๐จ ๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ & ๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐! ๐จ
When I saw “Heirloom Gold Bracelet” pop up on my phone, I knew there was no time to waste. Little did I know, this search would take me to a beach that had just made headlines for a wild Great White Shark encounter exactly three weeks prior!
Here is the text I received from Jesse:
“๐ฏ๐๐ ๐ซ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐บ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐โฆ ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐
๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐โฆ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐ฐโ๐
๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐ ๐๐๐..”
I immediately called Jesse to skip the back-and-forth texting. That’s when I learned this was a 5-day-old cold case. His wife, Waterfall, had been boogie boarding around high tide while on vacation from the Berkshires, Massachusetts. They had searched the sand empty-handed multiple times before heading back home, heartbroken. High tide surf is the perfect recipe for losing jewelry, and after five days of shifting Atlantic tides, the odds were heavily stacked against us.
๐ฆ ๐๐ก๐๐๐ค๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐ง ๐ฐ๐ข๐ญ๐ก ๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ก ๐๐๐ ๐๐ง๐
The next morning, I headed out and checked in with Greg Wilfert, the longtime Park Manager and Director at Scarborough Beach State Park, a truly beautiful beach in the Town of Scarborough, Maine. Greg and his team are fantastic about referring beachgoers to me whenever a sentimental item is lost.
Greg is a true legend, wrapping up 55 consecutive years of lifeguard service. But just three weeks to the day before I arrived, he was dragged 5 to 6 feet underwater when a great white shark ๐ฆ clamped onto his rescue torpedo buoy! Seeing him safe and sound was the perfect inspiration to kick off a tough hunt. I shot a quick beach layout video for Jesse to confirm the area, fired up my detector, and started swinging.
โก ๐๐ก๐ ๐๐จ๐ฎ๐๐ฅ๐ ๐๐๐ซ๐ ๐๐ญ ๐๐ฒ๐ฌ๐ญ๐๐ซ๐ฒ
With the tide actively pushing back in, my search window was incredibly tight. I grid-searched from the low tide line horizontally toward the shore. For nearly an hour, nothing. Then, my Minelab Manticore gave a low, scratchy toneโregistering a Target ID (TID) of just 07. Right next to it, another low tone erupted.
Usually, a 07 TID is just shredded aluminum foil, but ultra-fine gold chains fall into this exact range. I took a scoop from the first hole and uncovered a very delicate gold chainโhonestly too small to be a bracelet. I swung over the second hole right next to it, took another scoop, and pulled out a second gold chain.
When I laid them out, the mystery solved itself. The powerful Scarborough surf hadn’t just pulled the heirloom off Waterfall’s wristโit had torn it completely into two separate pieces!
๐น ๐๐ก๐ ๐๐ฎ๐ซ๐ฉ๐ซ๐ข๐ฌ๐ ๐๐๐ฏ๐๐๐ฅ
To surprise Jesse, I recorded a live video (the one I released last night on this page). I filmed the grid lines, kept the lens off myself, and said into the mic: “I will be leaving now because I just found it.” At that exact second, I panned the camera straight to the holes, showing the two pieces of gleaming gold still resting in the sand.
๐๐๐ง๐ญ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ฌ๐๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐ฆ๐จ๐ฆ๐๐ง๐ญ ๐ข๐ญ ๐ก๐๐ฉ๐ฉ๐๐ง๐๐? ๐๐๐๐ ๐จ๐ฏ๐๐ซ ๐ญ๐จ ๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ The Ring Finders of Maine ๐
๐๐๐๐๐จ๐จ๐ค ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ฐ๐๐ญ๐๐ก ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐ซ๐๐๐จ๐ฏ๐๐ซ๐ฒ ๐ฏ๐ข๐๐๐จ ๐ฅ๐ข๐ฏ๐!
About three hours later, Jesse called back after seeing the clip at work. He was completely stunned, thrilled, and couldn’t wait to tell Waterfall!
โค๏ธ ๐ ๐๐๐๐ซ๐ญ๐๐๐ฅ๐ญ ๐๐๐ญ๐ฎ๐ซ๐ง & ๐ ๐๐ฎ๐ฆ๐ฆ๐ฒ ๐๐ฎ๐ซ๐ฉ๐ซ๐ข๐ฌ๐!
Because they live four hours away and work busy schedules, I offered to ship it, but they insisted on retrieving it in person. Three weeks later, they made the drive back to Maine and met Cheryl and me at our Saco home.
Waterfall and Jesse were absolutely beaming to have her mother’s bracelet back where it belongs. Hugs, handshakes, and smiles were the order of the day! Waterfall told me her mother had the custom bracelet made and passed it down to her because she knew how much she loved it. Waterfall hadn’t taken it off once until the surf claimed it a month earlier. She plans to have the original designer repair it when she can visit her hometown area again.
Then, they completely caught Cheryl and me off guard. Waterfall surprised us with a DELICIOUS BLUEBERRY PIE. YUMMY!!! ๐ฅง It was such a genuine gesture. I told them it wasn’t necessary, but they insisted, and my stomach won out as I accepted their beautiful gift!
๐๐ ๐ก๐๐ฏ๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐๐ฌ๐ญ ๐ฃ๐จ๐ ๐ข๐ง ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐ฐ๐จ๐ซ๐ฅ๐, ๐๐ง๐ ๐ฐ๐ ๐ฅ๐จ๐ฏ๐ ๐ฐ๐ก๐๐ญ ๐ฐ๐ ๐๐จ.
“๐๐๐ฆ๐๐ฆ๐๐๐ซ, ๐๐ ๐ข๐ญ ๐ฆ๐๐ญ๐ญ๐๐ซ๐ฌ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ฒ๐จ๐ฎ, ๐ข๐ญ ๐ฆ๐๐ญ๐ญ๐๐ซ๐ฌ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ฎ๐ฌ!” ๐งฒ๐โจ
๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐, ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐! ๐
Now that water season is done, the focus shifts to fall cleanup, yard work, and prepping for winter. Slipping a ring off a cold finger while raking leaves or pulling off a work glove is incredibly common.
But don’t panic! ๐๐ก๐ ๐๐ข๐ง๐ ๐
๐ข๐ง๐๐๐ซ๐ฌ ๐จ๐ ๐๐๐ข๐ง๐ are on duty year-round. We can locate your lost jewelry, keys, or valuables hidden deep in lawn grass, piles of leaves, and even winter snow.
If you lose something on your property, do not disturb the area (avoid raking or blowing leaves over the spot) and contact us immediately. Time is of the essence!
๐ Contact Dennis ASAP: ๏ฟผโจ(207) 423-3027โฉ
“๐๐ ๐ข๐ญ ๐ฆ๐๐ญ๐ญ๐๐ซ๐ฌ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ฒ๐จ๐ฎ, ๐ข๐ญ ๐ฆ๐๐ญ๐ญ๐๐ซ๐ฌ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ฎ๐ฌ!” ๐งฒโ๏ธโจ
Got a call for a ring lost after diving off a family dock. Come to find it was in about 10+ ft of water.ย Had to use a mask and snorkel and some interesting metal detecting tactics to reach the bottom to do a search.ย Was successful in the end.ย Very happy to return this ring to its owner.ย Thank you for the call.
