Ok, hypothetical scenario for the treasure coast beach experts- A category 5 hurricane strikes the East coast of Florida....

[perdidogringo]

and the winds and the wave action lift up/remove 7-15 feet of sand (HUGE cuts everywhere) at most beaches all the way from New Smyrna Beach in the North to Fort Lauderdale in the South. As a result, the Treasure Beach Report guy gets a record amount of views and you KNOW there will be tons of detectorists arriving to search the beaches soon after the hurricane abates. BTW, miraculously, no one was hurt or injured in this hypothetical hurricane and property damage was very little. :-)

Now, say you lived in Saint Lucie County (on the mainland... perhaps in the Fort Pierce area) and you rode the hurricane out at home (you didn't evacuate). What is the quickest way you would be able to get to a treasure coast beach in order to detect before the hoards of metal detectorists from all over Florida and other States descend on them? Would you be able to drive over the bridge? Would they close the bridge and beaches to everyone for a time? Would you be even able to get to the island at all? I would assume that those metal detectorists living on the island near the beach (and who didn't evacuate) would have a massive advantage in getting to those beaches faster after the hurricane than everyone else trying to get there from the mainland. Is this what happens in a real scenario? I'd love to hear feedback on those "in the know." Thanks in advance!

 

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[smokeythecat]

How far is it? Motorcycle or bicycle.

 

[perdidogringo]

How far is it? Motorcycle or bicycle

How far is it from the mainland to the island? I don't know- depends on the beach. But that's not really the point of my query. I'm more wondering if one is able to access any of the treasure coast islands immediately after a hurricane and if so, can you access the beaches? Would like to hear from those who have actually tried to access the beaches immediately after a hurricane or strong storm.

 

[DizzyDigger]

If I was serious about it, I'd get myself one of these:

Swisher ESP 6 Person Tornado Safety Shelter Kit – malbongolf

urban-bag.us

Mount it on a sturdy trailer, then drive to the island before the hurricane hits. Ride out the storm, then you're right on the beaches doorstep when it's safe to start gathering goodies.

 

[perdidogringo]

That is a great idea, Dizzy.

 

[GulfDiggingFL]

I'm in the Clearwater area, when Ian hit buddy I was like foaming at the mouth when I was driving to the location lol

 

[ARC]

If I was serious about it, I'd get myself one of these:

Swisher ESP 6 Person Tornado Safety Shelter Kit – malbongolf

urban-bag.us

Mount it on a sturdy trailer, then drive to the island before the hurricane hits. Rid out the storm, then you're right on the beaches doorstep when it's safe to start gathering goodies.

lol... good luck ! ! !

 

[ARC]

When an area is declared a disaster area all traffic to any areas will be closed.

IF you were anywhere near impact zone trying to "ride it out"....

You will have wished you hadnt and detecting will be the last thing on your mind.

 

[ARC]

Word of advice...
Nothing is worth "riding out" a cat 3 storm... let alone a mass devastation cat5.

There will be no beach left and the destruction and debris will prevent you from achieving your dream of "treasure".

Now.... North ... FAR north or FAR south... of impact zone... MIGHT be do-able.

IF you chose to stay... you wont know where it will land until it lands... so... IF you try and stay and it direct hits your area... IF you survive it.... you will never do it again. heh
IF you decide to leave at the last minute this too can pose its own problems as well.

The problem with that coast is the beach is very small and narrow... it cannot keep its sand now even with no storm... and erosion is a MAJOR issue they are dealing with now... if a cat5 hit that coast dead on where the treasure ships are... it would be uninhabitable for years.

And little to no beaches left to detect... and what was left would be littered with all types of debris'.
Talk about digging trash.

But heck after the storm is long gone... and able to return... sure... worth a shot detecting... ya just never know.... it could rain silver and or maybe a gold.

 

[perdidogringo]

Thanks for the feedback. I'm just trying to envision, since I've never experienced it myself, what it would be like to try to get to a treasure coast beach after a storm that is strong enough to remove enough sand to get to the old stuff. Many people say that you "have to wait for a good storm" since the beach renourishment sand has buried everything deep. But if everybody has this opinion it must be wall-to-wall detectorists the day after. I wonder what the savvy local detectorists do to try to get the jump on the out of area competition?

 

[ARC]

Thanks for the feedback. I'm just trying to envision, since I've never experienced it myself, what it would be like to try to get to a treasure coast beach after a storm that is strong enough to remove enough sand to get to the old stuff. Many people say that you "have to wait for a good storm" since the beach renourishment sand has buried everything deep. But if everybody has this opinion it must be wall-to-wall detectorists the day after. I wonder what the savvy local detectorists do to try to get the jump on the out of area competition?

A good storm is one thing... a Cat5 is an entirely other thing.

 

[ARC]

I have detected those sands after storms... as well as many.... many......many others.
Last time i detected that beach after a storm it was like "day of the detectorists".
Everywhere you looked was a detectorist.

 

[perdidogringo]

Yes, I should have made a distinction on that I guess. However, you do hear plenty of stories of great detecting finds after hurricane Ian, Wilma, etc.

 

[Bamasteve]

Thanks for the feedback. I'm just trying to envision, since I've never experienced it myself, what it would be like to try to get to a treasure coast beach after a storm that is strong enough to remove enough sand to get to the old stuff. Many people say that you "have to wait for a good storm" since the beach renourishment sand has buried everything deep. But if everybody has this opinion it must be wall-to-wall detectorists the day after. I wonder what the savvy local detectorists do to try to get the jump on the out of area competition?

Any coastline that experiences storms of that significance should or will be months away from allowing outsiders in!

 

[ARC]

Yes, I should have made a distinction on that I guess. However, you do hear plenty of stories of great detecting finds after hurricane Ian, Wilma, etc.

Agreed.

 

[ARC]

Yes, I should have made a distinction on that I guess. However, you do hear plenty of stories of great detecting finds after hurricane Ian, Wilma, etc.

It all depends on areas of impacts and damages therein.
North or South of the impact areas would be better bets to find stuff. IMO.

 

[DizzyDigger]

A good storm is one thing... a Cat5 is an entirely other thing.

Never been through a hurricane, so hadn't factored in the ferocity of such a storm. Being inside a metal box might not be the best idea, given a choice.

 

[ARC]

Never been through a hurricane, so hadn't factored in the ferocity of such a storm. Being inside a metal box might not be the best idea, given a choice. View attachment 2125459

Especially IF... the water is ABOVE the box. heh

 

[ARC]

 

[Flipperfla]

I don’t think you can grasp the power these storms create unless you have been in one. Watching it on the news is completely different that the real deal.
One of the hardest things is the wait………which way is it going to turn and when. If it goes bad you can lose everything you worked for your whole life.. standing behind a cement wall because the wind will knock you right off your feet or get hit with flying debris watching you roof blow off and your whole neighborhood destroyed is no fun. The aftermath……… no electricity, no AC, ALL roads are blocked so you can’t even get down the street, nails from debris all over the roads. If you get a flat no where to get it fixed. No work everything is closed that means no paychecks for weeks. Then looting, gun shots going off all night. I’ve seen a whole roof sitting in the middle of US1 at Sebastian blocking the road, no houses around so I don’t know where it came from,, every telephone pole down the road at a 45 degrees or broken off. A friend of mine had his 25’ boat in the Keys, pulled the boat chained the trailer to a telephone pole when he returned after the storm the only thing that was left was the trailer, transom and engines..never found the boat. The wounds and scars last for years afterwards.
So when the next big one hits and your in its path it might be the last thing you do.