Massachusetts State Parks

[Rob2079]

I called the South Cape Beach State Park, Mashpee, MA. today to ask permission to metal detect. The person on the phone told me she was at a meeting last week with
the State archaeologist, and they were told all State Parks are off limits to Metal Detecting.

Has anyone else had the same response?

 

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[Dak]

MDHTALK - Massachusetts Metal Detecting Law & Regulations

this site should help

 

[Tom_in_CA]

I called the South Cape Beach State Park, Mashpee, MA. today to ask permission to metal detect. The person on the phone told me she was at a meeting last week with
the State archaeologist, and they were told all State Parks are off limits to Metal Detecting.

Has anyone else had the same response?

Welcome to the "no one cared, till you asked" club.

As you can see from this link (looking down the alphabetic list to see MA) that the information you were given is incorrect.

Federation of Metal Detector & Archaeological Clubs Inc.

As to how a "state archaeaologist" could say something different ..... well ..... what did you expect? They hate md'ers. So if/when the question is ever posed to them, they will morph any existing rules or laws (cultural heritage stuff) to mean "no metal detecting".

The state of CA, for instance, has similar wording to your MA wording on that FMDAC link. And I assure you, you can hunt state-of-CA beaches till you're blue in the face, and no one cares. Is that to say that if I went to enough archies in Sacramento and asked "can I?" that I might not find one to say "no"? Of course not.

The sad part now, is with enough inquiries like yours, pretty soon it will be official policy, to address the "pressing question" that keeps coming across their desks

 

[Dak]

Straight up Tom. Look in the rules and if is not there, don't shake trees looking for a NO answer. Ask enough and you will get a NO eventually.

Thanks for the link too!

 

[Tom_in_CA]

Straight up Tom. Look in the rules and if is not there, don't shake trees looking for a NO answer. Ask enough and you will get a NO eventually.

Thanks for the link too!

Dak, thanx. And I would add that even on that list, even some of the more "dire" sounding states ...... even those you have to "read between the lines". What I mean is, that way-back-when, when lists like that were compiled, guess how the compiler came up with his state-by-state info? HE ASKED. Sounds logical enough, right? And who better to ask, than the states themselves, right? So a guy sends 50 xeroxed letters off to each state's capitol, to the head of park's dept, asking something to the effect:

"What are the rules regarding the use of metal detectors in your state's state parks?"


And put yourself in the shoes of whomever is tasked with answering this question (whomever's desk it end up on). What do you THINK will be the "easy answer" ? So they loop in something about vegetation and cultural heritage, and find a reason to say "no" or "with permission", blah blah. So when lists like that started making the rounds, back in the 1980s, you had old-timers scratching their heads saying "since when?". See how the self-fulfilling vicious circle works? So I have no doubt that .... even on some of the more dire sounding ones, you'll probably finds parks and beaches where no one cares or would ever look twice at you.

You can click on the state's name, and see their backup longer-version answer (whatever laws/rules they cite, which they think applies to this "pressing question"). And you will notice that very few ever actually have any rule that really says "no metal detectors". Instead, usually things forbidding collecting/harvesting. Or rules about disturbing wildlife, plants, and earthworms. Or cultural heritage, etc.... Well gee, it's a good thing we all asked, eh?