Dave MacDonald, Carpinteria Ringfinder, Recovers 5 Lost Rings at Carpinteria State Beach
Dave MacDonald, Carpinteria Ringfinder, Recovers 5 Lost Rings at Carpinteria State Beach
Yesterday afternoon, I received a frantic call from Jenny, her voice trembling as she described losing not one, but five precious rings at Carpinteria State Beach. She’d tucked them into her beach bag before a swim, only to discover they were gone when she got home. As Dave MacDonald, your trusted Carpinteria Ringfinder and Santa Barbara Ringfinder, I knew time was critical. I grabbed my Equinox 900 metal detector and headed out to reunite Jenny with her treasures.
Jenny shared photos of her beach spot, which became our starting point. At first, our search through the dry sand turned up nothing but trash. Undeterred, I suggested a closer look at her pictures. Using my phone camera, we compared the images to the landscape, realizing we’d misjudged the location. With this new insight, we shifted our focus—a key move for any lost ring Carpinteria recovery.
Minutes after adjusting our search area, the Equinox 900 lit up with signals. In a small patch of sand, the first ring emerged, followed by the rest—one by one, like buried treasure. Within moments, all five of Jenny’s rings were back in her hands, her relief palpable. This success showcases why I’m proud to serve as the Montecito Ringfinder and beyond, turning heartbreak into happy endings.
Lost a Ring in Carpinteria, Montecito, or Santa Barbara? Call Dave Now!
Whether it’s a lost ring Carpinteria, a missing piece in Montecito, or jewelry gone astray in Santa Barbara, I’m here to help. Visit davetheringfinder.com or call/text Dave MacDonald Ringfinder at 805-290-5009 for expert recovery services. From Carpinteria State Beach to private backyards, my proven metal detection skills deliver results. Don’t wait—act fast to reclaim your cherished items.
Lost jewelry stressing you out? Contact Santa Barbara Ringfinder Dave MacDonald at 805-290-5009 or explore davetheringfinder.com for swift, professional help.
I received a call from Bill about his wedding ring lost in the sand down in Holgate, on LBI. He was on the beach early that day with his wife, and decided to leave due to the fact the wind was blowing about 30 knots, which made it very unpleasant. They have been married for 44 years, so this ring was extremely sentimental needless to say. We arranged to meet later that day where he was staying at Hurleys in Holgate. Bill had explained every detail leading up to the ring being lost, as we walked up. The beach is extremely narrow in this area, and he was fairly certain where he was set up, especially with flags and a lifeguard chair right where they were. I searched the first spot and the ring wasn’t there. We tried another spot and nothing again. This isn’t a spot where someone would get confused as to the location, which had us both totally bewildered. Then I searched the steep path back to the h
otel, and nothing again. We checked the road, parking lot and trunk of his car again. His wife had came down, looking very sad, figuring this precious keepsake was gone forever. Bill kinda wanted to through in the towel at that point when I decided to have his wife show me the location, just to get a different perspective on things. Her spot was exactly where Bill showed me, so back down I went, searching one more time. Bill had placed the ring on his pinky, so I knew it was somewhere, and most likely on his path back. With the wind blowing so hard from the NE, I swung the coil up onto the dune slope every path this time, and BINGO!!!! There it was on about the 4th pass. Everybody was pretty much in shock at this point, which was over an hour into the hunt. Bill had came over looking into my scoop in total amazement. What happened was, the strong blowing wind pushed lots of sand onto the dunes, making a flat area hours prior, where he had walked, into the new slope of the dunes. Bill KNEW for sure it slipped off his finger, and I knew I wasn’t leaving till it was found.
I was at a family party when I got a call from Sal. He was on the beach in Surf City when his wedding ring fell into the sand and disappeared. We agreed to meet ASAP as the party was coming to an end. I arrived on the beach and we headed out to the location. After clearing the area they had believed it was in I came up empty handed. We searched another spot to the north a bit and came up empty handed again. Another family member had arrived in the meantime and he was to the south pointing to a totally different location. I went over to speak with him and he was positive of the area they were in. Just a few swings later and the ring was in my scoop. Once again, it’s just a matter of finding the right area to search. Many times the first few spots are not the right ones. After the beach clears off its much harder to find the exact location so remember, mark the spot with google maps on your cell phone and call ASAP.
Alena called and left a message that she lost her necklace in the sand on LBI, and wondered if I would be able to help find it. After going over some of the details we arranged to meet on the dune walkover. While walking down to the spot she refreshed my memory on a few details and I began to search in the area she had marked out earlier. That spot came up empty so we moved south and did and area right next to the original spot, and no luck there either. Another friend had just arrived and was point to the sand, showing her she buggy wheels heading north just a few feet from her original location. With that said I made 2 paths and found the necklace about 5” down in the soft sugar sand. The key to successful recoveries is getting back to the correct location many hours or even days later. 
I was on the beach in LBI doing a recovery for a lady that had lost a ring the night before, when Anthony came walking over. He asked if I was able to help him. He lost his necklace in the sand just a few hours earlier. I told him I would be over as soon as I was finished, and asked if he could mark out the area prior to me getting there. When I got there he explained exactly what had happened, so I began looking in the area he had placed his beach cart and tackle box. Not long after, I got a nice sharp tone that I suspected would be his necklace, and sure enough it was, not far away from where he had set up for a day of fishing. Needless to say Anthony was totally relieve to have it back in his possession.
