Written by the TreasureGuide for the exclusive use of the Treasure Beaches Report.
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| Source: nhc.noaa.gov |
Looks like the Atlantic is heating up. It is that time of year.
I checked windy.com and still don't see anything much coming our way in the next few days other than a change in wind direction. There won't be much development. We won't get much wind or waves for at least a few more days.
You can check the tide charts with the link on the bottom of my reference list.
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Yesterday I posted a comparison of three metal detectors including the new MDT 8000, Equinox and GPX. I've mentioned in the past the strategy of using multiple detectors on some sites to take advantage of the strengths of the different detectors.
A beach can be divided into three zones. There is the dry beach, the slope which is periodically washed by the tides to various levels, and there is the shallow water, which for present purposes I'll consider to be part of the beach. I'm also overlooking for now the dunes, which generally cannot be detected anyhow.
Objects dropped on the dry beach tend to stay pretty much where they were dropped. Of course, they are moved a little both by human activity and the forces of nature. And items from the dunes can drop to the dry or flat beach under some circumstances. Each of the three zones is different and should be detected differently. You might choose a different detector for the dry beach than you would select for the other two zones. For one thing, you won't have as much salt mineralization. You might have more junk. Aluminum and other junk will stay in place longer when high tides or surf do not clean the zone. Human traffic and activity patterns are more important in the dry sand too. You will probably use different metal detector settings, and even use different recovery techniques in the dry sand.
Moving to the slope, which is periodically hit to some degree by the high tides and surf, items in this zone tend to get classified more. This is the zone where you'll more often find coin lines and holes, which I've talked so much about in the past.
And then the shallow water, which is always stirred or affected to some extent by the moving water, might require a different detector and techniques.
Although the slope and shallow water might have the same amount of junk, the junk on the slope will be more sifted and sorted and therefore might be less of a problem. Dealing with junk will therefore not be such a high priority when it comes to selecting the detector you choose when working those areas.
You might use multiple detectors on a single site too, changing detectors as you change the distribution of items at the site. Your strategy might be to remove junk and surface targets or simply survey the site on your first visit to a land site. If you've removed most of the junk and easier targets, you then might switch to a deeper seeking detector. At that point, dealing with junk is not so much of a consideration.
What I'm saying is that your choice of metal detector for a particular hunt, assuming that you have more than one metal detector, should involve a variety of factors. Many people, though, use the same detector all the time, which is ok if you hunt the same areas and the same way all of the time, but I'd consider using different detectors at different times. The detector that is best for one hunt might not be the best for another hunt.
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I had been posting some sites where coins have been found in the past, but skipped doing that for a couple of days simply because I had some other things I wanted to post. I mentioned one of the 1733 sites down in the Keys. Today I'll talk a little more about some detecting sites in the Keys..
First, there is the wreck between Davis and Little Conch Reef off Plantation Key. John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park is a nice park to visit, but you can no longer metal detect some of the areas there due to the development of the park.
Besides the wrecks, you can run into almost any type of treasure in that general area. Plantation Key has such a rich history including everything from Indians and battles, to wreckers, to big name crime families, rum running and gambling. I won't get into all that now, but here is link to a good history of the Plantation Key area.
I think I could mention every area of the Keys as being a good metal detecting site, but I will just mention one more of the 1733 wreck areas. That one is just south of Conch Key, which, by the way, you won't find on the early maps. It was created.
If you want to metal detect the Keys, which I always liked doing despite the long drive, I suggest you do some additional research. There is just too much for me to mention it all.
I will mention that you can find some good areas for metal detecting modern jewelry down there too. I mentioned in the past one particularly good site for that. It is just off the road and doesn't look like a good detecting site at all. It is covered with mud and weeds. When you walk out, you will sink in up to your ankles. Although I didn't spend much time down there, every time I detected that particular site I found gold because if you stick your hand into the mud, it will come out without whatever you had on your fingers. It is a sticky natural gold jewelry trap. I forget the location details now, but think it might have been between Plantation Key and Matecumbe Key. Look for a flat weedy area next to the road.
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Good hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net