The police showed up.....

John Madill · Nov 30, 2020

i was busy digging out a plug at the base of a sledding hill in a small town park this afternoon.

it is a nice park along a river with a skateboard park, canoe/kayak launch, picnic areas, ball fields, tot lot, etc.

it is perhaps the third time i visited it, mostly finding small change and lots of trash.

i looked up and saw a white SUV sitting about a hundred yards away and wondered if it was a police car.

a minute or two later it pulled up and it was a local police car.

the officer rolled down his window, looked very serious and said "if you find any oil you have to split it with us!"

no such luck i announced, only a few pennies and a dime.

he laughed and left. then i went to the concession stand by the ball fields and found another dime, a nickel and maybe a couple more pennies.

My town is a few miles away and has a park. i asked the clerk at city hall if metal detecting is allowed and was quickly and firmly told NO.

so my attitude now for small town parks is that it might be better to beg forgiveness than ask permission.

SmirkAtTheMerc · Nov 30, 2020

He let you go!

Tom_in_CA · Nov 30, 2020

John Madill said:
.... i asked the clerk at city hall if metal detecting is allowed and was quickly and firmly told NO.

so my attitude now for small town parks is that it might be better to beg forgiveness than ask permission.

IMHO you went about this wrong. Because some desk-bound clerk can simply say "no", simply because they envision geeks with shovels. Ie.: perhaps you just got the "safe answer" to a "pressing question" , when in fact perhaps the person would never have given the matter a moment's thought.

Instead, you look up the park rules and muni. codes for yourself. If nothing there says "No MD'ing", then presto, it's not disallowed.

If the town is too small to have their codified rules/laws on-line (like a city website, and park's dept. website) and if you really feel you HAVE to talk to a live person, then you phrase it this way : "Where can a person find the city park's rules ?" Eg.: Dogs on leash, no fireworks, etc .... ?" They should be able to direct you to where it exists in print form. Same for muni laws and codes: There are no "secret laws". If your city is an incorporated city, then the city codes have to exist somewhere in print form. Eg.: behind the desk in binder form at city hall, or at the library, or at a link they can give you, etc.....

If they say "What is it that you wanted to know ?", you stick to your guns and say "To know where the public can avail themselves of muni laws and rules @ city park usage". Otherwise, If you simply ask "Can I metal detect ?" you risk running into the "no one cared till you asked" phenomenon .

Tom_in_CA · Nov 30, 2020

SmirkAtTheMerc said:
He let you go!

Because MD'ing is innocuous, harmless, healthy, benign, and legal. Nothing to be "let go from" in the first place.

If someone thinks otherwise, I will simply go when said singular lookie-lou isn't present. Presto, problem solved :cool:

metaladdict · Nov 30, 2020

Sheesh! Never go ask at some government office! :no:

Stiffwrists · Nov 30, 2020

Public parks are open to all for enjoyment.Get some fresh air, walk your dog or metal detect.

dirt dick · Nov 30, 2020

it may also be better to detect on the weekends, with less chance of running into city workers...... :?:

Tom_in_CA · Dec 1, 2020

dirt dick said:
it may also be better to detect on the weekends, with less chance of running into city workers......

Well, sure, ANY "low traffic times". The less lookie-lous, the better. Because let's be honest : We're in an odd-ball hobby that has connotations.

So our choice is this: You can spend your entire life trying to get everyone to love and condone you. Or you can realize that it's not possible to please every last person on earth, and simply avoid those who might gripe. Like nose-picking : Not necessarily illegal, nor do you "need permission". But you STILL choose discreet timing so as not to offend the squeamish. So too is it with md'ing .

Some people might want to call that "sneaking around", eh ? Ok, fine then : SNEAK AROUND ! :roll:

You're simply not going to please every last person on earth.

dirt dick · Dec 1, 2020

Tom_in_CA said:
Well, sure, ANY "low traffic times". The less lookie-lous, the better. Because let's be honest : We're in an odd-ball hobby that has connotations.

So our choice is this: You can spend your entire life trying to get everyone to love and condone you. Or you can realize that it's not possible to please every last person on earth, and simply avoid those who might gripe. Like nose-picking : Not necessarily illegal, nor do you "need permission". But you STILL choose discreet timing so as not to offend the squeamish. So too is it with md'ing .

Some people might want to call that "sneaking around", eh ? Ok, fine then : SNEAK AROUND ! You're simply not going to please every last person on earth.

If you have to detect on those weekdays, do it after 5pm when those city employees have gone home from work,
Or become a "night-hawk" :fullmoon:

detecting in the dark .
I've seen post of many people that hunt at night time,
Because of less Lookie Lou's, :oldguy:

and Nosey Nellie's.

Sent from my E6810 using Tapatalk

HistoryHippy · Dec 1, 2020

https://youtu.be/C-M2hs3sXGo

randy · Dec 2, 2020

I've never had a problem with municipal employees. Often times they chat me up. I just make sure I am not digging a crater if they are looking my way.

Tom_in_CA · Dec 2, 2020

randy said:
... I just make sure I am not digging a crater if they are looking my way.

Bingo. AKA : Don't be in the middle of deep retrievals if busy-bodies are staring/watching.

Sometimes in this life we just have to "not spit in people's holy water". Rather than trying to convince them that it's not really holy water. :roll:

Skippy SH13 · Dec 2, 2020

Tom_in_CA said:
if you really feel you HAVE to talk to a live person, then you phrase it this way : "Where can a person find the city park's rules ?" Eg.: Dogs on leash, no fireworks, etc .... ?" They should be able to direct you to where it exists in print form. Same for muni laws and codes: There are no "secret laws".

THIS

It's the best advice you'll get on the Internet.

It amazes me how often people forget that if something isn't prohibited, that it's allowed. Nobody calls the city to ask if they can put volley ball spikes in the turf. If it's not expressly forbidden, it's within your rights...

... but you might need to split the "oil" with the coppers. LOL

Skippy

The police showed up.....

John Madill

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SmirkAtTheMerc

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Tom_in_CA

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Tom_in_CA

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metaladdict

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Stiffwrists

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dirt dick

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Tom_in_CA

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dirt dick

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HistoryHippy

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randy

Tom_in_CA

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Skippy SH13

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