5/31/17 Report - Shipwreck Sinking and Debris Dispersion Model. Detector Depth and Finding Cobs. 103 Gram Meteorite Find.

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

103 Gram Meteorite Found by SuperRick with Metal Detector
Photo by SuperRick.

We don't have great meteorite hunting in Florida, but they can be found.  I for one don't know if I ever found one or not.  I don't know enough about them to know for sure. Some Florida people have told me that they did find meteorites.

Rick thought the one above (which was not found in Florida)  was a "cold" meteorite, which means that it was not found in a known meteorite area, but then another fellow said he found one in the same area. When it comes to meterorites, a "cold find" is a find made where none had been found before.  It is something like finding a shipwreck cob where there is no known shipwreck and where cobs have not been found before.  That is very different from hunting on a well known shipwreck beach.  It makes the odds much bigger against you, and it makes the find potentially very significant.

Here is the link to SuperRick's YouTube video about the meterorite find.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5vva01ePYkg&t=14s

You might remember the big meteorite auction that I mentioned not long ago.  Some meteorites can be worth a lot.

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Here is an excellent scientific article on shipwreck sinkings and the formation of the debris field.

On the Hydromechanics of Vessels and Debris Fields During Sinking Events by Sean Kery.

Here is the abstract.

When a vessel leaves the surface and plunges to the seabed, a lot of things can happen that will affect its orientation and position on the seabed and the creation and distribution of the debris field. Crushing and catastrophic implosion due to the rapidly increasing hydrostatic pressure has been noted on portions of many wrecks. Extensive damage due to bottom impact and subsequent motions have also been observed and documented. This paper describes the successful numerical modeling of the sinking of several historic vessels. One was in deep water and another in shallow water. In both cases it was possible for the simulation to replicate important details of the debris field. Further work is planned to help explain some of the taphonomy observed as the wreck decays over time as it is acted on by bottom currents, benthic storms and in the shallow case storm waves. 

This is not light reading.

http://www.sname.org/HigherLogic/System/DownloadDocumentFile.ashx?DocumentFileKey=a7f10ad9-1b65-03ed-757b-7be8daa49310

When thinking about how a ship breaks up and debris gets distributed, here are a few types of damage and debris dispersion to consider as presented in the article.

Damage unrelated to the sinking which occurred over the vessels service life prior to the sinking 
Damage which was causative in the sinking 
Damage which occurred during progressive flooding 
Damage which occurred in the water column on the way down including hydrostatic implosion, and unsecured objects falling off 
Damage due to bottom impact, including collision damage leading to hydraulic outbursts 2 
Debris dispersion due to objects which came off higher in the water column sinking at different rates through layered currents. Objects that fall slower are carried further by currents. 
Debris dispersion due to the sinking microburst plume and hydraulic outburst plumes 
Damage due to currents, waves, benthic storms, corrosion, and biodegradation in situ. 

That gives you some idea of the type of information you will find in that article.

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Depth is always the big question when it comes to metal detectors.  People usually do an air test and report that X detector will detect a coin at Y inches.  I've talked extensively about the limitation of air tests in the past and recommended some alternatives.  That isn't what I want to talk about now.

The deepest seeking detector, no matter how depth is measured or defined, is not always the best detector for a particular job.  There are a lot of factors to consider.

People often want the deepest seeking detector, but then use their "deep seeking detector" in a way that achieves much less than the best performance.  The wrong sweep or settings can result in very poor performance.  There can be a big difference between the potential depth and the actual depth in field conditions and actual use.

The main point I want to make right now is that depth isn't as important as you might think when hunting cobs on a beach.  The vast majority of cobs I've found have been within and inch or two of the surface.

A few days ago, I provided a link to a video that showed a guy finding old silver coins on the surface without even using a metal detector.  That was because he was looking in the right place.  He was looking where coins had been exposed.  The most important thing in my opinion, is looking in the right place - which are the places where things accumulate and remain near the surface.  In those places they will be on the surface or very near the surface.

Besides eye-balling, another way to know when you are in the right type of place is by analyzing what is in the area, including junk.  That is one reason I don't discriminate a lot.  Junk gives you important information about how good the area is.  Junk can be a good sign or a bad sign, depending upon the type of junk it is.  Different types of junk will normally, on a beach, have a predictable relationship to good targets.  Good targets will tend to be closer to junk targets that are in some ways similar to the "good" targets.  Density is one of several characteristics to consider.  Junk and other targets aren't randomly distributed.  There are reasons they are where they are.  There are enough unknowns and enough complexity to disguise some of the patterns though.

I've eye-balled cobs laying on the sand several times.  And that was not back decades ago and it was not after any of the major hurricanes.

I'm not talking about cobs back in the dunes, where they will often be down a foot or so.  I'm talking about beach cobs, which as you know, most often show up during periods of erosion.

A couple days ago I showed what appeared to be a seawall and discussed how coins can work down along a wall or other things.  That is a little different situation too.  Still they are not going to sink until the sand moves from the area.  It can take a long time for them to sink very deep.  But that was a special situation and not the type of thing I am talking about now.  Coin traps are another matter that I'll talk about again some other time.

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On the Treasure Coast we're still having smooth seas.  The tides are more moderate.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net

5/30/17 Report - Exposed Reef In Ambersands/Sebastian Area. Big Nested Iron Pots Found On Margarita Site. Personal Story of Sadness and Gratitude.

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

Exposed Rocks at Low Tide.
Photo by Darrel S.

 The rocks you see in the picture above and below were found by Darrel S. two or three days ago in the Ambersand/Sebastian area.

He detected the area and said he dug a hundred holes and left fifty more targets he didn't feel like digging.  There was a lot of small junk.  A lot of fishing stuff (See below.).

Rocks Exposed At Low Tide Up In Sebastian Area.
Photo by Darrel S.

Dug Fishing Related Junk.
Photo by Darrel S.

Darrel also said there was a lot of noseeums one day.  And on Sunday the parking lots in the Turtle Trail area where full - both sides of A1A.  He didn't find a place to park.

Well Memorial Day is over and there should be some out there that the beach-goers lost.  We are getting the summer heat now.

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Here is some news from the Fisher organization.

The Sea Reaper worked the Margarita scatter where a lot of artifacts from the galley were found.  They recovered over 100 artifacts in that area, including two heavily encrusted large nested iron pots.  Other finds included musket balls, majolica, blade fragments and other unidentified objects.

They will be searching an area that they call the "silver store house," which is where 17th century salvors found numerous silver bars.  Personal property of passengers such as emeralds and jewelry might also be found in the area. One eight reales has been found there.

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I posted a picture of may father yesterday.  He was in France in 1943, I think.  I posted that it was 1944 yesterday, but after thinking about it some more, I think it was probably 1943.  Anyhow, I awoke last night thinking about something I felt compelled to post today.

When I was about eleven  years old, which would have been about 1956, my dad was driving me somewhere on a unpaved road that snaked along the top of  ridge.  On both side there were green farm fields descending into a valley.  Near one very sharp bend in the road, somebody was building a house on top of a high point that would have been a fine lookout from which you could see for miles in every direction.   It was a very small house being built out of what appeared to be second hand lumber.  Mockingly I cracked, "You might as well live in a chicken coop."  My dad's reaction was strong.  I could see the anger in his eyes.  He told me something like, "Never judge a person like that."  At the time, I didn't really understand why he reacted the way he did.

Many years later - a few years after he passed away - I learned why he responded the way he did.  He was right.  It was wrong to judge a person that way, but there was more to it.  When he was young - younger than I was when this incident took place - there were times when he lived on the streets.  His father was gone and he dug ditches and did what he could from the time he was ten years old. I was too young to realize it, but he was ashamed of his childhood and early family life,  He never talked about it, and  I never knew or met any of his relatives.  If I asked about his family he just said that he was s*it in a field and hatched.

Back to the chicken coop.  When he was about the age I was when this incident occurred ( which would have been during the Great Depression, as well as I can figure it ) he and his destitute single mother and two half siblings lived in a chicken coop.

He wouldn't want me to tell you this, He wouldn't want anyone to know about his youth.  It wasn't long ago that I learned about this.

He was ashamed of where he came from.  He should have been proud of what he overcame to become the man he was.  I thought we were rich.  We didn't have much ( something else I didn't realize at the time ), but I had more than the other kids I knew.  I really did feel wealthy.  I never went without food, and he made sure I had more than I needed and everything I wanted.  He should have been proud.  I had love and security and he spent his hard earned money on toys and things for me that he never had.

I didn't realize it at the time, but he should have been proud, and I should have been ashamed.  But what do kids know?  What do any of us know?

It is always hard for later generations to know what it was like before their time.  And it is therefore hard to appreciate their accomplishments.  The same thing applies to history in general as well as metal detecting.

Very often, we know too little until it is too late.  Thanks dad!

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Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net

5/29/17 Memorial Day.

My Dad In France
1944.

Pennsylvania Today

I watched TV yesterday.  On one show I saw people at the beach being interviewed.  They didn't know who won the Revolutionary War or who was in the Civil War or World War II.  On another show I watched elderly WW II vets who survived the Normandy landing as they returned to France some seventy years later.   They were greeted with tears and kisses by young and old French townspeople who appreciatively kept the memory of those days alive. The contrast couldn't have been more stark.

I have a lot that I could write about metal detecting today, but won't.  For me, it is a solemn day for remembering.

5/28/17 Report - Understanding How Nature Creates Treasure Caches. The Importance of Visually Scanning Treasure Sites.

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

Finds and photo by Russ P.
Note the Barber Dime and Other Old Coins.

Russ sent me a great email in response to my 5/23 post in which I wrote on the subject, "You can't accomplish what you can't imagine."  Here is what Russ said.

Hope you are doing well.  Enjoyed your column yesterday *  I found it to be dead on.

I first detected between the years 1984-1989.  Though my area was moderately hunted, I never met any other detectorists.  However, I read a lot of the treasure magazines that were available.  I spent way too much mental time lamenting that I wasn't in one of the "good" areas that produced great finds featured in the articles or wishing that I would have gotten into detecting in the 1970's before everything was hunted out!  I'm embarrassed by my mindset, looking back.  I found 26 silver coins in those five years, the oldest 1936.

When I was reconsidering the hobby five years ago, the big question in my mind was if there were any finds left.  I almost did not purchase a detector because of that concern.  However, I'm glad I did.  I am primarily interested in old coins and my current finds far outstrip those finds from the 1980's, including finds that I make without even using a detector, despite hunting in the same general area that I felt was hunted out in the 1980's.

The fact is that some  detectorists find much more than others.  Even if someone does not find more than you, there may be something to learn.  If you had been showing up at my club (though I'm not in one!) with all those finds, I would have been picking your brain for something to apply to my detecting situations.

I don't watch many youtube find videos, but occasionally I'll watch the innovative aquachigger.  This video made me think of your blog, as it demonstrates many of the points you make.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VY98TTElPK8

He goes to unfamiliar territory in Texas, I think, to fossil hunt on a river with a local buddy.  However, he happens upon a collection of iron junk that he quickly realizes has been "sorted" by the river.  He then goes on to eyeball some great coins.  The local guy, who hunts the river for fossils all the time, has never found a coin on the river!  Aquachigger finds a handful, by eyeballing, on his first trip.  There are so many lessons here, but perhaps the biggest is there is a reason why some folks find more than others and it is almost never due to luck.

I'm sending you a picture of my morning finds in an hour hunt.  It is a lot I've been to several times, finding only a couple of wheats and a few marbles, but clearly with more potential.  Conditions changed so I returned.  This is the most marbles I've found in an outing and some are in terrific condition.

Take care,

Thanks Russ.

If you watch that video, you'll see how the fellow found old silver coins without using a metal detector.  The video provides some very good tips.

In the past I've talked about eye-balling a lot.  Closely inspecting the area is always a good first step.  You can visually scan a lot of ground quickly.  That will help you get some good ideas on where to spend your with a metal detector.

Below is an area that I hunted briefly about a week ago.

Back maybe ten or more years ago, this structure was buried.  I could see something was there but I didn't know what.  I could just see a few very small pieces sticking out of the sand. I could detect big iron and more to the right of what you see in the photo, I could see a little of what were obviously large slabs of concrete sticking out of the sand  The structure that you see in the photo was not visible at all.

When I last detected the area I found some iron  along with a few badly corroded and encrusted coins.  Also some sinkers and bullets.

You should be able to imagine the path of coins as they would travel over the years. Some of those eroding out of the sand to the right of the picture, assuming they were there to begin with, would be caught by the structures, settling into the crevices and around the structures.  The water would rush around those things, and the objects would stop where ever they got caught or settle into dips or crevices.  When they get covered they won't move for a while until they get uncovered and the water rushes over them again.  Then they'll either be washed out or sink deeper as the sand washes away. The deepest they will sink will be lowest point that the sand was eroded.  The covering and uncovering can happen many times, but they'll only move when exposed and they'll only sink to the lowest surface area created by the erosion.

If there were any items lost before the structure was created, they might still be near the bottom of the structure.

In the above picture you can see a depression around the posts at the front of the picture.  That depression is caused by the water rushing around the posts.  Coins, or whatever, that are washed out of the bank and down the slope can be trapped in depressions like that and remain there until the sand erodes more or the force of water increases enough to wash them out, which of course, would also move more sand.

Unfortunately you won't be able to detect very close to the structures.  To complicate matters, there are plenty of iron bolts and nails.

The only way you can get to the accumulated items, is to remove the sand or wait until erosion moves the sand again.

Older items will tend to be deeper because they would have been can sink deeper every time the sand is eroded to a deeper level.

More recently lost items will be very near the surface, depending upon how far the sand eroded in the recent past.

There are two big points that I want you to get today.  One is the value of eye-balling, and the second is the importance of understanding how water moves sand and other items.  If you understand that, you can figure out where things will accumulate.

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On the Treasure Coast, the surf is going to be smooth, the tides big and the weather hot.  We'll have some nice negative tides.

Have a safe weekend.

Remember.

By the TreasureGuide@comcast.net

5/27/17 Report - Research From Laura Strolia On Old Spanish Medallion Find. Beaches Around the Treasure Coast. Bal Harbour.

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

I received some great information on Bart's medallion (See pictures posted yesterday.) from Laura Strolia, who has often contributed important research on various 1715 Fleet religious artifacts such as the Pelican of Piety to this blog.  You might also remember her book, The Marigalera of the 1715 Fleet.  Below is what Laura had to say about Bart's medallion find.

One side of the medal represents the Immaculate Conception with the words, “Virgo Sine Peccato Originale Concepta.”  It thus says the “Virgin Mary Conceived Without Original Sin.”

The opposite side shows the Blessed Sacrament or “Santisimo Sacramento.”

The early 17^th century began the period to push for the acceptance of the Immaculate Conception as dogma.  In 1621, the Franciscans pledged to teach and spread the mystery. Most of the Spanish missions in Texas were established by the Franciscans beginning in the 17^th century.

The Immaculate Conception and Sacred Sacrament were two very popular images seen together in Catholic art.  Along with clergy members, confraternities (religious organizations) greatly promoted what they believed.

The sacred piece discovered in Texas likely dates from the 17^th or 18^th century.  The chances are equal—it could have belonged to a priest (most likely Franciscan) or a faithful layperson.  For more history on this topic see the post,

2/5/16 Report - Laura Strolia's Historical Research Related To A 17th Century Artifact Found By A Detectorist In North Florida

I said I thought it might be Jesuit.  Forget what I said.  Listen to Laura.

Once again, thanks much Laura!

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The weather, although I actually preferred the rainy day we recently had, is nice but getting a little hot for my taste.  Here are a few photos from around the Treasure Coast.

South End of Walton Rocks Beach.

There was a small cut down by the condos.  There were a few fossils in the shells, including one fossil tooth.  There was also a little sea glass.

Directly in Front Of John Brooks Beach

John Brooks Beach Looking North.

The above photos were taken yesterday near low tide.  Up by the bend, the cut was a little more fresh and crisp.

The following photos were take a day earlier.

Treasure Shores Thursday.
Photo by Darrel S.

North of Ambersands Beach.
Photo by Darrel S.

The tide was nice and low recently and rocks were exposed at various beaches along the coast as far south as House of Refuge and Walton Rocks to as far north as the Sebastian area.

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Stanley Whitman, the visionary who built an open-air mall on the site of a former German World War II prisoner-of-war camp in Bal Harbour when everyone told him he was crazy, lived to see his grand idea become one of the world’s most successful luxury shopping centers...

Here is a good article on Stanley Whitman.who recently passed at 98.

http://bvtnews.com/business/bal-harbour-shops-founder-stanley-whitman-dies-at-98.html

I used to detect a good bit along the beach across the street from the shops.  It has changed a lot since then, and hundreds of yards of sand was added to the beach not long ago.  The old hotel that was there was replaced by a much larger resort.

--

No change significant change in beach conditions to report.  Take advantage of the big tides, especially the nice low tides.  Take the sunscreen and water.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net

5/26/17 - Colonial Era Religious Medallion Find. Metal Detecting Practice In The Park.

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

Nice Religious Medallion Find.
Find and photo by Bart B.

Here is what Bart said about the medallion.

I found this along the Old Spanish Trail in Texas and have had no luck determining how old it is. Based on your article it could be pre 1800 due to the direction of the hole at the top of the medal, any other insight would be greatly appreciated.

Near as I can tell the writing on this side says:

R or B*VIRGO*SINE*PECCATO*OR or B*CONC

The writing on this side is very worn, my best guess is:

SS*SAC L*S*LL or 11

Other Side of Same Medallion.
Find and photo by Bart B.

Virgo sine pecatto means virgin without sin.  IHS refers to Christ.  I think it is Jesuit.

Same Medallion From the Side.
Photo by Bart B.

Thanks for sharing Bart.  I hope the readers can provide more information on the medallion.

The wear looks a little strange to me.  Some of the low spots are as worn smooth as much as the high spots where you would expect a lot of wear.  Maybe that is from manufacture.

The surface corrosion (or lack thereof) sure looks different from the medals you typically find on the beach, but that is to be expected since it came from a different kind of environment.  A salt water beach is really hard on metal.

Thanks for sharing Bart!

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I seldom post YouTube videos except for the few I've made to illustrate specific things.  I'll share this one though.  I have a variety of reasons for that.  One big reason is the message that Rick delivers.  It is an important message and something I would say myself, but Rick has already done it.  I also referred to this same video in another post a day or two ago.  Rick has often contributed to this blog.

Here is what Rick said in his email to me.

When you get out and practice with your detector you start finding what others have missed. Here are some of the finds (See video) that I had after hitting the local parks. I use the parks as practice and I will hit the same park many times changing settings on the detector every time that I hunt the same park!

You can't get any better at what you are doing if you don't practice what you are doing and what better way of doing it then hunting a local park or two. Now if you live by the beach, you need to go there at different times of the day to see where all of the activity is! One of the things that changing where to hunt is the new parking meters. Most are not using change, and let's face a fact, in south Fla. it cost a lot to park on the beach.  The only problem is that beach-goers are now paying for their parking by credit card.

So you are better off setting up for jewelry and hunting the beaches where you have a lot of beach goers that like to show off what they have in the way of jewelry! Do you have any beach bars where these kind love to hang out?

The main thing I want to repeat is "practice, practice, practice."  Trying different kinds of environments helps you learn more about detecting and your detecting too.  If you don't have the time to go where you really want to go, or you just want to practice, a local park (where they permit it) it just fine.  In a park you might have the challenge of surface trash.  You might learn how to overcome that.  You might have to worry more about target separation and target masking.  You can learn from that.  And even though you might not find the Queen's Jewels at your local park, if you keep at it long enough, I'll be you eventually get a pleasant surprise.

Here is Rick's YouTube video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CZd6emKGasA&ytbChannel=Rick%20superrick

Thanks Rick!

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If you've been waiting for calm water and a good low tide, this might be your chance.  Take a look at this.  Just in time for the long weekend too.

Source: Magicseaweed.com.

Send me any thoughts or information you might have on Bart's medallion find.

4:31 PM Update:  I just received a lot of good information on the medallion from researcher and author Laura Strolia.  I'll post that tomorrow.

Happy hunting,

TreasureGuide@comcast.net

5/25/17 Report - Various Types of Finds and Objects. A Quick Video Tip For Target Recovery.

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

Great Diamond Ring Metal Detector Find.
Find and photo by SuperRick.

Great find Rick!  Thanks for sharing.

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50,000 frozen Alaskan artifacts were saved.   Some were very unusual exceptionally nice.  Here is a brief excerpt from a BBC News article.

He [ Frank Knecht ] said: "The unique conditions in this arctic region mean artefacts have retained an unbelievable level of detail.

"We have uncovered grass baskets and mats made when Shakespeare walked the earth but when we take them out of the ground the grass weaving still retains a trace of its green colour and we have been amazed by the variety and intricacy of the woven patterns."

One Beautifully Preserved Wood and Ivory Artifact.
Source: See BBC link below.

Here is the link.

http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-north-east-orkney-shetland-39973667

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These very old fossil finds were made earlier this week.

Fossil Finds From This Week.

The above fossil finds were discovered in shell piles this week.  They aren't the biggest or best Treasure Coast fossils, but they certainly are old.

Included are three turtle skutes and one pad.

As you can see, they are all fairly small.

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Now for something really ugly that sold for over  $110 million.

http://www.939thebeat.com/2017/05/22/basquiat-painting-sold-at-110-5-million-sets-new-auction-record/

One Very Ugly But Very Valuable Painting.
Source: See The Beat link above.

Certainly ugly, but very valuable.  There is no accounting for the tastes of some people.   It can be difficult to estimate the value of some collectibles.

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In a recent post I mentioned how I watched YouTube videos and counted the seconds it took to recover targets.  Here is a tip that might help you recover targets more quickly.  I use it, but it will only be helpful if you detect and pick up any small iron targets.  If you discriminate iron or don't detect in junky places, it won't help you much.

I sometimes use a magnet with a long handle, mostly when detecting old house sites or something like that.  When you have an small iron target, like maybe a nail or some other piece of rusted iron, just use the magnet to pick it up.  Don't spend time pinpointing or trying to dig it up until you've used the magnet.  Chances are that in a high percentage of the situation, especially if the soil is mostly sand, the magnet will pick up the nail or whatever in no time at all.  A lot of iron junk will be near the surface, but you can even work the magnet down into the sand a little ways, and you will hear the target click onto the magnet.  The video shows one example of when the target was very near the surface and another time when the target was down an inch or so.

Here is the link to the short little video illustration.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eZ2XQiljBF4

This is just one more tool that you might find handy at times.  I think I got the one shown at Tractor Supply for just a few dollars.  You can also purchase magnet rakes like those used by roofers to clean up after a job.  They can be used before detecting just to get some of the junk out of the way.  I call it "site preparation."

Of course you can discriminate out iron, but it is often better to remove it for a variety of reasons.  For one thing, it can mask good targets.  And there might be iron targets that actually help you understand a site and other iron targets that might be desirable relics.



I once posted a description of a multiple stage detecting strategy for old sites.

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Yesterday was windy.  Even the wind of an isolated thunder storms can cut a beach a little if it hits at the right time and way.  It won't be huge though, but it can make a difference.

Don't expect any big changes to the beach for at least a few days though.  The surf will be small. There will be some decent tides though.

Happy hunting,

• TreasureGuide@comcast.net

5/24/17 Report - Vero Area and South Hutchinson Island Beaches. Capitana Crew At Work.

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

Turtle Trail South Tuesday.
Photo by Darrel S.

Darrel S. sent in some recent views of Turtle Trail yesterday (Tuesday)  In the one above you can see the shell piles that will be of interest to some of you.

Besides shells, you might want to check the shell piles for things such as small fossils, sea glass or pot shards.

Darrel sent in another excellent report today.  Here it is.

Not much change in beach past few days. Low was around 12:30pm.

Deep trench between shells and sand bar. Too mushy to work water edge.

Capitana was out.

My new 12x13 NEL Tornado worked as expected. At first, worked better in the drier sand. Amazed that it found small objects close to surface. Most larger coils lose the top few inches to sacrifice for going deeper, and require lowering sensitivity to work properly. I was able to work wet sand after pumping coil, readjusting threshold, and lowering sensitivity.  I will stick to the 12x8 coil rest time down here. Always have the CZ21!

Turtle Trail South Tuesday
Photo by Darrel S.

A lot of sand below the high tide line here.

Capitana At Work Tuesday
Photo by Darrel S. 

Thanks much for the photos and report Darrel.

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Things looked similar down on South Hutchinson Island Tuesday.

Walton Rocks Yesterday Near Low Tide.

Shells at Walton Rocks Yesterday.

Looked like the shell piles might have been heavier at Turtle Trail.  I would suspect similar shell piles at places like Ambersands, but didn't see it so don't know for sure.

---

In South Florida one diver died and two more died in a separate boating incident this week.

Take shelter from lightning too.

Here is a link to a story about what it is like to be struck by lightning - if you live.

http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20170523-what-its-like-to-be-struck-by-lightning

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A one foot surf is predicted for the next week or more on the Treasure Coast.  That means nice calm water.

We are also having some nice negative tides too.

I have some nice find pictures that I'll probably be able to post tomorrow.  A very nice diamond ring, a meteorite and some fossils.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net

5/23/17 Report - You Can't Accomplish What You Can't Imagine. Beach Today.

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

John Brooks Near Low Tide Today (Tuesday)

Notice the old cut and the new mushy sand that has filled in front of the cut.  You can see that it is mush from the foot prints.  

John Brooks Looking South Tuesday

This photo shows more of the same.

There were some shells near the high tide line.  Also there were shells near the low tide mark at another beach.

The surf was small all along the Treasure Coast.  Only one foot or so.  We're supposed to have a one foot surf for several days.

There is a negative tide today though.  

I'll try to have those pictures for you tomorrow.

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You can't accomplish what you can't imagine.  Some people have a hard time believing how much can be found.  It seems they prefer to believe that there is nothing out there and that it has all been found.  .

 If you don't think there is much to be found, you'll become resigned to making few finds and you won't be motivated to keep working and improving.  The fact is, the more time and effort you spend the more you can find.  You can't make a lot of finds if you don't hunt much or don't work at it.  You have to believe it is possible to begin with or you simply won't make the effort.

I received an email just yesterday from someone who said he posted his finds on the internet, and people commented that it wasn't.  They didn't believe he found all that the way he did.  That was their immediate conclusion.  They missed the opportunity to see if there might possibly be something they could learn that might help them. They failed to see his finds as inspiration and motivation, but instead they let their own ego rob them of a chance to learn and improve.

I'm not saying there is no dishonesty out there.  On sites where people receive money for clicks or views, there is a motive to lie, cheat or mislead. Where books or being sold or persons are being promoted for personal gain, there is a motive.  And some people give in to the temptation.   Stories are sometimes exaggerated, misperceived, inaccurately portrayed or overly dramatized.  I recently discussed how some TV programs may not be totally honest. In short, you can't believe everything you see, but that doesn't mean you should immediately conclude that everybody is being misleading, especially when their might actually be an opportunity for you to learn and improve.

I can relate to what that fellow told me when he said people didn't believe him.  Back maybe thirty years ago I attended a metal detecting club for a few months.  I was finding a lot of gold jewelry down south and every month took my finds to the club meetings. Every month I brought more than ten times the gold finds than anyone else.   People started to say that I was cheating.  They didn't believe I could find that much.   I wasn't cheating -  I was just detecting and finding things.

One month when I brought an 18 pennyweight class ring from Pace University with my finds, one person accused me of bringing the same class ring that I showed before.  I didn't.  In fact, the first one heavy one he was referring to from an earlier month was a 20 pennyweight ring from the University of Miami.   If they would have paid attention at all, they would have known it was not the same ring. I guess they preferred to think I was not finding good new stuff every month.  It must have helped them feel better about themselves in some strange way.  I remember it so well because of the false accusation.

 After a few months of bringing my finds, NO ONE in the club even looked at my finds any more. It was like they were actually trying to avoid seeing what I brought. I guess they didn't believe me, so that was the end of my attending the club.  Before that I almost never showed any of my finds, and I rarely showed any after that.

I've heard similar things from a few other detectorists.  They say that there are people that don't believe them when they show a lot of finds.  People accuse them of lying.  Some people might lie - I'm sure some do - but some of them are not.

Some detectorists I've encountered over the years seemed to want to believe that they are just better than everyone else.  They don't want to acknowledge that they might not be doing things better than everyone else.  I've run into people on the beach that got angry at me when I didn't agree with something they said. I remember one that stomped off grumbling "I've been detecting X number of years."  I value experience and experienced people, but time doesn't mean you are perfect. Treasure hunting involves so many factors that no one can not know everything about it.  It is possible to do something poorly for a long time. I was wrong about some things for many years before I changed my mind.  There is always something you can learn.  I am studying, experimenting and learning all the time.  That is one of the things that keeps me interested and motivated.

I'm not saying to believe everyone all the time.  That would be stupid.  But when you see some nice finds - maybe some that are hard for you to believe - before dismissing it, ask yourself if there might be something you can learn from what you are seeing.  Don't miss an opportunity to learn something new when it stares you in the face.

Don't limit yourself by refusing to believe that there are a lot of good things out there.  Don't refuse to believe that it is possible.  There just might be something more out there for you to learn.  I know there is for me.

There is a lot of negativity in the world today, but negative people and negative attitudes will not get you very far.

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I appreciate the Google Pluses that I've been receiving lately.  It tells me which posts you really like.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net

5/22/17 Report - Learning From Treasure Hunting Yesterdays. Ransomware Hits One Operating System. Beach Update.

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

My first metal detecting was way back, but unfortunately I can't figure out what decade it was. I don't think the detector we had would detect a coin. My grandmother bought it. Maybe we didn't know how to use it. I'm very vague about that now.

I do remember that we went out to an old homestead where there was not much more remaining than a chimney. It was where she lived a short while as a child.  We found some things. I remember finding a horse shoe.  Too bad we didn't know what we were doing at that point.  It would have been nice to pick up some nicer things from her childhood.  Maybe that is what she was hoping.

I think it was the limitations of the detector that discouraged us from continuing, but it might have been our lack of knowledge that was the problem. It wasn't until years later (again, I can't figure out precisely when that was) when I was living in Florida and got a decent metal detector. It was a White's detector that I got from a Sears catalog. I started detecting the Hollywood Florida beaches, which were close to where I lived.

My coin finds increased quickly.  Every week it seemed I found more.  I remember detecting under a beach walkover one night and finding a big bunch of coins.

For some reason I returned the Whites detector to Sears, and I went to Pot O Gold, which was near the Fort Lauderdale Airport and bought a submersible detector.  It was a Fisher 1280 Aquanaut.   That detector turned out be be a good detector.  It was very reliable and effective.

I don't know which detector I was using, but it was either the Whites or the Aquanaut because I know it wasn't very long after I started detecting when I found my first ring. It was a silver skull ring by the water's edge near the main lifeguard station at Hollywood beach.

 I've said before how I found a lot more men's rings early on with the Aquanaut until I learned to turn down the discrimination, then I started getting more small ladies rings with diamonds or other gem stones.

My next detectors were made by Steve Noga.  They were modified Nautilus detectors.  Super detectors.  By that time I was finding a lot of gold.  The first one I got from Steve, was so good that after using it a couple of days and finding a lot of gold, I called him up and asked him if he'd give me a deal on a second one just to have as a backup.  He gave me a deal, and I bought the second.  I don't know what happened to Steve.

My next detectors were also modified Nautilus detectors, made by a fellow whose name I can't remember right now.  He lived in Margate.  I know he is now deceased.

I had left my consulting job and was teaching at a University in South Florida.  In between jobs I detected a lot and proved to myself that I could do well enough to make a living by detecting.  I didn't do that though. University teaching permitted a lot of time to do some metal detecting.

Since I got the Aquanaut I mostly did water hunting except when the water was too rough.  I had a long list of places that I liked to hunt, both in the water and on the beach.  I also did some parks - especially those that had swimming holes.  

At some point, maybe thirty years ago ( I don't know how many years) I started to make an occasional drive up to the Treasure Coast to try to find 1715 Fleet treasure.  It took a while.  I made a number of trips before hitting it right.  I got pretty discouraged before I managed to come when the beaches were producing, but kept at it.  

I had already found an 18th century escudo in South Florida, but was having no luck with the Treasure Coast.   Eventually I got my first piece of shipwreck silver on the Treasure Coast, then years later moved to the Treasure Coast.  I guess I've lived on the Treasure Coast over twenty years now.

The original purpose of starting this blog came from the wasted trips I made to the Treasure Coast.  I started out posting my Treasure Coast Treasure Beach Conditions Ratings so people would be able to find out about the Treasure Coast beach conditions before deciding if it might be worth making the trip.  I had made a lot of wasted trips, not knowing what the beach conditions were and thought that would be useful information.  So that was the beginning of this blog.

I didn't write this just to tell you more about me.  I hope there are some useful hints in it.

First, if you are going to begin metal detecting, you don't need the most expensive detector in the world, but you do need one that is capable of finding the types of things you want to find.  Visit a shop and get a demonstration.  Make sure you know what your detector can find and the basics of using it.

I've detailed in many posts how important it is to understand your detector.  I've also told how you can experiment with your detector to learn how to understand it better.  Do a lot of air tests and ground tests with different types of objects in different environments.  Adjust the settings and see how that affects the response.

You can expect to progress with both the quantity and quality of finds.  You should continue to learn and improve.  There will be dry spells, and some might be long, but overall you should continue to improve.

To keep making finds you'll have to adjust from time to time.  It is always good to try new places and new techniques.

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FRANKFURT, May 18 (Reuters) - Two-thirds of those caught up in the past week's global ransomware attack were running Microsoft's Windows 7 operating system without the latest security updates, a survey for Reuters by security ratings firm BitSight found.

Did you know that you can communicate over an international computer network without using the internet.  You can.  Back as far as the 1970s I was on an international network of Cyber super-computers that were not connected to the internet.  The hardware and software was completely different. The whole world wasn't on it, of course - just the relative few that had access.

 It amazes me that such high level people in our government have been communicating on such an insecure system.  The internet has become the public park.  Some of them are good and some not so good, but you never know who might be there or what might be going on.   If I wanted to communicate information that was critical to our nations security and had the resources, I would not be using the internet.  I assume there are levels of our government that use more secure systems.

I don't think it would be a bad idea for any large organization wanting to protect its data and operations to have a separate network system for sensitive functions.

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Darrel S. has given updates on a variety of beaches the last few days.  Here is a new update from Darrel for today.

Beaches about the same. Low was around 11:30am. A lot more beach being exposed as we head into summer tides. It was glassy early, but wind picked up by the time Sun rose. Thought I saw one of the salvagers heading out earlier, but did not see anyone out.

Randy and I were the only detectors out. I had several shell hunters thanked me for sending in the images. That makes me feel better that people appreciate the effort...

Thanks for the report Darrel.

Happy hunting,

TreasureGuide@comcast.net

5/21/17 Report - Analyzing How You Detect. One Person's Adventures With Treasure Hunting. Turtle Trail Beach Conditions.

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

Turtle Trail Beach Sunday
Photo by Darrel S.

The summer heat is here.  Darrel S. sent in these photos.  He also sent the brief report that I posted below.

Notice the shells near the water line.  The picture below also shows a little dip in front of the beach.

You can find a few shark teeth and other fossils around there at times.

Another View of Turtle Trail Beach Sunday.
Photo by Darrel S.

Here is Darrel had to say about his hunt.

Better then last few days. More shells, but sand is still thick in low tide line. Very mushy. Nothing but pull tabs and iron debris. Others had similar finds. Mostly clean. Too many detectors in this area for summer!

Thanks for the pictures and report Darrel!

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Some of you might know Ken H. (Southern Digger).  He detailed some of his activities in a recent email to me.  Here are some of them.

...I have been enjoying the Gold Shows including Coopers Treasure. It was in 1973 while attending college and visiting Fisher's treasure museum ship in Ft. Lauderdale when being offered a job to dive for Mo in Ft. Pierce to Sebastian area. I did not get certified until 1975 when my dive coach offered me a second opportunity to dive for Mo at Sebastian on the Fisher contracts. However, after I graduated, instead, I personally pursued a wreck at Jupiter Inlet in 1977 but was shut down by the local politics, Soon after,,I was brought into land explorations and archaeology and the work became overwhelming. Therefore, I formed a non-profit society to assist with land archaeology sites in South Florida and one of my members--an X-Marine--after being directed by me, became a diver for Mo in the latter 1980's.Sometime before or thereafter, I am certain that I met Mickos's father at a shipwreck artifact exhibit.,,

...my family took a camping trip to Central Florida East Coast and camped at Sebastian Inlet on the north side and fished at the inlet., Back then, anyone could camp west of the bridge on the north side of the inlet for free. However, no electric or facilities. More important, north of the inlet and east of the bridge was a small cafe and that is where I saw some of Kip Wagner's shipwreck artifacts mounted on the back wall.On inquiring, I was referred to the "Pieces of Eight" book and all things changed after reading it. I called Kip in 1971 or 72-ish asking for wreck locations so that I could detect the beach. I ended up talking to his son and learned that he had recently passed, However, his son spent a good 15-30 minutes and provided me with mileage south of the inlet to each wreck site. After that, I spent trip after trip to the area, searching the beaches between Ft. Pierce and the Sebastian Inlet. Later, I gave these locations to a non-profit historical club member and late-friend after taking him to search the beaches.Later, he converged with a few treasure divers, updated the locations which are now beach parks, and published a book that provides wreck locations which is still popular today. Cooper dived with Kip on occasion and I wished I was born a few years earlier so that I could meet both of them. Never give up the pursuit....

Thanks for sharing Kenneth.

It is interesting how people get into treasure hunting, and there are still a few around who were involved with the early years of detecting.

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I watched a few metal detecting videos lately and was amazed by the amount of time a lot of people spend on target recovery.  Between the first signal and getting the target in the pocket, a lot of time elapses.

One of the advantages of using discrimination that people talk about is saving time by not recovering junk targets.  I think sometimes that it is actually not so much a concern about time being wasted as it is about the effort spent in digging and sifting and the frustration that results from seeing a junk target emerge after going through all of that.

I've seen people spend tons of time going over a target multiple times and trying to decipher what the detector is telling them.  That spent time does not seem to bother then nearly as much as a little digging.  They don't seem to realize how much time they are spending in pinpointing and target ID.  I think that is partly, if not entirely because their hopes aren't dashed by seeing a junk target emerge after spending the effort.

I've counted the seconds on some videos and definitely found that many times it would have been quicker to just dig the target and put the junk in one pocket and the goodies in another pocket.  Like I said, I'm thinking that the emotion of seeing a junk target emerge magnifies the perception of wasted time.

On the other hand, people aren't disappointed when they mistakenly pass up a good target, even if it is a Rolex watch.  They think they did a good thing and go on their way satisfied, never knowing what they missed.

The psychological aspect is an important part of detecting.  We talk a lot about the operating characteristics of metal detectors, but the operating characteristics of the detectorist are just as important.  How a person detects is very much the result of their personality.  To some extent, so is metal detector selection.

If you analyze your style and productivity, you can overcome some your weaknesses.  That requires objective analysis, which is more difficult for some people than others.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net

5/20/17 Report - Why Nor'easters Move More Sand and Coins: A Small Scale Video Illustration.

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

Erosion I Found Yesterday

It is not often that I am able to capture such as good image of such a basic and important thing. Usually I don't have my camera, or the batteries or dead or for some other reason I just can't capture the image in a way that shows what I really want to show.

Yesterday when I was out I hunting, I saw the above little eroded cliff. I made a very short video that shows how water hitting the beach at a sharp angle slices away the sand.  That is something I often talk about, especially as it relates to Nor'easters.

This erosion is on a very small scale, but the small scale and the clarity of the water, worked out for the better.  The same thing you see in the video below happens on the beach on a much larger scale when the surf is larger.  I think you can see from that video how the water slices along the front of the cliff.

Here is the link to the video.  Take a look.  It is only nine seconds.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I8aCk1zC0e4

Notice how the water speeds along the face of the cliff.

I suggest running the video and few times and watching how the water skirts long at the base of the cliff.

At the end, you see multiple steps in the sand.  The steps were created as the tide went down.  Some steps are greater than others because there were times when the waves were bigger.

Below is a an illustration of the eroded area and the neighboring beach. The general direction of the water adds sand in one place and removes it in another.  If the direction of the waves changed, the sand would be removed and added at different locations.

The curve in the beach is important.   To the right of the illustration, sand was accumulating.  It was only eroding where the water was hitting at an angle (orange line).

The water hits the cliff and bounces back off the cliff.  That water bouncing off the cliff then gets pushed along the face of the cliff by incoming water.  On the leading edge of the rushing water, you see a little swirl created where the wave pushes the water that is bouncing off the cliff.

I was glad I caught that on video.  I often see something I want to talk about, and for one reason or another, don't catch it on video.  On this small scale, it was pretty easy to see what was happening.

The movement of sand on the beach is multi-directional.  How the incoming and outgoing water interact is important.

When the water hits at a sharp angle, as in the video, there is a redirection of water as the outgoing water hits the incoming water.  When it is hitting at a sharp angle, there is not so much of a collision as when the water is washing directly up and down the slope.  When the water is hitting at a sharp angle, there is more of a combining and redirection rather than a collision that severely reduces the force of both the incoming and outgoing water.  In some areas it actually appeared that the two sources added together and added to the overall force.  There were times when the incoming and outgoing water combined to create a swirl that moved along the beach near the front of the combined sources.  The sand appeared to suspend more in the area of the swirl.

Clip From Another Video Segment

In the above illustration you can see the direction of the incoming water, the outgoing water and the area where they were gathering (arrows).  That area is where there appeared to be the most sand suspended, for the area at the base of the cliff when the water hit it with some force.  The swirl moved parallel to the beach for a short distance.

As I've discussed when I talked about trigger points and drop points, what is moved by the water is determined by the amount of force.  The small amount shown in this video moved sand but would not move coins - other than those that might happen to fall out of the bank.  If you understand the movement of sand and other objects on a beach you'll know better when and where to look for coins.

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This looks like it would be a good read.

The Wreckers: A Story of Killing Seas and Plundered Shipwrecks, from the 18th-Century to the Present Day Hardcover – July 14, 2005, by Bella Bathurst.

Unfortunately you don't get much of an online preview, but here is the link.

https://www.amazon.com/Wreckers-Killing-Plundered-Shipwrecks-18th-Century/dp/0618416773

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The most read post of April was the 4/27/17 Report - More On Cooper's Treasure Show. Salvage Lease Process In The Bahamas. Blog Provided Touch of Home to Deployed Detectorist.

People have been going back and reading a lot of the old posts.

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Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net

5/19/17 Report - A Two-Detector Hunt. Beaches Around the Treasure Coast.

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

Round Island Park Yesterday
Photo by Darrel S.

Here is Darrel's report from yesterday.

We went to Round Park first. A lot scrap iron. Few coins and jewelry. 8am to 10am.

Pepper Park big disappointment. A lot seaweed and only 2 hits. Both hits were pennies, but older.

Stopped by Turtle Trail. After 12 noon and exhausted. We went home!

Round Island Park Yesterday
Photo by Darrel S.

Turtle Trail Yesterday
Photo by Darrel S.

Turtle Trail North Yesterday
Photo by Darrel S.

Thanks much for the photos and report Darrel.

Those beaches look much like one from South Hutchinson Island that I showed yesterday.

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I went out to the beach this morning.  It was a two detector hunt.  By that I mean I used two detectors.

At the ocean beach I used what I call a power detector.  Just a deep-seeking detector - no discrimination or anything.

I found a few coins and some junk jewelry in the wet sand.  There appeared to be nothing in the dry sand.  Very clean.

Then I moved to another location where I wanted to pick through the junk.  I used a Garrett Ace to pick through the junk and get small spaces.  I found one eight inch iron spike and a few smaller connectors.  The larger spike was so deteriorated it was crumbling.  Also, a couple modern coins that were very corroded.  There was clay or mud that was very acidic.

One spot at that locastion was exposed to levels that I had not seen in many years.  Just around the corner the sand was piled at least three feet higher than it was the last time I was there.

I think have a couple photos from that hunt on my phone.

When I moved out of that small eroded area, I switch back to the power detector, but I did better in the junky area with the Ace.  The eroded area was the only area worth detecting at that location.

Sometimes junk will be your best friend.  A lot of people won't work a junky area, and some that do will miss things.

As I've mentioned in the past, I like to select detectors depending upon the location and type of target.  don't however like to leave a detector in the car, so I don't often take a second unless I know that I will want to have two choices with me.  I knew that I would want both today, and one worked best at one location, while the other worked better for me at the other location.

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The FBI needs to be investigated.  They seem incapable of detecting and preventing security threats and leaks.

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The surf is going to decrease again this weekend.  The tides aren't big either.

Happy hunting
TreasureGuide@comcast.net