Lost ring Caladesi Island Tag | The Ring Finders

Wedding Rings Lost Four Months in Palm Harbor, Fl. Yard…Found!!!

  • from Dunedin (Florida, United States)


Steve Thomas

Dunedin Ring Finder

Lost a ring or other metal valuable at the beach or in a grassy or sandy area? Jewelry slip off of you while working outside, playing with the dog or swimming? Please call me ASAP at (843) 995-4719. I offer a FREE metal detecting service, reward optional but appreciated upon recovery!

One day in early November 2023, Michelle realized that both her engagement and wedding rings were missing from her hand. Michelle had recently done some gardening and thought that she must have lost them as she was pulling weeds in the thick liriope or monkey grass. At the same time, Michelle and her husband John had recently returned from a trip to the mountains of North Carolina so there was a possibility she had lost them where they stayed. Michelle also works as a dental hygienist and there was a possibility that she could have lost her rings at the office. Michelle and John thoroughly searched everywhere she thought she may have lost her rings and contacted the rental company of the vacation house in North Carolina but they could not find them. Michelle then reached out for help on social media and I responded to her. As it turns out, Michelle has her hair done at the same place where my wife and I go for hair cuts so several people who work there recommended me. A few days later, I searched Michelle and John’s front yard thoroughly with my Nox 900, especially the area with the tall, thick liriope grass including probing the grass with my hand held pinpointer but I was unable to find the rings. Michelle agreed to contact me again in several months after she cut the grass back which she did in early March. I went back over and searched the grass again but it was still too thick to push my detector coil as far as I needed to so I probed the grass with two pinpointers including my new Nokta AccuPoint pinpointer. After about 30 minutes of searching in several clumps of the thick grass, the Nokta “beeped” a contact signal and I pushed the grass aside to reveal the beautiful engagement ring! Michelle was at work and John had just walked into the house so I shouted for John who quickly came back out. I pushed the grass aside and John stared at the ring with a look of disbelief and we both began to celebrate. Then I remembered I still needed to find the wedding band and I got another signal just a few inches from the first ring, pushed the grass aside and there was the second ring! After I left, John texted photos of the rings to Michelle who was still at work and the entire office was overjoyed with the recovery.

Michelle and John, thank you for trusting the Dunedin Ring Finder to find and return the precious wedding rings and thank you for the generous reward!

 

Lost Tungsten Carbide Wedding Band Honeymoon Island, Dunedin Fl…Found!!!

  • from Dunedin (Florida, United States)

 

Steve Thomas

Dunedin Ring Finder

Lost a ring or other metal valuable at the beach or in a grassy or sandy area? Jewelry slip off of you while working outside, playing with the dog or swimming? Please call me ASAP at (843) 995-4719. I offer a free metal detecting service, reward optional but appreciated upon recovery!

Erin and her husband Michael were enjoying some beach time with family on the Dog Beach portion of Honeymoon Island State Park. Michael was playing with the children in about knee deep water when he felt his heavy tungsten carbide wedding band slip off of his finger into the water. Despite a frantic effort by all present to find the ring searching in the water by hand, it could not be found.

Unfortunately as they were vacationing in the Tampa area and staying with family, Erin and Michael had to return to their home in Texas several days later without Michael’s wedding band. After Erin returned home, she began seeking help to find her husband’s ring on local social media pages including one called Honeymoon Island Sandbar Chasers where several people recommended me.

After I was able to connect with Erin, I discovered that Michael had lost his ring about fours days before near high tide in knee deep water which means it would just be in wet sand at low tide. I was concerned that the ring might be found by another detectorist under those conditions so I headed to the beach at low tide the following morning. Erin had texted me a pin drop on a Google map as well as a description of the loss location which included several visual landmarks but Erin’s step mom who was with the family at the beach and who lives in the area was not able to assist me that day. I wanted to recover the ring with one search because beginning the next day I was going to be out of town for two weeks.

After I reviewed the map and noted landmarks at the site, I decided to begin my search in knee deep water and grid about 50 yards to the north and south of the beginning point. After working the water up to the wet sand for several hours and finding several bottle caps and pull tabs, I detected a target with a strong signal that I felt like could be just what I was looking for. I dug a few inches down with my scoop and out popped Michael’s wedding ring! I sent some photos to Erin who couldn’t believe how quickly I had recovered the ring especially with no one present to point out the precise location. Later that day I met up with Erin’s step mom to return the ring so she could mail it to Erin. As soon as I receive a photo of Michael with the ring back on his finger, I will edit this post. In the meantime, my smile will have to do!

Erin and Michael, thank you for trusting the Dunedin Ring Finder to find and return Michael’s wedding ring!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lost Wedding Ring Caladesi Island, Dunedin, Fl….Found!!

  • from Dunedin (Florida, United States)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Steve Thomas

Dunedin Ring Finder

Lost a ring or other metal valuable at the beach or in a grassy or sandy area? Jewelry slip off of you while working outside, playing with the dog or swimming? Please call me ASAP at (843) 995-4719. I offer a free metal detecting service, reward optional but appreciated upon recovery!

Michelle and her husband Justin were visiting beautiful Caladesi Island beach for the day. Michelle took off her beautiful wedding/engagement ring to apply sun screen and then got into the water. After a few minutes in the warm waters of the Gulf, Michelle realized that her ring was no longer on her finger! She quickly began a frantic search, first by looking around in the clear water where she stood and then by searching the area around where they had set up their beach chairs in the sand. Soon the beach chair and umbrella vendor Chris came over to see what was going on and to assist in the search. Michelle could not remember if she had placed the ring back on her finger after applying sunscreen so it could have fallen into the sand off of her chair or have been lost in the water.

I had just recovered another wedding ring on Caladesi Island about a week before and had left my contact info with Chris so he texted me about this ring loss. Chris gave me Michelle and Justin’s contact info as they were staying at Clearwater Beach and told me he had placed cones around the area of sand where their chairs were placed. I took the ferry over to Caladesi the next morning and after arriving at the beach, Chris showed me the area of sand to search and also the area of water where Michelle may have lost the ring about waist deep. The search in the sand revealed only a couple of bottle caps and another ring that was not close to the picture of Michelle’s ring she had sent me. Then I began my water search sweeping my detector back and forth from the dry sand to the wet sand and then to the point where Michelle entered the water. I worked out to a small sand bar where Michelle had told me was her furthest point in the water and then back to shore and then back out in a grid pattern. After being in the water only about 2o minutes,  I hit a target on the side of the sand bar that my detector told me could possibly be the gold and diamond ring I was searching for. After a couple of attempts I managed to scoop Michelle’s precious ring out of the water! This was the second ring I had recovered in about a week’s time without the owner present! I texted a photo to Michelle and said “Is this it”? Obviously she was ecstatic and we then set up a time and location later in the afternoon so I could return the ring and Michelle and Justin could resume their vacation much happier than they were before!

I was very fortunate and very blessed to have found the ring in only about 20 minutes. Some searches like this can last for hours and I may never be able to recover what I’m searching for.

Michelle and Justin, thank you for trusting me to find Michelle’s ring and thank you for the generous reward! And thanks to Chris for the referral and pointing me in the right direction.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

LOST WEDDING BAND HONEYMOON ISLAND, Fl. …FOUND!!

  • from Dunedin (Florida, United States)

 

 

STEVE THOMAS  DUNEDIN RING FINDER    LOST A RING OR OTHER METAL VALUABLE?   CALL ME ASAP ANYTIME (843)  9954719
10 MINUTES FROM HONEYMOON ISLAND

 

 

Last Friday I was enjoying some beach time with family including our daughter who was visiting from Texas. It had been several days since Tropical Storm Eta had passed and the beaches had unfortunately lost a lot of sand, making for some good detecting. I had the usual questions from people I passed nearby including “find anything today?” and “what’s the most interesting thing you have found?” As I walked out towards the jetty to see if my son had caught any fish, I noticed a lady who was sitting in the edge of the water. As I got closer, I thought I heard the lady talking to herself but then I realized that she was speaking to me. The lady, who later introduced herself as Vilma, asked me if I helped people search for lost jewelry on the beach. I told her of course about what I did as a Ring Finder and asked her what she had lost. Vilma sadly explained to me that about two months ago she was on this same beach with her family including her recently wedded son Oscar. Oscar lost his white gold wedding band while helping a another family with their umbrella after the wind suddenly kicked up. Vilma’s family had searched several times for the ring but had not used a metal detector or service. Vilma had promised Oscar that she would somehow find the ring and she had prayed for God’s help.

I asked Vilma to show me the area where the ring was lost and she led me to a location no more than 200 feet away but close to the current dune area and a beach access. Vilma was very certain that this was where Oscar lost his ring but significant beach erosion had occurred from the storm. I began sweeping a grid area maybe 20 feet wide and 100 or so feet from the dune line towards the water. The area was somewhat rocky due to the storm removing several feet of sand. I reached the water, turned around and was headed back towards the dune line when I happened to run into Chip, the person who assisted with my last ring search several days before with his Garrett. He wished me luck and continued to move north up the beach. I continued my sweep toward the dune line and within 15 feet or so of the dune, my Equinox 600 registered a 11-12 target about 4” down. I know from previous experience that 11-12 could be a pull tab and a 13 could be either a bottle cap or a nickel but I had found gold in this range so I dug into the somewhat rocky sand. Incredibly, I uncovered the ring, held it up to Vilma, and said “is this what you are looking for?” She stared at the ring for a moment and then let out a scream of joy that could be heard by everyone reasonably close. Vilma ran to me, hugged my neck and wouldn’t let go. So much for social distancing, lol!! After many “thank yous” to me and to God, Vilma left the beach trying to figure out the best way to surprise Oscar with his ring. Afterwards, I actually had to explain to several groups of people who I had already spoken to about what I do as a Ring Finder that finding Vilma’s ring was not a set up because there is no fee for my services, only an optional reward!! I am convinced that God used me to answer Vilma’s prayers that day. I love my retirement job!

 

 

 

 

Hearing Aid Lost in Dunedin, Florida…Found

  • from Dunedin (Florida, United States)
  • When I became a member of The Ring Finders last month, I mentioned in my bio that locating a lost hearing aid was what led me to join an international group of metal detecting specialists who help reunite people with their lost rings and other metal valuables.
    In December, a neighbor asked me to help her find her grandson Ben’s hearing aid that he had lost while playing in the yard with his sister. I began my search in an area where Ben’s grandmother said that he began to chase his sister around the corner of the house. After a 30 minute search in thick St. Augustine grass, I located the hearing aid which was mostly plastic but contained sufficient metal to allow detection. The hearing aid had a $5,000 replacement value but my neighbor’shugs and smiles were priceless.