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  • Shallow Water Hunting

    If you live in a region where surface hunting agricultural fields is not what it once was, because hundreds of surface hunters walked the fields before you did, for generations, then it may be time to look at surfaces located in different settings. Like maybe the bottom surface of the pond next to the fields, or the bottom of embayments next to camps. Simply walking in shallow water will work, if the water is clear, but the act of walking itself creates visual hindrances to seeing the bottom.
    Enter the underwater viewing bucket:
    Underwater Viewer: I was trying to figure out a better way for the kids to hunt crawdads, salamanders, look at fish etc., in the river.  When you flip over a rock, it is hard to see through the running water, and the mud you just stirred up.  So, I came up w…


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    Don't have experience with these buckets, but I'm sure it can be tough on the back, and sun glare can also be a hindrance to seeing the bottom. There are underwater viewing scopes with visors to cut glare, but walking leaning over is very tough on the back as well. So, enter what looks like the way to go for 21st surface hunting water bottoms, where permitted and where it might just be very productive.

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    http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencete...athe-NOSE.html
    Snorkeling in style!
    Rhode Island

  • #2
    Ripl b gon / patent #6655434789087653233668809976454! :laugh:
    If you try "freeeye" go to side sky doesnt reflect and take your time. :laugh:
    And walk up stream.
    http://joshinmo.weebly.com

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    • #3
      A good pair of polarized glasses will do wonders to help you see into the water.
      Michigan Yooper
      If You Don’t Stand for Something, You’ll Fall for Anything

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      • #4
        the trick to the bucket is it cuts the waves and makes it like yer looking thru a fishtank. ive found a bunch of stuff using mine (before my buddy left it at the beach by accident!) just keep the sun on yer back ,your face at the bucket and walk slow while scanning.it seems to work best in waist deep water. it also helps to have a pole with a scoop cup on the end for the deeper stuff,unless its hot out and you dont mind getting really wet.
        call me Jay, i live in R.I.

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        • #5
          I shallow water hunt a lot....it's pretty much the only way I hunt. I recommend walking into the wind or current so the mess you stir up stays behind you and the area your scanning stays clear. Before I got hunt I always check the weather and wind direction, this determines which sites I hunt and from which direction I start. Nothing worse than not planning....jumping in and watching your site get covered in muddy water as soon as you start!  :crazy:

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          • #6
            I will be going to a shallow stream. Depth is on the average of 4 inches. Very clear water but running fast. Hard to see the rocks. I want to get under the rocks. Going to bring a spade and slme kind of plastic small bin with holes on the bottom.
            Peace,<br />[br]Kozman

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            • #7
              kozman wrote:

              I will be going to a shallow stream. Depth is on the average of 4 inches. Very clear water but running fast. Hard to see the rocks. I want to get under the rocks. Going to bring a spade and slme kind of plastic small bin with holes on the bottom.
                Good luck. Hard to do when the current is strong/fast. Works best with two people when you're right in the current. Any pockets of still water with a gravelly bottom, sand bars, a bit easier.
              Rhode Island

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              • #8
                Al I gotta say is pick a cloudy day for the best visibilty
                Like a drifter I was born to walk alone

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                • #9
                  I've used the bucket with the clear lexan bottom before, but I added a section of old broom handle to it so I didn't have to bend over so much.  I also used a gravel rake on a pebble sand bar.  I raked in 6" of water along the length of the bar.  The small waves coming in washed the fine silt away after a few minutes.  I found a few points that way.

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                  • #10
                    clambellies wrote:

                    I've used the bucket with the clear lexan bottom before, but I added a section of old broom handle to it so I didn't have to bend over so much.  I also used a gravel rake on a pebble sand bar.  I raked in 6" of water along the length of the bar.  The small waves coming in washed the fine silt away after a few minutes.  I found a few points that way.
                      The rake sounds like a great idea and easy enough. I'll give it a try come Summer. I talked to a guy recently who's from Western Ma and has a couple of the new masks I showed earlier. Uses them in lakes and likes them.
                    Rhode Island

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                    • #11
                      Masks -and- snorkels can work in some waters, some fresh waters may have a fine layer of silt, algae or weed that covers the bottom in 2'-3' of water and the silt doesn't wash away until it shallows up enough for the waves to work their magic.

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                      • #12
                        Sadly for me, the creeks -and- streams in my area are tidal and the water filled with suspended organic matter. Occasionally when seas are calm like glass I can walk along the swash and see underwater 2-3 feet offshore. That's rare though, so I envy you creek -and- ditch walkers.
                        Child of the tides

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                        • #13
                          There are a few sites I know of in Central Mass that were flooded many years ago by dams created to power mills.  When low water resulted due to drought condition the pickings were very good.  Unfortunately (for me) we've had average high water for more than 20 years, in fact above average for at least 10 years.  The weather patterns have changed and we get lots of rain in the summer.

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                          • #14
                            One of the better beaches we walk was impacted by storm walls and storms in such a way as to remove everything down to the clay layer. All the sand left, and that section of beach will never yield an artifact again. Another favorite stretch on a different beach went from long term gravel/pebbles to long term mud. It's been years, and shows no sign of ever returning to good surface conditions.
                              It is still possible to put fabulous collections together without going near a beach. A friend and his dad from SE Ma. use google Earth, put the miles on their cars, and fill their shelves with hardstone and points that certainly put our very local collection to shame. And they've done it in half the time. Funny though. He lives on a tidal river, but didn't walk the shore. One of my first visits, I told him "try walking that shore, you live here already!!" Within a day or two, he walked it and found a 3" Meadowwood to die for hmy:
                            Rhode Island

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                            • #15
                              CMD wrote:

                              One of the better beaches we walk was impacted by storm walls and storms in such a way as to remove everything down to the clay layer. All the sand left, and that section of beach will never yield an artifact again. Another favorite stretch on a different beach went from long term gravel/pebbles to long term mud. It's been years, and shows no sign of ever returning to good surface conditions.
                                It is still possible to put fabulous collections together without going near a beach. A friend and his dad from SE Ma. use google Earth, put the miles on their cars, and fill their shelves with hardstone and points that certainly put our very local collection to shame. And they've done it in half the time. Funny though. He lives on a tidal river, but didn't walk the shore. One of my first visits, I told him "try walking that shore, you live here already!!" Within a day or two, he walked it and found a 3" Meadowwood to die for hmy:
                              Beach renourishment ruins many wild beaches, covering up existing artifacts. On the other hand, sand dredged offshore often contains artifacts so it's a trade-off.
                              The 3 tidal rivers that border the Middle Peninsula where I live all yield great artifacts but shorelines are private property to the high tide line. With most riverfront lots 250' wide or less, that's a lot of owners to ask permission to hunt.
                              Child of the tides

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