5/20/20 Report - Beaches. Mystery Items Reappear. Borderline Conditions Last Week. Surf Increasing.

Written by the TreasureGuide for the exclusive use of treasurebeachesreport.blogspot.com.

Fort Pierce South Jetty Park Tuesday.

I was in the area and stopped to see how the renourishment project at the Fort Pierce South Jetty beach was doing.  It looks like they finished but didn't dump as much sand as I was expecting to see.  They didn't go as far east or south as I thought they would.  The sand is a fine white sand - nicer looking than some of the previous projects.

Fort Pierce South Jetty Beach Tuesday.

Also stopped at John Brooks.  If I had my pole, I would have done some fishing.  There were some nice schools close in and a nice big fish chasing them.  I didn't take my detector out.

John Brooks Beach Tuesday.

Sand had piled up on the front beach.

John Brooks Beach Tuesday.

I also took a quick look at Frederick Douglass.  Not very exciting, and a thunder storm was coming.

, 

Frederick Douglass Beach Tuesday.

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A couple days ago I posted a photo of a mystery find by DJ.  I got some good information on that object from John C., who showed five examples of the same thing.

Here is what John said.

Yeah, we  used to find those pretty frequently back in the 90s.  I was told back then that they were from a shipwreck, but not associated with 1715, but it's been a while, I haven't found one since I would say the hurricane season of 04.  It's interesting seeing them show up again.

Thanks.   James 1v12 

Items That Look Like the Mystery Item Found by DJ.

Finds and photo by John C.

Thanks John.

Also from the Not Just Coincidence department, below is a find from Steve L. It is the same kind of copper tack I found a few days ago.

Steve said, I also detected turtle trail around low tide Sunday. I saw 2 other guys detecting south ahead of me but none of us were digging much.  I managed to get only one target but I am happy with it. I took a picture next to a penny for size reference. I think it is like the one you found a few days ago I enjoy your blog. Steve L 

If anyone can tell me more about these items, please do.  I'd like to hear from others who have found them and whatever ideas you have about them.  Thanks.

Copper Tack Find by Steve L.

Photo by Steve L.

I always say when you find one of an item, there is a very good chance that there is more nearby.

Last Thursday I checked out a beach and there was some erosion, but I didn't know if it was enough.  I found this piece of lead, which as I said in a previous post, I took as what I call a signal find.

That piece, dense and nearly the size of a cob, told me that there was a possibility of other older dense metals nearby, so I checked the next day and found a few more small and seemingly old items, including another folded piece of lead.  My finds, along with John and Steve's finds, suggests to me that beach conditions were getting very close to producing some cobs, and perhaps would have produced one or two small ones if I had been in just the right place.  While beach conditions were not great yet, they were improving.  Unfortunately, the next day, conditions on the same beach seemed to deteriorate.  With the calm conditions we've had lately, I would guess that there are still some things that are close and could easily become accessible again with a little more movement of sand.

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Archaeologists are racing against the clock to save the remains of a buried Viking ship from a ruthless foe:  fungus.

If the project is successful, the 65-foot-long (20 meters) oak vessel — called the Gjellestad ship — will become the first Viking ship to be excavated in Norway in 115 years, said Sveinung Rotevatn, the Norwegian Minister of Climate and Environment...

Here is the link for more about that.

https://elexonic.com/2020/05/18/fungus-is-destroying-a-buried-viking-ship-heres-how-norway-plans-to-save-it/

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Looks like after today the small surf will disappear from the Treasure Coast.  Then we'll get up to six feet.

Surf Predictions.

Source: MagicSeaWeed.com.

Happy hunting,
Treasureguide@comcast.net

1/27/20 Report - Overall Beach Conditions Deteriorating Around the Treasure Coast.

Written by the TreasureGuide for the exclusive use of treasurebeachesreport.blogspot.com.

Pile of New Sand on John Brooks Beach Near Low Tide on 1/27

I took a look at John Brooks This morning near low tide and found a big pile of new sand on the beach front.  That is what I expected, having earelier looked at a beach cam that showed some slow small swells coming onto the beach.  If you are a shell hunter, you might enjoy it even though John Brooks doesn't seem to have any real interesting shells.

I was remembering this morning a time years ago when you could find pot holes right in front of the beach.  Now it is very sandy.

It will take more than the small swells we are predicted to have to move much of this newly accumulated sand.

DJ sent photos of some of the other South Hutchinson Island beaches.  I think they are from this morning.

Frederick Douglass Beach

Photo by DJ

Frederick Douglass Beach

Photo by DJ

Middle Cove

Photo by DJ

Middle Cove

Photo by DJ

Fort Pierce South Jetty

Photo by DJ

Up in the Vero area, here is what Turtle Trail looked like around noon this morning.

Turtle Trail 1/27

Turtle Trail 1/27

Turtle Trail 1/27

At Turtle Trail the cuts were gone and just a bit of a few bags were showing.  Just a slight bit of scalloping.

My Treasure Coast Treasure Beach Metal Detecting Rating is now a 1.  As I've explained in the past, my lowest beach conditions rating is a 1, not a zero, because there is always a chance.  The productive areas become fewer and smaller when overall conditions are not good, but you may still be able to find some small isolated areas created by local conditions.  One thing you might consider if you have a lot of time to spend is doing some scouting for those kinds of places.  I discussed that type of thing several times in the past.  Remember, when the sand is building in one place, it is leaving another.

I don't expect much improvement in beach conditions in the next few days.

Source: MagicSeaWeed.com

Happy hunting,

TreasureGuide@comcast.net

  

1/23/20 Report - T. C. Beach Conditions Rating Decreased. Beach Developments. One Find.

Written by the TreasureGuide for the exclusive use of treasurebeachesreport.blogspot.com.

Chunky Four-Reale Dug Yesterday.

I'll do some cleaning and close-up photography and show other finds some other time, but mostly what I want to do now is show what some of the beaches looked like this morning.

Yesterday I showed photos of Ambersands, Seagrape and Turtle Trails.  I have photos of those beaches from this morning so you can see how things changed since yesterday.

First Ambersands.

Ambersands 1/23

You can compare that with yesterday's photo, which was taken closer to low tide.

Damaged Stairs At Seagrape Trail 1/23

The bottom of the stairs at Seagrape have been damaged by the high water lately.  I'm surprised they haven't closed Seagrape Trail yet.  That could happen.

Seagrape Trail Beach 1/23

You can see that the water has been chipping away at the foot of the dunes.

Erosion Control Bags at Turtle Trail 1/23

Last night dumped several inches of sand over the bags at Turtle Trail, which were much more exposed yesterday.

Turtle Trail to the South Near the Second Flag Pole 1/23

Here is a picture of a cut that I posted yesterday from about the same area.  The cut was gone today and the slope was mushy.

Cut on Seen at Turtle Trail Yesterday 1/22

There was more sand on the slope today.  The cuts were smoothed out.  The beach was mushier, but the dunes were still being cut into.   Much of that was into renourishment sand.

Here is another photo of the same area today.

Turtle Trail 1/23

Yesterday the spot shown in the photo above had about seven inches of sand over the older orange sand.  With the additional sand today, there would be somewhere around a foot or more of sand over the old orange sand in that area.

John Brooks Beach Today 1/23

The water had been back pretty far at John Brooks, but the beach was pretty smooth, with only some small dips.

High Water Line At John Brooks This Morning 1/23

It looks like the surf was coming more directly onto the beaches today, rather than having the angle that created the cuts.

I'll get into that more some other time.  In recent years most of the windows of opportunity have been brief.  Lately they have often been occurring early when a front comes through but don't last long.

The more you know about the history of a beach, the better off you will be.  To get the most out of a single beach photo, it should be taken in its historical context.  A day old, or week old or year old photo has value if you know how to use it.  I'd love to have a photo of the same beach from the same  spot taken over the decades, for example,  That would show how it developed and put its current condition in context.  Where the beach was yesterday, last week, or last year, are all important and useful facts that help you better understand where it is today.    I'll get into that more some other time too.  There are a lot of things to talk about.

I was pleased with the performance of the Equinox in rough black sand beach conditions.  I'll get into that more some other time too.

Notice that I didn't decrease my conditions rating to a 1.  Just to a 2.  We'll see which way it goes from here.

The surf is still pretty high today.  It will be decreasing slowly for a couple days.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net

1/10/20 Report - Treasure Coast Beach Metal Detecting Conditions Rating Increase. Broward Shell Show This Weekend.

Written by the TreasureGuide for the exclusive use of treasurebeachesreport.blogspot.com.

John Brooks Beach Friday.

I took a look at a few beaches today and did some detecting.  To get to the most important thing first, I'm increasing my beach detecting conditions rating to a solid 2.  Since I only looked at a few beaches, and they were all on South Hutchinson Island, I'm being conservative.   If I knew some of the other beaches improved also, I might issue a 3 rating.  I suspect they did but don't have that information yet.

John Brooks Beach Friday Just Before Low Tide.

If you've been following this blog very long, you know my rating scale is a five point rating scale.  A 1 rating indicates a very low probability of finding shipwreck coins or artifacts, while a 5 rating indicates a very good chance of finding shipwreck coins or artifacts.  I've broken it down more finely in the past.  A 2 is a transitional rating indicating improved conditions and a better chance of finding old shipwreck items, but they won't in my opinion  be very abundant.

My first stop today was John Brooks.  There was some good erosion, especially to the north.  Up by where the old Christmas Tree used to be and beyond, some of the cuts were about six feet high.

John Brooks Beach Friday.

Looks like some water on the lens blurred the cuts some.

There were good numbers of modern coins scattered widely on John Brooks, along with some EOs and some currently uncleaned and unidentified objects.

Next I stopped at Frederick Douglass, which was not as cut.  One of the cast members of the Oak Island TV show was just leaving.

Frederick Douglass Beach Friday Before Low Tide.

I did some detecting there and hit both silver and gold - both modern.  Frederick Douglass did not have such nice cuts as John Brooks.

I did more actual metal detecting than I've done in a long time.  I probably put in a couple of hours of swinging.  I haven't been able to do that for quite a while.

Frederick Douglass Beach Friday.

I then took a look at Walton Rocks to see what was going on down that way.  Nothing much.

So then I took a look at the beach to the North of John Brooks, up by the condos.

Beach in Front of the Condos to the North of John Brooks.

Looking Back Towards John Brooks From the Condos.

I can't help think of times when the beaches were back one or two hundred yards from where they are these days.  There is actually a concrete foundation that was exposed on the beach back in the eighties or nineties down in the area where you see the people in the photo immediately above.  It would be under all that sand to the west of them.

That was something I was thinking about yesterday too.  I stopped at Round Island and remembered where the beach was back years ago.   Now it is a good hundred yards to the east.  There is so much renourishment sand up and down the coast these days.

Yesterday I mentioned Wabasso Beach being closed and the sign which said that it would be closed until Jan. 20.   I also mentioned that I didn't read the entire sign.  JP says the sign says, "Closed for Emergency Nourishment." 

He also said, They dumping truck after truck of sand on the beach. It's my understanding that they are doing Sea Grape as well. Not sure if they going as far south as Turtle but I'm sure at some point they are. 😭.

Thanks,
JP

Thank you, JP.

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I want to get this beach conditions upgrade posted, but have one more timely thing to tell you about.

The Broward Shell Club will be having the Annual Broward Shell Show on January 11 - 12, 2020 at the Emma Lou Olson Civic Center, 1801 NE St., Pompano Beach, Florida, 33061.

I know some of you are shell collectors.  Here are a couple links.

https://browardshellclub.org/2020-shell-show-announcement-and-forms/

https://browardshellclub.org/

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The surf is expected to decrease only a very small amount tomorrow.  It looks like the swells will not change direction much.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net

12/19/19 Report - Treasure Coast Beach Conditions Improvement This Morning. Some Old Shipwerck Items Being Found.

Written by the TreasureGuide for the exclusive use of treasurebeachesreport.blogspot.com.

Seagrape Trail Thursday Morning.

After the good north wind that we were getting yesterday, I went out this morning to look at some beaches.  Beach conditions had improved since yesterday.  I'll give at least a 2 rating on my five-point beach conditions scale.  A two rating is what I call transitional.  I wouldn't be surprised if a few coins were found.  I know that some old shipwreck items were found this morning, including such things as musket balls and strips of copper.  There were also some nice shell piles this morning.

I don't have time for a detailed report, but wanted to alert you to the improved conditions.  Below is what I saw this morning.

Seagrape Trail Thursday Morning.

Turtle Trail Thursday Morning.

Turtle Trail Thursday Morning.

Turtle Trail Thursday Morning.

Turtle Trail Thursday Morning.

John Brooks Thursday Morning.

John Brooks Thursday Morning.

The wind is still blowing pretty good, although it seems the direction has changed.  I can't say if the next tides will result in improvement to beach conditions or not.

Source; MagicSeaWeed.com

Looks like the surf will be increasing, but of course so much depends upon the direction of the wind and swells.

Happy hunting,

Treasureguide@comcast.net

9/19/19 Report - Beach Conditions Along The Treasure Coast. Ten Centavo Coin.

Written by the TreasureGuide for the exclusive use of treasurebeachesreport.blogspot.com.

John Brooks Early Thursday

I took a look at John Brooks and Frederick Douglass beaches this morning just before 9 AM and found the water coming up fairly high.  It was hours before high tide, and it looked like the water would get as high as after Dorian.  The next two days the water is expected to be even higher than today.

John Brooks Before 9 AM Thursday.

Frederick Douglass Beach Just Before 9 AM Thursday.

Notice the shell line.  There haven't been many shells lately.

Frederick Douglass Beach Just Before 9 AM Thursday.

Yesterday Joe D. visited a lot of the Treasure Coast beaches and sent me photos.  Thanks much Joe.  That should be a lot of help to people wondering what beach conditions are like, whether to make the trip or where to go.

The following series of pictures was taken yesterday by Joe.

Rio Mar.

Vero

Vero Boardwalk

Turtle Trail.

Turtle Trail

Seagrape Trail.

Seagrape Trail.

Wabasso

Wabasso

Golden Sands.

Treasure Shores

Treasure Shores.

Ambersands.

Thanks again Joe.

I looked north of McLarty yesterday and it was about the same.  There were no real cuts anywhere.  The water had been to the foot of the dunes, but where there was a cliff, it was renourishment sand.

I know a lot of people were disappointed so far with all of the high surf we have been having but almost no erosion or cuts.  As I said above, we are supposed to have even higher water the next two days.

I think the big problem is all of the renouishment sand.  It is still protecting the dunes, and there is a lot of it out in front of the beaches too.  Also, the water has been hitting the beaches directly from the east instead of at a an angle.

At this point I can't rate beach conditions as any higher than a 1 (poor).  Maybe that will change soon.  We can hope.

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Here is a coin that John E. says matches his find that I posted yesterday except he isn't able to make out the date.

Cuba 10 Centavo.

Alberto S. commented on that coin.

Very interesting find of a Cuban coin in Vero, makes you wonder how it ended up on a beach there, maybe an American tourist visiting Cuba and returning with some pocket change? As to the words on top of the star; Patria y Libertad translated to English; Country and Liberty. You would find those words on coins of the time which were minted in Philadelphia for the government of Cuba, actually there were several coins minted in Philadelphia see the attached list published by the NGC Collectors Society. The coin found by John E. is probably a Cuban 10 cent coin and not a 1 cent, there are some differences and in the attached image I tried to show some features that distinguish the 1 cent from the 10 cent coins, similar markings are on the 20 cent and the Cuban peso but since he said it was the size of a dime then it probably is the Cuban 10 cent coin, one additional detail is that the C which is visible in the coin that he found is slightly off center which is not something you see in the 20 cent or peso where the first letter of centavo or peso seems to start at the center also, but not sure, I think there is an E following the C.  Personally, I would have been thrilled to make such a find as it is from my country of birth.

 

Thanks Alberto.

If I correctly recall, Sebastian Steve found a similar coin on a Treasure Coast beach.  It does make you wonder how it got there.

There is plenty of weather to watch.  I'll stay on that.

Happy hunting,

Treasureguide@comcast.net