Metal-Hunting Season Is Starting Just as Swimming Season Ends
Temperatures have hit record highs in most parts of America this summer. The result? Places where people go to swim and sun themselves were packed with people. Did any of those people lose stuff when they were sunning or swimming? You bet they did.
That’s why this could be a very profitable season to go looking for valuable items that people have lost during the summer months. Rings, watches, cellphones and other stuff is out there waiting for you, so let’s review some of the strategies that can help you find them.
Now that the summer crowds are gone, it's the perfect time to search for precious metals on the empty beaches with a metal detector. Credit: TACrafts/iStock
Take a Metal Detector to the Beach
This is the most common strategy, and probably the most profitable. People who are sunning themselves on lake or ocean beaches are prone to lose small items like rings and watches. Others lose jewelry while swimming – items that sometimes wash up and can be found lying in plain sight, or slightly buried, by the shoreline. The first cool days of Fall are good times to dust off your metal detector, or buy a new state-of-the-art model and try your luck.
Get a Snorkel, Get Wet and Look in Streams and Lakes
Lots of items get lost in lakes and in “swimming hole” areas of streams where people like to soak, swim or go wading. Treasure hunters sometimes overlook these areas, where a simple facemask can help find lost items.
Some hints for hunting in shallow waters?
- Stick to areas that were popular “get wet” spots during the summer.
- Use a facemask to improve your underwater vision. And if you’re looking in rocky stream beds, invest in some water sneakers or other water-friendly footwear that can prevent cuts and scrapes.
- Look for cellphones, coins, rings and other shiny items.
- Look under thin sand deposits and next to stones. Those are the areas where lost items are most likely to end up. Also, these are the areas where the people who lose items – who are probably not wearing facemasks – are most likely to give up their searches.
- Don’t forget to look in natural pools at the foot of waterfalls. These spots are popular with waders. Plus, their turbulent surface waters make it more difficult for the people who lost coins or rings to find them. With your facemask, you’ll get a clearer view.
Hunt in Marinas and around Boat Docks
People in boats often drop cellphones, pieces of jewelry, and expensive pairs of sunglasses overboard. Other people lose items when sailboarding or swimming from boats.
Caveat: Diving near docks and moorings is dangerous, due to the possibility of getting caught in ropes or underwater cables or chains. It is safest to work as a team, with a partner on the surface who is looking out for your safety. Also, get permission from marina owners to dive; you might have to agree to share any profits with them or even to turn over items to them so they can put them in lost and found collections for boat-owners to peruse. (You might ask for a fee or reward for items find and turn over.)
A Word about Lost Cellphones
According to some estimates, Americans lose more than $30 billion worth of cellphones every year. We don’t know how many of those phones are lost in water, but we’re willing to bet that a large number of them are out there waiting for you underwater. Try the strategies we suggest in today’s post.
If you find recyclable items that could be valuable, call us at 800-426-2344 and speak with a precious metals refining consultant. Depending on the quality and quantity of what you have found, we may be able to offer you discounted or free shipping when you send them to us for testing. Be sure to ask when you call.
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