When I’m out metal detecting in the woods I don’t just randomly walk around, I look for signs that people used to use the place, because let’s face it – you can’t find anything if no body was there to loose it. If I’m in a set of woods that has a creek or a river you better believe that I’m going to metal detect all along the banks and any flat ground where someone may of fished from or picnicked at in the past and left behind some treasure for me. I also keep my eyes peeled for any unusually large trees compared to the rest in the area. With them being larger they are much older and have a better chance that more people sat underneath them years longer then the rest. Also look for any out of place trees like a fruit tree or a lone pine, (for me the woods are filled with maples and oaks so when I walk up on an apple tree you better believe I am gridding all around it) as it may have been close to an old home site or something. The same thing goes for berry bushes and old rose bushes, check all around them and even sweep you coil up underneath them, yes somebody might of metal detected the site years before you but I have found a lot of coins just gridding the area as best I could.
Another dead giveaway to an old site is old foundations, wells, old roads, paths. Now we all know to keep an eye out for foundations and wells but I have walked right up on old paths that I knew had to have old coins on it. When walking along and you see large trees then a sunken down trail then on the other side more old trees you better fire up your metal detector quick!!! I have hunted some super obvious old abandoned paths that were like silver mines, I couldn’t believe that no one beat me to it years before. Sometimes the path isn’t that sunk in but you can still see older trees on either side and much younger tree in the middle. I also will walk along metal detecting and look up into the trees as I have also found old trail signs from way back in the day that were possibly at eyelevel but are now 20-30 feet up in the air. It doesn’t get any easier than that to identify an old forgotten trail.
Lastly one of the easiest tell-tell signs that your site has had old traffic in it is finding old glass just lying on the forest floor. Now I’m not talking about old beer bottles from 30 years ago, I’m talking about old bottles and glass pieces from 80-100+ years ago. When you see busted Hutchinson’s, embossed bottles, blue or amber, or even the old embossed Coke bottles peeking through the ground, you know you’re in the right place to find old coins. These are what I have discovered from countless hours traipsing through the woods swinging a metal detector, and they have worked very well for me over the past few years. Well I hope that this can help someone out in trying to determine where to look for old coins and relics while out metal detecting in the woods. Happy Hunting everyone…
Hi this helps alot thank you! I have one question though, i live right next to woods that has an abanded modern house and right next to it was a small small junk yard, is this a good spot? also right next to that is an orchard taht was most likly used by German P.O.Ws back during ww2. do you think i should detect here? thanks please respond
ReplyDeleteme too
ReplyDeletetrees grow from the top up, a sign on a tree does not go up. if this was the case any fence that was nailed to a tree would soon be in the air. get your facts straight
ReplyDeleteTrees do grow out not up. If you put a nail in at eye level it will stay at eye level for life. However, very good post. Also right before spring look for buttercups (yellow flowers) they come out first in the South, when you see them in the woods it is 99.9999% it is an old house site right there!
ReplyDeleteThis helps a lot! I actually yesterday went out to the woods by my neighborhood and found a old cap with a lady on it their were very old bricks every ware Wich gave me the sign of a old home And broken pottery I was metal detecting along beside a creek on dry land. The best find was a old 1982 polish ak47!
ReplyDelete