Written by the TreasureGuide for the exclusive use of the Treasure Beaches Report.
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| Small Treasure Coast Bottle Find. |
This small embossed HYNSON, WESTCOTT and DUNNING bottle once held mercurochrome, an antiseptic commonly used in the 20th century. My wife and I remember it well. It was a household staple in the first half of the 20th Century.
The bottle would have a glass stopper/applicator, which is not with this bottle. Mercurochrome, an orange liquid, was applied to cuts with the applicator.
I wondered what happened to mercurochrome and just found out that the FDA banned over the counter mercurochrome in 1998. I bet a lot of you remember it too.
I posted some about the bottle in tgbottlebarn.blogspot.com shortly after finding the bottle. See TreasureGuide's Bottle Barn: HYBSON, WESTCOTT AND DUNNING small embossed bottle for mercurochrome.
For more about Mercurochrome and its past, here is another link.
What happened to Mercurochrome? - The Straight Dope
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If you've been looking for ideal beach metal detecting conditions and you are on the Treasure Coast, this year has been far from ideal. On the other side of the U.S., however, you'll find a different story.mn
While the Treasure Coast surf hasn't shown us much more than a ripple this summer, the California coast has seen a lot of storms, rough seas and a lot of beach erosion.
There was a strong El Niño this year. In fact, the El Nino this year is one of the strongest on record. A strong El Nino produces more hurricanes in the Pacific (especially the Eastern and Central basins) and fewer in the Atlantic. La Niña does the opposite.
El Nino happens when the surface waters of the central and eastern Pacific Ocean become warmer than usual. That weakens the normal trade winds and shifts weather patterns. La Nina is the opposite. The Pacific waters become cooler than usual.
The Ocean Way festival in Santa Monica was cancelled this year to due massive erosion because of hurricane Marie.
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| Hurricane Marie as Seen on Windyty.com. |
You can see the north winds along the California coast in the above Windyty,com map.
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Houses Being Destroyed by High Water.
Still clip from KTLA News video. |
Recognize the beach below?
That is the beach shown at the beginning of Two and a Half Men. It is Malibu Beach, but it is not where the program is actually filmed. The program was filmed on the studio lot at Burbank, which explains why you never see the ocean from the house.
Whenever I see the shot of the beach at the beginning of the program, I find myself scanning the beach as a matter of habit.
Here are a few related links.
You can see the sea wall in front of the houses and you see how vulnerable the beach is. Like the Treasure Coast, many California beaches have been renourished and extended well beyond their natural size.
Santa Monica is nearer to Los Angeles while Santa Cruz is nearer San Francisco
I mention Santa Cruz for a few reasons. First is the mission. The Mission of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross is a Spanish mission founded August 28, 1791 by Father Fermin Francisco de Lasuen.
Santa Cruz is a great area to visit. East of Santa Cruz is the Roaring Camp railroad where you can take a restored steam engine train from the Redwood forest and the Santa Cruz Mountains to the beach of Santa Cruz. The surrounding area has some beautiful scenery and I really enjoy the steam train and reconstructed buildings.
Yosemite is not real far either from there either, and that is one of the most beautiful areas in the U.S. in my opinion. I think everyone should visit Yosemite at some time if they can.
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| Train from Roaring Camp Through the Forest. |
But the main reason I'm talking about California today is because of the similarities and differences with Florida's beaches. Even though they are on the California side the same general principles of beach dynamics apply. Of course California has a much longer coastline than the Treasure Coast and changes a lot as you go from Malibu in the south to the more norther parts. The north of California has high rocky bluffs behind the beach, while the southern California beaches are more like those of Florida. No matter which coast of the United States you are on, you should be able to walk onto the beach and have a pretty good idea about the beach metal detecting conditions. In some cases, you have to reverse things.
And don't forget, California’s coast has numerous Spanish shipwrecks, many from the Manila Galleon trade, carrying gold, silver, and valuable goods from the 16th to 18th centuries. It is always fun to metal detect new areas and new beaches.
I didn't mean this to sound like a travel column. I just get fascinated by different beaches and the different kinds of areas where you can metal detect. No matter where you are, you can find some fun metal detecting not too far away. Much of the same knowledge applies no matter where you go.
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| Source: nhc.noaa.gov. |
This one could organize some time in the near future.
And finally we have a wrinkle in the surf chart.
The high tides today (Sunday) are predicted to be 3.5 feet. That is pretty good.
Good hunting,
Treasureguide@comcast.net
