With the weather finally breaking 10 degrees Celsius (50 Fahrenheit) , I headed out to Rugg Pond Natural Area near Kalkaska, MI, with the metal detector. I spent most of my time around the north side of the pond, where a hydro-electric dam was constructed in 1905. Today, Rugg Pond is a popular local destination for trout fishing and family picnics.
The first hour of detecting was rather uneventful, with the ground giving up beer cans, pull tabs, and a few lead fishing sinkers. I gradually moved to the northeast side of the pond, along a quiet trail. I dug a few old cans and modern coins before getting an interesting signal I hadn’t heard before. At roughly 12 centimeters deep I found a silver ring embedded in the dirt. Previously, I had only found children’s costume jewelry, so my expectations were low. After gently removing the dirt I could see the S925 stamp inside the ring, indicating that this was 92.5% sterling silver. This ring looked nice.
Around 7 PM I started to head back to the car, but not before digging an old child’s toy truck, which is probably about 60 years old. I packed the afternoon’s treasures into the car and headed home to sort through the mess. After taking the usual photos, I took the ring, coins and toy truck into the house for ultrasonic cleaning in soapy water.
The ring cleaned up wonderfully, revealing what may be a beautiful blue sapphire surrounded by 6 smaller diamonds. The coins were all fairly modern, with the oldest being a 1962 Lincoln penny. Once the ring and coins were cleaned, the little truck received the ultrasonic treatment, freeing any remaining dirt from the little beast.
This outing gave me several more hours of experience with the new detector, which is much more complex than my previous machine. Now, I just need to find some old coins.
