Anyone have a good hint for detecting in woods ?

[DiggerX]

I even had visions of running into a wild pig.

I've been charged by a razorback once! I've seen a few bears here and there farther north, & have run across the occasional moose as well.

I think the size of the area you plan to search is important to note as well. I've weedwacked away small sites before that had tall grass/weeds and the like. As to the "thick stuff", I dunno man. It's hard to do any kind of competant detecting in thick brush. Clearing it is about the only tangible option, and that opens up a huge can of worms (both in logistics and legality sometimes).

Doc

 

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[dnewbury2]

When detecting in the woods turn over fallen logs and detect under them. Be careful of snakes. Detecting in hard hit Yankee campsites I've found some good things this way because most people won't go to the trouble and the ground underneath has never been gone over.

 

[archmjr]

Best time to be in the woods is in the fall or winter if you are way down south. Lots of the underbrush clears out. I only detect in the woods myself. You don't have to worry about the manicured lawns.

Good Luck!

 

[nutso]

Up here in the North country all the land was broken up wy back in the late 1700's. There are stone walls everywhere. Even on the mountains. Bear in mind our mountains may only be 1200 feet elevation but it was all farmed back then. First it was logged then farmed. It's now wooded. Old logging trails are everywhere. I have hunted parks and gotten plenty of clad but the most fun is in the woods. I grew up hunting this area and know it quite well. I go fishing and always bring my metal detector because everywhere I go I see potential. I don't care if I don't find a thing I just like getting out there. Not many snakes in this area but it can be buggy at times. Oldest find so far is 1860's coins and many items with patent dates around that time. Most posts here are about coastal detecting and I also get a thrill when I have the chance to do that but 99% of my time is spent in or near the streams and forests of upstate NY. This year I can go into the water further as I just bought a fisher 1280-x. Spring is only a week or too away now. Yeeeehaw!

 

[treasurekidd]

We have miles and mile of these old stone walls here in RI. If there are stone walls in the woods, there is an EXCELLENT chance that someone lived and worked there in the 1600s, 1700s and 1800s. The walls were built as property markers. First, they would clear all the stones from the land for farming, then the stones were used to build the walls to mark property lines. Follow these stone walls and look for where the walls get higher. The higher walls generally marked the homesite, while the lower walls were used to mark the crop areas. Also, look for openings in the wall, as if for a walkway, which would generally lead to buildings like homes or barns. Keep an eye out for clearings near these walls, which is another indicator that something was there. Also, look for trees that are MUCH taller then the surrounding woods. Taller trees generally mean older trees, and these may have been shade trees for tired farm hands to sit down and eat lunch under or for family picnics and such. And lastly, pay special attention to the wall corners. These are excellent spot to find buried trash dumps, as most people back then generally buried their trash in the corner furthest from the home. A friend and I have a big hunt planned for this spring, on his property in CT. It fits all of the above criteria, with stone walls, a decent size clearing, with a break in the wall leading into the clearing, and 1 giant pine tree that dwarfs the rest of the woods. We hae researched his area extensivly, and we know that his property was once part of a farms that operated from the late 1600s to the mid 1700s. Hopefully, a good carefull search of this area will lead to many cool finds posted here this summer! Good luck!!