beach access it was.

We met up as planned and she walked me out between houses to a sandy beach access foot path and showed me the overgrown area where the ring was. She showed me about where her husband was standing when he tossed his keys and ring. She then showed me the direction she saw the ring fly. I had my Equinox 800 and knew a silver man’s ring was going to ring up in the mid to high 20s depending on the size of the ring. I attempted to do some sort of a grid search but found that difficult with the high grass and weeds. She thought the flight path was towards, what looked like, a small pine tree. I was able to check the branches and maneuvered enough to get under the tree and check that area. I ended up doing a kind of a circle search and stretching it out as I went. At some point, she had mentioned that her husband was leaving town the next morning and he was watching the kids. After maybe 20-25 minutes or more, I told her that she didn’t need to stick around and I’d call her one way or the other. She agreed and headed home. I decided to start over from where he was standing and work my way in straight lines. Within 5 minutes, I got a solid 32 on the VDI (visual display indicator). The only 32 signal I had ever received on the 800 was a silver dollar. I turned my headlamp on and searched the ground where the signal came from and saw a little tiny sliver of something peeking out of the sand. I reached down and ran my finger over it and uncovered a beautiful silver hammered ring, just like she said it was. She also told me their wedding date was engraved inside the ring. Bingo! I couldn’t read the engraving, but it appeared to be a date. I took a quick picture and sent it to her saying, “This it?” She immediately responded, “oh my gosh, Yesss.” She called and said she was turning around. I told her we could meet in the middle and picked a MacDonald’s. About 15 minutes later she had her husband’s ring back in her hand, a big smile on her face and heading home. I got a text from her the next day saying, “That her husband is so so happy. You really saved the day and more. I can’t even begin to tell you how grateful I am.” This is exactly why I do this! I wasn’t able to get her picture, so I filled in for her.

Madison – Thank you for calling me and allowing me the opportunity to find and return your husband’s ring.

Best wishes, Jim

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IPhone Lost in the sand, Found and Returned in the Wet Sand at Garden City Beach SC

  • from North Myrtle Beach (South Carolina, United States)
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Right around 10 am, Monday, March 23, 2026, I got a phone call from Luke saying he lost his IPhone on the beach in Garden City and asked if I would be able to help. Luke sent me a couple of pictures and the coordinates. He also sent me the address of the Resort. I told him I’d give it a shot and grabbed my gear and headed out on the 45-minute drive. Along the way Luke text me, “The phone should be about 1/3 to ½ from the hotel to the water and if you’re facing the hotel with your back to the water, it should be more towards the left side of the hotel.” He didn’t say and I didn’t ask about what time it happened, but I knew I’d be working against an incoming tide with high ide in a couple of hours.

I arrived on site and took and sent him a video to make sure I was in the right spot. He replied that I was, so I started a perpendicular grid line from the top of the beach to about knee deep in rough surf. I knew an IPhone rings up crazy, anywhere from high 20s to mid 30s on the Equinox 800 VDI (visual display indicator). I think I was on my 6th grid line and got the high signal (34) I was looking for. It took me 3 scoops of wet sand to get to his phone, but I got it. I tried turning it on with no luck. I was concerned the phone may have been under too much water to work. I took a couple of pictures of his phone and sent him a text saying, “This it?” He immediately called me and confirmed it was his. We discussed how to get it back to him in Charlotte, NC the fastest way possible. I told him I’d go to the Post Office and call him back.  I took my equipment and his phone back to the car and decided to get one more picture. I walked back down to the beach just in time to watch a guy with a detector walk within 2 feet of where I had found Luke’s phone. Glad I found it first. Ended up sending the phone thru USPS and he got it back within 3 days. Luke let me know he got the phone, charged it up and it works perfectly. A little back story is that Luke, his wife; brother-in-law and his brother-in-law’s girlfriend were enjoying the beach. Luke took a little nap and soon after waking up, they packed up to go home. They checked the area and it wasn’t until they got about ½ way home before he realized he didn’t have his phone. He did call the local police, who sent a couple of officers down to see if they could spot the phone, with no luck. The next day Luke was able to find me on The Ring Finders and gave me the call.

Luke – Thanks for trusting me to help find you phone. Best wishes to you and yours.

Jim

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IPhone lost in the Dry Sand, Found and Returned Myrtle Beach SC

  • from North Myrtle Beach (South Carolina, United States)
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On March 12, 2026, around 1:15pm I got a text message from Mike, owner of LMS Metal Detecting saying, Jim, you should be getting a call about a lost phone in MB up near the dunes. His name is Hunter. Just before 2 pm, Hunter called asking if I could help find an IPhone, I agreed, got the address and was on my way.

When I got to the beach access, I called Hunter to say I was there. He said he was about 10 minutes away but told me to go to the house on the left and somebody there could direct me to the location. Spencer and Scott had just driven in the driveway. We introduced ourselves and they showed me down to the beach and the area where they said the phone was pinging. I turned on the Equinox 800, took about 3-5 steps and got a booming signal with a VDI (visual display indicator) showing numbers jumping between 28-32. Bingo! I dug a shallow scoop of sand and uncovered the cell phone. The search lasted no more than 10 seconds. As we’re standing there, Hunter and Jacob walked out on the beach. This is when I learned the phone belonged to Jacob. He turned on the phone and said, “It works!” I could see the relief on Jacob’s face when he got his phone back and it worked.

Hunter – Thanks for calling me to help!

Jacob – Glad I could help find your phone. You guys have fun and be safe.

Jim

 

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Yellow Gold Man’s Ring Lost in the Ocean, Found and Returned Myrtle Beach SC

  • from North Myrtle Beach (South Carolina, United States)
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On March 8th, 2026, on my way to another search on Carolina Beach NC I received a text. The text said, “Hi Jim! My name is Sloan. I have been torn apart since last night. I was on the beach with my friends in Myrtle (Specifically right in front of Tin Roof/Hilton grand vacations to the left of the pier), and I’ve had this gold ring my dad gave me on that slipped off right when I wasn’t even mid-calf deep in the water. It was his ring since the 70s and I’ve had it on for 6 years, never fallen off. I am not too sure how you go about this, but I would love to talk more!” As I’m driving, I’m trying to formulate a plan on how the current search I’m going to and getting back to Myrtle Beach that’s about a 2-hour drive. The Carolina Beach should be fairly quick as it’s in the dry sand with no chance of the tide covering it up and the young lady knew the area. Looking at the tide tables for Myrtle Beach, low tide was at 5:30 in the evening. Everything considered, I could probably be in Myrtle Beach around 4 pm, so I called Sloan. When I called Sloan, she told me that she lost the ring about 2 am and knew the area well. I told her what was going on with me and that I could probably be there around 4. I asked if she could meet me and show me the area. Unfortunately, she had to be at work at 3:30 but could see if one of her friends could meet me and show me the area. Sometimes it doesn’t work out to well when the involved individual isn’t the one showing you where and adding other important details as we talk.

After a successful recovery/return, I called Sloan and she told me she had gotten someone to take her shift, and she would be there. We worked out the details, and I told her I’d be there at 4, and I would keep her posted. She told me it’d take her about 30 minutes to get there. Things were falling into place! I texted her when I was 40 minutes out. She responded that she was on her way.

Luckily, we both pulled into the parking lot at the same time. We met and it started raining. We waited out the downpour and made our way to the beach while it was still sprinkling. She was so helpful when we walked out on the beach. She walked right out to the wet sand, turned around and lined herself up with her landmarks. I turned my detector on and started an east/west grid search from the high tide line to about shin deep in the outgoing tide. This being a gold ring, I knew the VDI (Visual Display Indicator) number was going to be in the mid-teens (anywhere from 13-18 depending on the size of the ring and the karat). On my third line, I got a solid 14. This could be either the gold ring or a pull tab. As I stuck the scoop in the sand, I told Sloan that she might see me digging a lot, but some of it might be trash. As I pulled out the second scoop of sand, I saw the gold ring sticking out of the sand. I reached down, pulled it out and held it up for Sloan to see. To say she got excited would be an understatement. She was thrilled! She tried calling her dad to let him know, but he didn’t answer. She called her mom, who was also excited it’d be found.

Sloan – Thank you for trusting me to help find your lost treasure. So happy to help and get it back where it belongs!

Jim

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Platinum Wedding Band and Engagement Ring set lost in the Sand, Found and Returned Carolina Beach NC

  • from North Myrtle Beach (South Carolina, United States)
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This search and recovery started with a phone call from The Ring Finder on Oak Island NC, John Fininnerin on Sunday, March 8th, 2026. He asked if I’d be able to take a search on Carolina Beach for a young lady who had lost her Platinum wedding band set. I agreed and he passed my name and number on to Kelsey who called. I wasn’t able to take the call at the time. When I called her back she told me that she had put her ring in her pants pocket. When she tried to get the ring out, it flipped out and quickly disappeared in the soft sand. She said she tried looking for it but hadn’t been able to find it. She also told me that she knew the area it disappeared. I asked her if she could meet me and that it’d take me about an hour and a half to drive the 70 miles. She agreed and sent me her address, which was right next to the beach access.

When I arrived in the parking lot, she was waiting. We walked out to the area and I turned on my Equinox 800.  She must have gotten there early to lay claim to the area, which was a little crowded with beach goers. The area was maybe 5X8 foot. Knowing the ring set was Platinum, I knew the VDI (visual display indicator) number display on the detector was going to be 10-11. It took a few minutes and a little outside the suspected area before I hit the 10 I was looking for. I had her rings in the scoop, gently shook the sand out and walked over and held the scoop up to her so she could see and retrieve her treasure. Bingo, she was trying not to, but a few tears appeared. She told me after the fact, that while she was looking for it, there were a few people helping. We both suspected that her rings were inadvertently moved in the process, which was why they were outside the suspected area.

Kelsey – Thank you for allowing me to help find your lost treasure. Best wishes to you and Thank you to your Husband for his service to our county.

Jim

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Clemson Class Ring Lost in the Soft Sand, Found and Returned Litchfield, SC

  • from North Myrtle Beach (South Carolina, United States)
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This search started just before 6 pm on Jan. 2nd, 2026, when I received a phone call from Jack saying his friend Kai had lost his Clemson class ring. Jack confirmed they were in the dry sand and that they would meet me there. I told him I’d be there in 30-45 minutes, grabbed my Equinox 800 and was on my way.

When I got there, I followed Jack into the resort and back to where they were on the beach. I got to meet Kai, and he explained that he had been throwing a Frisbee when he felt the ring come off. A huge help was the fact that Kai and Jack had set two beer cans in the sand where Kai had been standing. They also left the Frisbee where it landed with another beer can in the sand. They were just above the high tide line when this happened. So, I started a north/south grid search between the two areas stretching the search out in both directions with no luck. I finally asked Kai to demonstrate his throw and when he did, I knew I wasn’t in the right area. In his demonstration, he showed that he heaved the Frisbee with his hand ending up high and to the far right. It was pitch black and getting cold, so I talked with Kai and Jack and told them I was there until I found it or exhausted searching the entire area. I also told them if they wanted to leave that I would definitely call them and keep them updated. I think both Jack and Kai’s girlfriends were with them plus a couple of others and they were getting hungry. Again, I assured them I’d stay connected and they left. I redirected my search to past the landing point of the Frisbee and higher up on the beach, just off the dunes. On my first line and just about even with where Kai had been standing, I got a solid hit. Knowing the ring was a heavy yellow gold ring, the VDI (visual display indicator) would show up in the mid to high teens. This signal was coming up in the 17-18 range. It took 3 scoops to get the target out, which surprised me that it was so deep. Got the target out of the hole, turned on my head lamp and saw the target in the pile of sand. It wasn’t until I picked up the target, cleaned the sand off it that I realized I had Kai Clemson ring. I took a quick picture and sent it to Jack and immediately got a call back. Jack said they’re turning around and would be there in 5 minutes. Kai came running out on the beach to where I was and I showed him the hole and where it was in conjunction to where he was standing when he threw the Frisbee. We walked back to the cars, he thanked me again and we said our goodbyes. He left a very happy young man!

Jack – Thank you so much for giving me a call to help.

Kai – I’m so happy that I was able to find and return your lost treasure. Take care and the best to you!

Jim

   

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14K Yellow Gold Earring Lost on a Nature Trail, Found and Returned Bird Island NC

  • from North Myrtle Beach (South Carolina, United States)
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On Dec 19th, there was a post on a couple of the Sunset Beach NC Face Book pages from Aileen. The post said in part that her son’s (Sean) Girlfriend (Meg), had lost an earring that her mother had given her. That they had been walking on a Nature trail behind the *Kindred Spirit Mailbox, and she is pretty sure it happened when she took her poncho off. The last thing on the post was to contact Meg, via text, with a number.  Aileen also attached a picture of the yellow gold earring. I checked the responses and saw that 3 or 4 people had already referred her to contact me and listed my contact information. So, I didn’t respond and waited to see if I’d get a call. *Kindred Spirit Mailbox is a famous, secluded mailbox on Bird Island, near Sunset Beach NC filled with journals where visitors write their innermost thoughts, secrets and dreams. The mailbox is listed as 1.5 miles from the last beach access on Sunset Beach. I’ve walked it a few times on searches and I honestly think it’s mismarked because it’s taken me close to an hour to get there.

The next afternoon just before 3, I got a text saying, “Hi! I got your number from my boyfriend’s mother. She posted about possibly helping with lost jewelry on sunset beach/bird island. Would you be interested in helping?” A follow up text said, “My name is Meggie. I lost one of my mother’s earrings on the bird island trail. I have a pretty good idea of where. Would love and eternally appreciate the help of a metal detector.” I immediately called Meg for additional details. One of my concerns was the walk down and back from the area. Meg told me that they had E-bikes that we could use; now this could be fun since I’ve never ridden an E-bike before. She told me she’d text me her address and we agreed to meet today, Sunday at noon. After we hung up, I got to thinking about how I was going to carry my detector and drive the bike, so I text Meg back and didn’t get an answer.

This morning about 11 am, I still hadn’t heard from Meg with her address, so I text her again and didn’t get an answer. A short time later I called her and didn’t get an answer, so I left her a voice mail. I started wondering if she had changed her mind or if something else had come up. About 15 minutes before we were supposed to meet, I got a text saying, “Hey Jim, sorry I’m awful with the phone! She also sent me the address.” I responded, “On my way, be there in about 30 minutes.”

When I got there, I got to meet Sean and he gave me a quick lesson on the E-bike, I was excited!! He helped me strap my detector to the bike and I was ready to go. A short time later Meg came out and she was ready as well. Our trip down the beach to the mailbox was perfect and no walking or wrecks on the bike. We got to the start of the trail at 1:11 pm and I tested Meg’s other earring again to make sure I was getting the best signal I could. I took the equinox 800 through all the modes and found that Park 2 gave me the best signal and showed a 1 on the VDI (visual display indicator). The trail looked like it was a game trail that through time and use turned into a wider path with bushes, weeds, and sticker bushes on both sides. As we’re walking, I’m swinging from far left to far right in case the earring was flung off instead of dropping straight down. I was getting a lot of deep signals that were trash but no earring. We got to the “hot zone” where Meg had removed the poncho with no results and made our turn to go back. We got back in the hot zone and I hit a solid 1 with a great signal. Took my pin pointer out and ran it through the small soft sand area and didn’t hit the target. I took my hands and was scooping up small amounts of sand and out popped the earring, BINGO!! I picked it up and handed it back to Meg. What a very happy young lady.

Aileen – Thank you so much for your posts on FB, it helped save the earring.

Meg – Thank you so much for trusting me to help find your very special treasure, it was my honor.

Jim

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Man’s 14K Yellow Gold Wedding Band Lost at the Water’s Edge, Found and Returned Ocean Isle Beach, NC

  • from North Myrtle Beach (South Carolina, United States)
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This adventure started on Sunday, Nov 30th around 11:30 am when I received a text saying, “Hi Jim. We lost a men’s gold wedding band at Ocean Isle Beach on Wednesday. Any chance it is findable? It was in the surf as the tide was going out.” I texted her back and told her I’d call her shortly. A short time later I called the number attached to the text and spoke to Susan. She told me that the ring was lost at approximately 3 pm on Wednesday, Nov 26th. A check of the tide tables for the 26th showed low tide was at 5:24 pm, meaning the ring was lost about 2 ½ hours before low tide. Susan also said that there was a couple of gentlemen metal detecting who had looked for the ring without success. Looking at the tide tables for Sunday, low tide was at 9:15 pm. I told Susan I’d be out there around 7 pm that evening. My next concern was finding a place to park, since Susan and her group had already left to go home. But I’d figure that out when I got there.

It was dark when I got there at 6:50 pm. I pulled in the driveway of the house and took a picture of it with the name, “Sea Wolf,” and sent it to Susan to let her know I was there. As I’m trying to figure out where to park, the cleaning crew was leaving. I explained what I was doing and was granted permission to park in the driveway. That problem solved. Made my way out on the beach and went through Susan’s text messages again to make sure I was in the right area. Up to this point, I was assuming the lost ring belonged to her husband. In her text she said that her son, Logan was the one who lost his yellow gold wedding ring 4 to 5 houses down from the house they were renting. So my plan was to go to the far side of the 6th house and work a grid back to the house they rented. I had just enough moon light to see my grid lines from dragging my sand scoop in the sand to keep me on track. I was working from the mid-tide line down to ankle/shin deep in the ocean. I passed the 5th, 4th, and 3rd houses with no luck, other than 2 pennies, 2 pull tabs and a tungsten ring that had been buried for quite a while. It was close to 9 pm and reaching dead low tide. As I was coming out of the water behind the 2nd house, I got a solid 16/17 on the Minelab Equinox 800 VDI (visual display indicator) and I knew I had Logan’s gold ring. After 4 days of sitting in the surf under the moving water and shifting sand, it took me a couple of scoops to get the ring out. Bingo. I sent a picture of the ring to Susan who sent it to Logan and he identified it. I got the ring in the mail on Monday and sent it on its way back home to Virginia with an estimated delivery date of today, Friday.

Susan – Thank you for contacting me to help find Logan’s ring.

Logan – So happy I could help find your ring and get it back where it belongs.

Jim

 

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