Hello from the Adelaide Hills

[shmiff]

Hi, I'm shmiff. I live in the Adelaide Hills. When I was 14 years old my father had a metal detector that had two buttons - an on/off switch, and a black button that made the background beep quieter the longer you pressed it. There was no discrimination and no display. I'm guessing that things have improved since then.

I don't have a detector at the moment, though having binge-watched "detectorists" for the past month, and knowing that the Adelaide Hills ought to be full of gold nuggets, I've very tempted to take the plunge and unearth my fortune (which I won't be able to sell). I have my eye on the Minelab Equinox 800, though there are relatively few reviews about it, especially regarding its gold-detecting ability, and it's still rather expensive.

I was disappointed to read that SA has some of the most restrictive prospecting regulations in the country. With all the old settlements like Hahndorf, Bridgewater and Stirling, for relic hunting, and the huge number of gold discoveries across the region, it would be a great shame if 95% of the land were inaccessible.

Is anyone lobbying the government for a change in the current prospecting laws?

shmiff

 

[7.62marksman]

hi mate people will answer your questions as they come on line
enjoy your hobbie mate

 

[malri_au]

gday shmiff!

yep,it sucks here in SA.

there are spots to detect,but people are pretty guarded about giving them up.

you are right,it is full of gold,but under lock and key!

best to use the 2 main public spots of jupiter creek and mount crawford to practice.

 

[shmiff]

Thank you! I doubt that I'll only be obsessed with finding flecks of gold. It seems to me that the Adelaide Hills ought to have a rich history as the settlers who founded villages like Crafers, Stirling, Aldgate, Bridgewater, Hahndorf etc. would have been carrying all kinds of coins (possibly brought from their home countries) that would have been hidden or lost, and plenty of other relics from the late 1800's.

What's the deal with detecting on private land? Assuming that you have the landowner's permission, is there a written or unwritten rule about who owns anything you may find there?

I see many people detecting on the beaches. I'm assuming that this land is not privately owned and therefore anything you find is yours to keep? Where would we stand detecting the bed of the Cox Creek for example? There was a lot of work done when the Bridgewater Mill waterwheel race was constructed.

shmiff

 

[7.62marksman]

Check your emails mate

 

[DetectingSA]

Welcome mate, best of luck with you future fortune

 

[Jaros]

Welcome Schmiffy-good luck.

 

[malri_au]

check out trove and start punching in some of those names alongside 'gold'.

private land is the best land in SA,it's agreement between you and the property owner,split the finds based on agreement,or keep it all if they're happy to let you.(though it seems to get you more permissions if you give them something back.also good karma)

beaches are mostly ok,but it's also dependent on the council.

there's a few do's/don'ts,like digging around boat ramps and the like.

most important thing is to leave stuff as you found it,do minimal damage.

this is why I can't stress enough the practice side of things for new people.

 

[malri_au]

the thing with creeks here in SA is that where it goes onto private land is a no-no.

the reason for this is the land owner is responsible for maintaining the natural course of a waterway.

if someone digs this up,the land owner can be liable.

you also have to bear in mind no-no in national parks,NR's,CR's,heritage roadside etc.

outside of that,as an example a roadside should be fine as long as it's not blue housed(heritage roadside).

 

[shmiff]

Thank you and OMG. What would be really handy would be a map of Adelaide and the Hills, shaded in blue to show the areas where it is legal to prospect, including the correct beaches, roads, rivers etc. And sure, I'll always leave things as I find them.

The gold locations on the topological overlay of the map at the sarig link with transparency set to maximum seem to provide a huge amount of data regarding past finds in relation to altitude in each area, e.g. Echunga finds are all between 315m and 340m, whereas Uraidla was higher, between 510m and 550m. With some geological understanding (which I don't yet have) one might be able to predict the most likely locations based on the undulations of the land.

shmiff

 

[malri_au]

Just because a marker on the map says gold found here,doesn't mean it was surface.(315m-340m at echunga,but they went 200m+ deep still)

there where surface finds of course,but a majority of the markers represent deeper leads.

undulations,no,gravity yes.

try putting the geology up on screen instead of the terrain.

you'll start to see the trends of ground type/age and what it carries.

 

[shmiff]

Thanks!

 

[Dean0]

Hey shmiff,
also from Adelaide Hills, , check out this link if your looking at a nox 800 lots of reviews ect.., also my mate works at ML and recons the nox 800 are a great unit for the money

https://www.prospectingaustralia.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=23409

 

[shmiff]

Hey shmiff,
also from Adelaide Hills, , check out this link if your looking at a nox 800 lots of reviews ect.., also my mate works at ML and recons the nox 800 are a great unit for the money

Thanks Dean. Whereabouts are you based? Any location tips for a beginner? I'm more interested in finding relics of the colonial years than small pieces of gold. The ancient (relatively speaking) settlements like Hahndorf must be strewn with items from the past. Are we allowed to prospect in ghost towns?

shmiff

 

[Dean0]

shmiff

I am in Mt Barker, not been here long, I was in the city and like you only just getting back into the hobby since moving, I have spoken to a few people regarding access to private land and a few do not have an issue but just fishing ATM whilst I sort out a new Detector.

 

[malri_au]

you're pretty much asking us to hand you a spot on a platter.

it's hard enough as it is in SA.

i've already suggested when you get your detector to practice at jupiter creek and mount crawford.

there are occasional relics there,but I think your expectation is too high.

Hahndorf was zoned as a state heritage area in 1988. Now if you read into what i posted earlier about heritage+ heritage roadsides,you kind of have your answer.

If they can't knock down or do much with a heritage building,do you think us as fossickers have much chance?

 

[shmiff]

you're pretty much asking us to hand you a spot on a platter.

it's hard enough as it is in SA.

i've already suggested when you get your detector to practice at jupiter creek and mount crawford.

there are occasional relics there,but I think your expectation is too high.

Hahndorf was zoned as a state heritage area in 1988. Now if you read into what i posted earlier about heritage+ heritage roadsides,you kind of have your answer.

If they can't knock down or do much with a heritage building,do you think us as fossickers have much chance?

Thanks Malri, I didn't realise detecting spots were such closely guarded secrets. As a paraglider pilot we have access to quite a few private Hills properties for flying, and I don't think it would take much to get additional permissions to detect on them. But I'll follow the code and keep them to myself.

Wow, so the whole of Hahndorf is heritage zoned? It's such a shame. Imagine how much we could contribute to the history museum in the information centre.

I guess I'm just trying to find out what's legal and what isn't, that's all. I'm happy to do my own research. Maybe there's a book I can buy with details of the go and no-go zones.

shmiff

 

[malri_au]

most just go to the parks and beaches,you could hardly call that guarded.

get that private land permission,you'll be laughing. :Y:

 

[malri_au]

there is no set hard rule except:

national park
conservation reserve
nature reserve
heritage
heritage roadside
waterways
EPA act(do things right this don't come up)
council
land ownership

pretty much anywhere here i'd want to detect is locked up.

you generally won't get hassled if you are clean with your methods.

if you can tick those boxes on that list,test the waters.

just don't complain if you get fined.

 

[shmiff]

Thanks Malri