Message in bottle returned to Pensacola man after 34 years

PENSACOLA, Fla. (WEAR) - We've all heard fables about people sending a message in a bottle while out at sea.

Ron Herbst of Pensacola did just that.

Thirty-four years ago, a 19-year-old Herbst was serving in the Navy. He wrote two letters and put them in two bottles, then dropped them over the side of the ship.

Within a year, both bottles were found and one couple reached out to him.

The other bottle was found by a man vacationing in the Florida Keys.

He held onto it for 33 years before finally reaching out to Herbst on Facebook.

"I'm shocked," Herbst said. "As a matter of fact, I almost forgot about the second bottle. We had so many bottles and I thought, 'I'll throw a second one,' and I was indeed surprised, and I couldn't believe he held onto it that long."

Herbst, who is now 52, said he plans to donate to the note to Pensacola's National Naval Aviation Museum.