Gold in Chinese.I've heard people say that the beaches have been hunted out - that it has all been found. And I've heard people say that some of the wrecks are worked out. I don't believe that at all.
The Atocha has been hunted for a long time, yet they are making new great finds daily now. They are hitting new virgin territory and a line of new finds that suggests they are finally on the trail of the sterncastle.
The Treasure Coast wrecks have been hunted for a long time too. Sometimes it seems that some of those wrecks are hunted out and people move to other sites, but then in a year, two, or more, they are back on the old wreck sites making new discoveries again.
Down in Jupiter, the San Miguel Archangel wreck hasn't been worked for as many years as some of the Treasure Coast wrecks, but it has been being worked for quite a while now. Long before the cannons were discovered by the lifeguard one morning, detectorists were finding silver treasure coins on the beach for years. They are making great discoveries there as I write.
Some people might think that even though the wreck sites are providing a lot of new discoveries, the beaches are worked out. I don't believe that either.
It has been slow on the Treasure Coast beaches lately. That is for sure. But it isn't the first time that has happened and it won't be the last. Yet, there will be times when the beaches produce again. I don't think the beaches will be worked out for a long time - if ever.
I believe that we are in the midst of both a long-term cycle of sand accretion, and also in a short term accretion cycle.
As you probably know, every summer the sand accumulates on the Treasure Coast beaches as a result of the southern winds and calmer seas. During winter they normally erode when the waves hit from the northeast. Sometimes the erosion lasts a few days before filling back in, and sometimes it lasts for weeks or months, depending upon weather conditions.
Last year we had almost no northeasters, and very little erosion, except for a very few spots where there were obstacles to the normal flow of sand, for example, the areas immediately south of jetties. On top of that there were all of the beach renourishment projects.
It will probably take a number or storms to significantly cut back all of the accumulated sand now. The sand bars in the shallow water will also protect the beach fronts from a lot of the wave action.
One thing to remember is that the beaches will eventually get renourished. Not with sand, thank goodness, but with treasure. I believe there is a lot of treasure under the sand on the beach fronts and in the back dunes. When the weather is right and the sand gets churned up and eroded enough, the beaches will be replenished.
The Treasure Coast Beaches have been hunted with metal detectors for around fifty years now. I won't deny that many of the coins have been found, but as I said, I believe there are a lot left. When conditions are right they will be in detector range again.
If you go out and watch where people detect, there are a relatively few spots where everybody goes - all the time. But there are also places not far away, where you never see anyone use a detector. I feel certain that some of those seldom detected places will produce treasure when conditions are right.
I feel confident that the Treasure Coast beaches will produce a lot of treasure for years to come. Just like with the wreck sites, there will be times when the hunting is hot and times when it is not. You just have to keep looking.
I've said this before, but one of the things about the beaches is that you can't blow holes like the salvage ships do. You have to wait for Mother Nature to move the sand. But Mother Nature will open the doors from time to time, and the beaches will be replenished.
Granted there is a lot working against us right now. The beaches are sanded in because of the persistent southern winds and the fact that we have not had a good northeaster for what seems to me like about two years now.
But there will be a time when the northeasters come and the beaches get cut back, and the beaches get renourished with treasure instead of sand. It is only a matter of time.
Today, thanks to Jim M., who sent me the link to the video, you'll see some of the recent discoveries from the Jupiter inlet wreck. They found a bunch of silver, including a great Star of Lima and a rare gold coin from that wreck.
Here is the link to the video.
http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/spanish-silver-and-gold-coins-found-near-jupiter-1569074.html
I've actually seen that many silver coins taken from Jupiter beach by a single detectorist back in the eighties over a period of time. He was hunting that beach way before that wreck was being worked by salvage crews.
The NOAA Meritime Heritage Program is using HD sonar to map Civil War and WW II shipwrecks around North Carolina.
Here is the link to that story.
http://www.deseretnews.com/article/700148399/Bid-to-use-sonar-to-map-Civil-War-WWII-shipwrecks.html?pg=2
Treasure Coast Beach Forecast and Conditions.
This morning the wind is from the north/northwest with a swell coming in directly from the east. The sea remains calm.
In a few days the sea will get a little rougher, but only up to two or three feet. That isn't enough to significantly change my beach conditions rating, but it might refreshen some of the low wide beaches where there are still some iron artifacts.
Arlene is out of the picture now, but there is a new area of thunderstorms down around Haiti. NOAA says there is no chance of this developing into a cyclone.
It really doesn't take a hurricane to bring in the coins. A good storm that sits off the coast for a while sending in some good waves at the right angle will do the job.
It is still cloudy out there to day. Be ready for some rain.
Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net
