Rat hole? Or is it...?

[mellowcheddar]

Greetings & Happy New Year, all...
OK I know rats aren't treasure, and I hope I'm in the right chunk 'o forum. Anyhow this is a raised mound of dirt, at the peak maybe 2 1/2 or 3' high and about 10' around. It's an irregular shape though so I may be off a bit. If you look at the orange arrow you will see some kind of animal hole. In the yellow loop are rocks which seem to have gone all around the mound at one time. But a look at the red arrow will show you a piece of rock maybe a bit smaller than a square of sidewalk.
This is within hearing distance of Lake Erie and the land was an old Catholic girls' school. All the buildings are gone now. Rats wouldn't be a surprise but they surely wouldn't dig out something like this? Raccoons maybe, but this would be to big and they don't live underground. Moles aren't even around here.
Plenty of deer around which surprised me being this deep into the city. I have found some kind of voodoo sacrifice back there once. No, no chickenheads :P just candy, pennies, a cigar and a note. But yes I did have a short run of bad luck after that!
Sooooo... What the hell is this thing? Should I dig in or call ahead for a Rabies shot first?
Cheers all

 

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[mellowcheddar]

Skunks live underground? Ew! I didn't know they were that smart. All this time I thought they were there just to stink up my dog and give me something to shoot at with my BB gun.
But they can have Rabies too. Ech.

 

[seger98]

Being a trapper for 30 years it could be several different types of animals, skunks, woodchucks, raccoon taking over a den, badger, why not trap it & find out?

 

[mellowcheddar]

Seger 98
It's a State park (which means I shouldn't be poking around there anyhow), but 1 or 2 of the Maintenance guys has seen me back there before & smile and wave hi as they whiz by on their golf carts. A trap huh? I bet I could do that, but traps cost money. My big question is how did those rocks get put up like that?
Cheers
~Mellowcheddar

 

[pegleglooker]

WARNING!!!!! Those rats can get HUGE!!!!! When I lived in Cleveland we used to go down to the lake at night to have a bonfire and a couple of snorts ( wink wink ). I will never forget a friend of mine telling me to watch the shore, and as I did you would see rats coming out of the water with fish !!! and the rats were HUGE!!!! So if that's near the lake be VERY careful....

PLL

 

[crazyjarhead]

My guess is that is part of an old privy (outhouse) that's been filled in and the ground is settling

 

[Montana Jim]

Why couldn't it be something as benign as a simple sink hole?

 

[mellowcheddar]

Ohhh yes, I know all about the Lake Erie Monsters (hahaha). Used to roam the shores just West of Euclid Beach as a kid to kill time. I did forget how big those boys got though, I've seen them as big as cats down on the beaches where it's mostly the big rocks and concrete slabs.
Now the outhouse I'll have to say no, but when the older buildings got razed is a good question. They're on the Sanborns as late as the maps go, but I know for a fact they were all gone by the '90s and probably before that. I've run into some kind of brick walkway-looking thing back there. I know there's at least 1 guy hunting back there according to the locals. He hits the beach often too, early in the morning when it's just too early to get up.
I posted a pic of the brick whatzit. Please notice the NUCLEAR MUSTARD YELLOW of my dear Ace 250
And (though you all probably know much better than me) wouldn't sinkholes or wells sink INTO the ground?
~Mellowcheddar

 

[mellowcheddar]

Just Geese
There were probably sidewalks back there at 1 point, that's why I was thinking sidewalk slabs. But the well thing might not be too 'out there' since maybe there were some storm drains? I HAVE found 1 biga$$ sinkhole back there, it was getting wide and too deep for my pitiful little hand shovel when I had to knock off to go make dinner. I need to get a folding shovel and get down there while it's cold and people are hibernating. The property was the school into the 1850's, maybe back further. Not sure when this one is from I just grabbed it before I took off for work, but none of those buildings are still there.
~Mellowcheddar

 

[DD-777]

Possibly a fox hole?

 

[Monty]

Badger? They are prolific diggers. Monty

 

[mellowcheddar]

Someone I was talking to said badgers. I don't think we have badgers here. O Google, be my guide!

 

[myelo1023]

Doesn't look much like an animal hole to me as it appears to be a direct vertical hole....plus the rock outline is a bit out of place for an animal hole. Just my 1/2 cent worth!

 

[foundinrolls]

Groundhog....They don't leave a mess around the opening of the burrow and the size you describe is just about right.

Also...a breeding fox might take over a groundhog burrow in breeding season.

I am betting on a groundhog at this point.

Thanks,
Bill

 

[nova treasure]

I would think pushed up dirt from a back hoe and rocks throwed on the pile,which made a ground hog a great place to live.

Nova Treasure

 

[NGE]

WOLVERINE!......NGE

 

[EDDE]

WOLVERINES!

 

[La Beep]

Looks like a nice spot.

If this is a Ohio State park and are using a metal detector, I hope you do it right and get written permission like the Ohio state park web says. http://www.dnr.state.oh.us/parks/faq/tabid/84/Default.aspx

If you did not --- it not good to brag about breaking the law, not to say anything about the damage you do to the hobby.

Quote from webpage.

"Can I use a metal detector?

Use of metal detectors is allowed on the sandy portion of the beach area at any of our state park beaches. Written permission must be obtained from the park manager at the park of your choice to use a metal detector in any other park area."

 

[rebelfirefighter07]

I don't know much about the geology where you are at. I know down here where I am in TAG its cave country. So alot of holes here are sinks holes or little entrances to caves. So here I might lean that way but I dont know in your direction. Here several months ago a guy was walking out to his truck one morning and the ground gave way sending him into a sink hole that opened up into a cave. He spent hours down there before somebody got him out. My suggestion to decide between animal hole or sink hole would be to get a really long stick or pipe and run it down in there. If it runs at an angle and dont go extremely far its most likely animal. If its vertical and you loose a 6-8ft pipe in it and dont hit bottom then lean the other way.

 

[teverly]

Looks like a small sink hole or maybe as others said part of an old well,so i would be very carefull walking around it.
As for the mounds,at one time they could have been landscaping for the school and i believe if you look at the stones they are actually being used to surrond the mounds.