Hello!!!

My name is actually Kellie, but my nephew and sister call me Tiki so that's my username. It's nice to be here, I am hoping for any advice and insights y'all can give me. I want to give my husband Lance a metal detector for Christmas, but I am not sure what kind, etc. I have been looking at Minelab, but I have been told (by a dealer) there are others that I should consider. I want something he can take with him when we go on trips, vacations, etc so it has to be able to be used in a variety of places. I think metal detecting/treasure hunting is pretty cool. Finding pieces of history and holding that in your hand is priceless and very exciting.

Also, I am David's wife Beth's cousin. Hey Dave!!! I was so excited to see you were a member here. I can remember Uncle Mike metal detecting when I was a little kid. I never knew you did it too, that's so cool.

This is the story of my first find. It's a little long, sorry!!

Twenty years ago, I was camping on a beach in Florida with around fifteen family members. My retired Uncle Bill metal detected on beaches and other places as a hobby. I woke up very early one morning to find him outside the RV getting his stuff ready. My Uncle Bill was special, he always took the time and care to include you even if you were a twenty one year old giggle-head know it all.

We walked down to the beach, with him explaining that this was a "prime" time to look because of the tide, and he stressed the importance of using your eyes as well as your tools. First he asked me how many people I thought came to the beach (or any other recreational place) in any given day. Well, I had observed several hundred every day on the beach we were at with my own two eyes and I told him that. Uncle Bill stopped and smiled at me. He said, 'Yes. Now imagine several hundred thousand more on beaches all over the world, with interconnecting oceans and waterways.

I got wide eyed when he added the fact that people had been visiting these places for centuries. He explained to me that you might not ever find anything but there was always a chance that you could find something good, like old coins, jewelry, or a piece of history itself.

He said people develop their own techniques for looking, but that he always liked to walk around and observe the general area first. So we walked right at the shoreline for awhile while he studied the sand. I thought secretly it was kind of boring but I was picking up some pretty shells so I didn't care. Finally we stopped and he pulled on his earphones and started adjusting knobs. He gestured around and gave me one of his shovels and told me to go dig in an area ten feet away (and to be quiet) until something "popped up".

I walked about 12-15 feet away from him and plopped down, deciding to use the wet sand and shells I had already collected to build something pretty and stay out of Uncle Bill's way for awhile.

I was digging about 4-5 inches down in the wet sand to make a border around "shell island" when I sat the shovel aside and started using my hands to scoop the wet sand out of the little trench I dug. I had a handful in my left hand, I was enjoying the way it felt between my fingers when I glimpsed bright gold metal shining.

I looked over at Uncle Bill who was busy detecting, and started using my other hand to brush away some of the sand while I kept most of it cupped in my hand because I was afraid of losing it...whatever it was. lol

I wound up brushing the sand off of a huge gold men's ring with an equally large diamond set into the top of it. I was so excited I screamed, and scared Uncle Bill half to death. He came running over, and when he looked down into my hands the biggest smile came over his face. He examined the ring and told me he thought it was 100% real and that he knew a jeweler he trusted back in Orlando we could take it to & get checked. He told me what he thought it might be worth and my eyes almost popped out of my head! I insisted that he use his detector over the rest of the place where I was digging...he just laughed and said we needed to go back and show everyone what I'd found.

When we got back to the RV campsite, most of the adults were already up and fixing breakfast. My Aunt Wanda said, "Bill...why is Kellie smiling like that?" He laughed and loudly told them all I had just made the find of a lifetime, and that I was incredibly lucky. I was so excited I couldn't even talk (which for me that's saying something) leaving him to explain what had happened. He told me to show them the ring, which was held tight in my hand. I held it up and none of them could believe it!

My Mom asked me what I was doing up so early, and I told her I just woke up and couldn't go back to sleep. Later after breakfast she took me aside and told me I should give the ring to Uncle Bill, that if I hadn't been there he would have found it instead of me. So I went to find Uncle Bill and tried to give him the ring. He looked at me, and said "Not no, but **** no. That ring is yours kid. It was meant for you to find it. I'm just glad I got to be there."

She tried to argue with him and change his mind but he wasn't having it. He told her that was not the way it worked. Finally he told her she couldn't understand and she was offending him so please shut up about it. My Aunt Wanda later told Mom that Uncle Bill took his treasure hunting very seriously, and that taking anyone's first treasure would spoil it for him.

Me and Uncle Bill went to see his jeweler the next week after we got back to Orlando. The ring tested to be 18kt gold, weighed 12.5 grams with a 2ct diamond. It turned out to be worth quite a bit. Uncle Bill told me I should sell it and use the money to start a savings with. So I did, after he took a bunch of pictures to show his friends.

My Uncle Bill was one in a million. He was full blooded Native American Sioux/Blackfoot, and also enjoyed searching for historical artifacts. He was a beautiful man and I miss talking to him so very much. I learned a lot from the conversations we used to have. He passed away eight years ago.

So that's my story of how I was bitten by the bug. I am hoping to make it a family hobby to share with my husband and sons. I think my husband Lance will really enjoy it once he gets started. My dad also loved history and the Civil War time period. I think holding a piece of history in your hand and sharing it is priceless. One of the most important things I learned from my Uncle Bill was this: There's plenty of treasure out there for everybody. It's out there guys. There are millions of people over thousands of years that lost and forgot a LOT of things. Treasures come in many forms. Don't get discouraged and keep looking!!!!