Dave Milsted, Author at The Ring Finders | Page 9 of 10

Lost 30 Year Anniversary Band in Bridgewater NJ, recovered by Dave Milsted

  • from South Jersey (New Jersey, United States)
Contact:

2013-10-09 14.38.10 2013-10-09 14.32.05

Received a call around noon on October 9th from Joan in North Central NJ. She was out in her back yard last night trying to get her dog inside. While in the struggle she lost her 30th Wedding Anniversary band. She spent a long time in the dark with a flashlight with no luck. She had a friend come over today in the daylight and spent several more hours looking. I was pressed for time and said I would be able to come up in about 8 days because of my schedule. She was worried about the lawn guys coming in a week.

I moved some things on my schedule and took the 1 hour and 20 minute drive. When I arrived Joan was not home. I gave her a call and she said she was 10-15 minutes away. She said to go into the back yard and start without her. She marked the area that she though she lost it with a bag of apples. That was my starting point. 5 minutes later I had the most beautiful ring I have ever found in my hands, a platinum Tiffany’s ring with too many diamonds to count.

Joan arrived about 10 minutes later. I was sitting on her porch petting her dog. As she walked up I pulled the ring from my pocked. The reaction on her face was priceless!

Here is Joan’s Story:

I waited thirty years for wedding band from Tiffany’s.  I wore a wedding band that cost less than a $100 for years, switched to my mother’s wedding band after her passing, and when my mother’s band no longer fit I went without a wedding band for years.  In the meantime, my husband was saving for a really special gift for our 30th anniversary, a wedding band from Tiffany’s.  I had the ring less than a year, when one night I walked into my backyard to get my dog to come inside. The dog was busy eating an apple, and did not want to go back inside.  I pulled at her collar, and with my left hand gave her a little push when off came the ring.  I stood in the darkness and panicked. I marked my spot with a loose branch and raced to get a flashlight. Hours passed and I gave up. In the morning, a friend came over and along with my daughter we spent another four hours searching for the ring.  We all gave up and figured that an animal found it over night.  It was gone.  But my friend gave me Dave’s number, and he came over that afternoon. In less than five minutes he found my ring!  I also want to add that I wasn’t home when he arrived and told him to go into my yard and search for the ring.  I arrived home ten minutes later and there was Dave sitting on my back steps petting my dog.  He reached in his pocket and handed me the ring. What a feeling!  He is completely honest and competent.  Don’t waste time searching on your own.  Call Dave.

Regards,

Joan

Another Lost Ring in Cape May NJ, Returned

  • from South Jersey (New Jersey, United States)
Contact:
2013-09-20 08.48.522013-09-03 15.40.07
A few weeks ago I received a call from Candice. She said she was at the beach in Cape May the day before and lost her wedding band. It just so happens it was the same beach last week making another ring recovery. So I was familiar with the beach. 
 
Candice said she was there with her family and not exactly sure where she was when she lost her ring. She was all over the beach with her kids and husband, even out in the rough surf. By going through her pictures she was able to come up with a half an hour time frame of when she lost the ring. I did a little research and found out that it was only a short time from high tide when she lost her ring.
 
I told Candice that I would not be able to search till at least Tuesday because of my work schedule. She sounded a little deflated but said it was ok. I asked her to download a picture from Google maps and mark it up with where she was on the beach that day. 
 
Later that night she emailed me the picture. She was right she was all over the beach. She was by the rocks digging in the sand with her children. She was at the high tide line sitting in her chairs. She was in another spot building sand castles. She fell in the surf near the life guards. Oh boy where to begin. 
 
My friend & I arrived at the beach near low tide. This would give us our best shot at finding the ring. The beach was crowded. This would cause a problem because we wouldn’t be able to do a complete grid search. We would have to go around the masses of people. Plus there were 2 other people on the beach detecting. My hopes were diminishing. The sand was soft and mushy, not good because gold sinks fast in this stuff.
 
We started to search. My friend Diane started by the rocks and headed south. I started near the life guards and headed south. I found a few items, mostly light trash, not good but expected in the soft mushy conditions. I am thinking that this is going to be a lost cause. After about an hour I could see Diane was done her area and started to go all over the beach. I could tell she was ready to leave. She can read a beach better than me and knew we weren’t going to be successful. 
 
I was getting ready to give up when I had a good tone. I started to talk to my mom asking her to let this be the ring I was looking for. I scooped the sand and strained out the sand. In my scoop was a beautiful yellow gold ring with 11 diamonds. SUCCESS!! I walked over to Diane and said I was ready to leave. She said the conditions weren’t good. The I showed her the ring. She was shocked that I found it. She put it on her finger and said that its a perfect fit and I was going to get the ring back.
 
I sent Candice a text message asking her to call me when she could because I had some questions. She called back in record time. I asked a few questions about her markings on the map. Then I told I her that I found the ring. The phone when silent. I think I heard a thank you. The in a broken voice I heard I can’t talk now I will call you later. 
 
It was after five in the afternoon when Candice called back. She apologized for being so emotional before. She said she was crying so hard and everybody at work was looking at her that she needed to get off of the phone. She couldn’t believe that I found the ring. I sent her a picture. She is from Delaware so we were trying to come up with a place to meet. We went through our schedules and it would be 3 weeks before we could meet to return the ring. 
We met today in Southern NJ. I met her mom, husband, 3 kids and her baby sitter. All of the people who were with her when she lost the ring. I gave her her ring and received many hugs. She was crying again. We took pictures and chatted for a while. She gave me a card with a generous reward which I tried to return but she wouldn’t let me.
Below is Candice’s side of the tale:

Just another Saturday at the beach or so we thought!

As a mother of 3 young boys, I decided to take a last minute day trip for the end of summer. We piled up the minivan with my husband, my mother, our AuPair and my three boys! Before leaving the house…my inner voice told me to leave my wedding ring at home since I had lost some weight…it was loose but, I didn’t listen. We packed the car full. We had the cooler, beach chairs, boogie boards and toys for the sand. We brought everything but Sunblock…. Yes, we all ended up burnt. We drove around for about 15 minutes trying to find a parking spot when we came upon Cove Beach in Cape May, NJ. I’ve been going to Cape May beaches for over 20 years and have never been to that particular beach before. So, we parked the car, and set up our stuff.

We played in the water! Taking on the waves. My two oldest boys were brazen…going out really far….enough to concern the lifeguards to whistle us in closer (it was a yellow flag day)….so then we built sand castles. We then came back to the beach blanket and ate some snacks. Back to the water again, riding the waves and then the youngest wanted to come back in the sand castle area. I had some trouble getting up out of the water and put my hands in the sand and there went the wedding band. But, I didn’t notice it then…I went back into the water with my husband while the kids searched for the perfect shells! When I came back…I sat down in the sand where the waves crashed in on our legs digging my hands into the sand looking for shells for the boys…we posed for a few family shots and then I realized it! The ring was gone. OMG!

I turned to my husband and lifted my hand to show no wedding band! He said “You’re joking, right?” “I wouldn’t joke about this” I said. He immediately jumped up and helped me frantically searched the sand. The tide was coming in harder and harder…we could hardly see. The kids looked, the babysitter looked, even some strangers on the beach…I was crying so hard, I needed to clean my glasses….I then realized from the family pictures…I might be able to see when I last had it on… and I saw it!!! When I was swimming with my youngest son. So, I knew where it was probably gone at but the tide had come in so far I knew I’d never get it back. I cried and cried. My husband hugged me and said he’d buy me another one. It wouldn’t be the same. I didn’t want a new wedding band…I wanted the one he gave me when we promised each other the rest of our lives together 10 years ago. I thought it was ironic that my husband asked me to marry him and gave me an engagement ring on another beach in Cape May, NJ years ago and now I lost my wedding band in Cape May, NJ.

A short time later, I was so upset and defeated…we packed the car back up and headed home. After the beach, we were supposed to go to the Wildwood boardwalk and ride some rides but….I just couldn’t build myself up to enjoy it. On the ride home I knew I’d never get my ring back. My mom reminded me that other than my ring loss, I still had my family and my kids were safe and happy. Even though my family was safe and that was really the most important thing to me…I still couldn’t stop being upset about losing my ring and my stupidity for not leaving it at home. My mom offered to come back the next morning and comb the beach with me… When I got home and everyone was getting ready for bed…I Googled to see what my chances would be if I could even had any chance. I looked at the possibilities of renting a metal detector and then came upon TheRingFinders.com. I read of success stories of rings found and my hope was restored. I found Dave Milsted and called him to see what could be done. I told him it was a gold wedding band with 11 inset diamonds. He told me to map the area I thought it was lost. I immediately mapped where we were sitting, where I thought it was lost and where we swam. Then my 3 boys brought me beautifully made “homemade rings” made from paper to replace my wedding band. I smiled for their thoughtfulness and creativity.

I then sent the email to Dave. I didn’t hear anything back.  I anxiously checked email in the morning and saw I mis-typed his email address. OMG!!! Quickly I resent it to the correct email and added some more details.

Dave responded immediately and suggested he could go out on Tuesday. Slightly disappointed I put my faith in the fact that he has been doing this for years and if he felt there was an urgency…or not…then he’d be right. So, I stopped worrying until Tuesday. Since 8am Tuesday morning, I checked my email and phone every 30 mins or less. As the day pressed on, so my pressure skyrocketed. I even shed a few tears while telling the story to co workers. I figured, the longer it took to hear from Dave, the less likely it would be that he’d found it…. 

Then, I received an email from Dave saying he had a few questions asking me to call him! I jumped right on the phone and called. Dave asked me a few more questions about the location I thought it was lost. I explained where I thought I was and then he told me that the beach was packed and that there were already folks with metal detectors, the sand was loose and….my heart sank.

Then, he then told me he found my ring! I think I asked him if he was serious….and after he said “YES”…I was speechless. I couldn’t speak…I was crying hysterically and couldn’t stop! The sentimental value for me was so much more than the jewelry price value. I tried to get out the words to say Thank you and that I would call him back when I left my job to discuss picking it up. I immediately called my husband and my mom crying. They could hardly understand me but they finally realized what I had said and were both shocked and excited!

Dave, there are no words for what you do for people/families like ours. There is no replacing a memory or the value that was placed on something because of its emotional association with it when something is lost. You replaced it for me and renewed my strength in humanity that there are honest people who care about others and want to help people…”Thank you.” That is the smallest thing I can say and the biggest thing I can mean at the same time. I am glad my wedding band will be in safe hands until we officially meet and I promise to NEVER wear it in the Ocean again (at least until I get it re-sized)!!!

Wedding Band Lost in Cape May NJ. Returned on 23rd Anniversary by

  • from South Jersey (New Jersey, United States)
Contact:

2013-09-01 11.17.54

2013-08-25 14.42.13

I received notice of a missing ring. Wes told me that he was in Cape May with his mom the other day. When they got home, 3 hours away, she noticed that her 5 year anniversary ring with 5 diamonds was gone. I told him I would look for it, but it would be in a day or two because of my work schedule. He said that would be great. He asked me what I thought the chances of finding the ring would be. I just responded saying that I would give it my best shot.

Before I could get to the beach, Wes sent me a picture from Google Maps. He marked up the map with the area they were sitting on the beach with approximate distances from objects. This would be a big help since I have never been to this beach before.

I left my house at 4am to catch the low tide. Almost hit a deer standing in the middle of Rt 55. I got to the spot at 5:30. There was already someone there detecting the beach. He came right over to me and stated that I would only be finding trash. I asked why and he said that the beach was hunting every day by multiple people. I got a bad feeling. I was thinking to myself that this was going to be a wasted trip.

I searched anyway. I started finding tinfoil and bottle caps. Damn that guy was right, TRASH! I continued on. I found a quarter and a dime, giving me a sliver of hope. Next was a soda can that was buried. At least the sun was coming up and I have a great view of the hight house.

After about 30 minutes I got a nice tone in my headphones. I scooped up the sand and BINGO! I had the ring. I looked around for the other guy so I could show him that it wasn’t all junk, but he was gone.

I stayed an searched for about an hour finding more coins and a camera lense. No jewelry. I even found a geocache before returning home. It was still to early to give Wes a call.

After I got home I gave Wes a call. I started telling him about the other guy that was detecting and what he said. Then I told him I spent about 30 minutes on the beach & found the ring. He was so excited. He said his mom didn’t know that he contacted me. He said he had to hang up and he would call me back. He had to go tell his mom. He called back in 15 minutes. We made arrangements to meet 1 week later to return the ring.

My wife came along with me. We were meeting in King of Prussia PA. Wes & Karen were waiting for us. Wes is a lot yonger than I thought. Once Karen saw the ring the tears started to flow and so did the hugs. She said she didn’t tell her husband that the ring was found, because she wanted to make sure that it was her ring. She also told us that today was their 23rd wedding anniversary. You just can’t make this stuff up. Wes informed us that he recently got a good metal detector to search for old coins. But it was to long of a drive to get back to the beach.

I loved returning lost items…

Below is Karen’s version of the story…

Who knew a fun time at Cape May N.J. beach would end in not being able to find your ring when you got home. The anxiety of not knowing if I would ever find it. And how to tell your husband you lost the ring he got you for your fifth anniversary.

The best part is who knew your 17 year old son would take action. He posted on Craigslist a lost ring and a reward to who ever found it. The first response from add was Dave.

Like an angle from God he took action without any reservation, he talked to my son and off to Cape May to find my ring. Then out of the blue I received a phone call from my son while I was at work reporting to me the story of how he posted the add and how someone responded and found my ring. In disbelief I told my son to have the guy send him a picture of the ring. He did ! There it was. My ring. Now how were we going to get it. This guy I didn’t know had my ring. My son talked to Dave and set it up to meet 45 min from our home and 45 min from Dave’s home. Again anxiety how could we meet with a stranger in the parking lot of Costco and get this ring. Maybe we would get to the parking lot and he would want 500 dollars for the ring. Then what would we do! Sunday morning came and off we went to try to get this ring.

Entering the parking lot lots of ideas of how this would play out entered my mind. Then he called he was in the parking lot. Here we go! Butterflies fluttering while walking to his truck. Him and his wife got out of  his truck and to my surprise there was my ring. He had not expectations on getting anything for finding it. When I saw the ring all I could do was cry and thank him!! After receiving the ring I told him how it was my 23rd anniversary. And what a great gift.

Lost Engagement Ring Lost in Brigatine NJ, Found by Dave Milsted 8/12/2013

  • from South Jersey (New Jersey, United States)
Contact:

2013-08-12 19.46.22

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After spending the morning at DeMarco Detector Sales getting a new detector to replace my Excalibur, I went to the beach to attempt a recovery. I was contacted by a distraught woman, Danielle, who was walking in the water with her fiancé when she was hit by a large wave, knocking her down in the water. She was flailing about; fearful she was going to drown. When she got home later she discovered that her engagement ring was gone.

When I met Danielle & her fiancé Daniel, they had a map drawn up with an X to mark the spot they thought the ring might be. They were walking north in knee deep water 2 hours before high tide when the incident occurred. I was here as low tide was approaching, hoping the ring would be in the wet sand.

I started a grid pattern. While searching, it started to rain, great… 15 minutes later a beautiful rainbow appeared. I thought that this might be a good sign. Well, I searched north for a block and a half. I rechecked the area with no luck. While searching I was watching Danielle. She kept crying. She was very upset. I felt bad.

I decided to check south of where they thought they were. I went another half a block, no luck. I have been searching for 3 hours and my arm was getting tired. I said to myself I am going to give it 2 more up & downs. The next down I found the ring. I had it in my scoop.

Dan & Danielle didn’t see me dig it. I started walking toward them looking beat & depressed. She said I can’t believe how hard you worked. Let me pay you for your troubles & asked if I could come back on Saturday to look again. I showed her my scoop and she saw the ring. She started to jump up and down & the tears were flowing. She kept hugging me. She must have hugged me 40 times. I told her that Dan is going to get jealous. Dan was just stunned that the ring was found.

We took some pictures and they gave me a very generous reward. The looks on their faces was really the only reward that I needed. I love that feeling of returning lost sentimental items and watching their reactions of the people who lost the item. I love my hobby!!

PS: The new detector worked GREAT!!

Below is Danielle’s version:

 

On Friday August ninth my evening began like so many others and ended like no other…My fiancée and I went to dinner and we were having a wonderful evening; great food, music and drinks. We were discussing what day we should plan our wedding, where the location would be etc. Later we left the restaurant and the idea of taking a walk on the beach to watch a lighting storm over the ocean seemed romantic and appealing. Once there, we walked hand and hand…the sound of the ocean and waves lapping up onto the shore was just so beautiful…so beautiful I decided I was going to go wading around in it. It was now dusk, and looking back, it wasn’t the brightest idea in the world because when I turned to look at my fiancée one of those very waves hit the back of my knees which caused me to loose my footing and down I went into the surf…I struggled to get myself up but it proved so difficult Daniel had to trudge in and come to my rescue.

 

 

Soaking wet and humiliated I made my way back to the car, dried off, changed into some clothes, and headed home…that’s when Daniel said “Babe…your ring!” I looked down to fine only a tan line where my ring once sat. It was gone…washed away in the tide when I struggled so foolishly to gain ground. I was instantly heartbroken and quite honestly, hysterical. I didn’t know what to do. The next morning I woke at dawn and raced to what I thought was the location, and began searching. Up and down the beach I walked straining my eyes in hopes to find this ring that meant so much to me, defeated I left only to return in the evening with a three pronged rake…I dug, and looked and cried, still there was no ring. It had seemed the ocean had taken it for her own and the sadness and guilt I felt only deepened.

 

 

Later that night I was on the computer…my ring of course being the only thing I could think about; I began searching lost rings in the ocean. As I scrolled through a sea of tales written about similar experiences I stumbled onto a site TheRingFinders.com, my curiosity was peaked. Clicking through the links I finally came across the name Dave Milsted and I thought to myself “It’s worth a shot to shoot him an e-mail…what’s the worst that could happen, he won’t answer”? Before I knew it I was writing to explain my desperate situation and asking for help. I clicked send and I waited. No sooner did I write I saw there was a reply…and it was Dave! I nearly jumped out of my chair I was so excited, I actually got a response and he was interested in coming to my aid…I had a shred of hope, finally.

 

 

After a brief correspondence Dave said he would be willing to search out my ring and that he could come that Monday…the longest two days of my life I must say, but I was overjoyed that there was a chance that maybe, just maybe, I would find this diamond in the sand. Monday finally came and Daniel and I met up with Dave at the beach entrance in Brigantine. I was a bit nervous due to the fact that the sky was beginning to look a bit ominous. The dark clouds stretched out over the dunes and we moved fast in an effort to cover what ground we could. Daniel pointed out where he roughly thought I went in and as I stood at the waters edge I thought “I think I was here” a bit south from where Daniel had suggested but he insisted, and I was unsure so I went and agonizingly looked on as Dave began his search. Tirelessly he moved back and forth through the water and along the beach scouring the sand with his new detector (I later found out I was the first to break this one in); it began to rain and I looked at the sky silently pleading for it to stop so Dave wouldn’t…he didn’t; instead he only continued. Finally, the rain eased up and a rainbow broke out in the horizon just over head of where Dave was working. Daniel said “Look a rainbow” I smiled a little and hoped it was a sign but one hour, two hours, three hours passed and still no ring. It wasn’t here I thought.

 

 

At this point my Rainbow man was now working in front of me in the tide; I told Daniel I was going to ask him if he would come back Saturday to work the South side where he was now inching towards, I just had this burning feeling it was there. Daniel was insistent that it wasn’t down that far but I said “It will make me feel better if I know this whole area was covered.” No sooner did I say it I saw Dave approaching and I slowly got myself up to meet him. As I moved closer to him I began to speak but before I could say a word he shook his sifter at me; I looked down and there it was, my ring!!! Dave pulled it from the ocean, and truly blew my mind! I was stunned, ecstatic and absolutely over the moon! Daniel couldn’t believe it. I must have hugged Dave ten times in that moment!

 

 

August 9th was one of the worst days of my life, however, August 12th became the day I will most remember and I have no one else but Dave to thank for that. He returned something precious to me…something I thought I would never see again. I’ll forever be thankful to you Dave. You are an angel…not just to me, but to so many others and you will forever be… my Rainbow Man. Thank you!

 

 

Lost Diamond Ring Found in Beach Haven NJ, 8/2/2013, by Dave Milsted

  • from South Jersey (New Jersey, United States)
Contact:
Got a call from John. His wife lost her diamond ring on the beach in Beach Haven (LBI). He said she was putting sunscreen on their kids, took her ring off and put it on a towel. She forgot about it. The tide started to come in and they moved their stuff.

It wasn’t till later that she realized that her ring was missing. It was white gold ring with a lot of little diamonds. It was given to her by her husband when she was pregnant with her first child because her wedding rings didn’t fit anymore. So there is a lot of sentimental value in this ring.

It was lost a few days ago, and they are worried that someone had already found it. Maybe a kid was digging and buried it deeper. Maybe the rise took it away.

Adam, my son & I met them on the beach just after 7am. They had both kids with them and they were ready to play on the beach. John showed us the beach but didn’t have an exact location. So Adam started at one end and I started at the other end, we will meet in the middle.

Very few targets were on this beach. I got a good tone on my Minelab Explorer, said this has to be it. Dug it and looked in the scoop. Just a piece of tin foil. Bummer. Found several more pieces of foil. After about of 30 minutes another good tone at the high tide mark. Bingo! I had the ring.

We walked over to their encampment on the beach. Once Kristyna saw the ring she started to cry. John said he thought he was going to cry also. The look on their faces was priceless!! It’s such an AWESOME feeling returning lost items.2013-08-02 07.57.422013-08-02 07.59.33

Mt Laurel NJ Lost Ring Found June 2013

  • from South Jersey (New Jersey, United States)
Contact:

I received a call from Sharon while I was at work on a 24 hour shift. She explained to me that she was catching some rays in her backyard and took off her wedding band and placed it on her towel. When she was done she got up and shook her towel, forgetting that she removed her ring.

When she discovered that it was missing she did a search of the yard with no luck. They had company over and they were all on their hands and knees searching. They even borrowed a family members metal detector with no luck.

She did an internet search and found me on Ring Finders and gave me a call. I explained that I was at work, but I could meet her the next day. She agreed.

The next day Sharon gave me a call while she was on her way home from work. I met her and her husband, Justin. They showed me the area that Sharon was sitting. I went to may truck and got my machine. It took 3 swings when I got a nice strong low tone. I bent down and moved the grass to reveal a platinum wedding band. Found with in less than a minute.

Sharon and Justin couldn’t believe that I found it so quickly. The smile on her face was priceless…

Below is her story:

Dave,
I can’t thank you enough for finding one of my most valuable possessions, my wedding ring.  I lost it because I let my vanity get the best of me- I took it off while getting some sun and soon thereafter dropped it in the grass.  I didn’t notice that it wasn’t on my finger until hours later but by then it was too late.  Neither me, my husband nor 3 other friends could find it after hours of searching.  We even borrowed a family member’s “really good” metal detector but soon learned that not all metal detectors are made equal.  Lucky for me, after searching online for metal detectors, I found your advertisement online under “Ring Finders.”  I had no idea someone like you was out there but can attest, your job is highly valued as you found my ring within a couple of minutes.  Unbelievable!  My husband and I are forever grateful.  Sharon and Justin.
2013-06-17 17.59.35

Lost Custom Wedding Ring Found in Marina: Ocean City NJ

  • from South Jersey (New Jersey, United States)
Contact:

Look at this BEAUTY!! A Tuna, a Marlin and an Anchor…

I received a call from John asking if I could help him find his custom made wedding ring. He said he had lost it a few weeks ago in the water. I asked John to give me some more details.

He said he was washing his boat with a car wash mitt on his hand. The mitt came off and when he retrieved the mitt and picked it up he saw his ring fall out of it and sink into the bay.

I started asking a lot of questions, the main one being how deep is the water? John’s reply was 4 foot at low tide. I agreed to make the hour drive the following Sunday to meet him at low tide.

I got to the marina about a half an hour before low tide. Yes it was 4 feet deep to the muck, the muck was about another foot. I got into my wetsuit and got into the water. He pointed to the area the ring fell.

Within 2 minutes I had a solid signal. I thought wow this is great, a nice QUICK find I’ll be back home in time to watch the Opening Kickoff of the NFL Season. The muck was so thick in my scoop we need a hose to see what was in it. I had a “Stinkin Lincoln” a penny. I continued the hunt.

The area was quite, not much metal. I had to have John move his boat to broaden the search area. In the next hour and a half I had found 1 penny, 1 Miller Lite can and 4 little washers.

I was getting frustrated and so was John. The tide was coming in and was up to my neck while standing on my tippy toes. John then tells me that he might have moved the ring. He said for the 4 nights after he lost the ring he was in the water with a shrimp net trying to find the ring.

I said I am running out of time and need to get out because of the incoming tide, and I don’t scuba dive. But I want to check this one little area. 2 minutes later I had the ring. What a beautiful gold ring it is.

John was so happy, the look on his face was priceless! I was pumped, great adrenaline rush for an adrenaline junkie!! The people on the dock and the boat next to John’s were amazed that I had found it. They all thought that Davey Jones was now owner of the ring.

John said he will not wear it again until he gets it re-sized.

Below are some words from John:

On August 31st 2012 I was cleaning my boat after a day of reef fishing in OC N.J. I lost my custom made wedding ring when my hand hit the rub rail. After a week of searching myself a friend told me about Dave Milsted the ring finder. I called Dave and set a date for Sept 9 2012 at low tide. Dave showed up on time and worked very hard for two hours as the tide was rising quickly. Dave found my priceless ring. I cannot thank him enough.

Best Regards

John R

O.C. N.J

John reunited with his custom ring!

Lost Wedding Ring Found in Stone Harbor NJ

  • from South Jersey (New Jersey, United States)
Contact:

 

Tim with his returned ring.

I received a call from Tim in Upstate NY on a Wednesday. He was very upset. He had lost his ring, the day before while on vacation in Stone Harbor NJ, while he playing in the surf. He had tried looking for it but he feared that is was gone.

I couldn’t look for it till the following Sunday. I asked him several questions and he knew the answers to them all. He was very prepared and knew where he lost the ring.

I started searching at 5:30 am that Sunday. There were very few targets on the beach. I was fearing the worst, that someone else had already found the ring. By 7:30 I only had found 6 targets, 2 coins and 4 pieces of trash. I was ready to give up. I said to myself a couple more passes then I can leave. At 8 am I had a good tone, scooped it up and low and behold I had Tim’s ring. I left the beach and got ready to drive home and the song on the radio was “Whoop There It Is”.

When I got home I called Tim. He couldn’t believe that I found it. He made arrangements to drive down and pick it up that Tuesday. He even brought his wedding album to show my wife and I. He was so happy to get his ring back. Even though I told him a reward was not necessary, he left one.

Below is Tim’s story:

We were having a great week on vacation at the beach in Stone Harbor.  The temperature (weather and water) were just perfect , but the surf was a bit rough.  On Tuesday I went for a swim right about high tide and then I went back to our “camp” to dry off and immediately realized that I had lost my wedding ring in the water!  I knew exactly where I had been swimming but searched and was unable to find it.  I was very disappointed to say the least but still continued to look into the next day hoping the tide would wash it up, but no luck.  I thought I would never see it again.

The next morning we had to take my daughter to urgent care because she was running a fever (she’s fine).   On the way back she fell asleep in the car and I stopped to pick up some lunch.   While I was gone my wife got bored in the car and started searching the internet on her phone to see if anyone had posted a ring under the “lost+found” on Craiglist.  She stumbled upon this story http://theringfinders.com/blog/Dave.Milsted/2012/06/lost-gold-ring-stone-harbor-nj/ , which ultimately led to us contacting Dave to see if he could help us find the ring.  We were skeptical but he said he could look for the ring but not until the next Sunday (we came back home to NY on Saturday).  On Sunday AM he called to tell us he had located the ring!  We were amazed, it was buried several inches in the sand right where I said I lost it, 6 days earlier.  Dave sent a email with the picture to confirm it was in fact the ring!   I drove back down to Jersey the following Tuesday to retrieve the ring.  We are very happy to have it back and still in disbelief!

Lessons learned:

1-Leave your rings at home

2-Looking for a ring in the ocean is NOT like looking for a needle in the haystack:)

3-Google DOES have all the answers

4-Dave is amazing, thanks so much!

Lost Wedding Ring in Negril Jamaica

  • from South Jersey (New Jersey, United States)
Contact:

Ya mon, no problem!!

June 21, 2012

My first morning in Jamaica and I was out on the beach at 5:30 am with my detector, searching the warm waters. This is the 1st time I have traveled outside of the USA with my detector. Very relaxing!! The water was very warm and I had the beach to myself, watching the sun rise.

I was having fun finding coins when a man called me over to the dry sand. He said that he knew where there was a gold ring. I asked him several questions. He said he lost it yesterday while playing catch in the water. He was about chest deep when he felt it fly off. I asked him where he was. He took me down to the beach bar and said “out there”. He said it was a yellow & white gold band with no inscription.

I told him I would look for him. He said that there was a problem. He was leaving the resort in 45 min to fly back to Wisconsin. Nothing like pressure!! I told him to leave his information at the desk so if I find it I could make sure it gets returned. He said he would.

I went out to the area he pointed to. First signal was a set of room keys. About 15 minutes later I had another signal. Two scoops later I had a white & yellow gold ring in my hand. Wow! I found it! I quickly left the water, ran back to my room to drop off my equipment and to grab a camera. My wife was still sleeping so she couldn’t come with me.

I was hurrying up to the resort lobby. I saw Matt walking down the path toward the beach, scanning the water. I can only guess the thoughts going through his head. Where did he go? Did he find it and leave? He then spotted me walking toward him.

He asked how I made out. I reached into my pocket and produced the ring. He said “No way!!” He couldn’t believe it! He said he was so happy he was ready to cry! He said that he wanted to give me a hug. I said I was wet and smelly. He didn’t care. He gave me a hug. He said that I needed to follow him to the lobby to meet his wife.

When she saw Matt walking toward her holding up his finger, she screamed “No way!!” She said to me that she needed to give me a hug. I told her that I am soaked and smelly, but she didn’t care. She gave me a hug. They told me they were there celebrating their 10th wedding anniversary. We had a bystander snap a quick picture because their bus was there waiting to take them to the airport. We exchanged some basic information. They offered me a reward, but I declined. I was happy that they could end their vacation on a happy note.

They had a long travel day ahead of them. Both of them now wet and smelly!

Lost Gold Ring Stone Harbor NJ

  • from South Jersey (New Jersey, United States)
Contact:

Lost Family Heirloom!

On August 4th 2010 I answered an ad on Craig’s List for a missing ring in the surf at Stone Harbor. The ring was a family heir loom. dating back over 100 years. We exchanged a few emails and I said I would give it a try.

I arrived at the beach at 5:30 am the next morning. The tide was high and the water had dropped at least 10 degrees. Good thing I wore my wetsuit.

I started at the life guard stands working a grid pattern to the north. There were very few signals. about 50 feet out there was a drop off and moguls of sand. I was getting a bad feeling about not finding this one.

There was another gentleman hunting the dry & wet sand. He came over to me and told me about the missing ring. I told him I saw the ad on Craig’s List. He had spoken to the guys wife and got a slightly different story. This widened the search area. Not good. He said he searched last night and was trying again this morning. This explains the lack of signals. He explained he had to leave soon but would try again in the evening.

It was getting late, and people were arriving at the beach. It was almost 9 am and the life guards were bringing out their boats. I was ready to give up. I was almost 2 blocks away from my starting point and area the guy Tim said he lost the ring. I got a nice deep tone and was praying to Davey Jones that this was the ring. It was, a very large mans gold ring. Wahoooo!!! I put it in my pouch and left the beach.

When I got back to the beach house, I sent Tim an email saying I found the ring. The only this was the date on the inside of the ring was different than what he posted. Boy this could get Tim in big trouble.

We played phone tag for most of the day. When we did speak we arranged to meet in the evening so the ring could be reunited with its owner. Tim and his wife arrived around 7:30 pm. They are a very nice couple from Baltimore. We took some pictures and Tim gave me a very nice reward. He was so happy to have the ring back that his great grandfather, grandfather and father have worn. He will not be wearing it in the water anymore!!

Below is a note from Tim:

Dear Dave, August 7, 2010

You are truly amazing!!! Here’s my story for any of you naysayers out there………

I had been swimming in the late afternoon with my nephews in the ocean off of 103rd Street in Stone Harbor N.J.. It wasn’t until that evening when I looked down at my hand before dinner that I noticed my wedding ring was gone!!!! It wasn’t just my wedding ring, mind you, it was also an heirloom that had been in my family for over a hundred years. Originally, it was a signet ring that had been my great-grandfather’s, my grandfather’s, and my father’s. All of them had been named Lawrence P. Naylor (LPN Sr., Jr., and the III). When I was married I decided to have it double as my wedding ring because I didn’t want to wear two rings. My wife and I had our initials and our wedding date engraved on the inside. We had just had our twentieth anniversary last fall.

Well, I was despondent to say the least. I knew it had fallen off in the water. Just for the record, I had always worn it in the ocean, but the water had been unusually cold and I recently lost a little weight so I assumed it slipped off while I was rough-housing with the kids. At any rate, it was in the surf, probably fifty or more feet out, and I was sure it was gone for good. We did go to the beach that evening before dark, but the water wasn’t clear beyond six inches or so. Except for a few shells, there was nothing. I had heard those stories about rings washing up the next day with the tide but didn’t hold out much hope.

The next morning, after spending about half an hour searching the shore we decided to mention it to the lifeguards who were just coming on duty. One of them suggested the “lost and found” section on Craigslist. Yeah, I knew it would be a waste of time but figured I could sleep a little better knowing I had tried everything. I posted a note about a lost ring in Stone Harbor. It seemed to be within minutes that I got a response from a guy whose address was metaldetectorman@verizon.net. I was curious, and desperate, so I went ahead and opened his response. He seemed genuinely concerned and asked for any specifics such as when, and exactly where I was when the ring came off, so he could consider the tides etc. He said he wasn’t sure he could get there right away, but he would try. This guy was serious, he even had a website. After a few back-and-forths, I thanked him for his interest and crossed my fingers. I knew it was going to be a waste of his time, but I really did appreciate the fact that he, and a few others by the way, who had also seen the Craigslist ad, showed real interest. One respondent said she would try, but it might be a few weeks at best until she could get down to Stone Harbor. This was all around noon on the day after the evening when I realized the ring was gone. We went swimming later that afternoon and noticed a real northward under-tow around our feet. Now I knew the ring was Poseidon’s forever!

The next day, around noon, I checked my e-mail. I still can’t believe what it said!!!! Dave had found my ring, more or less right where I had said it should be, in chest-deep water!!! He had shown up at about 5:00 in the morning and spent three hours searching before he found it. I will never be able to truly comprehend how he actually did it. Yes he did have a fancy, totally submersible detector, but he was looking in an area of about forty Olympic swimming pools, with surf and current to boot! Yeah, life would have gone on without that ring, but Dave saved me from a lot of regret over the years. Thanks a million! -Tim Naylor