Well, this may be little help to you, but one must first define public land. If the land you are referring to is State property, then I would tread with extreme caution, as the State of New York has very strict rules on MD'g and digging on state property. Depending on the AHJ for the State property, you just having a MD in your hand will draw negative attention to yourself. Some of the parks have experienced looters and individuals who deface the public land. I love MD'g, but I love the public lands and their beauty even more. No secret, there are some greedy people involved in our hobby that don't respect anythign but the mighty dollar. This makes my historical research and validation process very difficult when it comes to finding physical evidence. Most shorelines on State property do permit MD'g, but it is generally only allowed before Memorial Day and after Labor Day. The permit has a fee. The cost is dependant on how many sights the permit covers. In Upstate NY, I can get a permit that covers me at six different beaches. County property is different. In most NY counties, you can hunt with out written permission, but you WILL want to call the county parks director and get a name, time, date, and record the area that you requested. This will cover you in the event the Sherriffs or "concerned citizen" decides to give you a hard time. Township and village parks work the same way. Don't be afraid to ask... the worst they can say is no. What I have found is: if I am told no one year, if I ask the next year, someone else is in charge and will approve it. BEWARE: I promise you someone from the AHJ will show up to evaluate your respect level for the public land. I went out last week after calling the county parks department, and one of the officials (I knew personally) showed up and watched me from a distance to make sure I was not making a mess of the property. He was shocked when "I" approached him. He stated that there had been problems in the past. The nice part was, he reported back that I was also cleaning up the beach as I went. LOL... I ended up making $2.00 in beer cans. My daughter takes all my can money and sometimes goes along with me to find cans that I miss... She is four.
