1715 Fleet/Beach Combing

[Trez]

Hey JvilleHunter,
Have you worked your neck of the woods? You are close to some spots that produce as much as our beaches produce, you even have inland sites that give up some fantastic artifacts...find anything yet from up there?

Trez

 

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[JvilleHunter]

NO I haven't.... I've fallen so much in love with the thrill of MD in Vero and Sebastion that I haven't even discovered what's at my door step. However, I will tell a small story from a good friend of mine who through just recent conversation discovered that I love to MD.

He tells me that his brother enjoys TH'ing of all kinds of sorts. I don't know to what degree but this story really blew me away. We have several little islands inside the St. Johns in Jacksonville that contains Lord knows what but one night this guys brother was gigging(flounder) and searching around the islands for whatever he could find in terms of treasure stuff. He also had a metal detector with him. after gigging for awhile in about 6 inches of water, he began to MD from about a foot of water to the shore line. After about an hour, BAAM!....he got a very interesting beep at about 6 inches. What he dug up is only for a select few (sooooooo lucky). He pulled up a 1lb pure gold spanish medallion of some sort. My friends says that he doesn't tell anyone about it....and I can understand why. My friend says it also sits on top of his mantle and tells ppl that it's a fake...but only a select few know exactly how he got it. He invited me over to see it but...just haven't had the time. I don't know if this story is true...but i've known this guy for quite some time and he's always been on the up and up with me...don't really have any reason to disbelieve him. He told me the name of the island where his brother found it but can't really remember it...but at the time...I knew exactly which island he was talking about. The island (NOT THAT BIG) is jam packed with rattle snakes and raccoons (NOT REALLY TO FOND OF SNAKES - ESPECIALLY RATTLERS) anyway....hope you guys enjoyed that story and boosts some excitement in TH'ing. ...and...any info anyone may have about early NEFL or Jacksonville treasure troves...lemme know....I'm always on the hunt for a good treasure...

 

[Tommi]

Hey don't forget the eye of the hurricane... you could get a couple of minutes of TH'ing then

 

[deepsix47]

Relatively new at this and have been reading as much as I could before I make my first venture. After looking at the area in person and maps, it seems there are quite a few stretches of very narrow land south of the Sebastian Inlet separating the ocean side from the Intercoastal!
Has anyone searched or had any success looking on the Intercoastal Side after the past Hurricanes.
The ocean met the Intercoastal at quite a few spots during the hurricanes and anything left on the ocean side, surely would have also been deposited on the Intercoastal side!
Make any sense?
And do the leases also cover the intercoastal, or just the ocean side?
Just a thought from someone new at this!

There is no problem working the ICW but not in the park. Drop by the Sebastian Library. There are several reports of canon being seen in the intercoastal in the early 1900's. Good luck.
Deepsix

 

[JvilleHunter]

Hey Trez....do you know of any good sites here in Jacksonville to search?...Any stories I try to always have an ear open to anything..

Jville

 

[Silver Striker]

Is it really that much better to MD right after a hurricane as opposed to just hunting the lane during low tide? Is the difference worth risking your lives over? I mean there have been dozens of hurricanes to hit the coast since 1715. If treasure is going to take 291 years to reach the shore, what difference will one hurricane make? Am I missing something here? Is it that the treasure is always there, but it's just buried too deep until right after a hurricane? I'd rather buy a deeper detector or a boat than risk my life doing something crazy, just for a slightly better chance at finding a silver reale. If you guys are that desperate for a gamble, then play the lottery. SS

 

[tedpank]

Am I missing something here?
If you guys are that desperate for a gamble, then play the lottery. SS

"Missing Something here"

YES !!

"Playing the Lottery"

Guess thats exctiement for some! Good Luck!

 

[deepsix47]

Is it really that much better to MD right after a hurricane as opposed to just hunting the lane during low tide? Is the difference worth risking your lives over? I mean there have been dozens of hurricanes to hit the coast since 1715. If treasure is going to take 291 years to reach the shore, what difference will one hurricane make? Am I missing something here? Is it that the treasure is always there, but it's just buried too deep until right after a hurricane? I'd rather buy a deeper detector or a boat than risk my life doing something crazy, just for a slightly better chance at finding a silver reale. If you guys are that desperate for a gamble, then play the lottery. SS

ABSOLUTLY!!!! Being there immediately after the storm is always the best. The actual strength of the storm plays a lot in my personal decision as to "hide" and ride the storm out or wait on the mainland until it's over (have done both). To get around the Police roadblocks after the storm merely takes a little imagination (where there's a will, there's a way). Remember also that Treasure does not wash in, it washes out. The dunes (illegal to TH) are full of treasure from the wrecks and a good storm erodes them washing their contents down onto the beach. It also strips sand off of the beach exposing things already there. North of the inlet at "Chucks, Aquarina and Roundhouse" the best time is with the waves washing in around your feet. Risky, you bet! Worthwhile, absolutely! Don't forget the winter storms also, a good "Northeaster" can be as productive as a hurricane. Each of us has to decide how much risk we're willing to take. May I make a suggestion, stop limiting yourself. Instead of thinking about finding ...."a silver reale"...., think about finding that blanket of gold escudos or gold and emerald jewelry (a true TH'er is a 100% optimist....lol). Anyway, the best of luck to you.
Deepsix

 

[Silver Striker]

Remember also that Treasure does not wash in, it washes out. The dunes (illegal to TH) are full of treasure from the wrecks and a good storm erodes them washing their contents down onto the beach. It also strips sand off of the beach exposing things already there. North of the inlet at "Chucks, Aquarina and Roundhouse" the best time is with the waves washing in around your feet. Risky, you bet! Worthwhile, absolutely! Don't forget the winter storms also, a good "Northeaster" can be as productive as a hurricane. Each of us has to decide how much risk we're willing to take. May I make a suggestion, stop limiting yourself. Instead of thinking about finding ...."a silver reale"...., think about finding that blanket of gold escudos or gold and emerald jewelry (a true TH'er is a 100% optimist....lol). Anyway, the best of luck to you.
Deepsix


I'm afraid that I don't understand the logic here. Like I said I am a newbie and don't know a whole lot about the physics of the ocean, compared to most of you. Considering gravity and the slope of a beach, how is it possible that the goodies can get all the way up into the dunes from a shipwreck? I find it hard to believe that they can even move more than 20 feet from where they originally went down, even after 291 years. Gold sinks quickly and gets embedded into the sand where it first went down, doesn't it? Are you talking about a cache of buried pirate treasure, left in the dunes, or loose pieces migrating all the way to the dunes from the 1715 Fleet? Somebody please explain to me the physics of the ocean and how it gets from the shipwreck all the way to the dunes, without getting lodged somewhere further out? "Treasure does not wash in, it washes out" makes absolutely no sense to me. It had to wash in at some point or it wouldn't be on the beach at all. But like I said, I'm no expert, so please try to explain it to me. Thanks, SS

 

[deepsix47]

Remember also that Treasure does not wash in, it washes out. The dunes (illegal to TH) are full of treasure from the wrecks and a good storm erodes them washing their contents down onto the beach. It also strips sand off of the beach exposing things already there. North of the inlet at "Chucks, Aquarina and Roundhouse" the best time is with the waves washing in around your feet. Risky, you bet! Worthwhile, absolutely! Don't forget the winter storms also, a good "Northeaster" can be as productive as a hurricane. Each of us has to decide how much risk we're willing to take. May I make a suggestion, stop limiting yourself. Instead of thinking about finding ...."a silver reale"...., think about finding that blanket of gold escudos or gold and emerald jewelry (a true TH'er is a 100% optimist....lol). Anyway, the best of luck to you.
Deepsix


I'm afraid that I don't understand the logic here. Like I said I am a newbie and don't know a whole lot about the physics of the ocean, compared to most of you. Considering gravity and the slope of a beach, how is it possible that the goodies can get all the way up into the dunes from a shipwreck? I find it hard to believe that they can even move more than 20 feet from where they originally went down, even after 291 years. Gold sinks quickly and gets embedded into the sand where it first went down, doesn't it? Are you talking about a cache of buried pirate treasure, left in the dunes, or loose pieces migrating all the way to the dunes from the 1715 Fleet? Somebody please explain to me the physics of the ocean and how it gets from the shipwreck all the way to the dunes, without getting lodged somewhere further out? "Treasure does not wash in, it washes out" makes absolutely no sense to me. It had to wash in at some point or it wouldn't be on the beach at all. But like I said, I'm no expert, so please try to explain it to me. Thanks, SS

In the case of the 1715 wrecks as with all treasure, research is the key. I would suggest that you go down to Sebastian and visit both Mel Fishers museum and the Mclarty (hope I spelled that right) museum out on A1A. Survivors accounts tell us that when morning came there was "....wreckage and bodies as far as the eye could see in both directions....". A great deal of the treasure washed in with the wreckage, and in some cases over, the narrow islands. Therefore, storms erode the dunes and more of the treasure and other relics wash out and onto the beach. You can also find a huge amount of info on the net and of course right here. Many have actually found coins in the walls of the dunes. There are also caches yet to be found. I hope that clears it up a bit for you. It would really help you out to do as much research as possible up to and including the way the ships were built. This will help you understand how the ships broke up. You can also research the scatter patterns of the treasure and wreckage other TH'ers have found. All of this information will help you know where you want to search. I hope that explains it a bit for you.
Deepsix

 

[tedpank]

Research is really the key! I've relatively new at this when it comes to the 1715 treasure fleet and have been reading as much as I could over the last couple of months.

Having found a few debris maps of items found from one of the wrecks it obvious that certain spots are more attractive then others, and by looking at the maps showing what has been recovered already you can see how far and wide the wreckage was and continues to be re-arranged with every shift in the sand!

I posted some recent pictures of the Wabasso beach area which were followed up by someone else posting pre and post Jeanne and Francis photos of the same area.

They alone show how the sands shift! Photo's are under beach hunting and title as i recall wabasso beach 1715 fleet.

Do a google of 1715 plate fleet and as well as here find a host of info, much of which describes the ships and beach areas.

As recommended in the previous post, a visit to Mel Fishers and the Mclarty museums would provide you with a lot of insight on how much of this winds up where it does and why!

Happy Hunting!

 

[Silver Striker]

Thanks Guys. Maybe I will hit that museum in Sebastian, one of these days. The entire subject fascinates me. I already found a map of the wrecks and know to hunt the lane at low tide (from what I've read in the forum and on various websites), but I'm sure there's much more to learn. My line of thinking is still hunting the lane during low tide, mostly on public beaches in the treasure zone, whether there is a hurricane or not, for several reasons:

1. It's always legal to hunt there and the finders keepers rule applies
2. It's much safer than diving
3. It's the part of the beach most recently re-seeded by the ocean
4. It's the lowest altitude area of the beach, which means that something buried 6-12" below sea level may be detected by my machine, whereas it wouldn't be under all of the new sand that's beyond the high tide line
5. Whatever the high tide brought in may still be there, either on top of the sand or buried very shallow (many posts here seem to contradict this point, but it still seems logical to me)
6. This is where the beachgoers jewelry and clad is most likely to be found. So, in case I get discouraged about not finding any 1715 fleet goodies, I'll still have that to fall back on. Hence, why I prefer the public beaches.

If I'm way off on any of these points, please inform me where my logic is off or I've been misinformed. I will do more research, but asking these questions is also part of my research, so any help or advice would be welcome. SS