I woke up early today to a much needed rainy morning in Calif. As I forced myself out of bed my only thoughts were of the joy and good feelings that I knew were going to happen later in the day, but I’m getting ahead of myself. Let me start from the beginning it was over a month an a half ago 9/12/2015 when I received the following e-mail with a slightly blurry Web picture of a ring from a young man named Brad.
« Hello,
So today I was at Pismo Beach with my family and as I was playing with my son in the water my wedding ring came off. I just found this website and thought I would give it a shot. We entered the beach off Main Street and were about 75-100 yards to the right. I was in thigh high water and it was around 1pm when it happened. I added a picture of what my ring looks like. It’s platinum and has quite a bit of weight to it. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Brad Hieb. »
I immediately sent Brad an e-mail asking if he had any more details i.e. how deep of water, any remembrance of landmarks in relationship to where he was? I had also downloaded a Google satellite map of north Pismo beach with an area I had marked out which I sent and asked if he could give me any closer idea as to where he was when he lost the ring? We had a few more e-mail conversations such as how tall he was as « thigh high » to one person could be much different on another since I am 6’5″ tall. Brad told me his wife took a tape measure and best they could tell the surf was about 28″ deep at the time he lost the ring. I looked up the tide tables for that day to get an idea where he might have been in the surf line and I soon realized he was probably a ways out in the surf and this might be a tough recovery, but hunt was on.
I had gotten the search area narrowed down to about the size of two football fields long located from the mid surf to the mean-high-water line of the mighty Pacific. I immediately started hunting at the first low tide the next day. During most of the month of Sept. and first part of Oct. there had been no real low minus tides and even though I went from wet sand to waist deep in the pounding surf, up and down the beach all month long I had no luck in finding the lost ring. I had even gone out several times at 3 & 4 AM for the only good low tides during those months trying to get the best shot at finding the lost treasure, but with no success.
Then on Tuesday 10/27/2015 around 6:30 PM after 47 days and about 40 to 50 hours spent searching for this one ring during the ebb of a minus low tide at the far north end of the planned search area. the Excal ll with 10″ stock coil I was using got a hit in about 2 feet of water. My heart skipped a beat as I thrust my carbon graphite handled Stealth 720i scoop into the cold water about a foot down and lifted the heavy mass of wet sand rinsing it away as I pulled it from the water only to have the scoop come up empty. I waved the detector’s coil over the depression I had left under the water and the signal was still there.
I took another scoop, deeper this time standing on the scoop all 350 lbs. of me going a nearly two feet down. As I lifted the load and the sand was washing out the holes in the scoop I caught a glint of silver, I had a ring…a big beautiful silver colored ring and once I grasped it in my hand and felt its weight I knew it was Brad’s Platinum ring that I had been searching for. I could not wait to get back to my vehicle where my cell phone was to give Brad a call.
I dialed the number I had, Jenifer, Brad’s wife answered. I told her I had found the ring…I could hear her voice break with emotion. I assured her it was now safe and secure until she and Brad could come from Fresno to pick it up, to which she replied, « Next Monday they would be here » I also told her I would send Brad an e-mail with a picture of the ring which I did.
That brings us to today and like I was saying it was raining and cool, but at noon today in Pismo Beach it got all warm a fuzzy as Brad and his 22 gram Platinum ring were reunited and here are the pic to show the smiles on Brad and Jenifer’s faces along with their three sons Nathaniel, Liam and Hudson as the lost ring, a symbol of their commitment to one another was returned to its rightful place on Brad’s finger.
Knowing that all jewelry has a story and the very personal feelings that go with it I am proud to say I along with « The Ring Finders » which is how Brad found out about me and my services played a part in this very happy reunion.
As we parted ways I heard young Nathaniel, who had told me earlier he had a metal detector remark « I know what I want to do when I grow up » I gave him a thumbs up and with a smile on my face walked away wondering what future lost treasures that young man would find and whose faces would he put smiles on.
