#Portland Maine Metal Detector Rental and Service Tag | Page 5 of 7 | The Ring Finders

Three White Gold and Diamond Rings Lost In The Ogunquit Beach Maine Sand, Found With A Metal Detector

  • from Old Orchard Beach (Maine, United States)
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After having returned from a successful recovery, of two Gold Rings, in the Ferry Beach State Park area, of Saco, Maine, I had some errands to run. While running my errands, I had a phone call come in and it went to voicemail,

“Hi there, my name is Lisa ******, and I’m calling, um Ring Finders of Maine, because I “Think” that I lost a ring, yesterday, on the beach, in Ogunquit Beach. So I thought I could start with you guys and see what service you offer? Thank you so much my name is Lisa ******, 617-***-**** thank you, bye, bye.”

I immediately called Lisa back and asked her what had happened, the previous day. Lisa told me that she and a very good friend, Michelle, had gone to Ogunquit Beach in the afternoon and into the evening, from 3:15pm to 8:00pm. They even had dinner, out on the beach while enjoying a beautiful day, on a beautiful beach. When Lisa first arrived, she had taken her 3 white gold rings off, to apply lotion and had placed the rings, in her shirt pocket. Lisa and Michelle at one point, moved from their original location, to a new location, out on the sandbar, as the tide was going out. Once they left and returned home, Lisa realized her 3 gold rings were missing. Unfortunately, the tide had been coming in for a few hours now and it was also dark outside. Lisa went back, to the beach, first thing, in the morning and searched for her rings, at low tide. But, as we all know, once the waves get to the rings, they will no longer be visible, as the rings would have made their way, under the sand and out of sight. Lisa and Michelle then gave me the two different areas, where the rings could be. I would need to grid search, both of those areas.
I told Lisa that I would go down to Ogunquit, Maine: Beautiful Place by the Sea, later this afternoon, when the tide would be in our favor and search. I could sense the pain Lisa was feeling and her voice actually cracked a few times and I figured that she was in tears also. But, I still had to tell her that the area she thinks the rings were lost in get heavily metal detected, by locals and vacationers. I also told her that if the rings were lost, out on the wet sand or sandbar, the rings would have been visible, to anyone walking by. Rings simply do not sink into the hard packed wet sand, at low tide, they just don’t, until the incoming tide reaches them. Lisa and Michelle told me the rings would be out in front of the Norseman Resort, in one of the two locations, they had been and understood it would be a long shot, to find them. I totally understand and agree that the effort has to be made to find the rings.
So, later in the afternoon Cheryl and I went down to Ogunquit, Maine and found the beach to still have lots of people, enjoying their day, at just after 3:00pm. Since one of the areas had less people in it, I decided to search there first. This was the first location they had been in and was just beyond the Norseman Resort and on the other side of the buoys, near the Lifeguard Stand. I decided to grid search, north to south, horizontally to the water and shore. Starting at the buoy to just past the lifeguard stand would more than cover the area they were first in. I always over shoot an area, while searching, just in case, the rings moved a little or the client was off a little bit on their directions. As I grid searched the area and working my way towards shore, I figured It would take about an hour or so to complete. I wasn’t finding anything at all, other than small bits of metal trash. Once I completed the area, just over an hour later, I was going to search the second location but there were just too many people in the area, to grid search the area properly. I messaged Lisa and Michelle and told them that I would search the second area, very early the next morning, at 5:00am. This would allow me plenty of time to search the area properly, without being sidetracked by having to go around anyone and possibly missing the area, the rings would be in.
Saturday morning, I got up at 3:45am and got all my equipment loaded, into the vehicle. I arrived at Ogunquit Beach at just before 5:00am and the beach was basically deserted, other than a few fishermen and a few people waiting for the sunrise to happen. Sunrise is my favorite part of the day. Quiet, serene and just something magical, seeing the sun rise from the water. I always stop and take a few photos and enjoy the view.
I started this morning’s search at the buoy again, but this time, I was on the Norseman Resort side, of the buoys, not the lifeguard stand side. As I looked out over the area, I couldn’t help but think it would be a miracle if I found these 3 gold rings. It was now on the 2nd day of the being lost and I kept thinking of how the rings would not have been under the sand, when they were first lost, but would have just sat there, for anyone walking by, to pick up. I also kept thinking of the other Metal Detectorists that frequent the area. Even thinking this was an extreme long shot, I still have to do my due diligence, for my client and for myself. Lisa really has a lot of sentimental emotions tied up in these rings and I am not leaving until I know there is nothing else I can do.
Today I searched east to west, from the shore to the water line, as the water was going out. Shore to water, to shore, to water to shore and kept repeating this sequence. I was actually finding multiple coins, junk earrings and even a junk ring, but not the 3 gold rings I wanted to recover. After 30 or 40 minutes of searching I was approaching the end of the sandbar, where it drops down to the wet sand. I was right on the corner, of the northern end of the Norseman Resort, Tidal Suites-On Ogunquit Beach, Maine. I then received a signal that was giving me a few different numbers on my VDI screen. I was getting numbers ranging from 08 to 20 and the tone was definitely a low tone. My first thought was, no way. Multiple targets all in the gold range and also the tone, was the tone I love to hear, when searching for gold. I admit my heart beat a little faster and I was praying these were Lisa’s rings. I took my long handle sand scoop pushed it into the sand. I then dumped the first scoop of sand right next to the hole I just dug. I ran my coil over the sand and got two targets. I then took my pinpointer and gently wiped the sand away revealing a gold ring. I kept removing sand and saw a second gold ring. WOW, I found them, now I needed to find the third one. I placed the first two rings, on the hard sand of the sandbar (remember, they won’t sink into the hard sand) out of the way and ran my coil over the dug hole. I didn’t receive a signal, from the hole but I did receive an 08 reading on the VDI screen, just a few inches away. I just smiled as I knew this was the 3rd ring. Just had to be. I dug the hole and ran the pinpointer over the sand, located the target and after pushing the sand away, there was the third gold ring. I am amazed they were still there but so happy for Lisa. I just knew how much these rings meant to her and I couldn’t wait to tell her but it still wasn’t even 6:00am. I took a video to send her but would wait awhile, so as not to wake anyone up.
Once I sent the video, via text, to both Lisa and Michelle, at 7:45am, I immediately heard back from Michelle, “Unbelievable! This is absolutely amazing!” And then Lisa one minute later, “OMG.. most beautiful sight I’ve ever seen!! So amazing!!! You are the best..”
Lisa then called me from her home in Massachusetts and I could feel the happy tears through the phone. She was so appreciative and kept thanking me. She told me that I saved her and I was her “Mer-Man”. Lisa was just over the moon to get her very dear, sentimental and loved rings back. Lisa then asked if Michelle, who lives in Ogunquit Maine, could come and pick the rings up, as Lisa was in Massachusetts. I heard from Michelle about 10 minutes later and we made plans, to meet in front of The Norseman Resorts office. Perfect. Once Michelle arrived, I took a picture of Michelle, with the 3 rings and texted it to Lisa, telling her that Michelle now has the rings.

Lisa replied, “How about a picture of the two of you together?” Michelle and I took a selfie and sent it to Lisa, who replied, “ The Best.. wonderful and happy ending 💕thank you both!!!”
Michelle then took a selfie of us and sent to Lisa, on the group text and said,
“Yay!! Lisa, Here is your “mer-man”! Best day ever!
Lisa replied “Definitely a Miracle! “
I have been metal detecting for 25 years and I really thought this was going to be a long shot. I mean the rings were missing for two days, in a very heavily populated area of metal detectorist and I still can’t fathom how no one saw the rings laying on top of the hard sand, of the sandbar. I agree with Lisa, this was a miracle and I am so happy to have been a part of it. Taking Lisa’s sad tears and making them into happy tears is the best feeling ever and I love doing this for people like Lisa. As you know, every ring or three has a story. Now these beautiful rings have a new chapter, in their story. I love my job of putting smiles back on people’s faces ❤️🙏

 

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Gold Religious Pendant Lost In The Saco Maine Sand, Found With A Metal Detector

  • from Old Orchard Beach (Maine, United States)
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On Friday July 25th, as I was driving home, from Ogunquit Beach, I received a call from Eliza. Eliza told me that she is a lifeguard, at Bayview Beach, in Saco, Maine. Another lifeguard had recommended me to her. The other lifeguard had seen me make a recovery a few weeks earlier, just up the beach, at Kinney Shores, Maine. Eliza told me that on the previous day, as her shift ended, at 5:00pm, she noticed that she was missing her Gold Religious Pendant. The necklace was still around her neck but had become unclasped. She had it on, when starting her shift, at 9:00am but now it was nowhere to be found. Eliza told me that it had been very hot day and she had gone down to the water to cool off, while swimming. She had done this multiple times, throughout the day and just didn’t know when the pendant, fell off the necklace. It could be in the ocean, around the lifeguard stand or in the sand, along the route she used, to walk to the water, for her swim multiple swims. I told Eliza that I would be right there, as fast as I could but was about 45 minutes away. Eliza said no rush, she would be there all day.

Once I arrived at Bayview Beach, I went to the lifeguard stand and immediately saw Eliza, up on the stand, with her lifeguard partner. Eliza came down and showed me the areas she had walked, the previous day and the entire area, around the lifeguard stand are the areas she was hoping the pendant, would be in. If the pendant were in the water, I would need to return because the tide was currently high and I wouldn’t be able to search until the tide was receding. I told Eliza that I would grid search, down to the water, turn around, back to the lifeguard stand, back to the water, until I was outside the areas she had been. If I was not able to locate the pendant at that point, I would search around the lifeguard stand itself. If I still hadn’t recovered it, I would come back tonight and search the wet sand, as the tide was going out.
As I performed the east/west grid search, I was finding the usual beach trash, pull tabs, bottle caps, and foil. No coins, jewelry or pendant. I stood at the base of the lifeguard stand talking to Eliza and her partner, telling them the pendant wasn’t on the route, to the beach. I would now search the areas under and around the lifeguard stand itself I stepped back and starting on the left side of the stand, as you faced it, I took my first swing and received a nice loud low tone and showing up on my VDI screen as a 28. Definitely in the gold range by the tone and VDI reading. I removed my pinpointer from my pouch and ran it across the top of the soft sand. I located the target right off the bat and as I gently brushed the sand away, I caught a glimpse of the gold pendant. It was literally just to the left of the stand and next to the stairs. I picked the pendant up and looked at Eliza, saying “did you say a go,d pendant?” As soon as she saw her pendant a big smile broke out and she said “oh my god, that’s it. Thank you so much.” I then handed the pendant over to Eliza and she thanked me again. I told her that I was waiving the travel fee because I offer this service to First Responders, at no cost to them. All First Responders are so important to our communities. I just wouldn’t feel right charging a transportation fee to them, when they would help me whenever I would need them. Eliza thanked me again and I couldn’t be happier for her to get her very special Religious Pendant back. I love my job and putting smiles on peoples faces. 😀❤️🙏

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Prescription Glasses Lost In The Ocean Park, Maine Surf, Found With A Metal Detector

  • from Old Orchard Beach (Maine, United States)
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I received a call, on late Friday morning, from Kim. Kim had just lost her prescription glasses, in the water, in Ocean Park, Maine. She and here daughter were playing in the water, when her daughter jumped on Kim, knocking her glasses, in the surf. Unfortunately the glasses remained lost, after they tried searching, the sandy bottom of the water. Kim asked if I could find glasses and I told her that we could, if they weren’t all plastic. I also told her that my experience is that glasses were no longer any good, once they were in the waves and sand. The glasses generally get scratched easily and the frames get bent. Kim told me that she had insurance on her prescription glasses, but needed them to file a claim. As long as she produced the damaged glasses, the insurance would replace them. She just needed me to find them. I asked Kim to let me check the tide charts because I knew high tide was not to far off and we would need to search, once the water had receded. I also told Kim that I wouldn’t be able to personally search for them. I had a Dentist appointment at 1:00pm and I was already booked to search Ogunquit Beach, at 3:30pm. I told her I would see if Gary Hill was available and he could search, once the tide receded.

I contacted Gary and he was available, to help Kim. I gave Gary her phone number and when he called her, they made plans to meet in Ocean Park Beach, at 3:00pm. Once Gary arrived at 3:00pm, the tide was receding and was on its way to low tide. A perfect time to search. Kim showed Gary the location she thought the glasses would be in. Gary immediately got to work, grid searching the area. He wasn’t finding much when after 10 minutes of searching, he was approaching the water. At this point, Gary received a low tone of 08, on his VDI screen. Gary then dug a hole with his long handle sand scoop and after placing the dug up sand, off to the side, a wave came in and washed the sand pile behind. The wave also moved a pair of glasses, from the sand pile, to behind Gary. Gary never saw the glasses, when Kim yelled out, “There they are”, and immediately jumped behind Gary and grabbed the glasses, before the next wave took them away, again. Kim looked the glasses over and thought they were fine but would probably be taking them to the optometrist’s office and get them checked out. So Kim’s glasses may not be as exciting as finding gold and diamond rings, but because Gary was able to find them, it may save Kim hundreds of out of pocket dollars, because of her insurance. Now who doesn’t like to save hundreds of dollars. Gary and I certainly do. We also love helping people like Kim, when we are need. A smile is a smile and we take them any way we can get them. 😁❤️🙏

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Two Gold and Diamond Rings Lost In The Saco, Maine Surf, Found With A Metal Detector

  • from Old Orchard Beach (Maine, United States)
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What’s worse than losing a ring? How about two rings?

On Monday July 21st, I received a phone call, from Nicolas. Nicolas told me that his mother had just lost two gold rings, in the water, in the Ferry Beach State Park area, of Saco, Maine. I asked Nicolas when she lost the rings and how deep was the water, when she lost the rings. Nicolas replied , “fifteen minutes ago and about two feet of water.” I knew it was just about low tide and with the tide now coming in, I wanted to try and find them, before the water was too deep. I immediately grabbed my Minelab Excalibur and headed to the Ferry Beach State Park area. I arrived at 3:00pm and met Nicolas, Carole (Owner of the lost rings) and Ben, another of Carole’s sons. The tide had now been coming in for an hour and there was no time to waste. I started searching the water with the help of Carole, Nicolas and Ben. Carole went to the spot, she thought she was, when she lost the two gold rings. Nicolas stood to the south, of Carole and this was to be the furthest south, the rings should be. Ben stood to the north, for the boundary, in that direction. Carole explained to me that she was standing, in the water, with her back to the open sea. As she was standing, in the water, facing the shore, a wave hit her hard and as the wave knocked her forward, it also hit her outstretched hand, taking both rings off. Carole saw the rings come off and tried grabbing them but they disappeared, into the surf. She immediately yelled to her family members, up on the beach and they immediately started searching for the rings, with Carole. Unfortunately, trying to find rings in the water and waves, is an impossible task.

Since the tide was coming in, I wanted to start as far out, as I could. With the depth of the water and the waves, I felt I had a good chance of finding them. I just didn’t know if I would be able to get out fat enough to. I performed a north to south grid search, working my way towards the shore. After an hour of searching, I called it quits for the day. The water was now too deep to perform a proper search. I told Carole and her family, I would be back, the next afternoon and search once again. The vacationing family, from Québec, Canada told me that they were taking the children, to Funtown Splashtown USA, for the day and would not be there.I told them I was comfortable with the area that needed to be searched and to enjoy their day at Funtown Splashtown.
The next day, Tuesday, I returned to resume my search at 12:45pm, for a 3:30pm, 0.07 low tide. Approximately the same low tide as the previous day. I immediately got into the water, following the tide out, until 3:30pm, when the tide started coming in again. I found a few fishing sinkers and some can slaw. I also got hit by a wave, knocking me off my feet and into the water. After 2 1/2 more hours of searching, the rings were not found, once again. I messaged Nicholas and told him the not so good news. I also reminded him that Wednesday, I would not be able to come down and search, as I had a previous commitment. The low tide, the next day, Wednesday, was going to be the same as the low tide I had just searched in. I now had my sights on Thursday morning and a negative low tide of – 0.07. This negative low tide will be way out there, possibly out far enough, that the rings would no longer be underwater and the search would be much easier. Unfortunately, once low tide arrives, it immediately starts coming back in. I wouldn’t have long to search the low tide area. For this reason, I called Gary Hill, to see if he was available, to help me, on Thursday morning. Gary signed up for the search.
Gary and I arrived at the beach at 4:30am, for the 5:22am low tide. It was still dark out and was a little difficult to see, without headlamps. It wasn’t long before the sky started turning beautiful, without headlamps the sun rising. It also meant, the tide wos about to turn. Ben came down at 5:00am and he had a beginner’s metal detector, his children had brought, on vacation. So now, there were three of us searching but again, no rings were found. To understand just how large an area we were searching, try and picture a football field and another half field. It’s a large area and we didn’t have much time to, to cover it all of the changing tide. Losing a ring, in the water, at low tide, is the worst time to lose it. Just not much time to effectively search. I told Ben that Gary and I would be back again, the following morning, same time, to search another -0.07 low tide. I also asked Ben if he would like me to leave my Minelab CTX-3030 metal detector and long handle sand scoop , for him to use, tonight. He wouldn’t be able to go out to deep but he could certainly search close to shore. He would also be able to use it tomorrow morning, when Gary and I returned. For an area so large, we needed all hands on deck, so to speak. Ben readily agreed to help, by using my backup detector.
This morning, Gary and I arrived pre dawn once again and immediately started searching again. Ben came down around 5:00am and after a quick lesson, with the CTX-3030, Ben started searching. I was searching close to shore, along the rocks, Gary was mid beach section and Ben was also searching, in the rocky area. We were all searching north to south. Low tide was going to be at 6:14am and it was decided to go out as close to the water as possible and start grid searching, water towards the shore. I went out the furthest, Ben was next and then Gary. As we all worked our way towards the shore and 5 minutes, past low tide, Ben received and dug a target. He called Gary over to search the dug sand pile, with the pinpointer. I wasn’t paying attention as I was trying to stay ahead of the incoming tide. All of a sudden, I hear Gary say, “He got one of the rings”. That got my attention and immediately rushed over to them. They were standing looking at the first found ring. I ran my coil over the pile of sand and I received a nice loud low tone. I told Ben and Gary, “I bet you anything, this is the other ring.” I was that confident. Gary took out his pinpointer and searched the sand pile. As he was moving the sand around, his pinpointer went off and I saw the others ring. I picked it up, washed it off and handed it to Ben. Ben not only found the rings, he dug both of them from the same hole. Unbelievable! On the 4th day of the search, both rings were now going back on Carole’s finger. Not all searches are completed on day one. This search was 4 days and if the rings weren’t found today, Gary and I were coming back, pre dawn, once again the next morning. Persistence pays off and thankfully, we don’t like losing or giving up easily.
Ben texted Carole and she came right down to us. She was all smiles, giving us all hugs and smiling ear to ear. Carole had told me the previous day that she was going crazy about the lost rings. I told her she would sleep well tonight and not go crazy, anymore. She readily agreed. It’s such a great feeling, for Gary and I to help Carole and her family, when they need us. The will be returning to Canada tomorrow morning but Gary and I have new friends now and they are all smiling. There is no better feeling than to see someone get their lost item back and see them smile, once again 😁❤️🙏

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Custom Made Gold Diamond Ring Lost In The Eliot, Maine Grass, Found With A Metal Detector

  • from Old Orchard Beach (Maine, United States)
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On Saturday evening at just after 5:00pm, I received the following text message.

“Hello I lost a gold ring at my family party today. We’ve been looking in her yard for hours and can’t find it. We are in Eliot, Maine. Do you know if you can come this far south to help me find it.”

I immediately called back and was told that his name is Dustin. Dustin was at a family gathering of his parents, Aunts, Uncle’s, Cousins, etc.. Dustin had recently had Achilles Tendon Surgery and wasn’t able to do much, as far as walking far distances or running. There was a tent set up in the back yard and Dustin was sitting at the table, under the tent. Lobster was being served and Dustin removed gold ring, with a single diamond in it. He didn’t want to get the lobster, butter and juices, all over his new ring, of one month. Dustin took the ring off and put it in the pocket of his khaki shorts, along with his keys. Dustin had some gold necklaces melted down and had the gold ring with the diamond, custom made, for himself. He said he had it made with Jyotish Astrology, in mind, something that Dustin has an interest in.

Once the meal was over, Dustin and his cousins played some football. Since Dustin couldn’t run or move around much, he was the so called “Designated Quarterback”. He could just throw the ball to his cousins, while just standing there. Once the game was over, Dustin started walking to his car and reached into his pocket for his ring and car keys. He pulled his keys out, but his new ring was missing. The entire family started searching for the ring. The area was small, since Dustin had only been at the table, under the tent set, when he took the ring off, and the to the area where he stood to throw the football. An area of approximately 25’ X 60’ and the path he took as he walked towards the driveway, where he was parked. That’s the entire area and yet, the ring wasn’t found. That is when Dustin called me. I told Dustin that I was also at a dinner and that by the time I got my equipment and drove to Eliot, it wouldn’t give me much time to search, before it got dark. I asked if I could come and search, first thing in the morning, at 8.00am. Since the ring was on private property, no one else would be finding the ring. Dustin agreed and was happy to know that I would be able to help.

Cheryl and I left our home, in Saco, Maine at 7:00am and arrived at the search area at 8:00am. Dustin was there to greet us and show us the area, where he thinks the ring was hiding in the grass. I must admit, the grass was nice and thick, almost like a carpet. This grass could absolutely hide a ring. Dustin really thought the ring would be in the area, he took the ring off, and where he was sitting, under the tent. If not there, it would be in the area where he was throwing the football, just 25’ to 30’ away. I told Dustin that I would grid search the entire area, he had been in, yesterday. I would start in the area of the tent and the table. I would then work my way towards the area he had stood, throwing the football. I should be able to search the entire 25’ to 60’, in less than an hour. As I worked my way across the lawn, I wasn’t getting many non ferrous targets but when I did, I checked the thick grass with my pinpointer. Unfortunately the ring wasn’t found after approximately 45 minutes of searching. I then asked Dustin what path he took towards his vehicle and where was he when he took the keys out of his pocket. Dustin couldn’t remember the exact area but it was either along the wall of where the ten was or just another 5’ or 10’ to the right of that. I searched that area and came up empty again. Since I only had another 10 feet or so, to a large bush, I decided to grid search, over to the bush. As I kept going, I wasn’t getting many almost to the bush when Dusting said he never went that far over, towards the bush. I told Dustin that I just wanted to finish the area, so I would remember what has and hasn’t been searched. Just another minute or so and only one more grid line, from the bush, I received a very loud signal, showing 67 to 69 on my VDI screen. The VDI was also showing the target was on or very near the top of the soil. As I looked down, in the thick grass, I didn’t see the target. I reached into the thick grass and started pushing the grass away. I then saw a gold ring. I had finally found it. I then asked Cheryl to come over and bring the paper towel, so I could wipe away the sweat, from my face. It was just a ploy, to tell her I had found the ring. I asked her to start filming a video, when I asked Dustin to come over to me and answer some questions. When Dustin arrived to where I was , I asked him a question and as he answered, I reached down into the grass, picked the ring up and said, “I got it”, holding the ring up so Dustin could see it. I saw his smile break out and he said “Oh dude, thank you so much , man oh man” as he pumped his fists, high 5’d me and gave me a hug. Dustin was very happy to have his ring back. He couldn’t believe I found it so close to the bush. He said he was never that close to the bush. I told him that we always find rings where people don’t think we would find them. Possibly Dustin did go that far over and just doesn’t remember. We will never know. I do know that this ring was really hidden in the thick grass. It never would have been found, visually. Thankfully, my metal detector is my eyes 👀 and it may have taken an hour, but it was finally located. If I don’t find the lost item, in an area, I will just keep expanding the area. Everyone knew it was there, it was just a matter of getting my coil over it.
Once again, a successful recovery and a smiling client. I love helping others out, like Dustin, in their time of need. It’s just the best feeling in the world to see those smiles, when I hand over their very precious, sentimental item back to them. It the best job in the world ❤️🙏

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Very Small Gold Earring Lost In Grass South Portland, Maine, Found With A Metal Detector

  • from Old Orchard Beach (Maine, United States)
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On Friday, July 18th, Gary Hill and I were returning from Short Sands Beach York Maine, in York Beach, Maine. We had a successful recovery, after Gary had recovered a lost pendant. As we were approaching the Town of Wells, Maine, my phone rang. The caller identified herself as Sarah. Sarah told me that she was at Scratch Baking Co., in South Portland, Maine and she had just lost a very small gold earring. As she and her daughter, Eliza were eating lunch, outside on a bench, she had felt and seen the gold earring, become entangled in Eliza’s hair. As Sarah went to grab the earring, from Eliza’s hair, Eliza spun away and the earring fell into the grass and acorn shells. They had been searching for the earring, for a half hour and just couldn’t find it. She asked if I could help her. I told her Gary and I could be there in approximately 45 minutes, as we were still on Rt 1, in Wells, Maine. Sarah and Eliza would continue to search for the earring, as Gary and I made our way north, to South Portland Maine and Scratch Baking Co…

Once Gary and I arrived we saw Sarah and Eliza sitting on the beach, under the tree. They told us they still hadn’t found the earring. Gary had brought his 8” sniper coil, as this would work best for extremely small gold items. We decided that Gary would start grid searching, with the Minelab Manticore and 8” sniper coil. I would visually search and run my pinpointer through the grass, hoping to get lucky. After approximately 20-30 minutes, the earring still wasn’t found. Just amazing how these things disappear from sight. Gary and I decided to switch roles. I would grid search vertically, where Gary had searched horizontally, to the street. Gary would now visually search and man the pinpointer. After about 5 minutes, I received a repeatable target of 06 – 07, on the VDI screen and the sweet sounding low tone of gold. I still couldn’t see the target but could definitely hear the target. I reached down and moved the grass and still couldn’t see the target. I then moved a few pieces of broken acorn shells and staring back at me was an extremely small gold earring. I looked over at Sarah and Eliza and said “I found it”. Sarah jumped right up and came towards me, saying “Did you really? Thank you so much”. This earring would not have been found by just visually searching. How did the earring end up under the broken acorn shells? We may never know for sure but most likely the shells ended up on top of the earring during the initial search, by Sarah and Eliza. As they were walking, in the area and running their fingers through the grass, they may have inadvertently moved the shells, onto the earring. Either way, Sarah now had her gold earring back and was very happy with that. Sarah and Eliza are from Massachusetts and had been in the area, when they stopped at Scratch Baking, for lunch. The lunch turned out much longer than they had planned and they were very excited to be getting back on the road, to drive home. That is one reason, why there are so few photos. We didn’t want to hold them up any longer than necessary. Gary and I were also happy to be heading home as we had now been on the road, searching for lost items, for 6 1/2 hours. After two successful recoveries today , it was time to go home, get something to eat and reflect on our day. We absolutely love doing this for others and have the best job in the world.

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Engagement Ring Lost In The Old Orchard Beach, Maine Sand, Found With A Metal Detector

  • from Old Orchard Beach (Maine, United States)
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I received the following text, from Amanda, at 4:16pm, on Monday, July 14, 2025

“Hi Dennis, Unfortunately I lost my engagement ring on Old Orchard Beach Maine just outside of On The Beach Motel. I was wondering if you would be able to help? Thanks, Amanda”

I didn’t bother to text Amanda back, I immediately called her to get more details and information of what had happened. As it turns out, Amanda lost her Engagement Ring, the way a lot of people lose their rings, at the beach. Amanda had taken her Engagement Ring off, to apply sunscreen to herself and her children. Amanda had placed the engagement ring, on top of her beach bag and forgot about it. Amanda and her family were enjoying a beautiful beach day and when it was time to leave, her husband picked the bag up and they returned to their room, at the oceanfront motel they were staying at, called “On The Beach Motel”, located at 61 W Grand Ave., Old Orchard Beach, Maine. Once back in the room, at “On The Beach Motel”, Amanda remembered the engagement ring. Stephen searched through her beach bag and the room. She retraced her steps, back to their location, on the beach. She scoured the soft sand, where they had been set up for the day. No engagement ring was found. She went to “On The Beach Motel’s” office, to see if anyone had turned the ring in. No one had turned it in. The ring has now been lost for 2 hours and this is when Amanda contacted me. Once I had all the details, I told Amanda that I would leave instantly and be there in approximately 20 minutes. I just needed to change into my beach detecting attire and get my equipment, off the charger and into the vehicle. Amanda told me that when I arrive m she would meet me, on the beach, approximately 100’ to the right, of the “On The Beach Motel’s” beach access path.
When I arrived at the beach, I could see a woman standing out on the beach, looking down at the sand, in the area that Amanda said she would meet me. As I reached her she introduced herself and showed me the area she thought the ring would be in. I took a White Gold test ring and threw it into the sand. The ring quickly disappeared out of sight, into the very fine soft sand. Once I located the gold ring, I told Amanda that that would be the sound/tone that I would be listening for. I then showed her I would pinpoint the location, with my pinpointer. This always seems to reassure my clients that if the ring is there, they will also hear what I hear. They also seem comforted, knowing my detector and I know what we are doing.
I told Amanda that I would start my grid search, at the top of the banking, leading down the the water. This is also called “The Towel Line” to us metal detectorists because it is the first area people place their towels, when they arrive at the beach. It is the most sought after location, on the beach and this is where Amanda and her family had set up for the day. So, I started at the towel line and headed south, parallel to the water. I received a few very nice low tone signals and they both turned out to be just foil peel offs, from juice containers. Once I reached approximately 30’ or so, I stopped and turned around, heading back towards where I started, but not until I took a 1/2 step to my left. As I was heading north, on my new grid line, I received another very low tone and it was a VDI reading of 09 to 10. Definitely in the small gold ring range but also the dreadful foil targets. I felt confident on this one though. Just sounds a little better than foil. I took my pinpointer and located the target. I started carefully removing the sand m from atop the target. As I had removed 2 or 3 inches of sand, a White Gold Ring with Diamonds appeared, before me. I picked it up and showed Amanda and she very loudly stated, “That’s it, that’s my ring”. After a congratulatory fist bump, I handed Amanda the ring and also got a nice hug and a very big smile, from her. She was smiling ear to ear. From the time of her text to me, to me driving down to Old Orchard and me finding the ring, a total of just 34 minutes had past. Not to bad.
It is such a beautiful thing to see all the people go from down, despondent,anxious, etc., to smiling, hugging, laughing and just feeling great. I also feel great that I get to see and experience this quite often. There is no better feeling or job in the world.
As a side note I would like to address the importance of getting The Ring Finders of Maine to your location, asap. The area where the ring was lost in, “The Towel Line” is an area that many, many metal detectorist’s first go to, in the evening, after the beach goers, leave for the day. If Amanda hadn’t called me asap, the engagement may have been found by someone else and who knows if she would have ever gotten it back.
“The Towel Line” is also in the path of the “Beach Cleaning Machine”. If the ring was still there, in the morning, the “Beach Cleaning Machine” would definitely have gotten the ring and the ring would be gone forever. Time is of the essence, when you lose something, in a public space, like the beach or a park. Get us there asap by calling us as soon as you realize your item is missing. Don’t chance it by waiting to call because it may be to late to recover your item ❤️🙏

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53 Year Old Wedding Ring Lost For Seven Days In The Saco, Maine Sand Found With A Metal Detector

  • from Old Orchard Beach (Maine, United States)
Contact:

This is the last, of three rings, I recovered and returned, on Friday, July 11th.

The previous evening, Thursday July, 10th, I received a text message, from Ray W., in Stratham, New Hampshire. Ray is a fellow metal detectorist and also helps people recover their lost rings and has many recoveries, to his credit. Ray told me that he saw a posting, about a lost wedding ring, at Kinney Shores, Maine, in Saco, Maine. Ray said the wedding ring was lost, on July 4th, on the beach, near a lifeguard stand. Ray said he was an hour away from Kinney Shores Beach but I live in Saco and am just 4 miles down the road. Ray asked if he could contact the woman, who lost her wedding ring and give her my information. Absolutely give her my information. I love making recoveries, in my hometown. I told Ray that I was already booked in Ogunquit, Maine, very early the next morning but if she contacted me, I would be able to get to Kinney Shores, late morning or afternoon. Ray said he would contact her right then and give her my contact information.
So, after a successful recovery, in Ogunquit, Maine: Beautiful Place by the Sea, I came home and started running errands around Saco and then to Kennebunkport, Maine. While in the Town of Kennebunkport, I was contacted about a lost wedding ring, in Old Orchard Beach, Maine. I told them I would be there in an hour or so. I was then contacted again, about a lost wedding ring, in Kinney Shores. The woman identified herself as Toni. Toni told me that she was given my information, from Ray and asked if I could help her find her wedding ring, of 53 years. Wow, 53 years she has been wearing that ring and I really wanted to find it for her. I told Her I should be able to meet her there between 2:00pm and 3:00pm. She said that was great and to just call her, when I started over to Kinney Shores. Toni lived only 10 minutes away and would go straight over and meet me, next to the Lifeguard stand.

Once I arrived back in the area, Cheryl and I immediately headed to Old Orchard for the lost wedding ring there. Thankfully, I recovered that one in 5 to 7 minutes. As soon as I got in my vehicle, I called Toni and told her I was heading to Kinney Shores. She said that she would be right there. From the lost ring in Old Orchard Beach Maine, to Toni’s lost ring, in Kinney Shores, is less than 1 1/2 miles from each other. I wasn’t complaining about that.

Once I arrived, Toni arrived just a few minutes later. I asked her what had happened, as to how the ring was lost. Toni told me that she and her husband had come to Kinney Shores on the evening of July 4th, to watch the fireworks. While waiting for the fireworks to start, her engagement and wedding rings were bothering her finger. She took both rings off and rubbed her finger. As she was putting both rings back on, someone close to her lit some fireworks or some firecrackers. They were extremely close and very loud. This has startled Toni so much, that she kind of jumped away, just as she was putting the rings back on her finger. Toni’s engagement ring made onto her finger but the wedding ring of 53 years, fell into the sand, disappearing. She and her husband immediately started searching for it but were not able to locate the ring. She even went back in the daylight, sifting the sand, from the area, to no avail. She thought it was gone forever and just before their 54th Anniversary, just a month away, in August. Man, I really want to find this extremely sentimental ring. She also told me the ring had diamonds on it.
I told her my concern is that a ring, missing for 7 days, on the beach don’t usually end well. The area is metal detected by other Detectorist’s and it may have been found already. One thing going in her favor is that this section of beach doesn’t get cleaned by the beach rake. I could tell it didn’t because of the abundance of seaweed. I started grid searching, south to north, parallel to the water. My first grid line resulted in just a few pieces of foil and aluminum pull tabs. I turned around and headed north but the result was the same, no ring. I turned and headed south again and after just a few feet, I received a signal that I liked the sound of. I took my pinpointer out and started wiping the sand away, until I saw GOLD. I had found her lost wedding ring, after a full week, in the sand. As I stood up, I was playing coy, making a face of disappointment. Toni saw my face and body language and asked, “What’s that mean?” Since I hadn’t taken the ring out of the sand, I just motioned for her to come over and take a look. As she looked, I pointed to the ring but so little of it was showing, Toni wasn’t sure what she was looking at. I reached into the sand, pulled her ring out and all joy broke loose. High fives and hugs, along with congratulations from those around us broke out. Toni was so happy to have her precious wedding ring, of almost 54 years back, just before her upcoming anniversary. I was truly surprised that after 7 days, the ring was right where she thought it would be. Toni is sleeping well again and after 3 recoveries and returns, starting at 3:00am, this morning I will be sleeping well also. It the best feeling in the world to return a lost item, to the rightful owner and when you have three, it is euphoria. So with three rings returned today, do I call it a “Hat Trick”, “Triple Play”, “Three Ring Circus” “Three-Peat” or something else. Let me know what you would call it. Either way, I have the best job in the world. ❤️🙏

We would like to wish Toni and her husband an early HAPPY 54th ANNIVERSARY. Congratulations! ❤️🍾🥂❤️

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Gold Wedding Band Lost In The Old Orchard Beach Maine Sand, Found With A Metal Detector

  • from Old Orchard Beach (Maine, United States)
Contact:

I had just returned home from a successful Recovery and Return, in the Town of Ogunquit and Cheryl and I had a slew of errands to do, including grocery shopping. Once I showered, we were out the door, headed to Kennebunkport Maine. While we were out and about and almost done with our errands, I had a text message come in at 10:40am.. It was now 12:09 and I don’t know how I missed this message, from 1 1/2 hours earlier . Anyways, this was what the message said,

“Hi Dennis! My name is Duke and my wife thinks she lost her wedding ring at Old Orchard Beach near the end of Pearl Ave. Is there anything you can do to help us?”

I immediately called Duke back. He told me that the previous evening, he, his wife (Francesca) and others had gone down to the beach, at Pearl Ave, in Old Orchard Beach, Maine. They had gone down there to watch the weekly fireworks , put on by Palace Playland Amusement Park. The fireworks were scheduled for 9:45pm and Duke and Francesca had arrived early. While waiting for the fireworks to start, Francesca and Duke started horsing around, chasing each other, on the beach. While playfully running around, Francesca noticed her wedding ring was missing. The area they had been running around, wasn’t very large, maybe 20’ X 75’. Not knowing exactly where the ring came off, they and others started searching the sand but the ring was not located. The next morning, Friday July 11th, they returned to Pearl Ave and started searching again, looking and sifting through the sand. The ring was still not located. A beach goer had noticed what was going on and they were told about the missing ring. The beach goer knew about The Ring Finders of Maine’s Emergency Metal Detecting Services and told them they should contact me. That is when Duke, reached out to me.
After hearing the story, my first reaction was to ask Duke if the Beach Cleaning Machine had cleaned that section of beach, this morning. Duke replied that he hadn’t seen the beach cleaner and the sand was still full of footprints, from the previous evening. Hearing that was a huge relief. If the beach cleaner had gone through the area, the ring would have been scooped up with all the other trash and be long gone by now. I told Duke that I could certainly help search for the ring but I was in Kennebunkport and I would be back in the Old Orchard Beach Maine area around 2:00pm. Duke told me they would be there until I arrived and continue searching for the ring.
Once I arrived, just prior to 2:00pm, parking was at a premium. I couldn’t find parking, on Pearl St., so I went one street south of Pearl, on Union St. and found a spot to park, as someone was leaving. We entered the beach, on Union Avenue and headed north towards Pearl. As Cheryl and I were walking on the beach, I saw a couple, by themselves, with a metal detector, in the area of Pearl Ave.. As I approached, the person saw me and introduced himself. It was Duke and Francesca and Duke had gone to Walmart and purchased a metal detector. He had done this prior to contacting me. The young married couple had only found a few screws. They showed me the area they thought the ring would be in and where they had run around, the night before. Like I mentioned, it really wasn’t a large section and I estimated the entire area would only take me about 20 minutes. I explained to Francesca a Duke that I would perform a grid search, starting near the dune grass and working my way towards the water. I then had Duke throw his Gold Wedding Ring, into the sand. I would show Francesca and Duke how the metal detector works and the sound that the gold ring would make. I scanned my coil over the now disappeared ring and a nice loud low tone, emitted from the metal detector. This made the couple feel much better, knowing my detector would find the ring, once the coil went over it. I started my first grid line, up 75’ and turned around and headed back towards my starting point. Nothing on the first line, other tan 2 dimes and 2 pennies, along with a few pieces of foil. My second pass was not successful and neither was my 3 pass. On my 4th pass on the grid line, I received a loud low tone and I just knew this had to be the ring. Ringing up as an 18 on my VDI Screen was definitely in thee gold range but the tone, to me was unmistakable as gold. I removed my pinpointer and located the target, in the sand. I saw a beautiful shiny gold ring. I picked the ring up, turned towards everyone watching me and asked Francesca “Did you say the wedding ring is 14K Gold?’ She replied “Yes, it’s Gold”. I then held the ring up for everyone to see and said, “I found your ring”. Francesca hurriedly made her way towards me with a BIG smile. Cheers and clapping broke out from everyone in the area. A fantastic feeling of euphoria came over me. It had only taken me, maybe 5 to 7 minutes to find the ring. People shouted out congratulations and came over to shake my hand, along with a big hug from Francesca. Just a great feeling to be able to help others , in their time of need. The best feeling in the world and now I have recovered and returned two rings today.. I had found and returned a wedding ring in Ogunquit Beach, early this morning. Now I am heading to Kinney Shores, Maine, in Saco, Maine. That’s right. While still in Kennebunkport, Maine , Duke wasn’t the only person who contacted me. I would now be driving the 1 mile or so, to Kinney Shores to find a wedding ring, with diamonds, that had been lost on July 4th, a full week earlier. Will I make it 3 for 3 in ring searches for the day? Stay tuned, for more❤️🙏

 

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Gold Wedding Ring Lost In The Ogunquit, Maine Surf, Found With A Metal Detector

  • from Old Orchard Beach (Maine, United States)
Contact:

On Wednesday night at approximately 5:40pm, I received a phone call from Cindy. She was at Ogunquit Beach and her son, Kevin, had just lost his Gold Wedding Ring, in the ocean. Mary told me that Kevin was on his hands and knees, in the water, trying to find his ring. Mary asked if I could come to Ogunquit and try to find his wedding ring. I told Cindy that I would need to check the tide charts because I thought low tide had just passed and the tide should now be coming in. I told Cindy I would call her right back, after I checked the tide charts. As I checked the tide charts, my suspicion was correct. Low tide was at 5:00pm and it was now 5:45pm. I called Cindy back and told her that by the time I got my equipment loaded up in the vehicle and drive to Ogunquit Maine, the tide would be too high, to search for his ring. My best bet would be to see how low the 5:00pm tide was and compare it to the next morning’s low tide. I saw that the morning’s low tide, at 5:47am, would be 0.4, compared to the current low tide of 1.7. This means that the morning low tide would be out further, than the current low tide. I would be able to search just the wet sand and not worry about getting in the water. Perfect. I sent Cindy the information and told her I would be in Ogunquit, Maine, very early, to search for her son’s wedding ring. Cindy sent me a “pinned” location and a photo Kevin had taken, showing the shoreline, from the location he was searching for the ring. Great tools for the search and very smart of Kevin to keep his wits about him, to take the photo.

The next morning, Thursday, I awoke at 3:00am and was out the door at 3:30am. Low tide was at 5:47am and I wanted to arrive in Ogunquit by 4:15am and search the wet sand, as the tide receded. Once on the pre dawn beach, I up immediately started a north and south grid search. At the end of each grid search, I would dig a hole, in the sand, marking the end of the grid line. I was using a lifeguard stand, to the north and a an area 1/2 way between a ramp and a building, to the south, as my boundary markers. The photo and pinned location Kevin sent, showed the ring would be within these boundary markers.
After searching for an hour and a half, I still hadn’t found the ring and the sun was now up. Kevin arrived just before 6:00am and he thought the ring was out further, from where I was searching. I was in the correct area, just not out far enough. The photo was slightly blown up so figuring out the “depth” of how far out on the beach was difficult. Not only that, in my mind were at the morning low tide and the previous evening’s low tide, would have been closer to the shore. So, I went out further on the beach, in line with a large orange buoy and started searching again. I soon arrived to where I had started the search, earlier in the morning. After almost 4 1/2 hours of searching, still no wedding ring. I had searched from the large orange buoy, to almost the shore. Kevin and I made plans to return, the next morning at an even lower tide and continue searching. I would now start searching at the orange buoy and follow the tide out. Kevin would also go to the beach for tonight’s low tide and take some photos of the buoy, to see just how far out past the buoy, the tide actually was.
So this morning, Friday, I again arose at 3:00am. I arrived in Ogunquit at just after 4:00am. The beach was pitch black again. I resumed the search as best I could, in the darkness. Once it started getting light out, I could see my grid marks, much better and the search picked up steam. Both yesterday and this morning, very, very few non ferrous items were being found. After an hour of searching, still no wedding ring but I then received a nice loud low tone, on my Minelab Manticore. It definitely caught my attention and as I ran the coil back over it, I could see the VDI Screen showing a non ferrous, fairly low conductive number of 38. Definitely in the gold range and I was praying this was the ring. I took two big scoops of sand, throwing the first scoop, just to my right and the second scoop, just to the left of the first scoop. I ran my coil over both scoops and the nice loud signal was in the first scoop of sand. I pushed the first pile of sand, with my foot and broke it apart. Some of the sand went flying and just a couple feet away, I saw a metallic object, in the sand. I was nervous because it was round but from where I stood, it kind of looked like a round flip top, from an old beer can. As I leaned over to look at it, I broke out into a big smile and pumped my fist. It wasn’t a flip top, it was a ring. I looked at the inside, of the ring and saw 14K. I had found Kevin’s wedding ring. I then looked at the shoreline and I had found the ring, within the area we thought it would be in and very, very close to the pinned location.
I then took a few photos and sent two of the photos to Kevin, via a text message. Along with the photos I just simply stated “Congratulations”. Kevin’s response, “What?!?!, Im sorry I’m not there- will drive over now!” Kevin arrived just a few minutes later and was amazed he had his wedding ring back on his finger. Kevin told me that he and extended family members, including his parents, sister, cousins and all of their children p, were in Ogunquit for the week. Kevin felt he had put a “damper” on everyone’s vacation, because of his lost ring.
Kevin explained that he was in the shin high water, on Wednesday night, with his 2 year old son. They were just playing around gently splashing water on each other. Then in a split second, Kevin saw his wedding ring go flying off his hand. He tried catching it but it disappeared into the surf and sand. He immediately was on his hands and knees searching for the ring but it had been swallowed up by the ocean. As he was searching, his mother found me online and called me, unbeknownst to Kevin.
So alls well that end well and Kevin texted me later in the day, saying the following
“Headed back to the beach with the family- leaving my ring at home! “
Lesson learned I replied. Cindy, Kevin’s mother also messaged me the following
“Dennis, I can’t thank you enough for helping Kevin to find his ring!!! We are sitting down at the beach looking at the ocean and cannot believe you were able to find the ring! Whenever we think of Vacation 2025 we will remember your kindness!”
I feel so blessed to be able to help people like Kevin. There is no better feeling than to see all the smiles, when we return these very sentimental items. I love making smiles. Every ring has a story and know Kevin’s ring has a new chapter.❤️🙏

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