Colonial Goose Chase: They can't all be winners

[Scrappy]

I went searching for a couple houses within a settlement that existed between 1625 and 1785. Not much is left due to the "lushness" of the forest - the blueberry bramble was outrageous! Wet, swampy, and BUGS. All and all, I had a fun but tough hunt, and the ground needed to be covered in order to narrow down the location...

Day 1, 3hrs: went searching for 3 sites. Found one of the 3, but found nothing but flat buttons and ticks. 2 flat buttons, two tick bites. And an antebellum suspender clip, but perhaps slightly earlier.



Day 2, 4 hrs: Went searching for a colonial road and creek crossing. Found the road, but not all roads were created equal. This one had shallow tracks and judging from the finds, wasn't traveled much. Found a crotal bell frag and a unidentified British copper. Also went looking for a tidal mill, and was skunked all around.

Day 3, 1hr: I snuck out for an hour and found a few flat buttons and a clock face. Also found a silvered spoon frag. I've been to this site two times before, but was happy with the finds after he two last days...




I really like finding fishing net weights since they have deep roots in the area I hunted. The bottom right one is a great early one, the one next to it likely late 1800's.



Sometimes in order to find a site, you need to find the 100 places where it isn't. Well, this helped narrow things I hope.

Enjoy and good hunts!

Steve

My most successful hunt was for oysters and clams.



And a sunset

 

[Oddjob]

I love finding dinner during my hunt, got a few places here in Europe that are not the best places to MD, but when it starts to get cool the clams all head into the shallows. So I make it a point to go hunt those spots and take a few five gallon buckets. LOL

Had many of times where I only found trash like bottle caps, sparkler sticks, but lots of clams. Those clams lead me to my square nail site too, in around 6 years I have gotten 479 perfect square nails. Not really a relic hunter, I like profit, but free food is profit and if I have to clean a shore line for it then I am all over it, relics are just a plus.

Cool finds man.

I went searching for a couple houses within a settlement that existed between 1625 and 1785. Not much is left due to the "lushness" of the forest - the blueberry bramble was outrageous! Wet, swampy, and BUGS. All and all, I had a fun but tough hunt, and the ground needed to be covered in order to narrow down the location...

Day 1, 3hrs: went searching for 3 sites. Found one of the 3, but found nothing but flat buttons and ticks. 2 flat buttons, two tick bites. And an antebellum suspender clip, but perhaps slightly earlier.

View attachment 1456521

Day 2, 4 hrs: Went searching for a colonial road and creek crossing. Found the road, but not all roads were created equal. This one had shallow tracks and judging from the finds, wasn't traveled much. Found a crotal bell frag and a unidentified British copper. Also went looking for a tidal mill, and was skunked all around.

Day 3, 1hr: I snuck out for an hour and found a few flat buttons and a clock face. Also found a silvered spoon frag. I've been to this site two times before, but was happy with the finds after he two last days...

View attachment 1456505

View attachment 1456506
I really like finding fishing net weights since they have deep roots in the area I hunted. The bottom right one is a great early one, the one next to it likely late 1800's.

View attachment 1456507

Sometimes in order to find a site, you need to find the 100 places where it isn't. Well, this helped narrow things I hope.

Enjoy and good hunts!

Steve

My most successful hunt was for oysters and clams.

View attachment 1456513

And a sunset
View attachment 1456514

 

[nov2101]

Save the ticks because they might hold the key to having Lyme. Unfortunate I've been bit by brown recluse to ticks. Great finds though....

 

[pepperj]

Hey there Pepp! I agree, it's a bonus to hit relics but I enjoy being out none-the-less even without finds. Funny you mention ticks in strange places. My wife had one crawling on her while she was sitting in my truck. Lol

It seems to sit well with my Mrs when she gets one on her, the only solution is to be butt naked before entry to the house or truck. They just have to understand the risks that we take for the betterment of humanity digging all these treasures.

 

[Patriot Relics]

Even on your lousy hunts you find a British Copper I know how much it sucks to crawl through brambles and get ticks for just a couple buttons and bits of metal. At least the suspender buckle is pretty cool... definitely a keeper. As you know my weekend was a bust for detecting, so I resorted to hunting flea markets and did pretty well there.

Those oysters and clams are my favorite by far!

Took the words out of my mouth Brad- buttons, buckle, silver, and a copper- I'd say you did better than ok Steve. I'm sure the next 8 reale or GW button is just around the corner

 

[Scrappy]

I love finding dinner during my hunt, got a few places here in Europe that are not the best places to MD, but when it starts to get cool the clams all head into the shallows. So I make it a point to go hunt those spots and take a few five gallon buckets. LOL

Had many of times where I only found trash like bottle caps, sparkler sticks, but lots of clams. Those clams lead me to my square nail site too, in around 6 years I have gotten 479 perfect square nails. Not really a relic hunter, I like profit, but free food is profit and if I have to clean a shore line for it then I am all over it, relics are just a plus.

Cool finds man.

Funny enough, the clam flats I dig have been "clammed" for 300 years. Perhaps I should get my CTX I've that ground. If I dig holes and don't find anything good, I'm sure I'll pop a few clams out

 

[Oddjob]

300 years, man that is a long time. The ones we pick up are those Eastern elliptio mussel; had one of those fishery conservation workers ask us once what we did with them. I told him we are going to eat them, he looked at me like I was crazy and he said you do know that they are natural water filters. He said he did not care that we took them, he just thought we had a pond at home we where putting them in, and then said but he would recommend not eating them.

Funny enough, the clam flats I dig have been "clammed" for 300 years. Perhaps I should get my CTX I've that ground. If I dig holes and don't find anything good, I'm sure I'll pop a few clams out

 

[Scrappy]

Took the words out of my mouth Brad- buttons, buckle, silver, and a copper- I'd say you did better than ok Steve. I'm sure the next 8 reale or GW button is just around the corner

I am always happy with anything I dig Brother. With the heavy brush and bad conditions, I suppose it just felt like a lot longer of a hunt after a ton of work. But I'll be back where I left off next time I visit that area.

Stay Safe over there Jon.

Steve

 

[Scrappy]

300 years, man that is a long time. The ones we pick up are those Eastern elliptio mussel; had one of those fishery conservation workers ask us once what we did with them. I told him we are going to eat them, he looked at me like I was crazy and he said you do know that they are natural water filters. He said he did not care that we took them, he just thought we had a pond at home we where putting them in, and then said but he would recommend not eating them.

I've seen a few of those mussel around. Mostly up north further. Can't say I've ever friend eating one