#Maine Lost Item Recovery Expert Tag | The Ring Finders

Gold Wedding Ring Lost In The Sand At Camp Ellis Beach, Saco, Maine, Found With A Metal Detector

  • from Old Orchard Beach (Maine, United States)
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⏱️ 5 HOURS, 10 INCHES DEEP: A Bachelor Party Saved at Camp Ellis! 🌊💍🎉

The Ring Finders of Maine, With Recovery And Return #228

After finishing up with a platinum wedding ring recovery at Ogunquit Beach , I saw a text on my phone. 📱

Here is the text:
“Hello, we have a lost wedding ring at 39 ***** ***** ****, Saco at the beach. Wondering if you were available to check the area today as the tide comes down?”

I replied:
“Hi, this is Dennis Boothby of The Ring Finders of Maine. I just got your message. I am just coming up off the beach in Ogunquit. I just found somebody’s wedding band down here. If you could give me a call, I have a hands-free phone but I can’t keep texting. I would appreciate it. Again, Dennis Boothby, The Ring Finders of Maine 207-423-3027. Thank you.”

I then received a call from Rory. 📞

Rory told me that at approximately 2:00 PM, he went swimming at Camp Ellis in Saco, Maine . The tide was high, and when he got out of the water, his wedding ring was gone.

Rory told me that the area was very small, as he had basically gone into the water and right back out. He knew the exact area. Rory and a bunch of his friends were in town for a bachelor party weekend, and a few of them had gone into the water also. They all agreed on the area. Ok then!!! 🏖️🍻

I told Rory I had just started leaving Ogunquit, Maine and, depending on the traffic, I could be there in 45 minutes to an hour. Rory told me to call when I arrived, and he would come right out and show me the area. So, Cheryl and I were now heading to Camp Ellis. 🚗💨

Once I arrived, I called Rory.

He came right out with a few of his friends, and they took Cheryl and me through the waterfront house and down onto the beach. 🏠🌊

There were a few local residents on the beach who had helped look for the ring, but as we all know, once in the water, gold will sink below the sand and will not be visible. The ring was not found.

The Saco residents told me that when Rory lost the ring, they told him to call me and gave him my contact information. Thank you for the referral!!! 🙏📣

Rory and his friends had even marked an area where they thought the ring would be. I asked if it could be as high as the towel line and as low as where the receding tide was now situated. They agreed it could be.

I always like to overshoot an area when I perform a grid search. The client may be off a few feet, or the tide and waves may have moved it a bit before the ring settled under the sand. 📈🌊

I decided to start up high on the beach’s banking and work my way down toward the receding water. As in Ogunquit, I would be performing a North-South grid search. 🧭

I also took a gold test ring, covered it with the wet beach sand, and let everyone hear what the ring would sound like when I swung my metal detector’s coil over the test ring. I then told them that the gold wedding ring shouldn’t be more than 2 to 3 inches deep—4 inches at the most. 🎧🔊

Once I started searching, I wasn’t receiving any non-ferrous targets other than one small pull tab. Every other target was ferrous, possibly from all the houses along the shore that had been damaged and or lost during storms. 🏚️💥

I was approximately half to three-quarters done searching the area when I received a nice, loud mid-tone with a TID (Target Identification) reading of 47 on my Minelab Manticore’s VDI (Visual Display Indicator). My metal detector was also telling me it was about 8 inches deep on the depth meter. 🧐👀

Now, men’s gold rings usually have a TID in the 20s and 30s and, with the tide receding, shouldn’t be more than a few inches deep, as I had mentioned.

I told Rory that I didn’t think it was his ring, but I would mark the spot and investigate it once I finished searching if the ring hadn’t been found by that time. I only had maybe 5 to 8 minutes more of searching left. ⏳

As I finished that grid pass, I turned and headed south again, parallel with the water. Because I overlap my swings to make sure I don’t miss any areas, I came back to the spot I had just marked with the 47 TID.

When I heard the loud target for the second time, I decided to just check it out right then and not wait! 🔍🛠️

As I dug with my hand scoop, I wasn’t finding the target. It was still in the hole. I dug 4 or 5 scoops when all of a sudden, I heard Rory scream:

“THAT’S IT, RIGHT THERE!” 🤩🙌

I looked down into the hole and couldn’t believe what I was seeing at the bottom of that 8- to 10-inch-deep hole. A gold ring. Rory’s gold wedding ring! 💍✨

Everyone in the group was hootin’ and hollerin’ with joy! Rory fell to the ground after removing the ring from the hole, a joyous smile across his face. 🥳🎉

The smiles, high fives, hugs, and handshakes started amongst everyone. Someone yelled out, “Rory, you going to tell your wife now?” as everyone laughed. 🗣️😂

As we stood around, I was amazed by how deep the ring had settled down into the sand in just five hours. The waves at high tide must have really pounded the sand, burying the ring.

I have found rings in the ocean days later that were only 2 to 3 inches deep after many tides had come and gone. You just never know what the ocean will do with your ring! 🌊🤷‍♂️

The bachelor party could now continue, and with another great reason to celebrate! Everyone was in a wonderful mood, and it was fun to see everyone enjoying themselves. Rory and his friends continued to thank me for the quick response. 🍻🕺

As Cheryl and I left, we could still hear the group celebrating the upcoming wedding of their friend—and, of course, the saving of Rory’s marriage (just kidding!), I meant wedding ring. 😉💍
Remember: “If it matters to you, it matters to us.” ❤️

It was now approaching 8:00 PM. Cheryl and I had been gone for almost three hours, but we had helped get two more rings back on their owners’ fingers. We have the best job in the world. I love my job! 🤙🪙

📲 NEED HELP FINDING A LOST VALUABLE?
Have you or someone you know lost a ring, keys, or jewelry in the sand or surf? Don’t wait for the ocean to bury it! Time is critical when it comes to the water moving sand over your lost items. ⏱️❌
📞 Call The Ring Finders of Maine ASAP and ask for Dennis: 207-423-3027

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Platinum Wedding Ring Lost In Ogunquit Beach, Maine, Found With A Metal Detector

  • from Old Orchard Beach (Maine, United States)
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🔍 THE ONE-IN-A-THOUSAND SHOT! Why a beach bag beat my metal detector at Ogunquit Beach…🏖️💍

The Case of the Flying Platinum Wedding Ring! 😲💍

Late Friday afternoon, June 19th, I received a call from Gina. Her husband, Bryan, had just lost his platinum wedding ring at Ogunquit Beach.

Gina told me they knew the area and had been searching for it but couldn’t find it. I asked her if the ring had been lost on the beach or in the water.

She told me the ring had been lost on the beach, in the vicinity of where they had been sitting around, and definitely not in the water. They were just to the left of The Norseman Resort as you walked onto the beach. 🏖️

I told Gina I could leave as soon as I loaded my equipment into my vehicle and it would take me approximately an hour to get to Ogunquit Beach , depending on the traffic. I agreed to give her a call when I arrived, and she or Bryan would meet me at the Norseman and walk me to their location.

Cheryl and I loaded the vehicle up and jumped on the turnpike, heading to Ogunquit. Once we arrived, Cheryl and I were promptly met by Gina. 🚗💨

As we walked to their location, Gina told me that she and Bryan were having a “no kids” weekend getaway, with the children spending time with their grandparents. She also told me Bryan was still searching the sand but had still not found his wedding ring.

When Bryan and Gina first started searching for the ring, many people around them had recommended that they call me—including Michele, a woman whom I had recovered three rings for last summer in Ogunquit! It always makes me feel good that people think highly enough of me to refer me. 🙌

Anyways, as we approached the area, I could see Bryan on his hands and knees searching for his wedding ring.

Bryan told me that earlier in the day he had taken his platinum wedding ring off to go swimming. He had placed the wedding ring in the cupholder of his beach chair.

As the day progressed, Bryan had forgotten about his wedding ring in the cupholder. As they prepared to leave the beach, Bryan folded up the beach chair, flipped it over to carry it, and walked off the beach, heading back to their room. 😮

Within five minutes of leaving the beach, Bryan realized he wasn’t wearing his wedding ring. He and Gina rushed back to where they had been set up for the day and immediately started searching the area where Bryan had flipped the chair.

It had to be in that very small area, but the ring was nowhere to be found. ❌

If you have been following us long enough, you have heard this story more than once. Rings in cupholders are one of the two most common ways—if not THE most common way—that a ring is lost in the dry sand.

The other culprit is removing your ring to apply lotion, placing it on your lap, and forgetting it. Once you get up, the ring disappears into the sand. ⏳

Okay then, I now knew the area and I threw my own platinum wedding ring into the dry sand, watching it disappear (not a ritual that Cheryl enjoys watching!).

I then swung my metal detector’s coil over the area, and my platinum ring made that loud, low tone you would expect. Next, I took my pinpointer and located the ring in the sand.

I like performing this ritual for my clients. The demonstration allows them to “hear” what I will be listening for. Once they hear that tone, they will be listening for it right along with me. It gives them a sense of relief that the metal detector is going to work and that I know what I’m doing. 🎧✨
(You can see the focus in the photo as I got to work, with everyone watching anxiously to see if the detector would pick up a signal! 🕵️‍♂️🏖️)

The entire area that needed to be searched was maybe 15’ x 30’. (Take a look at the diagram in the photos to see exactly how the grid was laid out next to their gear! 🗺️)

I started with a North-to-South grid search. If I didn’t find it, I would then search the area again, this time performing an East-to-West grid search. This would ensure no area was left untouched.

As I started searching, there were very few targets, and the ones I was receiving were ferrous targets, when we were hoping for a low-conducting, non-ferrous target. 🧭

I covered the entire area in under 10 minutes, and the ring was not found. One thing I always do is plan my next move.

As I was searching, I was thinking that the ring could have also become stuck on the chair and been carried out of the area on the way back to their room. The ring could have fallen out anywhere along Bryan and Gina’s path off the beach.

I was also thinking that the ring could still be stuck in the chair, or possibly in the beach bag next to the chair. I just run all kinds of scenarios through my mind as I search. 🤔🧠

As I started my East-to-West search, I kept looking at the beach chair and beach bag. Nothing on my first East-to-West pass.

I then walked closer to where Bryan really thought the ring would be and resumed my search. Then, I asked Bryan and Gina if they had searched the beach bag and chair.

Bryan said, “That’s a good point.” 💡

As I was heading east toward the water, Gina and Bryan started removing towels and other beach items from the beach bag.

Cheryl and I then heard Gina say, “Oh my god, there it is! I can’t believe it. I thought I looked in there once.” 😲🎉

I walked a few feet over to the beach bag, and at the very bottom was Bryan’s platinum wedding ring.(You can see exactly what we saw in the photos—nestled right there among the beach clothes and sand! 🧺💍

Smiles were immediate and across everyone’s faces. Handshakes, hugs, and smiles were everywhere, and the mood was now joyous. 🥹❤️

WOW!!! The wedding ring must have flown out of the beach chair, landing right in the beach bag that was sitting right next to it. A one-in-a-thousand shot for sure, and a first in my ring-finding career! 🎯

It just goes to show you that you have to think outside the box. If it wasn’t in the sand, it had to be along their path to the room or among their beach items. It pays to ask a lot of questions.

(And yes, if you look closely at the photo of Bryan, his shirt says « RELAX YOU’RE IN OGUNQUIT MAINE »—a little easier to do once the ring is back where it belongs! Check out the final photo to see the beautiful « GMY to BTF » engraving inside! 😍)

Now Bryan and Gina will be able to enjoy the rest of their “no kids” getaway weekend without a lost wedding ring hanging over their heads. They were very thankful for our quick response to help them, and Cheryl and I were very happy to do it.

As you know, “If it matters to you, it matters to us.” I have the best job in the world. I love my job. 🏝️💍

📞 Lose something valuable? Don’t wait! Call or text Dennis at (207) 423-3027.

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Gold and Diamond Pendant Lost In The Scarborough Maine Beach Sand, Found With A Metal Detector

  • from Old Orchard Beach (Maine, United States)
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On Thursday, June 3rd, I received a phone call at approximately 1:30 PM. John was in desperate need of my services after his necklace had broken.

He and a group of friends were enjoying their day at Ferry Beach, Scarborough, ME, when the chain snapped and his Gold and Diamond pendant vanished into the sand. John and his friends had already spent 45 frantic minutes searching the area around their setup, but unfortunately, the diamond pendant was nowhere to be found.
I told John I would be there in 30-40 minutes, depending on Route 1 traffic, through Saco, Maine and the Town of Scarborough, Maine. He mentioned he had a pretty good idea of where it dropped—about a 10’ x 10’ area. A small space like that should be quick… if the pendant was actually there!
Cheryl and I left as soon as I gathered up my equipment, and Cheryl loaded up her beach chair. If this recovery turned out to be a long one, she was going to enjoy the beautiful afternoon on the beach! 🏖️
Once we arrived, John met us in the parking lot. He and his friends were set up at an area of the beach known as “The Point.” I knew « The Point » well—I actually recovered an engagement ring for a client there a few years back!
After a short 5-10 minute walk from the parking lot, we arrived at the group’s location. John and a few friends pointed to an area between a backpack and a sign. A couple of other friends thought it was closer to the beach towels.
As you all know by now, I do not like to jump around while performing a search. I strictly grid search from Point A to Point B. Because of that, I decided to start at the towels and work my way toward the backpack and sign so I wouldn’t have to double back.
Just before swinging, I placed a small gold ring in the sand to calibrate my metal detector and let the client see and hear exactly what tone I was looking for. Calibration finished, it was time to hunt.
I had taken exactly 8 steps when I heard it—the unmistakable low tone of gold.
Could this really be the pendant after just 18 seconds of searching? 🤔
As I probed the warm sand with my pinpointer, I found the target. The moment the group saw it, screams of “Oh my God!” and “That was so fast!” rang out across the beach. Arms went into the air and applause broke out.
Relief, happiness, and big smiles—it never gets old. Always a feel-good moment!
So, even though Cheryl never even got the chance to set up her beach chair, I consider a fast recovery a great day. Another precious pendant is right back where it belongs. We truly have the best job in the world, and I love what I do!
Remember: “If it matters to you, it matters to us.” 💍

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Gold Wedding Ring Lost In Cape Elizabeth, Maine Leaves, Found With A Metal Detector

  • from Old Orchard Beach (Maine, United States)
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On Tuesday, May 26th, I received the following voicemail,
Hi, my name is Missy D******. Um, I have a ring that needs locating. If you’re available, Um, it is a men’s, um, pretty heavy gold wedding band that was lost on Sunday afternoon. I know the general area where it may be. And yesterday we looked ourselves with the metal detector, but we only found like keys and nails. Um, so we’re hoping you might have some better luck. Uh, we are at ** ******* in Cape Elizabeth, Maine. Um, and the phone number is 410-***-****. hoping you can help us out. Um, looking forward to hearing from you soon. Thank you. Bye.
I called Missy back and she told me that just a few days earlier, she and her husband Joe, had been doing yard work, on their property. Joe had been raking leaves, pulling dead vegetation and picking up downed branches, from the winter. Joe would then take those items, load up his John Deere Gator, and drive them to the composting area and dump the contents. At the end of the day, around 6-7pm, Joe noticed his wedding ring was no longer on his finger. Remembering some photos that had been taken around lunchtime, Joe and Missy looked at the photos, to see if Joe had his wedding ring on, at that time. Sure enough, at approximately 11:45am, there is a photo of Joe with his wedding ring ON his finger. Now, just 6 or so hours later, it was gone. After asking Missy many questions, Missy to me that Joe’s parents live next-door and at one point went over there and was inside their house. Joe had also gone inside his house and played with his 2 1/2 year old daughter, Imogen. Other than that, Joe had been outside for hours and hours, cleaning up their property. I told Missy I could search first thing in the morning. Missy would show me the areas Joe had been working in most and I would go from there. Joe and Missy had already borrowed a metal detector and had searched the most likely areas, the previous day, with finding the ring.
Once I arrived, I wasn’t prepared as to how big of an area needed to be searched. The most likely spots the ring would have come off, was around the house, where Joe had been collecting leaves and the other vegetation. Rings, typically don’t just fall off your finger. You are usually doing something like picking up all the items Joe had picked up. Joe was also tossing those items, into the Gator and there was a good chance his ring had come off around the house or dumped out back, near the composting area. Missy showed me the area around the house Joe had been working and the composting area. She and Joe really thought it would be in the composting area, among the branches or leaves and I wasn’t going to argue. It is definitely and area the ring could be hiding. I decided to start my search down in the composting area, since I was already there. The area had multiple areas where I could see where leaves, branches, grass clippings and food had been dumped. Not all were recently dumped and I decided to check all the areas. The area had already been searched with a metal detector, by Joe and just like Joe, I came up empty handed. I then decided to search the areas around thee house, where Joe had been picking up all the yard debris and was throwing it into the John Deere Gator. Again, I came up unsuccessful, in locating the Wedding Ring. I then started searching the entire property between the man made pond and the house. This is some of the area that Joe would have driven the Gator, to and from his work area, to his dump area. I really wasn’t confident the ring was going to be found, in this area. It’s not an area Joe had been working in but only traveling through. But, in searches like this, you need to be thorough , just in case. The yard was full of metal an I mean full. There seemed to be wiring, pipes and other assorted metal. I would find out later that in fact there was metal, buried all over the property, from years of different kinds of projects. This slowed me down immensely and I was able to search about 1/2 the yard, when I decided to call it a day. I had now been here a little over 3 hours and I would like to return to finish searching but would also like to have Joe there with me and point out the exact areas, he had been. I also wanted to break down some of the piles of leaves, branches and any other piles that could be hiding the wedding ring. Since the area was much larger than I anticipated, I also wanted to bring Gary Hill with me so that not only could we recheck areas already searched, we would search the remainder of the lawn and around his parents property. I let Missy know of my plan and she told me Joe would be home all weekend and he absolutely could help by breaking down the piles of debris. We decided that this up coming Sunday would be the day to resume the search.
So on Sunday, May 31st, Gary and I arrived nice and early, at 7:30am. Joe came right out to meet up and walked up around the property. Joe told us he remembered that he had also thrown some branches and brush, into a marshy area, behind one of yhe piles dumped leaves and branches. Awesome, a new area to search. Joe had to get back up to the house and do somethig, so Gary and I started searching the new area that Joe had thrown some branches. After searching the very wet area, the ring remained elusive. I started breaking down a pile of leaves, to flatten it out. The piles were deep of fresh and old leaves. I also threw a bunch of branches out into the marshy area, to get them out of the way. Gary would start searching some of the other piles. After 30-45 minutes, Joe returned with a rake and saw the one pile I had broken down didn’t need to be broken down any further. Joe thought for sure the ring would have been in that pile of leaves and branches. Joe then took us up to the area around the house and showed us where he was standing, when the photo, showing his ring at noonish, had been taken. Gary and I searched the area again. I had searched it a few days earlier and Joe had searched it almost a week ago. Still no wedding ring. I asked Gary to search the area of Joe’s Parents property, that Joe had traversed across. I would pick up where I had left off, in my previous search. With Joe still walking along with us, visually searching, I told him that Gary and I were out of options. I wanted to check the piles of leaves one more ime before we finished. This time I started on the pile to the far right. I was a large pile of leaves that had been searched with a metal detector by Joe, myself and Gary. As I was finishing up the area, Joe asked if he should level the pile down even more, since it was still a large pile. I told him to go for it and I would be back in a few minutes, after I searched the next pile of leaves. Just about 3 minutes later, I hear Gary yelling, Dennis, Dennis, I got it. WHAT? ARE YOU KIDDING ME? I rushed over to where Gary was and he to Joe and I that he has a solid low tone, ringing up as a 34 on his TID. Definitely in the gold range. Gary said he saw just a glimpse of gold when he heard the target but the object had disappeared back in the pile of leaves. As Joe and I stood there watching Gary, Missy and Imogen heard the commotion and were comng across the lawn. I moved up to the pile as Gary was probing the pile with his pinpointer. We then heard the pinpointer go of and Gary started removind a few leaves at a time, so as to not move the target once again. Finally, a white gold ring appeared. After almost another 3 hours of two of us searching, Joe’s Weddind Ring had been found, by Gary. Just crazy that this pile of leaves had been searched 4-5 times but until Joe was breaking it down, the ring had stayed hidden. Joe di tell us that a week ago he had moved some of thee leaves and may have pushed the ring either deeper into the leaves or to the back side and only now reappeared as he was breaking the pile down further. To Gary and I, it didn’t matter. The ring had been found. We left the ring where it was found and let Imogen “find” the ring and give it to “Daddy”. A very sweet moment, captured on video. Everyone was in disbelief that after maybe 11-12 man hours of searching a very large property, Joe had his wedding ring back, thanks to our newest ring finder, Imogen.
So, Gary and I don’t like giving up and continued to searh and it paid off. With Imogen, Joe and Missy’s help, another ring was back on the finger. A true team effort. “We have the best job in the world. I love my job. If it matters to you, it matters to us.”
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