Treasure hunting spooks.

[swizzle]

I decided to do some night time beach hunting. I had my minelab advantage, my lantern, a bag with my drinks, and my scooper. I headed out to the beach and noticed a very bright fullmoon. Bright enough so I could see 100 yards in all directions but not bright enough for my taste to detect with. So i put my trusty coleman lantern down in the sand and put down my drinks and turned on my headlamp and started swinging away. I got no more than 15 feet from my lantern when a huge shadow covered mine. There was instant fear and relization that something was between me and my lantern and coming on faster than I could think. With my boxers full of fresh fear I did the only thing that I knew I could do well. I turned and screamed like a little girl and was staring face to face with nothing.... I looked hard at the beach in all directions and nothing was there. No noise, No evil demons, in all directions nothing...My first thought was my first close encounter with a ghost. Just then the wind picked up again and with it the edge of my bag that held my drinks, right in front of the lantern, once again creating a big shadow even bigger than mine. Man did I feel dumb. Anyone else with a scary, strange or funny but true tale? :twisted:

 

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[lab rat]

Good story!

My spookiest experience was hunting at night, standing in 5 to 10 inches of lapping waves at the beach, when things were bumping against my feet-- in a direction perpendicular to the way the water was moving! I hear corbina do that when they are looking for sand crabs, but it might have been a stingray... :shock:

Whatever they were, they were definitely ALIVE!

 

[Holyfield]

Swizzle-Hopefully it was'nt the GRIM REAPERS beach you were detecting. If one things for certain he'll be back...............Holyfield

 

[coinshooter]

You guys can have that night stuff! It gives me the creeps to think about wandering around in the surf when sharks and rays feed at night! And bums too!

 

[lab rat]

Ah, but YOU've never seen the glint of wet gold in the moonlight!

 

[Charles, Oak Island, NC]

They only come out at night.

Lab Rat, 10 inches is plenty form some of those sharks. Working lots of night shifts in public service at the beach..............no more night dives at the beach for me. :roll:

 

[divedigger]

sevsral years ago 2 friends and I went to south carolina in search of a confederate camp,our research put it in the middle of a huge empty field with a wire fence around it.we decided to come back at night and spread out and start at one end and start walking towards the other end,hopefully finding the camp in the process.we came back after dark and it was damn dark,no moon and no stars,just a streetlight about a mile away.we spread out and started walking,after about 30 minutes the light went out and back on again,and again.I pulled my headphones off thinking a buddy was heading my way with news of a camp,but what was heading my way was great big and in a hurry.I started running to the fence but was not going to make it.just inside the fence was a line of huge oak trees wih limbs so big they went to the ground.I went right up the first one I got to and put my light on a big ass bull,complete with horns just passing me as I went up.and then he spent the rest of the night walking around that tree waiting for me to come down.I was up there till just before daylight when he finally ambled off.Then I got out of that tree and headed for the cooler scared to death that my friends got caught inthat field snd were gored to death.but thet never saw the bull and accused me of being full of bull and scared of the dark and using that as a made up excuse to raid the cooler.tha bull was there!!...another time they saw him in the davlight.

 

[lab rat]

I'd rather take on a 10" shark than a full-grown bull-- out here the sharks (leopard sharks, to be more specific) suck sand crabs out of the moving sand-- their mouths are specialized for that and they really aren't much of a threat. A little further out are the great whites, but I don't go detecting beyond the high waves.

Sapona, sounds like you coulda used a walkie-talkie...

 

[coinshooter]

I had a similar full of bull story when I was young (8-10 yrs old). My brother and I went hiking on East Bay MUD Land when they used to use a helicopter to patrol it and write you tickets. We had a great time, even seeing herds of deer over 70 strong. It was the only time I have ever seen this many deer in one place. Well, the farmer who owed that land also used to let his cows and bulls roam those rolling grassland hills with large oak trees. Sometime during this hike I can remember getting chased by a bull that I though was out to kill me. All I can remember is sitting in that tree for about an hour until he left. Then we ran out of there real quick.
Not a detecting story, but you're story just brought back memories. To this day I don't like bulls.
As far as detecting, I went out the other night for the first time. The draw of all that gold jewelry and rings in the low tide was really bugging me and I had to try it out, so I got up at 12:00 midnight and went to the beach. I must admit, it is still creepy going out in an area that you know is normally under about 3-4 feet of water and then when you reach the farthest point, having the surf come in fast over your feet and up to your shins. All I could think about was having something bump into me. Man, you would never see something move so fast towards the shore as me if something hit me out there! I ended up finding some junk jewelry and about $4 change, but I must say it was the prettiest night out there with the moon 3/4 full and the solitude of only having a few people around.
I think I'll try it again one day.

 

[lab rat]

Yeah, I've had some cool moments looking at bioluminescence in the waves and watching shooting stars between picking up gold rings and medallions... Makes it worth more than the gold you find. 8)

I also had a 'close call' once with a rattlesnake while taking Geology classes (in Colorado). Out doing a mapping excercize-- my lab partner didn't show, so I had to work alone to get my assignment done. I was walking along through tall grass, looking at the outcrops, when I stepped on a big boulder. I never would have looked down except the boulder shifted a little under my weight, and >horrors< something BIG was wrapping itself around my leg, :shock: and took a swipe, sticking his fang in my jeans. I jumped back 30 feet (yes, one jump!) and watched this thing coil up and start hissing. I only thought 'Did he get me?' I didn't know what kind of pain, or none, you were supposed to feel. So I rolled up my pantleg and rolled down my sock and looked at my leg. Nothing, thank goodness! When I rolled up my sock, a big sticky wet spot was rather obvious on the outside of it-- he missed me by the thickness of my sock!!! I guess we were pretty even-- he almost made my day and I almost made his! If he had gotten me I would have had to walk alone back to my car 2 miles away...

 

[divedigger]

I would have had a wet spot on me also

 

[warthog steve]

Ill be going detecting to a private beach club in 2-weeks; Ive heard reports that the coyotes are getting bad there-If I go detecting there at night, does that mean I have a good chance of becoming some coyotes appetizer? Of course, at6'2" and 250lbs. I think I would be more like the main course for the entire pack!!!

 

[lab rat]

Wouldn't worry about coyotes... they are pretty skittish, generally, but seem to be getting bolder these days. I was camping under the stars in Big Bend, Texas with a group of about 30 others (geology expedition) one night when I listened to coyote calls get closer and closer. Finally they were quiet, but when I listened carefully, I could hear their footfalls! I just rolled up the top of my sleeping bag from the inside and held it tight, wishing I was in a tent. Felt one of them sniffing around my feet! Either he couldn't stand the smell, or just found it unappealing...

If you are moving around and bigger than they are, they shouldn't bother you. Unless you are carrying a steak in your back pocket!

 

[Fred]

Coyotes are like any other predator,sensative to the attitude of other predators. Just remember that you are the highest predator on the food chain and carry that attitude with you in the back of your mind. You will find the yotes even more skittish than usual. Hope you have a fun and treasure filled time. Fred

 

[beetle662]

Not to do with metal detecting, but since we are talking about having to change ones underwear....

While conducting a building search at night due to an alarm drop in the early days of my career as a LEO, my partner and I were opening doors and checking each room, leaving the doors open behind us as we proceeded. Anyway, as we circled around the last door led to the same room as the the first door we opened. As is normally done, one of us opens the door abruptly while the other is at the ready for the worst possible situation. Forgetting about the principals of "cross-ventilation", as soon as I swung the door open, the first door slammed shut. Needless to say, body fluids came very close to flowing freely...

 

[[email protected]]

I was relic hunting in tall grass out in the country, when my search coil hit a wasp nest. I was stung about 4 times. Just other day I was an inch away from kneeling on a bumblebee nest and they were swarming. I jumped up and ran so fast! Lets just say I'm a little jumpy nowadays!
Dave take care!

 

[Fred]

Hey Beetle, That really gets the heart to going doesn't it. Pucker factor #9. lol Fred

 

[coinshooter]

Well, it happened. And I jumped plenty high. I was out detecting the other day and stepped on a fish or ray on the bottom of the ocean. Also a week or so later I hit one with my detector at night in the surf. You've never seen someone run so fast. I left a bioluminescent streak in the surf.
The one I strepped on wiggled before it took of and man did that give me the creeps!

 

[mrbelvetron]

Not really about treasure hunting but it did freak me out.

Back in high school my JROTC unit took our annual trip down to Port Aransas and spent one of the days at the beach. After finding several dried sand dollars along the beach, several of us decided to dig around in the surf and see if we couldn't find a live one. Well after awhile I actually pulled one out of the sand and held it up for my buddies. I was watching it crawl slowly on my hand when wave hit and knocked it free. So I reached back into the water and dug around for another, when my hand closed around something smooth and slimy. Since it didn't move I figured it was just a slick rock or something so I pulled up and that's when it decided to jerk and swim out of my hand. Needless to say, I gave up looking for the sand dollars in the water.

 

[coinshooter]

Coinholio,
pisses you off doesn't it?
It's also happened to me a few times. There must be a timer on the website. There's nothing more frustrating than writing a long piece and then trying to attach a picture and having it say that there is not enough space for it, so you try and hit the back button and your text is gone. Just gone!!! This is one thing I really don't like about this new site. All my pics have to be resized way way down and if I make them just a little too big, this kind of stuff happens. I guess the moral of the story is if you write a piece to put on here hit "edit" "copy" before you try and add a picture or if you wait a long time to hit "post". I have given up on posting some really cool stuff I've found because of this. You just don't want to write the explanation a second time. 8)