First encounter with park ranger

[G-bone]

Yodels.

Stopped at a local park on the way home to hit an area not yet hit.
First 15mins and had a Gentleman walk by and ask what i'm finding..."coins and trash" I respond with a smile.
He smirks and then mentions how many nails and sharp objects he see's in the park and worries about the kids.
I told him I have picked up many a sharp items in sand areas and grass/bark covered areas and it is
part of my hunting, to pick up trash I dig up or even laying on the surface.
"Good to hear and good luck too" he says as he carries on.
So another 10 mins. go by. it's getting dark and I have my headlamp on while I'm down digging and
I get a tap on the shoulder. I look up to see a Park Ranger looking down on me.

Now I am in an area of the park that is a new Drought tolerant portion of the park.
These are large areas in all the local parks, that aren't used much so they get covered in bark.
And no need to water.

So I stand up to greet the ranger.
Very nice but right out of the gate, says that "Metal detecting or anything that disturbs flora and fauna in city parks is not aloud" But they immediately followed up with"But since you are in the bark covered areas, I don't see any problem with it"..."That may not hold true for another Ranger if they see you, but just so you know".

I said thanks and mentioned that is exactly why I was in that area.
A little more chit chat and I also brought up how I have looked pretty extensively into our park regulations and found nothing about metal detecting, allowed or not allowed.
They came back with that even though it doesn't say "Metal detecting" per-say, that type of activity falls under the Disturbing of Flora and fauna, there-by restricting it's use.
(except baseball and football and soccer which destroys the grass - not said but thought about it).

So I left it at that. Thank them for being cool, and went on for another 20min or so til it was full dark and time to go.

Interesting encounter.
Guess I'm on the radar now too.

Cheers

G

 

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[Yehuwdiy]

LOL! I called up my local authority and they responded with, "You want to do what? What's that?" Conversation regrading not leaving huge holes everywhere, being sensible re. not digging up grass around monuments etc. In the end they basically said 'be sensible and good luck to you'.

Whilst digging today a truck pulled up with 5 council workers in it. I thought 'here we go'. Nope, they worked for 10 minutes, had smoko for 40 minutes then left.

 

[JoeB_OH]

Here in N. Ohio, you need a permit in many places. The park system doesn't charge for it, just a hassle. The Rangers are funny- they just park & watch.. I was only asked to see the permit once, obliged & told him- "Parks ARE for recreation".

HH,
Joe

 

[Jason in Enid]

G-bone, I hope you got the name of the ranger. I once had 3 LEOs (2 sheriff's deputies and Police officer) confront me during one hunt. The first one came out and I showed him my previous dig spots which can't be seen if you arent specifically looking for them. He was satisfied and told me to keep covering my digs like that and I was fine. hour later, deputy #2 comes up saying "you can't do that here". I smiled, shook his hand, told him that I had already spoken with officer #### and was told I was fine. He calls in on the radio, then sheepishly says "Oh, OK I didn't know". Not ten minutes later a city cop pulls up and I started laughing. He said somebody had called in reporting that I was digging holes everywhere. I repeated the first 2 encounters and said, "see, there are no holes. You almost can't find where I have dug anything." We chatted, shook hands, he left, I kept detecting.

Moral of the story, don't be intimidated by LEOs, but don't be an arse. They are just doing their jobs.

 

[Tom_in_CA]

G-gone, good post. Dissecting/reading it closely, you say:

.... says that "Metal detecting or anything that disturbs flora and fauna in city parks is not aloud" But they immediately followed up with"But since you are in the bark covered areas, I don't see any problem with it"..."That may not hold true for another Ranger if they see you, but just so you know"....

Reading S-L-O-W-L-Y, what does the above communication tell you ? That FAR from being "cut and dried" (ie.: allowed or dis-allowed, blah blah), it is a grey area left up for interpretation, whim, mood, feeling, etc.... And mind you this is not something solved by going in ahead of time and getting someone's permission (who perhaps would never have noticed you or given the matter a moment's thought before).

..... I have looked pretty extensively into our park regulations and found nothing about metal detecting, allowed or not allowed.
They came back with that even though it doesn't say "Metal detecting" per-say, that type of activity falls under the Disturbing of Flora and fauna, there-by restricting it's use. ...

Wait, don't you see? All such "alter", "disturb", and "deface" type verbage IMPLICITLY deals with the end result. Eg.: when you leave the area as-you-found it (no holes, no harmed fauna), then logically you have not alterED, disturbED, or defacED anything, now have you ? Might someone disagree with those semantics (d/t the temporary evil of extraction) ? SURE! Avoid such killjoys, and don't use lamps at night to draw attention to yourself (pick full moon nights).

You are simply not going to get every last person to love and adore you. Our hobby has admitted connotations, and draws looks from lookie-lous. So sometimes it's just better to be a little more discreet, pick off-times, and not use headlamps in the night, which only bring about curiosity of passing busy-bodies.

.... and I have my headlamp on while I'm down digging .....

 

[G-bone]

Tom, you are indeed correct. Lots left up to that particular persons discretion.
That verbiage is very "open" but like you say, and I practice as well, leave it in "as-is" or better condition and you do not fall under those terms.
Be respectful if approached. Leave no trace. And once they see you are a sensible person, they will 9.8 times out of 10 be cool to you and be done.

Time to hunt is tough for me to find and I have to take advantage of any opportunity I can.
And with day light gone by the time I'm off work....the headlamp comes out.
But indeed I need to be more Stealth in my hunting.
I need to look up a little more often too to scan my surroundings. very important practice I need to adhere to.


thanks everyone for the input.

Cheers

G

 

[Tom_in_CA]

Try going on full-moon nights. There's enough moon and star light out to see clearly enough. And then just have a pen-light for when you want to look at the date on a coin, etc.... Because actually, using a flashlight/headlight is detrimental. Not just that passerbys and prone to investigate (and then the wheels of their brain start turning about 'disturbing fauna"), but also because your pupils will become adjusted to JUST that beam of light. You will become blind to everything else around you, outside that beam.

Try a full-moon night next time. So peaceful, so serene

 

[WhiteTornado]

I need to look up a little more often too to scan my surroundings. very important practice I need to adhere to.

Had some close encounters that have me doing that more often. No confrontations happened, just that a few times, someone happened to walk by and they were a lot closer than I'd realized. I've also taken to keeping one of my headphone cups off my ear, so I can still hear what's going on in the immediate vicinity. I mainly do this while hunting on public lands. If I'm on private property with permission, then I'm 100% in the zone

 

[patiodadio]

G-bone, I hope you got the name of the ranger. I once had 3 LEOs (2 sheriff's deputies and Police officer) confront me during one hunt. The first one came out and I showed him my previous dig spots which can't be seen if you arent specifically looking for them. He was satisfied and told me to keep covering my digs like that and I was fine. hour later, deputy #2 comes up saying "you can't do that here". I smiled, shook his hand, told him that I had already spoken with officer #### and was told I was fine. He calls in on the radio, then sheepishly says "Oh, OK I didn't know". Not ten minutes later a city cop pulls up and I started laughing. He said somebody had called in reporting that I was digging holes everywhere. I repeated the first 2 encounters and said, "see, there are no holes. You almost can't find where I have dug anything." We chatted, shook hands, he left, I kept detecting.

Moral of the story, don't be intimidated by LEOs, but don't be an arse. They are just doing their jobs.

My problem with the LEO's hassling MD'ers is this....drugs are everywhere, most cites have shootings everyday and the brave men & women of law enforcement have to bust an old man with a metal detector ?

 

[Jason in Enid]

When they get called to shootings and drug dealings, they go investigate those. When they get called to BS calls about someone digging in the park, they go investigate those too. It's more about the idiot busy-bodies who dial 911 for everything that cause EVERYONE problems.

You would not believe the number calls we get because some jerk driving around sees smoke from a grill and calls in without taking 2 seconds to slow down and actually look at the source.

 

[G-bone]

It's more about the idiot busy-bodies who dial 911 for everything that cause EVERYONE problems.

So true!
there are SO many Mrs Crabtree's out there (Remember her from Bewitched? yup I'm old).

 

[cudamark]

I thought her last name was Cravitts? (sp?)

 

[Jason in Enid]

So true!
there are SO many Mrs Crabtree's out there (Remember her from Bewitched? yup I'm old).

Oh my gosh, that is the imagine I had in my mind, but I couldn't remember her name! LOL, ABNER! ABNER! COME LOOK WHAT THEYRE DOING!

 

[Jason in Enid]

I thought her last name was Cravitts? (sp?)

Kravitts, I just had to look it up.

 

[boogeyman]

My problem with the LEO's hassling MD'ers is this....drugs are everywhere, most cites have shootings everyday and the brave men & women of law enforcement have to bust an old man with a metal detector ?

Sucks for them too! Some idiotic busy body calls PD stating they just spotted a suspicious person prowling the park digging with a flashlight and they still have to show up & make contact with you.

A hint for everyone here. When approached, set your detector and digging tool on the ground and step back a few steps. A rookie with an accidental discharge will completely mess up your night.

 

[G-bone]

Quote Originally Posted by cudamark View Post
I thought her last name was Cravitts? (sp?)

Kravitts, I just had to look it up.

Thank you both for the correction. See I am old and forgetting things too
And that type is everywhere.

 

[Escape]

Something to ask the cop when he shows up. Which one are you? Andy or Barney? Good to know who your talking too. If he replies Dirty .Harry put your detector down and back up slowly.

.

 

[DannyB1954]

Sometimes better to ask forgiveness than permission.
In a local area near me there is a mining ghost town named Stirling. I called the park authority and got read the riot act. they were going to confiscate my detector and vehicle, get a warrant and search my house etc.
I have been hunting a park here in town. Police drive by and not a problem. I leave no trace so if somebody does complain I can say take a picture of the damages before we go to court. If I had asked for permission, the person I talked to could say no.

 

[SouthFLdigger]

I had an encounter with a park supervisor a few months ago. He walked, probably 300 yards over to where I was, and at 50 yards out started yelling at me that "You can't be doing that in the park!" I simply yelled back, "I'm not digging, and I'm following the city ordinance of cutting a neat flap, while Metal Detecting. It's allowed." He stopped cold. Then just kind of sheepishly said, "well, as long as it's just a flap!" And then turned around and went back.

I LOVE my city. The clear ordinance sure removes a lot of ambiguity.

Skippy

Would love something like that around here!

 

[BagLady]

Here in N. Mississippi, we have a huge lake with beaches for swimming, boating etc., It's on the ACoE Corp. property.
What I don't understand, is why we can't metal detect on the beaches.
I'm told No Digging....but kids dig in the sand making sand castles...What gives??