hammering the same park

[john sullivan]

when they talk about going to a spot that they have hunted many times,do you keep going over the same area that you have hunted before? or do you keep a mental grid.

 

[MikeO]

Well that depends on who has hunted it and with what kind of machine.
If they all have hunted it with a 25 year old Bounty Hunter TR versus a new Minelab that in itself will yield different results.
Also, alot of hunters do not have a good probe/pinpointer and leave things behind either because they simply could not pinpoint it OR they just did not feel like digging 11".

Keep in mind unless it is actually gridded off and the sweeps are exact chances are there is usually something left behind.

There are other reasons for this as during each season from spring through winter coins and objects can shift.
One season a coin might actually be on edge allowing someone to miss it very easily and then another season or two it might have flattened out (laying more horizontal versus vertical).

There are many places where I have pounded yet, not gridded off and went back and always seem to find something else (not recent drops) if not that season the next.
Although, I am not a big park hunter I have found plenty of things in old parks I know for a fact that have beeen pounded from that 70s on.

Also, soil conditions do play a part in theory and practice.
Hope this helps you a tad.

 

[sgoss66]

While this will not exactly answer your initial question, there IS stuff left in the ground EVERYwhere. NASA-Tom Dankowski estimates that 80 to 90% of all good targets are STILL IN THE GROUND, either missed by other hunters, beyond the depth range of most detectors, or masked by shallower (often iron) trash. NO ONE gets it ALL, in terms of detecting; as Mike said -- hunting places that have been HAMMERED by other detectorists can STILL yield detectable, good targets (just not as many as before) -- once you become skilled enough with your unit (you have the right machine) and with your hunting ability in general.

Example -- I have an old, public spot in my town that I hunt frequently (probably a couple of times a month, on average). When I started to get more serious with this hobby a little over a year ago, I started reading everything I could get my hands on, and started hunting regularly. I hunted for NINE MONTHS at this park, and never found a single silver coin. Eventually, though, as I upgraded to the Explorer and with time, learned my machine, and learned more about detecting in general, I began digging a silver dime on occasion. That was an amazing accomplishment, to me -- to dig silver from a park that I absolutely struggled with in the past, and one that I know has been hunted VERY hard in the past. Now, a typical hunt for me at this park will be a silver dime and a couple of wheat cents; remembering how I found it IMPOSSIBLE to find silver here before, I have been pleased with this, and this really opened my eyes as to how, with experience and time, you learn to make finds that others miss.

But, that's not the end of the story. I have never found any silver coins aside from dimes at this park, and only once have found more than one in a given hunt (I found two, one time). Also, I have dug one (1914) Barber dime here; the other dozen or so have been Mercs and Rosies. Still, though, given that most guys that hunt here do NOT find silver anymore, what has now become my "average" day seemed like I was doing really well, in comparison. But, recently, a very skilled hunting friend (and a friend of his) began hunting this park a bit -- both of them would be considered "expert" hunters; both have been at it for decades. In his last four or so hunts (each a few hours in length), they have pulled a Standing Liberty Quarter, a Washington quarter, three Barber dimes, a few Mercury dimes, and an Indian Head penny, along with wheat cents and other goodies. The Indian Head was dated 1883, and one of the Barber dimes was an 1892-O. These were all found in areas I had hunted before.

My point here is to reassure you that even "hunted out" parks STILL have plenty left there to be found, as you gain skill and experience.

Steve

 

[Elton]

n/t

 

[Hotcz70]

I have been hunting the exact same sites for the last 35+ years...and continue to walk over the exact same square inches as before.

There are a ton of factors that come into play when discussing how...why...etc...you can continue to go back time and time again and keep pulling keepers out.

The obvious reason is if a site has been a good producer of keeper coins in the past....keep going back..because there isn't a person on the planet who gets 'em all the first time....OR the next time....OR the time after that.

Ground freeze/thaw every winter....new machine...new coil...settings change...differing EMI....coil size change...differing concentration abilities on different days...better knowing your machine over time....improved headphones...gridding at differing angles....unmasking abilities of the explorers...improving your skill in trash or iron...slowing down to a creeping "scan" of the ground...etc....all come into play.

I have one 20' X 20' sand/dirt pit that I gave up on 5 years ago when it finally stopped giving up coins. Two summers ago I decided to hammer it again...and was amazed to pull out 2 wheaties and a roosey at depths of right at 11".

Over the next couple of months I would wander over to it...hit it again...and like old times it would cough up another wheatie or two.

Well after about 8 trips to it...it again stopped giving up keepers...so I stopped hunting it.

Last summer I started creeping through it again and over 3 months time it gave up 14 more silver coins and 29 more wheaties.

Why?....your guess is as good as mine...but I would about guarantee one of the above listed factors is involved in one way or another.

We all have different things we listen for and we all interperet said signals differently.

There are many ways to hit the same sites and continue to pull out another keeper or two.

For me that is what makes the hobby rewarding as well as fun. I couldn't care less whether or not I come home with a ton of coins...although sometimes that is GREAT

What I'm after is the thrill of being able to sniff out just one more keeper from places that I know are hammered on a weekly basis by a lot of hunters including myself.

This hobby can be rewarding in so many ways and we all have differing opinions on what we "get" and "need" from it.

I truly feel there is no other hobby or sport which can reward us in so many ways.

 

[sgoss66]

Bryce --

That post on your 20'x20' area -- that's one of the most encouraging posts I've read in a long time, and really challenges my thinking about how much is in the ground...even in a place you absolutely feel is "hunted out."

Steve

 

[Hotcz70]

Don't ever give up and think a spot is hunted my friend.

What's really neat about this spot is that 9 out 10 silver pulled from here come out pitch dark w/ sand crusted to it...and you can't even tell it's silver until you clean it...lol.

I wish I had the time to dig through my finds pics to come up with silver pulled from the "sand pit" I'm talking about...but I need to head to the gym.

Here's a quarter from there.

[attachment 220597 sandquarter.jpg]

Here is the link Two 11" Deep Silver Dimes from the "sand pit" area
10 x 12 SEF coil: http://www.findmall.com/read.php?19,1148775,1148775#msg-1148775

 

[sgoss66]

Wow, Bryce. I'm really loving this story and the photos...and the implications thereof. I have MANY spots where I've hunted, pulled out a few 4-6" silvers, gotten no more signals of any quality, and figured "there; I got most of what was 'detectable;' while there maybe another silver or two that could be had in another hunt, I have about exhausted this spot." Then, I'll go back again, and maybe get one more keeper, and then say "that's it." Now, in doing so, I knew there were still some goodies down there somewhere, but likely not "detectable" for me. However, what you did in that 20x20 area really teaches me something. EVEN THOUGH I am the one relating NASA-Tom's comments about 80-90% of the good coins still in the ground even in a "hunted-out" area, and so I SHOULD not be surprised, your experience you shared really makes that a reality -- and tells me it's time to go back and really re-hit these areas I have found to be "hunted out," looking for the DEEP ones...

THANKS Bryce!

Steve

 

[airfitter]

I've hunted the same park at least 20 times a year for the last 12 years . Some days I only get the newer clad coins and some days WOW! .4years ago a 1723 Farthing,last spring a pocket spill that contained a seated dime ,5 indian heads an a nickel 3 cent piece Last Dec. 16th was my best find ever anywhere a 1876 seated half dollar it was deep.10+ inches i've walked that area probably every time i've been there. I use an SE pro This park just keeps on giving and it's close to home. I live in CT Never think the park is cleaned out Ted

 

[Elton]

Plus last year I stumbled upon an 18K Class ring..

 

[sgoss66]

This is really, really great stuff, guys. It's one thing to "know" there are probably good finds left; it's another thing to actually have the confidence to keep searching. What you all share helps boost that confidence! I will be putting this confidence to work tomorrow, at my old "hunted-out" park!

Steve

 

[Ratman]

I have areas and certain zones in my older pounded parks that have continued to produce keepers over the years . If you can continue to find oldies in your pounded spots then you must go back . Good luck out there !

HH
Mike

 

[born2hunt]

The way I see it is, no one gets it all...and neither do I. If I would have avoided areas in my park that I knew I was over previously, I'd have left a considerable amount of silver for someone else to find. I still go over those spots. Persistence rules the day.

 

[D Merc]

This is a great thread, and I can very much associate it with a park that my dad and I have been detecting a lot lately. This park is in our hometown and has been around since the later 1800's. It has been pounded to death over the years (by me, my dad, my grandfather, and several other people). And to be honsest my dad and I never really imagined ourselves finding a silver coin in this park; becuase up until the beginning of this year we had hardly found any wheat pennies in this park. However, we did know that this park was old and this was always a thought that kept us coming back to this particular park. Over the past few years dad and I have really began to understand our machines well (Me using an XLT, and dad with his Explorer SE Pro). This year we decided to take on a section of the park that appeared to be the oldest as well as the section that had yielded our oldest finds up until this point. With peristence, slow detecting, and a change of attitudes we have been able to pull 6 wheat pennies, 5 Indian Head pennies, and two barber dimes from this section of the park in only two outtings. These are the first indian head cents and silver coins that we have ever pulled out of this park (about 4 years of detecting for me, and at least ten for dad). Here is the video of our last two outtings this year to this particular park.[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dLzXDHZxcjg&feature=youtu.be[/video]

 

[EtracTom-AdirondacksNY]

Must be nice to be able to go detecting with your dad. Mine is about 80 and I'm 53 now and a few years ago I took him and went out but he can't hear too well so it wasn't for him as he didn't find anything not even junk but he does enjoy seeing what I find.

 

[Bobby Moyers]

This is a great thread, and I can very much associate it with a park that my dad and I have been detecting a lot lately. This park is in our hometown and has been around since the later 1800's. It has been pounded to death over the years (by me, my dad, my grandfather, and several other people). And to be honsest my dad and I never really imagined ourselves finding a silver coin in this park; becuase up until the beginning of this year we had hardly found any wheat pennies in this park. However, we did know that this park was old and this was always a thought that kept us coming back to this particular park. Over the past few years dad and I have really began to understand our machines well (Me using an XLT, and dad with his Explorer SE Pro). This year we decided to take on a section of the park that appeared to be the oldest as well as the section that had yielded our oldest finds up until this point. With peristence, slow detecting, and a change of attitudes we have been able to pull 6 wheat pennies, 5 Indian Head pennies, and two barber dimes from this section of the park in only two outtings. These are the first indian head cents and silver coins that we have ever pulled out of this park (about 4 years of detecting for me, and at least ten for dad). Here is the video of our last two outtings this year to this particular park.[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dLzXDHZxcjg&feature=youtu.be[/video]

Nice Finds from that old park that you didn't give up on!

I have an old park that I frequent with the SE and almost always dig a few silvers there! They are getting harder to pull up though, because of so much Iron and top fill over the years and the fact that I've dug about 45 silvers out of it. They are much harder to find now. These coins are from 10 to 12 inches deep and so much iron to deal with. I have been hunting this spot at a snails pace with the FBS 1050 and beginning to think I might need a coil that will give me some added depth. I need a coil that is stable and deep! I keep going back and pulling a few more from time to time. Thanks and HH!!!

 

[Dave-IL]

Over and over and over...and then over again. We have a lot of fun trying to find keepers this way. We all miss coins.