Fellas,
I was removing the virginity of my new Garrett PP today and I noticed something that disturbed me quite a bit. In some of the areas I cover in the parks there were plugs left out in the open with the holes unfilled, and in 3 of the 10 that I discovered, I recovered a clad quarter, a 1954 D wheat, and a clad dime. Whoever this person is, he or she is inexperienced and needs some "Teaching". I took the time to replace the plugs and make it look good, but some must have been over a three day period, because we had heavy rain here Sunday morning and a few were washed about from the rain.
I looked for a Ranger or Horse Patrol guy to give him the news and voice my "permitted" opinion, but they were apparently busy elsewhere. If I find the person that's doing this I'm going to gently read him the riot act about what detecting "ethics" mean, and what the result is for the hobby if we do not comply. I've talked to many of the park rangers here and they don't really care as long as you clean up and "Make Proper" your dig. And that means the woods as well, which opens up a whole new realm of detecting from the history standpoint in these parts.
So guys and girls, if you find a newbie out there who thinks it's "Carte Blanche" to do whatever they want, please take a moment and have a serious discussion with them. It'll be best thing we can do for our hobby.
I had a similar situation in one of my parks last year. Me & my crew spotted a bunch of new guys roaming around this place. No harm, no hassle, enough to share for everyone. Until...
We notice these guys using those mini spade shovels! Not only that, they were fu@$ing animals when using the things! They were using bounty hunters, which don't get more than a few inches in our bad soil, yet, we're digging HUGE craters. On the few holes they even bothered to fill in, it looked like the Indianapolis 500 raced through on the grass!
I went over to one & 'gently' made him realize the error of his ways. We didn't see them that much after this incident, lol.
I'm not a bullshit artist, and always pride myself on telling it the way it is, win, lose or draw, so...
Honestly, when I'm hunting, I'm not always the neatest plug digger...especially as I chase those deep fringe targets, BUT, I ALWAYS fill in my holes. And, I tamp down my plug as hard as I could, so it'll hopefully reconnect and grow with the surrounding grass.
These hunters that don't give a crap are getting a lot of places banned. GOOD MOVE, Ed
Joe
Just wanted to post to this to keep this alive as it is an important issue.
i to have had a few talks with people i have seen with no care for the hobby, those of us who respect and love our hobby plug our holes no matter where they are, i plug all my holes even in the deepest woods.
heck i have even filled squirrel holes on the trails just so no one would think they where mine ..... damn fuzzy tailed rodents ...
gotta protect the hobby, we are quickly loosing ground , literally ...
I used to reply on youtube about hunting parks with long handled shovels. Surprisingly I would get mixed comments back like "It's my park too and I can use a shovel if I want" type of replies. I think if we as a whole post on these videos enough that maybe they will get the point? I would love to use a shovel but it simply looks bad in a public area such as parks and schools. Maybe we can have a thread on bad detecting videos so they can be brought to out attention to go watch and post? We need educate these hunters about good target recovery and how a long handled shovel looks to the general public in public places. I'm not just talking about shovels either. I have seen hunters post videos where they are trespassing, not filling in holes, throwing the trash targets back, night-hawking, hunting parks that are off limits to detecting, etc. I remember one guy that just started detecting. We was finding silver right and left. He found a ton of it and posted where he was finding them. I simply looked up the Cities rules and detecting was not allowed in those parks. No wonder he cleaned up. We had a lengthy argument and I just said screw it because I got very little back up. They are out there.
Khouse, I STRONGLY agree with your sentiments on shovels being used in parks!!! Convenient? Yes. Saves time? Yes. Paints our hobby in a good light? Absolutely NOT
I have no bone to pick with shovels. None. Rather, my frustration is WHERE they're being used. IMHO, they should
only be used for hunting farm fields or in the woods. Period. I even cringe when I see them being used on the beach! Yes, it's only sand, but, it just
looks bad, and as we all know, perception is everything
Get a damn beach scoop! Hunting a park, or other public locale? Use a lesche like everyone else.
Let's face it, we're already behind the eight ball with the general public simply by enjoying this wonderful hobby. Do we really want to start giving them more ammunition to enact bans by bringing a giant, mean looking digging tool to a place with manicured greenery, with young kids running around, etc.?!
USE A LESCHE OR SIMILAR DIGGING TOOL! And yes, I'm yelling
Joe
Last year I hurt my knee (well it was already bad) playing Softball. It was swelled way up for months and would bend maybe 50%. I had to stick my leg out strait to recover my targets. (that hurt too) I could have easily used a shovel but did not. I hit a lot of sand VB courts with my scoop as well. I know there are benefits to the shovels. Yes, I can make a beautiful plug with one too. But I'm not using it in the park or schools. I know by saying this I step on the feet of a lot of long time and experienced hunters. Some say there isn't nothing wrong. Some say that no one's told them not to use it. Some say it's their right. I just say it looks bad........
I'm glad to see some picking up on this subject. Joe you're right about shovels. I even use my hand trowel in the woods. I don't see many guys using shovels but I do find the holes. I've tried to use those little Ames shovels but eve they make me feel like a grave robber.
Dont get freaked out on me. but i do use a military folding shovel deep in the woods.
and away from others who may see me. it is impossible to cut through roots with anything less. a spade or lesche simply wont cut it. i do agree, a full size shovel is never needed, and the smaller the tool the better it looks to everyone. but even with my folding shovel, i can pull a plug maybe 4x4 at the most and at a pretty good depth before having to widen the hole if needed to get deeper. no matter what tool you use, the important part is to leave as little trace of your being there as possible.
and to always be mindful of the way you conduct your detecting activities.
standing fully erect with a tall shovel plucking at the beach sand because your to lazy to bend a knee. not only makes you look like an idiot, but makes the hobby look bad as well, bottom line, if your going to enjoy the hobby, learn the basic rules of behaviour . and, practice them ...
I don't have anything against shovels in woods, private property with permission, fields etc. It's mostly public parks and schools.
This guy says he's in a park. He seems like a nice guy. Most people that use a shovel don't think about what others may think.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cT5v7b0JzLA
This guy is nice as well. Obviously a good hunter with a lot of experience. He's in some sports fields.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=caO-F8T5fQg
i think it really boils down to plain old simple common sense, you wouldn’t use a sledge hammer to nail a picture on the wall, or a tacking hammer to drive rail road spike. you would use the proper tool for the job, if your a small coin and jewellery hunter, you can easily get by with a spade or lesche, as you really dont need a large hole to recover them, if your hunting items that may have irregular or larger shapes like large relics and iron objects. a spade wont do. unless you want to be digging all day. also applies to location, theres no need for a shovel to cut through beach sand. or soft grass unless your digging something pretty big. and likewise a spade wont get you through an oak root no matter what size the target is.
i try to practice by picking the smallest tool that will recover the targets i am seeking and will still get me through the soil type i plan on digging through. if you apply a little thought to it, you should be able to easily pick an appropriate tool for that days hunt ...
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