Advice on Water Hunting

[RedAmos]

I'm a land based treasure hunter from the great frozen wastelands of Minnesota. However, I'm going to be spending a week down on Marco Island in FL.

In the past I have hunted the beach but this time I am looking at renting a Tesoro Sand Shark and venturing into the water. I've never searched in the ocean and would like some advice on where I should be looking.

Do I want hunt in the flat sandy area out passed where the waves break or next to the beach where the waves churn everything up and create the ledge/ravine thing or in the wet sand right on the edge of the beach? Are there any other beach features that I should be looking for (other than spots with lots of people)? How deep should I expect to be digging? What else do I need to know?

Any advice you can provide would be much appreciated.

Thanks

Jeff

 

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[Jason in Enid]

At the ocean you are looking for either recent drops, or old losses revealed by deep sand cuts. If there are no cuts, you hunt where the people are. Dry sand, wet sand, and out to about waist deep.

Good news: with the PI detector, you won't have problems from mineralization falsing.
Bad news: with the PI detector you will dig every nail, screw, bobby pin, washer, and any other iron junk in the sand.

I hope they rent you a GOOD WATER SCOOP. You need something made to dig heavy loads and be pushed into the sand with your foot. Cheap sand scoop are only good for very shallow targets in dry sand. The stresses of digging in wet sand will tear them apart very fast.

Good luck in your hunt!

 

[bigscoop]

Unfortunately, your question isn't all that easy to answer as the sand moves about so often and the shape/conditions of Florida's beaches is always changing. One thing you will need is a long handled scoop, which I assume you plan to rent where you rent the Sand Shark. Given those two items and possibly a good finds pouch (if you don't already possess something) is about all that's required for just a week of water hunting.

If I were coming down for just a week and I was unfamiliar with the area and the local beaches I'd probably concentrate my efforts on those sections of beach behind the tourist rentals. Typically the tourist and weekend traffic loose more items then the resident beach-side population simply because the locals are more aware/schooled on the possibility and they can more easily leave their valuables at home when enjoying the beach. But these areas also get pounded pretty steadily so it's pretty much a crap shoot as to who's going to get lucky on any given day. The best advice I can offer you simply this; "be very thorough in your efforts by using tightly controlled patterns because a valuable ring only needs an inch of space to hide in."

 

[bigscoop]

Here's one other tip that has turned up several good finds for me over the years, especially on the heavier hunted beaches;

....hunt the "gaps" between condo/resort buildings. A lot of hunters pattern hunt using the edges of these properties as a means of reducing the beach into the sections. They hunt behind the properties and then move on to the next. As a result, those areas of beach between these different properties often get under hunted even though they may be very heavily used.

 

[mudslingers8]

I've hunted Marco & pulled 5 rings in 5 hrs & another day pulled 7 cents in 7 hrs with my Sand shark. The sand is very hard packed you will need a very good quality SS scoop, I use a stealth. You won't find a tremendous amount of trash, it is hunted regularly. Enjoy the hunt, the beautiful beaches & all the eye candy!

Mudslingers

 

[RedAmos]

Thanks for your advice everyone. I'll let you know what I find.