Belle Isle Hunt Yesterday

Deerhunter24

Hero Member
Jul 1, 2005
568
286
Michigan
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Hey all,

Went to Belle Isle yesterday, which was Wednesday, with two huntin' partners Jim and Rick. They're both 25-30 year vets of the hobby, but neither are on TNet.

I'd say we had mixed success. He arrived about 10am and left around 5pm, but the 7 hour hunt was more like a 4 hour hunt. We had to stop several times due to rain.

We have been there somewhere between 6-8 times over the last few years, and usually done fairly decent.


I managed to find 45 coins. 38 of those coins were clad (21 pennies, 4 nickels, 7 dimes, 6 quarters). I could have dug prob 100+ zincers, but passed those up as I'm tring to find the older ones. Also found 1 canadian penny and 6 good finds.

The good finds were 5 wheats (45, 46, 47, 53D, 58D). The other was a 1939D Mercury Dime.

Rick found several coins as well, including a few wheats, but got skunked on silver for the first time there.

Jim found several coins and by far did the best. He dug somewhere around 25 wheat pennies. He also got 3 silvers. He got a 36D and 46D Washington quarters and a 1925 Mercury Dime. He literally didn't leave an area the size of 50 feet wide by 150 feet long all day!!! His patience is probably why he did the best. Rick and I moved around a lot more.

I found the 5 wheats and silver once I kept myself in a small area for the last 2 hours of the day.
 

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Deerhunter24

Deerhunter24

Hero Member
Jul 1, 2005
568
286
Michigan
Detector(s) used
Minelab Explorer SE; Garrett GTI 1500
Yeah I'm sure its been pounded pretty hard, but they didn't get it all. I'll guarantee ya find silver in the trashy areas. You can literally see Pulltabs on top of the ground in a lot of areas. Obvious that many detectorists walked into those areas and walked right out. I went there twice last year and got 2 silver coins, 2 Indianheads, a buffalo nickel and about 10 wheaties. That island is almost 1000 acres, its so big that it would be impossible to find all the good stuff. Its worth a shot.

But yes...it would be nicer to be armed. Just in case.


DH24
 

DanMI

Sr. Member
May 26, 2007
391
3
Nice hunt guys!! That rain was a bummer I'm sure. Better than what we've got on the ground over here though. Not gonna last, but still. Yuck. hh dan
 

Mike from MI

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Oct 13, 2007
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Vicksburg Michigan
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Nice merc! I have to say that patience does pay off! :icon_thumleft:
 

postalgriff

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Aug 7, 2008
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1,091
Southern Michigan
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way to score on some silver.....congrats on a good hunt! :thumbsup: that place looks pretty sweet from satellite pictures, and I know there is some history there. Good luck if you go back. HH
 

Brentallica

Bronze Member
May 6, 2009
2,169
813
Michigan
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Congrats on the Merc and Wheats!! :icon_thumleft: Good luck out there
 

fistfulladirt

Gold Member
Feb 21, 2008
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Good hunt! Like to see those non-'40's mercs. That place could probably give keepers forever. ffd
 

NGE

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May 27, 2008
3,506
119
S.E. Michigan
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Did you guys stop at the little white house on the island and get permission to hunt. Of course you DO know that hunting on the island is illegal? Some people(native Detroiters) complained early this year that some people were tearing up the grass, and the powers that be, stopped the activity. My guess is, that there was a rather large re-union type party going on, cars and other vehicles getting stuck in the soft earth kicking up enuff sod, to do my whole yard, this is the usual case. However, if you can sneak into the woods and stay out of site, no one may see you. As a matter of fact, the woods ARE the best place to hunt, just carry a little extra HEAT with ya and police style whistles. 3 toots is a warning to your partner that someone is coming, a long blast, you need help. Be careful and HH......NGE
 

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Deerhunter24

Deerhunter24

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Jul 1, 2005
568
286
Michigan
Detector(s) used
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Wow. I've never heard it was illegal to hunt there. We've been going there for 4 years. A detroit city worker did come talk to my buddy jim and said someone complained about us...but he said he didn't see anything wrong with our holes at all. He said he couldn't even tell where we had been digging. He just left after that. We were hunting in the wide open too! Nobody else said anythin to us all day. DH24.
 

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Deerhunter24

Deerhunter24

Hero Member
Jul 1, 2005
568
286
Michigan
Detector(s) used
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What awesome is this...after the city worker left...we all had a good laugh. We're like...was he serious??? Like we could mess up that island anymore than it is. There is literally trash all over the place. There are bottlecaps/pulltabs that litter the ground...right on top of the surface. Plus...all kinds of other trash that people leave around. We leave that island much cleaner than when we come. DH24.
 

NGE

Silver Member
May 27, 2008
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119
S.E. Michigan
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You can hunt as long as you check in at the white house to let them know you're there. There is a law on the books that says something about defacing the flora. And that the the police are going to start enforcing it. At the insistence of other park ab(users)......NGE
 

robo

Jr. Member
Aug 21, 2006
50
1
Wyandotte, MI.
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Someone can correct me if I am wrong, but...

I heard that last year the city deemed all Detroit Parks off limits to detecting. Maybe someone has the truth.
 

NGE

Silver Member
May 27, 2008
3,506
119
S.E. Michigan
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I also heard that Mr. Mike Cox is running for Governor of Michigan. Would you vote for someone who also denied that there never was a party at the Manoogian Mansion. Hell, Why me killer patrick ain't going to jail, and he will continue to hide his assets because the court system will allow it.........NGE
 

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