Police said OK, park said..

The other day I was detecting a park in town.  I had been there about 5 minutes and was digging a target when a park employee pulled up on a mower and stopped his engine.  I figured he just wanted to watch.  He asked me if I knew that it was illegal to be detecting in the park.  I told him that I had stopped at the police station a few months ago and asked if it was okay to detect in city parks and schools.  The dispatcher turned to a patrolman and asked.  He said "no problem".  The park employee then informed me that he didn't know about the schools, but that the police were wrong about the parks.  He told me that I needed to check in with the parks superintendent and sign a paper.  He then smiled and said he was the parks superintendent and shook my hand.  He had observed that I was digging plugs and replacing dirt and sod, and I didn't BS him.  He told me that I was fine and that if any other park employee ever asked, just give them his name.  I don't know what to take away from this experience other than: cities have laws, and parks have rules, and it pays to correctly replace your diggings.  Oh, and don't BS the parks superintendent.

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Last week, I went to two parks here that Ive never been to before, and both of them had metal detectors posted as no no's in their regulations. I can understand prohibiting use in well manicured areas of the park, but they should allow use in places like around swing sets and such that have wood chips, thats usually where I target anyway. I'm going to try talking to someone at the park to see what I can do to change it. Foiled Again

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Here in Houston the parks are OK to hunt in, but not the Harris county park. Before the ban I a half a dozen or so county parks. I would hunt them and have a ice chest full of soft drinks and  bottles of water to pass out. After the ban I just stop going.

Six months at the ban my Bother joined our hobby and the first day on his own he want to my favorite park. He called me and said that he just started to hunt when the park main. people stopped by and told him to have FUN. I drove to the park to see the the fun when the cops showed up. The parks saw me and asked where I had been. At this park the Goodwill that I had showed made me Missed.

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The problem I see is that they quickly say no if asked. I still see folks out there all the time so I am banning myself but those that don't ask and don't care get away with it till stopped and then we all get labled negatively.

I won't hunt any ground without permission. My MD cost me over a thousand dollars and it's not worth jeopardizing. Still it bothers me that there's a lot of folks out there's in the early hours swinging and often in areas I know I've been told no.

 

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		Quote:			Posted by ImN4gold
	Are you saying that you go to a park site, immediately talk to the parents about what you're doing, show pictures - then detect?  Do you communicate the same message and demonstrate the same pictures to park officials?  Do you check with police first?  I live next to a park that I planned to check out.  I am a beginner, and all this looks foundational to me.  I appreciate your post.  Parents have good cause to be concerned about their children.

Debra,

I do speak with them if they come nearby and are watching me. I don't just wander over. You can always tell when a parent is worried. They came to the park wanting to use it and there's someone there that they don't know. I find that explaining what I am doing while emphasizing what we do to clean the park is the best way to have them relax a bit. Sometimes, if the child is old enough, I let them have a quick try at detecting while I continue to chat with mom and dad. Sometimes, I see a little convert in the making when they don't really want to stop.

The fact that a person (that being us) who eventually looks a bit dirty from digging is wandering around in a park where they have their children can be a little worrying to parents. Being proactive takes no time at all really and when you show them all the sharp metal bits that you always find, there's actually a look of relief on their faces. Some parents even turn and shout, "Put your shoes on kids!" at their children after seeing some of the nasties I have recently dug. With my digital camera loaded with pictures of my trash finds, I no longer have to carry photos with me.

Twice now, at the beach, I have made friends with a mom who later became a detectorist and we'd meet at the beach for a wander. We don't do it often because unlike a simple walk on the beach, you really can't chat while detecting. But there is the safety factor for a young lady on the beach to have a friend nearby.

As to the police, I report all dangerous goods found to the local council by photograph. I have found weapons used in crimes before and the police know me quite well as I turn everything of value worth more than $10.00 over to them as required by law here in Western Australia. After 6 months, they send a notice to you if nobody claims it and you can keep the find.

Being active in the community is a positive thing that counters the ground-digging fools who leave their trash all over the ground next to the great hole they dug. Only one of those can have a park closed to the rest of us so I sometimes find myself cleaning up after those detector pigs.

One last tip for you that pleases the park folks to no end is to carry a small baggie full of grass seed. When I cover up after other detector users who have poor manners, I sprinkle some over the bare dirt, scratch it into the soil and pour a bit of water from my bottle over it. Groundskeepers love you for that.

Best,
GD

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