Welcome!

The Central Coast Treasure Hunters Association, (CCTHA), is located on the Central Coast of California. We are situated about half way between Los Angeles and San Francisco in what we believe to be the "garden spot" of the state. We already have ocean beaches, but with just a few hours driving, one can be high in the mountains and the "Mother Lode" country, or deep in the desert with its associated ghost towns and mining camps.

CCTHA was started in 1984 by a group of metal detector enthusiasts. Our club, from this humble start, has continued to grow. We have numerous Club sponsored functions throughout the year. These range from Quarterly Bar-B-Cues and membership hunts to our famous "Annual Treasure By the Sea" hunt. This hunt, open to everyone, is now known throughout the country and is one of the most heavily attended hunts in the state. Our membership works hard at sponsoring this hunt and we have developed lasting friendships with other Clubs and their members.

The General Membership meets the fourth Wednesday of each month. The meetings start at 7:00 pm in the County School Offices located on Highway 1, across from Cuesta College. Everyone is invited to attend.

Who are we?

Our members are hobbyists that enjoy all forms of treasure hunting, which you could say is the discovery of objects, new and old, usually hidden from view. Examples are metal detecting, gold panning, dredging for gold, bottle hunting, rock and mineral hunting. It does not matter what type of treasure hunting you enjoy. We welcome everyone with an interest in treasure hunting in all its forms. Becoming a member of CCTHA is easy. Provide the appropriate dues: Check in the mail, or check/cash at meetings. 2009 Dues are: $25.00 for an individual membership or $35.00 for a family.

What can you expect as a member of CCTHA?

• Our members pay very reasonable dues each year. Members participating in the events described below can easily recoup dues.
• The CCTHA membership enjoys monthly business meetings, with Raffles, snacks and an occasional guest speaker.
• A growing Library of books and Video tapes on relevant subjects to our hobby.
• "Find of the Month": at our meetings members can bring their 'finds' from that month to display. The members vote on the displays, then winners in each category are awarded prize, usually Silver coins.
• "Find of the Year" Bring your best find from the year. It will be voted on by membership present at the meeting and the winner is awarded a Gold Coin.
• "Scavenger hunts" Held 3 times a year. This is a list of specific items the hunter must find during a specified time frame. The prizes for the most finds are Gold and Silver coins.
• "Club hunts" are held quarterly and provide a planted field with clad coins and tokens for Silver Coins. BBQ's and great fun are all part of the quarterly Club hunt.
• The opportunity to serve CCTHA as an officer is open to all members over 18 years of age.
• The famous CCTHA Annual Hunt is open to the public. This hunt provides two days of great fun hunting a planted field for clad coins and tokens for prizes that can range from current US bills to Sliver and Gold coins. A 'junior' hunt with a planted field for all those treasure hunters in training. Beef and Chicken BBQ, hot cocoa and bingo are just some of the activities you'll enjoy. A lot of work goes into the preparation and production of this hunt. It is very worthwhile and great fun to be involved.
• Become a member of a "Search Team." As member of CCTHA living in San Luis Obispo County you could have the opportunity to serve the public with local law enforcement working an evidence search.

How do we know where to hunt?

• Identify and Research geographic areas of interest.
  You might have heard someone talking about an old stage coach stop, a long gone town (not even a ghost town any more), old houses in the area, a ball field, a park, playgrounds, streets being stripped down to dirt, the long favored beach areas or your own back yard. The list of possibilities could go on and on. Topographic maps and aerial photographs of an area can provide many clues about what was there before. There is no limit to the places that people have been and what they might have left behind. You are only limited by your efforts as to how successful a hunter you will be. We welcome your input on the subject of identification and researching places to hunt.
• Making contact with property owners to gain access.
  Finding the property owner is the easy part. This can be done through your county offices of the Assessor and/or Planning Department. They will have old records of property uses and aerial photographs of those areas. The assessor's office will have usually the most current legal owner's name and mailing address so that you can get in touch with them.
  Gaining access to the property can provide the greatest difficulty. Property owners become the subject of law suits all too often and can be very resistant to letting anyone onto a promising site. We would like to hear from you with your stories of difficulties or successes in accessing a property for treasure hunting.
• Get out there and search the area, sometimes as a group or just by yourself. Hopefully you will find something of interest or maybe something of value.

Good luck! Now that you have gotten to know who we are and what we do, enjoy our website and visit often to see what's new.