William-NM
New member
I did some hunting around a steep slope with some old adobe & timber cabin ruins just below town. This hill is above where the old train station stood. Here's the view from one of them, and my daily axe head, found under the walking path.
In addition to some copper and brass recyling, it yielded a few nice finds, including a sterling ring with gold band that was flat as a pancake and charred black from a fire. I had no idea that I had found gold until I got home and started cleaning it up. I popped the stone out and tried to straighten the bezel out. Still a work in progress.
I also found half of a token for 5 cents off on "...Keeneys "Refresh-Min...", a young cowgirl's horse pendant, a 1964 Mexican nickel, a lead seal, a couple each of marbles and clock keys, and a brass sign or fob for 'Old American Brand', and a 1940 dog tag.
Just a few bottles, my favorites are the Vess "Billion Bubble Beverages" bottle and a Hind's Honey and Almond Cream bottle. I also got a Tootsie Toy wrecker that isn't going to be on the road anytime soon.
The axe head and a horseshoe, and a view of the hill above the ruins - a regular hippie/homeless heaven!
Oh, and here are the rest of the finds:
I decided to hunt an old mining camp that I had come across while hiking - just a one or two man camp, I think - I found three test digs and a deep shaft in the immediate area. I love just being up here - I always feel connected to the land and usually see arrowheads and pottery shards. The silence is deafening.
Not much to indicate that there had been a camp except some iron remains (leg of lightweight woodstove, flue pipe scattered around the site...) and a little level area with rock piles around it. I had hunted the camp when I first got my AT Pro about 1 1/2 years ago, but didn't find much. I decided to take another crack at it, hoping for a coin or mining relic. I must have improved a bit, as I found a few keepers, my favorite being a blasting cap tin embossed "California Cap Company" in rusted but good shape and with the original padding intact. These are going on ebay for $20 - $50, though I'll keep it for now. I also found a nice pulley and iron animal (or maybe dinner!) bell, and an army shirt button, Little Super Mac button, and pocket knife.
A few other iron items - a chisel and giant nail being used as a chisel, a piece of saddle hardware, and a mystery item. The part with the comb teeth reads "Durham Demonstrator" ???
The camp only seemed to have two current residents - baby lizards, one of which had just caught a cricket for lunch as I watched.
This represents an improvement over the last time that I was up here when a Tarantula kept circling me, despite my clear directions that Mexico is to the Southwest! I had also encountered a large diamondback on several occasions while hiking this particular hillside.
I did a quick scan of the tailings pile - just found some rusty iron and a couple of rocks that will get cracked open, as they sounded off.
And here's a pin that I found last year - one of my first ghost town jewelry finds. I like the squash pattern, and it was found, appropriately, in the garden of a ruined adobe home. I'm working on it, still need to set the stone and repair or replace the bezel.
Thanks for looking and best of luck in the hunt to all!!
Remember: Jobs are for people without hobbies
In addition to some copper and brass recyling, it yielded a few nice finds, including a sterling ring with gold band that was flat as a pancake and charred black from a fire. I had no idea that I had found gold until I got home and started cleaning it up. I popped the stone out and tried to straighten the bezel out. Still a work in progress.
I also found half of a token for 5 cents off on "...Keeneys "Refresh-Min...", a young cowgirl's horse pendant, a 1964 Mexican nickel, a lead seal, a couple each of marbles and clock keys, and a brass sign or fob for 'Old American Brand', and a 1940 dog tag.
Just a few bottles, my favorites are the Vess "Billion Bubble Beverages" bottle and a Hind's Honey and Almond Cream bottle. I also got a Tootsie Toy wrecker that isn't going to be on the road anytime soon.
The axe head and a horseshoe, and a view of the hill above the ruins - a regular hippie/homeless heaven!
Oh, and here are the rest of the finds:
I decided to hunt an old mining camp that I had come across while hiking - just a one or two man camp, I think - I found three test digs and a deep shaft in the immediate area. I love just being up here - I always feel connected to the land and usually see arrowheads and pottery shards. The silence is deafening.
Not much to indicate that there had been a camp except some iron remains (leg of lightweight woodstove, flue pipe scattered around the site...) and a little level area with rock piles around it. I had hunted the camp when I first got my AT Pro about 1 1/2 years ago, but didn't find much. I decided to take another crack at it, hoping for a coin or mining relic. I must have improved a bit, as I found a few keepers, my favorite being a blasting cap tin embossed "California Cap Company" in rusted but good shape and with the original padding intact. These are going on ebay for $20 - $50, though I'll keep it for now. I also found a nice pulley and iron animal (or maybe dinner!) bell, and an army shirt button, Little Super Mac button, and pocket knife.
A few other iron items - a chisel and giant nail being used as a chisel, a piece of saddle hardware, and a mystery item. The part with the comb teeth reads "Durham Demonstrator" ???
The camp only seemed to have two current residents - baby lizards, one of which had just caught a cricket for lunch as I watched.
This represents an improvement over the last time that I was up here when a Tarantula kept circling me, despite my clear directions that Mexico is to the Southwest! I had also encountered a large diamondback on several occasions while hiking this particular hillside.
I did a quick scan of the tailings pile - just found some rusty iron and a couple of rocks that will get cracked open, as they sounded off.
And here's a pin that I found last year - one of my first ghost town jewelry finds. I like the squash pattern, and it was found, appropriately, in the garden of a ruined adobe home. I'm working on it, still need to set the stone and repair or replace the bezel.
Thanks for looking and best of luck in the hunt to all!!
Remember: Jobs are for people without hobbies
