Tell us places you hunt, not the location, types of places.

[Jack Flynn]

Different places to give others ideas where to look for those elusive targets. Where do you like to hunt?
I tend to hunt parks or virtually any place where people have congregated over the years. I've just started knocking on doors and asking to hunt peoples yards if they look promising. I've gotten permission to hunt several late 1700-1820 beautiful homes but I am waiting for the grass to die this winter. Also just received permission to hunt 120 acres in the low country of S.C. this past Sunday. Work keeps interfering with my detecting though! :rolleyes:

[OkieDigger]

Churches and houses are my preferred spots, but I'll hunt anywhere I can get permission.

[Epi-hunter]

I used to prefer private property but since moving to KY I have tended to go for more public spots. I'm still struggling with finding some good places here.

[grinsebring]

I prefer to hunt for older coins, so I don't do much around totlots and schools. my last 2 meaningful hunts were in in Mass and N.H.
while I was there last month on business. Which reminds me,
Angie, did you ever find the spot I told you about, or give it to Angel
to clean up? I had very little time there. 3 coppers, an oxshoe, and a cloak button. I did'nt even scratch the surface. Much of the area is grown in. maybe after a good hard freeze some of those bramble areas might let you get a coil in....Gil

[angellionel]

I prefer to hunt for older coins, so I don't do much around totlots and schools. my last 2 meaningful hunts were in in Mass and N.H.
while I was there last month on business. Which reminds me,
Angie, did you ever find the spot I told you about, or give it to Angel
to clean up? I had very little time there. 3 coppers, an oxshoe, and a cloak button. I did'nt even scratch the surface. Much of the area is grown in. maybe after a good hard freeze some of those bramble areas might let you get a coil in....Gil


I will need to talk to Angie! :grin: It looks like you did well in the short time you were there. :)

[bmattioli]

I love to hunt the old parks and schools. Parks can be searched for days and still not even scratched the surface..

Bruce

[Lowjiber]

Here in the S.F. Bay area there are literally hundreds of parks. However, the majority are less than thirty years old. The trick is to find which have been around long enough to have a better chance of containing older coins.

I've been using this site for historic aerial photos: http://www.historicaerials.com/default.aspx

It's a bit cumbersome to use at first, but I work it in 2005 mode to get a view of the park and then tab back through the years to compare pictures. Around here, if I find one that was in existence at least in 1965 (there are very few earlier), I hit it hard.

Since the pics are the same angle/altitude, it's easy to see features that existed previously but have since been altered...tree lines that are now gone, etc.

I did this yesterday at the following park and found two silvers (rosie & quarter) along the strip down the right field sideline.

[Epi-hunter]

That is some great research John!

What is the date on that first aerial?

[Epi-hunter]

I prefer to hunt for older coins, so I don't do much around totlots and schools. my last 2 meaningful hunts were in in Mass and N.H.
while I was there last month on business. Which reminds me,
Angie, did you ever find the spot I told you about, or give it to Angel
to clean up? I had very little time there. 3 coppers, an oxshoe, and a cloak button. I did'nt even scratch the surface. Much of the area is grown in. maybe after a good hard freeze some of those bramble areas might let you get a coil in....Gil


I'm going to find that PM you sent me. Heading out there this week so maybe we can hit that place. Remind me Gil... was that private property? Do we need to seek permission to go there?

[Rusthunter]

I like to research and hunt historic sawmills. Around here I have found and hunted 3 of them and I find at least 1 silver half at every one.

[Islandhunter]

I prefer private property over public....LOVE old foundation sites, farm fields and yards to older homes. Those are the sites I zero in on. I am kinda spoiled by where I live though...I pretty much know everyone here so asking and getting permission to hunt on private property isn't much of an issue...not sure how I would do on the mainland and don;t think I'd be overly comfortable knocking on the doors of people I don't know, thus would be more apt to lean towards public property if I lived in the real world.

[MNDigger]

In my neck of the woods my best finds have come from private property specifically old farms. Now by old for around here means between the 1870's to the 1930's. I have also hit a lot more chuches and old schools which have also produced but not nearly as well as yards.

[Lowjiber]

What is the date on that first aerial?1965. The next step back in time was 1958 and the park was an orchard.

[Jason in Enid]

My favorite places are older, city homesites. They can be sparse or silver mines, but you can always find something. They are almost always virgin ground too. The only problem is getting permission to hunt them.

Next up are old parks, but these have been hit pretty hard

Nest would be old school yards, but these have usually been hit harder than the parks

Lastly are old farmhouse sites. Most farmers are cash poor, and in the old days were even worse off. While the occasional nice, older coin can be found, there just wasn't much to be lost. Ever seen old, holed coins? That's because coins were too valuable to lose, so they tied them all together

[hoser]

For the most part I'm a woods whacker. I really like going into the woods where I believe there was an old camp like the one I hunt that the Mich. National guard camps on and has since 1903. There is a vast area to hunt and sooner or later I'll hit the sweet spot and then you better watch out Angel I'll be right on your heels. :cheesysmile: :grin:

[coinnut]

Cellar holes are my specialty! But I never kicked a picnic grove or old house out of my list :grin: Here in Mass, unhit holes are hard to find!!!

[OkieDigger]

Yeah, but you sure do hunt a bunch of 'em! I've only run across one here. We call them dug outs though. No stone involved.

[SeabeeRon]

Nothing new or earth shattering here for me cuz I live in a beach town, you can find me in the sand most days!! 8) :twirlingeyes:

[Diggler]

I've been using this site for historic aerial photos: http://www.historicaerials.com/default.aspx


This is a great link. Looks like I have some catching up to do after looking around at the old photos of my town.

[RickO]

Researching old treasure tales can lead one to all sorts of places. Fields, forest, caves, rock walls, old homes and riverbanks. Treasure is where you find it... and that could be just about anywhere. RickO

[woodwizard]

summer time-lakes,beaches,parks any place that people gather to turn into stumbling,falling down fools cause they tend not to remember to pick things up .winter time the woods once the snakes calm down.this is timber country so over the yrs theres been lots of people in the area

[del]

i first started out on schools and parks and picked up alot of clad with some silver and gold jewelry thrown in there once in a while , but i was really looking for old coins , so i started looking for places that would give me a better chance of finding them and old cellar holes and foundations proved to be a challenge to find coins . like anything else put enough time into something and you get better at it , and it has gotten easier and the coins are great to find but its some of the relics that are really getting me hooked now . so i would have to say places like old fields, cellar sites , old picnic groves , and even very old parks.

Dan

[leslie(nova scotia)]

From the land of the Bluenose.....first consideration is the time of year which decides where to hunt. early spring means low vegetation and no ticks nor bugs so the old spots along the timber roads and old foundations back in them as well as fields as crops are not planted. One of the best spots here is along the roads that go back to lakes and the off paths.

In the summer I swish (water dig) and do sports fields along with school yards.

Fall it's back in the woods after the ticks have gone.

Winter......head to the Carribean and UK


Hope evryone has a good 2010.

[Postman]

I started out almost 20 years ago hitting parks and beaches.Lots of competition,and became discouraged.Actually put the detector away for a year or two,but then i started thinking outside the bubble.So many other places,fire roads,trails,private property,conservation land,old dirt roads where old homes used to be.Im always scouting & looking,doing recon.Like someone said,the longer you do it,the better you get at it,and it does keep getting better every year.

[Jaybird]

I started hunting parks and churches over 30 years ago. Then I gradually hunted older homes where I lived but like many I was afraid of rjection in my younger years. My best finds came from parks that were designated Chitaqua parks and Churches . I still hunt parks. The older the better and try to gain permission to hunt older homes or the section (public property) between the sidewalk and the curb. Curbin is what we call it. I have 13 silver dimes so far this year hunting cleaned out parks. My oldest coin a 1910 Wheatie. My goals this year are to hunt a military campground of General George Armstrong Custer.I do have permission, finally. HH

[sjv]

On the ground when I lose my shovel, my gloves, my lighter,smokes,the button I just found , My hunting buddies when I lose sight of them. Should I go on. rofl rofl rofl rofl rofl

[diggerdave]

Mostly military bases and parks but I take my detector with me to work as sometimes I get a chance to hunt places that normally are off limits.Like in old parts of towns when we tear up streets or tear down old buildings.I'm in under ground construction and haul the heavy equipment to different jobs in different towns.

[steve in so az]

If you have outdoor swimming pools this may help.

Some years ago I went to the county health dept and asked for a list of pools that were no longer in existence. As every swimming pool had to have a permit they had them all listed. Long story short = I got a listing, address included, of about 30 long gone ones and hit them all.
Some now were asphalt lots, some have buildings on them but a bunch were just vacant lots waiting for me all those years :)
steve in so az

[russellt]

mostly parks and private property for me . the woods in the winter when the snakes and bees are in the ground.. churches seem to be a good place for folks . i might just try that .

[Celluforce]

I'm only a beginer... ::huh::

I like parks and playgrounds... :yes: Schoolyard are the most productive right now for coins...

I did some local beaches, :cool: but it seems that I'm not the only one to hunt those beaches...

I tried some historics* spots were I know there was something builted there in the past, but those were to difficult to hunt for me right now... (dry and hard to dig and full of scrap) :hairpulling:

I made a list of locations, I'm taking as much information as I can... (Like figure it out where was the building... Does the land scape is original...) And when I will have the time, I will go try again those site. :interesting:

In my list, I have two railway stations... And old sawmill... An old municipal beach... A cellar (that I saw many years ago when I was a kid) located in the wood of a near by pulp and paper company (will be hard to get the permission)... (...Didn't know that it was a cellar before I found this forum... Now I wish to go back there with my MD) :rolleyes:

* = Hunting to find historic relics is prohibited in Canada... But I think that the law is unfair and we are loosing a lot of artefacts and collectibles by letting them burried in the ground. I must admit that I want to hunt those site, but only for coins ;)


Daniel <;)

[RobW]

* = Hunting to find historic relics is prohibited in Canada... But I think that the law is unfair and we are loosing a lot of artefacts and collectibles by letting them burried in the ground. I must admit that I want to hunt those site, but only for coins ;)



Communism I tell you...... lol...... ::usaflag::

[KSHOLLYWOOD]

I hunt antebellum and plantation homes, union and confederate campsites

[jeremi mann]

my favorite part of the hobby other than the great finds and exercise is the winter library visits also the court house map room. im lucky enough to live near my county seat and the maps are plentiful for .50 cents a copy. also records and old news papers from the early 1900 read like the whos who and whats what of county life from that time. barn dances dime dances and social gatherings outdoors were even more popular than gatherings today people had less ways to entertain themselves in the early 1900s..research is key to relic hunting but the coin hunter that's serious will winter at these spots for valuable info for spring hunts....lots of time can be saved securing permission for spring hunts in the winter...always research

[Skamaniac]

I like old homesites because I like the relics more than the coins. I've got an old sawmill on my list whenever the ground thaws.

[Digger Don]

I like parks and old school sites.
This year I plan to do some beach hunts with the AT PRO

[don in ny]

I started out more than 30 years ago when you could go to any park or school yard and come away with multiple silver coins. Over the last couple of years I started to focus on old home sites that may now be wooded areas as well as getting permission to hunt around old homes and farms. I pulled 10 LC's, 5 colonials, 3 half reals, a 2 real, seated half, a couple seated quarters and more from these sites. I use old maps to find out what was going on 150 years ago. Sometimes you find a lot of activity in an area that may now be woods. Here's a map from 1868 and some of my finds from June of 2013
36704 36705

[diggindog]

Ghost Towns for coins.

[lee]

i like parks and alotments (comunal gardens i think you yanks call em) the one me and me mates have hit for two years now has produced 52 coppers and spanish silver among other things ,thay have been planting on the 300ft x 100ft site for 300 years and the town turns the ground over twice a year so it keeps throwing up more keepers each time.

[chief5709]

Farm fields all day long!! especially if there was once a house on the property.

[gmwtexas]

Hi Lowjiber, The site you posted is interesting. I was checking it out and was wondering if one has to pay as a subscriber. What if any costs are associated with the site? Thanks

[tanacat]

Hi Lowjiber, The site you posted is interesting. I was checking it out and was wondering if one has to pay as a subscriber. What if any costs are associated with the site? Thanks

http://www.historicaerials.com/

Howdy! I don't think John/Lowjiber saw your question, so I'll try to help out :)

I browse this site often to do map overlay ( free) You just have to subscribe if you want to buy any imagery/maps. Did you try it out? I love this site, I could compare maps and topos forever!

www.historicmapworks.com (http://www.historicmapworks.com/) is great for older county maps but unfortunately my area doesn't have overlays (yet) they tell me to keep checking back and I have requested. But I joined and bought an 1877 map ($9.99) of my area and use it to make notes/highlight areas I want to research and hunt.

... and finally I have my own REAL treasure map! :lol:

[Timewarpdigger]

I have hunted in parks, schools, private property and beaches. Have had some success but have started to hunt in the woods due to the weather and am enjoying it a lot. Hope to do more of it. thanks safe & HH.

[ODA 226]

I prefer to go after the "low hanging fruit" which in Germany are swimming areas, volleyball courts and anywhere people congregate or lay down and sun themselves during the summer.

[smeigs]

I dont hit parks much where I live considering the oldest park we have is from the 40's and has been re modeled a couple times. I tend to hit old church sites, old irrigation ditches seem to be good for me (kids used to play by them) and any open land next to old house sites. I also go by the river that runs through my town. Found a couple old pistols down there.

[Tom]

I like the beach, easy digging, don't freeze. Can did year round if your brave and don't mind a little chill, of course southern beaches will be warmer. :cool:

[smeigs]

I was driving through the Sandia mountains a few months ago and noticed an empty grass area with a bunch of bricks still stacked about 2 feet high, that are in the shape of a building. Going to head up early tomorrow morning and see if I find anything. Will let you all know tomorrow if I strike gold and can retire!

[geodehunter]

Anywhere I can get permission. I try and stay pretty open to where i hunt. If I think there is a chance for a good find I will try just about anywhere. That's part of the fun with our hobby.

[ChrisinCT]

I'll hunt anywhere. Anytime. Anyplace. Somedays a simple clad hunt fits the bill. But mostly I like to find old buttons ,tokens and small relics are my favorites. Coins are great too,but once I've found one or more of a certain variety I'm content and would rather find something I haven't found yet

[Moresound]

I hunt just below the drive up window at McDonalds. :grin:

[Honeyman]

I hit all the usual spots you can get to easily in a suburban area. But I've also had good luck in the right of way under the high tension wires in our area. Another good spot is if I see a construction project where they are moving a lot of dirt. I wait for evenings or weekends when no pne is working and search the piles of dirt. Also when I hunt the Metro Parks I stay away from the picnic areas but instead follow the bridal paths and even just venture off path into the woods. Wherever there is running water, there have probably been people!

[Digger_O'Dell]

Have to say this aerial photo site has given me new hope on a site I thought was a lost cause. Had found a place that was supposedly an old school built back around 1847, and replaced with a newer school around 1900, then torn down around 1970 when the site was turned into a park about 10 plus acres (est.). Hunted the areas I had thought were most likely near where the building and play areas might have been, judging by the topography, and found nothing but a bent modern fork.
Now was able to look up a photo from 1963, and realized how far I was off! (Maybe 1/4 mile? Treeline was removed, driveway and parking was relocated, etc. Crazy amount of changes in just a few years!

Thanks much for the tips, and HH!!

[Digger_O'Dell]

Might be an odd question but I wanted to touch on the cemetery question a bit and get some opinions. I know normally they are off limits, but what about old abandoned sites? I have come across more than one cemetery that has been documented as having no documented history, often with minimal legible script on the stones with the latest dates being mid 1800s. Obviously there are no caretakers or owners of the property, but I would view such a site as more of an archaeological search similar to preserving artifacts from the pyramids than anything else. Of course little would be disturbed other than near surface finds. But I worry that before long like several other abandoned cemeteries in my area they will be developed over and have a mall parking lot over them.

[Kemper]

Might be an odd question but I wanted to touch on the cemetery question a bit and get some opinions. I know normally they are off limits, but what about old abandoned sites? I have come across more than one cemetery that has been documented as having no documented history, often with minimal legible script on the stones with the latest dates being mid 1800s. Obviously there are no caretakers or owners of the property, but I would view such a site as more of an archaeological search similar to preserving artifacts from the pyramids than anything else. Of course little would be disturbed other than near surface finds. But I worry that before long like several other abandoned cemeteries in my area they will be developed over and have a mall parking lot over them.

To the best of my knowledge any known cemetery in my area would have to be documented and the graves would have to remain marked or "appropriately" relocated. If a person knew for sure that they were being located they might detect an area after the graves were moved.

[Digger_O'Dell]

This question came to mind because I had thought to locate old cemeteries as they were often near to churches that that may no longer exist. So one I cemetery I found was abandoned and eventually became the back yard of an apartment complex. The markers were placed flat and they mow over them as part of the complex lawn. Another I found is just a strip with maybe a dozen markers between 2 houses in a sub division. They left a wide tree line between the houses to grow wild to accommodate them, although there is now a small sign and pathway put in for access. Whoever was buried there is an unknown but an old document dated it to the early 1800s.
Unfortunately where I live so much of the early years of the region has been either buried under "progress", or have been relocated from parts unknown.