North Myrtle Beach pipeline project has become ‘mecca’ for shelling. Here are the details.
With a scooper in hand, Laura Preslar perused the shoreline of 18th Avenue North in North Myrtle Beach June 14 looking for shark teeth.
The Anson County, North Carolina-native and her husband, Brent, are vacationing in Cherry Grove Beach for the week. While the Preslars had good luck finding shark’s teeth at the Cherry Grove Pier — which can be seen in the distance from 18th Avenue North — they were pleased with what they found by the pipeline, calling it a “mecca for hunting shark’s teeth.”
The couple were not the only shellers present around the pipeline. About a dozen people had shown up that day, with even more people there earlier in the morning.
The pipeline, also known as the “ocean outfall,” has been under construction since January, and aims to dispose of stormwater that usually contaminated the ocean water where people swam. The 12,000-foot-long project is set to be complete by January 2024.
The Preslars believe that when construction of the pipeline began, shells and shark’s teeth were unearthed from beneath the sand of the ocean floor. Then, with the rising and lowering of the tides, ocean waves eroded the treasures to the shoreline.
Brent Preslar wonders what other treasures lie around the pipeline, specifically in places swimmers and shellers can’t easily get to.
“There’s no telling what’s behind the iron curtain,” he said.
Locals and visitors peppered the shoreline north of the pipeline, with some wading in the water to investigate the hidden sands. People brought shovels, sand sifters or used their bare hands. Some looked under the construction pier, which is set to be demolished as soon as the project is complete.
Sarai Faile, who recently moved to Cherry Grove Beach, said she has observed people looking for shark’s teeth at the Cherry Grove Pier, just like the Preslars had. But now that the pipeline has revealed a new shelling location, she said, with her fingers grazing the sand, people can now look beyond the pier for goodies.
For those who want to partake, shellers in the area say that most shells and shark’s teeth pop up in the morning and evening.
Construction workers on the pipeline are also telling shellers to stay back at least 50 feet when digging.
This story was originally published June 15, 2023 at 11:33 AM.
