:usaflag: Hunting Frozen Beaches!!:thumbup:

[Cupajo]

From time to time over the years Ive noticed that the wind will sometimes expose a coin or two by blowing the sand away. I would wonder if other more valuable items might be exposed as well. When we had a couple of high wind storms lately I picked up a coin or two that I saw laying on the sand, but still didnt think there would be much else to find, so I didnt follow up on the clues I had been given.

While later pondering detecting possibilities versus the weather I came to the conclusion that on those days when I couldnt hunt with a machine maybe I could hunt without one by carefully scouring the recently moved sand visually for whatever hadnt been found by the many hunters with machines (including myself of course!!).

I remembered several times in the distant past when I had been on the beach after a big wind and found coins laying on the top of the sand where I had hunted with a machine.They would often be sitting on a low sand pedestal where the wind had taken all the sand away, except the sand directly under the coin!

These coins were easily seen and even with my aging eyes I reasoned that I should be able to find more! Yesterday in the early morning, before I had to be at an appointment, I spent fifteen minutes searching the beach well above the high tide line and found several coins and what I thought might be a diamond ring (it seems to be costume jewelry under magnification) just laying there on top of the frozen sand!!!

I drug myself away planning to return later in the day. As I reflected on the results of my hunt I realized there was an interesting phenomenon at work. The damp sand would freeze during the extreme cold we have been having and when the wind got very strong the sand would dry by degrees and be stripped away a little at a time exposing whatever was buried there!

When I returned later I found more coins and another ring which I was sure was white gold due to its shine, but I cant find any marks that might confirm it. A closer inspection Makes me think it is either plated or maybe silver and that it hadnt been there long enough to tarnish.

I went out again this morning ahead of the on-coming snow storm and found several more coins before blowing snow forced me to seek shelter!

Just think Fellow Hunters, we dont have to stop hunting during the frozen sand time of year. All we have to do is watch for high wind storms and after they stop, bundle up enough to hunt the beach for these finds. No machine, batteries, or digging equipment necessary and you can have really fresh air and exercise while youre at it!

Eyeballing the sands surface allows one to cover a very large area in a lot less time than using a machine and if you carry a pail and tongs while youre hunting you can remove some trash while youre at it and create good will for us all as well as cleaning up your beach!! This AM I picked up numerous bottle caps, nails, hair-pins and other bits of metal that I would have been digging up later for sure!

Maybe next time Ill find a couple of those elusive gold chains or some wedding bands or-------???????!!! Works for me!!

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The "diamond" has a lot of sparkle for junk, and even though the setting really looks like junk, I will have the "stone" checked for sure!!

Happy New Year Friends,

CJ

 

[silversmith]

Hi Cupajo, your story reminds me of another story. Long ago when I was employed by "Big M" I made many trips to Yosemite repairing mobile communications radios. I became well acquainted with maintenance people who spoke of similar happenings there, only involving water. Seems many of the valley camp grounds are low, along the Merced river. In the winter, every time floods come through, the park employees hit those campgrounds picking up change, also setting on the little sand pedestals. They hinted you could fill your pockets full and still get to work on time. Good pics, and story.

 

[Larry (IL)]

Cubic Zirconia, (CZ) has more sparkle, (refractive index), than a real diamond. With a loupe, look at the stone, if it looks too good to be true it is most likely a CZ. Real diamonds are seldom, if ever, mounted in a plated ring and unless you have a perfect diamond, real diamonds will have inclusions. They are often called incorrectly, carbon spots.

 

[Cupajo]

Hi SilverSmith,

I've scoured the sands at this local beach for hundreds of hours in the past 40 years and I have yet to find a coin left exposed by wave action.

It seems that the waves causes them to settle down into the sand rather than uncovering them.

I can understand how water in a stream may remove sand more gently and uncover coins.

Wind on the other hand does a whale of a job removing the sand away from the coins and other items thus leaving them exposed.

Thanks for your reply Friend,

CJ

 

[Cupajo]

Hi Larry,

Thank you for your reply Friend.

I felt as though the "stone" must be synthetic, but until now I didn't know what to look for.

Again, thanks for the info!!

CJ

 

[edjcox]

Could you possible photograph a coin like this? I'd love a macro shot. Being a geologist this wind phenomenae has some interesting implications in my real line of work examining surface items.

Thanks

 

[Cupajo]

Hi Ed,

These phenomena only occur rarely when circumstances are just right ie very high winds.

I shall attempt to catch one of the better examples when I have another opportunity.

The "pillar" I have referred to is interesting to see and doesn't occur in every instance of a coin being exposed, but often enough to be noticeable.

In some cases the coin may be 1/8" to 3/16" above the plane of the surrounding sand.

Regards,

CJ

 

[norman maassey]

Out in West Texas I have seen coins this way. Sometimes the coin would be a inch high on it's on little tower if wind blowing hard,

 

[Cupajo]

Thanks to those of you who have replied to this post.

Yesterday I was actually considering braving the cold and doing some hunting today.

As the sun rises this AM the local temperature is 14 degrees F and there is no way I will hunt the beach or water today!

The sand is covered with ice and snow.

It is frozen solid except the water's edge.

Later I will bundle up and cruise the sand at water's edge to see if there is any flotsam or jetsam to remove (and there always is).

Hopefully the cold will moderate soon and I can break away for a hunt.

In the mean time I'll be reading about you hunters out there in milder climes and wishing.

CJ

 

[Cupajo]

At 10F the beach this AM was truly frozen here on the Ct shore!!

Four layers of warm clothing and feeling like the Michelin Man helped, but I could still feel the biting cold.

The north wind had settled to a gentle stirring of air from the north and somehow the cold didn't seem to penetrate as badly as yesterday at the same time when the wind was gusty.

I fully expected my footprints to be the first on the wet sand at the waters edge as I moved along watching the sun-rise, but alas there were others from someone walking a large (from the paw-prints) dog!

When I saw this view of the "Tide Rock" I realized I would have to share it with you readers and a second view as I returned from the eastern end of the beach.

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In the second shot (I'm really liking this little Fuji) Long Island is barely visible on the left edge of the picture and a tiny bit of Ct on the right.

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NY City would be somewhere over the W/SW horizon behind the "Tide Rock".

The water was lots warmer than the air so I could see wisps of vapor rising, but they aren't apparent in the pics.

If the temps will just move up into the 30F range and the water will just stay so calm I'll be doing some hunting to post about.

GL&HH Fellow Hunters,

CJ

 

[silversmith]

Wow! Go figure these brave guys on the North/East coast. Hey, here in the Golden state, I won't go out the front door if it's under 40 I really don't want to go detecting if it's much under 60 Guess it's just what you're used to, Brrrrrrrrrrr! Honey, light the fire

 

[Cupajo]

In the '80s when I was a lot younger I would sometimes hunt with temps in the high 20s!

Scenes such as in these pics were spiced up with ice floating in the water from the Coast Guard breaking up the ice covering the Ct River to allow oil barges to travel to Hartford.

These small icebergs were something to see and when they bumped together a sweet sound was produced such as I have never heard elsewhere!

Looking down through one of these pieces of ice was like having a picture window on the surface through which one could observe everything below clearly.

Needless to say I would really have to be suffering the "Winter Blues" to venture out then and today I stay away from wading unless it is a balmy 30+ degrees with bright sunshine to heat up my dark wind breaker!

Happy Days,

CJ