A Question About CREEKS and ARROWHEADS

[BrettCo124]

Hey all,

This will mark my second year of searching for arrowheads. Last year was mainly a learning curve for me. This year, I want to make it finally happen! I still have yet to find an arrowhead in my creek, and I thought I'd ask you for your professional advice:


I have a creek that runs through my backyard basically. Its highly accessible for me, and I don't need permission to be in it. I like the thought of being able to possibly extract an arrowhead from this creek. The creek is wide (25 feet wide I'd say), it has a ton of areas of creek stones that build up along the banks. It has a mix of stony/sandy bottom. It has areas of fast, running water, and areas of slow moving water. There is evidence of erosion on the banks in most spots I see. The bank to the surface ground above I'd say is 5-6 feet tall.

Would you personally search any creek, at any location, anywhere, if you did not want to travel to find spots that could have been living quarters for Indians? This is essentially what I keep doing. I search through the stony buildup area and on the banks, but with no luck in finding anything. I know that I can search farm land, and other parts of the creek, or another creek all-together. I'm just curious if you all believe that all creeks hold Indian artifacts? Would you keep checking this one stretch of creek if you didn't feel like traveling any further (I'm not lazy, just curious about right in front of my house only), or would you say its a needle in a haystack?

Also, I never found any flint pieces, but please remember, I just got in to this hobby last year and didn't really give it 100 percent just yet. In addition, I was told that the creek did have Indians, but they would pass on through it, rather than set up homes along it.

Thanks all!

Brett

 

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[BrettCo124]

wow thats amazing. I love those two you found! Sorry about the photos! I wasn't sure how to fix the sideways pictures. I am going to take a look tomorrow for a little! We had a lot of rain two days ago, enough to flood the creek. I know its not immediately after, but hopefully I can still find something. Would you not even try unless it just rained?

Also, I wasn't sure if you felt those pieces were indeed flint pieces? Or did you mean they have the look of flint pieces, but are most likely natural? Thanks!

 

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[rock]

Yes you can walk a creek after a flood but the current will be swift and water dingy hard to see through. I like to wait 3-5 days after when the water clears up. If the sun is from 10 to 2 above you it will let you see thru the water and give you a edge on sighting one in the bottom. Yes natural on what you posted. Flint and rocks will crack from tumble in creeks. Hope you find something, rock

 

[ptsofnc]

Don't give up on creeks. Took me quite a few trips to the creek before I found my first point (found lots of pottery). The odds of finding points in a creek (in my area), are not nearly as great as in fields. But the possibility of finding undamaged points in creeks is better than field hunting (no plows). Been creek hunting for about 2 1/2 years and found around 25 points (8-9 very nice). I'm convinced that I'm walking by or over points that are there that I can't spot. There was Native American activity on both sides of my creek. Looks like you have a nice gravelly creek. Know the PA laws though. Good luck!

 

[NCPeaches]

From your pics, which are rotating to the right position when you click them to enlarge, look like places I would look over for sure. I like sand bars that have small gravel. I've searched one other creek in a known campsite area and found a pottery shard but it had lots more sand than what I'm used to and I didn't stay in it long. Good luck!

 

[BrettCo124]

Thank you to the previous posts and advice. Trust me, i am soaking in every detail you all suggest. As always, I really appreciate it.

So, I went to the creek really quick today (45 minutes). I know I am cutting myself short due to me only keeping within my property line and only staying out for an hour, but I will extend my time out there a lot once it gets a little nicer out and I'm used to the Erie feeling of being alone on a creek.

I did not find any arrowheads or other artifacts. I checked the banks and even checked inside of the creek. I found pieces of pottery but I am nowhere convinced they are artifacts. I will post pics in the next post I make. I will include new photos of my creek, the gravel and what the beds looks like. If anyone has additional comments on the creek and whether you think it would be worth looking in, let me know!

One quick tip I want to add in:
this creek is named after Lenope Indians. But it did not have reservations set up on this creek! The creek name is translated to "subject to flooding" or something like that lol. So Indians did not set up homes along this creek, but DID use it as way of passage according to history of the creek.

 

[BrettCo124]

 

[BrettCo124]

 

[rock]

Im not standing on my head just to see those pics The last ones look to be modern pieces. The creek looks to have some nice gravel in it.

 

[BrettCo124]

Im not standing on my head just to see those pics The last ones look to be modern pieces. The creek looks to have some nice gravel in it.

sorry about that. I can't fix the way they show up on here for some reason. Maybe its because I am offloading them from my phone. Anyhow, sorry for that, but I wanted you to see what the area looked like. Didn't find anything anyways so I'm guessing I'm just playing in the water at this point.

 

[rock]

sorry about that. I can't fix the way they show up on here for some reason. Maybe its because I am offloading them from my phone. Anyhow, sorry for that, but I wanted you to see what the area looked like. Didn't find anything anyways so I'm guessing I'm just playing in the water at this point.

I played in the water today to and didnt find anything. Water is to high we had a good rain 5 days ago you would of thought it was lower by now but no.

 

[BrettCo124]

I played in the water today to and didnt find anything. Water is to high we had a good rain 5 days ago you would of thought it was lower by now but no.

I'm not ready to give up yet. I'll try again when I have time. Water was high for me too.

 

[NCPeaches]

Yes that's modern pottery but I find that too and it's a good sign of things to come. Once you find one you will have trained your eyes pretty much. Good luck!

 

[BrettCo124]

I found this, too. I forgot to add it in my photos. It had a deep groove in it. Hope its not upside down lol.

 

[BrettCo124]

Yes that's modern pottery but I find that too and it's a good sign of things to come. Once you find one you will have trained your eyes pretty much. Good luck!

Thanks for keeping my hopes up! lol I will keep trying. The creek looks soo promising. By the way, I never responded to one of your questions: I find broken bottles all of the time, but I have not been able to identify if they are old pieces. Many have the screw cap tops, so I know they aren't old. But I will try and identify more bottles when I go next time (probably later this week).

 

[NCPeaches]

Thanks for keeping my hopes up! lol I will keep trying. The creek looks soo promising. By the way, I never responded to one of your questions: I find broken bottles all of the time, but I have not been able to identify if they are old pieces. Many have the screw cap tops, so I know they aren't old. But I will try and identify more bottles when I go next time (probably later this week).

There's a glass forum on Tnet that can help identify bottles if you need them. I got to spend about an hour in my creek today so I went upstream and and raked thru a couple of sand/small gravel bars and found these 2. I would have done insitu pics but the current was moving them and I was afraid I'd lose them lol Posting them in your thread so you can get a visual. The round black item is not Native American but I found it in the same sandbar as the larger shard. Hope this helps with what to look for on shards.

 

[BrettCo124]

There's a glass forum on Tnet that can help identify bottles if you need them. I got to spend about an hour in my creek today so I went upstream and and raked thru a couple of sand/small gravel bars and found these 2. I would have done insitu pics but the current was moving them and I was afraid I'd lose them lol Posting them in your thread so you can get a visual. The round black item is not Native American but I found it in the same sandbar as the larger shard. Hope this helps with what to look for on shards.
View attachment 1280304View attachment 1280305

This is so helpful to me. I am learning so much. Thanks so much for remembering about my thread when you were out there today. So here is a new question for you:
I found a few pieces of pottery, but they weren't native american artifacts. In fact, with my luck, they were most likely purchased a week ago from Home Depot or something. If you wouldn't mind checking out the page before this one, I posted the picture of the pieces. I can now see how most were evidently not artifacts, however, my one clay piece looks almost exactly like your red clay piece...How do I know if its an artifact or Home Depot? lol.

Also, if you wouldn't mind looking a couple posts above this one, I found a weird stone with a fairly deep groove in it. Can you (or anyone) tell me if you think it may be something?

As always, thank you! This thread is INVALUABLE to beginners, so I'm glad I started it and have so many friendly pro's like yourselves helping me learn.

Brett

 

[tamrock]

I've yet to find an artifact in a creek, but some of what I read here may improve that. I do search the shores of the reservoirs when they're way low and had some success.

 

[BrettCo124]

I've yet to find an artifact in a creek, but some of what I read here may improve that. I do search the shores of the reservoirs when they're way low and had some success.

I'm happy this thread can help more than just me out. That's what these forums are all about. I look forward to the day I can return the favor, but until then, I'm in learning phase.

 

[BagLady]

Hi Brett. First of all, if I lived on a creek like that, I'd be panning for gold. (!)

One thing you could look for on the high banks, is black soil sandwiched between the regular dirt. That can indicate an old campfire. Could be 1-3 feet or more from the top of the bank. I have friends here who have found many arrowheads and spear points in those black soils.
Nobody can say for sure that there were no camps on that creek. Small hunting groups may have camped there for only a night.
Any Indian would know they could find game by a creek.
Good Luck, and think like an Indian...

 

[BrettCo124]

Hi Brett. First of all, if I lived on a creek like that, I'd be panning for gold. (!)

One thing you could look for on the high banks, is black soil sandwiched between the regular dirt. That can indicate an old campfire. Could be 1-3 feet or more from the top of the bank. I have friends here who have found many arrowheads and spear points in those black soils.
Nobody can say for sure that there were no camps on that creek. Small hunting groups may have camped there for only a night.
Any Indian would know they could find game by a creek.
Good Luck, and think like an Indian...

Lol really? The creek looks like that type of a creek? And here, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania? Lol