Montana Jim
Gold Member
No pictures... just a story.
My detecting buddy and wingman Tony and I headed out recently for a day of detecting, as always itâs out of town⌠everyplace we go is a long drive so we have to plan ahead, work with the wivesâ schedules, and make sure we get home on time or the âkitchen passesâ will dry up fast!
This particular day we had a nice early start, several hours of good western Indian War era relic detecting and with 30 minutes left before having to leave decided to drive a few miles to one of our âbullet honey holesâ. This is a spot where we know we can each pick up thirty .45-70 rounds in a half hour. It was going to be a nice way to round out the day, and the bullets were all fired about 130 years ago!.
Tony and I got right at it - one, two⌠five, fifteen rounds into the hunt I was approached by an old-timer who asked what I was finding. He had been watching us from a distance along with two other guys who were operating a backhoe and doing some minor roadwork in the sparsely populated area.
Montana Jim: âJust some oleâ .45-70 bullets, the place is littered with them.â
Old Timer: âYeap, I pick âem up right off the ground⌠they are all over the place out hereâ he said matter-of-factly. After a short pause and looking up into sun he says; âPat wants to talk to youâ and gestures to where the other two guys are working with the backhoe.
Montana Jim: âIs he gonnaâ yell at me?â I ask smiling widely.
Old Timer: Snickering he says; âNope⌠he owns most this land around here (I was currently on public property) and probably wants to ask about what your doing.â
So I called Tony over to where I was and we all three walked over to see this stranger Pat. We introduced ourselves and we all started talking⌠Then Pat dropped a bombshell.
Stranger Pat: âI own a lot of land out here boys⌠I own that horse pasture over there and the corrals that run up the green house over there. Iâve found more bullets than you can count, I even found a cannonball in my [stone] driveway one spring. If you guys want to - you can go over on my property and dig all you want and come back anytime.â
He turned his attention to the third fella operating the backhoe who looked kinda old to be operating heavy equipment, but seemed to be doing a great job.
âHeâs over 80 years old⌠but he has only had a few accidentsâ says Pat while gesturing towards the tractor.â
Wingman Tony: âAny of your land have tee-pee rings on it?â asks Tony always ready to ask the right questions at the right time.
Montana Jim: âYea⌠would love to get into some arrowheads and suchâŚâ
Old Timer: âTell âem about the Buffalo Jump Patâ
Stranger Pat: Turning his attention back to Tony and I he offers something even more unbelievable! âGuys, I own over 7,000 acres, a mile of that river, some homesteads, and a Buffalo Jump over by ***** .â
Tony and I felt like we hit the mother-load of relics⌠And we started wondering just how late we were both willing to be getting back home! The wives were going to be pissed⌠but we stayed and chatted with these guys, hunted his property a little bit and filled our pockets with more lead, then made plans with the Old Timer to get back when the snow is gone and get us some prehistoric relics at the privately owned Buffalo Jump. Tony was great at warming these guys up and soon we were all like long-lost brothers.
We got home 2 hours late, but the time invested with these guys was invaluable!!! Itâs still hard to believe that we were invited by a complete stranger to hunt 7000+ acres of Montana wilderness⌠with a rich prehistoric (Buffalo Jump) and historic presence by Native Americans from a dozen tribes, mountain men and trappers, and early Montana settlers and pioneers.
I know itâs really nothing compared to any place on the East Coast⌠but in the West, it freakinâ priceless!
Iâll update this when we can get out there and get some picturesâŚ
My detecting buddy and wingman Tony and I headed out recently for a day of detecting, as always itâs out of town⌠everyplace we go is a long drive so we have to plan ahead, work with the wivesâ schedules, and make sure we get home on time or the âkitchen passesâ will dry up fast!
This particular day we had a nice early start, several hours of good western Indian War era relic detecting and with 30 minutes left before having to leave decided to drive a few miles to one of our âbullet honey holesâ. This is a spot where we know we can each pick up thirty .45-70 rounds in a half hour. It was going to be a nice way to round out the day, and the bullets were all fired about 130 years ago!.
Tony and I got right at it - one, two⌠five, fifteen rounds into the hunt I was approached by an old-timer who asked what I was finding. He had been watching us from a distance along with two other guys who were operating a backhoe and doing some minor roadwork in the sparsely populated area.
Montana Jim: âJust some oleâ .45-70 bullets, the place is littered with them.â
Old Timer: âYeap, I pick âem up right off the ground⌠they are all over the place out hereâ he said matter-of-factly. After a short pause and looking up into sun he says; âPat wants to talk to youâ and gestures to where the other two guys are working with the backhoe.
Montana Jim: âIs he gonnaâ yell at me?â I ask smiling widely.
Old Timer: Snickering he says; âNope⌠he owns most this land around here (I was currently on public property) and probably wants to ask about what your doing.â
So I called Tony over to where I was and we all three walked over to see this stranger Pat. We introduced ourselves and we all started talking⌠Then Pat dropped a bombshell.
Stranger Pat: âI own a lot of land out here boys⌠I own that horse pasture over there and the corrals that run up the green house over there. Iâve found more bullets than you can count, I even found a cannonball in my [stone] driveway one spring. If you guys want to - you can go over on my property and dig all you want and come back anytime.â
He turned his attention to the third fella operating the backhoe who looked kinda old to be operating heavy equipment, but seemed to be doing a great job.
âHeâs over 80 years old⌠but he has only had a few accidentsâ says Pat while gesturing towards the tractor.â
Wingman Tony: âAny of your land have tee-pee rings on it?â asks Tony always ready to ask the right questions at the right time.
Montana Jim: âYea⌠would love to get into some arrowheads and suchâŚâ
Old Timer: âTell âem about the Buffalo Jump Patâ
Stranger Pat: Turning his attention back to Tony and I he offers something even more unbelievable! âGuys, I own over 7,000 acres, a mile of that river, some homesteads, and a Buffalo Jump over by ***** .â
Tony and I felt like we hit the mother-load of relics⌠And we started wondering just how late we were both willing to be getting back home! The wives were going to be pissed⌠but we stayed and chatted with these guys, hunted his property a little bit and filled our pockets with more lead, then made plans with the Old Timer to get back when the snow is gone and get us some prehistoric relics at the privately owned Buffalo Jump. Tony was great at warming these guys up and soon we were all like long-lost brothers.
We got home 2 hours late, but the time invested with these guys was invaluable!!! Itâs still hard to believe that we were invited by a complete stranger to hunt 7000+ acres of Montana wilderness⌠with a rich prehistoric (Buffalo Jump) and historic presence by Native Americans from a dozen tribes, mountain men and trappers, and early Montana settlers and pioneers.
I know itâs really nothing compared to any place on the East Coast⌠but in the West, it freakinâ priceless!
Iâll update this when we can get out there and get some picturesâŚ
 
