8/24/25 Report - Laws and Regulations Related to Erin and Beach Metal Detecting. Surfers and Blinken Forced to Leave.

 Written by the TreasureGuide fore the exclusive use of the Treasure Beaches Report.

Surfer Handcuffed After “Karen” Calls Cops During Hurricane Erin (Video).  

In many ways surfers are like detectorists.  They wait for days, weeks or months for mother nature to produce the right conditions for an epic experience.  We chase the big treasure and they chase the big beautiful wave. If any group pursues their hobby more fervently than detectorists, it might be the surfers.  On the whole they are more adventurous than the metal detecting community, which I suspect is partly due to their younger ages and partly due to their hobby being perceived as more dangerous by others who are not as experienced or at home in rough water conditions.  I don't think I've ever heard of a surfer drowning, although it must have happened sometime somewhere.

If you've noticed, we benefit much from the surfing community.  I often post clips from SurfGuru.com, for example.

A surfer was handcuffed after a lady called the cops during Hurricane Erin (Video).

Here is a link to that story. The link will take you to a site that that also provides a variety of other clips you might find interesting.

Viral Clip: “Karen” Gets Surfer Arrested During Hurricane Erin - Surfer

Leave it to someone who would drown in their own spit to call the cops on a surfer who would very likely be able to qualify to be a lifeguard.

I'll try to restrain myself from going off on people who seem to think they have the knowledge and judgement to look out for the welfare of others when they are the worst people to do so.

Below is the story of a well-known and high-ranking person being removed from a beach because of Erin.

Blinken, 63, was kicked off East Hampton’s exclusive Georgica Beach while catching rays with a friend, photos showed.

The beach had been closed days earlier from the rough conditions unleashed along the East Coast by the massive storm.

The ex-Biden official and a pal were on the sand Friday when they were ordered to get out by a lifeguard patrol

Following a brief conversation with the lifeguards, a barefoot Blinken, wearing a blue long-sleeve shirt and black shorts, picked up a tote bag, grabbed a beach towel, folded up his chair and took the walk of shame back to the asphalt parking lot...

Here is the link for the rest of that story.

Ex-Biden Secretary of State Antony Blinken kicked off East Hampton’s Georgica Beach

So what does the surfer in handcuffs or Tony Blinken have to with metal detecting?  Actually, the same kinds of laws apply to detectorists that applied to surfers and Tony Blinken.  Public safety mandates apply.

Occasionally, I get asked what the rules and regulations are that apply to metal detecting the Treasure Coast beaches.  I hate that because it is an impossible task.  The laws are too many and complex to explain in a post.  That is why we have lawyers and courts to settle disputes.  And it isn't really necessary to know all the laws.  A reasonable person can usually stay out of trouble by simply observing the local norms, being cooperative with authorities and using a little good common sense. The Treasure Coast is very metal detector friendly, although there are some limits.

It doesn't hurt to have some idea of what laws might apply.  I'll try to give you a few of my thoughts about that, which will not cover all that could be said and could well be wrong on some details.

In all my years, I never got kicked off a beach by a lifeguard or anyone else. I was once told by a lifeguard that metal detecting wasn't allowed on a beach I started to detect, so I went somewhere else..  The rejection turned out to be a good thing because I called the county park offices and asked them about it. They said it was about to change. They were going to lift that restriction very soon.  Being alerted, I was one of the first to know and was one of the first to get a shot at some good ground that hadn't been hunted for a while. The area happened to have some very good hunting that paid off right away and long after.

A lifeguard in front of a private beach club once told me I wasn't allowed to metal detect in front of that beach club.  I called the county officials, and they told me I COULD detect on that beach back to the erosion control markers.  Everything in front of the markers was public property despite the fact that the club or some lifeguards tried to control it. I often detected that location before being told I couldn't.  I usually went early in the morning before anybody, including the lifeguards, were there.

Over the many years, I've had very little trouble with that sort of thing.  If you use your head, don't draw attention to yourself, and generally are friendly and cooperate with the authorities, you'll have little trouble.  They will sometimes not bother you even when they could legally ask you to leave. Making friends with lifeguards, attendants or security, will often open doors.

From my experience, it is usually a hotel or private club that will try to chase you off, whether they have a right to or not.  Again, friendliness is usually the best policy.  Knowing your rights doesn't hurt, but simply using your head is the best policy.

Too bad it wasn't Maxine Waters on the beach instead of Blinken.  I don't think that would have gone so smoothly and would have been more entertaining.

One key concept for beach detectorists is the mean high -water line (MHWL) which is legally recognized as the boundary between state-owned sovereign submerged lands and uplands that is often owned by private individuals, corporations or other agencies or jurisdictions.  I've talked about the MHWL several times before.

You'll often read that you can detect on the wet sand.  It actually has nothing to do with if the sand is wet or dry.  The MHWL is determined by survey and updated periodically (If I correctly recall, every 19 years).  But without reference to the survey markers, no one on the beach will actually know where the MHWL is. 

When you go from a county or city park, and cross the MHWL, you move from county or city property to state lands.  So, when the parks are closed, you will still technically have your riparian rights to walk along the beach below the MHWL.   

So what gives the city or county lifeguards or authorities control over the state lands and waters?  I said it is complicated.  

Under Florida Statutes 177.28, the MHWL is legally recognized as the boundary between state-owned sovereign submerged lands and uplands subject to private ownership. Below the MHWL and the submerged areas are public lands held in trust by the state. However, local lifeguards and other officials - whether employed by a city or county - derive their authority NOT from ownership of the land, but from public safety mandates granted by their respective municipalities or counties. 

That is as far as I'm going to go with this.  You probably don't know all the applicable laws, and fortunately, you don't need to. Just observe the local norms, be considerate, cooperate with authorities, and use your head.  

---

Source: nhc.noaa.gov.

Looks like we'll have a smaller surf for the next few days.

Source:SurfGuru.com.

Good hunting,

TreasureGuide@comcast.net