Unusual places to find gold near the beach

When people hear what I do for a living they often share "I lost a gold at" stories and it's not always at the beach.
The following sites are just a few of the unusual places connected to beach hunting where people lose gold jewelry.

Boat ramps

People often lose jewelry bending over to hook or unhook boats at slippery boat ramps, it's also a place that sees a lot of people getting on and off boats.
Water, suntan lotion and sunscreen help make boat ramps a surprisingly good place to search for gold using a metal detector.
I have been called out for two gold ring recoveries within the last twelve months by people losing gold wedding bands handing bags from boats to people onshore.
Inland waterway and lake boat ramps are just as good, although I pick and choose my spots carefully here in Florida due to Alligators and snakes.


Dockside fuel stations

I have heard at least three gold Rolex stories connected to boat filling stations, places where boats fill up with fuel. I guess boaters either take their expensive watches off before pumping or lose them struggling with the hose or gas pump, either way if it's safe to search in the water close to dockside fueling stations you could hit the jackpot. I'm sure other jewelry is lost and it's worth a try if it's a popular filling up station.

Beach showers

Every year I pick up gold jewelry around beachside showers, the busier the tourist beach the more you are likely to eyeball gold on the ground. Soap and shampoo cause just as many rings to slip off fingers as suntan oil and  sunscreen.
Around the drain is a good area to spy a gold chain, bracelet or ear ring, lost by people rinsing off their hair.
Heck I even take the drain grills off next to showers checking for gold and it has worked in my favor many a time.
People also put valuables on walls next to beach side showers, especially after normal beach hours when alcohol is involved!

Tot lots

Big or small jewelry it's all gold to me and some of the kiddy bling you can pull out of a beachside kids playground is amazing.
High end beach resort and hotel sand lots are the best, sometimes you hit mum and dad jewelry too. Use a small search coil and  take out all the junk if you regularly search tot lots. Check out the area at the end of slides and underneath the baby swings, where chains and bracelets often get snapped.
I like searching sandy tot lots on rainy days, no kids or parents to deal with and you can often see undetectable thin gold chains against the wet ground.
I'm a dad and know just how many times my young girls used to come home from the tot lot missing jewelry, luckily stuff I had found !

Cross walks

Main street crossing points at busy tourist beaches are excellent places to find gold jewelry if you keep your eyes open.
They are areas people wait to cross the road to the beach adjusting bags, beach chairs, beach umbrellas or anything else they are transporting too and from the beach.
Bracelets and watch straps get snagged and broken, especially by people carrying small children or babies. More importantly it's an area where people put their hands in pockets to pull out car keys, cash and anything else they took off for safe keeping.
You obviously cannot detect the cross walk but keep an eye on the curbs as they collect stuff  you can see and pick up. I once found a nice 18K bracelet in the middle of a cross walk going to beach hunt and another time I picked up a $50.00 note.