What is now a fun, healthy, relaxing and spirited hobby for me – finding coins while taking a hurry – has roots dating back to my childhood more than 40 years ago.
Following information on the origin of the hobby for me – walks taken with my maternal grandfather, I share tips for finding money based on experience gained over the last seven years.
I began walking in the spring of 2002 in response to a sports injury. Walking helped to alleviate the injury in short order. And I have continued to walk.
I chase alone. But I believe my grandfather’s spirit is with me. I honor his memory and “earn” money by finding it while walking.
I am adept at finding money that has been discarded or lost and is lying on the ground. At the originate of 2004, I began keeping track of how much I regain. The total keeps growing steadily.
Hold in mind that my valuable reason now for walking is to get exercise.
Enjoyable, Memorable Walks with Granddad
As I grew up, my maternal grandparents lived with my parents, me and my sister in central New Jersey.
Periodically, my grandfather and I would take a walk. We’d head west from home to the Delaware River, located about 10 minutes away.
After going as far west as possible, we’d produce a right or left turn and walk along the street that parallels the river en route to returning home. .
Taking a walk was an excellent way to spend an hour to 90 minutes with a great man of whom I have many fond memories.
My grandfather and I would walk a mile to a mile and a half at a leisurely pace. Unfortunately, these walks only took plot for a handful of years. I believe my parents gave the green light for me to walk with my grandfather when I turned six years old in the fall of 1964.
Sadly, the walks had to end when I was 12 due to health issues with my grandfather, who was then in his 80s.
Early in the period during which we took walks, I was amazed that my grandfather ALWAYS found coins. I don’t remember him ever finding paper money.
When I asked him how he did it, my grandfather replied in his second language – English with an Eastern European accent, “Johnny, always keep your head down. You never know when you are going to salvage money.”
My grandfather came to the United States in 1902 from what then was the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The town in which he grew up is now in the Czech Republic.
My grandfather knew that money is precious. One reason is that he had very little when he arrived in the United States. Another is that he lived through the Great Depression, supporting a wife who kept the house and looked after the children. (My mother had three brothers and three sisters.)
Despite completing only elementary school in Europe, my grandfather had a successful work career in the United States. He ended up owning and operating a general store that was located several miles south in the same city of where he and I used to wander.
After my grandfather shared his succinct advice with me re: finding money, the idea surfaced to have a friendly competition when we walked. The winner was the person who found the most coins, not the greatest amount of money. A coin counted as one point, regardless of how much it was worth.
(We didn’t have a rule in place in case someone found paper money. But as I mentioned earlier, I don’t remember my grandfather finding paper money. And I definitely did not catch paper money.)
My grandfather always won. However, I occasionally found a coin.
In retrospect, I suspect that my grandfather saw the coins I found before I did and let me “find” them. I am sure my grandfather was happy to see my happy reaction upon finding a coin.
Since my grandfather always won the apt competition, I’d periodically ask him at the raze of a walk to give me some of his profit.
Although my grandfather always declined, he got coins to me in creative ways or aged them to buy something for me.
For example, every time I lost a baby tooth, I placed it in an envelope under my pillow before going to sleep for the night in hopes that the “Tooth Fairy” would visit. In the morning, the envelope would still be there. But the tooth would be gone, having been replaced by a few coins.
Evidently, my grandfather was a master of stealth and I was a sound sleeper. I never woke up while he was making the tooth-coins transfer.
Here’s an example of my grandfather using some of the coins he found to buy something for me. It always was a treat for breakfast when he bought a bagel or a moon – a crescent-shaped roll — for me at the local deli.
At Age 43, Achilles Tendons are Sore
Fast forward more than 30 years to the spring of 2002. I was now 43 years feeble and in my first full season of playing on a men’s tennis team in the nationwide adult league run by the United States Tennis Association.
I was half of a doubles team and was playing more tennis than ever before. Each week, I’d practice two or three times in advance of playing a match on Sunday.
I wasn’t doing a good job stretching before or after tennis. So after a few weeks, both of my Achilles tendons had become painful to the touch. The fact that all of the practices and matches took place on a hard court added to the severity of the pounding.
It was then that I turned to walking as a means of gently stretching my Achilles tendons. I took exaggerated steps, pushing off my toes and stretching my calf muscles. Each calf muscle pulled on an Achilles tendon, stretching it.
At the outset, I decided to dart for 30 minutes six nights a week. I’d usually cover about one mile.
The walking plus increased stretching before and after playing tennis enabled my Achilles tendons to pick up back to normal in about one month.
Since I was now walking six nights a week, I opinion back to the enjoyable time spent with my grandfather and the advice he had given to me about finding money.
At present – the spring of 2009, I continue to walk six nights a week even though I stopped playing competitive tennis at the end of the 2007 season. (Whether I return to competitive tennis has yet to be determined.)
In addition, I take one long walk of approximately 90 minutes each week. During this walk, which takes place in daylight, I cover more than two miles. My schedule sometimes allows me to get in a second long way in daylight.
For the long walks, I have two routes. One is a route my grandfather and I used to walk years ago. It’s the one that involves taking a right turn upon reaching the Delaware River.
The other is a route I also used to slip as a youngster — to and from a local park where I played organized baseball in the 1960s into the 1970s. So that route also brings back fond memories.
There are two reasons why I walk the long routes less frequently that my regular route at night. One is that once a week at most is what my schedule allows. The other is that once a week at most provides time for coins to be discarded and lost along the route, making the shuffle worthwhile for more than burning calories.
The tips that follow are intended to help you find coins. (You also may rep paper money. Over the last seven years, I have found paper money exactly seven times, an average of once a year.
The fourth quarter of 2005 was especially lucrative. In October, I found the only $20 bill so far while walking in a part of my hometown that I rarely visit. Then in December, I found a $10 bill along one of the two routes I use for a long walk in daylight.)
In order to obtain coins regularly (and paper money on rare occasions), I’ll begin by stating the certain. It’s necessary to be on the lookout.
The width of my field of vision is six feet. The depth ranges from five feet while scanning unpaved surfaces, such as dirt and grass, to 30 feet while scanning paved surfaces, such as the blacktop of streets and parking lots and the concrete of sidewalks.
Why is there such a big contrast in the depth of my field of vision?
It’s much easier to net coins that have been discarded or lost on paved surfaces than on unpaved surfaces. One can walk at a leisurely flow and win coins on paved surfaces. But the go should slow to a crawl on unpaved surfaces. (I’ll provide supporting detail later in this article.)
Health
While scanning the ground in front of me, I try to maintain proper posture. I try not to bend my neck downward at a severe angle. And I try to support my back straight.
It’s easy to maintain proper posture while scanning paved surfaces. But unpaved surfaces make trying to possess safe posture more of a challenge due to the scrutiny that’s required.
In addition to trying to believe gracious posture while walking, it’s important to bend correctly when picking up a coin that has been found.
I keep my back straight, bend my knees and reach straight down. I don’t reach across my body.
If you are concerned about where coins “have been” before you found them, wear gloves, put the coins in a container (A plastic sandwich bag is fine.) and clean them after returning home.
Personal Safety
It is necessary to concentrate in order to pick up coins while walking. But one should not be engrossed to the point of not being aware of what is/is going on around you.
I live and journey in a medium-sized city. Potential hazards include motor vehicles and people.
In seven years, I thankfully have not approach close to being hit by a vehicle. But I have been targeted by people four times without provocation. I had never seen any of the five people before. And I haven’t seen any of them since.
One incident stayed verbal. One resulted in me identifying to the police a youngster who threw rocks at me. One nearly resulted in a physical confrontation. And one resulted in a brief physical confrontation.
Why was I targeted? I know the reason and determine not to share it in this article. But the reason does not prevent me from exiting the front or back door of my home on foot to search for coins while walking.
I also keep an peer out for animals even though I’ve encountered what I considered a potentially dangerous animal only once in seven years.
Shortly after the start of a hobble at night, I encountered a medium-sized dog that had gotten out of its owner’s yard because the gate on the fence hadn’t been closed properly.
I figured the dog was a dilemma since it always barked at me from within the yard, in which it moved about freely, when I walked by.
The dog got to within about 20 yards of me and was barking up a storm. Fortunately, it didn’t come closer or charge. And a police car happened to pass by.
I am always on the lookout for dogs — strays or those that have gotten loose. I have yet to and hopefully never will encounter a rabid animal.
In order to be prepared for incidents with animals and/or people who act like animals, I carry a hollow metal rod that is about three feet long. It serves as a deterrent and can be customary in self-defense as a last resort.
I was carrying the rod as the incident unfolded that led to the brief physical confrontation. Its presence didn’t matter because I learned later from a fellow resident of the neighborhood that the other person was high at the time of the confrontation.
I also was carrying the rod during the incident that nearly resulted in a physical confrontation. Maybe its presence is why blows weren’t exchanged even though I was out-numbered two to one.
In addition, the two open ends of the rod are ideally pleasurable to another function – digging out coins that have become embedded in blacktop.
My solution to trying to insure my safety is based on the reality of where I live and high-tail. After an absence of nearly 25 years (including four years in college), I returned in 1999 to the home in which I grew up. Sadly, the neighborhood and the area to the south has deteriorated from what it was when my grandfather and I took walks many years ago.
If you are walking or understanding to begin walking to find coins or for any other reason, I strongly advise that you have a notion for safety.
There are plenty of things that can be done to try to insure safety, such as walking with a friend or walking only during daylight hours.A walking stick is something to consider. (I call the rod I carry my “walking stick.”)
I have first-hand experience that incidents can occur out of the blue. Thus, I have learned that it is crucial to be prepared and vigilant.
Keep in mind the last statement by the desk sergeant at the start of every episode of “Hill Street Blues,” the critically acclaimed 1980s television show. He always ended the morning roll call and sent the police officers on a tour of duty on the mean streets by saying, “Let’s be careful out there.”
80-20
The bulk of the coins I earn – 80 percent — are lying on the ground in plain view. All I have to do is pick them up. It is a challenge to find the other 20 percent.
Of the 80 percent that are in insensible view, a slightly higher percentage — 90 — are lying on paved surfaces. The remaining 10 percent are lying on unpaved surfaces.
As mentioned earlier, examples of paved surfaces are concrete (sidewalks) and blacktop (streets and parking lots). Examples of unpaved surfaces are dirt and grass. Another example of an unpaved surface is small. loose stones.
Why is it far easier to acquire coins on paved surfaces than on unpaved surfaces? There are two reasons.
First, the tall majority of coins that are discarded or lost on paved surfaces stay visible on top of the surface because it is rigid.
Conversely, coins discarded or lost on unpaved surfaces may initially be visible on top of the surface. But the vast majority of them do not remain on top. They sink or are forced into the surface, which is not rigid.
For example, a coin that is discarded or lost in high grass may sink between the blades to the ground because the high grass cannot support its weight. Also, a coin that is discarded or lost in short grass will become progressively less visible as the grass grows up around it.
Coins discarded or lost on dirt can sink or be forced into the surface. A rainstorm can cause a coin to sink into dirt that becomes wet and turns to mud. Or a coin can be forced into the surface by someone who is not looking for coins while walking inadvertently stepping on it.
The other reason why it is easier to find coins on paved surfaces is that they usually are shinier than those lying on unpaved surfaces.
That’s because coins on unpaved surfaces usually stay discarded or lost far longer. Thus, nature – rain, snow and the chlorophyll in plants, such as grass – have far more time to discolor them.
As time passes, coins take on the color of the unpaved surface on/in which they have been discarded or lost. If their initial shine has been replaced by the brown of dirt or the green of grass, the coins will be more difficult to find.
The following hints will support your search for coins while walking.
Search Hint: Employ Reflected Light to Pinpoint Coins
Light will judge off the surface of shiny coins lying on paved and unpaved surfaces. The natural light that is present on a sunny day as well as artificial light that is present every night can be utilized to marvelous advantage because the reflection it creates off shiny coins can be seen up to 50 feet away.
Streetlights are my main source of artificial light when I search at night. However, there have been rare instances when light from the headlights of a vehicle that was either passing by or stopped at a traffic signal reflected off a coin lying on the ground, pinpointing its situation for me.
It is virtually impossible to miss a shiny penny because light reflecting from it creates a small “hot spot.”
Coins aren’t the only small objects on the ground that will believe light. Pieces of glass reflect light. So do other pieces of metal, such as tabs from aluminum cans.
Over time, I have become much better at being able to quickly and easily identify the reflection from coins once I realized that whatever light is present is beneficial.
The only time when reflections cannot be passe to locate coins is during daylight when the sky is overcast. No sunlight means no reflections.
Do I thus drawl not to search for coins while walking when the sky is overcast? No. The presence of a fair amount of natural light to aid the search when the sky is overcast more than makes up for the loss of reflections.
The two periods during which I try to avoid walking to earn coins are dusk and just before/after dawn. I have that there isn’t enough natural light to search effectively. But there is too much natural light to allow streetlights to be effective.
Search Hint: See for Small Circles in Dirt
As mentioned earlier, most coins that are discarded or lost on dirt do not remain shiny and/or on the surface for long. They sink or are forced into the surface.
The good news, however, is that the raised border of a coin can stick up out of dirt and be visible even if the rest of the coin is not visible.
Keep an eye out for petite circles in the dirt.
In rare instances, coins are not flat on the ground when they sink or are forced into a dirt surface. So also keep an view out for portions of coins sticking up out of dirt.
Search Hint: Look for Discolorations and Small Circles in Grass
For me, grass is the most difficult surface on which to find coins.
As mentioned earlier, a coin can sink into grass. Or grass can grow up around a coin, making it less visible. And it is in the grass, the coin will inaugurate to lose its original color.
When scanning grass, I’m first looking for a discoloration against the green background – copper for a penny or silver for a nickel, dime or quarter. Second, I’m looking for the same thing that I’m looking for when scanning dirt — a circle — against the green background.
Ironically, two finds in grass resulted from me finding the more difficult of the signs of the possible presence of a coin — a circle
In April 2009, I was walking in a street parallel with and about five feet away from the curb. About 15 feet ahead, I saw sunlight deem off something small on the ground.
As it turned out, the reflection came from the tab that had been on an aluminum can. But the angle at which I viewed the tab, one o’clock to the right, enabled me to see a small circle in the grass just beyond the curb.
That circle was a coin – a Georgia quarter — that had turned green. The other find was much more lucrative.
I used to walk periodically in an industrial area about five miles from home . But I haven’t walked there in more than a year.
In this instance, which took place back in 2006, I was walking in the street. The curb was about one foot to my left.
I noticed a runt circle in the high grass. It was a Sacagawea dollar, which brings me to my next tip.
Search Tip: After a Find, Scan the Immediate State for Other Coins
This was the first dollar coin I had ever found. Fortunately, I took my own advice and explored the immediate area.
In the high grass, I found five more Sacagawea dollars within a three-foot radius from the original find.
Probably the next most lucrative example occurred along the route I walk six nights a week. I found a penny advance a curb in front of a building that has been abandoned for more than five years. In my youth, the building was the home of a catering company. More recently, it was a senior citizen’s center.
Exploring the immediate set along the curb yielded exactly 137 more pennies strewn in an spot about 10 yards long. It took me nearly 10 minutes to collect all the pennies. Fortunately, a nearby strreetlight provided artificial light.
Why were 138 pennies on the ground in front of an abandoned building in a neighborhood strip shopping center? Maybe a low-stakes card game ended abruptly.
Old Coins
It don’t find many old coins.
I have never found a silver dime or quarter (1964 and earlier). I occasionally find wheat-back pennies and Jefferson nickels from 1958 and earlier.
(The only American coin that I have never found is a half-dollar.)
In seven years, the oldest coin I have found is a 1919 wheat-back penny. The absence of a mint mark means it was produced by the Philadelphia Mint.
The find occurred recently — mid-March 2009. Luck clearly was interested since the coin was lying in dirt and I was walking at night. But there also was an element of skill since I looked for reflections and found one at my feet.
Someone left a golf club lying in a small buffer area between the sidewalk and the curb.
The buffer area is about two feet wide. And along most of the street, the surface of the buffer state is grass. Luckily, the buffer was dirt where the golf club had been lying. The grass had been worn away.
For some reason, I picked up the golf club – a driver — and took a few practice swings. (Golf, like finding coins while taking a saunter, involves repetition.)
As I twisted to keep the golf club back where it had lying, I saw a faint reflection directly in front of me. A streetlight about 40 feet to my left provided just enough light for me to make out the penny, which had been covered by the golf club.
Seconds later, I was the proud novel owner of the 1919 penny. The reverse (wheat stalks) was covered by a light layer of dirt that was washed off easily by water. The color of the obverse, which had been buried in the dirt, is brown. The color of the reverse is lighter.
Regardless of whether the coins I find are new or old or in capable condition or poor condition, I enjoy walking and my hobby and am burning calories. I honor the memory of my grandfather. And fortunately, an incident hasn’t occurred since 2006.
I assume my grandfather is watching from above. And I am sure he knows that I have become as adept at finding coins while taking a walk as he was many years ago.
Tai Chi and Qi Gong in Mount Laurel, New Jersey
