It is Rolf writing to you again. This time we have been to Falsterbo and collected amber. It was a real highlight, you should have been there. But it is possible to get there on your own or with a few friends. It didn't take long to figure out how to proceed. Now I'm going to tell you how we did it.
Bring a pair of good boots, a small rake for the seaweed and a good net, then just start looking for amber on the beach and at the water's edge.
All in all, we were 9 people who met. Me, Kathe, Jonnny, Kirsten, Roland and Björg gathered together on Saturday at 12.00 at the amber carver Leif Brost's museum in Kämpinge, a stone's throw from Falsterbo. I had called and talked to Leif before so he knew there was a group of gold diggers on the way. Well, we were well received by Leif who is an extremely knowledgeable man when it comes to amber. Leif took the time to show us around his museum and gave a short talk on the history of amber and how and where best to find amber, which we were very interested in. We talked for about half an hour then we looked around and got to see real rarities with insects in them, plus a huge amber that was about 2 meters in circumference. All in all, it was an interesting visit with Leif. He also has a well-stocked shop where you can buy amber if you don't want to look for it yourself. He also buys stones if you find many. Well, now we wanted to go out and look for ourselves.
Roland had been struck by lumbago, so he and Björg did not go with us out to Falsterbo, but the rest of us went out to the sea, wearing boots and warm clothes. I brought a small net because I have seen in pictures that they use it when they are looking for amber. There were quite a few people on the beach; ordinary flâneurs and some with amber in their eyes. You immediately saw the difference between us amateurs and the professionals. The professionals used sea boots and large sturdy nets.
My little net was probably only ripe for butterflies. But okay, it was just to check how the others did and do the same thing.
Rooting around in the seaweed seemed the best way for us so we did and you see, after just 20 minutes I found my first amber and another and another. They were small, but what do you do when they are the first ones you find.
In the middle of this, Thomas "Jackpott" calls with his partner and wants to join us, and of course it goes well. I check the situation with Jonny. Yes, he has also found a couple of nice amber stones. It is shaping up to be a very successful excursion for us Ädelforsingers. We search further and talk to other like-minded people and, of course, compare the various findings. The professionals' findings were much larger than ours. They didn't even take advantage of our small stones, but they were well spoiled with amber. Well, Thomas and Annette came to the beach and pretty quickly got bitten by searching.
It was getting late so we decided to stop Saturday's search, to continue on Sunday. We also decided to meet in the evening at a restaurant in Trelleborg. Me, Kathe, and Jonny went home to Roland and Björg where Kirsten was also waiting. We checked in at Nightstop in Trelleborg. Then there was coffee and various other things at Roland's, followed by a visit to a restaurant. Thomas and Annette joined and then there was more coffee at Roland and Björg's house. A pleasant evening in short.
Sunday.
Jonny and I wanted to check out the beach in Skanör to see if there was anything of interest there, but it was not at all the same feature on that beach as it was in Falsterbo.
Thomas Annette and Bulten showed up in Skanör but we decided to go to Falsterbo. Said and done. On with boots and warm clothes and lots of enthusiasm. So we attacked the seaweed and damn it if Annette didn't find two big, nice ambers pretty quickly. The biggest one was about the size of a golf ball. Congratulations Annette!
Bulten, Thomas, myself and Jonny searched further with good results but none as big as Annette's. It was time to break up. With my pocket almost full of amber, I can say that searching for amber was FUN. And easy, because you don't need any special equipment other than boots and warm clothes to begin with. Then - if you get bitten - you should have sea boots and a stable net or a grip and turn tongs with you, but you can also just do as Kathe did; look at the beach and turn seaweed with a stick. Kathe found a lot she included.
It's free to look for amber and Skåne has quite a mild winter climate, so if your abstinence becomes too difficult - go and look for amber. I recommend you start with the amber carver Leif Brost, www.brost.se, and you will get valuable tips on where it is best to look for the day. Because it changes with different winds.
We keep coming up with different expeditions so keep your computer alive.
Rolf Guldström