Not all calls are for lost rings, this one was a from someone who wanted to find his main shut off valve to his house. With a little help by the witching method, we found the water pipe. From there it was not long to find the shut off valve using my metal detector.
I received a text from Robyn in reference to a St Michaels pendant that was lost the prior day on a softball field. She had said it had extreme sentimental value, and it had been given to her nephew by his grandmother quite a while back. After getting all the details, we agreed on a time to meet at the ball field. If you know about softball, prior to the game, there is quite a bit of workouts that take place. That said, I started my search on first base, one of the locations it may have come off. Then searched the dugouts with no luck. Checked around home plate where batting practice took place, and still nothing. Then down the 3rd base line where lots of throwing and stretching take place prior to the game, yep you guessed it nothing. So, I walked back to the bleachers where Robyn was sitting, and talking with Michael, her nephew, who lost the pendent. After talking with him he mentioned that after playing first base, he went into the dugout, then out to coach 3rd base, the only spot left to search. Guess what, thats right, nothing again. Something is not right, he positively lost it on the field, but one KEY detail we missed. While heading out to coach 3rd base, he noticed the end of the chain hanging way down by his belt, with the cross stuck on the lobster claw clasp. But, everything was already searched. I stood back deep on the grass/clay line where he might have been playing, mumbling to myself, that I covered from the pitchers mound, all the way to the dugout, and even back on the grass a bit. It was then I realized I hadn’t covered right behind the mound where a first baseman would charge hard to make the cutoff on a line drive to second base. It was just a few moments later the pendant was recovered, right where I just mentioned. This is a perfect example of why we ask so many questions when doing a recovery, that one clue of the chain hanging low, could have eliminated all the extra searching. Regardless, another very happy ending.
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Jenny was on the beach in Margate, NJ, enjoying the day. She had taken off her sentimental gold chain and charm, which had belonged to her grandmother, while she went swimming in the ocean. She thought she had placed it in her bag for safekeeping, but it seemed she must have missed it. When she realized it was missing, she looked everywhere but could not find it.
Her friend’s mother suggested she call Ring Finders South Jersey . I arrived about 30 minutes later and, within 10 minutes, had retrieved the chain and charm with my metal detector. Jenny was overjoyed to have her sentimental jewelry back! It was a great ending to the day in Margate, NJ.
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For those of you wishing to find your lost ring or jewelry, I am now offering my services in Southern Colorado!
I received a call last Friday afternoon from Steve after his wife Kathy dropped her diamond and blue sapphire ring into the water from the Boothbay Harbor foot bridge. The water depth was around 5 feet and rising with the flooding tide, but I was able to recover it despite the challenge of the ring being amongst numerous nails, screws, bottle caps and other metallic items under the bridge.
September 1, 2024
“Chris I Love You Susan” was engraved in a wedding band that took a slip from Chris’s finger as his daughter looked on. Chris visualized were the loss took place and that there were 51 steps to the stairs leading off the beach. During the next few hours Chris made many unsuccessful dives to retrieve the ring from its watery resting place. A visual search also took place. Susan then took charge, acquired my number and called for help.
The next morning at 7AM the search began and lasted about 2 hours before the tide had come in and prevented further searching. I would return for the afternoon tide. Which I did. I paced off the 51 steps, took visual reference points into account and began a search. First I gridded over the sand that was under water in the morning. Nothing to dig, I moved into the water. Low tide, with between 1 and 2 foot waves along with some seaweed made detecting a bit tough. The second signal I had was over the small drop-off at the bottom of the beach’s slope. With everything moving as it was I had to take a third scoop before I caught the object in the scoop. I love to see the glitter of gold among the shells and sand. Without emptying the scoop I left the surf and counted 68 steps to the stairs. On the walk I pulled the ring out, verified the inscription, and dumped the shells.
Next feat was to climb the 98 steps to the top of the dune and my car. I cleaned the scoop, put the ring back into it, changed the boots I was wearing to sandals for safer driving and drove off toward Chris’s vacation home. I turned the last corner and there Chris was, walking back to the beach to see if I was there. I told him the surf was now too rough and it would be worthless to climb down to the beach and back up. But I would appreciate him looking in my scoop. A bit perplexed, he did and could not believe that it was HIS ring from Susan.
At the house, a cappuccino, many friendly licks from his dog, and lots of wonderful stories were related. I just love how I get to know people by just going a bit out of my way to help them. It is also great knowing that there is at least one more reason for having wonderful memories of a vacation on Cape Cod.
August 31, 2024
On my way home from some hobby detecting; not looking for anything specific, just enjoying the afternoon sun and sea swells, and waiting for another call for help in locating a lost object. I was less than a mile from home when my wait was over. A neighbor, Barbara, was calling to request that I respond to a woman in distress over a missing marriage ring set of 36 years this month. Sure, I am on my way was my answer as I pass the road to my home. Next I called home to tell my wife I would be a bit longer, put dinner on hold, I had to go and find 2 rings.
Within twenty minutes I was ready to start the search. While being escorted to the area on the beach where the rings were lost I was told that another detectorist had found the engagement ring but had no success in locating the wedding band. Maura had removed her wedding band and engagement ring at the beach to apply sunscreen. She put the two rings in the cup holder of her chair, but forgot to put them on afterwards. A few hours later she folded up her chair and left the beach. Back at the house she realized she didn’t have her rings and knew instantly what happened. Returning to the beach and sifting through sand with hands. There were also many interested people all wanting to help. Unfortunately the only help to find the wedding band came from the call to my phone. One woman helping – Barbara told Maura about a world wide group TheRingFinders, that she had a connection, and then called Richard 1 of some 600 TheRingFinders.
It took me about a dozen swings of my coil before I located the wedding band. My advantage over the other detectorist was in the quality of the detector being used and some 40 years experience with detectors. I passed a few detecting tips on to the new detectorist, Thank Yous were passed among all the helpers and I left for the waiting dinner.
I received a phone call at 5:00pm and the caller identified himself as Bob. Bob had lost his key fob, on the beach, in Ocean Park, Maine, but wasn’t 100% sure, it was actually lost, on the beach.
Bob explained that he had parked his vehicle, on Temple Ave, across from the store and then walked the streets and sidewalk, to Randall Ave. Bob remembered locking his vehicle, prior to walking, to Randall Ave and THINKS he put the key fob, in his beach chair. After a while, Bob, his wife Karen and their friend Anne had picked up all their belongings, chairs included and moved approximately 75-100 feet north, of their original position, on the beach. As the group were enjoying the last few days of their trip, to Ocean Park, Bob realized he couldn’t find his key fob. The three of them searched the area around the chairs and the area they had originally been sitting at. No key fob was found. Bob then called me to see if I could come down, to search for the key fob.
I arrived at Randall Ave, in Ocean Park, along with my wife Cheryl, at 5:50pm. We were met a few minutes later by Bob, Karen and Anne. I asked Bob to show me and explain to me, once again, what had happened, when he lost his keys. Bob walked me down to the first location, that the group had been sitting in. As I usually do, I demonstrated how my metal detector works, to the group. I took my key fob, placed it, on the beach and ran my Minelab Manticore’s coil, over the fob. This is to show the client that detector will pick up the signal and the sound I will hear, through my headphones.
I then told the group that I would perform a grid search, of the first area they had sat. If I didn’t find the key fob, in this area, I would then search the path they took, to the second area and then the second area, they had been sitting, would be searched.
As I gridded the first area, I was finding the usual beach trash. Pull tabs, bread ties, staples and foil, were the most found items, in the 1st section, but no key fob was found.
I then started searching the pathway, to the second sitting area and no key fob was found there either. I was grid searching the second sitting area and wasn’t finding much at all. As I was about to turn around and start my last grid line, in the area, I received a promising signal and found the target with my pinpointer. As I put my hand into the sand, I felt around and pulled out Bob’s key fob. I turned around, held the fob, up in the air and told the group, “I found it”.
Bob, Karen and Anne jumped off the bench, they were watching me from and made a beeline, to me. They were all so excited, happy and beaming ear to ear. The three of them told Cheryl and I that Karen and Anne were leaving the next day, going home to the Binghampton, NY area. Bob was going to be staying, in Ocean Park, for an extra two days or so, before heading home. If I hadn’t found the key fob, Karen and Anne were going to get the spare key fob, in Binghamton and somehow get it to Bob, in Ocean Park. In the interim, Bob would be without a vehicle and that was going to be a huge inconvenience. No they do not have to worry about this.
Thankfully, I was able to recover the key fob, in approximately 30 minutes and all three of the group, let out a big collective sigh. You could just see and feel the relief, on all three of them. All three of them were also in awe of me finding the fob and Bob said he couldn’t believe it. I am just so fortunate, to be able to help people like Bob, Karen and Anne. Seeing all those smiles will always be a very special feeling for me.
My travels today took me to Buckhorn lake area. Received a text from Gerrard about Katie loosing her gold ring, with opal, last weekend at the family cottage during a bachelorette weekend party. She was swimming in only about three feet of water when all of the sudden, she felt her ring slip off her finger. Once I arrived at the cottage, a lady that was there last weekend was able to direct me in the water to where she believed Katie lost her ring. I turned on my underwater metal detector, did a couple swing and right away I heard a great signal. Looked in my scoop and there was her ring. No Scuba diving, no weeds and hardly any silt to contend with. The best part, Gerrard is headed back home to Hamilton this evening and will be returning the ring to Katie. She has no idea that he contacted me or the fac that her ring has been found. Another great recovery. I wish they could all be this easy. Life is good!
This ring find began when I got a call from Tiare who lives on Oahu and was staying at the Aulani Resort. She said the evening before her husband Jesse while playing with his children in the shallow waters of the lagoon he noticed when he got back to the room his yellow gold wedding band was gone. He went back to the beach and looked and it was hopelessly gone. Even snorkeling the area is really impossible. The sand is so soft the heavy gold ring melts into it and disappears. I told Tiare I was getting ready to go to church and when it was complete I’d grab my gear and come down to the lagoon to hunt. When I arrived I texted Tiare & Jesse and said I would be in the water hunting the area in the photo they sent. I immediately got a high tone that was a dime then a low tone that was a child’s play ring. Then the next ten minutes was silent. I was on the last leg of the between the buoys hunt when I got a nice 47-50 on the Manticore and finally after three scoops there was a yellow gold ring in the scoop. Tiare was finally walking down to the beach and she waved at me. When she got there I asked to see Jesse’s ring again and it was a match. I showed her the ring and she said, « No you didn’t » Yep! I found it in the time it took her to get ready & come dow to the beach. She took the ring and ran back to give Jesse the good news and they both came down the beach to thank me for the recovery. A few hugs & handshakes and another vacation saved! Aloha to Tiare & Jesse!
