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The beach is by far the best place for metal detecting.
There are no water pipes, electrical lines, or other man made distractions under
the sand. Anything
that is dropped in the sand is usually quickly lost. On the beach your detector will
may find anything from soda can pop tops to diamond rings to hand fulls of change that
people have dropped. You can dig as many holes on the beach as you like - easily - and nobody
minds. And you can tidy up by just kicking some sand back in the hole.
The most trafficked area of our beach is in Fernandina - Main Beach - where the tourists
seem to flock to during the summer. There may be a million dollars worth of nickels ands dimes in the
sand here that have fallen from bathing suit pockets over the years. Main Beach is located at the end of
Atlantic Avenue. If you go north up the beach from Main Beach, you will
have several miles of beach to search on before you reach Fort Clinch.
The mild winters here, combined with empty beaches, make the area a great place for treasure
hunting during the winter months too.
Since Fort Clinch is a Florida state park, it is the only area of Amelia Island's
beach that we know of where metal detectors are not allowed - actually there is one small area of the
beach in the park where they are allowed - but it's so small (and so
easy to get out of) that we recommend you stay away from the park altogether.
We've also been informed by one of our visitors that metal detectors are not allowed
in Amelia Island State Park, which is located on the south end of the island.
Traveling south from Main Beach on North Fletcher, you'll find a
number of public beach accesses that will allow you to get to the beach.
This area is mostly private homes, but is frequented by numerous beach
goers and fisherman, so it's also a good area to search.
As you travel further south, you'll find Peter's Point, which has a large
parking lot and easy access to the beach in both directions. There is
a large condo development directly south of the parking lot. If you
travel south on the beach from here, you'll have a short walk to the
Ritz Carlton Amelia Island hotel, and who knows what you'll find in the sand in front
of a Five Diamond hotel!
The majority of the beach from here south borders
the Amelia Island Plantation, which is a large development of resort homes
and condos and has some limited access, but the beaches are open to
the public. You might even find a golf ball or two - Titanium, of course!
- that has strayed from one of the Plantations oceanfront golf courses.
At the very south tip of the island you'll find a parking lot for the
fishing pier and state park, and you can park here and travel east along
the beach of Nassau sound until you reach the ocean, and a point, a
short distance away. Currents are strong here and the ocean and weather
have changed this area drastically in the last few years, so there is
no telling how much has been washed up on the beach from other areas of
the island.
Enjoy your metal detecting at Amelia Island, remember detectors are not
allowed inside of Fort Clinch State Park, and as always - remember to respect
the private property of the homes along the beach. Have Fun! And don't forget
the sun block - nobody likes bright red tourists.
Article By Amelia Island Online Staff
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