Lost Wedding Ring .. Santa Monica Beach, CA. .. Found In Sand Near Swings
Sunday 10:00 am first call from Jeff
« I think my ring came off while playing with my kid on the swings at Santa Monica Beach. »
Jeff called me late Sunday morning about 10:00am. He had been at Santa Monica Beach Saturday afternoon with his family. After returning home he discovered his rose gold wedding band was missing. He believed it may have come off while pushing his son on the swings in a public recreation area on the sand, located just a couple blocks south of the Santa Monica pier.
This part of the beach is a high use recreation zone. It gets bombed by metal detectors especially on weekends. I told Jeff that I would give it a try. Jeff couldn’t meet me but I knew exactly what swings he was talking about. I have the advantage over other detectorists. I know there is a ring lost near the swings.
It was about noon when I started my search. I had to time my search when people were not using the swings. It started out good, finding coins and one junk ring which is a sign that other detectorists have not worked these swings. After a few minutes I got the gold ring sound and VID reading that was alluding me. Digging the target with my sand scoop I could see Jeff’s rose gold wedding band in the scoop.
Sent a text photo to Jeff’s smart phone. He was able to meet me on the beach within 20 minutes. Thanking me for saving his marriage. I get that comment a lot. This was another learning opportunity for me. I will try anywhere, it doesn’t matter how many people may have detected the place. They can’t get everything.
Found and returned Sunday 11-31-15 Using a Minelab CTX 3030 metal detector
I received the call at about 3:30pm while detecting at Huntington Beach. It took me awhile to walk a half mile to my car, but I was able to me Alexis and Andrew at 5pm. We talked about the circumstances leading to the loss of the ring. I explained to them how my equipment works. Some people think metal detectors can find things several feet from the coil. Other people do not believe the work for such small items as rings. I knew it was possible to search the long walk back to the parking lot, but the best place to start would be where she picked up her blouse. Sometimes other persons move an item containing the ring or keys not knowing something was hidden inside. I set up an area to grid search about 40’x30′.. Making six passes parallel to the beach with out success, I setup my CTX 3030 to beach mode – all metal and began a cross grid. The next move would have been the long walk back to the parking area. (time consuming and the sun was setting). Three 30 foot passes to and from the water I got a nice 12-02 signal. Calling Alexis over to see the signal and hear the sound, I told her this is your ring and I scooped it. It was a beautiful ring. She dropped to her knees in tears of joy. Andrew also came over to thank me telling me that he had all but given up on ever seeing their ring again. It was a great day and I got another lesson of humility. It is a game of inches and it pays to cross check.