Beach and Water Hot Spots

[DaChief]

I was looking at the photo below of a beach today and noticed it may be of help to folks who are just starting out. You will find this same scene at most swimming beaches on any day. I have labeled the three hotest spots of most beaches that you may want to focus on. This rule is pretty constant although you clearly can find something by chance at most beaches anywhere, these areas would produce the most consistant finds and have for me.

1. BLUE AREA: In the water, most folks, as seen here stay just outside the breakers in about waist deep water anywhere from just below the waist to just above the waist. It would make sense that you would want to focus on this area if you are a water hunter although there are items in all depths, this area should contain most recent dropped items.

2. YELLOW AREA: At the water's edge is where most folks are seen playing with the wee tots and taking strolls, this highly traveled and used area is good for many finds from a few feet onto the sand into about knee deep or so.

3. RED AREA: What I refer to as the "Layout Line", is the area in which sun bathers tend to congregate down the beach. It seems to move from day to day and I believe it is established by the first guy that lays out his stuff in the morning. The next person seeing this puts theirs down at a distance from the water that is similar to the first and before long everyone is establishing that as the general Layout Line for the day. There are a few exceptions but as a rule, the bulk of the people will congregate in a line about 10 to 15 yards deep at a set distance from the water. This would be where you would concentrate in dry sand.

Hope this helps and if anyone has anything to add or wishes to disagree, please feel free. I am just trying to help the newcomers or those interested in beach hunting that have never tried it.

DaChief!

 

Amazon Forum Fav 👍

Cry Of The Eagle: History And Legends Of The Cherokee Indians And Their Buried Treasure - Grab it through Amazon!

[willie d]

Well put DaChief

 

[fllawboy]

That is a great visual, Thanks

 

[Montauk3]

Now the secret is out, I'll never find anything anymore. I'm going home.

 

[gamiller]

Great job.
They say a pictures worth a thousand words

 

[seas1to2]

the only problem I see with this is it changes everyday due to tides,when your hunting most likely your going to find items lost the day before,so if your waist deep today,what was waist deep yesterday,so it does help to know what the tides were the past few days an at what time of day, most people in the water the hottest part of the day.Not trying to say I disagree just trying to add to the post.

 

[Foilman]

Very nice! Good tip. Especially on lesser used beaches, but I am thinking anywhere on that beach would have potential with that mob.

 

[Treasure_Hunter]

Chief, your zones are pretty accurate, and like seas say their locations do change with the tides. If the surf cooperates, I prefer hunting the Blue zone first, then the Yellow zone, the Red zone is usually the last I hit if the tides and surf cooporate, which doesn't happen as often as I like in Daytona The blue zone is where the most jewelry seems to be found. But the blue zone at high tide is in a totally different location then the blue zone at low tide. Found a lot of items in the yellow zone....

The red zone is the hot place to hit when a sudden squall or thunderstorm comes up as people are rushing to run to their cars and pick up everything quickly and many of them forget about the jewelry and other items sitting on the towels and blankets until it is too late.

 

[DaChief]

You guys are right. That is how I know I am hunting the entire area. I get in the water early and stay in waist deep water most of the morning. I know that since the tide is shifting in and/or out, I am actually changing rows of my grid search as I go up and down the coast line. Since the water is acutally rising through the early morning, I know that if I get into the water and go to waist deep on my first pass which may take me close to a mile down the beach, when I return, again staying in waist deep water, I am not covering the same ground because the water has actually gotten deeper so now being in waist deep water on my return trip actually means I have moved in toward the shore slightly to be able to remain in waist deep water. On my next pass, the same thing and so on until the tide becomes stable for a while. A mile walk in the water usually takes a good couple of hours with the stops to dig so my trip going and coming usually lasts the entire morning for one pass and a return. If I were to focus on the small area outlined in blue in the photo, I would probably start in water just over my waist on the first pass, move to exactly waist deep on the second pass, then slightly below waist deep on the third and so on. Just a way to use the water to insure you don't cover the same ground twice.

It is also right to say that you could find something anywhere on the beach too. I just don't have much time when I hunt so I determine that layout line while at the beach and mark it off by pacing from a known point to the center of the layout line. Then in the late evening after the sunbathers have gone, I concentrate there because I know I have a greater chance of finding things in that highly used area. It is hard to tell in that picture but that beach is about 100 yards deep from water to buildings. That concentration of people only covers about 15 yards deep. You could hunt that other 85 yards deep of beach and your chances are more remote since most people each day focus on laying out in generally the same 15 yard deep area.

One hard lesson I have learned is not to get into that Easter Egg hunt mode. That is where you see another hunter and you start running wildly through the water or on the beach trying to out do one another. I find that when I concentrate on going slow and taking my time using good technique, the finds come much better than when I get in a rush.

Good discussion.

Thanks,

Jim

 

[Montauk3]

Excellent.

 

[John (Ma)]

Very nice, an excellent piece of information. I am hoping to try the bigger beaches this summer and will use your picture as a referance, Thanks.

 

[Eu_citzen]

Now the secret is out, I'll never find anything anymore. I'm going home.

lol. Well I'm going to put it well to use! I got at least(a minimum) of one VIRGIN beach, never hunted for over 30 years or so I think.

Almost all coins where no more then 3" deep!
I notice that most coins are in the "red area" often not to deep, make an approximately map and "mark" where you did do your finds you might get a pattern! (I did and think I've got 1 to 3 hot spots on this beach)

If there are "public toilets" there hunt there to, found my first ring there this weekend. lol

Excellent tips thanks lads!

 

[Ocean Oso]

Don't forget any tidal pool areas where the water gathers on high tide. Kids go crazy in those areas for some reason and parents have to retrieve the kids, many times dropping items along the way.