Verboten places to hunt

[Alan Applegate]

I've been thinking about this a long time, and decided to I'd share my thoughts.

All of you fellow detectorists who live in long-populated areas of the country, should be elated. Yes, even though the areas you can legally hunt have diminished, you still have a much better opportunity to find silver coins, civil war relics, and other great stuff, than us folks who live as I do, in New Mexico. I can't remember the last time I found a silver coin older than 1960.

We do have several areas which have long-been populated—Santa Fe, and Carlsbad, to name two. The former is almost all closed to detectorists. The latter is wide open, but unfortunately, the good area is under water!

So the thought I have is, the longer an area has been populated, the better the chance to find something valuable. On the same token, those areas have also received the greatest number of restricting laws, keeping us from detecting. Wouldn't it be nice if we could have our cake, and eat it too?

I don't have the answer. However, I think in too many instances, that we are our own worse enemy. As Walt Kelly of Pogo cartoon fame, once said so eloquently in Pogo's words......

We have met the enemy..... and it is us!

 

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[bigfoot1]

In the timeless words of an old and wise yeti,"seek and they will come up with a law against it"

I am out west also...no colonial,only one spencer 56-50 casing in many years,so no civil war to speak of.No pirates.

The good news....I can swing a coil in more places than I could in several lifetimes.I still get the occasional ripping find.Nobody ever bothers me.Obama hasnt chucked me off public land yet.

Its all give and take I guess,I got an hour in after I worked today and got a nice wheaty,I'm ok with that.

cheers

 

[Tom_in_CA]

I haven't noticed any disparity (increase or decrease of severity) of laws regarding md'ing, on the east coast versus the west coast.

 

[DDancer]

Its an interesting idea. Nitric try to keep it in line with the thread not everything is aliens and bigfoot.

Alle iz Verboten, All is Forbidden, in the german. Another similar concept and one that many detectorist abide by is catch me as you can. The rule of law and the governance of said laws pretty much boils down to these two thoughts.

This forum has a thread on "splitting hairs" ie the idea of how governance of law affects how persons of the detectorist persuasion go about conducting their activities in light of often muttled and unclear law. The term Alle iz Verboten is a generic term that essentially means Everything Is Forbidden without conscious acknowledgement of the law and full understanding of where ones standing is in the law. To utilize the concept of Alle iz Verboten one essentially cuts ones self off from any activity until they have a full understanding *many years in Yale or Havard* of said laws.
It does not take a rocket scientist to figure such things out. To use such a standard as all is forbidden is just foolish. Such standards of behavior are just absurd and history proves them out time and time again.

By all means, everybody, practice the concept of Alle iz Verboten. You might not want to go out the front door again. In the USA or anywhere.

 

[DDancer]

I am not editing my post just adding a follow on. I do not see how "we are our own worst enemy". Sure you have FNG's and NOOBs coming into the hobby all the time. Yeah it takes only one bad apple to ruin the barrel. But honestly how many are fighting the good fight? and how many victories are people in this hobby winning?.... there is an online petition about detecting just now.... now how many have taken any considerable thought about signing the darn thing?

I see more activity in the prospecting forums than in the detecting forums when it comes to tackling the concept of forbidding ones right to be left alone. *sigh*

 

[Msbeepbeep]

England across the pond probably comes the closest to "the best of both worlds" - it's old, very populated and they detect there, with agreement and help from their archeologists.

I don't think our Archies are in the sharing mood yet, maybe in a few thousand years!

 

[Argentium]

Alan , I lived in Santa Fe for nearly 40 years - detected around Northern New Mexico for the last 8 of those years , I would not go so far as to
say that Santa Fe is "closed to detectorists" - Obviously there are areas that are off limits but every public park , including many in the older
areas near down town (Cathedral park , Patrick Smith park , Ft. Marcy , Tommy Maccione park ) to name a few - are totally accessible to metal
detecting . I never saw anybody else out detecting these and many other parks in and around Santa Fe , including Espanola and Los Alamos ,
(I found silver almost every time I went to Los Alamos) - that town is as close to "virgin" as I've ever hunted ! Also there are many areas around
Pecos and Glorieta that are prime hunting for Civil War artifacts . The Battle of Glorieta Pass was one of the most important battle sites West of
the Mississippi . Additionally around Glorieta NM. (Rowe Mesa) a huge meteor crashed some 350 years ago apparently , and deposited millions
of meteorite fragments that are findable with metal detectors and "rare earth " magnets mounted on the end of a pick axe . Access to much of
the meteor field is by permission to hunt on private ranch property - but it can be obtained . So - all of this long reply to give you a more
positive outlook on your prospects in the state of New Mexico from my actual hunting experience ! Please PM me if I can be of further help .

 

[relicmeister]

I frequently lament the unavailability of certain off-limits areas, and that I often find myself detecting places that are
accessible only because they ARE accessible. But then I take a look at all the great finds I've made in those places and
realize you don't have to have access to Gettysburg ( to pick a droolworthy site) to enjoy the rewards of metal detecting.

 

[Bum Luck]

England across the pond probably comes the closest to "the best of both worlds" - it's old, very populated and they detect there, with agreement and help from their archeologists.

I don't think our Archies are in the sharing mood yet, maybe in a few thousand years!

Don't hold your breath; "change" isn't in their vocabulary.

 

[Limitool]

Its an interesting idea. Nitric try to keep it in line with the thread not everything is aliens and bigfoot.

It was just a one time joke to bigfoot1 on this thread... Not trying to ruin your thread!

And yes!!! everything has a Bigfoot or Alien origin! lol It just fit too well after joking about it in another thread. I was looking through threads and saw the alien head then the bigfoot head underneath it.

Hold your "ground" Nitric".... We both know their real and present!!!!!! Let's move on..... Brad