Lincoln City, OR – Memorial Day, May 29th, is the unofficial kick-off to the summer season. But as one season begins, another must come to a close. Memorial Day marks the end of the Finders Keepers season, and glass floats on the beach in Lincoln City. To celebrate the close of the season, Lincoln City’s mysterious Float Fairies will hide an extra 100 glass floats on the beach for Memorial Day weekend, May 27th through 29th.
May 29th marks the end of the 18th season of Finders Keepers, which began on October 22nd, 2016. Every day, rain or shine (except during extreme storms), volunteers lovingly known as Float Fairies, hide hand-made glass art pieces along Lincoln City’s seven miles of soft, sandy beach. Hidden between the high tide line and the embankment, 2017 numbered glass floats have been sought by eager treasure hunters. You find it…you keep it. Finders Keepers will return again on October 14th, 2017.
For holidays and special occasions, in addition to the 2017 numbered floats, special glass drops were conducted throughout the season. For example, on Thanksgiving weekend, an extra 100 glass art pieces were dropped to commemorate the holiday and on Earth Day, 15 Earth globes were hidden to celebrate the occasion. Including the special drops, over 3,000 glass floats were hidden throughout the Finders Keepers season.
There is still time to find a float before the season closes. On Memorial Day weekend, May 27th through the 29th, an additional 100 glass floats will be hidden on the beach. Included with this special glass drop is a jumbo sized float with a weekend getaway prize package attached to celebrate the closing of the season. The prize package includes lodging, restaurant and activity certificates.
The fun continues once you find a glass float. Guests can register their float by going to the Visitor Information Center (540 NE Hwy 101) or by calling 800-452-2151. Lucky treasure hunters can also register their float by texting FLOATS to 24587 or by visiting our website, OregonCoast.org. Each registered float comes with a certificate of authenticity along with a biography on the artist who made the float.
Once a float is found, share it with others on Lincoln City’s social media channels: Facebook by visiting Facebook.com/LincolnCityOregon, on Twitter using @LincolnCityOR, or on Instagram using @lincolncityor.
Finders Keepers is an annual promotion, which started in 1999, when a local artist first thought of glass floats as an interesting way to launch the new millennium. Lincoln City sponsored the project, hosting the inaugural season in 1999-2000. Guests of Lincoln City now come from across the country to search for their very own glass keepsake.
Finders Keepers has its roots in the past, when visitors searching Oregon’s beaches often found treasures from the far east: blown glass in intriguing shades of green and blue. Used by Japanese fishermen to float their nets, these glass spheres were as small as two inches or as large as two feet. They were collected, polished and admired; the ultimate find for dedicated beachcombers. Today, fishing vessels use buoyant plastic, making glass floats an increasingly rare find…except in Lincoln City where these treasures can be found every day between mid-October and Memorial Day.
For more information, contact the Lincoln City Visitor & Convention Bureau at 800-452-2151 or visit OregonCoast.org.
